The "nameless" San Francisco detective and his partner Eberhardt are trying to prove that their client Thomas Lujack did not mow down his business partner with his car. Although he suspects his client's guilt early on, the 58-year-old gumshoe spends three weeks looking for flaws in the testimony of the hit-and-run's sole witness. Then Lujack is found murdered, the witness disappears, and the detective, instead of being asked to step up his investigation, is discharged by the victim's brother Coleman. In full moral outrage, the veteran detective bulldogs his way through the case, uncovering evidence about the brothers' employment of illegal immigrants. Views: 125
A romantic, Christmas wedding at her seaside hotel gives Delilah a chance to shine with her unique gifts. But will her light be snuffed out before the bride and groom say "I do"? As manager of the Tidewater Inn, Delilah Carter has been planning a spectacular Christmas wedding for her friends at the grand hotel overlooking the ocean. While picking up still more twinkly lights and some last-minute groceries for the reception dinner, a huge truck runs her off the freezing, wet roads into the dark night. Her car stops just short of an enormous tree and the truck speeds off into the night. Delilah escapes with her life and has almost convinced herself the whole thing was an accident, but then she begins to receive threatening phone calls. With the wedding just hours away, she's distracted and anxious. Then Sheriff Tom Bourne stops by the inn and volunteers to help.Tom has always had a soft spot for Delilah, and he's determined to protect her. But he... Views: 125
SUMMARY:
Donna Leon's "Commissario Guido Brunetti" mysteries have won legions of fans for their evocative portraits of Venetian life. In her novels, food, family, art, history, and local politics play as central a role as an unsolved crime. In "The Girl of His Dreams" when a friend of Brunetti's brother, a priest recently returned from years of missionary work, calls with a request, Brunetti suspects the man's motives. A new, American-style Protestant sect has begun to meet in the city, and it's possible the priest is merely apprehensive of the competition. But the preacher could also be fleecing his growing flock, so Brunetti and Paola, along with Inspector Vianello and his wife, go undercover. But the investigation has to be put aside when, one cold and rainy morning, a body is found floating in a canal. It is a child, a gypsy girl. Brunetti suspects she fell off a nearby roof while fleeing an apartment she had robbed. He has to inform the distrustful parents, encamped on the mainland, and soon finds himself haunted by the crime--and the girl. Thought-provoking, eye-opening, and profoundly moving, "The Girl of His Dreams" is classic Donna Leon, a spectacular, heart-wrenching addition to the series. Views: 125
Kyle Keeley is the class clown, popular with most kids, (if not the teachers), and an ardent fan of all games: board games, word games, and particularly video games. His hero, Luigi Lemoncello, the most notorious and creative gamemaker in the world, just so happens to be the genius behind the building of the new town library.Lucky Kyle wins a coveted spot to be one of the first 12 kids in the library for an overnight of fun, food, and lots and lots of games. But when morning comes, the doors remain locked. Kyle and the other winners must solve every clue and every secret puzzle to find the hidden escape route. And the stakes are very high.In this cross between Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and A Night in the Museum, Agatha Award winner Chris Grabenstein uses rib-tickling humor to create the perfect tale for his quirky characters. Old fans and new readers will become enthralled with the crafty twists and turns of this ultimate library experience.ReviewStarred Review, Booklist, June 1, 2013:“An ode to libraries and literature that is a worthy successor to the original madman puzzle-master himself, Willy Wonka.”Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews, May 1, 2013:"Full of puzzles to think about, puns to groan at and references to children’s book titles, this solid, tightly plotted read is a winner for readers and game-players alike." About the AuthorCHRIS GRABENSTEIN is the Agatha and Anthony award-winning author of The Crossroads and The Hanging Hill as well as several adult thrillers. He used to write TV and radio commercials and has written for The Muppets. Chris was born in Buffalo, New York, and moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee, when he was 10. After college, he moved to New York City to become an actor and writer. Currently, Chris and his wife, JJ, live in New York City with three cats and a dog named Fred who starred in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on Broadway. Views: 125
An original short story about Jack Reacher, available exclusively as an ebook, following the success of last year's Second Son. Early in his military career, Jack Reacher is ordered undercover in Washington, to discover which one of four women, all staff officers on fast track careers, is leaking secrets. The suggested method: get close to each in turn. The obvious problem: the most receptive will be the guilty one, with an agenda of her own ... to kill the investigation - and the investigator. 'Child has somehow forged that magical grail: a new and believable hero... when we thought all the heroes had been written.' Observer Views: 125
Hired by popular television star Jodie Taylor to find the biological parents who gave her up for adoption thirty-six years earlier, Los Angeles private eye Elvis Cole becomes suspicious when other investigators searching for Jodie's parents are killed.
Elvis Cole returns in his most exciting adventure yet. Hired to uncover the past of Jodi Taylor, an actress on a hit TV series, Elvis travels to Louisiana to search for Jodi's biological parents. Soon he discovers the real reason that he's been sent there—but not before he has run-ins with a crazed housewife, a Cajun thug and a 100-pound river turtle named Luther. Views: 125
Hap and Leonard investigate a racially motivated murder that threatens to tear apart their East Texas town.While Hap, a former 60s activist and self-proclaimed white trash rebel, is recovering from a life-threatening stab wound, Louise Elton comes into Hap and Leonard's PI office to tell him that the police have killed her son, Jamar. Months earlier, a bully cop pulled over and sexually harassed Jamar's sister, Charm. The officer followed Charm over the course of the next couple of months, leading Jamar to videotape and take notes on the cop and his partner. The next thing Louise hears, Jamar got in a fight and is killed in the projects by local hoods. It doesn't add up: he was a straight A student, destined for better things, until he began to ask too many questions about the racist police force. Leonard, a tough black gay Vietnam vet and Republican, joins Hap in the investigation, and they stumble upon the racial divides that have shaped... Views: 125
