Braille Book Review

September-October 2003
Books for Adults--Fiction

Fiction

The Na
by John Le Carré
4 volumes
Aldo Cassidy, a wealthy London businessman bored with his way of life, becomes infatuated with a glamorous bohemian couple--a writer named Shamus and his beautiful wife, Helen. Strong language, some descriptions of sex, and some violence. 1979.

The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint BR 14084
by Brady Udall
4 volumes
When Edgar Mint was seven years old, the mailman ran over his head. Edgar describes his recovery--learning to type because he could no longer write, attending a school for delinquents, working with the drug-dealing doctor who saved his life, and living with a dysfunctional Mormon family. Strong language. 2001.

Second Thyme Around BR 14086
by Katie Fforde
3 volumes
Market gardener Perdita Dylan is horrified when she discovers that her ex-husband Lucas Gillespie has become the chef at a local hotel. Until now, living with her elderly godmother in the English countryside has been ideal--or so she thought. Some descriptions of sex and some strong language. 2000.

Murphy's Law: A Molly Murphy Mystery BR 14095
by Rhys Bowen
2 volumes
Ireland, 1901. Molly Murphy flees to New York City after killing a would-be rapist in her home village. She assumes an alias for passage aboard ship, but at Ellis Island she is once again accused of murder. Handsome NYPD Captain Daniel Sullivan is willing to help her prove her innocence. 2001.

The Thirteen Problems BR 14099
by Agatha Christie
2 volumes
Thirteen tales of crime expertly investigated by Miss Marple. The problems include brutal murder, a supernatural death, a serial thief, and the disappearance of gold bars from a galleon. 1928.

Face the Fire BR 14114
by Nora Roberts
3 volumes
Sam Logan returns to Three Sisters Island after a decade to reclaim Mia Devlin, a white witch. But Mia resents him for abandoning her. Sequel to Heaven and Earth (BR 13880). Some explicit descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. Bestseller 2002.

Photo Hero: A Satire of Photography BR 14170
by George A. Covington
2 volumes
Anthony Slone, a widowed photographer whose career has been revitalized by a scandal, agrees to help a dying multimillionaire achieve a lasting reputation as a famous photographer. Thomas Adderly-Phillips is rechristened "Taps" and with Slone's help perpetrates a hoax on the world. Strong language. 2001.

Bleeders: A "Nameless Detective" Novel BR 14171
by Bill Pronzini
2 volumes
The Nameless Detective's innocent client is murdered, and Nameless himself is almost killed as well. His canvassing San Francisco's skid row for the culprit worries his wife and adopted daughter. He is sixty and contemplates retirement. Violence and strong language. 2002.

The Wall BR 14172
by Mary Roberts Rinehart
3 volumes
Juliette Ransom, not popular with her husband Arthur's upper- class friends, was bought off in an expensive divorce. After several years, she returns to his island home, starts causing trouble, and is murdered. Finding a motive isn't easy, since no one is aware the answer lies behind a plastered wall. 1938.

A Hole in the World BR 14173
by Sid Hite
1 volume
As punishment for lying, fifteen-year-old Paul Shackleford is exiled to work all summer on a relative's Virginia farm. There he becomes enmeshed in country life and meets a girl, a dog, and a ghost. For senior high readers. 2001.

Esther Stories BR 14174
by Peter Orner
2 volumes
Thirty-four short stories focusing on emotional relationships between strangers and in families. In the title piece, a nephew explores his aunt's descent into madness. In "Melba Kuperschmid Returns," a beautiful divorcée comes back to her hometown after twenty-three years--still beautiful. Some strong language. 2001.

Danger in the Shadows: The O'Malley Series BR 14176
by Dee Henderson
2 volumes
Wealthy Sara Walsh was abducted and traumatized as a child, and her kidnapper still harasses her anonymously. Life gets better when she falls in love with retired football player Adam Black. With the help of prayer, Adam and her brother Dave, an FBI agent, try to find the culprit. Prequel to The Negotiator (BR 13052). 1999.

The Devil's Larder BR 14177
by Jim Crace
1 volume
Sixty-four untitled brief fictions centered on food in a variety of social situations. Selection thirteen describes a couple honeymooning in a provisionless cottage by the sea. The husband prepares an aphrodisiacal dessert in an attempt to overcome his young bride's reluctance to have intercourse. 2001.

Hometown Legend BR 14178
by Jerry B. Jenkins
2 volumes
In the dying town of Athens City, Alabama, Cal Sawyer tries to save his football factory while raising his teenage daughter alone. Sawyer and former coach Buster Schuler collaborate to help the failing high school team. When troubled Elvis Jackson suits up, Cal's daughter shares her faith. 2001.

Flight of the Raven BR 14182
by Stephanie S. Tolan
2 volumes
Continues the story of Elijah, an African American boy with telepathic powers, introduced in Welcome to the Ark (BR 11564). Taken in by an environmental terrorist group, Elijah connects with Amber, the leader's daughter, and confronts a bio- weapons threat. For junior and senior high readers. 2001.

Rockbuster BR 14183
by Gloria Skurzynski
2 volumes
Utah, 1915. Coal miner Tommy Quinlan, eighteen, mourns the death of his uncle, a labor activist who died at the hands of antiunion detectives. When Tommy falls in love with the mine owner's daughter, he has tough choices to make. For junior and senior high readers. 2001.

Zigzagging down a Wild Trail: Stories BR 14185
by Bobbie Ann Mason
2 volumes
Eight of these eleven stories feature women in the process of transition. Chrissy, in "With Jazz," is in a comfortable relationship with an undemanding man. She pauses in middle age to reflect on her two previous marriages and the lifestyles of her grown children. Some strong language. 2001.

Summer in Baden-Baden BR 14186
by Leonid Tsypkin
2 volumes
Fictional recreation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's western European travels with his new wife, Anna, in 1867. Depicts his intense passions and obsessions--jealousy, gambling, his health, the constant humiliation of limited funds, and his anti-Semitism. Portrays the intimacy of the couple's conjugal love and Anna's profound grief at Dostoyevsky's deathbed. Some strong language. 1987.

The Wailing Wind BR 14187
by Tony Hillerman
2 volumes
Sergeant Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police calls in retired boss Joe Leaphorn when rookie Bernadette Manuelito discovers a white man shot in the desert. They uncover similarities to a haunting older case: a murderer's wife had disappeared after her husband's conviction for killing a swindler. Some strong language. Bestseller 2002.

Thunderhead BR 14225
by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
4 volumes
Archaeologist Nora Kelly assembles a team of researchers to hunt for the lost Native American city of Quivira. Nora's father has been missing for sixteen years after his quest for the site, but a letter she discovers gives her new hope for success. Some violence and some strong language. 1999.

Le Grand Meaulnes BR 14236
by Alain-Fournier
2 volumes
A tale of friendship, adventure, and romanticism recounted by François Seurel, whose father runs a French village school where seventeen-year-old Augustin Meaulnes comes to board. Variously translated as The Lost Domain and The Wanderer. 1912.

Rapture BR 14237
by Susan Minot
1 volume
After their volatile affair has ended, New York filmmakers Kay and Benjamin have an afternoon tryst. Both become overwhelmed with reflections on how they ended up in this room with one another. The streams of their thoughts during lovemaking are revealed. Descriptions of sex and strong language. 2002.

Flights of Love: Stories BR 14239
by Bernhard Schlink
2 volumes
Collection of seven stories set mainly in postwar Germany. Bestselling author Bernhard Schlink intimately explores the concept of love through the political, moral, and emotional states of mind of his characters. Some descriptions of sex. 2001.

The Looking Glass BR 14256
by Michèle Roberts
2 volumes
As the twentieth century dawns, Geneviève, an orphaned French maidservant encountering the world's epicurean pleasures, discovers her storytelling gift. She chronicles in sensuous language her experiences in various households. She flees one mistress and lands in a poet's home among women who love him. Summer 1914: story ends. Some descriptions of sex. 2000.

The High Window BR 14257
by Raymond Chandler
2 volumes
Search for a priceless gold coin takes private detective Philip Marlowe into the California underworld and the tangled affairs of a murdered coin collector. 1942.

Handbook for Boys BR 14294
by Walter Dean Myers
1 volume
Sixteen-year-old Jimmy Lynch, on probation for assault, is mentored by three senior citizens in a Harlem barbershop. Over time Jimmy absorbs their advice on choices and responsibility. For junior and senior high readers. 2002.

Blanche Passes Go BR 14297
by Barbara Neely
3 volumes
Blanche White returns to North Carolina from Boston. Assisting a friend in her catering business when a local girl is murdered, the African American maid-turned-sleuth investigates the suspect- -the rich white man who had raped Blanche years ago--and confronts racial prejudice. Descriptions of sex, violence, and strong language. 2000.

Killing Time: A Novel of the Future BR 14310
by Caleb Carr
2 volumes
When Vera Price visits psychiatrist and historian Dr. Gideon Wolfe on September 13, 2023, she sets in motion a series of events that shows how easily the public can be deceived and manipulated. She has with her an altered computer disk containing faked evidence in the 2018 presidential assassination. Violence and strong language. 2000.

Green Calder Grass: Calder Saga, Volume 6 BR 14312
by Janet Dailey
3 volumes
In this sequel to Calder Pride (BR 13022), Ty Calder has recovered from a kidnapping attempt and is expecting twins with his second wife, Jessy. But Ty's former wife, Tara, becomes increasingly jealous and tries to reclaim her ex. Some descriptions of sex and some strong language. 2002.

Water, Carry Me BR 14316
by Thomas Moran
2 volumes
In southern Ireland where "the troubles" are never far away, Una Moss, a guileless orphan and university student, meets her first love, Aidan Ferrel. Aidan is a poetry-loving draftsman from "the North." As their relationship develops, she sees hints that he is hiding his past. Strong language and some descriptions of sex. 2000.

The Ice Limit BR 14335
by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
4 volumes
Billionaire Palmer Lloyd wants to own the largest meteorite in the world. It's buried on a remote island in an icy region off the southern coast of Chile. To retrieve it, he hires the engineering firm of Eli Glinn and controversial scientist Sam McFarlane. Some violence and some strong language. 2000.

Buffalo Valley BR 14348
by Debbie Macomber
2 volumes
Vaughn Kyle, visiting his parents in North Dakota, is investigating Buffalo Valley as a site for his retail conglomerate employer. He falls for a local girl and for small- town life, dumping the firm, which threatens local industry, and his engagement to a high-powered company executive. Sequel to Always Dakota (BR 13666). 2001.

The Runaway Quilt: An Elm Creek Quilts Novel BR 14349
by Jennifer Chiaverini
3 volumes
On a trip to South Carolina, Sylvia Compson discovers a quilt depicting Elm Creek Manor, her home in Pennsylvania. She scours her attic when she returns and is rewarded by finding three more quilts and a journal describing her ancestor's involvement with the Underground Railroad. 2002.

Japanese Game BR 14352
by Richard Hoyt
2 volumes
U.S. Vice President Shive's daughter has been kidnapped and sold to Shoji Kobayashi, mob godfather and owner of a Japanese baseball team. The vice president hires ex-CIA assassin James Burlane to rescue his daughter. Hoyt's thriller explores Asian- American trade relations, white slavery, and the game of baseball as it is played in Japan. Strong language, violence, and some explicit descriptions of sex. 1995.

The Grave Maurice: A Richard Jury Mystery BR 14363
by Martha Grimes
3 volumes
Superintendent Richard Jury of Scotland Yard is hospitalized with wounds received in The Blue Last (BR 13764) when Melrose Plant intrigues him with an overheard conversation about missing horsewoman Nell Ryder--the teenaged daughter of Jury's surgeon. Under Jury's direction, Plant enters the sordid underground world of racing. Some strong language. 2002.

Crow Lake BR 14366
by Mary Lawson
2 volumes
After their parents accidently die, teens Matt and Luke Morrison give up their university plans to help raise their two young sisters, Katie and Bo, in the northern Ontario badlands. In twenty years Katie, a professor, returns to resolve past differences at a family reunion. Some strong language. 2002.

Maigret in Montmartre BR 14369
by Georges Simenon
2 volumes
A stripper warns the police that a countess is about to be killed, and then she is also murdered. Chief Inspector Maigret investigates the sordid underworld of drugs and prostitutes. 1951.

Backpack BR 14375
by Emily Barr
3 volumes
Darkly comic misadventures of Londoner Tansy Harris, who, following her alcoholic mother's funeral and a cocaine overdose, travels to Southeast Asia on her inheritance. Finding Vietnam depressing, she joins a group of campers to explore other places. Tansy begins reassessing her life--even as a killer targets blond tourists. Strong language. 2001.

Gramercy Park BR 14379
by Paula Cohen
3 volumes
New York City, 1894. When noted Italian tenor Mario Alfieri arrives for his debut with the Metropolitan Opera, he finds a quiet home in Gramercy Park, away from the clamor of society. Unfortunately, it is still inhabited by Clara Adler, the ward of the former owner. 2002.

Mr. Potter BR 14381
by Jamaica Kincaid
1 volume
An illegitimate daughter relates the story of her estranged father, Mr. Potter, an illiterate chauffeur on Antigua in the Caribbean. Using the cadences of the sea, she tells of his ancestors, his womanizing, and the rhythms of island life in a series of vignettes. 2002.

Maigret Bides His Time BR 14386
by Georges Simenon
1 volume
For twenty years, French chief superintendent Maigret has tried to catch and apprehend a jewel theft gang. When an elderly criminal is murdered in his wheelchair, Maigret gets a break in the case. 1965.

Maigret and the Man on the Bench BR 14387
by Georges Simenon
2 volumes
Chief Superintendent Maigret investigates the murder of a man whose body was discovered on a Monday--an unusual day for a crime. Suspects include his family as well as a group of shady characters. 1953.

Maigret and the Apparition BR 14390
by Georges Simenon
1 volume
Chief Superintendent Maigret investigates the attempted murder of fellow detective Inspector "Hapless" Lognon. It appears that the police officer had been working surveillance alone on the strange comings and goings in an apartment building when he was attacked. 1964.

The Christmas Train BR 14463
by David Baldacci
2 volumes
Journalist Tom Langdon takes a cross-country train from the East Coast to Los Angeles to spend Christmas with his girlfriend. On the trip he meets a host of zany characters, including one who happens to be his former lover. Sparks fly until Tom's girlfriend shows up in Chicago. Bestseller 2002.

Maigret's Revolver BR 14485
by Georges Simenon
1 volume
A strange young man steals a revolver from Inspector Maigret's home. Later, a dinner guest fails to show up and is seen carting around a heavy trunk containing a corpse. Maigret learns that the two incidents are related and pursues his quarry to London to prevent a second murder. 1952.

The King of Torts BR 14531
by John Grisham
3 volumes
Public defender Clay Carter assumes it is just another Washington, D.C., murder case when the defense of Tequila Watson is thrust into his hands. But Carter's investigation into Watson's drug abuse and subsequent rehabilitation uncovers corruption at a major pharmaceutical company. Some strong language. Bestseller 2003.


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