The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest by Stieg Larsson Synopsis:
Lisbeth Salander - the heart of Larsson's two previous novels - lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She's fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she'll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge - against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt govenment institutions that very nearly destroyed her lifeOnce upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander is fighting back.
Miracle on the 17th Green by James PattersonSynopsis:
Travis McKinley is an ordinary man living an ordinary life - he has a job that he despises, a marriage that has lost its passion, chrildren from whom he feels disconnected, and at age fifty, a sense that he has accomplished nothing of consequence with his life. But on Christmas Day, he goes out to play a round of golf, and for the first time, he finds himself in the "zone". He sees the putting line that has eluded him for years. Always a fairly good golfer, he finds himself playing like a pro and is so caught up in his excitement that he continues to play, sinking putt after putt, missing Christmas dinner with his wife and family. It is too much for his already troubled marriage.
His family collapses - but Travis is soon too busy living his dream to notice. His amazing new golf skills catapult him into the PGA Senior Open at Pebble Beach, where he advances to the final round with two of his heroes, Jack Nicklaus and Raymond Floyd. And with his wife, children, and a live television audience watching, a miracle takes place on the 17th green that will change Travis, and his family, forever.
Fever Dream by Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child Synopsis:
At the old family manse in Louisiana, Special Agent Pendergast is putting to rest long-ignorned possessions reminiscent of his wife Helen's tragic death, only to make a stunning and dreadful discovery. Helen had been mauled by an unusually large and vicious lion while they were big game hunting in Africa. but now, Pendergast learns that her rifle - her own protection from the beast - had been deliberately loaded with blanks. who could have wanted Helen dead...and why?
With Lieutenant Vincent D'Agosta's assistance, Pendergast embarks on a quest to uncover the mystery of his wife's murder. It is a journey that sends him deep into her past where he learns much that Helen herself had wished to keep hidden. Helen Pendergast had nursed a secret obsession with the famed naturalist-painter John James Audubon, in particula a long-lost painting of his known as the Black Frame.
As Pendergast probes more deeply into the riddle - the answer to which is revealed in a night of shocking violence, deep in the Louisiana bayou - he finds himself faced with an even greater question: who was the woman he married?
Innocent by Scott Turow Synopsis:
Twenty years ago, Tommy Molto charged his colleague Rusty Sabich with the murder of a former lover; when a shocking turn of events transformed Prosecuter Rusty from the accuser into the accused. Rusty was cleared, but the seismic trial left both men reeling. Molto's name was dragged through the mud and while Rusty regained his career, he lost much more...Now, Rusty - sixty years old and a chief judge - wakes to a new nightmare. His wife Barbara has died in suspicious circumstances and once again, he is the prime suspect. Reunited with his charismatic lawyer Sandy Stern, Rusty will do anything to convince his beloved son Nat of his innocence. But what is he hiding? In an explosive trial which will expose lies, jealousy, revenge, corruption, and the darker side of human nature, Rusty Sabich and Tommy Molto will battle it out to finally discover the real meaning of truth, and of justice.
Private Life by Jane Smiley
Synopsis: A stunning novel fro the Pulitzer Prize winner that traverses the intimate landscape of one woman's life, from the 1800s to World War II.
Margaret Mayfield is nearly an old maid at twenty-seven when she marries Captain Andrew Jackson Early. He's the most famous man their Missouri town has ever produced: a naval officer and an astronomer - a genius who, according to the local paper, has changed the universe. Margaret's mother calls the match "a piece of luck."
A portrait of marriage and the mysteries that....
61 Hours by Lee Child Synopsis:
Jack Reacher is back.
The countdown has begun. Get ready for the most exciting 61 hours of your life. #1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Child's latest thriller is a ticking time bomb of suspense that builds electric tension on every page.
Sixty-one hours. Not a minute to spare.
Reacher's original plan was to keep on moving. But the next 61 hours will change everything. The secrets are deadlier and his enemies are stronger than he could have guessed - but so is the woman whose life he'll risk his own to save.
In 61 Hours, Lee Child has written a showdown thriller with an explosive ending that readers will talk about for a long time to come.
Anne Frank: The Anne Frank House Authorized Graphic Biography by Sid Jacobson, Ernie Colon Synopsis:
Drawing on the unique historical sites, archives, expertise, and unquestioned authority of the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, New York Times bestselling authors Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon have created the first authorized and exhaustive graphic biography of Anne Frank. Their account is complete, covering the lives of Anne's parents, Edith and Otto; Anne's first years in Frankfurt; the rise of Nazism; the Franks' immigration to Amsterdam; war and occupation; Anne's years in the Secret Annex; betrayal and arrest; her deportation and tragic death in Begen-Belsen; the survival of Anne's father; and his recovery and publication of her astounding diary.
Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter by Seth Graeme-Smith Synopsis:
It's Indiana, 1818. Moonlight falls through the dense woods that surround a one-room cabiin, where a nine-year-old Abraham Lincoln kneels at his suffering mother's bedside. She's been stricken with something the old-timers call 'Milk Sickness'.
'My baby boy...' she whispers before dying.
Only later will the grieving Abe learn that his mother's fatal affliction was actually the work of a vampire.
When the truth becomes known to young Lincoln, he writes in his journal, 'henceforth my life shall be one of rigorous study and devotion. I shall become a master of mind and body. And this mastery shall have but one purpose'. Gifted with his legendary height, strength, and skill with an axe, Abe sets out on a path of vengeance that will lead him all the way to the White House.
While Abraham Lincoln is widely lauded for saving a Union and freeing millions of slaves, his valiant fight against the forces of the undead has remained in the shadows for hundreds of years. That is, until Seth Grahame-Smith stumbled upon "The Secret Journal of Abraham Lincoln", and became the first living person to lay eyes on it in more than 140 years.
Using the journal as his guide and writing in the grand biographical style of Doris Kearns Goodwini and David McCullough, Seth has reconstructed the true life story of America's greatest president for the first time - all while revealing the hidden history behind the Civil War and uncovering the role vampires played in the birth, growth, and near-death of the nation.
Blue-Eyed Devil (Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch Series #4) by Robert B. Parker
Synopsis:Law enforcement in Appaloosa had once been Virgil Cole and me. Now there was a chief of police and twelve policemen. Our third day back in town, the chief invited us to the office for a talk.
The new chief is Amos Callico, a tall, fat man in a derby hat, wearing a star on his vest and a big pearl-handled Colt inside his coat. An ambitious man with his eye on the governship - and perhaps the presidency - he wants Cole and Hitch on his side. But they can't be bought, which upsets him mightily.
In the Name of Honor by Richard North PattersonSynopsis:
Home from Iraq, a liewutenant kills his commanding officer - was it self-defense or premeditated murder? An enthralling novel of suspense about the high cost of war and secrets.
Tragedy strikes when Brian shoots and kills D'Abruzzo on their Army post in Virginia. Brian pleads self-defense, claiming that D'Abruzzo, a black-belt martial artist, came to his quarters, accused him of interfering with his marriage, and attacked him. Kate supports Brian and says that her husband had become violent and abusive. But Brian and Kate have secrets of their own, and now Capt. Paul Terry, one of the Army's most accomplished young lawyers, will defend Brian in a high-profile court-martial. Terry's co-counsel is Meg McCarran, Brian's sister, a brilliant attorney who insists on leaving her practice in San Francisco to help save her brother. Before the case is over, Terry will become deeply entwined with Meg and the McCarrans - and learn that families, like war, can break the sturdiest of souls.
Return to Sender by Fern MichaelsSynopsis:
At seventeen, Rosalind Lin Townsend finds herself pregnant and alone. Her father, deeply religious yet cruel, throws her out of the house. Nick Pemberton, her baby's father and th eman she naively hoped might marry her, rejects her. Yet even at the lowest point in her life, Lin vows to succeed on her own terms, and to give her son, Will, all the love and happiness she's been denied. Nineteen years later, Lin has made good on her promises. She's the owner of a thriving diner in her Georgia hometown, and Will has grown into a fine, intelligent young man who's about to start his freshman year at NYU. But when Lin visits New York with Will, she crosses paths with the one man she was sure she'd never see again, Nick Pemberton, now a millionaire CEO, the man who sent back all her letters unopened, marked Return to Sender. Seeing him fills Lin with anger and she resolves to right the wrong he did to Will.
Savor the Moment (Bride Quartet Series #3) by Nora RobertsSynopsis:
New Love takes the cake in the third novel in Nora Robert's new Bride Quartet - in a stunning French flap edition Wedding baker Laurel McBane is surrounded by romance working at Vows wedding planning company with her best friends Parker, Emma, and Mac. But she's too low-key to appreciate all the luxuries that their clients seem to long for. What she does appreciate is a stron, intelligent man, a man just like Parker's older brother Delaney, on whom she's had a mega-crush since childhood. But some infatuations last longer than others, and Laurel is convinced that the Ivy League lawyer is still out of her reach. Plus, Del is too protective of Laurel to ever cross the line with her - or so she thinks. When Laurel's quicksilver moods get the better of her - leading to an angry, hot, all-together mind-blowing kiss with Del - she'll have to quiet the doubts in her mind to turn a moment of passion into forever....
Nightingale Wood by Stella GibbonsSynopsis:
A sly and satirical firytale by the author of Cold Comfort Farm
Unavailable for decades, Stella Gibbons's Nightingale Wood is a delightfully modern romance ripe for rediscovery by the many fans of Cold Comfort Farm.
Poor, lovely Viola has been left penniless and alone after her late husband's demise, and is forced to live with his family in their joyless home. Its occupants are nearly insufferable: Mr. Withers is a tyrannical old miser; Mrs. Withers dismissers as a common shop girl; and Viola's sisters-in-law, Madge and Tina, are too preoccupied with their own troubles to give her much thought. Only the prospect of the upcoming charity ball can lift her spirits - especially as Victor Spring, the local prince charming, will be there. But Victor's intentions towards the young widow are, in short, not quite honorable.
Girl in Translation by Jean KwokSynopsis:
Introducing a fresh, exciting Chinese-American voice, an inspiring debut about an immigrant girl forced to choose between two worlds and two futures. When Kimberly Chang and her mother emigrate from Hong Kong to Brooklyn squalor, she quickly begins a secret double life: exceptional schoolgirl during the day, Chinatown sweatshop worker in the evenings. Disguising the more difficult truths of her life - like the staggering degree of her poverty, the wieght of her family's future resting on her shoulders, or her secret love for a factory boy who shares none of her talent or ambition - Kimberly learns to constantly translate not just her language but herself back and forth between the worlds she straddles. Through Kimberly's story, author Jean Kwok, who also emigrated from Hong Kong as a young girl, brings to the page the lives of countless desires, exposing a world that we rarely hear about. Written in an indelible voice that dramatizes the tensions of an immigrant girl growing up between two cultures, surrounded by a language and world only half understood, Girl in Translation is an unforgettable and classic novel of an American immigrant - a moving tale of hardship and triumph, heartbreak and love, and all that gets lost in translation.
The Magicians by Lev GrossmanSynopsis:
The New York Times bestselling novel about a young man practicing magic in the real world
Like everyone else, precocious high school senior Quentin Coldwater assumes that magic isn't real, until he finds himself admitted to a very secretive and exclusive college of magic in upstate New York. There he indulges in joys of college - friendship, love, sex, and booze - and receives a rigorous education in modern sorcery. But magic doesn't bring the happiness and adventure Quentin though it would. After graduation, he and his friends stumble upon a secret that sets them on a remarkable journey that may just fulfill Quentin's yearning. But their journey turns out to be darker and more dangerous than they imagined. Psycologically piercing and dazzlingly inventive, The Magicians is an enthralling coming-of-age tale about magic practiced in the real world - where good and evil aren't black and white, and power comes at a terrible price.
Executive Intent by Dale BrownSynopsis:
The deadliest strike will come from outer space
When America develops the most powerful defense system in history, will it be used to protect the nation - or will it be used to force universal domination? This question must be answered in the stillness of outer space and the corridors of the White House.
Or does it?
The world's other major superpowers, Russia and China, are rocked by America's development, and they scramble to respond by gaining control of the seas. When terrorists hijack Pakistani missiles and fire them at Indian cities, U.S. president Joseph Gardner has only one option: to use the untested Thor's Hammer. But something goes awry and the Hammer misses one of its targets, killing thousands of Pakistani civilians. In retaliation, Pakistan and the Middle East decide to give China strategic naval advantage by granting it access to Middle Eastern ports.
To make matters worse, days after the crisis, Somali pirates board a Chinese freighter off the coast of Mogadishu and slaughter the crew. China responds by brutally attacking and then occupying Somalia, quickly setting up missile pads that can target U.S. naval ships accross vital sea-lanes in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden, as well as any ships transiting the Suez Canal. Now the U.S. high command is on red alert and the country's security is in total jeopardy...
Another flash point quickly emerges - in Earth's orbit. when Chinese and Russian spacecraft surround an American space station, the threat is clear: negotiate and compromise, or China and Russia will cripple the U.S. Navy with ballistic missiles. Retired Air Force lieutenant general Patrick McLanahan returns to assist the commander of the U.S. Space Defense Force, Kai Raydon. But can McLanahan and Raydon stop the Chinese and Russian spaceships? Or will the world's superpowers be plunged into a full-scale war? All the while, President Gardner must face threats from within when his own vice president begins to challenge his decisions - and maybe even his job.
With Executive Intent, the New York Times bestselling master thriller-writer Dale Brown crafts an action-packed tale of intrigue and technological weaponry that pits the world's superpowers in a contest for Earth's oceans and ultimate high ground - space.
This Body of Death (Inspector Lynley Series #15) by Elizabeth GeorgeSynopsis:
New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth George is back with a spellbinding tale of mystery and murder featuring Scotland Yard Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley.
ON compassionate leave after the murder of his wife, Thomas Lynley is called back to Scotland Yard when teh body of a woman is found stabbed and abandoned in an isolated London cemetery. His former team doesn't trust the leadership of their new department chief, Isabelle Ardery, whose management style seems to rub everyone the wrong way. In fact, Lynley may be teh sole person who can see beneath his superior officer's hard-as-nails exterior to a hidden and possibly attractive vulnerability.
While Lynley works in London, his former colleagues Barbara Havers and Winston Nkata follow the murder trail south to the New Forest. There they discover a beautiful and strange place where animals roam free, the long-lost art of thatching is very much alive, and outsiders are not entirely welcome. What they don't know is that more than one dark secret lurks among the trees, and that their investigation will lead them to an outcome that is both tragic and shocking.A multilayered jigsaw puzzle of a story skillfully structured to keep readers guessing until the very end, This Body of Death is a magnificent achievement from a writer at the peak of her powers.
