Traditions, Holidays and Books!

The holiday season is in full-swing and a new year will be here before we know it. This year will be different for our family as we cope with my mom no longer being with us. She was the keeper of past traditions, so now we must find ways to fulfill those and make new ones for ourselves. As I’m writing this column, there are big, fat snowflakes in the air. Of course, they don’t last long once they hit the still-warm ground, but it’s pretty to watch them fall.

I got a bit of personal reading done last month, so have a few recommendations. First is the holiday anthology SILVER BELLS (Zebra, 11/08) featuring novellas by Fern Michaels, JoAnn Ross, Mary Burton and Judy Duarte. This is a wonderful collection of heartwarming Christmas romances. Sometimes the short length means a not-as-satisfying story. However, I found each of these to have an in-depth romance without feeling rushed to the happy ending.

Next is SILENT THUNDER (St Martin’s hardcover, 7/08), a thriller from the mother and son writing collaboration of Iris Johansen and Roy Johansen. A marine architect and her brother are hired by the U.S. government to make sure a Russian nuclear submarine (Silent Thunder) is safe to be used in a U.S. museum. The sister and brother make an unusual discovery, which leads to a fatal attack on him. It seems some Americans, as well as some Russians, are after what’s been uncovered on the sub and will stop at nothing to acquire it. One Russian in particular, with a questionable background, has a very special interest in the sub. He also becomes quite fascinated with the feisty female designer as they work together to discover who killed her brother, as well as to uncover the myriad enemies’ intent on terminating the assignment. This is an impressive thriller with a chilling, complex plot and fascinating characters.

Finally, get ready to chuckle along with murder and mayhem in the latest outing for freelance greeting card designer Wollie Shelley in DEAD EX (Doubleday hardcover, 8/07) by Harley Jane Kozak. When the producer of a popular soap opera is found shot to death, Wollie again finds herself drawn into a murder investigation. Since the victim was an acquaintance (and a former lover) of hers, and Wollie’s best friend has become the prime suspect, what choice does she have but to become involved? It doesn’t help that Wollie is also trying to sustain a meaningful relationship with her FBI-agent boy friend, while helping her brother move from a mental hospital to a halfway house. This delightful mystery romp will keep you entertained with all of the characters’ amusing shenanigans. This is the third book in a series featuring Wollie Shelley (following DATING DEAD MEN and DATING IS MURDER) with a promise of more fun to come.

December 2, 2008, is the release date of several interesting books:

22 NIGHTS (Berkley Sensation) by Linda Winstead Jones is the second book in this author’s Emperor’s Bride historical series. It’s a magical tale of the power of love and a mystical sword. At Columbyann Palace during the 6th Reign of Emperor Jahn, five women are suggested as perspective brides for the emperor. The one he’s the most interested in, Bela, has spent the last five years intent on only one purpose – revenge. When the dashing general Merin is sent to collect Bela, he’s horrified to learn that she’s already married – to him.

DEFENDING ANGELS (Berkley Prime Crime) by Mary Stanton is the first book in a mystery series called Beaufort & Company. Brianna Winston Beaufort (Bree) moves to Savannah, Georgia, after inheriting her uncle’s law practice. Since she can’t move into her uncle’s offices because of the damage sustained in the fire that killed him, she must find a temporary office. The old house she decides on has affordable rent, but that could be because it’s located in the middle of an all- murders’ cemetery. This Southern-set mystery keeps you guessing with lots of twists and turns and creepy crawlies.

THE CHARLEMAGNE PURSUIT (Ballantine hardcover) by Steve Berry is the latest addition to his Cotton Malone thriller series. Promotion of this book states: "Cotton’s most personal adventure to date, it sends him from Germany to France to the unforgiving ice of Antarctica as he searches for the truth of his father’s death." This novel is in my to- be-read pile, so I’ll let you know what I think of it once I’ve read it.

DEVIL MAY RIDE (Signet) by Wendy Roberts sees the return of Sadie Novak in this second entry in the Ghost Duster mystery series. When Sadie goes to clean up a crime scene in an abandoned meth lab, she uncovers evidence of a cult ritual and encounters an evil spirit at the scene. This sets off a change of events that has Sadie and her sexy partner, Zack, wondering how they’re all connected.

On December 9, 2008, bestselling author Iris Johansen returns with her first historical romance in over a decade, THE TREASURE (Bantam hardcover), which is a sequel to LION’S BRIDE (Bantam, 1/96). The book’s inside flap describes the plot this way: "Lady Selene Ware had been nothing more than a harem slave when Kadar Ben Arnaud – a man once trained in the black arts – helped her escape to the safety of her native Scotland. But even a world away she still wasn’t safe from the sheikh who claimed her as his stolen property – and who now forces both her and Kadar to return with a chance to win their freedom. There is, of course, a catch. First they must find the legendary religious relic that men of power have searched for from King Arthur’s time to the present." This promises to be an exciting and captivating sequel that lovers of this author’s early historical romances will not want to miss. I know I’m going to read it, as soon as I reread LION’S BRIDE, which was reissued by Bantam in September 2008.

December 16, 2008, is the on-sale date for two thrilling suspense novels:

BLOOD SINS (Bantam hardcover) by Kay Hooper is another paranormal suspense masterpiece in the exciting Noah Bishop Special Crimes Unit extended series. This is the second installment in the Blood trilogy involving the civilian investigative organization Haven. This time they are taking on the fanatical Rev. Adam Deacon Samuel, leader of the Church of the Everlasting Sin, who possesses some horrific psychic powers. This is a fascinating supernatural tale of good versus evil. The first book in this trilogy, BLOOD DREAMS (Bantam), went on sale in paperback November 25, 2008.

SHOW NO FEAR (Pocket hardcover) by Perri O’Shaughnessy gives readers a look back at the events that were instrumental in developing the complicated prosecutor Nina Reilly. As reviewer Morgan Chilson stated: "It is easy to see how her character developed, influenced at least partly by the events in this book. As a writer, I admire the author’s deft handling of this challenge."

Hitting stores December 30, 2008, are lots of good reading choices with:

WHISPER NO LIES (Pocket Star) by Cindy Gerard is the third installment in her Black Ops Inc. romantic suspense series. Reed, a member of the Black Ops, Inc. team, can’t get the sexy, sassy Crystal off his mind. When counterfeit bills show up at the gaming tables of the Vegas casino where Crystal manages security, she finds not only her reputation at stake, but her life, as well. She knows Reed is the only person who can help her, but that help might come too late.

VEIL OF MIDNIGHT (Dell) by Lara Adrian tells the story of Nikolai in this fifth Midnight Breed novel in the dark contemporary series. In previous books, Russian-born vampire Niko may have seemed a bit too arrogant and irresponsible to be good hero material, but he had yet to meet the tough, tenacious warrior woman Renata. Her most powerful weapon is a rare and deadly psychic ability. But she’s forced to turn to Niko when those powers are tested to the extreme.

HEART OF COURAGE (Mira) by Kat Martin is the final book in her exciting historical Heart trilogy. It tells the fun and sexy story of Thor and Lindsey, two people completely unsuited to each other – or so they both think. Lindsey crusades for social change among the London elite writing under a pen name for a ladies’ journal. When her brother is accused of killing prostitutes, she initiates her own investigation to prove his innocence. This risky undertaking gains her the unwanted protection of Thor, who comes in handy when an attempt is made on her life.

MAYHEM IN HIGH HEELS (Making It) by Gemma Halliday is the fifth and final book in her hilarious High Heels series. This concluding chapter in the life of shoe designer Maddie Springer finds her preparing to marry the man of her dreams, Detective Jack Ramirez. When their wedding planner is found face down (and dead!) in butter cream frosting, Maddie’s perfect dream wedding becomes a nightmare. Willing to do anything to save her wedding, as well as help Jack solve the murder, she recruits her quirky assortment of friends and jumps in with both feet, much to Jack’s chagrin. The final resolution provides a fitting conclusion to this fun mystery series.

Jeaniene Frost continues her Night Huntress stories with AT GRAVE’S END (Avon), the third novel in this paranormal series. As reviewer Paula Myers writes in her review: "Cat and Bones' relationship is darkly romantic, sensual and hot. Their friends are an eclectic collection of dead and undead, steadfast and brave. The world created by Ms. Frost is believable, multifaceted and fully realized with laws and events both creative and believable."

Senior-citizen amateur detective Gladdy Gold returns in GETTING OLD IS A DISASTER (Dell), the fifth installment in this fun and frisky mystery series by Rita Lakin. Gladdy and her senior pals (and fellow sleuths), known as her Gladiators, have returned from their recent New York adventure ready for a new challenge. And they get just that from the wily bank robber, “Grandpa Bandit,” who taunts them to catch him if they can. Just as they start to deal with him, a hurricane strikes Fort Lauderdale. The damage to their apartment building reveals a 50-year-old skeleton. This gives them a new case to pursue and adds the trickiness of balancing both cases.

BETWEEN THE DEVIL & DESIRE (Avon) by Lorraine Heath tells the second story of the Scoundrels of St. James, a series that explores characters who’ve overcome the odds and survived horrific childhood abuse. This time, a brooding hero is forced to share a home with a duchess who has always lived by strict society rules.

A FACE IN THE WINDOW (Bantam hardcover) by Sarah Graves is the latest addition to her Home Repair Is Homicide mystery series featuring Jacobia "Jake" Tiptree. As Suan Wilson's review states: "Busy remodeling and restoring her 1853 Federal-style home in Eastport, Maine, Jake's past rears its ugly head. When Jake was three years old, her mother was murdered with Jake at her side. After all these years, the killer, Ozzie Campbell, is finally going to trial. Just as the trial is set to begin, Ozzie vanishes. His disappearance coincides with Jake’s feelings of being watched. A combination thriller mystery with emphasis on the suspense, Ms. Graves writes an intense, pulse-pounding plot."

Julie Garwood returns to contemporary romantic suspense with FIRE AND ICE (Ballantine hardcover), which features a feisty heroine whom readers already know from her previous novel MURDER LIST. Newspaper reporter Sophie Rose is the daughter of a notorious, highly sought after thief. When the major paper where she works insists she write an exposé about her father, Sophie refuses and quits. She goes to work at a small newspaper where she covers local personalities, such as the winner of several area 5K runs whose trademark is red socks. When the runner is killed in Alaska, Sophie’s business card is found tucked inside his red socks. The Alaska cops want to know why he had her card, and so does Sophie, whose nose for a good story leads her north. After an attempt on her life, she reluctantly accepts a bodyguard in the sexy form of Jack MacAlister. Not only must they deal with the rough terrain of Alaska, but also a growing sensual attraction, as well as forces that will stop at nothing to prevent the exposure of the conspiracy Sophie and Jack are about to uncover.

RUNNING HOT (Putnam hardcover), the fifth Arcane Society novel by Jayne Ann Krentz, finds ex- cop Luther Malone, lifelong member of the secretive paranormal Arcane Society, set to meet Grace Renquist. Hired as an aura-reading consultant in the quest for a murder suspect, Grace has no field experience. After all, she’s only a librarian from the tiny town of Eclipse Bay, Oregon. As for Grace, she really doesn’t expect much from Malone as a bodyguard, who walks with a cane and isn’t very good with a gun. Posing as honeymooners at a posh resort, it soon becomes clear their mission is going to be more complex than first thought. Rogue sensitives – operatives for the underground group Nightshade – are descending upon the resort in huge numbers. And these criminals aren’t merely high-level sensitives; they’ve enhanced their abilities with a potent drug.

I told you the end of the year would provide you with some really great reading, as will the first of next year. January 2009 promises to come in with a bang, so stay tuned… Tanzey