| Thrillers and Suspense September 2006 |
|
"Death, the sable smoke where vanishes the flame."
~ George Gordon, Lord Byron, British poet, in Childe Harold's Pilgrimage |
| New and recently released! |
| Crisis - by Robin Cook |
| Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons |
| Pub Date: 08/08/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0399153578 |
|
 |
 |
|
Medical Thriller. When Dr. Craig Bowman makes a house call to hypochondriac patient Patience Stanhope, he finds her near death, and isn't able to save her. The result is a malpractice suit that threatens to destroy Craig's career. Though his wife calls her brother Jack, a New York City medical examiner, in to help, he discovers a Pandora's box of trouble after exhuming Patience's body. As usual, author Robin Cook focuses on a timely topic--in this case the controversial concierge-style medical treatment that is available to the affluent willing to pay for it--in this combination medical thriller and courtroom drama. | |
|
| The Second Perimeter - by Mike Lawson |
| Publisher: Doubleday |
| Pub Date: 07/25/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0385515324 |
|
| |
 |
|
Political Espionage Thriller. In this sequel to The Inside Ring, political troubleshooter Joe DeMarco is investigating a U.S. naval base for fraud when he discovers it has been infiltrated by a deadly espionage ring. As dead spies start turning up, it seems that an enemy agent, a woman named Li Mei, is killing them off as they complete their jobs. Her goal appears to be two-fold: obtain information about top-secret nuclear submarine technology, and destroy the woman she blames for shattering her own career--DeMarco's colleague and friend Emma, a retired Defense Intelligence Agency agent. | |
|
| The Dead Hour: A Novel - by Denise Mina |
| Publisher: Little, Brown and Co. |
| Pub Date: 07/10/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0316735949 |
|
| |
 |
|
Suspense Fiction. In bleak 1984 Glasgow, Paddy Meehan is a graveyard-shift reporter covering crime and struggling to make ends meet. One night, she rides with police who respond to a domestic disturbance call, where they are reassured by a well-dressed man and a (bleeding) blonde woman that nothing is wrong (with a hefty bribe to keep it out of the paper). Guilt-ridden and horrified when she finds out the next day that the woman has been brutally murdered, Paddy determines to find the killer, unaided by her coworkers and not entirely trusted by the police. Publishers Weekly calls Paddy's second appearance after A Field of Blood "riveting." | |
|
| The Assassins Gallery - by David L. Robbins |
| Publisher: Bantam Dell |
| Pub Date: 07/25/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0553804413 |
|
| |
 |
|
Historical Thriller. Near the end of World War II, a woman named Judith commits a double murder on a Massachusetts beach to cover up her arrival in the U.S. As suspicions rise that President Roosevelt may be an assassin's target, an expert on assassination methods, Professor Mikhal Lammeck, is asked to solve the murders. Despite all that he learns about the coldly remorseless killer, he doesn't know just how close she is getting to her target. Publishers Weekly says that this heart-stopping story will "provide thriller lovers with one of their best reads of the year." | |
|
| Deceit - by James Siegel |
| Publisher: Warner Books |
| Pub Date: 08/09/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0446531863 |
|
| |
 |
|
Suspense Fiction. Former star reporter Tom Valle was very good at his job--until he got lazy and started making stories up. Now in disgrace, he is lucky to cover the most banal events for a small California paper. It is in this capacity that he covers a fatal road accident outside of his tiny desert town. As Valle's investigation continues, one uncovered lie leads to another as he discovers a line of deception, cover-ups, and corruption that stretch back for decades, back to a 1954 flood that destroyed the town. But the question is, will anyone believe his story? | |
| |
| Focus On: Crime in the Art World |
| False Impression - by Jeffrey Archer |
| Publisher: St. Martin's Press |
| Pub Date: 03/07/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0312353723 |
|
| |
 |
|
Suspense Fiction. The owner of a priceless Van Gogh is murdered and her ear cut off shortly before the painting is due to be transferred to wealthy Bryce Fenston. When Fenston's offices in the Twin Towers are destroyed on 9/11, his employee, art purchaser Anna Petrescu, who has discovered that Fenston prefers to steal rather than buy desired paintings, uses her "presumed dead" status to prevent the unscrupulous Fenston from benefiting. If you are a fan of stories that feature art and conspiracy, like the Da Vinci Code, you may want to try this, Archer's first novel after a stint in prison for perjury. | |
|
| A Masterpiece of Revenge - by J.J. Fiechter |
| Publisher: Arcade Pub. |
| Pub Date: 09/01/1998 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 1559704306 |
|
| |
 |
|
Suspense Fiction. In the heady sphere of art appraisal, the world-renowned Charles Vermeille is king, especially when it comes to 17th-century artist Claude Lorrain. A long-lost Lorrain has, rather miraculously, just been found; naturally, it needs authentication and Vermeille will soon be asked to do it. But when he starts receiving anonymous photographs of his son engaged in daily life, it seems that someone is trying to send him a rather ominous message. Is he being pressured to approve the painting or lose his son? Publishers Weekly suggests that you'll have to read this "ingeniously diabolical" book to find out! | |
|
| The Death Collectors - by Jack Kerley |
| Publisher: Dutton |
| Pub Date: 06/01/2005 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0525948775 |
|
| |
 |
|
Suspense Fiction. A long-dead naked female is found in a motel room, surrounded by candles and buried under flowers--the case is assigned to detectives Ryder and Nautilus of the psychopathological and sociopathological team. As they find more bodies, each with a miniature oil painting, they learn of a long-dead serial killer--someone seems to be keeping his memory alive by displaying his artwork in a very gruesome manner. But who? Ryder's brilliant homicidal brother provides insight into the mind of the killer, and Kirkus Reviews declares that Jack Kerley's writing ("like a house afire") and ghastly imagination will "keep you awake long after you turn the last page." | |
|
| The Double Eagle: A Novel - by James Twining |
| Publisher: HarperCollins |
| Pub Date: 09/01/2005 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0060762098 |
|
| |
 |
|
Adventure Thriller. In what Publishers Weekly calls an "auspicious beginning for a fledgling series", ex-CIA/current jewel thief (attempting to go straight) Tom Kirk and semi-disgraced FBI agent (trying to regain her status) Jennifer Browne team up to recover five small, valuable coins. At stake is immunity for him, a career for her, both their lives, and the $40 million the coins are worth. With constant twists and turns, this is less literary foray and more escapist adventure--it's as perfect for the beach as it is the commute, as it is sure to distract you. | |
| |
| Focus On: Recreated Crimes |
| Much as the seven deadly sins were used by the killer in the movie Se7en, here you'll find murders based on paintings capturing the deaths of saints, victims in movies and video games, and so on... |
| A Season for the Dead - by David Hewson |
| Publisher: Bantam Books |
| Pub Date: 12/28/2004 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0440242118 |
|
| |
 |
|
Thriller. All over Rome, people are being killed in gruesome ways, all of which mimic the deaths of saints depicted in famous paintings. Other than the ways in which the victims die, they all share one thing in common--they are all associated with beautiful Sara Farnese, a professor of early Christianity, who is not especially forthcoming when questioned. This is the debut appearance of Detective Nic Costa, but author Hewson's eye for detail, fine characterization, and intricate plots have ensured a continuation of the series--the 4th, The Lizard's Bite, will be published in the U.S. in October. | |
|
| Darkly Dreaming Dexter - by Jeff Lindsay |
| Publisher: Ballantine Books |
| Pub Date: 06/14/2005 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 1400095913 |
|
| |
 |
|
Thriller. Dexter Morgan is a respected lab technician with the Miami Dade Police Department, charming and well-dressed. He's also a sociopath, a serial killer with a manufactured conscience who has learned to kill only other serial killers. But what to do when a newcomer to Miami mimics his own style? He's promised to help his sister, who is trying to make detective, solve the crimes. But he's also intrigued by what might be a kindred spirit. Then again, it might be a set-up. Or is he committing the crimes himself? You'll find yourself on Dexter's side in what Publishers Weekly calls "a gripping, deliciously offbeat novel." | |
|
| The Skin Gods: A Novel - by Richard Montanari |
| Publisher: Ballantine Books |
| Pub Date: 03/14/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0345470974 |
|
| |
 |
|
Thriller. A killer is terrorizing Philadelphia as he turns Hollywood death scenes (Psycho, Fatal Attraction, etc.) into murders with real-life victims. He even splices his "scenes" into rental VHS tapes of the films. On the case are homicide detectives Jessica Balzano and Kevin Byrne, in their second appearance after The Rosary Girls. As the novel jumps between characters, their personalities and flaws are expertly portrayed. Complete with multiple threads, potential perpetrators, even chapters written from the killers POV, this is what Publishers Weekly calls "a well-crafted thriller." | |
|
| The Death Artist - by Jonathan Santlofer |
| Publisher: HarperTorch |
| Pub Date: 08/01/2003 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0060004428 |
|
| |
 |
|
Thriller. Successful art historian, philanthropist, and former NYPD cop Kate McKinnon is drawn into a gruesome situation when a vicious murderer starts killing members of the New York art community, using his victims' flesh and blood to create replicas of famous paintings. As she assists the police in their investigation, it becomes clear that Kate is the killer's target--or perhaps his motivation. Author Jonathan Santlofer is a painter and gives a detailed look into the art world, but this page-turner is not for those with weak stomachs. | |
|
| Monkeewrench - by P.J. Tracy |
| Publisher: Signet |
| Pub Date: 04/01/2004 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 045121157X |
|
| |
 |
|
Thriller. Minneapolis recluse Grace McBride and her software company, Monkeewrench, have just released a new murder mystery video game. When murders start occurring in real life that replicate the deaths of victims in the video game, Monkeewrench is desperate to identify the killer. In an added twist, local homicide detectives discover that everyone associated with Monkeewrench created a new identity ten years previously, but the FBI is not forthcoming with explanations--though they seem to be related to a series of murders in Atlanta. Monkeewrench was the highly praised debut in the series of the same name; the 4th, Snow Blind, was released in August. | |
| |
|
| Still looking for the right book? Contact your librarian. |
|
|
|
|