Prepub Exploded: June/July 2010, Pt. 1

Featuring George A. Romero, Darren Shaw & Sarah Ellison

By Barbara Hoffert -- Library Journal, 01/07/2010

In this expanded edition of Prepub Alert, we’re starting to move our notification ahead a few months, so look for hot June and July titles. From Roberts to Thor, there’s all the top commercial fiction; nonfiction wraps with two amazing memoirs.

Fiction | Nonfiction

Fiction

Carey, Jacqueline. Naamah’s Curse. Grand Central. Jun. 2010. 656p. ISBN 978-0-446-19805-9. $26.99.
To save her people, Moirin hunts down Ch’in fighter Bao—and they fall in love. Soon, there’s trouble. Second in the “Quest” trilogy after Naamah’s Kiss, which won an LJ rave.

Clevidence, Carin. The House on Salt Hay Road. Farrar. Jun. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-0-374-17314-2. $25.
An explosion at a 1930s fireworks factory upends the lives of orphaned Clay Poole, older sister Nancy, and the relatives who took them in. A debut novel from a Rona Jaffe Foundation award winner that’s stirring in-house excitement; sounds promising.

Connolly, John. Whisperers. Atria: S. & S. Jul. 2010. 352p. ISBN 978-1-4391-6519-5. $26.
A small town, major criminals, supernatural suggestions, and edgy detective Charlie Parker—sounds like another good Connolly thriller. Love the out-of-this-world touches. With a ten-city tour that tentatively includes New York, Minneapolis, Denver, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Milwaukee, Madison, Phoenix, and Atlanta, plus promotion at ALA; 100,000-copy first printing.

Coulter, Catherine. Whiplash. Putnam. Jun. 2010. 400p. ISBN 978-0-399-15653-3. $26.95.
Yale professor Edward Kender’s father is undergoing chemotherapy when a key drug runs dry. A little undercover investigation shows that the shortage has been induced—and it’s netting the company billions. Relevant, although, come on, it’s a German company?

Cussler, Clive with Justin Scott. The Spy: An Isaac Bell Novel. Putnam. Jun. 2010. 448p. ISBN 978-0-399-15643-4. $27.95. CD: Penguin Audio.
Pre–World War I, a noted American battleship gun designer dies, and investigator Isaac Bell (late of The Wrecker) senses it’s not suicide. Bell is an appealing character; buy multiples.

Delors, Catherine. For the King. Dutton. Jul. 2010. 400p. ISBN 978-0-525-95174-2. $26.95.
France, Christmas Eve, 1800. A cart full of gunpowder blows up, and Chief Inspector Roch Miquel must discover who tried to assassinate Napoleon. Big hopes after Delors’s debut, Mistress of the Revolution.

DeMille, Nelson. The Lion. Grand Central. Jun. 2010. 600p. ISBN 978-0-446-58083-0. $27.99. lrg. prnt. CD: Hachette Audio.
John Corey, special agent for the Anti-Terrorist Task Force, again faces murderous Libyan Asad “The Lion” Khalil. Buy multiples.

Gardiner, Meg. The Liar’s Lullaby. Dutton. Jun. 2010. 352p. ISBN 978-0-525-95172-8. $25.95.
Country singer Tasia McFarland, ex-wife of the President, is making a spectacular comeback when she is killed before 30,000 fans. Gardiner stalwart Jo Beckett investigates. A bit far-fetched (and, hey, Tasia dies while shooting a fake Colt .45 as she is lowered to the stage by helicopter?), but the popular Gardiner is a recent Edgar Award winner.

Griffin, W.E.B. & William E. Butterworth IV. The Vigilantes: A Badge of Honor Novel. Putnam. Jun. 2010. 352p. ISBN 978-0-399-15663-2. $26.95. CD: Penguin Audio.
Bad guys are being murdered in Philadelphia, vigilante groups are claiming responsibility, the police doubt their claims, and the violence is escalating. Another “Badge of Honor” novel for your shelves; should do well.

Hoffman, Paul. The Left Hand of God. Dutton. Jun. 2010. 384p. ISBN 978-0-525-95131-5. $25.95. CD: Penguin Audio.
In a dark past, the specially gifted Thomas Cale is imprisoned at the Sanctuary of the Redeemers with thousands of other boys being trained for Holy War. Then he escapes to the outside world, which he alone can save or destroy. The first in a trilogy to be published in 20 languages this year; lots of promise. Here's a review that pans the hype but also ends up giving the book an A++.

Jackson, Joshilyn. Backseat Saints. Grand Central. Jul. 2010. 304p. ISBN 978-0-446-58234-6. $24.99.
Warned by a gypsy that her oh-so-striking husband will kill her—unless she kills him first—once feisty Rose Mae gets her nerve back, buys a gun, and hits the road. Intriguing premise, but can Jackson make it work? True, she really is catching on. Reading group guide.

Kennedy, Douglas. Leaving the World. Atria: S. & S. Jun. 2010. 512p. ISBN 978-1-4391-8078-5. pap. $16.
A woman abandons her life in Boston after the death of her daughter but then becomes deeply concerned with a young girl’s disappearance. A No. 1 best seller in the UK and France, where the American-born Kennedy has homes and is highly regarded; this work, which reintroduces him to American readers, would seem to have broad appeal.

King, Lily. Father of the Rain. Atlantic Monthly. Jul. 2010. 384p. ISBN 978-0-8021-1949-0. $24.
Daley, whose parents split when she was young, rejects her alcoholic father’s uppercrust lifestyle. Now she sees a chance to save him from himself—but at what cost to her? I’m eager to see this; King’s The English Teacher made multiple top-ten lists. With a ten-city tour to Portland (ME), Boston, New York, Cleveland, Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle; reading group guide.

Kuzneski, Chris. The Prophecy. Putnam. Jul. 2010. 384p. ISBN 978-0-399-15659-5. $25.95.
Jonathon Payne and David Jones are back, trying to head off a group intent on using Nostradamus’s predictions for their own evil ends. An all-purpose thriller.

Larkin, Allie. Stay. Dutton. Jun. 2010. 304p. ISBN 978-0-525-95171-1. $25.95.
Savannah “Van” Leone loves Peter, but Peter marries her best friend, Janie. So she orders a puppy online that turns out to be a 100-pound German Shepherd. A highly touted debut, and dogs, bless ’em, are so big now.

Lawson, Mike. House Justice: A Joe DeMarco Thriller. Atlantic Monthly. Jul. 2010. 384p. ISBN 978-0-8021-1937-7. $22.
A leak about an American defense contractor in Iran leads to a spy’s torture and death and the jailing of the journalist who published the story. Now DeMarco must find the journalist’s source. Lawson is building; watch this one.

Lustbader, Eric van. Robert Ludlum’s™ The Bourne Objective. Grand Central. Jun. 2010. 450p. ISBN 978-0-446-53981-4. $27.99. lrg. prnt. CD: Hachette Audio.
Russian assassin Leonid Arkadin hunts Jason Bourne, and Bourne hunts Arkadin. This series will never die.

McCall Smith, Alexander. Corduroy Mansions. Pantheon. Jul. 2010. 352p. ISBN 978-0-307-37908-5. $24.95.
Cause for celebration: a new McCall Smith series, set in an apartment building in London’s Pimlico neighborhood and featuring—yes!—a very smart dog. This ran as a daily series in the Telegraph, so start Googling; here's a peak at the second book in the series, The Dog Who Came in from the Cold.

Moore, Christopher G. Asia Hand: A Vincent Calvino Novel. Black Cat: Grove. Jul. 2010. 288p. ISBN 978-0-8021-7073-6. pap. $14.
In the latest of Moore’s award-winning Bangkok novels to be published here (actually, the second in the series), expat PI Vincent Calvino must follow up on the murder of an acquaintance who’s pulled from a lake with a string of protective amulets around his neck.

Norman, Howard. What Is Left the Daughter. Houghton Harcourt. Jul. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-0-618-73543-3. $25.
It’s World War II, and teenaged Wyatt Hillyer has moved in with his aunt, uncle, and gorgeous cousin, his parents having both committed suicide. Then a German student arrives in town. The award-winning Norman’s nuanced and interior works are for your serious readers; with a tour to include Washington, DC, Boston, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Vermont locales.

Rivecca, Suzanne. Death Is Not an Option. Norton. Jul. 2010. 224p. ISBN 978-0-393-07256-3. $23.95.
Why am I recommending this debut story collection? Because the author is a Pushcart Prize winner and a former Wallace Stegner fellow, and the six-city tour (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Minneapolis, Denver, and Portland, OR) for a relative unknown says lots.

Roberts, Nora. The Search. Putnam. Jul. 2010. 480p. ISBN 978-0-399-15657-1. $26.95. lrg. prnt.
Having survived a serial killer who shot her cop fiancé and his K-9 partner to death, Fiona Bristow now lives sedately on an island near Seattle and runs a dog-training school. Then she meets Simon Doyle, a reclusive artists with a wild pup in need of instruction. Ha, told you canines were hot stuff; buy lots.

Romero, George A. The Living Dead. Grand Central. Jul. 2010. 320p. ISBN 978-0-446-56183-9. $25.99. CD: Hachette Audio.
From the director of Night of the Living Dead: a novel about how those stalkers got started. Zombies still don’t have the quite the cachet of vampires, but consider the source.

Roth, Henry. An American Type. Norton. Jun. 2010. 320p. ISBN 978-0-393-07775-9. $25.95.
Rescued from a pile of nearly 2000 pages by a New Yorker editor, Roth’s final work again features alter ego Ira, who’s forsaken domineering lover Edith for a cool, blonde gentile pianist. It’s 1938, and the repercussions aren’t just personal. Essential for literary collections.

Shaw, Darren. Procession of the Dead. Grand Central. Jun. 2010. 304p. ISBN 978-0-446-55175-5. $19.99.
Capac Raimi travels to the City, a dangerous and seductive place dominated by the Cardinal. The best-selling YA author of Cirque du Freak goes after the adult market, and not a moment too soon. Dark and intriguing stuff; watch this one.

Silva, Daniel. The Rembrandt Affair. Putnam. Jul. 2010. 448p. ISBN 978-0-399-15658-8. $26.95.
An art restorer is murdered and a recently discovered Rembrandt spirited away, so it doesn’t matter whether Gabriel Allon wants to get out of the business. He’s on the hunt. The No. 1 New York Times best-selling author Silva was big when he joined the Putnam team in the early 2000s, and they've grown him since then. A big summer thriller--with a big national tour.

Thor, Brad. Untitled #9. Atria. Jul. 2010. 368p. ISBN 978-1-4165-8659-3. $26.99.
Scott Harvath, who has been drafted by a secret spy agency meant to “Find, Fix, and Finish” enemies of America, sees the hand of a dangerous ex-colleague in a Rome bombing that kills some American college students. But what if he’s wrong? With author events in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Phoenix, and Washington, DC; a whopping 550,000-copy first printing. One of your top two or three thriller purchases this summer.

Tobey, Danny. The Faculty Club. Atria. Jun. 2010. 320p. ISBN 978-1-4391-5429-8. $25.
Jeremy Davis is already an outstanding first-year student at his prestigious law school, and a secret society promises even more. But there’s something deadly about this bunch. Did I say zombies weren’t so hot yet? Oops. There’s movie interest in this promising debut and even a reading group guide; the author’s backstory—Harvard, Yale Law, Southwestern Medical School—adds interest. With a 150,000-copy first printing.

Weiner, Jennifer. Fly Away Home. Atria: S. & S. Jul. 2010. 368p. ISBN 978-0-7432-9427-0. $26.99.
Longtime politician’s wife Sylvie is recovering from public humiliation, daughter Kate escaped a loveless marriage by having an unsuitable affair that’s just burned her, and Kate’s wild daughter Lizzie has just walked out on an abusive boyfriend. More women’s fiction from Weiner who, believe it or not, keeps getter bigger. With a 450,000-copy first printing and tons of publicity.

Nonfiction

Butler, Robert N., M.D. The Longevity Prescription: The 8 Proven Keys to a Long, Healthy Life. Avery. Jun. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-1-58333-388-4. $26.
The Pulitzer Prize–winning Butler, who founded the country’s first department of geriatric medicine, tells us how to make the most of the last third of life. Essential for all libraries serving baby boomers.

Carr, Nicholas. The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains. Norton. Jun. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-0-393-07222-8. $26.95.
“Is Google making us stupid?” Carr, who posed that question on a famed Atlantic Monthly cover, here says yes: as use of the Internet reroutes our neural pathways, we are forfeiting our subtlety and ability to concentrate. Bound to kick up some controversy; with a seven city tour to Denver/Boulder, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, New York, Austin, and Washington, DC.

Cora, Cat with Ann Krueger Spivack. Cat Cora’s Classics with a Twist: Fresh Takes on Favorite Dishes. Houghton Harcourt. Jun. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-0-547-12603-6. $30.
The first female Iron Chef offers the kinds of twisted classics, like Steak Tacos with Pineapple Salsa, that she cooks for her four sons. With an eight-city tour including New York, Miami, Chicago, Dallas, Phoenix, St. Louis, San Francisco, and Los Angeles; essential for most cookbook collections.

Dolin, Eric Jay. Fur, Fortune, and Empire. Norton. Jul. 2010. 416p. ISBN 978-0-393-06710-1. $29.95.
The author of the surprise best seller Leviathan: The History of Whaling in America returns with a study of the fur trade in North America, starting in the 1600s, and showing how deeply it has shaped our history. One of my nonfiction favorites.

Ellison, Sarah. War at the Wall Street Journal: Inside the Struggle To Control an American Business Empire. Houghton Harcourt. May 2010. 288p. ISBN 978-0-547-15243-1. $27.
While working at the Wall Street Journal, Ellison covered Rupert Murdoch’s purchase of Dow Jones—which owned the Journal, of course. An insider’s account, though an excerpt suggests that she's ready to be hard on both sides; for anyone who cares about the state of journalism today.

Goodell, Jeff. How To Cool the Planet: Geoengineering and the Audacious Quest To Fix Earth’s Climate. Houghton Harcourt. Apr. 2010. 288p. ISBN 978-0-618-99061-0. $26.
What’s geoengineering? An effort by some cutting-edge scientists to cool off the planet by vacuuming up that excess carbon dioxide. From the author of Big Coal; important, so let’s hope we’re not feeling too escapist to read it. Just bumped up from June.

Gordimer, Nadine. Telling Times: Writing and Living, 1954–2008. Norton. Jun. 2010. 800p. ISBN 978-0-393-06628-9. $39.95.
A comprehensive collection of the Nobel laureate’s nonfiction, with 100 pieces spanning six decades. Who could ask for anything more?

Hitchens, Christpher. Hitch-22: Some Confessions and Contradictions; A Memoir. Twelve. Jun. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-0-446-54033-9. $26.99. lrg. prnt. CD: Hachette Audio.
Literary critic. Foreign correspondent. Public intellectual. Famed atheist. Whatever you think of Hitchens (God Is Not Great), you have to love a guy who cites disputation and drinking as his major hobbies in Who’s Who. With a 13-city tour to New York, Washington, DC, Chicago, Boston, Atlanta, Miami, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Portland, Austin, and Philadelphia.

Kasich, John & Daniel Paisner. Every Other Monday: Twenty Years of Life, Lunch, Faith, and Friendship. Atria. Jun. 2010. 240p. ISBN 978-1-4391-4827-3. $25.
The former congressman, presidential candidate, and host of Fox News Channel’s Heartland with John Kasich, also a best-selling author, Kasich here offers a faith-based memoir that aims to broaden the genre. Should be quite popular.

Junger, Sebastian. War. Twelve. May 2010. 384p. ISBN 978-0-446-55624-8. $26.99. lrg. prnt. CD: Hachette Audio.
The author of The Perfect Storm follows another whirlwind: one platoon’s 15-month tour of duty in Afghanistan’s Korengal Valley. Lots on our current wars out there, but Junger is special.

Nicolson, Juliet. The Great Silence: 1918–1920; Living in the Shadow of the Great War. Grove. Jun. 2010. 304p. ISBN 978-0-8021-1944-5. $25.
The granddaughter of Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson re-creates Britain from Armistice Day, November 1918, to the Great Silence two years later—two minutes observed nationwide as remains were laid to rest in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I’m expecting good reading here.

Sheffield, Rob. Talking to Girls About Duran Duran: One Young Man’s Quest for True Love and a Cooler Haircut. Dutton. Jul. 2010. 304p. ISBN 978-0-525-95156-8. $25.95.
The author of the touching best seller, Love Is a Mix Tape, Sheffield returns with an account of his transformation from nerd to notable rock/culture critic—all the while talking to girls about Duran Duran. Probably not just for Rolling Stone types.

Syman, Stefanie. The Subtle Body: The Story of Yoga in America. Farrar. Jun. 2010. 400p. ISBN 978-0-374-23676-2. $27.
How an ancient spiritual practice, once condemned in America as dangerous, became really big business. Not just for yogis. 

Ward, Nathan. Dark Harbor: The War for the New York Waterfront. Farrar. Jun. 2010. 240p. ISBN 978-0-374-28622-4. $25.
J. Edgar Hoover’s denial of organized crime notwithstanding, the film On the Waterfront, based on Malcolm Johnson’s Pulitzer Prize–winning newspaper series, got it just right. Of course we’re pitching this; it’s not only intriguing history but is by a former LJ book review editor who’s one sharp writer.

Waters, John. Role Models. Farrar. Jun. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-0-374-25147-5. $25.
The slightly twisted filmmaker revealed through discussion of his favorite folks, from Saint Catherine of Sienna to Johnny Mathis. Whoa! Likely to be hot; with a national tour.

Wilson, G. Willow. The Butterfly Mosque: A Young American Woman’s Journey to Love and Islam. Atlantic Monthly. Jun. 2010. 288p. ISBN 978-0-8021-1887-5. $24.
Having enrolled in an Islamic studies class in college, Wilson found something that spoke to her. Here she relates her conversion to Islam, her move to Cairo, and her love for a young man named Omar, which serves to highlight her balancing act between East and West. She’s also the author of two award-winning comics series and a highly regarded graphic novel, Cairo. With a six-city tour to New York, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland, OR. Important.

Woods, Vanessa. Bonobo Handshake: A Memoir of Love and Adventure in the Congo. Gotham. Jun. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-1-592-40546-6. $26.
In 2005, Woods moved with her fiancé to the Democratic Republic of Congo, where they lived in a bonobo sanctuary and studied the ape that shares 98.7 percent of our DNA. Here are her reflections on the gentle bonobo, her violent surroundings, and the meaning of being human. Likely a standout memoir; Woods’s Every Monkey for Themselves was a huge hit in her native Australia. For more, see this site.