One to Watch Author Spotlight

One to Watch is our promotion where we look at authors whose books are making news, or making noise, but whose work does not fall in a specific genre like suspense/thriller or mystery. Typically the books here will be fiction, but if we spot a nonfiction title we love, we will be quick to feature it as well. Some of these books will be debuts, but not all. They all will be books we want to scream about and share.

Ian McEwan, author of Sweet Tooth

Set in 1972 during the Cold War, England's legendary intelligence agency MI5 embarks on an operation code-named "Sweet Tooth" to fund writers whose politics align with those of the government. Cambridge student Serena Frome is hired to infiltrate the literary circle of a promising young writer named Tom Haley. But when she begins to fall in love with him, she wonders how long she can conceal her undercover life.

Vaddey Ratner, author of In the Shadow of the Banyan

For seven-year-old Raami, the shattering end of childhood begins the night her father comes home bringing details of the civil war that has overwhelmed the streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital. Over the next four years, as she endures the deaths of family members, starvation, and brutal forced labor, Raami clings to the remaining vestige of childhood --- the mythical legends and poems her father told her.

Nelle Davy, author of The Legacy of Eden

For generations, Aurelia was the crowning glory of the Hathaways --- thousands of acres of Iowa farmland and golden cornfields. Now the last inhabitant of the decaying old home has died --- alone. None of the surviving family members want anything to do with the farm, the land or the memories. But with the receipt of a pleading letter, Meredith Pincetti is again thrust into conflict with the legacy that destroyed her family's once-great name. Back at the farm, Meredith must confront the rise and fall of Aurelia…and her own part in its mottled history.

Vanessa Diffenbaugh, author of The Language of Flowers

Vanessa Diffenbaugh's debut novel, THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS, creates a vivid portrait of an unforgettable woman whose gift for flowers helps her change the lives of others even as she struggles to overcome her own troubled past.

Patti Callahan Henry, author of Coming Up for Air

Ellie Calvin is caught in a dying marriage, and she knows this. With her beloved daughter away at college and a growing gap between her and her husband --- between her reality and the woman she wants to be --- she doesn't quite seem to fit into her own life.

Alice LaPlante, author of Turn of Mind

A stunning first novel, both literary and thriller, about a retired orthopedic surgeon with dementia, TURN OF MIND has already received worldwide attention.

Margaret Leroy, author of The Soldier's Wife

A novel full of grand passion and intensity, THE SOLDIER'S WIFE asks "What would you do for your family?" "What should you do for a stranger?" and "What would you do for love?"

Rae Meadows, author of Mothers and Daughters

Samantha is lost in the joys of new motherhood --- the softness of her 8-month-old daughter's skin, the lovely weight of her child in her arms --- but in trading her artistic dreams to care for her child, Sam worries she's lost something of herself.

Sarita Mandanna, author of Tiger Hills

As the first girl to be born into the Nachimanda family in over thirty-five years, the beautiful Devi is the object of adoration of her entire family. Spirited and strong-willed, she befriends the shy Devanna, a young boy whose mother has died in tragic circumstances.

Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife

A deeply evocative story of ambition and betrayal, THE PARIS WIFE captures a remarkable period of time and a love affair between two unforgettable people: Ernest Hemingway and his wife Hadley.

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