The Random House Home Video division has been closed for almost 20 years, yet somehow its logo lives on. Take a deeper dive into the conspiracies surrounding this 80’s animation.
Conspiracy Revealed: The Random House Home Video Logo
March 9, 2018
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BEYOND SCANDAL AND DESIRE by Lorraine Heath
March 8, 2018
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Sins for All Seasons, Book 1
Lady Aslyn Hastings was orphaned fairly young, and her parents best friends raised her to be the lady she was born to be, with the understanding that she would marry their son when the time came. But then she meets Mick Trewlove.
Mick is the bastard son of a Duke who won’t acknowledge him. Handed off to a poor woman who raised such children, he grew up tough and determined, attributes that served him well. He worked hard and became very wealthy, and then started plotting his revenge against the Duke that abandoned him.
No matter his wealth, Lady Aslyn knows she could never be seen with him as he doesn’t hold a title, but nonetheless he finagles his way into running into her again and again. Eventually she feels like must choose between the man she was destined to marry and the man she loves.
There are a few nice twists in this story and a truly shocking ending, but no fears, everyone gets their happily ever after. Don’t forget to read the author’s note at the end, her research was remarkable, fascinating and heartbreaking.
I loved this fast, fun and unexpected read – what a great start to a new series!
3/18 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™
BEYOND SCANDAL AND DESIRE by Lorraine Heath. Avon (January 30, 2018). ISBN 978-0062676009. 384p.
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SURRENDER by Joan Johnston
March 7, 2018
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A Bitter Creek Novel, Book 16
Taylor Grayhawk is a pilot who drops smoke jumpers off into the fires of a national park. But her last jumper, Brian Flynn, also happens to be her old high school flame (no pun intended!) Not to mention their families have been feuding for years. As she flies in closer, she realizes that there is no where to drop him, and then the worst happens, she loses control of the plane.
Flynn forces her to jump with him, and in doing so saves her life as the plane crashes and burns. Somehow they find a small patch of green to land in but a grizzly bear appears out of nowhere and mauls Flynn’s leg. He manages to scare off the bear and realizes it came out of a cave nearby.
They decide to take shelter in the cave, but before he can drag all his equipment inside with them, fire takes out a huge tree which falls over, completely blocking the entrance to the cave and their only way out. Luckily, there is clean water running down the rocks inside but they don’t have enough food to last very long.
Brian and Taylor have nothing much to do other than take care of his wounds and rekindle their relationship. But can it last? Will Flynn survive his wound? Will they starve to death before they are found? All good questions to be sure, but I’m not telling. Go read, it’s a fast, exciting story with a bit of sex thrown in for fun.
Johnston did her homework and learning about smoke jumpers, forest fires and firefighting in general was interesting for sure and added to the story.
I am a little confused about this series though – I read book 15 (the last book, BLACKTHORNE’S BRIDE) and it was historical. I’ve never read a series that jumped from historical to contemporary. Am I missing something?
3/18 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™
SURRENDER by Joan Johnston. Dell (February 27, 2018). ISBN 978-0399177767. 416p.
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THE ESCAPE ARTIST by Brad Meltzer
March 6, 2018
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Nola (named after the city) Brown is a truly damaged yet kick-ass woman; bright, tough beyond belief, and an amazingly talented artist. In fact, she is the youngest artist-in-residence the military has ever had. What that means is she decides where she wants to go and when she gets there she draws anything she wants. It turns out she sees a lot more than most people, and saved many lives because of her eye.
Zig is a mortician at Dover Air Force base who works on fallen soldiers. He considers himself to be an artist, and his work is his life. He got divorced after his young daughter died.
When Nola Brown’s body comes into Dover after a fatal small plane crash, Zig is shocked to discover the woman he’s working on is not Nola. He knew Nola as a child, she was in Girl Scouts with his daughter and saved her life after a can exploded near a campfire. Nola took the shrapnel instead, leaving her ear disfigured but the ears on the woman on Zig’s table are perfect.
Thus begins a twisty, at times violent, roller coaster ride of a thriller. There is a lot of really fascinating information on the death process of fallen soldiers, history about Houdini, his friends and family, and about magic in general. I love how I inevitably learn something from Meltzer’s novels, his research is always impeccable. The story moves back and forth between Nola’s childhood and present day, and that helps keep the pages turning.
The surprises keep coming, the pacing is relentless, and the body count high in this terrific political thriller. (And librarians, the President appointed Librarian of Congress plays a prominent part!) Readers who love strong women protagonists like Lisbeth Salander (Stieg Larsson,) Caitlin Strong (Jon Land,) and even Katniss (Suzanne Collins) will love Nola Brown.
Another terrific read from one of my favorite authors (and one of my favorite people!) Don’t miss it.
3/18 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™
THE ESCAPE ARTIST by Brad Meltzer. Grand Central Publishing (March 6, 2018). ISBN: 978-1455559527. 434p.
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THE ESCAPE ARTIST by Brad Meltzer
March 6, 2018Click to purchase
Brad Meltzer’ s latest novel ties together two of the most interesting people ever united by events in a book. The first one is a soldier named Nola Brown. Nola’s background includes a childhood marred by the worse treatment ever received by an adopted daughter from the man that became her father. She was bullied, browbeaten, and treated as garbage. Her only escape was to join the army.
While there she was chosen to be the Army’s Artist in Residence. She had the open-ended assignment of going wherever she wanted to and drawing what she saw to be included in the army’s record of the battle or the event in order to form a better picture of what occurred.
The other person is Jim “Zig” Zigarowski who works at Dover Air Force Base as a mortician in the section that receives fallen military personnel. Zig does not treat the position as something to just work at as his day job. His feelings towards the dead received causes him to labor long and hard at fixing up features of those that combat has disfigured in order to allow next of kin to be able to have open casket burials and find closure in that process.
Zig knew Nola years ago while she was in high school and saved the life of his daughter. Later in that period there was a terrible accident that did claim the life of Zig’s child and thereby ruined his life. His wife left him and Zig went deeper into the lonely business of dealing with the dead to ready them for burial.
The novel opens with the news of the crashing of a small plane coming from a secret military base in Alaska. Among other casualties, Zig learns that Nola is among the dead and solicits her body in order to work on it preparing for the funeral. He quickly discovers that the corpse is not Nola but someone else and begins his own intensive investigation of what is happening.
The events depicted keep the reader glued to the book in order to find out what is going on. Who is the person killed and, of course, where is Nola? Both Zig and Nola are very well delineated and their feelings and reactions to events are those that would happen to anyone caught up in those situations. It is possible that Nola might enter into future novels written by Brad Meltzer but the current book is able to stand on its own and provides an excellent reading experience for those enjoying it. Very well done.
3/18 Paul Lane
THE ESCAPE ARTIST by Brad Meltzer. Grand Central Publishing (March 6, 2018). ISBN: 978-1455559527. 434p.
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THE LAST EQUATION OF ISAAC SERVERY by Nova Jacobs
March 5, 2018
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A Novel in Clues
The subtitle is “A Novel in Clues” and that is precisely what it is. Isaac Severy, the patriarch of an intellectually gifted family, passes away. His farewell note indicates that he knew he would die, and when, and also indicates that two others would become deceased and predicts the times. Murder, suicide, natural death? And what enables him to make such spot on predictions? Is it the equation that he has just finished?
Isaac sends a letter to his adopted granddaughter Hazel while she is in Los Angeles for his funeral. The letter alludes to a secret organization that is after the equation and will stop at nothing to obtain it. Isaac charges Hazel with finding said equation and delivering it to a close friend of his.
While still in Los Angles, Hazel comes to the realization that the equation has implications that could have disastrous consequences for her entire extended family and begins an exhaustive hunt for it. Clues sent to Hazel by her grandfather indicate that the equation can be found by clues hidden in one of her favorite novels, and we follow her reasoning and search through them.
Complicating events are the appearances of Isaac’s favorite son, a theoretical physicist, and a long lost cousin, both coming to Los Angeles. Do they know about the equation and what it can do? And of course the obvious question of what is it capable of?
The debut novel certainly bodes well for an exciting career for this author. It is definitely one that will not let the reader put it down until finished and exhibits a literary style that is certainly captivating.
3/18 Paul Lane
THE LAST EQUATION OF ISAAC SERVERY by Nova Jacobs. Touchstone (March 6, 2018). ISBN 978-1501175121. 352p.
KINDLE
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THE INVESTIGATION by David Bell | 7 Sentence Stories
March 4, 2018Author David Bell (SOMEBODY’S DAUGHTER) narrates an original story told in only seven sentences.
SOMEBODY’S DAUGHTER by David Bell
In this pulse-pounding novel of psychological suspense from the
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bestselling and acclaimed author of Bring Her Home and Since She Went Away, a man must save the life of a little girl who just might be his daughter….
When Michael Frazier’s ex-wife, Erica, unexpectedly shows up on his doorstep, she drops a bombshell that threatens to rip his family apart: Her ten-year-old daughter is missing–and Michael is the father. Unsure whether this is the truth but unwilling to leave the girl’s fate to chance, Michael has no choice but to follow the elusive trail of the child he has always wanted but never knew he had.
After Michael departs, his wife, Angela, learns shocking news about Erica and fears for the safety of both her husband and the endangered girl. When a stranger, a man who claims a connection to Erica and her missing daughter, knocks on the door, Angela is drawn out into the night–and deep into the tangled web of Michael’s past….
Over the course of one night, lies that span a decade come bubbling to the surface, putting Michael, his wife, and his whole family in jeopardy. And as the window for a little girl’s safe return closes, Michael will have to decide who can be trusted and who is hiding the truth….
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HARBOR OF SPIES by Robin Lloyd
March 3, 2018
A Novel of Historic Havana
An extremely well researched and compelling novel combining a story about sailors working aboard ships still under sail and a little known stage of the American Civil War. In 1863, Everett Townsend, a young man recently dismissed from the U.S. Naval Academy for cause and subsequently in disgrace, is captain of a ship owned by his father and sailing to and selling that vessel in Havana. Cuba has become a center for Southern blockade runners to pick up cargoes crucial for the Confederate war effort, run the blockade to Southern ports while evading the Northern navy, and return, bringing a cargo of cotton destined for European markets. It is a very dangerous but very lucrative venture when successful and Havana is therefore a good market to sell ships in.
On the way into Havana harbor, Everett rescues a man escaping unknown danger and swimming towards the ship while pursued by sharks. This good Samaritan action results in jail for Everett with his release effected by a profiteering Spanish merchant who forces him into becoming captain of the merchant’s blockade runner in order to pay the debt owed for obtaining his release from prison. Robin Lloyd’s descriptions of the Cuban world of that period: huge plantations and very wealthy people,extremely poor people and slaves brought from both Africa and Jamaica to work the plantations are riveting and show the reader a world not normally depicted. For the blockade runners there are the dangers of both conditions of the ocean these ships sail on and the equally dangerous possible meetings with Northern warships hunting the blockade runners.
The writing flows rapidly with the reader drawn into the reward of discovering a world that is only 90 miles off the coast of the U.S. and at the time of the story a base for Union warships hunting blockade runners. Two factors enrich the novel. One is the solving of a mystery that has haunted Everett since childhood with the answer found on Cuba, and the other meeting a girl of great interest for him. Both of these situations help enrich the attraction of Lloyd’s novel, keeping the reader glued to the pages.
The ending is well done and logically based on the story told, but fortunately leaving a good deal of factors that could go into another book about Everett Townsend and the world he finds himself in.I hope that this will be the case and I will be looking for those novels when published.
3/18 Paul Lane
HARBOR OF SPIES by Robin Lloyd. Lyons Press (March 1, 2018). ISBN 978-1493032266. 320p.
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MEET A LITERARY AGENT AT THE LONDON BOOK FAIR!
March 2, 2018Bookings now open for LBF’s Agent One-to-One programme
News for release, 2 March 2018: The London Book Fair (LBF), the UK’s biggest gathering of international publishers and agents, has announced bookings are now open for its Agent One-to-One programme, which will take place in LBF’s Author HQ – the area of the Fair dedicated to writers and aspiring writers.
The Agent One-to-One programme offers Author HQ attendees the opportunity to meet with a leading literary agent, who will be on hand to offer advice on the publishing process and provide feedback on authors’ pitches and ideas.
Participating agents this year include representatives from AM Heath, Darley Anderson, David Higham Associates, DKW Literary Agency, MBA, Peters Fraser & Dunlop, Sheil Land Associates and Susanna Lea Associates. Between them, the agents’ areas of interest cover everything from children’s publishing, middle grade and YA, to SF and fantasy, as well as literary fiction, commercial fiction, historical fiction and crime thrillers. Narrative non-fiction and memoir are also covered.
Meetings are by appointment only, and need to be booked in advance of the Fair.
How to book:
- Tickets cost £25 and appointments can be booked by visiting: http://www.londonbookfair.co.uk/agents
Asif Sardar, previous participant in LBF’s Agent One-to-One programme said: “It was a pleasure to meet up with a professional agent who was interested in my work and offered insightful opinions. Highly recommended for anyone looking to step out from the secret garden of isolated authoring into the daunting world of commercial publishing.”
Author HQ, one of the most popular features of the Fair, will have plenty on offer for both established and aspiring writers, including a three-day seminar programme with industry experts and authors taking to the stage to share their expertise and experience. All Author HQ events are free-to-attend with the purchase of a three-day pass, required to access The London Book Fair.
THE LONDON BOOK FAIR (LBF)
The London Book Fair (LBF) is the global marketplace for rights negotiation and the sale and distribution of content across print, audio, TV, film and digital channels. Taking place every spring in the world’s premier publishing and cultural capital, it is a unique opportunity to explore, understand and capitalise on the innovations shaping the publishing world of the future. LBF brings you direct access to customers, content and emerging markets. LBF 2018, the 47th Fair, will take place from 10 – 12 April 2018, Olympia London. LBF’s London Book and Screen Week will run for the third year, with the book fair as the pivotal three-day event within a seven-day programme. For further information, please visit: www.londonbookfair.co.uk.
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Diana Gabaldon shows how she crafts a sentence
March 2, 2018One of my favorite authors (OUTLANDER) shares this animation
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