Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Starting the year out right!


Well, actually, I'm starting 2010 out right - by getting you ready for the first week of new releases! I know, I'm impressed with myself, too. Don't worry - I'm sure this won't last...

OK, for the week of January 4th, here's what we can look forward to:

"Committed" by Elizabeth Gilbert. This is the author of the incredibly popular "Eat, Pray, Love", a book that I finally read and ended up enjoying quite a bit. This work picks up where EPL left off; Gilbert has found her true love Felipe, a very hot, older Brazilian. They've continued their long-distance relationship for the past year with Felipe spending 90-day stretches in the U.S. with Gilbert. However, after taking one of their non-90-day-in-the-USA trips, Felipe is denied entrance to Gilbert's homeland. The couple are told that the only way he can come in again is for them to be married. However, Gilbert is reluctant to do so, nor does she want to leave Felipe for good. She begins a year-long exile, reading up on the subject of marriage, and in the end confronting her own fears. I have high hopes for this book, as I understand there will be a lot of historical background on the subject of "wedded bliss". Wonder if Oprah will have her on again?

"Impact" by Douglas Preston. Another thriller starring CIA operative Wyman Ford, who was also in Preston's book "Blasphemy". Publisher's Weekly says there are three storylines here which eventually intersect. Fans of scientific thrillers should be happy with this. Interesting that he is not writing with Lincoln Child...

"Iron River" by T. Jefferson Parker. This is the third book in Parker's Charlie Hood series, and I'm happy to report that my hubby just finished the first two. He said they were fabulous, action-packed easy reading. I'm sure he's going to be happy to hear that this book is coming out! The Hood books are police procedurals.

"Noah's Compass" by Anne Tyler. Recently our collection development team here at the library had to reassess our needs and wants, including which authors would be considered "must-have" for all branches, which ones could be picked up for a select few, and which ones might not be picked up at all anymore. Tyler is an author that I lobbied for dropping down to a select few, as her books just do not circulate very often. I was surprised how many on the team wanted to keep her. I don't know if they read her, or if they've actually got demand for them. Either way, I consider her to be "literary", which isn't a high-demand category here. PW seems to like it, saying she's written another good work about a "flawed" character. Not really on my list of reading, though.

"Remarkable Creatures" by Tracy Chevalier. Another historical work from Chevalier, who hit it big with "Girl with a Pearl Earring" back in the late 1990s. I think this is another one of those authors who hit it big almost right out of the box, then has slowly and consistenly flagged as time goes on. I know I don't have many patrons asking for her stuff, nor can I get it to circulate when I display it.

"The Summer We Fell Apart" by Robin Antalek. The father is a playwright, the mother a cult-actress, the grown kids a mess. This is a debut novel set in New York and Los Angeles and covers 15 years of family dysfunction (which sort of makes one wonder at the title, doesn't it?) It sounds like it could be promising but I'm not one for the family drama genre.

"Thereby Hangs a Tail: A Chet and Bernie Mystery" by Spencer Quinn. I cannot wait to read this! Probably one of my favorite books of 2009 was "Dog On It", the debut of Chet (the dog) and Bernie (the detective). It was funny and a great little mystery, all told from Chet's point of view, which I was worried would end up as "too cute!" Luckily, Quinn got it right - you really believe that Chet is talking to you, and he acts just like you'd think a dog would act. It was recommended by Stephen King in one of his EW columns, and I totally agree.

"The Good, the Bad, and the Uncanny" by Simon R. Green. Green now has an even ten book in his popular Nightside series starring John Taylor, the man who can find anything. I can't wait for this, but I have to catch up first - somehow I missed the previous book, "Just Another Judgement Day". These are always good little reads - nothing too long, big on action with just enough fantasy.

"Inked". A collection of four novellas by some of the better authors in paranormal writing. Look for new works by Karen Chance, Marjorie M. Liu, Yasmine Galenorn, and Eileen Wilks. I usually like this sort of thing, so I'm looking forward to it.

"Kitty's House of Horrors" by Carrie Vaughn. Book 7 in the Kitty Norville series, which I'm very anxious to read. Kitty is talked into participating in a supernatural TV reality series. Of course, this being our favorite werewolf DJ, you just know things will start going wrong in a hurry. This has been a very strong series, and again, I look forward to reading this one!

2 comments:

Faith said...

I’m impressed with you too ;D
I’m picking some of my 2010 reads from ur previous reviews they are awesome thank you :)
But for some reason new releases scare me! they have to be at least one year old for me to get them !! so I’m keeping this post for next year lol

Traci (aka the Bookbabe) said...

That's not a bad idea to wait - gives you a chance to read several reviews, see how people feel about it. I like both old and new! And thanks for choosing some books from my reviews here. Means I must be doing something right!

Happy 2010!