New Fiction
Take a look at some of the latest additions to our New and Featured Fiction collections! We check in new books nearly every day -- check out the First Floor's LibraryThing account where we log all of our newest arrivals!
New Fiction - Week of December 21, 2008
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Freud, Esther Love Falls |
From the author of Hideous
Kinky comes a charming, surprising, and utterly irresistible
tale of adolescent love and self-discovery. When seventeen-year-old
Lara accepts her father's invitation to accompany him to a Tuscan
villa for the summer, she's both thrilled and nervous for the exotic
holiday. To her delight, she soon discovers that the villa's closest
neighbors are the glamorous Willoughbys, the teenaged brood of a British
millionaire. Caught up in their torrential thirst for amusement and
snared by Kip Willoughby's dark, flirtatious eyes, Lara sets off on
a summer adventure full of danger, first love, and untold consequences
that will irrevocably change her life. |
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Guttfreund, Amir The World a Moment Later |
The World a Moment Later is the shadow book of
the offical Zionist lexicon. It is the book of those forgotten by
the national narrative of Israel, collected here to be remembered.
These are the people who did not enter the encyclopedias, but still,
their lives contributed anger, wisdom, despair, frustration, bitterness,
malice and endless love to the country. This is a fully-fledged humanistic
novel which respects the myths of Theodore Herzl and Ze'ev Jabotinsky,
but nonetheless is dedicated to the anonymous masses. It stems simultaneously
from realism and fantasy, and provides an in depth exploration of
the question: what are we doing here? |
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Mahajan, Karan Family Planning |
Rakesh Ahuja, a Government Minister in New Delhi, is beset
by problems: thirteen children and another on the way; a wife who
mourns the loss of her favorite TV star; and a teenaged son with some
really strong opinions about family planning. To make matters worse,
looming over this comical farrago are secrets-both personal and political-that
threaten to push the Ahuja household into disastrous turmoil. Following
father and son as they blunder their way across the troubled landscape
of New Delhi, Karan Mahajan brilliantly captures the frenetic pace
of India's capital city to create a searing portrait of modern family
life. |
New Science Fiction and Fantasy - Week of December 21, 2008
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Lloyd, Tom The Stormcaller |
In a land ruled by prophecy and the whims of gods, a young
man finds himself at the heart of a war he barely understands, wielding
powers he may never be able to control. Isak is a white-eye, born
bigger, more charismatic, and more powerful than normal men. But with
that power comes an unpredictable temper and an inner rage he cannot
always hide. Brought up as a wagon-brat, feared and despised by those
around him, he dreams of a place in the army and a chance to live
his own life. But when the call comes, it isn't to be a soldier, for
the gods have other plans for the intemperate teenager: Isak has been
chosen as heir-elect to the brooding Lord Bahl, the white-eye Lord
of the Farlan. The white-eyes were created by the gods to bring order
out of chaos, for their magnetic charm and formidable strength makes
them natural leaders of men. Lord Bahl is typical of the breed: he
inspires and oppresses those around him in equal measure. He can be
brusque and impatient, a difficult mentor for a boy every bit as volatile
as he is. But now is the time for the forging of empires. With mounting
envy and malice, the men who would themselves be kings watch Isak,
chosen by gods as flawed as the humans who serve them, as he is shaped
and moulded to fulfill the prophecies that circle him like scavenger
birds. Divine fury and mortal strife is about to spill over and paint
the world with blood. This is the first book in a powerful new series
that combines inspired world-building, epoch-shattering battles, and
high emotion to dazzling effect. |
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Moorcock, Michael Elric: The Sleeping Sorceress |
Elric of Melniboné. Traitor. Savior. Lover. Thief. Last
king of a fallen empire whose cruelty was surpassed only by its beauty.
Sustained by drugs and the vampiric powers of his black sword, Stormbringer,
haunted by visions of a tragic past and a doomed future, Elric wanders
the world in quest of oblivion. But the great lords of Law and Chaos
have other plans for this tormented adventurer. This volume is the
third of Del Rey’s definitive collections featuring the tales of Elric
and other aspects of Michael Moorcock’s Eternal Champion, along with
essays, a selection of classic artwork, and new material never seen
in book form. Gorgeously illustrated by Steve Ellis, and featuring
a foreword by Holly Black, The Sleeping Sorceress is a must-have
for all lovers of fantasy. |
New Mysteries - Week of December 21, 2008
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Gardner, John E. Moriarty |
It is the turn of the century and, having survived the
struggle with Sherlock Holmes at the Reichenbach Falls, Professor
James Moriarty is alive and well and about to realize his plans to
establish crime syndicates in the major cities of the United States.
But suddenly he is called back to London, where his vast criminal
society has been overrun by a rival concern led by the shadowy Sir
Jordan Jack Idell-or Idle Jack-a supposed gentleman hoodlum acting
on behalf of criminal elements in France, Italy, Spain, and Germany.
As Moriarty fights back-against both the unruly crime families and
the forces of law and order-readers are thrown in among the lurkers,
punishers, dippers, cracksmen, and the professor's elite guard. Moriarty
lives again and revolts against those who attempt to oust him from
his rightful place as king of "Napoleon of Crime." |
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Hill, Kaye C. Dead Woman's Shoes |
"Lexy Lomax: has run away from her obnoxious husband,
taking with her a cool half million of his ill-gotten gains and a
homicidal chihuahua called Kinky. Holed up in a decrepit log cabin
on the Suffolk coast, Lexy finds herself mistaken for the previous
owner of the cabin, a private investigator, now deceased. Before she
knows it she's embroiled in a cocktail of marital infidelity (possibly),
missing cats (probably) and poison pen letters (definitely). Oh, yes
- and a murder or two."--BOOK JACKET. |
New Horror - Week of December 21, 2008
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McNally, John Ghosts of Chicago |
John Belushi, Walter Payton, Richard J. Daley, and Nelson
Algren are some of the Chicagoans who inhabit and haunt this new collection
of stories from a lauded American writer. In this first story collection
since the award-winning Troublemakers,
many of the stories deftly resurrect deceased Chicagoans or artifacts
of Chicago pop culture, creating an impressionistic portrait of the
city. Gene Siskel, impatient with the movie he's watching, taunts
Roger Ebert; Miss Betsy, the host of Romper Room, experiences her
own awakening during the sexual revolution; railroad mogul George
Pullman remembers his greatest triumph as he draws his last breath.
Other stories tell of everyday people who must confront their own
private ghosts -- an accountant who falls in love with a woman who
is in love with a man on death row; a boy whose fascination with movie
monsters grows stronger as his mother's pregnancy comes to term; a
memoirist whose dark night of the soul leads him on a journey from
which he may not return. Praised by writers as diverse as Richard
Russo, Irvine Welsh, Elizabeth McCracken, T. C. Boyle, and Mitch Albom,
John McNally is a voice to be savoured. |
New World Fiction - Week of December 21, 2008
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De Carlo, Andrea Sea of Truth |
Two brothers, Fabio and Lorenzo Telmari—one a corrupt
politician, the other an impassioned writer and the novel’s hero—inherit
a secret upon the death of their father, an internationally renowned
virologist. At his funeral, Lorenzo is approached by a mysterious
redheaded woman who asks him a single question and then disappears:
"Have you ever heard of Ndiogene?" From then on, Lorenzo’s life undergoes
rapid changes involving political and religious intrigue, narrow escapes,
and a life-altering love affair. He learns that at the time of his
death his father had two documents written by Ndiogene, a Senegalese
cardinal who had recently died of AIDS. These documents contain slander
against the Catholic church and controversial opinions about population
control, among other issues. De Carlo confronts these themes with
poise, avoiding sensationalism and tempering rage with irony, emotion,
and equilibrium. A grand chase for the documents ensues, pitting brother
against brother, and results in a crescendo of disappearances and
deaths. With Sea of Truth, De Carlo has executed an engaging
and adventurous novel, writing with conviction about the modern world
and the values of its citizens. |
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Erpenbeck, Jenny The Book of Words |
A searing novella about coming of age in a land of tyranny,
by one of Germany's most brilliant young authors. In The Book
of Words, Jenny Erpenbeck captures with amazing virtuosity the
inner life of a young girl who survives the totalitarian regime of
a curiously unnamed South American country. Raised by parents whose
real identity ends up shocking her, the girl comes of age in a country
where gunshots are mistaken for blown tires, innocent citizens are
dragged off buses, and tortured and disappeared friends and family
return to visit her from the dead. |
New GLBT Fiction - Week of December 21, 2008
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Brad Nichols, editor Best Gay Love Stories 2009 |
People everywhere need romance in their lives, and this
volume will have readers wishing they were the lovelorn characters
who populate its stories. Brad Nichols is also the editor for the
Tales
of Travelrotica for Gay Men series. |
New African-American Fiction - Week of December 21, 2008
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Dulaney, Kim L. Where I've Been: A Collection of Short Stories |
Contemporary urban America comes alive in this eclectic
compilation of short and flash fiction with an inner-city aesthetic
filtered through the brevity of hip-hop culture. A wide variety of
strong voices and unforgettable characters are united by the humorous
and unusual predicaments in which they find themselves, and many of
the stories tackle contemporary psychological and sociological issues.
Stories like "Simple," "The Faucet," and "Getting to Know Him" demonstrate
a wonderful ear for the lilt of the spoken language while portraying
everyday drama. Other engaging tales like "Men at Work," "Chicken,"
and "Cleaving to the Man" prove how thought-provoking entertainment
can be. These quick slices of life and easily consumable vignettes
aim for a sophistication not common in most urban fiction. |
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Perrin, Kayla Obsession |
After her husband confesses to a racy but ultimately unfulfilling
affair, Sophie Gibson's rage leaves her raw, unable to process his
attempt to repair the damage by suggesting she have her own tryst.
Soon, though, the idea of sex as retaliation begins to intrigue her—
a no-strings-attached, sexually subversive liaison may be just what
she needs before she can forgive Andrew. Hooking up with Peter, a
dark and dangerous artist willing to push the limits of Sophie's lustful,
quivering need, fits the bill perfectly. Sophie's covetousness for
Peter was always about experiencing intensity in the moment, but soon
the affair runs its course and now it's time for her to focus on her
future…with Andrew. Except, Peter is convinced he can't live without
her. Then come the cards, the presents, the calls…the hint of a threat.
One way or another he will have Sophie. Even if that means exacting
revenge of his own. |
New Historical Fiction - Week of December 21, 2008
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Sargent, Colin Museum of Human Beings |
A Shoshone woman, Sacagawea, leads Lewis and Clark to
the Pacific at the turn of the nineteenth century. On her back is
a tiny infant. He is her son, Jean-Baptiste Charbonneau, the youngest
member of the Expedition—a child caught between two worlds who is
later raised by Clark as his foster son. When the teenage Baptiste
attracts the notice of the visiting Duke Paul, Prince of Württemberg,
Clark approves of the duke’s “experiment” to educate the boy at court.
A gleeful Duke Paul has Baptiste trained as a concert pianist and
exhibits him throughout Europe as a “half gentleman–half animal.”
Eventually Baptiste turns his back on the Old World and returns to
the New, determined to find his true place there. He travels into
the heart of the American wilderness, and into the depths of his mother’s
soul, on an epic quest for identity that brings sacrifice, loss, and
the distant promise of redemption. |
New Short Stories - Week of December 21, 2008
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Abeysekara, Tissa Bringing Tony Home |
Set in the 1940s and 1960s, Bringing Tony Home
is a masterful modern example of a timeless genre, the bildungsroman.
In the title novella, a boy returns to his old home to find Tony,
his beloved dog who was abandoned when economic circumstances forced
the family to leave. “Bringing Tony Home” recounts this perilous journey
in detail, movingly tracing the boy’s rescue attempts and his spiraling
emotions as he endures changes occurring in his family. In “Elsewhere:
Something Like a Love Story,” a young boy finds forbidden love with
a schoolmate scorned for her poverty. “Elsewhere” continues their
saga, touching on the bittersweet memories they share as adults, and
on the woman’s increasingly precarious place in a society concerned
only with status. The other stories, “Poor Young Man: A Requiem” and
“Hark, The Moaning Pond: A Grandmother’s Tale,” delve into a young
man’s relationship with his father as the latter’s fortunes fade,
and into the now-mature man’s attempts to come to grips with the death
of his grandmother and what she symbolized. Abeysekara’s ability to
evoke the sights and sounds of another time and place, and his skill
in rendering the inner lives of his characters, make Bringing
Tony Home a remarkable read. |
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Aurélian Masson, editor Paris Noir |
Paris Noir takes you on a ride through the
old medieval center of town with its winding streets, its ghosts,
and its secrets buried in history. This is more than an homage to
the crime genre, to Melville and Godard, it's also a lush introduction
to the very best in French fiction. Brand-new stories from: Marc Villard,
Didier Daeninckx, Jean-Bernard Pouy, Salim Bachi, Christophe Mercier,
Jerome Leroy, DOA, Laurent Martin, Herve Prudon, Patrick Pecherot,
Dominique Mainard, and Chantal Pelletier. |