Welcome March!
Today my daughter turns sixteen and is getting her driver’s permit – Lord help us all!
With such a thrilling event on tap, I figured I’d share with you folks some equally as heart pumping books. In the mix are my Backspace brethren’s releases as well as some from a great group of Indie authors. Relax, grab a glass of wine and one of these puppies and enjoy a nice quiet evening.
Blake Crouch – RUN – February 26, 2011
5 D A Y S A G O
A rash of bizarre murders swept the country...
Senseless. Brutal. Seemingly unconnected.
A cop walked into a nursing home and unloaded his weapons on elderly and staff alike.
A mass of school shootings.
Prison riots of unprecedented brutality.
Mind-boggling acts of violence in every state.
4 D A Y S A G O
The murders increased ten-fold...
3 D A Y S A G O
The President addressed the nation and begged for calm and peace...
2 D A Y S A G O
The killers began to mobilize...
Y E S T E R D A Y
All the power went out...
T O N I G H T
They're reading the names of those to be killed on the Emergency Broadcast System. You are listening over the battery-powered radio on your kitchen table, and they've just read yours.
Your name is Jack Colclough. You have a wife, a daughter, and a young son. You live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. People are coming to your house to kill you and your family. You don't know why, but you don't have time to think about that any more.
You only have time to....
R U N
Mel Comley - FINAL JUSTICE – February 18, 2011
After suffering a breakdown and quitting the force, former Detective Inspector Lorne Simpkins is contacted by a friend at MI6 to help in a covert operation. Against her will, Lorne is convinced to help track down an old enemy, a sadistic and calculating criminal whose ambition is to become the world's richest man.
It’s up to Lorne and the agent to prevent him, which results in a chase through France.
Claudia Gray – AFTERLIFE – March 8, 2011
Destiny awaits Bianca and Lucas . . .
Bianca and Lucas have always believed they could endure anything to be together. When a twist of fate not only transforms Bianca into a wraith but also turns Lucas into a vampire—the very creature he spent his life hunting—they are left reeling.
Haunted by his powerful need to kill, Lucas can turn to only one place for help . . . Evernight Academy. Bianca is determined to remain with him. But with the vampire leader of Evernight waging a war against wraiths, her former home has become the most dangerous place she could be, despite the new powers her ghostly transformation has given her.
A battle between wraiths and vampires looms, and Bianca and Lucas face a terrifying new reality. They've overcome every obstacle life has thrown at them, but is their love strong enough to survive the challenges after life?
Michael Haskins – FREE RANGE INSTITUTION – March 9, 2011
Mick Murphy, the newshawk hero of Haskins’ latest Key West mystery, makes a classic reporter goof. He pretends to be a little closer to the action than he really is. Both good and bad guys take him at his word, and the chase is on. At the heart of it all is a plot to bring a particularly cheap and addictive drug called paco into the U.S. As the good guys assemble behind Mick and check their guns, echoes of Miami Vice reverberate, with both its pastel glitz and its underlying despair. The cartels have more money and guns; the best the rest of us can do is hold together. Things get lively as the confrontation approaches, but this really isn’t a high-concept action novel or even a stripped-down thriller. It’s about adult relationships, and its generous use of the Key West setting will appeal to readers who like local color. Since it’s the Keys, a lot of beer and rum goes down, and there’s much eating of cheeseburgers, dolphin sandwiches, and breakfast eggs with hot sauce. --Don Crinklaw –
Booklist
Carrie Ryan – THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES – March 22, 2011
There are many things that Annah would like to forget: the look on her sister's face when she and Elias left her behind in the Forest of Hands and Teeth, her first glimpse of the horde as they found their way to the Dark City, the sear of the barbed wire that would scar her for life. But most of all, Annah would like to forget the morning Elias left her for the Recruiters.
Annah's world stopped that day and she's been waiting for him to come home ever since. Without him, her life doesn't feel much different from that of the dead that roam the wasted city around her. Then she meets Catcher and everything feels alive again.
Except, Catcher has his own secrets -- dark, terrifying truths that link him to a past Annah's longed to forget, and to a future too deadly to consider. And now it's up to Annah -- can she continue to live in a world drenched in the blood of the living? Or is death the only escape from the Return's destruction?
Tracey Alley - SLADE'S DESTINY - March 2011
The war has begun but there is no sign of the shadowy witch Shallendara. Her allies, Prince Ulrich of Vestland and The Dark One rain down death and destruction on the Emirate of Kemet but the witch herself pursues her own goals from the safety of Ieriendi palace. Lord Michael and Solomon do their best to lessen the damage caused by the witch’s ally’s war of conquest but the enemy are more interested in causing death and destruction and Lord Michael’s Knights and Solomon’s Monks are badly outnumbered.
Meanwhile with the help of Roulibard and a sympathetic dragon Slade and Ursula seek out their dying father, High King Erich in the bowels of Ieriendi’s dungeons. Facing death at every turn the siblings know only that to strike a blow against the witch’s plans they must somehow save their beloved father before it is too late.
Can Slade manifest his destiny in time to save, not just his father, but an entire world?
And on the non-fiction side of the fence, check these books out…
Eileen Kennedy-Moore, PhD – SMART PARENTING FOR SMART KIDS – March 1,2011
"My kid is smart, but..."
It takes more than school smarts to create a fulfilling life. In fact, many bright children face special challenges:
• Some are driven by perfectionism;
• Some are afraid of effort, because they're used to instant success;
• Some routinely butt heads with authority figures;
• Some struggle to get along with their peers ;
• Some are outwardly successful but just don't feel good about themselves.
This practical and compassionate book explains the reasons behind these struggles and offers parents do-able strategies to help children cope with feelings, embrace learning, and build satisfying relationships. Drawing from research as well as the authors’ clinical experience, it focuses on the essential skills children need to make the most of their abilities and become capable, confident, and caring people.
John Elder Robison – BE DIFFERENT – March 22, 2011
“I believe those of us with Asperger’s are here for a reason, and we have much to offer. This book will help you bring out those gifts.”
In his bestselling memoir, Look Me in the Eye, John Elder Robison described growing up with Asperger’s syndrome at a time when the diagnosis didn’t exist. He was intelligent but socially isolated; his talents won him jobs with toy makers and rock bands but did little to endear him to authority figures and classmates, who were put off by his inclination to blurt out non sequiturs and avoid eye contact.
By the time he was diagnosed at age forty, John had already developed a myriad of coping strategies that helped him achieve a seemingly normal, even highly successful, life. In Be Different, Robison shares a new batch of endearing stories about his childhood, adolescence, and young adult years, giving the reader a rare window into the Aspergian mind.
In each story, he offers practical advice—for Aspergians and indeed for anyone who feels “different”—on how to improve the weak communication and social skills that keep so many people from taking full advantage of their often remarkable gifts. With his trademark honesty and unapologetic eccentricity, Robison addresses questions like:
• How to read others and follow their behaviors when in uncertain social situations
• Why manners matter
• How to harness your powers of concentration to master difficult skills
• How to deal with bullies
• When to make an effort to fit in, and when to embrace eccentricity
• How to identify special gifts and use them to your advantage
Every person, Aspergian or not, has something unique to offer the world, and every person has the capacity to create strong, loving bonds with their friends and family. Be Different will help readers and those they love find their path to success.
On Friday, I’ve got the talented Cat Connor on my blog talking about her latest release exacerbyte. Swing in and say hi!
Until then,
Ciao.
JET
.jpg)
