Friday, January 06, 2006

Booksellers pick Feb's best books....

Note: So here are the ones that caught my interest...especially WHALE SEASON. Made me grin at the idea of it all.

From Publishers Weekly online:
Retailers' New Picks: Book Sense February
Book Sense

HOLMES ON THE RANGE: A Mystery, by Steve Hockensmith (St. Martin's Minotaur, $22.95, 0312347804) "I wasn't sure whether a cowboy detective novel was going to work for me, but I'm mighty glad I began Holmes on the Range. Hockensmith's first novel, about a pair of cowboy sleuths inspired by Sherlock Holmes, is smart and funny, with engaging characters and snappy dialogue. Oh, and the plot's pretty darn good, too." --Billie Bloebaum, Powell's Books at PDX, Portland, OR

PURSUIT: An Inspector Espinosa Mystery, by Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza (Holt, $24, 0805074392) "Inspector Espinosa knows Rio de Janeiro from the top down. In this mystery, he searches for the missing daughter of a troubled psychiatrist. The middle-class Rio of apartments, corrupt police, and kidnapping fears is a vibrant backdrop to a gripping story." --Mary Muller, Market Block Books, Troy, NY

THE NIGHT JOURNAL: A Novel, by Elizabeth Crook (Viking, $24.95, 0670034770) "By weaving the tracks of the railroad during its expansion in the West through the story, Crook exquisitely brings together the risk takers involved in settling Northeastern New Mexico, whether born into the Spanish families or having ventured from the East. Secrets and passions and family legacies fulfilled and betrayed make for a saga spanning generations. A great novel to warm up with on a cold winter night." --Sarah Bagby, Watermark Books, Wichita, KS

WASHINGTON'S CROSSING, by David Hackett Fischer (Oxford, $17.95 paper, 019518159X) "This is a fascinating account by one of our most respected historians of the Christmas night crossing of the Delaware River to surprise the British troops at Trenton, New Jersey. A volume in Oxford University Press' Pivotal Moments in American History series, it won the Pulitzer Prize for history in 2005." --Carole Horne, Harvard Book Store, Cambridge, MA

WHALE SEASON: A Novel, by N.M. Kelby (Shaye Areheart Books, $23, 0307336778) "I'm trying so hard not to say something like 'this is a whale of a story,' but it's so dang tough, especially with a campy, funny, and smart story like this, although it's not without its serious moments. This story of the arrival in Whale Harbor, Florida, of a man who thinks he's Jesus reads like a cross between Carl Hiaasen and Flannery O'Connor." --Lyn Roberts, Square Books, Oxford, MS

THE THRALL'S TALE, by Judith Lindbergh (Viking, $25.95, 0670034649) "This gritty, epic tale set in Viking Greenland will thrill any fan of historical fiction. The theme of good versus evil looms large." --Laura Huemer, Goldfinch Books, Maplewood, NJ

CARVED IN BONE: A Body Farm Novel, by Jefferson Bass (Morrow, $24.95, 006075981X) "The 'Body Farm' is a section of ground on the campus of the University of Tennessee where human corpses are left to decay for the sake of science and the cause of justice, and Carved in Bone goes into the detail of forensic science to help solve the murder of a young woman. This is a great story that really holds your interest." --Donna Thoman, Family Book Shop, Deland, FL

THE GHOST ORCHID: A Novel, by Carol Goodman (Ballantine, $24.95, 0345462130) "Half ghost story, half historical novel, The Ghost Orchard tells the story of a series of tragic events at a storied artists' retreat, and it features an eccentric group of artists and writers. There are mediums and tricksters and mischievous children that just won't rest in peace. This is a perfect book to curl up with on a dark and stormy night." --Terry Lucas, The Open Book, West Hampton Beach, NY

Wrap...

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