| Thrillers and Suspense January 2007 |
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"Even cowards can endure hardship; only the brave can endure suspense."
~ Mignon McLaughlin (1913-1983), American journalist and author
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| New and Recently Released! |
| Gravewriter - by Mark Arsenault |
| Publisher: St. Martin's Press/Thomas Dunne Books |
| Pub Date: 11/28/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0312335962 |
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Thriller. One year ago, obituary writer Billy Povich lost his wife in a car accident and never really recovered. He spends most of his time gambling and fantasizing about revenge; his seven-year-old son is his only reason for living. But when he is assigned jury duty, his life is turned upside down: one of only two jurors who believe that the case is not as clear-cut as it seems, Billy may be a target when the other one dies under suspicious circumstances. Library Journal calls Gravewriter an "outstanding, can't-put-it-down" thriller. | |
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| The Physician's Tale - by Ann Benson |
| Publisher: Delacorte Press |
| Pub Date: 11/28/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0385335059 |
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Medical Thriller. In a near-future 21st century America, there are only a few colonies of survivors left as a plague decimates the world's population. Dr. Janie Crowe and her family are among them. In 14th-century Europe, the bubonic plague is destroying England and France; Dr. Alejandro Canches and his family are among those affected by both the plague and the politics of the time. The link between these two parallel stories is Canches' medical journal, now in Janie's hands; Janie believes it holds a key to surviving the current plague, and rebuilding civilization. The Physician's Tale is the conclusion to a trilogy that began with The Plague Tales. | |
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| True Evil - by Greg Iles |
| Publisher: Simon & Schuster |
| Pub Date: 12/01/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0743292499 |
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Thriller. "It took a deep-rooted hatred to watch your spouse die in agony, knowing that you had brought about that pain. But on the other hand, some people bore up remarkably well." So says a divorce attorney specializing in killing the spouses of his very wealthy--and very private--clients. With no proof that her sister was one of his victims, but determined to keep her nephew safe from his father, Special Agent Alexandra Morse is desperate for help. She finds it in Dr. Chris Shepard, who seems to have the perfect life with his new wife but is unaware that she is plotting his murder. Although initially unwilling to believe that Agent Morse is right, Dr. Shepard begins to see the danger he is in, and must join Agent Morse in a desperate race to save his own life. |
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| The Boss - by Stan Pottinger |
| Publisher: St. Martin's Press |
| Pub Date: 11/28/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 031227677X |
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Thriller. Well-known and larger-than-life Spin Patterson is CEO of a billion-dollar Texas oil company. Unfortunately for him, his wife has just found out that he's been having an affair--and takes immediate aim at his wallet in a divorce suit. He, however, is willing to do whatever it takes to protect his money, for he's not the man most people think he is. Much action-packed vengeance ensues as Max, Spin's former protégé (who has just learned that Spin may have been involved in more than one death, including Max's father's) jumps in to save everyone involved, from the woman he loves to his fellow employees. If you like big personalities and big plots in a big page-turner, this one's for you. | |
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| Ask the Parrot - by Richard Stark |
| Publisher: Mysterious Press |
| Pub Date: 11/23/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 089296068X |
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Thriller. Let's get this straight. Parker is impersonal and not particularly likeable, but his exploits sure are fun to watch. In Ask the Parrot, he gets involved in another man's plan to rip off a racetrack--albeit at gunpoint, after fleeing the scene of a disastrous bank heist (Nobody Runs Forever). The man holding the gun is Tom Lindahl, an angry recluse and one-time whistleblower--and it's he who has a daring scheme to seek revenge, using Parker to accomplish his goal. As for what role the parrot plays...you'll just have to read the 23rd Parker book to find out. | |
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| Amnesia: Even Ginkgo biloba can't help these people! |
| Oblivion - by Peter Abrahams |
| Publisher: Harpercollins |
| Pub Date: 04/01/2006 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0060832835 |
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Suspense Fiction. If you enjoyed the movie Memento (2000), this story of a P.I. suffering from amnesia should appeal to you. As one might guess, the memory loss (caused by a brain hemorrhage) interferes with his investigation into the disappearance of a teen; even worse, the amnesia occurs just as he is nearing a breakthrough. As he painstakingly pieces clues together (again), he is unaware of the danger he is in. Lauded for its "spare yet often poetic prose" (The New Yorker) and thrills so good you'll "take it with you in the car to read at stoplights" (Entertainment Weekly), Oblivion is a book you won't want to miss. | |
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| One Shot: A Jack Reacher Novel - by Lee Child |
| Publisher: Delacorte Press |
| Pub Date: 06/28/2005 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0385336683 |
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Suspense Fiction. Opening with a sniper who kills five people in Indiana, One Shot begins with a bang and continues with more of the same. When ex-Army sniper James Barr, the man accused of the killings, demands to see quintessential loner and ex-MP Jack Reacher, Jack's already on the way. What he has to say only cements the case against Barr, but nothing is quite what it seems. After Barr is beaten so badly that he suffers from amnesia (and therefore can do little to help prove his innocence), Jack's discomfort mounts as tiny clues seem to suggest that Barr was framed. 9th in the Jack Reacher series. | |
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| The Mayday: A Jack Merchant and Sarah Ballard Novel - by Bill Eidson |
| Publisher: Kate's Mystery Books/Justin, Charles & Co. Publishers |
| Pub Date: 12/01/2004 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 1932112332 |
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Suspense Fiction. When their boat sank at sea, Matt Coulter lost his wife and their two kids, but he insists that his kids were kidnapped by a mysterious boat that answered his mayday call. His memory, clouded by partial amnesia (and possibly a drinking problem), allows him to remember very little, and the police are naturally suspicious. But ex-DEA agent Jack Merchant and repo contractor Sarah Ballard, initially skeptical, come to believe Matt, and their subsequent investigation--which turns up evidence that there might be something to Matt's story--puts their own lives in danger. This chilling tale is the 2nd in the Merchant-Ballard series. | |
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| Land of the Living - by Nicci French |
| Publisher: Warner Books |
| Pub Date: 04/01/2004 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0446613886 |
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Psychological Suspense. She's injured, hooded, restrained, and lying in a dank room somewhere, captive to an unknown man--that's all Abbie Devereaux knows when she awakes. When she finally escapes to a hospital, no one believes her story, and when she returns to her "normal" life, nothing seems normal at all. Unable to remember the details of the days leading up to her abduction and therefore unable to trust anyone, Abbie is on her own as she sets out to find the man who selected and captured her--as he did so many other women...before he killed them. You might want to keep the lights on while you read this nightmarish tale. | |
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| The First Cut - by Peter Robinson |
| Publisher: Perennial Dark Alley |
| Pub Date: 09/01/2004 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 006073535X |
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Psychological Suspense. University student Kirsten is recovering from a Jack the Ripper-style attack, of which she has no memory. Martha is an author obsessed with her grim scholarly research, which may have something to do with the "Student Slasher," the individual who attacked Kirsten--and who has also killed six other female students. From the intertwining perspectives of these two women, plus one other, a taut, suspenseful tale of revenge and determination emerges and comes to a startling conclusion. The First Cut, deemed "ingenious" by the Toronto Star, was first published in 1990 in Canada as Caedmon's Song. | |
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| Mirage - by F. Paul Wilson and Matthew J. Costello |
| Publisher: Warner Books |
| Pub Date: 11/01/1997 |
Check library catalog |
| ISBN: 0446604739 |
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Medical Thriller. This one's got it all--estranged twins (one in a coma), repressed memories (and a machine that reads them), noxious family secrets, and even a suspected IRA terrorist. Noted neurophysiologist Julie Gordon must use her computer-enhanced, 3-D, virtual-reality program (designed to "see" memories) to enter her twin sister's mind in order to figure out just what it was that sent her into a coma--and there she finds memories of unspeakable evil. If the combination of SF-style medical machinery and the thrills of untying the knots of a long-buried mystery interests you, make sure to grab this one off the shelf. | |
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| Still looking for the right book? Contact your librarian. |
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