Category: Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday

Monday, Nov. 2
The President’s Assassin by Brian Haig

It’s a mass execution: six people shot and killed in a Virginia mansion, one of them the White House Chief of Staff. But that isn’t the reason Sean Drummond is called in. Newly enlisted in a CIA cell called the Office of Special Projects, the Army lawyer knows the bodies are just a warning. Because the killer left a note. Now the hunt begins for the ultimate hitman: brilliant, coldhearted, with an insider’s knowledge of D.C. If Drummond fails, the world will never be the same – and someone will collect the $100 million bounty on the President’s head.

I received this one as one of a three-book box swap on PBS. I thought this one looked really interesting!

Exposed by Alex Kava

Veteran FBI profiler Maggie O’Dell and Assistant Director Cunningham believed the threat targeted Quantico. It targeted them. A deadly virus – virtually undetectable until it causes death from a million internal cuts. The victims appear random, but Maggie wonders if vengeance isn’t the guiding hand. An aficianado of contemprory killers, using bits and pieces from their crimes – the Beltway Sniper’s phrases, the Unabomber’s clues, the Antrhax Killer’s delivery. Maggie knows dangerous minds, but she must tackle this new opponent from within a biosafety isolation ward – while waiting to see if death is already multiplying inside her body. She just fears her last case might end with the most intelligent killer she’se ver faced escalating from murder … to epidemic.

I love the Maggie O’Dell books!! This is the second book in the PBS swap (and the one I really wanted). I hope that this book is as good as the last one I read in the series.

Haven by John R. Maxim

Elizabeth Stride has come to Hilton Head Island to escape her past as “the Black Angel” – a ruthless assassin – and to escape Martin Kessler, a fellow operative who owned a piece of her soul. But just as she’s begun to rebuild her shattered life, Kessler reappears, toppling Elizabeth’s protective wall of anonymity. A teenage girl is about to be abducted from an exclusive nearby tennis club – a girl who uniwttingly holds the key to a horrific planned act of terrorism. By joining forces in a daring rescue of the girl, Elizabeth and Martin will be forced to put their fates in each other’s hands one more time – and decide once and for all if they are to live together or apart. In doing so, they will be drawn into a secret war of fanaticism, gree, and doomsday technology. And there will be no haven.

This was the third of the three book swap from PBS. It sounds interesting, new author for me. So we’ll see how it is 🙂

Wednesday, Nov. 4
A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963 by Mark Fuhrman

A Simple Act of Murder is the investigation that this case should have had from the beginning. America’s most famous detective, Mark Fuhrman – who has cracked some of the best-known and must puzzling crimes in American history – cuts through the myths and misfortunes to focus on the hard evidence. He examines the ballistics and medical records, scrutinizes photographs from the crime scene and the famous Zapruder film, and weighs the testimony of hundreds of witnesses. Filled with vivid photos, informative diagrams, and original drawings by Fuhrman himself that show the evidence in a new light and make complex forensic evidence clear and easily understood, this book is the visual record of the JFK assassination. In this gripping and highly personal account, Fuhrman unveils a major clue that had been ignored for forty years – a breakthrough that will change the debate over the assassination. Overturning accepted notios about the way the murder occurred, A Simple Act of Murder answers many questions that have plagued the American people ever since that fateful day in Dallas.

Saturday, Nov. 7
Patriot Games by Tom Clancy

From England to Ireland to America, an explosive wave of violence sweeps a CIA analyst and his family into the deadliest game of our time: international terrorism. An ultra-left-wing faction of the IRA has targeted the CIA man for his act of salvation in an assassination attempt. And now he must pay … with his life.

Got this one from PBS. I’ve never read a Tom Clancy book (but I enjoyed the movies based on his books, lol), but have a few others of his on my shelves.

Mailbox Monday

Monday, Oct. 5
Children of Dust: A Memoir of Pakistan by Ali Eteraz

Children of Dust is a searing memoir revealing the truth about militant Islamic fundamentalism in Pakistan and the culture shock of moving to the U.S. Astonishingly honest, darkly comic, and beautifully told, Children of Dust is an extraordinary adventure that reveals the diversity of Islamic beliefs, the vastness of the Pakistani diaspora, and the very human search for home.

I received this book to review from FSB Associates. I usually don’t read books like this but for some reason the description of this book really drew me in and intrigued me. So I’ll give it a shot and see how it goes!

The Last Pope by Luis Miguel Rocha

Vatican City, 1978: On September 29, the world awakens to news of the shocking, sudden death of Pope John Paul I, elected only thirty-three days earlier. The Vatican’s official response: His Holiness died of unknown causes, “possibly associated with a heart attack.” The pope’s body is embalmed within twenty-four hours, preventing any possibility of an autopsy. London, 2006: Journalist Sarah Monteiro returns from vacation to find a mysterious envelope stuffed in her mailbox. Inside is a list of unfamiliar names and a coded message. At first, Sarah is merely puzzled by the strange delivery. But when a masked intruder breaks into her home, she knows that the list has put her in danger. Drawn into a vortex of hidden identity and double crosses, Sarah soon learns that the contents of the envelope hold th ekey to unveiling corruption beyond anythign she has ever investigated – a plot that implicates not only unscrupulous mercenaries and crooked politicians but also princes of the Church, and perhaps even her own family. Indeed, the appearance of the envelope brings to light a number of long-unanswered questions: What really happened during the brief reign of John Paul I? Whose plans were cut short that fatal night in September 1978? And who might have benefited from the pope’s sudden demise?

I received this one from my wish list on PBS. It sounds SOOOO good and I’m really looking forward to this one!!

Tuesday, Oct. 6
Iced by Carol Higgins Clark

P.I. Regan Reilly has high hopes for her Aspen vacation – such as meeting an unmarried man! But a mystery soon has the chic detective snooping rather than skiin. Million-dollar paintings have been disappearaing, and an old friend of Regan’s – a folksy ex-con named Eben Bean – has vanished too. Everyone except Regan believes Eben has gone bad … again. Her hunt to find him points to the families who founded this once frontier town, including a wild and wooly seventy-something lady harboring a shocking secret. Now as new snow blankets Aspen, Regan may be learning a new winter sport – trying to catch a killer while running for her life.

I’ve read the first two in this series and when I was offered a box on PBS and found this one on her shelf, I was happy to pick it up and get back to this series!

Twanged by Carol Higgins Clark

Sleuth Regan Reilly is hired as a bodyguard for singer Brigid O’Neill, a rising country star who has been receiving threatening “love notes.” Brigid also possesses a “magical” Irish fiddle said to be cursed – whoever takes it out of Ireland will have an accident or face death. Still, Brigid brings it to the Hamptons for a Fourth of July concert and Regan joins her. Chappy Tinka, heir to a thumbtack fortune, and his ditzy wife, Bettina, are their hosts at “Chappy’s Compound,” where a party guest is soon found floating facedown in the pool. Is the curse of the fiddle real? Is there a murderer in the house? As the concert nears, the menace grows, and Regan must discover the truth before some country tunes turn into a funeral march.

This was the second book that I picked for the box from PBS and the fourth in this series.

Thursday, Oct. 8
The Vanished Man by Jeffery Deaver

Forensic expert Lincoln Rhyme and his protegee Amelia Sachs are called in to work the high-profile investigation of a killer who seemingly disappeared into thin air just as the police closed in. As the homicidal illusionist baits them with grisly murders that grow more diabolical with each victim, Rhyme and Sachs must go behind the smoke and mirrors to prevent a horrific act of vengeance that could become the greatest vanishing act of all …

I have read the first book in this series and am looking forward to continuing on with it and found this one on another PBS’ers shelf for a box.

The Apprentice by Tess Gerritsen

It is a boiling hot summer in Boston. Adding to the city’s woes is a series of shocking crimes in which wealthy men are made to watch while their wives are brutalized – a sadistic demand that ends in death. The pattern suggests one man: serial killer Warren Hoyt, recently put behind bars. Police can only assume an acolyte is at large, a maniac basing his attacks on the twisted medical techniques of the madman he so admires. At least that’s what Detective Jane Rizzoli thinks. Forced to reconfront the killer who scarred her – literally and figuratively – she is determined to finally end Hoyt’s awful influence. But this time around, the vendetta is more vicious than she ever would have imagined.

I recently read The Surgeon and found this one for the abovementioned box because I’m looking forward to continuing with this series.

Shiver by Lisa Jackson

A serial killer is turning the Big Easy into his personal playground. The victims are killed in pairs – no connection, no apparent motive, no real clues. It’s a very sick game, and it’s only just begun. Abby Chastain left New Orleans long ago and for good reason. Now she’s back where she feels watched, as if the devil himself is scraping a fingernail along her spine. It doesn’t help that Detective Reuben Montoya is convinced she’s somehow the key to unlocking these horrible crimes – a mystery that has something to do with Our Lady of Virtues Mental Hospital, a decaying old asylum where unspeakable crimes were once committed, and a human predator may still wait. As more bodies are found in gruesome, staged scenarios, Montoya and Abby are in a desperate race to stop a killer whose terrifying crimes are bringing them even nearer to a shocking revelation. For the past is never completely gone. Its sins must be avenged. And a twisted psychopath is getting close enough to make them … Shiver.

This was the third and final book that I chose for the PBS box. I really enjoy Lisa Jackson’s books and am always on the lookout for more of her books and was pleased to see this one available to try out.

Mailbox Monday

Monday, Sept. 28
Lost by Joy Fielding

Ever since she was a child, Julia Carver has tested her mother Cindy’s nerves and tried her patience. Forever willful and self-absorbed, Julia, now twenty-one and an aspiring actress, moves back home when her father remarries – and turns Cindy’s household into chaos. But when Julia doesn’t return after a promising audition with a Hollywood film director, Cindy knows it’s more than just typical Julia dramatics – and a frantic search begins. Now, secrets are revealed, lives are forever altered, and Cindy is forced to acknowledge the disturbing truth about the daughter she realizes she never really knew.

I received this one from one of my MBS buddies, Annette. I’ve only read one other Joy Fielding book (Heartstopper) and loved it so I’m looking forward to reading more of her books.

Still Life by Joy Fielding

Beautiful, happily married, and the owner of a successful interior design business, Casey Marshall couldn’t be more content with her life, until a car slams into her at almost fifty miles an hour, breaking nearly eery bone in her body and plunging her into a coma. Lying in her hospital bed, Casey realizes that although she is unable to see or communicate, she can hear everything. She quickly discovers that her friends aren’t necessarily the people she thought them to be – and that her accident might not have been an accident at all. As she struggles to break free from her living death, she begins to wonder if what lies ahead could be even worse.

Annette sent this one along with Lost as a freebie because she thought I’d enjoy this one too. Such a great lady! Definitely looking forward to getting to this one as well.

Immoral by Brian Freeman

Lieutenant Jonathan Stride knows it’s not a moral world. One teenage girl has already disapperaed on his watch, leaving behind no body, no killer, and no justice. Now, when another girl goes missing on a cold night in Minnesota, Stride must relive his worst nightmare….

This one came in the mail from another MBS buddie, Suzanne. I’m definitely looking forward to this one; I’ve seen different reviews of it on some other book blogs and while some people have mentioned that it’s a little too graphic, that’s how I like my books (I know, I’m kinda morbid), so I hope this is a great series to start.

Tuesday, Sept. 29
Compelling Evidence by Steve Martini

Defense attorney Paul Madriani was on the rise with the firm of Potter and Skarpellos until a short-lived affair with Potter’s wife cost him his job. Now, Potter’s wife is accused of murdering her husband, and Paul is forced to uncover secrets that may end his career – and his life.

I have a few of Steve Martini’s books on my shelves, later ones in this series, so when I saw another PBS boxer member with this one on their shelf, I snapped up the opportunity. I’m looking forward to trying this series from the start.

The Lions of Lucerne by Brad Thor

On the snow-covered slopes of Utah, the unthinkable has happened: the President of the United States has been kidnapped, and his Secret Service detail massacred. Only one agent has survived – ex-Navy SEAL Scot Harvath. He doesn’t buy the official line that Middle Eastern terrorists are responsible, and begins his own campaign to find the truth – and exact revenge. But his search makes him a marked man by the sinister cabal behind the attack. Framed for murder by the conspirators, Harvath goes on the run, taking the fight to the towering mountains of Switzerland. There, he finds an unlikely ally: the beautiful Claudia Mueller of the Swiss Federal Attorney’s Office. Together they must brave the subzero temperatures and sheer heights of treacherous Mount Pilatus – and their only chance for survival is to enter the end of the most lethal team of professional killers the world has ever known ….

This was the second book that I chose as part of the three book box from PBS. I’ve had my eye on this one, as I’ve wanted to try this series as well (can you tell, yet, that I’m a series ADDICT?!)

Path of the Assassin by Brad Thor

After rescuing the President from kidnappers, Navy SEAL turned Secret Service agent Scot Harvath shifts his attentions to rooting out, capturing, or killing all those responsible for the plot. As he prepares to close out his list, a bloody and twisted trail of clues points toward one man – the world’s most feared, most ruthless terrorist, Hashim Nidal. Having assembled an international league of Islamic terrorist networks in an ingenious plot to topple both Israel and America, Harvath and his CIA-led team must reach Nidal before it’s too late. One problem remains – they have no idea what the man looks like. With no alternative, Harvath is forced to recruit a civilian – a woman who has survived a brutal hijacking and is now the only person who can positively identify their quarry. From the burning deserts of North Africa to the winding streets of Rome, Harvath must brave a maelstrom of bloodshed and deception – before a madman’s twisted vision engulfs the world in the fires of all-out war …

This is the second in this series and the third book in the three book box I received from PBS.

Saturday, Oct. 4
A Bone to Pick by Charlaine Harris

Going to two weddings – one of a former lover – and a funeral for a member of her disbanded crime discussion group keeps Aurora “Roe” Teagarden quite busy for a few months. Unfortunately, her personal life seems to be at a standstill – until her fortunes unexpectedly change. After the funeral Roe learns that Jane Engle, the deceased, has named her as heir to a rather substantial estate, which includes money, jewlery, and a house complete with a skull hidden in a window seat. Knowing Jane, Roe concludes that the elderly woman has purposely left her a murder to solve. So she must identify the victim and figure out which one of Jane’s ordinary-seeming neighbors is a murderer – without putting herself in deadly danger …

I recently read the first book in this series, Real Murders, and placed this one on my PBS wishlist. It came available and I figured I’d go ahead and give it a shot. But if this one isn’t better than the first one was, I probably won’t be continuing on with this series.

Mailbox Monday

Thursday, September 17
Booked to Die by John Dunning

Tough, book-loving Denver homicide detective Cliff Janeway wants to nail Jackie Newton – a suspected psychopath who just barely beat the rap for a series of vagrant killings. Janeway is certain is sleazy, sadistic nemesis is to blame for the recent murder of a down-and-out rare book hunter – and treats Newton to a rather brutal helping of off-duty justice that ultimately costs the overzealous cop his badge. A civilian once more, Cliff Janeway now has time to pursue his true passion – the buying and selling of valuable first editions – and to get to the bottom of the unfortunate bookscout’s still-unsolved slaying. For somewhere undercover, in the bizarre, cutthroat world of bookmen and collectors, someone is dealing death along with vintage Chandlers and Twains.

I received this book from a trade at the Yahoo group MysteryBookSwap. I bought one of the later ones in this series without knowing it was a series and was pleased to get this first one in the mail.

The Ritual Bath by Faye Kellerman

Detective Peter Decker of the LAPD is stunned when he gets the report. Someone has shattered the sanctuary of a remote yeshiva community in the California hills with an unimaginable crime. One of the women was brutally raped as she returned from the mikvah, the bathhouse where the cleansing ritual is performed. The crime was called in by Rina Lazarus, and Decker is relieved to discover that she is a calm and intelligent witness. She is also the only one in the sheltered community willing to speak of this unspeakable violation. As Rina tries to steer Decker through the maze of religious laws the two grow closer. But before they get to the bottom of this horrendous crime, revelations come to light that are so shocking that they threaten to come between the hard-nosed cop and the deeply religious woman with whom he has become irrevocably linked.

I have several of her other books on my shelf, and wanted to start this series from the beginning. So I received this as part of the abovementioned trade. Definitely looking forward to starting this series!

Mailbox Monday

Tuesday, September 8
Shakespeare’s Landlord by Charlaine Harris

Disguising herself with short hair and baggy clothes, Lily Bard has started over in the sleepy town of Shakespeare, Arkansas, where – working as a cleaning lady – she can sweep away the secrets of her dark and violent past. When Lily discovers the dead body of her nosy landlord, her plan to live a quiet, unobserved life starts to crumble. Lily doesn’t care who did it. But as the unwanted attentions of the police chief and a suspicious community fall on her, she soon realizes if she doesn’t unmask the murderer, her life might do more than crumble … it might end.

After loving the Harper Connelly series and enjoying the first of the Roe Teagarden series, I put this one on my PBS wishlist and received it rather quickly. So I’m looking forward to trying out this series as well.

Friday, September 11
The Daughter by Jasmine Cresswell

Fifteen-year-old Maggie is convicted of her mother’s murder. Maggie’s guilty of many things … But not of that. Seven years later she escapes from prison. Maggie Slade’s been on the run for seven years now. Seven years of dead-end jobs. Seven years of never forming friendships, never falling in love. Seven years of living without a future because she’s a woman with a past. And then she meets Sean McLeod. A cop. And they fall in love. Only two things can happen – he can turn Maggie in or she can escape again. Or … they can learn to trust each other. And find a way to prove an Archbishop’s guilt – and Maggie’s innocence!

I received this one today as part of a two book box from PBS. I’ve never even heard of this author, and I’m not sure how this one will end up being, but it sounded interesting and I figured I’d give it a shot.

Trust No One by Christiane Heggan

Eight years ago an innocent woman was killed in a terrorist bombing. Now a powerful politician is brutally murdered and an old man dies in a strange accident. Somehow these deaths are parts of the same puzzle – a puzzle that consumes one woman’s life. Julia Bradshaw had every reason to hate her ex-husband, but she didn’t kill him in cold blood. Now the prime suspect in Councilman Paul Bradshaw’s death, Julia is caught up in something more than a case of misinterpreted circumstantial evidence. When reporter Steve Reyes arrives in Monterey to investigate the murder, Julia realizes that there might be a more sinister reason for Paul’s death, one relating to a mysterious terrorist group. A group Steve knows more about than he’s letting on. Desperately trying to put the pieces together and clear her own name, Julia begins to trust one man … when her every instinct is telling her to trust no one.

This was the second book in the two book box from PBS. I’m not sure how this one will be either, but it sounds pretty good so we’ll have to see!!

Mailbox Monday

Monday, August 3
Dancing with Ana by Nicole Barker

Beth is a lucky girl … She comes from a loving family. She has three best friends. She loves to surf and lives five minutes from the beach. She also recently discovered that the boy she’s grown up with has the most amazing green eyes … Beth has every reason to smile. Every reason to be happy. Every reason to feel blessed. Then why is she sticking her fingers down her throat?

I was contacted directly by the author of this book about receiving a review copy. I received it on August 3rd and read it that night in one sitting. It’s a really good book that I simply cannot say enough good things about. Please read my review here.

The Lie by Fredrica Wagman

Ramona Smollens has a chance meeting on a park bench with an older man, Solomon Columbus. The two become lovers, and soon Ramona is leaving the home of her mother and recently deceased father for marriage and the trappings of adult life. She takes with her a dark family secret, the sort of secret one simply did not talk about, one that would stalk her as she matured into her role as wife and mother. Coming of age in 1950s America, Ramona gets her cues about a woman’s role from the world around her, and about female sexuality form the silver screen. But when experience teaches her that Hollywood’s ideal is in fact “the lie,” truth and desire collide with a force that is deeply moving and unforgettable.

I received this book as a review copy from FSB Associates. The blurb intrigues me. I’m definitely looking forward to getting around to this one quickly!

Tuesday, August 4
Blueberry Muffin Murder by Joanne Fluke

Preparations are underway for Lake Eden, Minnesota’s annual Winter Carnival – and Hannah Swensen is set to bake up a storm at her popular shop, The Cookie Jar. Too bad the honor of creating the official Winter Carnival Cake went to a famous lifestyle maven Connic Mac – a half-baked idea, in Hannah’s opinion. She suspects Connie Mac is a lot like the confections she whips up on her cable TV cooking show – sweet, light, and scrumptious-looking, but likely to leave a bitter taste in your mouth. Hannah’s suspcions are confirmed when Connie Mac’s limo rolls into town. Turns out America’s “Cooking Sweetheart” is bossy, bad-tempered, and downright domineering. Things finally boil over when Hannah arrives at The Cookie Jar to find the Winter Carnival cake burnt to a crisp – and Connic Mac lying dead in her pantry, struck down while eating one of Hannah’s famous blueberry muffins. Next thing Hannah knows, the police have declared The Cookie Jar’s kitchen crime scene off-limits. She’s a baker without an oven – and the Carnival is right around the corner. Hannah’s only alternative is to cook up a plan to save her business – by finding the killer herself….

I received this one from a MBS buddy, Stephanie, for my birthday. I haven’t read any in this series, but just wanted to try one out before I committed to the whole series (sometimes if I start with book 1 I feel compelled to finish the whole series).

Valhalla Rising by Clive Cussler

It is July 2003. In the middle of its maiden voyage, the luxury cruise ship Emerald Dolphin suddenly catches fire and sinks. What caused it? Why didn’t the fire-control systems work? What was its connection to the revolutionary new engines powering the ship? NUMA Special Projects Director Dirk Pitt races to rescue the passengers and investigate the disaster, but he has no idea of the bizarre events that are about to engulf him. Before the next few weeks are over, Pitt will find himself confronted by an extraordinary series of monsters, both human and mechanical, modern and ancient. He will tread upon territory previously known only to legend. And, at the end of it all, though many lives will be lost, and many saved, it is Pitt’s own life that will be changed forever…

I chose this one as part of a 2 book BOB from PBS. I’ve only read one Clive Cussler book before, but I really enjoyed it, so I’m always on the look out for more of his books.

The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl

Baltimore, 1849. The body of Edgar Allan Poe has been buried in an unmarked grave. Quentin Clark is a young lawyer and ardent admirer of Poe’s who puts his own career and repuation at risk in a crusade to find out the truth behind the writer’s death. After discovering that accounts of Poe’s last days are riddled with unanswered questions the police are ignoring, Quentin finds himself enmeshed in sinister machinations involving international political agents, a female assassin, and the corrupt Baltimore slave trade. In order to unchain his now imperiled fate from Poe’s, Quentin must turn master investigator.

This was the second book the the BOB from PBS, and the one I was really wanting. I also have The Dante Club on my shelf and I’m looking forward to reading both of them. (Eventually, lol – I have WAY TOO MANY BOOKS!)

Thursday, August 6
Atlantis by David Gibbins

Marine archaeologist Jack Howard has stumbled upon the keys to an ancient puzzle. With a crack team of scientific experts and ex-Special Forces commandos, he is heading for what he believes could be the greatest archaeological find of all time – the site of fabled Atlantis – while a ruthless adversary watches his every move and prepares to strike. But neither of them could have imagined what awaits them in the murky depths. Not only a shocking truth about a lost world, but an explosive secret that could have devastating consequences today. Jack is determined to stop the legacy of Atlantis from falling into the wrong hands, whatever the cost. But first he must do battle to prevent a global catastrophe.

This is the first book in a two book BOB from PBS. I have had this one on my reminder list for a while and was pleased to see it available in a box. I like adventure type books and am looking forward to this one.

Privileged Information by Stephen White

A successful psychologist in Boulder, Colorado, Alan Gregory has a bright future – until police find one of his female patients dead. In her apartment, they discover a diary describing her sexual obsession with Gregory and his willing involvement. Obligated to keep his patient records confidential – even from the police – Alan faces disgrace and ruin unless he reveals what he knows about her fantasies and his own innocence. But when more of his patients die and Alan becomes the prime suspect, he is desperate to clear his name. Unable to turn to anyone for help, he begins the painful search for the explanation on his own – and soon discovers the terrible truth. Now, only he knows how to stop the killing … if he doesn’t wind up dead himself.

This is the second in the BOB from PBS. I have been wanting to try this series for quite some time, so I went ahead and got the first in the series to see how it goes.

Friday, August 7
An Ice Cold Grave by Charlaine Harris

Harper Connelly heads to Doraville, North Carolina, to find a missing boy – one of several teenage boys who have disappeared over the last five years. And all of them are calling for Harper. She finds them – buried in the frozen ground. All Harper wants is to get out of town before she’s caught in the media storm, until she herself is attacked. Soon, Harper will learn more than she cared to about the dark mysteries and long-hidden secrets of Dorawville – knowledge of the dead that makes her the next in line to end up in an ice cold grave…

This one I used a credit on at PBS. I have read the first two in this series so far this year and am looking forward to getting to this third one, and hopefully the fourth when it is scheduled to come out later this year 🙂

Mailbox Monday

Monday, July 20
A Taint in the Blood by Dana Stabenow

Thirty-one years ago in Anchorage, Alaska, Victoria Pilz Bannister Muravieff was convicted of murdering her seventeen-year-old son, William. The prosecution convinced the jury that she set fire to her home while both of her sons were trapped inside. William died and the other, Oliver, narrowly escaped. Victoria was sentenced to life in prison, and though she pled not guilty at the trial, she never again denied her guilt. Now Victoria has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, and her daughter, Charlotte, who’s always believed in her mother’s innocence, wants her free. Kate Shugak is the only PI Charlotte can find who’s willing to take such a long-shot case. Kate figures it can’t be bad to do a favor for the Bannister family, one of the wealthiest and most prominent families in Alaska’s short history. As she begins her investigation, Victoria refuses to cooperate. But it seems she isn’t the only one who wants to leave the past in the past, as Kate finds herself caught in a web of deception, secrets, and danger….

I received this one from another MBS buddy as a birthday book. I’m looking forward to this one, it sounds interesting!

Tuesday, July 21
The Double Eagle by James Twining

Somehow, impossible, someone has invaded Fort Knox and stolen five of the world’s last remaining Double Eagles – the $20 gold coin ordered destroyed by President Roosevelt during the Great Depression. Now, one has resurfaced during an autopsy in France – in the stomach of a murdered priest. Disgraced FBI agent Jennifer Browne needs to recover the priceless coins to resuscitate her stalled career – and her investigation is pointing her toward Tom Kirk, a brilliant international art thief who wants to get out of the game. But Kirk’s only chance for freedom – and survival – is to find the missing coins, joining Browne, an unlikely ally, on a breakneck race across the globe and into the lethal heart of a shocking conspiracy of greed and power .. and death.

I’ve had my eye on this for a while now. Actually for at least 2 years when a co-worker’s wife told me about her reading it at the company Christmas party. But lately I’ve been lucky enough to build up some credits over at PBS and I finally used one to order this book (I hope it’s good!) So I’m looking forward to reading this one finally!!

Wednesday, July 22
Time Bomb by Jonathan Kellerman

By the time psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware reached the school the damage was done: A sniper had opened fire on a playground, but was gunned down before any children were hurt. While the TV news crews feasted on the scene and Alex began his therapy sessions with the traumatized children, he couldn’t escape the image of a slight teenager clutching an oversized rifle. What was the identity behind the name and face: a would-be assassin, or just another victim beneath an indifferent California sky? Intrigued by a request from the sniper’s father to conduct a “psychological autopsy” of his child, Alex begins to uncover a strange pattern of innocence, neglect, and loss. Then suddenly it is more than a pattern – it is a trail of blood. In the dead sniper’s past wsa a dark and vicious plot. And in Alex Delaware’s future is the stuff of grown-up nightmares: the face of real human evil.

I got this one from another BOB swap off PBS, I’m just trying to get as many of the early Delaware books as I can so I can start the series.

New York Dead by Stuart Woods

Everyone is always telling Stone Barrington that he’s too smart to be a cop, but it’s pure luck that places him on the streets in the dead of night, just in time to witness the horrifying incident that turns his life inside out. Suddenly he is on the front page of every New York newspaper, and his life is hopelessly entwined in the increasingly shocking life (and perhaps death) of Sasha Nijinsky, the country’s hottest and most beautiful television anchorwoman. No matter where he turns, the case is waiting for him, haunting his nights and turning his days into a living hell. Stone finds himself caught in a perilous web of unspeakable crimes, dangerous friends, and sexual depravity that ahs throughout it one comnon thread: Sasha.

I got this one as the second in the BOB swap. I’ve been wanting to start this series from the beginning so I was pleased to see this one available.

Thursday, July 23
The Aztec Heresy by Paul Christopher

In search of a Spanish galleon in the Caribbean, Finn Ryan and her partner, Lord Billy Pilgrim, find evidence of a lost Aztec Codex. The invaluable book, created by fifteenth-century explorer and accused heretic Hernan Coretz, is said to reveal the secret location of the lost City of Gold. Finn and Billy soon realize they are not alone in their quest. Also on the trail is the head of a menacing religious cadre, who would kill to get teh Codex first, as well as a sociopathic billionaire, with his own sinister reasons for wanting to possess it. But while trying to find the Codex – and stay alive – Finn and Billy come upon an even greater and more explosive secret. This mystery will take them from the jungles of the Yucatan to the Sonoran Desert, where the stakes are life and death – and the game is just beginning.

I ordered this off of Frugal Reader. I bought Rembrandt’s Ghost at the used bookstore and wanted to get the rest in the series before I started. This is the 4th in the series.

The Lucifer Gospel by Paul Christopher

Young archaeologist Finn Ryan and charismatic pilot and photographer Virgil Hilts are scouring the Sahara for the long-lost tomb of an apostle. But they find somethign they weren’t looking for: signs of a decades-old murder, along with an ancient Roman medallion bearing the infamous name of a fallen archangel. It doesn’t take long for them to realize that they’ve found a piece of a much bigger puzzle – and a trail of clues that could get them killed. Forced to flee from a relentless enemy, Finn and Virgil are pursued across the globe. From the sinister ruins of an ancient monastery to a sunken ship in the Caribbean, the two desperately search for a truth that can save their lives, but might shake the foundations of history…

This is the second in this series. I now have 2-4 … I still need to find 1 before I can start (I was hoping it would pop up on a Boxer’s account at PBS or on FrugalReader because I really didn’t want to waste a PBS point on it…. I guess we’ll see)

Mailbox Monday

Monday, July 13
The Madness of Mary Lincoln by Jason Emerson

The Madness of Mary Lincoln is the first examination of Mary Lincoln’s mental illness based on the lost letters, and the first new interpretation of the insanity case in twenty years. This compelling story of the purported insanity of one of America’s most tragic first ladies provides new and previously unpublished materials, including the psychiatric diagnosis of Mary’s mental illness and her lost will. This book reveals Abraham Lincoln’s understanding of his wife’s mental illness and the degree to which he helped keep her stable. It also traces Mary’s life after her husband’s assassination, including her severe depression and physical ailments, the harsh public criticism she endured, the Old Clothes Scandal, and the death of her son Tad.

I received this one from my wish list on PBS. I was really pleased when this one came up for my turn and I’m definitely looking forward to it!! I studied the Lincoln marriage in depth in college for a paper I wrote and I am interested in seeing what Emerson has to say about Mary Lincoln.

Wednesday, July 15
The Codex by Douglas Preston

“Greetings from the dead,” declares Maxwell Broadbent on the videotape he left behind after his mysterious disappearance. A notorious treasure hunter and tomb robber, Broadbent accumulated over a half a billion dollars’ worth of priceless art, gems, and artifacts before vanishing – along with his entire collection – from his mansion in New Mexico. As a final challenge to his three sons, Broadbent has buried himself and his treasure somewhere in the world, hidden away like an ancient Egyptian pharaoh. If the sons wish to claim their inheritance, they must find their father’s carefully concealed tomb. The race is on, but among Broadbent’s treasures is an ancient Mayan codex that may hold a secret far more important than the wealth of riches among it, and Broadbent’s sons aren’t the only ones after it.

I received this one today from one of my MBS buddies, Diane, as a birthday book. I had had my eye on it over at PBS by having it on my WL, but didn’t really want to spend a credit on it and couldn’t find a boxer who would swap for it. So I was pleased to see that she had this book available and I’m anxious to reading it!

Don’t Tell by Karen Rose

It was a desperate plan. But Mary Grace Winters knew the only way to save herself and her child from her abusive cop husband was to stage their own death. Now all that remains of their former life is at the bottom of a lake. … Armed with a new identity in a new town, she and her son have found refuge hundreds of miles away. As Caroline Stewart, she has almost forgotten the nightmare she left behind nine years ago. She is even taking a chance on love with Max Hunter, a man with wounds of his own. But her past is about to collide with the present when her husband uncovers her trail and threatens her hard-won peace. Step by step, he’s closing in on her – and everything and everyone she loves.

This one came to me from another MBS buddy, Haji. She was a sweetheart and sent me three Karen Rose books from her shelf for my birthday.

Have You Seen Her? by Karen Rose

One by one, the girls disappear from their beds at night. Each one is pretty, with long dark hair. And each one is found brutally murdered. Special Agent Steven Thatcher has sworn to find the serial killer preying on this small town. As the investigation pulls him one way, his family pulls him in another. A widower haunted by loss, he now worries about his son Brad slipping away. But there’s a bright light in his life: his son’s teacher, Jenna Marshall, has reached out to help. She’s beautiful, kind, and considerate – and slowly, tentatively, she and Steven are starting to fall in love. But both have been hurt before – badly. And as the two try to find the courage to bare their souls, a murderer who has slain many looks for the real treasure he craves. He sets his trap. And waits. For Jenna….

This was the second of three books from Haji as explained above.

I’m Watching You by Karen Rose

Star prosecutor Kristen Mayhew has a dangerous secret admirer. He seems to know her every thought, her every move. He sends her letters. And he kills the criminals she herself is powerless to stop. This avenger even knows Kristen’s deepest secret – the one that has kept her from surrendering her heart to Abe Reagan, the police detective sworn to protect her. Like Kristen, Reagan is haunted by the loss of something precious that can never be regained. But in the shadow of a calculating serial killer, the two turn to each other and dare to rediscover passion … even as the messages and vicious murders continue. Even as the killer’s thirst for retribution makes Kristen a target for murder.

This was the third book from Haji. I’m really looking forward to trying out Karen Rose for the first time! All her books sound so good!!

The Mark of the Assassin by Daniel Silva

When a terrorist bomb blows Flight 002 out of the sky off the east coast, there is only one chilling clue. A body found near the crash site bears the deadly calling card of an elusive, lethal assassin – three bullets to the face. Michael Osbourne of the CIA knows the markings. Personally. Propelled by an obsession that threatens to consume his career, his family, his life, Osbourne is not how on the assassin’s trail. But in a world of shadows and lies, intrigue and cover-up, the man with a mission puts himself and his loved ones in the sights of the most ruthless, diabolical assassins on earth….

I received this one from another fellow MBS buddy, Jud, for a birthday book. I enjoy spy type novels (even if they sometimes do take me a little longer to read) and am really looking forward to reading this one!!

Thursday, July 16
The Jury Master by Robert Dugoni

In a courtroom, defense attorney David Sloane is a master manipulator who can grab a jury and make it dance. He enjoys a wildly successful career limited only by his conscience – until he gets a phone call from a total stranger, Joe Branick, special assistant to the president of the United States. Just hours later Branick kills himself. And his death propels Sloane into a murderous whirlwind that will shatter lives from San Francisco to Washington, D.C. Yet Sloane needs to know more. About Branick. About others who are in as much danger as he is. And about the president and his men. But in the face of a secret that spans decades and governments, and puts billions of dollars at risk, there’s one thing David Sloane can’t possibly envision. This runaway conspiracy is all about him – and only he can stop it.

I received this one as part of a three book swap from PBS. I chose it because it sounds like something I would really enjoy! I hope it’s as good as I think it will be!

The Testament by Eric Van Lustbder

BRAVERMAN “BRAVO” SHAW always knew his father had secrets. But not until Dexter Shaw dies mysteriously does Bravo discover the enormity of his father’s hidden life as a high-ranking member of the Order of Gnostic Observatines. For more than eight hundred years, the Order has preserved an ancient cache of documents that could shake Christianity to its foundations. Another secret society, the Knights of St. Clement, will stop at nothing to obtain the treasure, and now Bravo must follow his father’s esoteric clues to find the hidden documents before the Knights. Bravo is now a target and a pawn in an ongoing war far larger and more deadly than any he could have imagined. His companion in this quest is Jenny Logan, a Guardian assigned to Bravo by the Order. But Bravo soon learns that he can trust no one where the Testament is concerned, perhaps not even Jenny …

This was the second in a three book swap from PBS. I’ve been really into reading and/or thinking about reading books about secret societies and Christianity. I honestly don’t know why. I guess it’s the adventure in them, but I hope that this one is a good one!!

The Straw Men by Michael Marshall

In Palmerston, Pennsylvania, two men in long coats walk calmly into a crowded fast-food restaurant – then, slowly and methodically, gun down sixty-eight people. They take time to reload. On the Promenade of Santa Monica, California, a teenage girl gives sightseeing tips to a distinguished English tourist. She won’t be going home tonight. In Dyersburg, Montana, a grief-stricken son tries to make sense of the accident that killed his parents – then finds a note stuffed in his father’s favorite chair. It reads, “We’re not dead.” Three seemingly unrelated events, these are the first signs of an unimaginable network of fear that will lead one unlikely hero to a chilling confrontation with The Straw Men. No one knows who they are – or why they kill. But they must be stopped.

I first saw this one on a MBS buddies available shelf; it turned out that she had mailed it out and forgotten to remove it. But I was so intrigued by this one that I had to find it! So this one is the last in the three book swap from PBS (and it’s the one I really wanted!) I hope that this one is as good as it sure sounds to me! I’m looking forward to getting to this one as quickly as I can

Friday, July 17
Paranoia by Joseph Finder

It was only a prank: diverting cash from Wyatt Telecom’s executive slush fund to throw a retirement bash for a member of the loading dock crew. But when corporate security catches up with Adam Cassidy, a low ambition junior staffer at the high-tech behemoth, they call it something else: embezzlement. Ruthless CEO Nick Wyatt is impressed by Adam’s scheming, and offers him one way out – take on the role of a rising corporate hotshot and infiltrate Wyatt’s rival, Trion Systems. His mission is to get close to Trion’s legendary founder Jock Goddard, and his ultra-secret “Project Aurora,” and report back to Wyatt. With Wyatt pulling the strings and a dramatically improved identity, Adam is set up as Trion’s new boy genius. Suddenly, he’s got a sweet new Porsche, a closet full of $1,500 suits, and even a sexy woman in his life. But it’s all just a mirage because Adam is about to learn that nothing is what it seems and that it isn’t paranoia … everyone is out to get him…

This one part of a two book swap from PBS. I’ve never read Joseph Finder before, but I have another one of his books on my shelf. This one however, sounds really interesting!

Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn

On a busy Washington morning, the stately calm of the White House is shattered by a hail of gunfire. A group of terrorists has descended on the executive mansion and gained access by means of a violent slaughter of dozens of people. Through the quick actions of the Secret Service, the president is evacuated to his underground bunker, but not before nearly one hundred hostages are taken. While politicians and military leaders argue over how to negotiate with the terrorists, one man is sent in to take control of the crisis. Mitch Rapp, the CIA’s top counterterrorism operative, determines that the president is not as safe as Washington’s power elite had thought. Moving stealthily among the corridors and secret passageways of the White House, Rapp makes a chilling discovery that could rock Washington to its core: someone within his own government is maneuvering to make his rescue attempt fail.

Okay, so I’ve wanted to start this series for quite some time, I think I have the 6th and 7th book in the series on my shelf, acquiring them before realizing they were part of a series. So I’m really looking forward to starting with the first book (something I’m anal about) and this one sounds really good too!!

Mailbox Monday

Before I begin – I must say that this week was a wonderful week for my mailbox after nothing in it last week 🙂

Monday, July 6

The Lost Hours by Karen White

Surviving the tragic accident that killed her parents has always made Piper Mills feel invincible. That is, until fate strikes again and a near-fatal fall from a horse destroys her dreams of becoming an Olympic equestrian. Feeling more fragile than ever, Piper returns to Savannah, and to the home she inherited from her grandparents to retreat, recover, and reflect on all that she has lost. It’s during her recuperation that Piper discovers a secret room and torn pages from an old scrapbook that allude to a tragedy in her grandmother’s past. Determined to untangle the mystery, Piper tracks down her grandmother’s childhood friend, a woman named Lily, who clearly knows the truth – and the dark secrets hidden in the house. But Lily has secrets of her own – secrets she believes are better left forgotten. And for Piper to unearth the truth, she will have to be willing to open her heart to new relationships, heal the heartaches of the past, and find the courage to embrace the future.

I received this one from a fellow member of the Yahoo group ReadNSwap. I think it sounds like a good read. Plus I have been really kind of interested in reading more of what I would consider to be women’s literature rather than just straight mystery/thrillers/suspense (although that will always be my favorite!)

Friday, July 10

Venom by Jeffrey Ames

To those hunting him, he is the Fiddleback – an inhuman predator with a taste for human prey and an appetite for torture. To his victims, he is a nightmare come to life at the moment of death. His motive is his madness. His madness has no method. His methods hold no mercy. The one person who can stop him: Dallas cop Courtney Bedell, the only person who has seen the killer and survived. Now, to save herself ad those she loves, Courtney must match wits with a madman unlike any ever known – and lure the Fiddleback into a web of her own desgn ….

I also received this one from a fellow member of ReadNSwap (different member). I don’t really know what it was about this title, but it really drew me to requesting this book. I’m definitely looking forward to it!

Killing Orders by Sara Paretsky

V.I. Warshawski’s latest case had alreadyopned up old wounds. But when a silk voice on the phone threatened to throw acid into her eyes, V.I. knew this one could finish her off with some brand-new ones. The sour-faced old aunt she had agreed to help was accused of stealing millions in stock certificates from a pious order of Dominican brothers. V.I. knew the woman was a witch, not a thief, and she soon smelled something rotten in the sanctum sanctorum of Chicago’s most powerful movers and shakers – the Church and the Mob. Now someone wanted to see V.I. burn in hell. But this tough cookie of a private eye had her back up, a brand-new Smith & Wesson, and a daring plan to make the bad guys go to the devil first.

This one I received as a birthday book from a fellow member at the Yahoo group MysteryBookSwap. I had had my eye on this one over at PBS for quite some time, but I was just unsure about spending a credit on it and I never could find a Boxer that would swap for it. So I was very glad to see Kathy had this one on her list.

Denial by Keith Ablow

Frank Clevenger is a forensic psychiatrist who hates authority, fears intimacy, uses sex as an anesthetic, is tortured by his professional mistakes, and can’t free himself from the shadows of a brutal, alcoholic father and an absent, unfeeling mother. But it is precisely this injured psyche that allows him to understand the deranged behavior of the mental and emotional outcasts who cross his professional path. When a young woman is discovered brutally murdered, her body mutilated, Clevenger is shocked to discover that he knows the woman, she is a close friend of his girlfriend, and that the police department’s main suspect, a schizophrenic homeless man, cannot have committed the crime. As evidence of more shocking murders begins to mount over the next seventy-two hours, Clevenger must race to stop the senseless, horrific murders in the fight of his life against a brutal killer with a horrific trademark and his own howling demons of sexual compulsion, self-destruction, and …. DENIAL

I received this one as part of a three-book swap on PBS. I have seen this one pop up randomly in places and have been mildly interested in it and figured it would be something worth trying, so I’m looking forward to it!

The Dying Game by Beverly Barton

It’s the ultimate game – the adrenaline surge of the hunt, the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat. For in this game, the rules are simple: To wn, you only have to kill. To lose, you will have to die…. The victims are former beauty queens found with a single rose beside their bodies. Lindsay McAllister has seen this signature before, when she was a rookie detective with the Chattanooga PD investigating the death of Judd Walker’s wife, a murder that sent the handsome lawyer off the deep end. Now, Lindsay has the brutal task of telling Judd that his wife’s killer has struck again, and she’s going to need his help to outplay their opponent – because the killer is getting bolder, faster, and more ruthless. The game is escalating, and no one is safe. Now as the body count rises, the rules are changing. A killer will do anything to win. And the only way for Lindsay to stop a madman’s twisted game is to play it herself…

This is the second book of the three book swap from PBS. I have only read one Beverly Barton book but I absolutely adored it! So I was pleased to see this one available and am definitely looking forward to reading it! I hope it’s as good as it sounds!!!

Silent Partner by Jonathan Kellerman

At a party for a controversial Los Angeles sex therapist, Alex Delaware encounters a face from his own past – Sharon Ransom, an exquisite, alluring lover who left him abruptly more than a decade earlier. Sharon now hints that she desperately needs help, but Alex evades her. The next day she is dead, an apparent suicide. Driven by guilt and sadness, Alex plunges into the maze of Sharon’s life – a journey that will take him through the pleasure palaces of California’s ultrarich, into the alleyways of the mind, where childhood terrors still hold sway.

This was the last book in the three book swap from PBS. I am trying to gather all the books in the Alex Delaware series so that I can read them and was glad to see this one available. I hope to start reading When the Bough Breaks soon so that I can really get into this series from the start!

Mailbox Monday

Tuesday, June 23
No One Lives Forever by Jordan Dane

Born to a childhood pitted by violence, Christian Delacorte is desperate for peace when he embarks on a new life with the woman he loves, Detective Raven Mackenzie. But soon his old life comes calling – in the tempting form of a mysterious woman assassin. Jasmine Lee is determined to collect an old marker from Christian. He owes her – big time – and she needs his help freeing her kidnapped lover, Nicholas Charboneau – a powerful mogul linked to Chicago’s underworld. Christian doesn’t trust her, but Jasmine entices him to leave Raven behind when she reveals his shocking connection to Charboneau. Christian has seven days to attempt an impossible rescue of the father he never knew. And when a woman assassin with ulterior motives makes a lousy ally, Christian is alone to face the stark reality that no one lives forever … and he might be the next to die.