Summer 2004

NEW FROM THE NORTHWEST

Alafair Burke, Missing Justice (June, Holt hc, 19.95.) Promoted to the Major Crimes Unit, Portland DDA Samantha Kincaid deals with a missing judge. Signing.

April Christofferson, Buffalo Medicine (Aug., Tor pbo, 7.99). A Montana vet finds he can no longer tell friend from foe after he develops a vaccine for a dangerous disease carried by buffalo – a disease that can be transferred to humans through cows. Who wants to stop his work?

Michael Collins, Lost Souls (Aug., Viking hc, 23.95). Amidst the normal pranks and problems on Halloween, a child is killed in a possible hit-and-run. When those in power hide the case, it is up to the officer that found the body to push for justice. Tammy recommends this author. Signing?

Mary Daheim, This Old Souse (Aug., Morrow hc, 23.95). Judith and Renie are astonished to find out that a ramshackle Spanish villa that they assumed had been abandoned for decades, has in fact been occupied by a family that is never seen. In paper, Hocus Croacus (Aug., Avon, 6.99). Signing.

Sharon Duncan, The Lavender Butterfly Murders (Aug., Signet pbo, 5.99). Islands PI Scotia MacKinnon is caught up in a dispute between a new yoga retreat and the rustic natives. A series of “accidents” become increasingly nastier. Signing?

Earl Emerson, Pyro (Aug., Ballantine hc, 24.95). Lt. Paul Wolff works at Seattle’s Station 6 and nurses a deep hatred for arsonists after one killed his father and destroyed his family 20 years ago. Now, a string of fires flare up around the city and they begin to move closer to Station 6 and him. Signing. In paper, Into the Inferno (June, Ballantine, 6.99).

Robert Ferrigno, The Wake-Up (Aug., Pantheon hc, 23.95). Frank Thorpe has just been fired from the special operations “shop” after a fatal mistake. En route to a vacation, he sees a thoughtless act of indifference at LAX and decides to teach a lesson. What begins as a well-meant lesson in social etiquette soon veers out of control. Signing.

G.M. Ford, Red Tide (July, Morrow hc, 23.95). Corso works to stop a horrifying act of mass destruction from annihilating Seattle--the book opens with a powerful scene in the Bus Tunnel--and the scoundrel who tattooed Meg is found murdered. Signing. In paper, A Blind Eye (June, Avon, 6.99).

J.A. Jance, Day of the Dead, (July, Morrow hc, 23.95). Retired Sheriff Brandon Walker finds golf a poor substitute for the action of office. When he’s invited to join The Last Chance Club to review long-cold unsolved crimes, he can’t foresee that the first case may mean he botched a case in his early career. Brandon and his family will be familiar to readers of Jance’s two earlier thrillers, Hour of the Hunter (pb, 6.99) and Kiss of the Bees (pb, 7.50). Signing. In paper, Exit Wounds (Aug., Avon, 7.99), Brady.

AND, J. A. Jance, After the Fire (June, U. of Ariz. hc, 19.95). Before she wrote mysteries, Jance wrote poetry which reflected her life situation at the time. Published in 1984 and long out-of-print, it’s finally being reissued, enhanced by a memoir newly written by the author. As she told us recently, “It’s the closest thing to a J. A. Jance autobiography people are going to get.”

Gregg Keizer, The Longest Night (Aug., Putnam hc, 24.95). Meyer Lansky has two problems and one solution: one of his hit men needs to disappear and the resistance needs to stop a trainload of Dutch Jews from their doom. Lansky sends “Mouse” Weiss to Hitler’s Europe. Debut from a Eugene, OR author. Signing?

Ron Lovell, Lights! Camera! Murder! (June, Sunstone tpo, 18.95). While helping a video production company do recruitment films for his university, Thomas Martindale finds himself in the midst of murder and scandal when one of his students is murdered and her death is linked to the recruitment of football players. Signing.

Elizabeth Lowell, The Color of Death (June, Morrow hc, 24.95). A gem cutter is given the chance of a lifetime – cut the Seven Sins, seven rare sapphires. She asks her brother to transport the gems to her, but he’s murdered en route and the gems are stolen. In paper, Die in Plain Sight (June, Avon, 7.99).

Skye Kathleen Moody, The Good Diamond (Aug., St. Martin's hc, 24.95). Called to the US/Canadian border by the report of two abandoned black bears, Fish & Wildlife Agent Venus Diamond is soon on the track of smugglers. In paper, Medusa (Aug., Worldwide, 5.99). Signing.

Kevin O’Brien, Left for Dead (July, Pinnacle pbo, 6.99). Claire Smith awakens in a Seattle hospital remembering nothing of how she got there and recognizing none of the faces around her. She returns to her life on an island in the Sound, to a town that hides what it fears. Signing.

Sheriff Dave Reichert, Chasing the Devil (July, Little, Brown hc, 24.95). A true-crime account of the hunt for and capture of Gary Ridgeway, the Green River Killer, by one of those most responsible for the successful outcome. An inside look at the Green River Task Force, with details of the investigation of Ridgeway and earlier suspects, and the women involved. Signing?

Shirley Tallman, Murder in Nob Hill (June, St. Martin's hc, 23.95). In 1880’s San Francisco, polite society doesn’t see a place for a young lady in the practice of law. Young Sarah Woolson doesn’t particularly care and uses the legal education she got from her Judge father to join a law firm. Her first client is another young woman accused of killing her abusive husband. Debut novel from a professional writer living in Eugene.

Lono Waiwaiole, Wiley’s Shuffle (June, St. Martin's hc, 23.95). Wiley tries to intervene when a friend gets involved with a sociopath pimp named Dookie. Sequel to one of our favorites from 2003 and one of our biggest sellers of that year – and, hard to believe, but it's even better than his debut – JB. Signing.

Mysterious Youth

Cynthia Rylant, The Case of the Baffled Bear: High-Rise Private Eyes #7 (Aug., Greenwillow hc, 14.99). In paper, The Case of the Fidgety Fox, #6 (Aug., Greenwillow, 3.99).

Now in Paperback

Tom Mitcheltree, Katie’s Gold (July, Worldwide, 5.99)

Frank Smith, Acts of Vengeance (July, Worldwide, 5.99)

Dana Stabenow, A Grave Denied (July, St. Martin's, 6.99)

Kate Wilhelm, Clear and Convincing Proof (Aug., Mira, 6.50)

Reissues of Note

Tomas Guillen and Carlton Smith, The Search for the Green River Killer (June, Signet pbo, 7.99). Updated edition of the classic that covers the closing of the case and the conviction of Gary Ridgeway.

Lisa Jackson, See How She Dies (Aug., Zebra, 6.99). The first novel by the bestselling Oregon author, romantic suspense from 1994.

Coming this Summer

Carola Dunn & Daisy Dalrymple, Sept

Jayne Ann Krentz, Falling Awake, Nov

Greg Rucka, A Gentleman’s Game, Sept

Anne Rule & the Green River Case, Oct

Dana Stabenow & Kate Shugak, Sept

Jess Walter, Citizen Vince, Sept

Kate Wilhelm & Barbara Holloway, Sept

NEW FROM THE REST

Keith Ablow, Murder Suicide (July, St. Martin's hc, 21.95). Forensic psychiatrist Dr. Frank Clevenger looks into the death of a brilliant inventor who died on the eve of risky surgery – surgery that would have stopped a rare form of epilepsy but might have removed his memory. Signing.

Nero Blanc, Anatomy of a Crossword (July, Berkley tpo, 13.00). 6th puzzler – a mystery with crossword puzzles.

James O. Born, Walking Money (July, Putnam hc, 23.95). Debut crime novel by a long-time Florida investigator: A satchel with over a $1 million in cash has gone missing, a local FBI agent is on its trail, a key witness has been murdered and State cop Bill Trasker has been framed for the mess. Trasker isn’t taking it lying down. Signed Copies Available.

C.J. Box, Trophy Hunt (July, Putnam hc, 24.95). While fly-fishing with his daughters, Game Warden Joe Pickett makes a grisly discovery: a mutilated moose. Other mutilations occur and Joe doesn’t buy the explanation that it is all the work of a rogue bear. Signed Copies Available. In paper, Winterkill (July, Berkley, 6.99). Sandy recommends.

Gerry Boyle, Home Body (June, Putnam hc, 23.95). Reporter Jack McMorrow befriends a runaway teen. When the parents try to get the boy home, the teen vanishes and the mother is murdered. In paper, Pretty Dead (Aug., Berkley, 6.99).

Kathy Brandt, Dark Water Dive (July, Signet pbo, 5.99). 2nd in the underwater investigation series. Homicide Det. Hannah Sampson moved from the Rockies to the Virgin Islands and searches for clues in the depths below sea level.

Simon Brett, The Hanging in the Hotel (Aug., Berkley hc, 23.95). 5th in the Fethering series.

Ken Bruen, Blitz (June, St. Martin's tpo, 12.95). A serial killer that the London tabloids have dubbed “The Blitz” is out for immortality by killing cops in different beats of the city. Continues the stories from The White Trilogy (Justin Charles tp, 14.99). Janine recommends this writer.

Edna Buchanan, Cold Case Squad (June, Simon & Schuster hc, 22.95). Debut of a new series by the long-time Miami journalist and novelist: 12 years after a freak accident killed her husband, a woman asks the Miami Cold Case Squad to use their new forensics and technology to look into the case.

James Lee Burke, In the Moon of Red Ponies (June, Simon & Schuster hc, 24.95). In Bitterroot, Billy Bob Holland had traveled to Montana and helped put his nemesis Wyatt Dixon in prison. Now, having moved to Montana himself, Holland finds that Dixon has been set free due to judicial error and the battle renews. Signing. In paper, Last Car to Elysian Fields (Sept., Pocket, 7.99) with Robicheaux – JB recommends.

Marion Chesney, Hasty Death (July, St. Martin's hc, 22.95). Eager to join the working class, Lady Rose Summer has left the comfort of her parents’ home to become self-supporting. The life of a working woman is more work than she imagined, but things are spiced up when an acquaintance dies and she becomes involved in the investigation. One of Sandy's favorite authors.

Tim Cockey, Backstabber (July, Hyperion hc, 21.95). Hitchcock Sewell deals with rats in a friend’s retirement home and a killer who left a body in his kitchen and wants Hitch to make it disappear. In paper, Murder in the Hearse Degree (July, Hyperion, 6.99).

David Cole, Shadow Play (Aug., Avon pbo, 6.99). 6th Southwest mystery with PI/computer hacker Laura Winslow.

Thomas H. Cook, Into the Web (June, Bantam pbo, 6.99. A man is pulled back into a web of deceit from which he thought he’d escaped.

Philip R. Craig, Murder at a Vineyard Mansion (June, Scribner hc, 24.00). 15th in one of Sandy’s favorite series: residents of the island are split about the efforts of The Silencer, a person out to rid the Vineyard of loud music from parties and vehicles. When someone is killed, it has gone too far. In paper, A Vineyard Killing (June, Avon, 6.99).

Barbara D’Amato, Death of a Thousand Cuts (June, Forge hc, 24.95). The Hawthorne House School for Autistic Children was once a pioneering outfit. 15 years after it closed its doors, the staff has returned for a reunion. The founder is murdered in the basement – a man who was a teacher, healer, bestselling author-- who hated him that much?

Jeffery Deaver, Garden of Beasts (July, Simon & Schuster hc, 24.95). In 1936, a mob hitman is offered a deal – go to prison for life, or work for the government – go to Berlin and whack Hitler’s rearmament architect. In paper, The Vanished Man (July, Pocket, 7.99), the latest Lincoln Rhyme. Signing.

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Garry Disher, The Dragon Man (Aug., Soho hc, 23.00). DI Hal Challis is getting heat from all sides and he and his team hunt a serial killer loose in a coastal town near Melbourne, and his wife is trying to resurrect their marriage via long-distance calls from her sanitarium where she’s been since she tried to kill him 8 years ago. Author of the terrific series about Wyatt, a professional thief much like Stark’s Parker books. Bill & JB were big fans of those and wish they were still in print.

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Carole Nelson Douglas, Cat in an Orange Twist (Aug., Forge hc, 24.95). 15th comic mystery with sleuthing tomcat Midnight Louie. In paper, Cat in a Neon Nightmare (Aug., Forge, 6.99).

Barry Eisler, Rain Storm (July, Putnam hc, 24.95). Escaping Japan for Brazil, John Rain is recruited to take out a SE Asian arms dealer. On the trail, Rain discovers another assassin is at work – the man’s former consort, a beautiful woman named Delilah. Signed Copies Available. In paper, Hard Rain (July, Signet, 6.99).

K.J. Erickson, Alone at Night (July, St. Martin's hc, 24.95). Minneapolis Special Det. Mars Bahr takes on his first “cold case." In paper, The Last Witness (June, St. Martin's, 6.99).

Janet Evanovich, Ten Big Ones (June, St. Martin's hc, 26.95). In paper, To the Nines (June, St. Martin's, 7.99).

Japer Fforde, Something Rotten (Aug., Viking hc, 24.95). The fourth literary escapade for Thursday Next has her returning to duty at SpecOps to foil an attempted hostile takeover of…Shakespeare. In paper, The Well of Lost Plots (Aug., Penguin, 14.00).

Margaret Frazer, A Play of Isaac (Aug., Berkley pbo, 6.50). A new medieval series from the author of the Dame Frevisse historicals: a band of traveling players finds that murder has upstaged them.

Alan Furst, Dark Voyage (Aug., Random House hc, 24.95). In 1941 Tangiers, a Dutch captain and his freighter are enlisted by Allied intelligence to run missions. Over time, the vessel becomes a haven for the misplaced.

Alex Garland, The Coma (July, Riverhead hc, 19.95). A man emerges from a coma after having been attacked in the Underground. How did he get there and who is he? The story is accompanied by original woodblock illustrations done by the author’s father, Nicholas Garland, a well-known political cartoonist for the Daily Telegraph (UK).

Tess Gerritsen, Body Double (Aug., Ballantine hc, 24.95). Returning from vacation, Boston medical examiner Maura Isles walks into a nightmare: slumped dead in a car in her driveway is the body of a woman who is her mirror image. In paper, The Sinner (Aug., Ballantine, 7.99). Signing.

Carol Goodman, The Drowning Tree (June, Ballantine hc, 24.95). Stained Glass artist Juno McKay reluctantly returns to her college to deliver a lecture on one of the college’s most hallowed works of art. When an estranged friend is found floating in the Hudson, dark secrets from the college merge with dark secrets from her own history.

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Sue Grafton, R is for Ricochet (July, Putnam hc, 26.95). Kinsey Milhone-- on sale 7/13!

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Caroline Graham, A Ghost in the Machine (Aug., St. Martin's hc, 25.95). Chief Inspector Barnaby is called to the tiny village of Forbes Abbot when a bloody body is found in an authentic medieval torture device. Sandy recommends this author.

James Grippando, Hear No Evil (Aug., Harper hc, 23.95). Miami attorney James Swyteck finds himself in uncharted territory: defending a woman accused of killing her officer husband on the military base at Guantanamo Bay, a man who was the son of a prominent Cuban exile.

Barbara Hambly, Dead Water (Aug., Bantam hc, 25.00). Embezzlement leaves Benjamin January and his wife, Rose, facing complete ruin unless they can retrieve the missing funds. Aided by their friend Hannibal Sefton and dogged by a voodoo curse, the Januarys board a steamboat and face the ominous possibility of losing not only their savings, but that which they hold dearest - their freedom. This is one of Fran’s favorite series.

Steve Hamilton, Ice Run (June, St. Martin's hc, 21.95). On vacation with Natalie Reynaud, Alex and she must confront a secret from her family's past, a secret that has driven men to kill. In paper, Blood is the Sky (June, St. Martin's, 6.99).

John Harvey, Flesh & Blood (July, Carroll & Graf hc, 25.00). Det. Insp. Elder returns from exile in the North of England to look again at a case that has always haunted him. In 1988, a 16-year-old girl vanished. Though two men were convicted in her death, and while Elder is sure of their guilt, the case won’t let go of him, and now one of the killers is out of prison.

Sparkle Hayter, Bandit Queen Boogie (July, Three Rivers tpo, 13.00). Two 20-something friends are backpacking through Europe when they discover how fun it is to execute the perfect crime – and then how dangerous is.

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Carl Hiaasen, Skinny Dip (July, Knopf hc, 24.95). A dead wife who isn’t dead, an ex-cop loner with six failed marriages behind him and doctored water samples that allow agri-businesses to continue to pollute – the heady mix we expect from Hiaasen and Florida. When the ex-cop and the non-dead wife team up to find the would-be homicidal husband, a marine biologist who doesn’t know which way the Gulf Stream runs, the reader is in for a wild ride. Tammy recommends.

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Tami Hoag, Kill the Messenger (June, Bantam hc, 27.00). A bike messenger is the prime suspect in the murder of a low-rent lawyer and it’ll take all of his urban skills to stay ahead of the cops and find the killer. In paper, Dark Horse (June, Bantam, 7.99). Signing.

Chuck Hogan, Prince of Thieves (Aug., Scribner hc, 25.00). Complex weaving of armed robbers, their male leader and a female bank branch manager, FBI agents, and a plan to rob Fenway Park, set against an insular neighborhood in Boston and the changes going on when new residents upset the life.

Kay Hooper, Hunting Fear (Aug., Bantam hc, 25.00). Lucas Jordan is one of the earliest members of an elite FBI group, the Special Crimes Unit. Lucas seems to have the psychic skill to find missing people. A routine kidnapping is just a pretext to draw Lucas out, for the criminal is after him, not the victim. In paper, Sense of Evil (June, Bantam, 7.50).

Maddy Hunter, Past Imperfect (Aug., Pocket pbo, 6.50) Third Passport to Peril mystery finds Emily Andrew in Italy for a romance publishing tour and a contest for romance writers.

Jon A. Jackson, No Man’s Dog (July, Atlantic hc, 24.00, Signed Copies 25.00). Mulheisen goes after the people who injured his mother in an attack on environmentalists and Joe Service is thrown to the wolves by his former Federal friends. JB and Bill recommend this series.

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Penn Jillette, Sock (July, Griffin tpo, 12.95). A very different story: a murder mystery narrated by a sock monkey, who takes the time to give asides about a wide range of things: pop culture in the 70s and 80s, what it feels like to be a killer and a victim. Debut novel by the outspoken half of Penn & Teller. Tammy recommends as BRILLIANT.

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John Katzenbach, The Madman’s Tale (June, Ballantine hc, 24.95). Francis Petrel was young when his family committed him to Western State Hospital. He’s now middle aged and the hospital was closed 20 years ago. A reunion on the grounds stirs a dark memory, the murder of a nurse after hours, a crime that was never solved, and as the memories haunt his mind, he begins to talk about them.

J.A. Konrath, Whiskey Sour (June, Hyperion hc, 21.95). Debut comic mystery featuring Lt. Jacqueline Daniels. Her boyfriend just left her, insomnia has caused her to max out her credit cards from watching shopping channels and a ghoulish killer is leaving bodies in her district.

Lynda La Plante, Royal Heist (July, Random House hc, 24.95 Signed Copies Available?). Edward de Jersey’s grand life of horses and wealth is threatened by the crash of the dot coms. His opulent life was built on his long buried past – two daring heists that set him up, he thought, for life. Now he must return to his old ways and he chooses as his target a $100 million diamond. It’ll have to be a good plan, for it is owned by the royal family and is seemingly impossible to steal.

Jeff Lindsay, Darkly Dreaming Dexter (Aug., Doubleday hc, 22.95). Dexter Morgan is a blood-spatter analyst for the Miami police, his sister is a cop, he’s good at this job and attractive to the ladies. But what he really enjoys is killing bad guys. His well-ordered world is rocked when a crime scene gives him the belief that someone is trying to draw him out – killer to killer. A darkly comic debut.

Laura Lippman, By a Spider’s Thread (July, Morrow hc, 24.95). Tess Monaghan searches for a mother who disappeared with her children from what appears to have been a loving family. Signing?

Chuck Logan, After the Rain (July, Harper hc, 24.95). The open border between North Dakota and Canada is the perfect place for Al Qaeda terrorists to stage another attack, and Nina Pryer will go to any lengths to stop them, including using her estranged husband, Phil Broker, and their daughter, Kit. Frighteningly believable. Fran recommends. In paper, Vapor Trail (June, Harper, 7.99).

Mary Logue, Bone Harvest (June, Ballantine hc, 23.95). A sinister series of pranks point to a horrifying unsolved crime from 50 years ago – the slaughter of an entire farm family. When a bone from the finger of a family member turns up, the past murders and the current crimes become linked as Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins works with forensics experts to find the truth. The fourth in a series which is highly recommended by Tammy.

Eric van Lustbader, The Borne Legacy (June, St. Martin's hc, 25.95). With the direction of the estate, Robert Ludlum’s Jason Borne returns.

Barry Maitland, The Verge Practice (July, Little Brown hc, 25.00). A celebrated architect disappears, leaving his beloved daughter and a young and dead wife. All of London is abuzz but, when the case stalls months later, DCI Brock is called in and he and Kathy follow the trail to Spain. 7th in the series.

Margaret Maron, High Country Fall (Aug., Warner hc, 24.00). To escape the reaction of those around her after the announcement of her engagement, Judge Knott travels to Cedar Gap to be a fill-in jurist. As the leaves begin to turn and the Summer people close up their retreats, one of the Floridians is murdered. In paper, Last Lessons of Summer (Aug., Warner, 7.50).

Edward Marston, The Counterfeit Crank (Aug., St. Martin's hc, 23.95). Latest mystery with Elizabethan Theatrical agent Nicholas Bracewell.

Sujata Massey, The Pearl Diver (Aug., Harper hc, 23.95). A disappearance from a restaurant opening in DC leads antiques dealer Rei Shimura to a case of a Japanese war bride who vanished 30 years before. In paper, The Samurai’s Daughter (July, Harper, 12.95).

Amanda Matetsky, Murder is a Girl’s Best Friend (July, Berkley pbo, 6.50). Spunky 1950s detective Paige Turner finds herself stuck in a messy murder and the next target of the killer.

Ed McBain, Hark (Aug., Simon & Schuster hc, 25.00). The Deaf Man returns to the 87th Precinct, taunting the detectives with clues from Shakespeare.

Michael McGarrity, Slow Kill (Aug., Dutton hc, 23.95). Traveling to California to buy horses, Chief Kearney finds himself to be the prime suspect in a murder of another guest at the ranch. Signed Copies Available. In paper, Everyone Dies (Aug., Signet, 6.99).

Claire McNab, The Wombat Strategy (May, Alyson tpo, 13.95). In a tiny Outback town, Kylie Kendall finds out that the father she never knew has died and left her 51% of an LA detective agency. Having nothing better to do, she moves into her late father’s world. Beginning of a new series by the creator of the esteemed Carol Ashton mysteries. Signing?

Leslie Meier, Star Spangled Murder (June, Kensington hc, 22.00). The 10th Lucy Stone finds her deep into Summer and trouble: a mischievous dog, skinny-dipping nudists and a lobster poacher.

Deon Meyer, Heart of the Hunter (July, Little Brown hc, 23.95). US debut by a noted South African writer. “Tiny” Mpayipheli is a giant of a man, a former government agent now retired and living a quiet life with his new family. When an old friend is kidnapped, the man’s daughter asks Tiny to deliver the ransom: a computer disk that many forces are after.

Kasey Michaels, Maggie Without a Clue (Aug., Kensington hc, 22.00). Fired from her job writing historical romance, Maggie turns to writing mysteries, and one of her characters soon comes to life with hilarious results.

Denise Mina, Deception (July, Little Brown hc, 23.95). Lachlan Harriot works to clear his wife, a court-appointed psychiatrist found covered with blood near the body of a serial killer she helped defend.

Walter Mosley, Little Scarlet (July, Little Brown hc, 24.95). Easy Rawlins searches for the killer of a woman murdered during the deadly 1965 Watts riots. In paper, Fear Itself (July, Warner, 7.50). Signing.

Marcia Muller, The Dangerous Hour (July, Warner hc, 25.00, Signed Copies 26.00). McCone Investigations is stunned when one of the operatives is arrested for major credit card fraud. Sharon knew the young woman was a risky hire, but she still believes the woman is innocent. In paper, Cyanide Wells (July, Warner, 7.50).

Tamar Myers, Statue of Limitations (June, Avon pbo, 6.99). 10th in the Den of Antiquities series.

Kem Nunn, Tijuana Straits (Aug., Scribner hc, 25.00). Fahey, once a great surfer and how an ex-con, runs into Magdalena, offering her shelter. She’s a law student and activist from Mexico and on the run from three killers out to stop her activism. They all meet at the junction of the US and Mexico, at a place once known for its giant waves and called the Tijuana Straits.

Arturo Perez-Reverte, The Queen of the South (June, Putnam hc, 25.95). Teresa Mendoza’s boyfriend is a drug smuggler and he’s given her a special cell phone. He tells her that, if it rings, he’s dead. And it rings. To save herself, she’ll have to find the resolve and strength that no one suspects she has – including herself. But find it she does and she uses it. Signed Copies Available.

Ann Purser, Terror on Tuesday (Aug., Berkley pbo, 5.99). Working-class mum Lois Meade finds a dead body in a chapel – and the body is in a suit of armor. Sequel to the popular cozy debut Murder on Monday (Berkley, 5.99).

Jay Rayner, Eating Crow (Aug., Simon & Schuster hc, 23.00). After a chef commits suicide because of a cruel review, the restaurant critic decides to apologize. The apologizing gets out of hand and he is soon apologizing for everything, every heinous crime. Tammy recommends this black comedy.

Kathy Reichs, Monday Mourning (June, Scribner hc, 25.00). As her relationships with Ryan and Claudel become more strained, Tempe Brennan throws herself into tracking down the monster responsible for the deaths of three young girls whose bones are found beneath a pizzeria. Drawn from a real life case she investigated, Kathy Reichs once again draws us into her very real and quite disturbing word of Tempe’s Montreal. Fran recommends. Signing. In paper, Bare Bones (June, Pocket, 7.99).

J.D. Robb, Visions of Death (Aug., Putnam hc, 21.95). 19th Eve Dallas finds a killer stalking NYC in 2059, a fiend who is taking eyes.

David Rosenfelt, Bury the Lead (June, Mysterious Press hc, 24.00). Andy Carpenter is asked by a newspaper friend to defend one of his star reporters who is accused of being a serial killer. In paper, First Degree (June, Warner, 6.99) Delightful series recommended by Bill, JB & Janine.

Steven Saylor, The Judgement of Caesar (June, St. Martin's hc, 24.95). Gordianus and his ailing wife have traveled to her homeland of Egypt in search of a cure, but they land just as the struggle between Ptolemy and Cleopatra has erupted, and his wife disappears into the Nile.

Lisa Scottoline, Killer Smile (June, Harper hc, 25.95). The suicide of an Italian-American in an internment camp may not be ancient history, but very active history. Signed Copies Available. In paper, Dead Ringer (June, Harper, 7.99).

Connie Shelton, Competition Can Be Murder (April, Intrigue hc, 24.95). The 8th of the Charlie Parker series travels to Scotland.

Mike Silverling, The Sterling Inheritance (July, St. Martin's hc, 23.95). 2002 St. Martin’s Best First Private Eye Mystery. Jason Wilder is a guitarist who moonlights as a PI between gigs. He’s got a boss who won’t let him get away with anything – his mother. Debut mystery that is dark humor and on-going action by a member of the Sacramento County DA’s abduction team.

Michael Simon, Dirty Sally (Aug., Viking hc, 23.95). A New Yorker by birth and temperament, Homicide cop Dan Reles is not only the only Yankee in Austin’s police department, he’s the only Jew. Being a true outsider, and under IA scrutiny for erratic behavior after his partner’s recent death, he’s the only cop interested in solving the murder of a young prostitute. In 1980s Texas, reeling from the oil bust, the murder of a whore leads Reles into a political, financial and social swamp. Debut novel by a writer highly praised by James Ellroy. Signing.

Karin Slaughter, Indelible (Aug., Morrow hc, 24.95). An officer is shot in the police station leaves Sheriff Toliver wounded and Sara Linton as a hostage. In paper, A Faint Cold Fear (Aug., Harper, 7.99). Signed Copies Available.

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Alexander McCall Smith, The Sunday Philosophy Club (Sept., Pantheon hc, 19.95). First of a new series. Isabel Dalhousie is the editor of The Review of Applied Ethics, a position which gives her ample chance to wrestle with odd questions. When she sees a young man plunge to his death from the Edinburgh Concert Hall, and learns he was an experienced climber, she delves into the case. Filled with all the charm and interesting characters that are expected from the author of The No.1 Ladies series.

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Ian Smith, The Blackbird Papers (June, Doubleday hc, 24.95). Professor Wilson Bledsoe seems to have been the victim of a horrible hate crime, but his FBI brother is not so sure. As he begins to look into the scientist’s lab, and his brother’s paper on the death of local birds, his life and career are jeopardized. Debut thriller from a TV and newspaper journalist.

Julie Smith, Louisiana Lament (July, Forge hc, 24.95). 3rd Talba Wallis mystery finds the poet and fledgling detective looking into the murder of a wealthy arts patron. In paper, Mean Woman Blues (July, Forge, 6.99), with Skip Langdon.

Mary-Ann Tirone Smith, She Smiled Sweetly (June, Holt hc, 25.00). FBI agent Poppy Rice looks into murders that occurred 30 years apart but are linked by DNA. Favorite writer of JB’s.

Patricia Sprinkle, When Will the Dead Lady Sing? (June, Signet pbo, 5.99) 4th in the Thoroughly Southern series.

Carsten Stroud, Cobraville (June, Simon & Schuster hc, 24.95). A CIA unit is sent to the Philippines to check on a surveillance monitor that is keeping track of fighting between Christian and Muslim forces, and into a trap set by Al Qaeda who have political designs for captured CIA personnel. In paper, Cuba Strait (June, Pocket, 7.99).

Denise Swanson, Murder of a Pink Elephant (July, Signet pbo, 5.99). 6th Scumble River mystery. A new band, The Pink Elephants, has the town going wild – including the stalker and killer.

James Swain, Loaded Dice (June, Ballantine hc, 22.95). Tony Valentine heads to Vegas after his son is reported missing. 4th in this authentic and entertaining series. In paper, Sucker Bet (June, Ballantine, 6.99).

Robert Tannenbaum, Hoax (Aug., Atria hc, 25.95). Butch Karp knocks heads with a crooked wanna-be mayor, a rap star, and corrupt priests. In paper, Resolved (Aug., Pocket, 7.99).

Victoria Thompson, Murder on Marble Row (June, Berkley hc, 21.95). 6th book, and first hardcover, in the Gaslight series with turn of the century midwife Sarah Brandt.

Leonard Tourney, Time’s Fool: A Mystery of Shakespeare (June, Forge hc, 24.95). The only witness to a stabbing on-stage, Will Shakespeare is accused of the crime. Out on bail, he works to clear himself.

Noreen Wald, Death with an Ocean View (June, Berkley pbo, 5.99). Senior Kate Kennedy is spending her retirement in Florida and dealing with the dark clouds that descend over the sun – like murder. First in a new series.

Ayelet Waldman, Murder Plays House (July, Berkley hc, 23.95). 5th with stay at home mom Juliet Applbaum.

Betty Webb, Desert Shadows (June, Poisoned Pen hc, 24.95). After a publisher is poisoned at a convention, reporter Lena Jones investigates a seldom discussed facet of the print world – racist publishing – and her digging leads her to shocking truths about her own origins. In paper, Desert Wives (July, Worldwide, 5.99).

Heather Webber, A Hoe Lot of Trouble (July, Avon pbo, 6.50). Debut mystery with landscape gardener Nina Collette Cesare Quinn. Each book will contain gardening tips.

Jacqueline Winspear, Birds of a Feather (June, Soho hc, 25.00). In a new case following on the heels of her acclaimed debut (Maisie Dobbs, Penguin, 14.00), Maisie is hired to find the missing daughter of a wealthy grocery magnate. As she searches, the heiress's friends begin to die. Signing.

Brian Wiprud, Pipsqueak (June, Dell pbo, 6.99). Originally self-published, this funny and quirky mystery proves that taxidermy and crime do mix. Signing.

Sally Wright, Out of the Ruins (June, Ballantine tpo, 6.99). 4th literary mystery with sleuthing archivist Dr. Ben Reese.

Qiu Xiaolong, When Red is Black (July, Soho hc, 25.00). As Insp. Chen takes a break to do some translating, his partner looks into the murder of a novelist. As Yu looks deeper into the case, the murky world of politics begins to come into play.

NOW IN PAPERBACK

Laurien Berensen, Best in Show (Aug., Kensington, 6.50)

John Billheimer, Drybone Hollow (Aug., Worldwide, 5.99)

Tom Bradby, The White Russian (June, Vintage, 14.95). JB recommends.

William Brodrick, The Sixth Lamentation (June, Viking, 14.00). Tammy and Janine HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

John Burdett, Bangkok 8 (July, Vintage, 12.95). Sandy recommends.

Andrea Camilleri, Voice of the Violin (June, Viking, 11.00)

David Corbett, Done for a Dime (June, Ballantine, 12.95). JB HIGHLY recommends.

Margaret Coel, Killing Raven (Aug., Berkley, 6.99)

Tom Corcoran, Octopus Alibi (June, St. Martin's, 6.99)

James Doss, Dead Soul (Aug., St. Martin's, 6.99)

David Ferrell, Screwball (Aug., Harper, 13.95). Hilarious baseball crime novel. JB HIGHLY recommends.

Elizabeth George, A Place of Hiding (Aug., Bantam, 7.99)

Erin Hart, Haunted Ground (Aug., Pocket, 7.50)

Faye Kellerman, Street Dreams (July, Warner, 7.99)

Virginia Lanier, A Bloodhound to Die for (June, Avon, 6.99)

Peter Lovesey, The House Sitter (June, Soho, 13.00)

Gregory Mcdonald, Flynn’s World (July, Vintage, 12.00)

Owen Parry, Bold Sons of Erin (Aug., Harper, 7.99). Great series!

Ben Rehder, Bone Dry (Aug., St. Martin's, 6.99)

Bob Sloan, The Middle of Nowhere (June, Grove, 12.00). Bill recommends.

Les Standiford, Havana Run (July, Berkley, 7.99).

William G. Tapply, A Fine Line (July, St. Martin's, 6.99)

Ayelet Waldman, Death Gets a Time-Out (June, Berkley, 6.99)

Jill Patton Walsh & Dorothy L. Sayers, A Presumption of Death (Aug., St. Martin's, 6.99)

COMING THIS FALL

Susan Wittig Albert & Beatrix Potter, Oct

Jan Burke & Irene Kelly, Sept

Margaret Coel, Wife of Moon, Sept

Patricia Cornwall & Scarpetta, Sept

James Ellroy, Destination Morgue, Sept

Martha Grimes & Richard Jury, Sept

Tony Hillerman, Skeleton Man, Nov

James Hime, Scared Money, Oct

Carol O’Connell & Mallory, Sept

Robert B. Parker & Sunny Randall, Sept

T.Jefferson Parker, California Girl, Oct

S.J. Rozan, Absent Friends, September

Martin Cruz Smith & Arkady Renko, Nov

NEW FROM THE UK

Quentin Jardine, Unnatural Justice (June, Trafalgar, 8.95). Oz Blackstone is sucked into a vortex of evil when he becomes the object of blackmailers. 7th with the private eye.

Michael Jecks, The Outlaws of Ennor (June, Trafalgar, 9.95). 16th in the popular medieval series, with former Knight Templar Sir Baldwin Furnshill and Bailiff Simon Puttock. In 1323, as they return from Spain, their ship is beset by pirates.

SHERLOCKIANA

Sherlock Holmes on Screen: The Complete Film and TV History, revised ed., Alan Barnes (Aug., Trafalgar, 29.95). The most comprehensive filmography ever…until the next edition?

Will Thomas, Some Danger Involved (June, Touchstone hc, 22.95). Debut novel by a fellow who has written for Holmes Society publications. In Victorian London, private detective Cyrus Barker looks into the crucifixion of a student in the Jewish section. Needing an assistant, he advertises for a position with “some danger involved.”

June Thomson, The Secret Notebooks of Sherlock Holmes (June, Allison & Busby hc, 25.95). Final installment in the “secret” trilogy.

Now in Paper

Donald Thomas, Sherlock Holmes and the Voice from the Crypt (July, Carroll & Graf, 14.00).

REISSUES OF NOTE

Eric Ambler, Passage of Arms (July, Vintage, 12.00). Gold Dagger winner in 1959.

Dorothy B. Hughes, The Blackbirder (June, FPCUNY, 14.95). 1943 espionage-noir, as a woman, who grew up in Paris, finds a friend dead and runs from the NYPD, the FBI and the Gestapo.

Robert Littell, The Debriefing (June, Overlook, 24.95). From 1979, the US’s best debriefer must determine if a Soviet defector is true, or a spy.

Charles Willeford, Miami Blues (from 1984) and New Hope for the Dead (from 1985) (Aug., Vintage, 12.00 ea). The first of the Hoke Moseley books, and the 2nd, which includes an intro by James Lee Burke. Bill strongly recommends this series.

Robert Wilson, Blood is Dirt and A Darkening Sky (July, Harcourt, 14.00 ea.). The 3rd, from 1997, and 4th, from 1998, with Bruce Medway, British expatriate in West Africa, troubleshooter and fixer. Janine raves about this series.

REISSUED CLASSICS FROM THE RUE MORGUE PRESS

From the Rue Morgue catalog:

Lucy Cores, Painted for the Kill (May, tp, 14.95). "This sparkling mystery-comedy of manners was first published in 1943 and is set at a very exclusive and very expensive Manhattan beauty salon. Two of the salon’s more cynical employees, exercise director Toni Ney, and her boyfriend, publicity director, Eric Skeets, lend a hand to Captain Andrew Torrent, a ballet-loving homicide detective, when the “French Lana Turner” is murdered while undergoing a facial."

AND, Corpse de Ballet (June, tp 14.95; first published 1944). "Toni Ney’s life has changed quite a bit since the events of Painted for the Kill. She’s now writing an exercise column (the photo of her in a scanty exercise outfit is being carried around by a lot of GIs, much to the chagrin of her boyfriend, Eric Skeets, now a brand new second lieutenant waiting to go overseas) for a New York newspaper as well as serving as that paper’s ballet reviewer. When a famous ballet dancer’s long-awaited return to the stage ends in murder, Toni is on hand and once again in a position to offer an insider’s point of view to Captain Torrent."

Constance & Gwenyth Little, The Black House (June, tp, 14.00). First published in 1950. "Henry Debbon showed up for work on time—and learned to regret that punctuality very quickly. His lawyer boss appointed him as bodyguard to his beautiful red-haired daughter. Guarding that body turned Henry into a reluctant hospital patient and later an unwilling host at his country house. This house had been left to him by an eccentric aunt who had painted it completely black. In the dead of winter Henry’s sudden guests were frozen stiff—then terrified when some genuine stiffs showed up."

AND, The Black Piano (April, tp, 14.00). First published in 1948. "Dick accused Jane of murdering his fiancee. Jane knew she didn't kill the girl, but she strongly suspected that Dick, who was her husband, had tried to murder her by pushing her off a bridge. Of course, that was when she was called Gloria and before the plastic surgeon changed her into a real beauty so that she could go home and investigate her own murder." There's a black piano in here somewhere, in another of the Little sisters' wacky plots.

John Mersereau, Murder Loves Company (July, tp, 14.95). From 1940. "James Yeats Biddle, a youngish professor of horticulture, is horrified when two very rare olive trees are killed during the 1940 San Francisco Exposition on Treasure Island. Reporter Kay Ritchie and homicide inspector Angus McDuff are a bit more concerned with the murder of two Japanese laborers, whose bodies were hurled from a speeding automobile heading to the island on the Bay Bridge. Kay drags Prof. Biddle, who is quite be-smitten with her, into a hunt for the murderer. It’s a fascinating portrait of San Francisco on the eve of World War II as well as an early example of the use of horticulture in mystery fiction.”

COLLECTIONS

Elizabeth George, A Moment on the Edge: 100 Years of Crime Stories by Women (July, Harper hc, 24.95). 26 previously published stories from the masters, past and present, including Allingham, Brand, Sayers, Gordimer, Jance, March, Muller, Paretsky, Walters and others.

Brooklyn Noir, Tim McLoughlin, ed. (July, Akashic tpo, 15.95). The punchiest borough asserts its criminal legacy, with stories by the likes of Hamill, Offit, Estep, Niles, Kelly and others.

Fifty Best Mysteries, Eleanor Sullivan ed. (July, Carroll & Graf tpo, 15.00). Selection of the best short mystery stories from the last 60 years.

SPECIAL INTEREST ITEMS

Steve Hodel, Black Dahlia Avenger (June, Harper, 14.95). This paperback issue includes a new chapter, detailing 1950 DA documents and photos that have not been available to the public.

Elmore Leonard, A Coyote’s in the House (June, Morrow hc, 15.95). A first for the master: a children’s book for ages 10 and up features the adventures of three dogs who roam the mean alleys of Hollywood.

Randy Wayne White, Last Flight Out: More Tales of Adventure, Travel, and Fishing (June, Lyons, 14.95). Third collection of columns from the noted adventure and mystery writer. Signing.

SOME STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS

Sandy:

Hazel Holt, Mrs. Malory and the Silent Killer (March, Signet pbo, 5.99). Excellent cozy, up to Holt's usual high standards.

Christine Poulson, Murder is Academic (April, STMP hc, 23.95). Debut with Cambridge instructor Cassandra James. Interesting characters and a good sense of place, in an intriguing plot.

JB:

I’ve re-read three classics and have been gratified to see how powerful they remain: Michael Connelly’s The Poet, Lee Child’s Killing Floor, and James Ellroy’s The Black Dahlia.

Bill:

Boris Akunin, Murder on the Leviathan (Random House hc, 21.95. First announced as a Feb. release and described in our Winter 2003-04 Newsletter, then postponed to April.) What a delightful discovery! A classic whodunit by a Russian man who writes like Agatha Christie! Set in 1878, translated from the Russian.

Gary Disher, The Dragon Man (see page 3). Another traditional whodunit, set in modern day Australia.

And I thoroughly enjoyed Donald E. Westlake’s latest laugh-out-loud Dortmunder novel, The Road to Ruin, but how surprising is that?

TRAVEL SECTION

We’re always getting asked by folks to find them a mystery that ____________ (fill in the blank). It may be a setting, it may be an era, it may be more arcane. One of Bill’s aims for this shop has always been to be a resource for all types of inquiries, and people always have seemed to feel comfortable asking us for all manner of specifics and peculiarities.

One person wanted mysteries with luggage on the cover (this got us to looking at a lot of titles beginning, “The Case of the …”). Another wanted any dealing with teeth or dentistry. Occasionally we’re asked for a mystery without a murder. One that stumped us was a mystery that featured an accordion. It is almost like playing “Stump the Band” on the old Carson Show. We’re going to start tossing a few of them into our newsletters and newzines, partly as amusement and partly to see if anyone else can answer ones we can’t.

This being summer, we’re sure to get requests for mysteries “set” in a certain way. So here are some to consider or to start off your thinking:

On your summer travels, you might like a book that features your mode of transportation. Traveling by ship? Try James W. Hall’s Buzz Cut, Ruth Rendell’s No Night Is Too Long, Peter Lovesey’s The False Inspector Dew. There is no shortage of boating mysteries – sail or cruise. (If you’re cruising to Alaska, surely you’ll want to take along J.P. Beaumont, in J.A. Jance’s Birds of Prey.) Going by plane? Try Ridley Pearson’s Hard Fall or any of John Nance’s books – they always have a neat mix of legal and political issues along with the flying. Traveling by rail? Dick Francis has a nice trans-Canada thriller, The Edge, and Seicho Matsumoto’s Insp. Imanishi Investigates concerns a train that vanishes.

Once you get there, perhaps you’ll be outdoors. There are any number of series that take place in resort areas – such as Philip Craig and Cynthia Riggs who have Martha’s Vineyard series – or take place on a beach – Valerie Wolzein’s latest, Death in a Beach Chair, or Kem Nunn’s surfing mysteries. There are a number of underwater thrillers – scuba diving, deep sea archeology, treasure hunting. Perhaps you’ll be outside, but away from the crowds. All of Nevada Barr’s books take place in National Parks and CJ Box’s character is a Game Warden in Wyoming. There are a number of Civil War mysteries, in case your travels carry you to battlefields – Owen Parry, Miriam Grace Monfredo or Ann McMillan.

Going abroad? To France – in addition to the classic Simenon, try Cara Black or Sebastien Jasprisot. Italy – try Michael Dibdin, Andrea Camilleri or Magdalen Nabb as well as Donna Leon. Scandinavia – besides Henning Mankell and Sjowall/Wahloo, there’s Liza Marklund and Helene Tursten. Scotland – besides Ian Rankin, try Val McDermid or Denise Mina. Japan – look at Sujata Massey, Akimitsu Takagi and Isaac Adamson. China – Eliot Pattison or Qiu Xiaolong. We could go on and on. We’ve named some authors and some titles, but keep in mind that these just scratch the surface – gardening, sports, South America, South Seas, Africa…

Chances are, where ever you go this summer, however you get there, whatever you hope to do when you arrive, there are mysteries to fit the trip and to complement your vacation. Just ask us.

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Mail and phone orders for these or any other books are welcome. We often have signed copies of Northwest authors, and other authors who visit the shop. Prices subject to change without notice. Seattle Mystery Bookshop, 117 Cherry St., Seattle, WA 98104. Phone: (206) 587-5737.

Email: staff@seattlemystery.com

WEBSITE: seattlemystery.com

SEATTLE MYSTERY BOOKSHOP NEWS is composed and produced by JB Dickey and Sandy Goodrick. The online version is brought to you by Cathie van Veen.

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