Precious Ramotswe has taken on two puzzling cases. Lawyer Mma Sheba, the executor of a deceased farmer’s estate, has a feeling that the young man who has stepped forward may be falsely impersonating the farmer’s nephew in order to claim his inheritance. Meanwhile, rumors are swirling that the Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon is using dangerous products that burn people’s skin. Could someone be trying to put the salon out of business?

Arkady Renko has survived the cultural journey from the Soviet Union to the New Russia, only to find the nation as obsessed with secrecy and brutality as was the old Communist dictatorship. In TATIANA, the melancholy hero --- cynical, analytical and quietly subversive --- unravels a mystery as complex and dangerous as modern Russia itself.

Amy Tan's latest novel tells the story of two women’s intertwined fates and their search for identity. Spanning more than 40 years and two continents, THE VALLEY OF AMAZEMENT transports readers from the collapse of China's last imperial dynasty to the beginning of the Republic, and recaptures the lost world of old Shanghai through the inner workings of courtesan houses and the lives of the foreigners living in the International Settlement, both erased by World War II.

When Chet and Bernie happen upon a prison work crew that includes Frenchie Boutette, an old criminal pal they sent up the river, getting a new case is the last thing they expect. But Frenchie, who comes from an old Louisiana family full of black sheep, needs help finding his one law-abiding relative: his brother Ralph, a reclusive inventor who has gone missing with his houseboat.

Sheriff Walt Longmire is reading A CHRISTMAS CAROL in his office on December 24th when he’s interrupted by a mysterious young woman with more than a few questions about his predecessor, Lucian Connally. Lucian swears he’s never laid eyes on the woman before. Disappointed, she whispers “Steamboat” and begins a story that takes them all back to Christmas Eve 1988, when three people died in a terrible crash and a young girl had the slimmest chance of survival.

Undercover CIA agent Vanessa Pierson tries to pinpoint just who is building a nuclear weapon in Iran --- and how this shadowy figure has discovered the identities of several of her sources and had them assassinated. She’s getting closer, putting her cover and her career --- not to mention her life --- at risk. BLOWBACK by former CIA ops officer Valerie Plame and thriller writer Sarah Lovett marks the explosive beginning of the hunt for a villain whom Pierson devotes her life to capturing.

Chris Matthews was a top aide to Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill, who waged a principled war of political ideals with President Reagan from 1980 to 1986. Together, the two men forged compromises that shaped America’s future and became one of history’s most celebrated political pairings --- the epitome of how ideological opposites can get things done.

TEATIME FOR THE FIREFLY is a charming tale of unexpected romance between two misfits in traditional Indian society. Shona Patel's debut novel is a fish-out-of-water love story told partially through letters, and set within an exotic and enchanting world where social upheaval and the threat of World War II lingers on their doorstep.

John Sevier had not taken much interest in the American Revolution, since he was too busy fighting Indians in the Carolinas and taming the wilderness. But when an arrogant British officer threatened his settlement --- promising to burn the farms and kill families --- the war became personal. That arrogant officer is Patrick Ferguson of the British Army. Inventor of the Ferguson rifle and the devoted lover to his mistress, Virginia Sal, Patrick becomes a delightful anti-hero.

When Chief Inspector Armand Gamache receives a message from Myrna Landers that a longtime friend has failed to arrive for Christmas in the village of Three Pines, he welcomes the chance to get away from the city. Mystified by Myrna's reluctance to reveal her friend's name, Gamache soon discovers the missing woman was once one of the most famous people in the world, and now goes unrecognized by virtually everyone except the mad, brilliant poet Ruth Zardo.