On the Come Up

Debut fiction can be tough. First novels can be so full of a writer’s efforts and emotions that the storyline suffers under the weight of the language or complex plot. Debut novels can also be amazing and beautiful because the story has been bottled up for so long that the writer is able to convey the story without too many words. To all of you reading this, I recommend you do not read a steady diet of debuts. Variety is the spice of reading life, too. Without mixing it up a bit, you stand to miss some amazing books. On the same note, don’t ignore debuts to wait for a writer to “prove themselves.” You’ll be missing out.

A recently released debut novel that reads like a 9^th or 10^th book of a seasoned author is On the Come Up by Hannah Weyer. Hannah Weyer is an award winning filmmaker, so she is no stranger to the written word. However, this is her first published novel. The story follows the life of AnnMarie Walker—a thirteen-year-old from Far Rockaway, Queens. AnnMarie is wise beyond her years and able to see the hold that the neighborhood (as well as drugs, violence, and government assistance) has on people. She dreams of being able to escape Far Rockaway and leave it behind her. Even with the struggles and violence that AnnMarie faces, she continues to stay strong and persevere. Four months before she’s due to give birth to her first child, AnnMarie attends a casting call for a movie on a whim. She lands the part and her life begins to change. However, after the movie and a trip to the Sundance Film Festival, AnnMarie finds herself back in New York. AnnMarie stays focused on her future, looking beyond just the day-to-day, to make sure her life is her own and will develop into something more.

Weyer based the novel on the true story of Anna Simpson. Weyer met Anna when Anna was filming the movie Our Song just after becoming a new mother at the age of sixteen. Weyer’s boyfriend at the time (now husband), Jim McKay, directed the movie. To this day, Hannah, Jim, and Anna are close. Just like AnnMarie/Anna, I can easily say that Hannah Weyer is on the come up in the world of literature. I can’t wait to read more.

2013 Best Mystery Awards!

 

 

The World Mystery Convention is a nonprofit, all-volunteer organization which holds an annual convention in honor of Anthony Boucher, the distinguished mystery fiction critic, editor and author. It is the world's premier event bringing together all parts of the mystery and crime fiction community, and is commonly referred to as Bouchercon.

Bouchercon 2013: A New York State of Mind was held in Albany, New York in September 2013.  Awards presented included The Anthony Awards, The Barry Awards, The Macavity Awards, and The Shamus Awards.

Please help congratulate the following winners by reading one of their great books.

 

The Beautiful Mystery - Louise Penny

Anthony Award Best Mystery Novel
Macavity Award Best Mystery Novel

When a peaceful monastery in Quebec is shattered by a murder, Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir are challenged to find the killer in a community that has taken a vow of silence.
  

   

The Expats - Chris Pavone

Anthony Award Best First Mystery

Along the cobble-stoned streets of Luxembourg, mother and expat Kate Moore suspect that another American couple are not who they claim to be. A first novel.
 

   

Big Maria - Johnny Shaw

Anthony Award Best Paperback Original

100 years ago a miner stashed gold in Arizona's Chocolate Mountains.  Harry's living on disability and getting beaten down. Frank's an old-timer battling cancer and a domineering daughter. And Ricky's a good kid in a bad spot, doing everything for family. Together they're staking what little they have left on a dangerous quest to the Big Maria Mine.
 

   

The Blackhouse - Peter May

Barry Award Best Novel

When a grisly murder occurs on a Scottish island, Edinburgh detective Fin Macleod must confront his past if he's ever going to discover if this killing has a connection to one that took place on the mainland.

 

A Killing in the Hills - Julia Keller

Barry Award Best First Novel

A first novel by a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist finds a prosecuting attorney and her estranged teenage daughter trying to protect their town and each other in the aftermath of a shocking triple murder. 

   

Mr. Churchill's Secretary - Susan Elia MacNeal 

Barry Award Best Paperback Original

After the Luftwaffe bomb London, Maggie Hope--trained in math and code breaking, but only able to find a job as a secretary--uses the unfettered access her position demands to try to unravel a plot to assassinate Churchill himself. A first novel.
 

   

The Fallen Angel - Daniel Silva

Barry Award Best Thriller

When the body of a woman is found beneath Michelangelo's dome, Gabriel Allon is summoned to secretly investigate this mysterious death that has been ruled a suicide.
 

   

Don't Ever Get Old - Daniel Friedman
 

Macavity Award Best First Mystery Novel

Learning that an old adversary may have escaped with a fortune in stolen gold, retired Memphis cop Buck Schatz teams up with his plugged-in, smart-alecky grandson in a vigilante investigation.
  

   

An Unmarked Grave - Charles Todd
 

Macavity Award - Sue Feder Historical Mystery Award

Battlefield nurse Bess Crawford, while contending with wounded soldiers, stumbles upon the body of an officer and family friend who has been murdered.
 

   

Taken - Robert Crais 

Shamus Award Best P. I. Novel

Hired along with Joe Pike to investigate the alleged kidnapping of a wealthy industrialist's son, Elvis Cole quickly disproves police theories and goes undercover to infiltrate a ring of professional kidnappers.
 

   

And She Was - Alison Gaylin

Shamus Award Best P. I. Paperback Original

When missing persons detective Brenna Spector, who has a rare disorder that enables her to recall every detail of her life, investigates the disappearance of a local woman, she uncovers some strange connections.
 

  

Black Fridays - Michael Sears

 

Shamus Award Best First P. I. Novel

Struggling to rebuild his life after prison, former Wall Street hotshot Jason Stafford is tapped to investigate a suspicious death, an assignment that is complicated by his efforts to reclaim his son from his unstable ex-wife.



For more information:

Anthony Awards

Barry Awards

Macavity Awards

Shamus Awards

 

 

 

Suspenseful Thrillers

If you enjoy fast paced novels that are filled with adventure and suspense then be prepared for a treat! I have listed below awesome suspense filled thrillers and I am attaching a link to NPR's top 100 Killer Thrillers. NPR's list was based on their audience picks. The NPR audience chose 600 novels and after 17,000 ballots were counted the top 100 are listed here.

Our library will soon have a Patron Picks section, which are titles our patrons have told us are ones they love!  So if you have a favorite novel (it does not have to be a thriller) tell me about it! I read a lot, but...some of the best books I've read have been ones that a patron recommended to me.

Here are my top picks for suspenseful thrillers.

 Before I Go To Sleep by S J Watson
Memories define us. So what if you lost your memory every time you went to sleep? Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love--all forgotten overnight. This is Christine's life and the one person she must trust may only be telling her half the truth.

 The Spy Who Came In From the Cold by John Le Carre
John Le Carre's third novel that won him international acclaim. He creates a suspense world unlike any other. 

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
A Multi layered thriller that is a spellbinding murder mystery, family saga, love story and a story of financial intrigue rolled into one amazing novel!

The Blue Nowhere by Jeffrey Deaver
His code name is Phate, a sadistic computer hacker who infiltrates people's computers, invades their lives and then lures them to their death.

The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
If you prefer reading about mind games rather than chase scenes, this one should not be missed!

The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen
A briskly paced suspenseful thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
A terrifying true life story of the murders of the Clutter family. There was no motive, no reason for the murders.

The Absent One by Jussi Adler-Olsen
A surprising plot filled with ruthless people who were seduced by violence and hidden by their power and wealth until a homeless woman begins delivering her brand of 'justice'.

The Affair by Lee Child
A novel of unrelenting suspense that tells the story of why Jack Reacher became a one man vigilante squad.

Spilled Blood by Brian Freeman
A taut thriller about a two Minnesota towns that are locked in a deadly feud and a teenage girl who gets caught in the crossfire. 

You Don't Want to Know  by Lisa Jackson
A mother's worst nightmare comes to life in this terrifying thriller that will keep you guessing and then leave you horrified. 

 

An Ode to Middle-Earth

You’ve read the books. Seen the movies. And maybe, if you’re a dork like me, you’ve even watched the Rankin-Bass animated films with the cheesy songs--"Where there's a whip, there's a way!" As a kid, I remember seeing the words Frodo Lives spray-painted on walls before I even knew who Frodo was. We weren't formally introduced until the summer of 1983, when I spent a week immersed in The Fellowship of the Ring, the first book of The Lord of the Rings (also known as The Greatest Fantasy Series Ever Written). By summer’s end, I’d devoured the entire trilogy and spent most of my spare time daydreaming about the goodness that was Middle-Earth. Of course, this led me to try my hand at creating my very own fantasy world. Using whatever paper I managed to swipe from school, I drew gigantic maps of make-believe countries and continents which I carefully pieced together and plastered all over my bedroom walls. I also began penning badly written stories and poems that were nothing more than thinly veiled knock-offs of Tolkien’s works. These I kept hidden away in an envelope beneath my pillow. They’ve since been lost, and thank goodness for that. But the madness didn’t end there. Yeah, you can probably guess where this is going: The Silmarillion. Boy, the why-in-the-world-do-you-want-to-read-this? look the librarian gave me when I checked that one out was priceless. Undeterred, I waded through The Silmarillion (which inspired me to create my own mythology), then proceeded to read Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle Earth. Yes,  J. R. R. Tolkien was my best friend that summer, and we certainly had some times. 

Admittedly, I have yet to go back and re-read these books, probably because there are so many other stories, written and unwritten, that require my attention. But someday I will. I imagine it’ll be just like visiting an old friend.

Saga, Volumes 1 & 2 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

Saga, Volumes 1 & 2 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

Graphic novels, by their nature and history, have a tendency to play with themes and concepts that are a bit odd even in science fiction novels. The story starts in the middle of a long, ongoing war between two races, one uses magic and the other technology. The conflict has gone on for so long that the two species have opted to outsource their battles to other planets in order to save their own from the devastation of war. Our main characters are star-crossed lovers, one from each of the feuding species. We come into the story as their child is being born and they learn that both of their species is hunting them and their child to put an end to all three.

The storytelling is remarkable; we learn small bits of the backstory and the unique universe that Vaughan has created. With little fragments, he brings a story of war and love, of life and cultures, machines and nature, so complex, so strange that even the participants of the story are never sure what to expect.

This graphic novel is not for everyone. There are liberal amounts of sex, nudity, violence, gore, language, and general weirdness. , But if such things do not bother you, then I would strongly recommend you read these graphic novels and experience for yourself. For every crass moment that Vaughan writes and Staples draws, there are equally poignant moments and it becomes clear how Saga won the Eisner Best New, Best Continuing, and Best Writer Awards for 2013.

In The Queue

Here are some new titles that you are sure to love!

New Fiction Novels

The Darling Dahlias and the Texas Star by Susan Wittig Albert
When Lily Dare is threatened and her plane sabotaged, the Darling Dahlias race to the rescue.

Maddaddam: A Novel by Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood combines adventure, humor, romance and superb storytelling to dramatically conclude her dystopian trilogy.

Something Borrowed, Someone Dead: An Agatha Raisin Mystery by M.C. Beaton
Gloria French has a nasty habit of borrowing things and not returning them. Now she is dead and Agatha Raisin is hired to track down her murderer.

Signature of All Things: A Novel by Elizabeth Gilbert
An enthralling story of love, adventure and discovery.

Burial Rites: A Novel by Hannah Kent
A brilliant literary debut novel which is inspired by a true story. Agnes stands accused of the brutal murder of her former master. She is sent to an isolated Icelandic farm to await her execution. How can she hope to endure when her life depens upon the stories told by others?

Beloved Enemy: A Jack McClure Novel by Eric Lustbader
The stunning follow up to "Father Night", where Jack McClure faces a choice: help the woman he loves or destroy her as the enemy she is.

On King's Mountain: A Ballad Novel by Sharyn McCrumb
John Sevier did not take much interest in the American Revolution, he was too busy fighting Indians and taming the wilderness. But when an arrogant British officer threatens his settlement-promising to burn the farms and kill the families the war becomes personal.

Someone: a Novel by Alice McDermott
A fully realized portrait of one woman's life. Her ordinary life becomes extraordinary as her heart is revealed during her defeats and triumphs. It's a bittersweet story you will love. 

New Non-Fiction

Wilson by A. Scott Berg
An intimate portrait of Wilson's life accomplishments, and failings. This story gives tribute to Wilson the man, not just Wilson the icon.

One Summer: America, 1927 by Bill Bryson
A fascinating and gripping narrative that features American heroes, Charles Lindbergh, Babe Ruth, Herbert Hoover and a gallery of criminals, eccentrics and politicians.

Killing Jesus: A History by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
This nonfiction work takes readers inside Jesus' life, recounting the seismic political and historical events that made his death inevitable and changed the world forever.

And the winners are…

The 2013 Dayton Literary Peace winners have been announced! This year hosted an amazing group of finalists. The previous Dayton Literary Peace Prize blog focused on the texts when the finalists were announced. For the winners, I will give you some biographical information about the authors who created the award winning pieces.

Fiction Winner
Adam Johnson , The Orphan Master’s Son
Adam Johnson is Associate Professor of English with emphasis in creative writing at Stanford University. His work has appeared in Esquire, Harper’s, Playboy, GQ, Paris Review, Granta, Tin House, The New York Times and Best American Short Stories. He is the author of Emporium, a short-story collection, and the novel Parasites Like Us. His books have been translated into twenty-three languages. Johnson was a 2010 National Endowment for the Arts Fellow. His novel The Orphan Master’s Son was published in 2012 by Random House and received the 2013 Pulitzer Prize in fiction. He also has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for 2013-14.
Fiction Runner-up
Ben Fountain, Billy Lynn’s Long Half-time Walk
Ben Fountain is also the author of a story collection, Brief Encounters with Che Guevara. His work has received the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Award, the PEN/Hemingway Award, and a Whiting Writer's Award and also has been a finalist for the National Book Award both in the United States and the U.K. His nonfiction has appeared in The New York Times, The New York Times Sunday Magazine, and The Wall Street Journal. His reportage on post-earthquake Haiti was broadcast nationally on the radio show "This American Life." A graduate of Duke University School of Law, he practiced real estate law before quitting the law in 1988 to become a full-time writer.

Nonfiction Winner
Andrew Solomon, Far from the Tree
Andrew Solomon is a writer and lecturer on psychology, politics, and the arts. He also won the National Book Award, and is an activist in LGBT rights, mental health, and the arts. For a more complete biography, please go to Andrew Solomon's webpage.

Nonfiction Runner-up
Gilbert King, Devil in the Grove
Gilbert King is the author of Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 2013. King is originally from Schenectady, New York. He has written about Supreme Court history and the death penalty for the New York Times and the Washington Post, and he is a featured contributor to Smithsonian magazine’s history blog, Past Imperfect.

 

The awards will be presented on November 3^rd at the Schuster Center. However, don’t try to reserve a seat at this point; the event is completely sold out. There is still space available for the “Conversation with the Authors” event held at Sinclair Community College on the morning of November 3^rd. For more information about the events, please refer to the Dayton Literary Peace Prize website.