Suspense Fiction. Retired intelligence officer Cotton Malone has been captured and dumped in an empty museum, but manages to escape as the place goes up in flames around him. Meanwhile, an ambitious and brutal Kazakh ruler has carved a nation out of the ruins of the Soviet Union. What does Cotton have to do with the despotic Irina Zovastina? And what does Alexander the Great have to do with either of them? As Irina stockpiles biological weapons, a powerful healing elixir entombed with the great ruler appears to be the only thing keeping her in check. Whoever reaches the tomb first will have the power to save--or destroy--the world. The Venetian Betrayal marks Cotton Malone's 3rd appearance.

Suspense Fiction. Former FBI agent Mark Beamon appears in his 5th desperate attempt to stop disaster; this time, the world's oilfields are in danger of being destroyed by oil-eating bacteria. If the bacteria are allowed to run amok, the devastation would result in the world's economy--not to mention the transportation of food--coming to a halt. Beamon's reluctant ally is Erin Neal, a broken, grief-stricken scientist in self-imposed isolation after his girlfriend's death, who discovers that this dangerous strain of bacteria might have resulted from his own research. This tale of idealism gone so very wrong will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Suspense Fiction. Depending on how you look at it, Detective Harry Hole is either in the middle of a mystery (with roots in World War II) or a thriller (he might just be the only man who can prevent an assassination). If you have a taste for both, this suspenseful crime novel (winner of several Norwegian crime fiction awards) will have you calling friends in Europe in the hopes of getting author Jo Nesbø's other Harry Hole books, which aren't yet available in the U.S. From the war's Russian front to modern-day Oslo, with the alcoholic Harry on the trail of a dangerous neo-Nazi as well as a conspiracy, this is "a complex tale of murder, revenge and betrayal" (Publishers Weekly).

Military Thriller. After a politically embarrassing incident in the U.S., Navy Commander Dan Lenson has been sent to South Korea to oversee a major international naval task force that is involved in anti-submarine exercises in the waters between Korea and Japan. All is going fairly well until a typhoon--and several inimical North Korean submarines--move into the area. This fast-paced story is sure to please fans of naval warfare and political intrigue; the 10th Dan Lenson thriller is "well up to [author David] Poyer's excellent standards" (Kirkus Reviews).

Legal Thriller. Compared to John Lescroart's Dismas Hardy books, D.W. Buffa's Joseph Antonelli thrillers master a similar level of characterization, plotting, writing, and courtroom action. The Legacy is the 4th to feature Portland, Oregon, defense attorney Antonelli, though much of the action takes place in San Francisco, where a young black man has been accused of shooting and killing a senator there. The accused maintains his innocence, and the story heats up as political secrets are exposed, making clear that the senator's death was no random act of violence. Pick this up for an outsider's look at San Francisco.

Legal Thriller. John Lescroart's Dismas Hardy is a likeable, upstanding lawyer who sometimes struggles with cynicism and depression. William Lashner's Vincent Carl is amiable, righteous, and moody. Both men are easy to root for, and both authors write well, leavening dark moods with a bit of humor. In Past Due, Vincent decides to investigate when a client's throat is cut shortly after he tells Vincent a decades-old secret. The information that Vincent turns up threatens his life--and his career. This is the 4th Vincent Carl novel; if you want to start at the beginning, check out Hostile Witness.

Legal Thriller. With a touch of humor, intriguing series characters and relationships, provocative cases involving solid investigations, and courtroom surprises, Sheldon Siegel's series featuring lawyers Mike Daley and Rosie Fernandez is a possible match for fans of John Lescroart's legal thrillers. In Siegel's debut, ex-priest Daley is asked to defend one of his former colleagues at the prestigious San Francisco law firm that fired him. In investigating the double-homicide at the heart of the case, Daley learns more about his old firm than he bargained for. There are four other books in the series; look for the 6th to arrive in the spring of 2008.

Legal Thriller. Like John Lescroart's Dismas Hardy, attorney Butch Karp is decent but imperfect--maintaining a strong sense of morality, he's still pulled by concerns with both family and job. In this 1st book in the series, Karp is an assistant D.A. in New York prosecuting a murder case against a man feigning insanity. His determination to bring the man to justice is laudable, but has dangerous repercussions. The Butch Karp series will appeal to Lescroart fans who are looking for investigative stories with provocative legal issues and intriguing characters, and who appreciate the idea of upholding justice.

Suspense Fiction. Freelance assassin John Rain wants to quit his chosen line of work, but his old friend Dox has been kidnapped by untrustworthy rival Jim Hilger--who threatens to kill Dox unless Rain completes three hits for him. As a hitman, Rain doesn't have a problem killing people--but he does want to know why Hilger wants these three dead. And he's got to choose: kill three possibly innocent people and hope Hilger will spare Dox? Or leave the business and let Hilger follow through on his threat? You'll have to read this 6th in the series to find out what choice the implacable Rain makes.

Suspense Fiction. For five years, bartender Billy Wiles has waited patiently for his comatose girlfriend Barbara to wake up. His quiet life, however, comes rapidly to an end when he discovers a note under his car's windshield wiper that offers him a choice: take the note to the police and the note's author will kill a pretty young schoolteacher, or do nothing and an elderly charity worker will die. When Billy shows the note to a friend (who happens to be a cop), a schoolteacher is beaten to death. More notes appear, asking Billy to make more and more difficult choices--and these choices are hitting closer to home. This nail biting story is "genuinely terrific" (Booklist).

Spy Fiction. In this 4th novel to feature assassin Nick Stone, the former British special services agent aborts a mission when he learns that his target is a child. Expecting to be terminated (literally) for his failure, he is instead given a second chance--with the added incentive that if he fails again, the 13-year-old he acts as guardian for may also be killed. As the hunt for the target heats up and the reasoning behind it becomes clearer, Nick must make some big decisions. Last Light is "clearly the best Nick Stone adventure yet," says Booklist, but to learn how the assassin became a legal guardian, start with the 1st in the series, Remote Control.

Psychological Thriller. Although Kill Me features clinical psychologist Alan Gregory in his 4th appearance, the real focus of this story is on one of his patients, a wealthy adventure-seeker who has taken the unusual step of hiring a shadowy organization that will step in and end his life should that life become a burden to him or his family due to illness or injury. Sounds great--until the unnamed patient is given a medical diagnosis that triggers the nonnegotiable contract but leaves him healthy enough to try to evade his own hired hitmen long enough to put his life in order. His ordeals are "bizarre, thrilling, and oh so much fun" (Booklist).