July 27, 2018

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"Rain" and "Read" Both Start with "R"
and Have Four Letters

Well, the one thing I did not have to do this week was water the plants. Tom was traveling on business, and at one point I thought the pool was going to overflow; I think we got three inches of rain! I looked out the window Monday night, and it appeared that it was raining upwards. Then I realized that the sprinkler that sits on top of the deck was on. I quickly turned that off!

I have had a great week of reading, with more time than usual to do that as it was too rainy to hit the pool. I started last weekend reading AN UNWANTED GUEST by Shari Lapena, which will be in stores on August 7th. The book takes place at a small inn during a snowstorm. I am here to share that when the weather is hot and humid, reading a book set in a snowstorm is perfect. She employs the “locked in” technique that is a part of many thrillers. The phones are out, the internet is down and the electricity is off. And someone gets murdered. And then someone else does. What’s going on here? Whip out a flashlight to try to figure it out…and oh, the battery on the light on your cell phone is dying. Everyone has something to hide, and there’s a lot to unravel besides the murders. This is Shari’s third psychological thriller, and it will keep you guessing.

I have been a longtime fan of Fiona Davis, so I was happy to pick up her third book, THE MASTERPIECE, which also will be out on August 7th. Fiona does a fabulous job of weaving history (always two different periods) and famous New York City locations together. Here she looks at Grand Central Terminal. In the past she has explored The Barbizon Hotel and The Dakota. The setting this time is 1928 and 1974, and the common thread is the Grand Central School of Art; one woman discovers the painting of another there and seeks to find the artist. I have toured Grand Central Terminal a few times and thought I knew most of its history, but once again she has surprised me with details I did not know.

At the same time, I am reading THE BANKER’S WIFE by Cristina Alger, which came out earlier this month. I saw some ads online for this book, which had me asking the staff to search our shelves for it. I was so glad that we had a copy. Here we have a plane crash where a young man is killed, leaving his wife, Annabel Werner, to pick up the pieces left behind. As she grieves, she learns there may be a much more sinister reason for this crash. At the same time, a young journalist, Marina Tourneau, is unraveling the story of the crash, which involves some very powerful men in the financial world. Her dilemma? The people she is writing about are very close to some people she knows. So does the story get told?

I am juggling both books, which is easy since they are so very different.

I am listening to THE OTHER WOMAN by Sandie Jones, which will be in stores on August 21st. I know, I know, it has the same title as Daniel Silva’s book, which came out last week. Trust me, they are different. In this book, a young woman meets a young guy and falls for him. The problem is that the other woman is not another girlfriend --- it’s his mother! Emily has to really love this guy to be putting up with the mother’s drama. It’s really addicting.

Today, Jen Hart from William Morrow came over to the house for a day of sunning, knitting, chatting about books, and lots more chatting about life. We have tried to get together here for the last couple of summers and never got it together. It was a really lovely way to spend part of a Friday. We talked books, so it counts as work, right? You can see the two of us above. I love days like this --- wish there were more of them.

Linwood Barclay’s new psychological thriller, A NOISE DOWNSTAIRS, introduces readers to college professor Paul Davis, whose life is turned upside down after seeing a murderer disposing of a couple of bodies on the side of a deserted road late one night. Following this disturbing encounter, Paul finds himself battling PTSD, depression and severe problems at work. His wife, Charlotte, brings home a vintage typewriter to encourage him to get started on that novel he’s always intended to write. However, Paul swears that it is possessed and types by itself at night. But only he can hear the noise coming from downstairs, and Charlotte fears he’s going off the rails. Paul believes the typewriter is somehow connected to the killer he witnessed nearly a year ago.

Joe Hartlaub has our review and says, “A NOISE DOWNSTAIRS contains a number of mysteries --- some of which aren’t even introduced until late in the book --- and while you may guess some of them, you almost certainly won’t figure them all out. Even if you do, you’ll enjoy the wild ride that Barclay gives you from the beginning of this fine tale to its surprising conclusion.” You can see a photo of Linwood and Joe above. They caught up at the Westerville Library in Westerville, Ohio, where Linwood made an appearance on Thursday night to a really great crowd. I am so glad they got to do that. This will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick; don’t miss my commentary in next week’s newsletter.

A NOISE DOWNSTAIRS is one of our Word of Mouth prizes; the other is BLOODY SUNDAY by Ben Coes, which we review next week. Submit your comments about the books you’ve read for your chance to win both these thrillers. Please do so by Friday, August 3rd at noon ET.

Another notable psychological thriller that released this week is BELIEVE ME by JP Delaney, whose 2017 novel, THE GIRL BEFORE, was a New York Times bestseller and a Bets On selection. Claire, a struggling actor without a green card, agrees to become a decoy for a firm of divorce lawyers. Hired to entrap straying husbands, she must catch them on tape with their seductive propositions. When the wife of one of Claire’s targets is violently murdered, the cops are convinced that the husband is to blame. Desperate to catch him before he kills again, they enlist Claire to lure him into a confession. But who really is the decoy here? And who is the prey?

Reviewer Ray Palen calls BELIEVE ME “a current and timely novel” and goes on to say, “Things are quickly set onto a roller coaster track of thrills with some twists and turns you will not see coming. It's safe to take literally the plea that Delaney's title begs. The only problem is you will not know who to believe, and the storyline goes through the looking glass and beyond it. The book has a killer ending that truly delivers and is a nice complement to the rest of the story.” This, too, will be a Bets On pick; find out why in next week’s newsletter.

We’re giving away the audio version of BELIEVE ME (read by Sally Scott and others), along with Debbie Macomber’s COTTAGE BY THE SEA (read by Karissa Vacker), in our Sounding Off on Audio contest. Let us know by Wednesday, August 1st at noon ET what audiobooks you’ve listened to, and you’ll be in the running to win both these audio titles.

A NOISE DOWNSTAIRS and BELIEVE ME were two of our Summer Reading prizes this week, in addition to THE SUMMER WIVES by Beatriz Williams and CLASS MOM by Laurie Gelman. Next week, we’ll be giving away NEED TO KNOW by Karen Cleveland (this was a Bets On selection when it released in hardcover earlier this year), SHE WAS THE QUIET ONE by Michele Campbell, and TAILSPIN by Sandra Brown. The first contest of the week will go live on Monday, July 30th at noon ET.

Other books we’re reviewing this week include BABY TEETH, a debut psychological thriller from award-winning playwright and filmmaker Zoje Stage featuring a battle of wills between a mother and her seven-year-old daughter; ONLY TO SLEEP by Lawrence Osborne, which marks the return of private investigator Philip Marlowe for one last adventure; Katherine J. Chen’s MARY B, in which the overlooked middle sister in Jane Austen’s PRIDE AND PREJUDICE takes center stage; and DAY OF THE DEAD, the final book in Nicci French’s series starring psychologist Frieda Klein.

We’ve updated our Young Adult Books You Want to Read feature, books we've recently reviewed on Teenreads.com that we think will appeal to an adult audience. This month’s titles are THE LONELIEST GIRL IN THE UNIVERSE by Lauren James, TRADITION by Brendan Kiely, and LETTING GO OF GRAVITY by Meg Leder.

Our poll continues to ask about the paid subscription services you may or may not subscribe to (Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc.). Click here to cast your votes!

We wanted to remind you about Penguin Random House’s BIG contest. They are giving away all 100(!) books from PBS’s "Great American Read" series, which profiles America’s most beloved books. Click here to enter to win this epic grand prize (and be sure to vote for your favorite novel from the list!). The entry deadline is Friday, August 31st at 11pm ET.

On Tuesday, Simon & Schuster held a Facebook Live chat where Alice Hoffman joined three members of their team to discuss THE RULES OF MAGIC, which recently came out in paperback. This prequel to Hoffman's 1995 bestseller, PRACTICAL MAGIC, is the inaugural title in Simon & Schuster’s Book Club Favorites program, a new initiative that features and promotes noteworthy book club titles. Click here to see the full discussion, along with comments from readers about the book. Next month’s pick, which was announced at the end of the chat, will be MANHATTAN BEACH by Jennifer Egan. Having listened to the audiobook, which was so well done, I know there will be plenty to discuss about this title!

The longlist for this year’s Man Booker Prize has been announced. Click here to see these 13 books, referred to as the “Man Booker Dozen.” The shortlist of six books will be announced on September 20th, followed by the announcement of the winner on October 16th.

In other awards news, the legal thriller PROOF, the second book in C. E. Tobisman’s Caroline Auden series, was the recipient of the 2018 Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction. Said Tobisman, “The spirit of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD is the spirit of one person’s ability to make the world a little more fair. That the selection committee saw that spirit in my book is something that I will treasure forever.” Tobisman will be honored with a signed special edition of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD at the 2018 prize ceremony at the Library of Congress on August 30th, in conjunction with the National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.

News & Pop Culture

Reader Mail:

Susan wrote about the squirrel that ate the hibiscus: "Love your newsletter. Regarding your bold squirrel, these things worked for us. I don't think this is the brand I bought, but I got the solar-powered ones that vibrate and make a little noise. Scares them away. In CA, rodents get into the fruit trees and run off with the fruit! Cheap fix, and you can find them on Amazon.

Sylvia, who describes herself as “A fellow reader from Arizona where it is too hot to do anything other than read and knit right now,” wrote and said, "I always enjoy reading your newsletter and seeing the results of the polls. I am also a knitter and really enjoy seeing which projects you are doing --- the last one with the DMC hat toppers is adorable, and I just ordered three of them from the Ravelry website. If you are looking for a great book to read: THE OVERSTORY by Richard Powers. The writing is brilliant and captivating --- the kind of book you never want to end.” We ran our review back in April, which you can read here. Our reviewer described it much the same way; I love when our readers share our enthusiasm!

Robin wrote with a report about the Random House Open House last week: "My daughter-in-law, Julia Lensing, and I were at the Summer Open House. I alerted her to the event when I heard about it because Emily Giffin is her favorite author. I thought she might want to go with a friend. Well, she reached out immediately and said she would like to go and would I go with her, and she would treat me! She married my oldest son 10 years ago, and we have a great relationship. What's neat about Emily is that when Julia was deployed both times to Afghanistan, I would buy the newest book and mail it to her. It was a nice connection we had. I would read the same titles from the library so we could talk about them via email. Yes, she and my son are Army majors and West Point grads who teach at USMA. She teaches systems engineering.

"We had a great time last week, and I would say of the three I've been to, this was my favorite. Emily was so lovely and gracious. I told her the story about mailing her books overseas, and she seemed really touched. The whole lineup of authors was fantastic, and it was a pleasant surprise to learn that Emily's favorite author, Elinor Lipman, was there as part of the Q&A. Hope we cross paths again at another book event!"

What a wonderful story! You can see Emily above with Julia (on the left) and Robin (on the right).

Recovery Boys: Watched this documentary on Netflix about a farm in West Virginia where opioid addicts go to work on their recovery. It follows the path of four of these young men. I cannot stop thinking about it; there is so much in it to discuss. I appreciate the doctor who conceptualized the place and set it up. By the way, the director of this film also directed Heroin(e), also on Netflix.

"The Affair": After a few truly not great seasons, this one is quite good. Learned this week that the fifth and final season will air next year.

HBO: Feeling that they have lost their mojo a bit. I could not get into either "Sharp Objects" or "Succession." Just did not work for me. While Showtime is putting out many shows that I like, and Netflix is a machine of things I enjoy, HBO has had just "Big Little Lies" and "The Deuce," which sparked my interest. I used to enjoy their documentaries more; I feel like the pace of those has slowed down.

"This Is Us": Was reading a piece about the new season of this hit show. There is a backstory about Vietnam, and they brought Tim O'Brien in to write it. You know him as the author of THE THINGS THEY CARRIED.

Mercury is retrograde until August 19th. Longtime readers know about this; new readers, click here.

This week, I made a plum rhubarb cobbler. I made up the recipe riffing off of this one. I also had a lovely surprise when a work colleague sent me flowers on Monday, as a very unexpected thank-you present. It’s a stunning arrangement that brightened a really rainy week with a stunning fragrance, thus I am sharing with you above. And the flowers were lovely shades of blue, clearly inspired by my love of turquoise.

Greg is in Ann Arbor, Michigan, this weekend for the Liverpool vs. Manchester United game; he wanted to see a game in “The Big House.” On Wednesday night, he caught them playing Manchester City at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, which we still refer to in our house as Giants Stadium. He drove out to Michigan with his friend, Angela. He vowed he would be back in the office on Monday morning. He has used his skills to track down where the team is staying and has met the manager (photo to come next week). There are moments when I do not doubt that Greg is my son; this is one of them.

Cory has many plans, and none of them seem to be very solid, but I am sure that fun will be had. We are getting together with some neighbors on Sunday, and I plan on getting a lot of reading done. This week, I organized my bookshelf with “to be read’ titles. It’s still a HUGE stack of books, but now they are organized, and I feel more at peace about the reading I need to do. Jen was amused by how many knitting projects I have in progress. It's somewhat of an addiction.

Here comes the rain again. I am off to do my favorite "R" word --- read.

Read on, and have a great week.

Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)

P.S. For those of you who are doing online shopping, if you use the store links below, Bookreporter.com gets a small affiliate fee on your purchases. We would appreciate your considering this!

Featured Review: A NOISE DOWNSTAIRS
by Linwood Barclay
A Bookreporter.com Bets On Title

A NOISE DOWNSTAIRS by Linwood Barclay (Psychological Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by George Newbern
College professor Paul Davis is a normal guy with a normal life. Until, driving along a deserted road late one night, he surprises a murderer disposing of a couple of bodies. That’s when Paul’s "normal" existence is turned upside down. After nearly losing his own life in that encounter, he finds himself battling PTSD, depression and severe problems at work. His wife, Charlotte, brings home a vintage typewriter to encourage him to get started on that novel he’s always intended to write. However, Paul swears that it is possessed and types by itself at night. But only Paul can hear the noise coming from downstairs; Charlotte doesn’t hear a thing. And she worries he’s going off the rails. Paul believes the typewriter is somehow connected to the murderer he discovered nearly a year ago. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

- Click here to read more about the book.