The Commoner
by John Burnham Schwartz

Schwartz bases his finely wrought fourth novel on the life of Empress Michiko of Japan, the first commoner to marry into the Japanese imperial family. Haruko Tsuneyasu grows up in postwar rural Japan and studies at Sacred Heart University....The prince asks Haruko to marry him. ...and Haruko ultimately agrees... Schwartz (Reservation Road) pulls off a grand feat in giving readers a moving dramatization of a cloistered world." from Publisher's Weekly

Leslie says: "This is an interesting read about the Japanese Royal family, the stress and the structure behind the scenes."

Peace
by Richard Bausch

"An abrupt and chilling act of violence opens Bauch's 11th novel, marking the beginning of a bleak but compelling meditation on the moral dimensions of warfare." from Publisher's Weekly

Leslie says: "This story will stay with you long after you have finished reading."

Just After Sunset: Stories
by Stephen King

Book Jacket
"Most of these 13 tales show him at the top of his game, molding the themes and set pieces of horror and suspense fiction into richly nuanced blends of fantasy and psychological realism. " from Publisher's Weekly

Leslie says: "The grandmaster of the short story is back! It wasn't until I read these stories that I realized how much I had missed him."

Tethered: A Novel
by Amy Mackinnon

"In Brockton, Mass., lonely Clara Marsh tends to the dead at Bartholomew Funeral Home, whose kindly owner reminds Clara of the undertaker she met as a child at her mother's funeral. When Trecie, a neglected little girl, begins hanging around the funeral parlor, Clara thinks nothing of it until a routine body pickup uncovers a stash of child pornography and Clara recognizes Trecie in a video." from Publisher's Weekly

Leslie says: "Set on the South Shore, 'Tethered' is an intriguing literary mystery involving an undertaker and a cold case. This novel is full of local flavor and color."

Thank You for All Things
by Sandra Kring

"In her new novel, Kring (The Book of Bright Ideas) crafts a beautiful, witty story that rings with heartbreak, hope and laughter. Lucy McGowan is a 12-year-old genius with a photographic memory, an even more brilliant brother, Milo (IQ: 180), and a single mother, Tess, living in Chicago. What Lucy has that her brother doesn't is curiosity and people smarts, a quality that propels her to unearth the hidden relationships and buried secrets of her family." from Publisher's Weekly

Leslie says: "At age 11, Lucy already knows a great deal about the world. She, and her twin brother Milo, are 'gifted' and study from college textbooks. But what Lucy doesn't know is a lot about her own family history."

Where the River Ends
by Charles Martin

Book Jacket
"He was a fishing guide and struggling artist from a south George trailer park. She was the beautiful only child of South Carolina's most powerful senator. Yet once Doss Michaels and Abigail Grace Coleman met by accident, they each felt they'd found their true soul mate. .. Where the River Ends chronicles their love-filled, tragedy-tinged journey and a bond that transcends all."

Leslie says: "A love story like none I've ever read. Touching and beautiful."

The Likeness: A Novel
by Tana French

Book Jacket
"Six months after the events of In the Woods , Detective Cassie Maddox is still trying to recover. She's transferred out of the murder squad and started a relationship with Detective Sam O'Neill, but she's too badly shaken to make a commitment to him or to her career. Then Sam calls her to the scene of his new case: a young woman found stabbed to death in a small town outside Dublin. The dead girl's ID says her name is Lexie Madison—the identity Cassie used years ago as an undercover detective—and she looks exactly like Cassie. "

Leslie says: "A worthy follow up to In the Woods. Cassie falls into a case like no other."

Origin: A Novel
by Diana Abu-Jaber

From Publishers Weekly
"Abu-Jaber, who dealt with Arab-American themes in her earlier novels, Crescent and Arabian Jazz , shows her versatility in this gripping contemporary thriller. A spike in the number of local SIDS deaths piques the interest of Lena Dawson, a fingerprint specialist at a Syracuse, N.Y., forensics lab. Is it a statistical fluke or is there a killer at work? ..."

Leslie says: "Snow, baby deaths, fingerprints and memories all make an interesting mystery."

The God of Spring
by Arabella Edge

" The God of Spring opens in Paris in 1818, as the upheavals of the French Revolution, the Empire, and the Restoration come to fruition in the aftermath of a naval disaster caused by criminal negligence and tinged with political scandal. ..." book cover

Leslie says "Gericault, the French artist, is determined in this novelization to get his masterpiece. It doubles as a shipwreck story too!"

Sweetness in the Belly
by Camilla Gibb

"Born to hippie British parents then raised at a Sufi shrine in Morocco after they are murdered, Lilly grows up amid the serenity of mystical Islam. As a young woman, she goes on a pilgrimage to the walled city of Harar, Ethiopia, where she builds a life teaching the Qu'ran to children and falls in love with an idealistic doctor. But even in a traditional headscarf, Lilly is always marked as a foreigner. And when she is forced to flee Ethiopia for England, she must once again confront the riddle of who she is and where she belongs." book cover

Leslie says: "A wonderfully written novel about a woman making her way in a world full of complexity, hatred and love."

The Teahouse Fire
by Ellis Avery

"The story of two women whose lives intersect in late-nineteenth-century Japan, The Teahouse Fire is also a portrait of one of the most fascinating places and times in all of history -- Japan as it opens its doors to the West. It was a period when wearing a different color kimono could make a political statement, when women stopped blackening their teeth to profess an allegiance to Western ideas, and when Japan's most mysterious rite -- the tea ceremony -- became not just a sacramental meal, but a ritual battlefield." book cover

Leslie says "A richly detailed story of Japan seen through the eyes of a young American girl."

They Did It with Love
by Kate Morgenroth

"Sofie and her husband have decided to trade their Manhattan apartment for a house in Greenwich, Connecticut, but the oak-shaded streets are not the tranquil retreat they expected. ...What she finds is that none of her neighbors' lives is exactly what it seems." book cover

Leslie says "A quirky little mystery. It reminded me of Case Histories."

What Is the What
by Dave Eggers

"From the bestselling author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, What is the what is the epic novel based on the life of Valentino Achak Deng who, along with thousands of other children -- the so-called Lost Boys -- was forced to leave his village in Sudan at the age of seven and trek hundreds of miles by foot, pursued by militias, government bombers, and wild animals, crossing the deserts of three countries to find freedom." book cover

Leslie says: "A story about what humans can do *to* and *for* each other in today's world"

Sarah's Key
by Tatiana de Rosnay

"De Rosnay's U.S. debut fictionalizes the 1942 Paris roundups and deportations, in which thousands of Jewish families were arrested, held at the Vélodrome d'Hiver outside the city, then transported to Auschwitz." from Publisher's Weekly

Barbara says: "An amazing novel that takes place in Paris during the Holocaust. You will be hard-pressed to put it down and when you do, it will stay with you for a long time. This story just breaks your heart and forces you to think of 'man's inhumanity to man'. This is a very compelling read."

Rosewater and Soda Bread: A Novel
by Marsha Mehran

"More than a year has passed since Marjan, Bahar, and Layla, the beautiful Iranian Aminpour sisters, sought refuge in the quaint Irish town of Ballinacroagh. Opening the beguiling Babylon Café, they charmed the locals with their warm hearts and delectable Persian cuisine, bringing a saffron-scented spice to the once-sleepy village. But when a young woman with a dark secret literally washes up on Clew Bay Beach, the sisters' world is once again turned upside down..." book cover

Barbara says: "Another touching story by Marsha Mehran about the lives of 3 Iranian sisters running a restaurant in a small Irish village! Funny, sweat and compassionate describes their adventures. if you like this, you'll love Pomegranate Soup by the author."

Summer Blowout
by Claire Cook

From Publishers Weekly
"Cook updates the themes of love and disenchantment that drove Life's a Beach and Must Love Dogs in her latest beacher. Bella Shaughnessy, a makeup artist whose solace in times of hardship is finding just the right lipstick to match her mood, gets a divorce and quits men after discovering that her husband of 10 years has been seeing her younger half-sister, Sophia..."

Barbara says (having read a pre-print): "This novel is laugh-out-loud funny! You can't put it down; it is a definite summer read!"

April in Paris
by Michael Wallner

"Michael Wallner's thrilling first novel, set in occupied France during World War II, movingly recounts the impossible love affair between a German soldier and a French Resistance fighter." book cover

Barbara says: "April in Paris has a nice ring to it, only in war-torn Paris in 1943, it is not so. This is a love story filled with sweet moments, along with sadness and intrigue. It is bound to draw you in!"

The Lost Recipe for Happiness - DUE OUT DECEMBER 30
by Barbara O'Neal

"It's the opportunity Elena Alvarez has been waiting for–the challenge of running her own kitchen in a world-class restaurant. Haunted by an accident of which she was the lone survivor, Elena knows better than anyone how to survive the odds. With her faithful dog, Alvin, and her grandmother's recipes, Elena arrives in Colorado to find a restaurant in as desperate need of a fresh start as she is–and a man whose passionate approach to food and life rivals her own." from publisher's promotional material.

Marcia says: "In this delicious new novel, O'Neal offers readers a celebration of food, family and love."

Divine Justice
by David Baldacci

"Near the start of bestseller Baldacci's...fourth Camel Club thriller (after Stone Cold ), former CIA assassin Oliver Stone (aka John Carr) boards a New Orleans–bound train at Washington's Union Station after shooting to death a well-known U.S. senator and the nation's intelligence chief, the two men responsible for his wife's murder. Ever the Good Samaritan, Stone intervenes in a fight on the train, but when the Amtrak conductor asks to see his ID, he gets off at the next station, knowing his fake ID won't withstand scrutiny."

Marcia says "Baldacci's best in a while....the 'Camel Club' continues!"

Tsar
by Ted Bell

"In bestseller Bell's rousing fifth thriller (after Spy), Alex Hawke fights the leaders of a new and invigorated Russia, where Vladimir Putin has been locked up in a lethal prison built over a massive radioactive waste site." from Publisher's Weekly

Marcia says: "If you enjoy action thrillers with the emphasis on political intrigue, spies, double agents and military units trained to perform impossible feats, this book is for you. However, I suggest that you start with Bell's "Hawke" the first book in this 5 book series."

Body Surfing: A Novel
by Anita Shreve

From the book jacket:

"At the age of 29, Syndey has already been once divorced and once widowed. Trying to regain her footing, she has signed on to tutor the teenage daughter of a well-to-do couple as they spend a sultry summer at their ocean-front New Hampshire cottage. But, when the Edwardses' two grown sons arrive at the beach house, Sydney finds herself caught in a destructive web of old tensions and bitter rivalries. As the brothers vie for her affections, the fragile existence Sydney has rebuilt is threatened."

Marcia says: "A spellbinding novel about a young widow torn between two brothers...set in New England."

Franklin and Lucy: President Roosevelt, Mrs. Rutherfurd, and the Other Remarkable Women in His Life
by Joseph Persico

From Publishers Weekly
Persico (Roosevelt's Secret War) engagingly and eloquently narrates the tangled relationships between Franklin and the various women to whom he became close.... These relationships have been examined before; the major revelation of the volume—backed up by documents recently discovered by Lucy Mercer's descendants—is that her relationship with FDR continued throughout his life, even after it was supposedly ended by Franklin at the demand of his mother, who threatened to cut off both his income and his inheritance were he to leave his wife and family.

Marcia says: "This book provides a look at the private life of a leader who continues to fascinate historians and the general public alike. It focuses on Lucy (Mercer) Rutherfurd and the myriad of women who mattered most to Roosevelt."

Loving Frank: A Novel
by Nancy Horan

From Publishers Weekly
"Horan's ambitious first novel is a fictionalization of the life of Mamah Borthwick Cheney, best known as the woman who wrecked Frank Lloyd Wright's first marriage. Despite the title, this is not a romance, but a portrayal of an independent, educated woman at odds with the restrictions of the early 20th century..."

Marcia says: "A captivating novel that tells the story of two people who are entirely, irrepressibly, in love. It also offers an engaging insight into Lloyd Wright's work."

City of Glory : A Novel of War and Desire in Old Manhattan
by Beverly Swerling

From Publishers Weekly
"Swerling sets her enthralling follow-up to City of Dreams against the backdrop of the War of 1812, when New Yorkers are suffering the dire economic effects of a British blockade of American ports, and talk of secession is rife. ..." book cover

Marcia says: "A captivating read with history, romance and intrigue, set in a tumultuous time, giving a glimpse of New York's future greatness."