Prepub Alert

Fiction
Barclay, Linwood. Too Close to Home. Bantam. Oct. 2008. 400p. ISBN 978-0-553-80556-7. $22.
Best friend Adam Langley is vacationing with his parents, so Derek sneaks into Adam's empty house—and sees the Langleys murdered when they return home early. Toronto Star humor columnist Barclay met serious success with the thriller No Time for Goodbye. Multiple foreign rights.
Bondurant, Matt. The Wettest County in the World: A Novel Based on a True Story. Scribner. Oct. 2008. 320p. ISBN 978-1-4165-6139-2. $25.
Bondurant draws on family history to craft the story of the moonshining Bondurant Boys, the terror of 1930s Franklin County, VA, whose trial for conspiracy is covered by Sherwood Anderson. A follow-up to Bondurant's successful debut, The Third Translation; reading group guide and BookClubReader feature.
Cornwell, Patricia. Scarpetta. Putnam. Oct. 2008. 416p. ISBN 978-0-399-15516-1. $26.95. CD: Penguin Audio.
The NYPD asks Kay Scarpetta to examine a handcuffed man who claims to have been injured during the course of a murder. Did he kill someone, or is the killer after him? A BOMC, Literary Guild, Doubleday, and Mystery Guild main selection.
Cox, Michael. The Glass of Time. Norton. Oct. 2008. 544p. ISBN 978-0-393-06773-6. $24.95.
After his stunning debut, The Meaning of Night, Cox returns with the tale of Esperanza Gorst, a 19-year-old orphan in 1870s England sent by her guardian to serve as lady's maid to Baroness Tansor—and to uncover her secrets. Reading group guide.
Graff, Laurie. The Shiksa Syndrome. Broadway. Sept. 2008. 336p. ISBN 978-0-7679-2761-1. $22.95.
Her heart broken by her goyishe boyfriend, Aimee Albert goes out and finds herself a Jewish boyfriend—who thinks she's a shiksa. Book group promotion.
Highsmith, Patricia.The Complete Ripley Novels.Norton. Oct. 2008. 1520p. ISBN 978-0-393-06633-3. $100.
The late Highsmith, author of more than 30 novels, was often acknowledged during her lifetime as simply a thriller writer. Now, readers will be thrilled to discover this boxed set, containing all five Ripley novels: The Talented Mr. Ripley (yup, the one the Matt Damon/Jude Law movie is based on), Ripley Under Ground, Ripley's Game, The Boy Who Followed Ripley, and Ripley Under Water.
Hasak-Lowy, Todd. Captives. Spiegel & Grau. Oct. 2008. 400p. ISBN 978-0-385-52773-6. $24.95.
Disaffected screenwriter Daniel Bloom has got to chill out; the assassin he's just thought up is targeting evil high-ups (CEOs, politicians) whom he really does wish were dead. From the author of the highly praised story collection The Task of This Translator.
Johnson, Diane. Lulu in Marrakech. Dutton. Oct. 2008. 336p. ISBN 978-0-525-95037-0. $25.95.
Lulu's gone to Marrakech to hook up with dreamy Englishman Ian Drumm—and to track money going to radical Islamic groups in the area.
le Carré, John. A Most Wanted Man. Scribner. Oct. 2008. 448p. ISBN 978-1-4165-9488-8. $28.
A young Russian named Issa, smuggled into Hamburg and claiming he's Muslim. Annabel, the civil rights lawyer trying to stop his deportation. And British banker Tommy Brue, to whom Annabel turns for help. Everyone is after them in le Carré's latest.
Liss, David. The Whiskey Rebels. Random. Oct. 2008. 544p. ISBN 978-1-4000-6420-5. $26.
Asked to hunt for the missing husband of his onetime fiancée, a Revolutionary War spy framed for sedition instead finds conspiracy, and it's swirling around Alexander Hamilton. From an Edgar Award winner of historical thrillers; with a nine-city tour.
McFadyen, Cody. The Darker Side. Bantam. Oct. 2008. 464p. ISBN 978-0-553-80694-6. $24.
For special agent Smoky Barrett, what starts as the murder of a politician's daughter on a flight to Washington, DC, turns into a cross-country hunt for an especially active serial killer.
Maitland, Karen. Company of Liars. Delacorte. Oct. 2008. 480p. ISBN 978-0-385-34169-1. $24. CD: Random Audio.
Nine strangers desperate to escape the Black Death come together in 1348 England, each hiding a secret that will be revealed in successive rounds of storytelling. British author Maitland's U.S. debut.
Martin, George R.R. A Dance with Dragons. Spectra: Bantam. Oct. 2008. 1008p. ISBN 978-0-553-80147-7. $30. CD: Random Audio.
This fifth installment of Martin's “A Song of Ice and Fire” saga (after A Feast for Crows) visits the northern reaches of the Seven Kingdoms.
Moning, Karen Marie. Faefever. Delacorte. Oct. 2008. 320p. ISBN 978-0-385-34163-9. $23.
Burdened with the knowledge of how to find the Sinsar Dubh, a truly dangerous book of magic, sidhe-seer MacKayla Lane continues the hunt for her sister's killer.
Neville, Katherine. The Fire. Ballantine. Oct. 2008. 560p. ISBN 978-0-345-50067-0. $26. lrg. prnt. CD: Random Audio.
Remember The Eight? It was Ballantine's first hardcover 20 years ago and the best seller that introduced the rules of the Game. Now, the Game begins again, when the daughter of Eight heroine Cat Velis finds that her mother has disappeared. Meanwhile, in the early 1800s, the sultan's daughter hunts down Byron. How will these stories converge? With an 11-city tour; multiple foreign rights.
Parker, Robert B. Rough Weather: A Spenser Novel. Putnam. Oct. 2008. 304p. ISBN 978-0-399-15519-2. $25.95.
Spenser is acting as bodyguard for the rich and recently separated Heidi, who's traveled to her own private island for her daughter's wedding, when bad-guy Rugar appears—quickly followed by a storm, a kidnapping, and a murder.
Penman, Sharon Kay. Devil's Brood. Marian Wood: Putnam. Oct. 2008. 528p. ISBN 978-0-399-15526-0. $27.95.
Closing out the trilogy “Time and Chance,” Penman gives us her own view of the battle between Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. With an 11-city tour.
Rice, Luanne & Joseph Monninger. The Letters. Bantam. Oct. 2008. 192p. ISBN 978-0-553-80741-7. $22.
Friends who corresponded for years, these two top authors found the fictional Sam and Hadley emerging in the letters, which evolved into this epistolary novel about a couple facing loss.
Stoker, Bram. The New Annotated Dracula. Norton. Oct. 2008. 464p. ISBN 978-0-393-06450-6. $39.95.
Leslie S. Klinger (The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes) digs through myth, culture, and graveyards in Transylvania to illuminate Stoker's dark and creepy tale. With an eight-city tour.
Updike, John. The Widows of Eastwick. Knopf. Oct. 2008. 320p. ISBN 978-0-307-26960-7. $24.95. CD: Random Audio.
Once The Witches of Eastwick, Alexandra, Jane, and Sukie are now widows intent on visiting their old haunt for the summer. With a six-city tour.

Nonfiction
Allison, Jay & Dan Gediman, eds. This I Believe II: More Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women. Holt. Oct. 2008. 288p. ISBN 978-0-8050-8768-0. $23.
Another collection from the This I Believe folks; with a ten-city tour.
Angelou, Maya. To Have the Heart To Hope. Random. Oct. 2008. 176p. ISBN 978-1-4000-6612-4. $25. CD: Random Audio.
“Good Living Is Hard Work” and other heartfelt advice from the poet.
Arroyo, Raymond, ed. Mother Angelica's Private and Pithy Lessons from the Scriptures. Doubleday. Oct. 2008. 272p. ISBN 978-0-385-51986-1. $17.95.
Bible lessons with a twist; for instance, Mother Angelica calls the apostle Paul “the little shrimp.”
Bradshaw, John. Reclaiming Virtue: How We Can Develop the Moral Intelligence To Do the Right Thing at the Right Time for the Right Reason. Bantam. Oct. 2008. 352p. ISBN 978-0-553-09592-0. $25.
Finding a way to live the virtuous life in the 21st century; the best-selling self-help author's first book in ten years.
Brendon, Piers. The Decline and Fall of the British Empire, 1781–1997. Knopf. Oct. 2008. 816p. ISBN 978-0-307-26829-7. $35.
Former Keeper of the Churchill Archives Centre, Brendon shows how the British Empire surged after Britain's defeat by the upstart Americans, explains why it declined, and considers its consequences.
Buffett, Mary & David Clark. Warren Buffett and the Interpretation of Financial Statements. Scribner. Oct. 2008. 224p. ISBN 978-1-4165-7318-0. $25.
The authors of The Tao of Warren Buffett are back with Buffett-inspired instructions on reading financial statements. With a five-city tour.
Capotorto, Carl. Twisted Head: An Italian-American Memoir. Broadway. Sept. 2008. 288p. ISBN 978-0-7679-2861-8. $23.95.
Capotorto—that's “twisted head” in Italian. The Sopranos' Little Paulie recalls his working-class family, owners of Cappi's Pizza and Sangwheech Shoppe in the Bronx. With a national tour.
Claridge, Laura. Emily Post: Daughter of the Gilded Age, Mistress of American Manners. Random. Oct. 2008. 592p. ISBN 978-0-375-50921-6. $30.
What, there's never been a biography of Emily Post, whose etiquette guide—carried on by descendants—is now in its 17th edition? That's bad manners. With a five-city tour.
Eminem. The Way I Am. Dutton. Oct. 2008. 208p. ISBN 978-0-525-95032-5. $35.
Upfront and personal.
Foner, Eric, ed. Our Lincoln: New Perspectives on Lincoln and His World. Norton. Oct. 2008. 256p. ISBN 978-0-393-06756-9. $25.95.
There's still plenty to say about Lincoln, as evidenced by this volume of original essays, edited by a noted historian of the Civil War and Reconstruction period.
George, Rose. The Big Necessity: The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters. Metropolitan: Holt. Oct. 2008. 272p. ISBN 978-0-8050-8271-5. $26.
With disease resulting from human waste killing more people worldwide than any other single cause, it's time to stop being so bashful about this subject.
Gioia, Ted. Delta Blues. Norton. Oct. 2008. 448p. ISBN 978-0-393-06258-8. $27.95.
The founder and editor of jazz.com is singing the Delta blues.
Hazan, Marcella. Amarcord. Gotham: Penguin Group (USA). Oct. 2008. 352p. ISBN 978-1-59240-388-2. $27.50.
The 84-year-old expert on Italian cooking recalls it all.
Hinshaw, Stephen with Rachel Kranz. The Triple Bind: The Hidden Crisis Threatening Today's Teenage Girls. Ballantine. Oct. 2008. 224p. ISBN 978-0-345-50399-2. $25.
Be a good girl, be a hot girl, be the best at what only boys used to do. Appearances notwithstanding, this is no time to enjoy being a girl, argues Berkeley psychology professor Hinshaw.
Hodgman, John. More Information Than You Require. Dutton. Oct. 2008. 240p. ISBN 978-0-525-95034-9. $24.
Fake trivia from the man who dubs himself “a famous minor television personality.” Should this be filed under fiction?
Jones, Jacqueline. Saving Savannah: The City and the Civil War. Knopf. Oct. 2008. 528p. ISBN 978-1-4000-4293-7. $30.
Bankers and planters, dockworkers and field hands, freedmen and slaves—all are part of the story of Savannah, GA, carefully detailed here.
Keneally, Thomas. Searching for Schindler. Nan A. Talese: Doubleday. Oct. 2008. 304p. ISBN 978-0-385-52617-3. $25.
Keneally's hunt for the man a Holocaust survivor described to him as the “all-drinking, all-screwing, all-black-marketeering Nazi Oskar Schindler…but to me he was Jesus Christ.” Stuff on the film, too.
Krakauer, Jon. The Hero. Doubleday. Oct. 2008. 240p. ISBN 978-0-385-52226-7. $26. lrg. prnt. CD: Random Audio.
Krakauer seems just the man to explain why Arizona Cardinals star safety Pat Tillman felt compelled to join the army post-9/11 and how he perished in Afghanistan.
Lucky Magazine. The Lucky Guide to Mastering Any Style. Gotham: Penguin Group (USA). Oct. 2008. 272p. ISBN 978-1-59240-402-5. $30.
Since Lucky magazine has a circulation of 1.1 million, this book has a built-in audience.
Majd, Hooman. The Ayatollah Begs To Differ: The Paradox of Modern Iran. Doubleday. Oct. 2008. 256p. ISBN 978-0-385-52334-9. $24.95.
Son of an Iranian diplomat and grandson of an ayatollah, Palm Pictures executive Majd explains Iranian self-protectiveness and sense of privacy to puzzled Americans. With a reading group guide.
Mam, Somaly. The Road of Lost Innocence: The True Story of a Cambodian Heroine. Spiegel & Grau. Sept. 2008. 192p. ISBN 978-0-385-52621-0. $22.95.
Mam knows Cambodia's sex trade intimately—she was sold into sexual slavery by her grandfather at age 12. Now she tries to help girls victimized as she was. Multiple foreign rights.
Mizrahi, Isaac. How To Have Style. Gotham: Penguin Group (USA). Oct. 2008. 224p. ISBN 978-1-59240-392-9. $30.
The famed fashion designer gives wardrobe tips to 12 everyday women.
Mourning, Alonzo with Dan Wetzel. Resilience: Faith, Focus, Triumph. Ballantine. Oct. 2008. 272p. ISBN 978-0-345-50701-3. $26.
Diagnosed with kidney disease when he was at the top of his game, NBA champ and Olympic gold medalist Mourning threw his energy into charity—and still came back to help the Miami Heat win its first championship. With a six-city tour.
Parini, Jay. Promised Land: Thirteen Books That Changed America. Doubleday. Oct. 2008. 320p. ISBN 978-0-385-52276-2. $24.95.
The Federalist Papers. Walden. On the Road. Just three of the 13 books that poet/novelist/biographer Parini says truly shaped this country.
Plummer, Christopher. In Spite of Myself: A Memoir. Knopf. Oct. 2008. 660p. ISBN 978-0-679-42162-7. $29.95.
Well-bred Canadian actor Plummer recalls breaking into the “big, bad world of theatre not from the streets up but from the Edwardian living room down.” With a seven-city tour.
Rice, Anne. Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession. Knopf. Oct. 2008. 256p. ISBN 978-0-307-26827-3. $23.95. CD: Random Audio.
Rice explains how she lost God, wrote Interview with a Vampire, and then after 38 years of pain and triumph came back to the fold.
Ryback, Timothy W. Hitler's Private Library: The Books That Shaped His Life. Knopf. Oct. 2008. 304p. ISBN 978-1-4000-4204-3. $25.
Here's another way to try to fathom Hitler: just look at the books (with their scrawled marginalia) in his personal library.
Schroeder, Alice. The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life. Bantam. Oct. 2008. 864p. ISBN 978-0-553-80509-3. $35; lrg. prnt. $30. CD: Random Audio.
More on Buffett? He kindly gave Morgan Stanley managing director Schroeder access to his files and granted her interviews.
Shorto, Russell. Descartes' Bones: A Skeletal History of the Conflict Between Faith and Reason. Doubleday. Oct. 2008. 384p. ISBN 978-0-385-51753-9. $26.
The journey taken by Descartes's bones, dug up 16 years after the philosopher's death and on the move for centuries thereafter, reflect the tension between faith and reason that defines the modern age.
Smart, Geoff & Randy Street. Who. Ballantine. Oct. 2008. 224p. ISBN 978-0-345-50419-7. $26.
Avoid costly mistakes by hiring the right person: use the A method devised by ghSMART CEO Smart and ghSMART Executive Learning president Street. With a five-city tour.
The Smart Cookies with Jennifer Barrett. The Smart Cookies' Guide To Making More Dough: How Five Young Women Got Smart, Formed a Money Club, and Took Control of Their Finances. Delacorte. Oct. 2008. 368p. ISBN 978-0-385-34244-5. $24.
This quintet with good jobs and plenty of debt formed a money club whose strategies have been trumpeted by Oprah.
Sweetingham, Lisa. Chemical Cowboys: The DEA's Secret Mission To Hunt Down a Notorious Ecstasy Kingpin. Ballantine. Oct. 2008. 284p. ISBN 978-0-345-49995-0. $26.
A tale of Israeli drug dealers, money-laundering rabbis, and DEA cowboys in 1990s New York around the time Ecstasy first hit.
Vowell, Sarah. The Wordy Shipmates. Riverhead: Penguin Group (USA). Oct. 2008. 272p. ISBN 978-1-59448-999-0. $24.95.
Vowell revisits 17th-century New England and discovers that the Puritans were not always what they seemed. With a national tour.