She’s back, pimpin’ out notable new releases to place on your radar!
THE ASSASSIN by Stephen Coonts — Abu Qasim, the ruthless and cunning Al Qaeda leader who nearly succeeded in blowing up a meeting of the G-8 in Paris, has escaped from the grasp of the Americans and is plotting his next move. A small band of powerful men, highly placed leaders of industry and politics in the West, have decided they need to target and destroy the terrorist and his inner circle before he can strike again. When a prominent Russian dissident is poisoned in London, however, it’s clear that there’s a very dangerous leak within the ranks of the Westerners, and that Abu Qasim has turned the tables on his rivals — it is now he who is pursuing, and his aim is to kill.
DEVIL BONES by Kathy Reichs — In a house under renovation, a plumber uncovers a cellar no one knew about, and makes a rather grisly discovery: a decapitated chicken, animal bones and cauldrons containing beads, feathers and other relics of religious ceremonies. In the center of the shrine, there is the skull of a teenage girl. Meanwhile, on a nearby lakeshore, the headless body of a teenage boy is found by a man walking his dog. Nothing is clear — neither when the deaths occurred, nor where. Was the skull brought to the cellar or was the girl murdered there? Why is the boy’s body remarkably well preserved? Led by a preacher turned politician, citizen vigilantes blame devil worshippers and Wiccans. They begin a witch hunt, intent on seeking revenge. Forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan — “five-five, feisty, and 40-plus” — is called in to investigate.
THE AGE OF THE CONGLOMERATES by Thomas Nevins — Forty years in the future, in a world where Big Brother runs amok, a powerful political party known as the Conglomerates has emerged, vowing to enforce economic martial law at any cost. Dr. Christine Salter, director of genetic development at a New York medical center, is in charge of “genetic contouring,” the much-in-demand science of producing the ideal child. But Christine is increasingly troubled by odd events, including the strange disappearance of Gabriel Cruz, a co-worker for whom she has a developing affection, and the fact that her latest assignment — making the Conglomerate chairman more youthful through genetic engineering — is an especially dangerous task.
STAR WARS: THE FORCE UNLEASHED by Sean Williams — Since childhood, Darth Vader’s nameless agent has known only the cold, mercenary creed of the Sith. His future beckons like a glistening black jewel with the ultimate promise: to stand beside the only father he has ever known, with the galaxy at their feet. It is a destiny he can realize only by rising to the greatest challenge of his discipleship: destroying Emperor Palpatine. The apprentice’s journeys will take him across the far reaches of the galaxy, from the Wookiee homeworld to the junkyard planet of Raxus Prime. On these missions, the young Sith acolyte will forge an unlikely alliance with a ruined Jedi Master seeking redemption and wrestle with forbidden feelings for his beautiful comrade, Juno Eclipse. And he will be tested as never before — by shattering revelations that strike at the very heart of all he believes.
FRESH KILLS by Bill Loehfelm — The murder of John Sanders Sr. on a New York street corner reunites his estranged and abused children, John Jr. and Julia. While Julia struggles to keep things together on the home front, Junior, unhinged by his father’s death, searches for the killer across the bleak, haunted landscape of his Staten Island hometown. Complicating Junior’s pursuit are two police detectives: one, a former childhood friend; the other, a veteran cop who might have his own reasons to wish John Sr. dead. Junior’s affair with his high school sweetheart doesn’t exactly simplify the situation either, and his emotional state crumbles under the pressure coming at him from every side. When the opportunity for revenge presents itself, Junior must decide whether he will continue the chain of violence that has nearly destroyed his life, or give in to the possibility of a new beginning.
FORCED OUT by Stephen Frey — Forced to retire, Jack Barrett is just getting by in a small Florida town when his daughter drags him to watch the local minor-league team play. It’s a night that will change his life. Jack spots a remarkable player named Mikey Clemant, a kid whose amazing natural skill on the field is overshadowed by his bad attitude and solitary habits. In Clemant, Jack thinks he might have found his ticket back to the big time. But the young man has a secret that will put all of Jack’s plans — and maybe even his life — in jeopardy. Johnny Bondano is the premier hit man for the Lucchesi crime family. Ruthless and cold-blooded but with a strict moral code, Johnny is given instructions to find and kill a man who took the life of a crime boss’s only grandson. As these three men’s destinies converge, loyalties are tested and dreams collide with violent and unpredictable results.
