Book Haul~End of December 2013

Oh, dear....end of December Book Haul.  I've named it.  Everything looks so white...  It was a slow couple of weeks, so I'm guessing the publishers were taking some time out for the holiday season, rightly so.  I was.  This year I gave gift certificates to several of my children and grands for books and sent a bunch of books, too.  But didn't buy any for myself.  Instead I boxed up a HUGE number of books I have held in stacks waiting to read and now expect to fight through some of them while I read the new in-crop of 2014s.

Here are the last of the "news" from my doorstep!!


This one sounds like a great mystery/thriller that takes place in Tibet.  Not a familiar location for me.  Thanks to St. Martins/Minotaur:

SUMMARY:

In Mandarin Gate, Edgar Award winner Eliot Pattison brings Shan back in a thriller that navigates the explosive political and religious landscape of Tibet.

In an earlier time, Shan Tao Yun was an Inspector stationed in Beijing. But he lost his position, his family and his freedom when he ran afoul of a powerful figure high in the Chinese government. Released unofficially from the work camp to which he'd been sentenced, Shan has been living in remote mountains of Tibet with a group of outlawed Buddhist monks. Without status, official identity, or the freedom to return to his former home in Beijing, Shan has just begun to settle into his menial job as an inspector of irrigation and sewer ditches in a remote Tibetan township when he encounters a wrenching crime scene. Strewn across the grounds of an old Buddhist temple undergoing restoration are the bodies of two unidentified men and a Tibetan nun. Shan quickly realizes that the murders pose a riddle the Chinese police might in fact be trying to cover up. When he discovers that a nearby village has been converted into a new internment camp for Tibetan dissidents arrested in Beijing’s latest pacification campaign, Shan recognizes the dangerous landscape he has entered. To find justice for the victims and to protect an American woman who witnessed the murders, Shan must navigate through the treacherous worlds of the internment camp, the local criminal gang, and the government’s rabid pacification teams, while coping with his growing doubts about his own identity and role in Tibet.


A friend gave me a copy of this next book which I've been reading as daily snippets of encouragement.  I like the brief little words and thoughts...   Thanks, Char!!

OVERVIEW:

Each day offers encouragement and hope from a Savior who is closer than you can imagine and who will never leave you.

Grow in a deep personal faith while reading a message that everyone needs to hear and embrace deep within the soul. Jesus Calling^®is a devotional that is read daily by more than six million people. This version includes the beloved original content, but with a modern cover that will appeal to a younger audience.

After many years of writing in her prayer journal, missionary Sarah Young decided to listen to God with pen in hand, writing down whatever she believed He was saying to her. It was awkward at first, but gradually her journaling changed from monologue to dialogue. She knew her writings were not inspired as Scripture is, but journaling helped her grow closer to God, and from that experience Jesus Calling^® came to be.

It is Sarah’s fervent prayer that our Savior may bless every reader with His presence and His peace in ever deeper measure.

I am dying to read this next book!!  Written by Tiffany Baker who wrote "The Gilly Salt Sisters" that I absolutely loved, and "The Little Giant of Aberdeen County," this has got to be an awesome book!!
With many thanks to Grand Central/Hachette Publishing for this one!

SUMMARY:

In the tiny town of Titan Falls, New Hampshire, the paper mill dictates a quiet, steady rhythm of life. But one day a tragic bus accident sets two families on a course toward destruction, irrevocably altering the lives of everyone in their wake.

June McAllister is the wife of the local mill owner and undisputed first lady in town. But the Snow family, a group of itinerant ne'er-do-wells who live on a decrepit and cursed property, have brought her--and the town--nothing but grief.

June will do anything to cover up a dark secret she discovers after the crash, one that threatens to upend her picture-perfect life, even if it means driving the Snow family out of town. But she has never gone up against a force as fierce as the young Mercy Snow. Mercy is determined to protect her rebellious brother, whom the town blames for the accident, despite his innocence. And she has a secret of her own. When an old skeleton is discovered not far from the crash, it beckons Mercy to solve a mystery buried deep within the town's past.

Another one I can't wait to read!!!  You should see this gorgeous cover up close and personal.  It's parchment with gold leaf leaves....Oh, my, so beautiful.  The picture of the shaker woman is barely seen behind the cover.  Fabulous inner summary.  So grateful to Little, Brown for my copy.

Overview

An enthralling debut novel about a teenage girl who finds refuge--but perhaps not--in an 1840s Shaker community.

In this exquisite, transporting debut, 15-year-old Polly Kimball sets fire to the family farm, killing her abusive father. She and her young brother find shelter in a Massachusetts Shaker community called The City of Hope. It is the Era of Manifestations, when young girls in Shaker enclaves all across the Northeast are experiencing extraordinary mystical visions, earning them the honorific of "Visionist" and bringing renown to their settlements.

The City of Hope has not yet been blessed with a Visionist, but that changes when Polly arrives and is unexpectedly exalted. As she struggles to keep her dark secrets concealed in the face of increasing scrutiny, Polly finds herself in a life-changing friendship with a young Shaker sister named Charity, a girl who will stake everything--including her faith--on Polly's honesty and purity.

What's winter without a witchy tale to keep us warm?  Here's one very graciously sent to me by Thomas Dunne Books.  I'm delighted!!  Beautiful cover, too.

 

 

New York Times bestselling author Paula Brackston transports readers to the windswept mountains of Wales in The Winter Witch—a spellbinding tale of love and magic.

“There’s a whiff of Harry Potter in the witchy conflict…. Love of landscape and lyrical writing lend charm, but it’s Brackston’s full-blooded storytelling that will hook the reader.” —Kirkus

“Brackston's imaginative story is fascinating, polished and intriguing.”

SEXY little number from the darling Brittany Geragotelis!!  I'll be doing a showcase of this one in the next couple of weeks.  Thanks for the copy, Brittany...

 

 

 

NOTE:   "Arielle Sawyer is freaking out because she's the last in her class to be kissed. Frustrated and wanting to get it over with, she and her friends decide to sell her first kiss on eBay! Suddenly, this former wallflower finds herself the focus of everyone's attention. But as her popularity grows and her friendships start to weaken, Arielle finds herself wondering why she put the post up in the first place."

 

 

AND finally, one of my very favorite thriller/suspense authors complies a collection of his stories for us.  I'm giving a huge wavy of thanks to Grand Central for this one!  I love Jeffery Deaver and any of you would too if you haven't already discovered his amazing books....

 

Overview:

 

Fiendish suspense. Shocking twists.
Twelve diabolical tales.

 

New York Times bestselling author and highly acclaimed storyteller Jeffery Deaver-the undisputed "grand master of the plot twist" (Booklist)-returns with a dazzling new collection of short stories. In these twelve electrifying tales (including six written just for this anthology) Deaver proves once again his genius for the unexpected-in his world, appearances are always deceiving.

A devoted housekeeper embarks on a quest to find the truth behind her employer's murder. A washed-up Hollywood actor gets one last, high-stakes chance to revive his career. A man makes an impulsive visit to his hometown, and learns more about his past than he bargained for. Two Olympic track hopefuls receive terrorist threats. And Deaver's beloved series characters Lincoln Rhyme, Kathryn Dance, and John Pellam return in stories now in print for the first time.

These are my last batch so far for December...let me know what you'd like me to read first.  :]       


Happy New Year, Everyone.  And, thank you for following my blog this year.  It may not be perfect, but it keeps me going...

Deborah/TheBookishDame