Fiction Review

Robert Dugoni has always been popular at the Poisoned Pen. He’s back, Saturday, April 28 at 2 PM to talk about and sign his latest novel, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell. Signed copies of this book, and copies of Dugoni’s others, are also available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2JxAtto

Here’s the summary of The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell.

Wall Street Journal and New York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni’s coming-of-age story is, according to Booklist, “a novel that, if it doesn’t cross entirely over into John Irving territory, certainly nestles in close to the border.”

Sam Hill always saw the world through different eyes. Born with red pupils, he was called “Devil Boy” or Sam “Hell” by his classmates; “God’s will” is what his mother called his ocular albinism. Her words were of little comfort, but Sam persevered, buoyed by his mother’s devout faith, his father’s practical wisdom, and his two other misfit friends.

Sam believed it was God who sent Ernie Cantwell, the only African American kid in his class, to be the friend he so desperately needed. And that it was God’s idea for Mickie Kennedy to storm into Our Lady of Mercy like a tornado, uprooting every rule Sam had been taught about boys and girls.

Forty years later, Sam, a small-town eye doctor, is no longer certain anything was by design—especially not the tragedy that caused him to turn his back on his friends, his hometown, and the life he’d always known. Running from the pain, eyes closed, served little purpose. Now, as he looks back on his life, Sam embarks on a journey that will take him halfway around the world. This time, his eyes are wide open—bringing into clear view what changed him, defined him, and made him so afraid, until he can finally see what truly matters.

Let’s face it. While this week brings the Edgar Awards and Malice Domestic with the Agatha Awards, the biggest news in the crime world yesterday was the arrest of the suspect believed to be the “East Area Rapist” or the “Golden State Killer” in California. The attorneys are crediting DNA. Many of the true crime aficionados are crediting Michelle McNamara and her unrelenting investigation. The late journalist is the author of the bestseller, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark. There are copies available in the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2r1lD6u

There are several other titles available for order at the same link. And, you can also find a few other titles by searching East Area Rapist. https://bit.ly/2HRNzEm

We’ll have news of award winners coming up this weekend when the awards are presented. In the meantime, DNA, McNamara’s book, and the arrest of a suspect for crimes committed thirty to forty years ago, are the hot topic.

The current Hot Book of the Week at the Poisoned Pen is Jon Talton’s The Bomb Shelter. Signed copies, along with copies of Talton’s other books, can be ordered through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2vFQj31

Here’s the description of the book.

The past never rests easy in Arizona.

Forty years ago, a Phoenix reporter was killed by a car bomb in one of America’s most notorious crimes. Three men went to prison – but was there more to the story of Charles Page’s assassination? More than three low-level players? Did a kingpin order the hit and get away with it? And what was the real motive? Despite the work of teams of journalists and law and legal professionals, no one yet knows why.

It’s a case custom-made for David Mapstone, the historian-turned-sheriff’s deputy. And suddenly Mapstone’s boss, newly re-elected Sheriff Mike Peralta, promises to reopen the investigation into the only murder of an American journalist, in the US, in modern times. Why?

The promise triggers new murders. The crimes are reenactments of Phoenix’s mob-riddled past, where gangsters rubbed elbows with the city’s elite amid crosscurrents of corrupt cops, political payoffs, gambling, prostitution, and murder, all shielded by the sunshine image of a resort city. But who is committing them? A former soldier who is an explosives expert and deadly with a knife? A woman with screen-siren looks and extraordinary computer skills? Or someone out of Phoenix’s seamy, swinging Seventies with secrets to keep, even though the major power brokers are dead?

Mapstone will need all the help he can get. He enlists a PhD candidate and Black Lives Matter activist to help him comb through sealed archives of the original bombing. Mapstone’s wife, Lindsey, a top hacker, rejoins the Sheriff’s Office and plays a dangerous cat-and-mouse game with the perp or perps – one that goes from the digital to the real and risky world. Somewhere in the house of mirrors surrounding the Page case they must find the key that connects the past to the present.

In this swiftly paced, compelling new novel by journalist Jon Talton, the ninth in the David Mapstone series, a big city is trying to keep its darkest history off-limits.

*****

The Bomb Shelter is about the murder of a journalist. Talton’s book, Deadline Man, was also about a journalist. And, who better to review that book than a fellow journalist and mystery writer, Bruce DeSilva? He wrote a piece on his own site called, “A Very Tardy Review of Jon Talton’s Gripping Newspaper Mystery, “Deadline Man”. You can read it here. https://bit.ly/2HoihBx

Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects, starring Amy Adams, will be a limited series on HBO beginning in July. It’s always best to read the book first, and there are copies of Sharp Objects and Flynn’s other books in the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2HSyi3G

The trailer was just released, if you’d like to see it.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgljcMqPG98?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

Last year when Jill Orr’s The Good Byline came out, I interviewed her for my personal blog. She’ll be at the Poisoned Pen on Thursday, April 26 at 2 PM, so it’s the perfect time to introduce her to you. She’s be talking about and signing her new Riley Ellison mystery, The Bad Break. You can order signed copies through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2IQD4xY

I’m glad Jill found time in her schedule to answer questions, to sit “In the Hot Seat”.

Jill, would you introduce yourself to the Poisoned Pen blog readers?

My name is Jill Orr and I am the author of the Riley Ellison mystery series, which features an obituary-obsessed millennial heroine. Originally from Chicago, I now live in Columbia, Missouri with my husband and two children.

Tell us about Riley Ellison.

Twenty-four year old Riley Ellison lives in the small town of Tuttle Corner, VA, where everybody knows your name— and your business. This hasn’t worked out especially well for Riley. Her odd preoccupation with obituaries combined with a very public meltdown over her grandfather’s suspicious death and her inability to pick up the pieces after being dumped by her longtime boyfriend have caused the residents of Tuttle Corner to unofficially change her name from Riley Ellison to Riley Bless Her Heart. But Riley is nothing if not an optimist, so she’s working hard to make changes and live her best life. She just doesn’t always get it right.

Tell us about The Bad Break without spoilers.

The Bad Break opens when a local cardiologist is found dead and Riley is tasked with writing his obituary for the local newspaper. When it’s revealed the good doctor was murdered (and may not have been so good after all), Riley ends up covering the murder investigation as well. Desperate to prove to her boss, her co-workers, and herself that she is up to job, Riley gets reckless in her search for the truth and blurs the line between reporter and investigator. As her professional life spirals out of control, her personal life takes some hits as well. Just when she thinks she knows what to do to fix it all, the killer finds her. . .  and has a very different solution in mind.

Can you tell us what might be happening with Riley in the third book in the series?

In book three, a high-profile double murder brings national attention to the small community of Tuttle Corner, VA. The sheriff hasn’t made any arrests, but Rosalee, the enigmatic French owner of Tuttle’s favorite cafe, is already being treated like a suspect by the swarm of out-of-town press looking for a juicy headline. Riley and Holman think Rosalee is being framed and are determined to tell her side of the story—if only they could find her. Riley’s investigation provokes powerful people with dubious business interests in Tuttle Corner that make her question everything she thought she knew about Rosalee’s past, present, and future. And when Holman and Riley finally find Rosalee, they realize their problems are only just beginning.

As a wife, mother, blogger, writer, tell us about juggling your schedule to find time to write.

My kids are both in school so I write when they’re out of the house. The hours between 2:30 and 8pm are reserved for driving them around town to their various activities (and listening to podcasts and audiobooks) but after that I’ll often end up working for another couple of hours. I write when I can, so sometimes I have long stretches and sometimes I have twenty-minutes here and there. I take the time where I can get it!

If someone comes to visit, where do you take them to show off Columbia, Missouri?

Oh, I love this question! Shakespeare’s Pizza is a must, as is Booches for the best burgers you’ve ever had served on little slips of wax paper. I like to take people for a walk through the quad on Mizzou’s campus (where I went to undergrad and graduate school), and if it’s football season I love to take friends to tailgate and cheer on the Missouri Tigers! Columbia also has a super cool downtown and it’s always fun to walk around the little shops and restaurants down there. In addition, Columbia is a town of great festivals, so depending on the time of year, there is always the possibility of a fab festival happening around town!

What authors have inspired you?

There are so many, but the ones that top my list are authors who are able to combine humor and heart like Maria Semple, Janet Evanovich, Darynda Jones, Lisa Lutz, Sophie Kinsella, Meg Cabot, and Alan Bradley. I also love essayists Lisa Kogan and Colin Nissan when I want some non-fiction humor.

What’s on your TBR pile right now?

I’m still working my way through Alan Bradley’s highly entertaining Flavia de Luce series, which I adore. Next up in the queue is the first book in the Stella Reynolds mysteries by Libby Kirsch and a standalone called How to Stop Time by Matt Haig. I also just put The Last Equation of Issac Severy by Nova Jacobs on my list based on the recommendation from the Poisoned Pen blog!

What did you read as a child? What was your favorite book? Or, if you prefer, who was your favorite character?

As a young child, I had a particular affection for Ramona Quimby. (I still do.) And I guess I must have been a series reader from the start because I also loved the Betsy-Tacy books, the Sweet Valley High series, Encyclopedia Brown, of course Nancy Drew, anything by Judy Blume, all of Roald Dahl’s books. . .  I could go on and on. I read a lot as a kid!

Name an author or a book that you wish had received more attention.

The Sisters of Alameda Street by Lorena Hughes. This is a beautiful family saga—and a great mystery— about family secrets, lies, betrayal, and love set in 1960s Ecuador.

Thank you, Jill. You can find Jill’s website at https://jillorrauthor.com. And, of course, you can find her at the Poisoned Pen on Thursday at 2 PM.

Steve Hamilton’s Alex McKnight character returns in the eleventh book in the series with the August 2018 release of Dead Man Running. Don’t worry. You’ll be able to order a copy through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2vvYdf9

Here’s the description.

Alex McKnight–hero of Steve Hamilton’s bestselling, award-winning, and beloved private eye series–is back in a high-stakes, nail-biting thriller, facing the most dangerous enemy he’s ever encountered.

On the Mediterranean Sea, a vacationer logs on to the security-camera feed from his home in Scottsdale, Arizona. Something about his living room seems not quite right–the room is bright, when he’s certain he’d left the curtains closed. Rewinding through the feed, he sees an intruder. When he shifts to the bedroom camera, he sees the dead body.

Martin T. Livermore is the key suspect in the abduction and murder of at least five women, but he’s never been this sloppy before. When the FBI finally catches him in Scottsdale, he declares he’ll only talk to one person: a retired police officer from Detroit, now a private investigator living in the tiny town of Paradise, Michigan. A man named Alex McKnight.

Livermore means nothing to McKnight, but it soon becomes clear McKnight means something to Livermore…and that Livermore’s capture was only the beginning of an elaborate, twisted plot with McKnight at the center. In a hunt that will take him across the country and to the edge of his limits, McKnight fights to stop a vicious killer before he can exact his ultimate revenge. And his grand finale will cut closer to home than he ever could have imagined.

*****

And, a tip of the hat to The Real Book Spy who revealed the cover and talked about the release of Dead Man Running. https://bit.ly/2K3SoZt

Did you see the Facebook post that featured the off-site Poisoned Pen event with Lisa Scottoline and Jeffery Deaver? https://www.facebook.com/238297496213972/videos/1765601963483510/

If you did, you had a sneak peek and a little background for Scottoline’s New York Times bestseller, After Anna. Signed copies are still available in the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2qOXXCb

Here’s the summary of After Anna.

Nobody cuts deeper than family…

Dr. Noah Alderman, a widower and single father, has remarried a wonderful woman, Maggie Ippolitti, and for the first time in a long time, he and his young son are happy. Despite her longing for the daughter she hasn’t seen since she was a baby, Maggie is happy too, and she’s even more overjoyed when she unexpectedly gets another chance to be a mother to the child she thought she’d lost forever, her only daughter Anna.

Maggie and Noah know that having Anna around will change their lives, but they would never have guessed that everything would go wrong, and so quickly. Anna turns out to be a gorgeous seventeen-year-old who balks at living under their rules, though Maggie, ecstatic to have her daughter back, ignores the red flags that hint at the trouble brewing in a once-perfect marriage and home.

Events take a heartbreaking turn when Anna is murdered and Noah is accused and tried for the heinous crime. Maggie must face not only the devastation of losing her daughter, but the realization that Anna’s murder may have been at the hands of a husband she loves. In the wake of this tragedy, new information drives Maggie to search for the truth, leading her to discover something darker than she could have ever imagined.

Riveting and disquieting,After Anna is a groundbreaking domestic thriller, as well as a novel of emotional justice and legal intrigue. And New York Times bestselling author Lisa Scottoline will keep readers on their toes until the final shocking page

Praise for Lisa Scottoline:

“Scottoline keeps the pace relentlessas she drops a looming threat into the heart of an idyllic suburban community, causing readers to hold their breath in anticipation.” —BooklistonOne Perfect Lie

“Readers can be assured that the author nails the high school milieu, from athletic rivalries to sexting…they’re in for one thrilling ride.” —KirkusonOne Perfect Lie

“Entertaining…Thisfast-paced read culminates in a daring chase that would play well on the big screen.” —Publishers Weekly

*****

Carol Memmott, in The Washington Post, calls After Anna, “a deliciously distracting thriller”. Here’s her review. https://wapo.st/2K2QlFd

And, you’ll definitely want to review Tina Jordan’s article in The New York Times. After Anna debuts at number two on the bestselling list. Jordan’s article is called, “This Bestselling Author Lives With 4 Dogs, 17 Chickens, 3 Horses, a Pony, and a Cat.” https://nyti.ms/2K3NZ8O

As a fan of Cora Harrison’s historical mystery series set in 1920s Ireland, I was caught by the title of Olivia Kiernan’s article in Electric Literature. It’s called “7 Crime Novels Written by Irish Women”, and it’s here. https://bit.ly/2H8ymz7

The books mentioned did not include Harrison’s titles. Kiernan herself is the author of Too Close to Breathe, and she selected authors who write what she refers to as “emerald noir”.

You’ll probably recognize some of the names such as Tana French and Jane Casey. Most of the books mentioned are available through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/. One caution, though. If you’re looking for Jess Kidd’s The Hoarder, in the United States, it was published under the title Mr. Flood’s Last Resort. You never know what you’ll discover on a list of crime novels.

Ada Palmer is the winner of the 2017 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. Now, she’ll be at the Poisoned Pen on Friday, April 20 at 7 PM to talk about her book, Too Like the Lightning. Palmer’s books are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2J77D2K

Here’s the description of Too Like the Lightning.

From the winner of the 2017 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, Ada Palmer’s 2017 Compton Crook Award-winning political science fiction,Too Like the Lightning, ventures into a human future of extraordinary originality

Mycroft Canner is a convict. For his crimes he is required, as is the custom of the 25th century, to wander the world being as useful as he can to all he meets. Carlyle Foster is a sensayer–a spiritual counselor in a world that has outlawed the public practice of religion, but which also knows that the inner lives of humans cannot be wished away.

The world into which Mycroft and Carlyle have been born is as strange to our 21st-century eyes as ours would be to a native of the 1500s. It is a hard-won utopia built on technologically-generated abundance, and also on complex and mandatory systems of labelling all public writing and speech. What seem to us normal gender distinctions are now distinctly taboo in most social situations. And most of the world’s population is affiliated with globe-girdling clans of the like-minded, whoseendless economic and cultural competion is carefully managed by central planners of inestimable subtlety. To us it seems like a mad combination of heaven and hell. To them, it seems like normal life.

And in this world, Mycroft and Carlyle have stumbled on the wild card that may destablize the system: the boy Bridger, who can effortlessly make his wishes come true. Who can, it would seem, bring inanimate objects to life…

Terra Ignota
1.Too Like the Lightning
2.Seven Surrenders
3.The Will to Battle

*****

In a recent article in The Phoenix New Times, Michael Senft said, “Ada Palmer is a true polymath. In addition to her day job as a history professor, the Harvard-educated Palmer performs with the filk group Sassafrass at cons and Ren fairs across the country. She’s also an award-winning science-fiction novelist.

“That’s the hat Palmer will be wearing when she visits the Poisoned Pen on Friday, April 20. Palmer will discuss her “Terra Ignota” series, set in a 25th-Century Earth ruled according to Enlightenment philosophy. Alas, all is not for the best in that best of all possible worlds, as a criminal and a spiritualist attempt to hide the existence of God in a society where religion is outlawed.”

Amos Decker, the Memory Man, is back in David Baldacci’s The Fallen. The Fallen is the current Hot Book of the Week at the Poisoned Pen. You can order a signed copy of it through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2HvV1oG

Here’s the description of The Fallen.

Amos Decker is the Memory Man. Following a football-related head injury that altered his personality, Decker is now unable to forget even the smallest detail–as much a curse as it is a blessing. And in #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci’s gripping new thriller, Decker’s life might be about to change again…

Something sinister is going on in Baronville. The rust belt town has seen four bizarre murders in the space of two weeks. Cryptic clues left at the scenes–obscure bible verses, odd symbols–have the police stumped.

Amos Decker and his FBI colleague Alex Jamison are in Baronville visiting Alex’s sister and her family. It’s a bleak place: a former mill and mining town with a crumbling economy and rampant opioid addiction. Decker has only been there a few hours when he stumbles on a horrific double murder scene.

Then the next killing hits sickeningly close to home. And with the lives of people he cares about suddenly hanging in the balance, Decker begins to realize that the recent string of deaths may be only one small piece of a much larger scheme–with consequences that will reach far beyond Baronville.

Decker, with his singular talents, may be the only one who can crack this bizarre case. Only this time–when one mistake could cost him everything–Decker finds that his previously infallible memory may not be so trustworthy after all…

“Decker is one of the most unusual detectives any novelist has dreamed up.” –-Washington Post