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March 28, 2023

In this newsletter, you will find books releasing the weeks of March 27th and April 3rd that we think will be of interest to Bookreporter.com readers, along with Bonus News, where we call out a contest, feature or review that we want to let you know about so you have it on your radar.

This week, we are calling attention to our review of LOYALTY, Lisa Scottoline's second historical novel following the 2021 release of ETERNAL. Set during the rise of the Mafia in Sicily, this emotional, action-packed epic of love and justice is now in stores and will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick. Don't miss Carol Fitzgerald's interview with Lisa in the March 31st Bookreporter Weekly Update newsletter and her Bets On commentary in the April 7th Weekly Update newsletter.

March 28, 2023

This Bookreporter.com Special Newsletter spotlights a book that we know people will be talking about this spring. Read more about it, and enter our Spring Preview Contest by Wednesday, March 29th at noon ET for a chance to win one of five copies of THE ONLY SURVIVORS by Megan Miranda, which releases on April 11th. Please note that each contest is only open for 24 hours, so you will need to act quickly!

Salman Rushdie, author of Victory City

In the wake of an unimportant battle between two long-forgotten kingdoms in 14th-century southern India, a nine-year-old girl has a divine encounter that will change the course of history. After witnessing the death of her mother, the grief-stricken Pampa Kampana becomes a vessel for her namesake, the goddess Pampa, who begins to speak out of the girl’s mouth. Granting her powers beyond Pampa Kampana’s comprehension, the goddess tells her that she will be instrumental in the rise of a great city called Bisnaga --- “victory city” --- the wonder of the world. Over the next 250 years, Pampa Kampana’s life becomes deeply interwoven with Bisnaga’s, from its literal sowing from a bag of magic seeds to its tragic ruination in the most human of ways: the hubris of those in power.

J.A. Jance, author of Collateral Damage: An Ali Reynolds Mystery

After spending 20 years behind bars, Frank Muñoz, a disgraced former cop, is out on parole and focused on just one thing: revenge. For Ali Reynolds, the first Christmas without her father is riddled with grief and uncertainty. And with her husband and founding partner of High Noon Enterprises, B. Simpson, preoccupied by an upcoming New Year’s trip to London, she is ready for a break. But when Stu Ramey barges into her home with grave news about a suspicious accident on the highway to Phoenix involving B.’s car, things reach a breaking point. At the hospital, a groggy, post-op B. insists that Ali take his place at a ransomware conference in London as troubles brimming around High Noon come to light. Who would go to such lengths to cut the tech company from the picture?

Sarah Penner, author of The London Séance Society

1873. At an abandoned château on the outskirts of Paris, a dark séance is about to take place, led by acclaimed spiritualist Vaudeline D’Allaire. Known worldwide for her talent in conjuring the spirits of murder victims to ascertain the identities of the people who killed them, she is highly sought after by widows and investigators alike. Lenna Wickes has come to Paris to find answers about her sister’s death, but to do so, she must embrace the unknown and overcome her own logic-driven bias against the occult. When Vaudeline is beckoned to England to solve a high-profile murder, Lenna accompanies her as an understudy. But soon they begin to suspect that they are not merely out to solve a crime, but perhaps entangled in one themselves.

Elizabeth Berg, author of Earth's the Right Place for Love

Nola McCollum is the most desirable girl in Arthur’s class, and he is thrilled when they become friends. But Arthur wants far more than friendship. Unfortunately, Nola has a crush on the wrong Moses --- Arthur’s older brother, Frank, who is busy pursuing his own love interest and avoiding the boys’ father, a war veteran with a drinking problem and a penchant for starting fights. When a sudden tragedy rocks the family’s world, Arthur struggles to come to terms with his grief. In the end, it is nature that helps him to understand how to go on, beyond loss, and create a life of forgiveness and empathy. But what can he do about Nola, who seems confused about what she wants in life, and only half aware of the one who loves her most?

Jacqueline Winspear, author of The White Lady

A reluctant ex-spy with demons of her own, Elinor White finds herself facing down one of the most dangerous organized crime gangs in post-WWII London, ultimately exposing corruption from Scotland Yard to the highest levels of government. “Miss White," as Elinor is known, lives in a village in rural Kent, England, and to her fellow villagers seems something of an enigma. It will take Susie, the child of a young farmworker, Jim Mackie and his wife, Rose, to break through Miss White's icy demeanor. When the powerful Mackie crime family demands a return of their prodigal son for an important job, Elinor assumes the task of protecting her neighbors. Yet in her quest to uncover the truth behind the family’s pursuit of Jim, Elinor unwittingly sets out on a treacherous path.

Editorial Content for Countdown

Book

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Ray Palen

It is no secret that the writing and publishing machine that is James Patterson often joins forces with other writers. This is the case with COUNTDOWN, which he has written with fellow New York Times bestselling author Brendan DuBois. Read More

Teaser

Agent Amy Cornwall excels at working from the shadows --- until a botched field operation reveals dark dealings between her bosses and an informant. And a hidden plot by a terrorist genius that could kill thousands of Americans. Among them: her husband and daughter. She has to go dark. The Division wants to erase her. And they know every detail about her identity, her history and her family. Agent Cornwall’s countdown has begun.

Promo

Agent Amy Cornwall excels at working from the shadows --- until a botched field operation reveals dark dealings between her bosses and an informant. And a hidden plot by a terrorist genius that could kill thousands of Americans. Among them: her husband and daughter. She has to go dark. The Division wants to erase her. And they know every detail about her identity, her history and her family. Agent Cornwall’s countdown has begun.

About the Book

From the bestselling author of THE PRESIDENT IS MISSING, an undercover CIA officer has seven days to save her country --- and her family --- from the world’s most dangerous double-agent.

Agent Amy Cornwall excels at working from the shadows --- until a botched field operation reveals dark dealings between her bosses and an informant. And a hidden plot by a terrorist genius that could kill thousands of Americans. Among them: her husband and daughter.

She has to go dark. The Division wants to erase her. And they know every detail about her identity, her history and her family.

Agent Cornwall’s countdown has begun.

Audiobook available, read by Ellen Archer

Editorial Content for The Donut Legion

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Kate Ayers

Charlie Garner has a pretty active imagination. He’s a writer, after all. But when he has a conversation with his ex-wife, Meg, late one night only to discover she’s not really there, he has to wonder what’s going on. Is it an omen or intuition? He decides to check it out and learns that Meg and her new husband haven’t been seen for about a week. So he goes over to have a little conference with his brother, Felix, who agrees it definitely sounds ominous. Read More

Teaser

Charlie Garner’s ex-wife, Meg, has been missing for over a week. Neighbors claim she’s running from bill collectors, but Charlie suspects something more sinister is afoot. Meg was last seen working at the local donut shop, a business run by a shadow group most refer to as “The Saucer People” --- a space-age, evangelist cult who believe their compound to be the site of an extraterrestrial Second Coming. Along with his brother, Felix, and journalist Amelia “Scrappy” Moon, Charlie uncovers strange and frightening details about the compound (read: a massive, doomsday storehouse of weapons, a leashed chimpanzee!) When the body of their key informer is found dead with his arms ripped out of their sockets, Charlie knows he’s in danger but remains dogged in his quest to rescue Meg.

Promo

Charlie Garner’s ex-wife, Meg, has been missing for over a week. Neighbors claim she’s running from bill collectors, but Charlie suspects something more sinister is afoot. Meg was last seen working at the local donut shop, a business run by a shadow group most refer to as “The Saucer People” --- a space-age, evangelist cult who believe their compound to be the site of an extraterrestrial Second Coming. Along with his brother, Felix, and journalist Amelia “Scrappy” Moon, Charlie uncovers strange and frightening details about the compound (read: a massive, doomsday storehouse of weapons, a leashed chimpanzee!) When the body of their key informer is found dead with his arms ripped out of their sockets, Charlie knows he’s in danger but remains dogged in his quest to rescue Meg.

About the Book

In this stand-alone, Edgar Award-winning author Joe R. Lansdale, whom "few can match" (Booklist), beams a light on an East Texas town where a QAnon-style evangelist cult is brewing trouble. 

Charlie Garner has a bad feeling. His ex-wife, Meg, has been missing for over a week, and one quick peek into her home shows all her possessions packed up in boxes. Neighbors claim she’s running from bill collectors, but Charlie suspects something more sinister is afoot. Meg was last seen working at the local donut shop, a business run by a shadow group most refer to as "The Saucer People" --- a space-age evangelist cult who believe their compound to be the site of an extraterrestrial Second Coming.

Along with his brother, Felix, and beautiful, randy journalist Amelia “Scrappy” Moon, Charlie uncovers strange and frightening details about the compound (read: a massive, doomsday storehouse of weapons, a leashed chimpanzee!) When the body of their key informer is found dead with his arms ripped out of their sockets, Charlie knows he’s in danger but remains dogged in his quest to rescue Meg.

Brimming with colorful characters and Lansdale’s characteristic bounce, this rollicking crime novel examines the insidious rise of fringe groups and those under their sway with black comedy and glints of pathos.

Audiobook available; read by Kasey Lansdale, Finlay Stevenson, January LaVoy, Marc Vietor, Greg Littlefield and Brad Sanders

Editorial Content for Red London

Book

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Ray Palen

Alma Katsu is a top-flight writer of supernatural suspense, with classic novels like THE FERVOR, THE DEEP and THE HUNGER to her credit. In 2021, she introduced readers to a completely different type of thriller, RED WIDOW. Here, she was allowed to really spread her wings and lean strongly on her experience as a senior intelligence agent for 35 years with several U.S. agencies. Her follow-up espionage tale, RED LONDON, is even better than its predecessor. Read More

Teaser

After her role in taking down a well-placed mole inside the CIA, Agent Lyndsey Duncan arrives in London fully focused on her newest Russian asset, deadly war criminal Dmitri Tarasenko. That is until her MI6 counterpart, Davis Ranford, personally calls for her help. Following a suspicious attack on Russian oligarch Mikhail Rotenberg's property in a tony part of London, Davis needs Lyndsey to cozy up to the billionaire's aristocratic British wife, Emily Rotenberg. But before Lyndsey can cover much ground with her newfound friend, the CIA unveils a perturbing connection between Mikhail and Russia's geopolitical past, one that could upend the world order and jeopardize Lyndsey's longtime allegiance to the Agency.

Promo

After her role in taking down a well-placed mole inside the CIA, Agent Lyndsey Duncan arrives in London fully focused on her newest Russian asset, deadly war criminal Dmitri Tarasenko. That is until her MI6 counterpart, Davis Ranford, personally calls for her help. Following a suspicious attack on Russian oligarch Mikhail Rotenberg's property in a tony part of London, Davis needs Lyndsey to cozy up to the billionaire's aristocratic British wife, Emily Rotenberg. But before Lyndsey can cover much ground with her newfound friend, the CIA unveils a perturbing connection between Mikhail and Russia's geopolitical past, one that could upend the world order and jeopardize Lyndsey's longtime allegiance to the Agency.

About the Book

CIA agent Lyndsey Duncan's newest asset might just be her long-needed confidante...or her greatest betrayal.

After her role in taking down a well-placed mole inside the CIA, Agent Lyndsey Duncan arrives in London fully focused on her newest Russian asset, deadly war criminal Dmitri Tarasenko. That is until her MI6 counterpart, Davis Ranford, personally calls for her help.

Following a suspicious attack on Russian oligarch Mikhail Rotenberg's property in a tony part of London, Davis needs Lyndsey to cozy up to the billionaire's aristocratic British wife, Emily Rotenberg. Fortunately for Lyndsey, there's little to dissuade Emily from taking in a much-needed confidante. Even being one of the richest women in the world is no guarantee of happiness. But before Lyndsey can cover much ground with her newfound friend, the CIA unveils a perturbing connection between Mikhail and Russia's geopolitical past, one that could upend the world order and jeopardize Lyndsey's longtime allegiance to the Agency.

RED LONDON is a sharp and nuanced race-against-the-clock story ripped from today's headlines, a testament to author Alma Katsu’s 35-year career in national security. It’s a rare spy novel written by an insider that feels as prescient as it is page-turning and utterly unforgettable.

Audiobook available, read by Mozhan Marno and Fiona Hardingham