New Firsts!

New Arrivals

Dream Queen by Betsy Thornton (signed)

Starred Review. Thornton's gripping sixth mystery featuring victim's advocate Chloe Newcombe (after 2008's A Song for You) charts her earlier years, long before she moved to Arizona. Two years after her older brother, James, died of AIDS in California, Chloe, then a New York City PI, travels to Dudley, Ariz., a small town where Tucson therapist Hal, James's surviving partner, has a home, and where Danny, her younger brother, has falle

n for Kristi Marsh, a

beautiful but troubled woman. Danny and Kristi meet Chloe at the airport, but en route to Dudley tragedy strikes--Danny disappears after they stop to fix his van at a garage while the two women wait at a diner across the street. Kristi also vanishes soon after they reach Hal's, but she's later found shot to death in a shack containing packages of a street drug called "Dream Queen." Kristi's stepfather, a therapist friend of Hal's, hires Chloe to investigate. As she uncovers a bizarre coverup, Chloe comes to some sticky realizations in this multilayered literary whodunit.

Stein, Stoned by Hal Ackerman. He will be signing at The Poisoned Pen on August 10th at 7PM. We have both hard cover and trade paperback copies.

Harry Stein was a countercultural hero in the sixties, thanks to Smoke This Book, his cult classic on growing weed. Now he’s a small-time PI and hasn’t smoked dope for six years, afraid of losing joint custody of his daughter, Angie. Then two cases bring his old life back to centerstage: he’s hired to recover a marijuana grower’s new crop, bound for the medical marijuana market but ripped off by unsavory types hoping to sell it on the street, and his regular gig providing security for a perfume company heats up when it appears a soon-to-be-launched shampoo has been pirated by the creator’s former lover. Naturally, the two cases are intertwined, and soon enough Harry is helter-skeltering his way between L.A. and Amsterdam, trying to solve a murder, find the dope, and keep the shampoo out of harm’s way. The plotting gets a little frenetic toward the end, but who cares? Harr

y fits comfortably into that delightfully comic line of slacker sleuths—a tradition that runs from the Fletch novels through Newton Thornburg’s 1976 cult classic Cutter and Bone and, of course, The Big Lebowski. The Dude abides with Harry Stein.

After The Fire by JA Jance (This was published in 2004) '

That fire can cleanse as well as destroy is no mystery to J. A. Jance. Before she found fame as a best-selling mystery author, Judith Jance wrestled with the personal anguish of being married to an alcoholic. For years she composed poetry in secret and kept it locked away. Finally it was published as After the Fire in 1984, the year before her debut novel. After the Fire chronicled the death of a relationship as Jance's marriage to her first husband gradually collapsed under the weight of his addiction--aided and abetted by her own unwitting denial and co-dependence--while she struggled to find herself. "I will not be the price of your redemption," she wrote then. "I will not pay my life to ransom yours." Now this deeply personal work is available in a new annotated edition. In it, Jance offers unblinking insights into where she was and what was happening when each of these searing poems was written--remaking After the Fire as more than a collection of poetry. Now it is a portrait of addiction and the insidious ways in which it destroys relationships. As Jance now observes while reflecting on these poems, "I could remember that spring morning sitting at the Formica table in my Phoenix kitchen and writing 'The Collector' while bags of unpacked groceries waited on the table beside me. I recalled everything about that long, long New Year's Eve vigil at my dying former husband's bedside. I felt once again the velvet smoothness of 'Fog' as I walked through a Seattle September morning on my way to a new life. . . . My life is far richer because of this book. My hope is that others will find answers here as well--answers and their own share of strength and courage." A work of crushing defeat and ultimate triumph, After the Fire relates an emotional journey that will be readily recognizable to anyone who has seen love destroyed and then found the strength to go on. It will inspire others who are struggling with similar issues as it allows fans of Jance's mysteries to better know the mind--and heart--of a favorite author.

New Event Books

Viognier Vendetta and Koala Of Death have arrived for the upcoming signings.

Koala Of Death by Betty Webb who will be signing on August 15

Zookeeper Theodora “Teddy” Bentley is looking for the sea otter that has been frequenting the marina where her houseboat is docked when she finds the body of a colleague, Koala Kate, zookeeper and television personality, floating in the water. Kate was strangled before being dumped in the water and the suspects are many: Outback Bill, her former boyfriend; Robin Chase, the big-cat keeper who has a grudge against Teddy; several other “liveaborders” at the harbor; an animal psychic; and even Teddy's ex-beauty-queen mother. When Teddy is ordered by her boss at the zoo to take over Kate's TV show, she finds herself thrown into the murder investigation and must solve the crime to avoid becoming the next victim. Teddy's second adventure will appeal to animal lovers who enjoy a bit of social satire with their mystery. Pair this series with Ann Littlewood's Iris Oakley novels, also starring a zookeeper.

Viognier Vendetta by Ellen Crobsy. She will be at The Poisoned Pen on August 24

Ellen Crosby's "beguiling" (Kirkus Reviews) fifth mystery takes readers into Washington's corridors of power, where Lucie Montgomery uncovers a political and financial scandal while trying to locate her missing friend.

WHEN LUCIE MONTGOMERY VISITS Washington, D.C., during cherry blossom season she doesn't expect her reunion with old friend Rebecca Natale is a setup. But Rebecca disappears into thin air after running an errand for her boss, billionaire philanthropist and investment guru Sir Thomas Asher. Also missing: an antique silver wine cooler looted by British soldiers before they burned the White House during the War of 1812.

The next morning Lucie identifies Rebecca's neatly folded clothes found in a rowboat floating in the Potomac River. Is it suicide, murder - or an elaborate scheme to disappear? A clandestine meeting in the U.S. Capitol, a startling revelation on a windy hill, and cryptic messages from Rebecca cloaked in eighteenth-century poetry are all part of the suspenseful tale of whether Rebecca is alive or dead - and the truth about Asher Investments.

Featuring an absorbing plot, colorful characters, and fascinating winemaking detail, The Viognier Vendetta combines an entertaining mystery with luminous prose that has become Crosby's trademark.

In case you missed them

Chris Kuzneski was at The Poisoned Pen on July 14. John Rector signed his book The Cold Kiss on July 24. We still have signed copies of both books.

The Prophecy by Chris Kuzneski

Jonathon Payne and David Jones are back in the fray in the latest page?turner from Chris Kuzneski, internatio

nal bestselling author of The Lost Throne, Sword of God, and Sign of the Cr

oss.\n\nWhen the prophetic writings of sixteenth-century visionary Nostradamus begin to ring alarmingly true, Payne and Jones find themselves in a life-or-death race across th

e world to stop those who would use the French seer's predictions for their own dark purposes.\n\nWith the breathles

s pace that has found Chris Kuzneski millions of fans around the globe, The Prophecy is a must-ha

ve adventure thriller.

The Cold Kiss by John Rector

All Nate and Sara want is a new life in a new town, away from the crime and poverty of their past. So, after being approached at a roadside diner by a man offering $500 for a ride to Omaha, they wonder if their luck might be changing.

At first it seems like easy money, but within a few hours the man is dead.

Now, forced off the road by a blizzard and trapped in a run-down motel on the side of a deserted highway, Nate and Sara begin to uncover the man's secrets. Who he was, how he died, and most importantly, why he was carrying two million dollars in his suitcase.

Before they know it, Nate and Sara are fighting for their lives, and in the end, each has to decide just how far they are willing to go to survive.

The Cold Kiss is an everyman psychological thriller that pits a young couple against moral corruption, greed, betrayal, and love. More simply, for two characters who may have used up all their chances, it's the classic final trip down the dark tunnel that might lead to heaven, but drags them through hell. This is A Simple Plan meets The Getaway, with a pulse-pounding plot and a twist ending. John Rector is name that all thriller fans will come to know and love for years to come.

Some Signed Stock from The Poisoned Pen

To order any of these titles simply click on the title.

A Spider on the Stairs by Cassandra Chan

Set at Christmastime, Chan's agreeable fourth contemporary cozy (after 2008's Trick of the Mind) finds London manabout-town Phillip Bethancourt unhappily ensconced at his parents' house in Yorks

hire for the holidays. Hoping to dodge his inquisitive

family's questions abo

ut his turbulent personal life, Phillip jumps at the chance to help his Scotland Yard friend, Det. Sgt.

Jack Gibbons, when Jack travels north to investigate a murder possibly committed by the notorious Ashdon killer. When Jack decides the crime scene, a York bookshop, and the victim, a freespirited young woman, don't bear the serial killer's hallmarks, he turns his sights on the bookshop staff. The well-connected Phillip provides ready access to cocktail party gossip and more substantial information. Though the seasoned mystery reader may guess the culprit before the methodical Jack, this is an enjo

yable outing into Dorothy Sayers territory.

(PW)

Betrayers by Bill Pronzini

We're told that there are seven deadly sins; not on the list is the deadliest of them all: Betrayal. For each of the detectives at the agency, a betrayal becomes not only the driving force behind an investigation, but the source of the kind of resolve that cannot be derailed by threats. Tamara's case began as something personal but explodes as her investigation of her former lover leads to a scam that bilks charitie

s in the name of helping the homeless and indigent. For Nameless, trying to find out who is gaslighting an old woman only exposes the ugly side of family. Runyon has a different difficult

y: his case of a bail-jumper with some bad family ties is easy enough as these things go, but he's being confronted by a demon that is going to try to force him into a betrayal...

Devils Amongst The Lawyers by Sharyn McCrumb

In 1935, the case of an Appalachian schoolteacher arrested for murdering her father becomes a national news story, seized on by the press for its sensationalism and the opportunity to mock the rural inhabitants involved. Competing with a brigade of city journalists is novice Tennessee newspaperman Carl Jenkins, whose obsession with the truth leads him to call in his cousin Nora, gifted with second sight—but what, exactly, can he report with no concrete evidence? The latest in McCrumb's Appalachian Ballad series (after 2003's Ghost Riders) is decidedly mixed; McCrumb's grasp of setting and character instantly immerses readers in the worlds of both the sympathetic locals and the cynical city press.

Bone Appetit by Carolyn Haines

Starred Review. Di

stinctive characters and a clever cooking background make Haines's 10th Sarah Booth Delaney mystery (after 2009's Greedy Bones) the best yet in this Southern cozy series. Sarah Booth, who's seeking solace after a miscarriage, and her best friend and fellow PI, Tinkie Bellecase Richmond, come to Greenwood, Miss., to attend classes at the Viking Cooking School, but soon get involved in a beauty contest/cook-off and mayhem. The trouble begins when contestant Karrie Kompton bites into a chocolate-covered cockroach. Next, Babs Lafitte falls to the stage and goes into convulsions. After Brook Oniada suffers fatal burns during her flaming baton routine and Janet Menton dies after eating poisoned pastry, suspicion falls on Janet's roommate, Hedy Lamarr Blackledge, who hires Sarah and Tinkie to clear her name. Sarah's ever-entertaining ghost companion, Jitty, provides support as Sa

rah winds up finding the crazed beauty contest gone bad a blessing in disguise. (PW)

As Husbands Go by Susan Isaacs

Starred Review. Bestseller Isaacs draws on tony Long Island, gritty New York City, and a tabloid-friendly murder for this smart-alecky whodunit/surprisingly sweet love story. Susan is left alone with her three boys, big suburban house, and nagging questions when plastic surgeon hubby Jonah Gersten turns up dead in a hooker's Upper East Side

apartment. Though the police and prosecutors wind up their case against call girl Dorinda Dillon, it's far from settled for Susan. It simply didn't add up, in either my head or my heart, she confesses. And what better sidekick to track down the truth than Susan's rogue granny, Ethel. What follows is an intricate and fascinating dissection of Susan's marriage, family, husband's medical practice and partners, and the unwitting call girl at the center of it all. Isaacs (Past Perfect) brings it all together in this fast and furious ride through wanton greed, fragile relationships, and love worth fighting for.

Burn by Nevada Barr

Nevada Barr will be signing at the Poisoned Pen on August 11 at 7PM

Anna Pigeon returns in number 16 of the series to solve mysteries in Nevada's home town of New Orleans, Louisiana with one of Nevada's most compelling, complex novels to date!

Anna Pigeon, a Ranger with the National Park Service, is newly married but on administrative leave from her job as she recovers from the traumas of the past couple of months. While the physical wounds have healed, the emotional ones are still healing. With her new husband back at work, Anna decides to go and stay with an old friend from the Park Service, Geneva, who works as a singer at the New Orleans Jazz NHP. She isn't in town long before she crosses paths with a tenant of Geneva's, a creepy guy named Jordan. She discovers what seems to be an attempt to place a curse on her--a gruesomely killed pigeon marked with runic symbols; and begins to slowly find traces of very dark doings in the heart of post-Katrina New Orleans. Tied up in all of this is Jordan, who is not at all what he appears to be; a fugitive mother accused of killing her husband and daughters in a fire; and faint whispers of unpleasant goings-on in the heart of the slowly recovering city.

Queen Of The Night by JA Jance

Queen Of The Night is the fourth book in her series featuring Dianna Ladd. To order your copy click here. JA Jance will be signing at The Poisoned Pen at 7PM on August 5th at 7PM

The New York Times bestselling author brings back the Walker family in a multilayered thriller in which murders past and present connect the lives of three families
Every summer, in an event that is commemorated throughout the Tohono O'odham Nation, the Queen of the Night flower blooms in the Arizona desert. But one couple's intended celebration is shattered by gunfire, the sole witness to the bloodshed a little girl who has lost the only family she's ever known.

To her rescue come Dr. Lani Walker, who sees the trauma of her own childhood reflected in her young patient, and Dan Pardee, an Iraq war veteran and member of an unorthodox border patrol unit called the Shadow Wolves. Joined by Pima County homicide investigator Brian Fellows, they must keep the child safe while tracking down a ruthless killer.
In a second case, retired homicide detective Brandon Walker is investigating the long unsolved murder of an Arizona State University coed. Now, after nearly half a century of silence, the one person who can shed light on that terrible incident is willing to talk. Meanwhile, Walker's wife, Diana Ladd, is reliving memories of a man whose death continues to haunt her.
As these crimes threaten to tear apart three separate families, the stories and traditions of the Tohono O'odham people remain just beneath the surface of the desert, providing illumination to events of both self-sacrifice and unspeakable evil.

Discord's Apple--by Carrie Vaughn

Carrie Vaughn will be signing at The Poisoned Pen on July 28, 2010. To order your copy click here.

Discord's Apple

When Evie Walker goes home to spend time with her dying father, she discovers that his creaky old house in Hope's Fort, Colorado is not the only legacy she

stands to inherit. Hidden behind the old basement door is a secret and magical storeroom where wondrous treasures from myth and legend are kept safe unit they are needed again. The magic of the storeroom prevents access to any who are not intended to use the items.

Evie must guard the storeroom against ancient and malicious forces, protecting the past and the future even as the present unravels around them. Old heroes and notorious villains alike will rise to fight on her side or to undermine her most desperate gambits. At stake is the fate of the world, and the prevention of nothing less than the apocalypse.

Carl Hiaasen's Star Island

STAR ISLAND

Signed First Printings!! (Knopf, $30.00) Click here to order!

We are getting a limited number of signed copies (not tip-ins!) of Carl Hiaasen's brand new novel, just in time for those summer doldrums... place your order now before they disappear....

It's summertime in Jersey And all across the land It's time for Summer Reading And working on your tan. But no vacation can start Or go off without a hitch Unless you've packed your bag With the latest Evanovich. Yes, it's time for Stephanie and gang To get up to their old antics With Grandma, Lula, Connie too - Mrs. Plum, she will be frantic! See, someone wants to kill Vinnie Who? The list is long And Mooner returns to brighten our day Complete with his favorite bong. And Lula's involved in a Ponzi scheme Stand back! You know she'll be pissed While Stephanie's chasing a dangerous skip He thinks he'll never be missed. With Ranger days and Morelli nights (Or perhaps it's the other way 'round) This sixteenth Stephanie Plum adventure Will wear the blockbuster crown. So grab some donuts and Cluck-in-a-Bucket And get ready for grand-scale fun Number sixteen is a sure-fire bet For bestseller lists: number one!

For a Free Excerpt click here!

Take A Trip Though History

Nemesis by Lindsey Davis


In the high summer of 77AD, Roman informer Marcus Didius Falco is beset by personal problems. Newly bereaved and facing unexpected upheavals in his life, it is a relief for him to consider someone else's misfortunes. A middle-aged
couple who supplied statues to his father, Geminus, have disappeared in mysterious circumstances. They had an old feud with a bunch of notorious freedmen, the Claudii, who live rough in the pestilential Pontine Marshes, terrorising the neighbourhood. When a mutilated corpse turns up near Rome, Falco and his vigiles friend Petronius investigate, even though it means travelling in the dread marshes. But just as they are making progress, the Chief Spy, Anacrites, snatches their case away from them. As his rivalry with Falco escalates, he makes false overtures of friendship, but fails to cover up the fact that the violent Claudii have acquired corrupt protection at the highest level. Making further enquiries after they have been warned off can only be dangerous - but when did that stop Falco and Petronius? Egged on by the slippery bureaucrats who hate Anacrites, the dogged friends dig deeper while a psychotic killer keeps taking more victims, and the shocking truth creeps closer and closer to home...

Falco: The Official Companion by Lindsey Davis
As the girl came running up the steps, I decided she was wearing far too many clothes... So, in 1989, readers were introduced to Marcus Didius Falco, the Roman informer, as he stood on the steps of the Temple of Saturn, looking out across the Forum: the heart of his world. Twenty years and twenty books later, Falco fans want a companion volume. Only here will you learn the author's private background, including her descent from a failed assassin and how atheism improved her knitting. Here too are the real glories and heartache involved in research and creation: why the baby had to be born in Barcelona, which plots evolved from intense loathing of management trainees, what part a thermal vest played in the iconic Falco's conception. It can't be a complete handbook to ancient Rome, but it covers perennial issues. There are a hundred illustrations, some specially commissioned, others from family archives. Enlightening quotations come from the Falco books and from eminent sources: Juvenal, through Chandler, to 1066 and All That. Readers have asked for this book. Their paranoid, secretive author agrees it is now or never. Time to spill beans on the travertine...

The Bloodstained Throne by Simon Beaufort

The new ‘Sir Geoffrey Mappestone’ mystery - When the former crusader knight Geoffrey Mappestone and his friend Roger of Durham try to slip out of England to the Holy Land, a ferocious storm destroys the ship they are on and casts them ashore. The two knights are unwillingly thrust into the company of other shipwrecked passengers, and while attempting to evade the unwelcome attention of the more dangerous members of the group, they become unwillingly drawn into a plot to overthrow the king and return England to Saxon rule . . .


Revenger by Rory Clements
1592. England and Spain are at war, yet there is peril at home, too. The death of her trusted spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham has left Queen Elizabeth vulnerable. Conspiracies multiply. The quiet life of John Shakespeare is shattered by a summons from Robert Cecil, the cold but deadly young statesman who dominated the last years of the Queen's long reign, insisting Shakespeare re-enter government service. His mission: to find vital papers, now in the possession of the Earl of Essex. Essex is the brightest star in the firmament, a man of ambition. He woos the Queen, thirty-three years his senior, as if she were a girl his age. She is flattered by him -- despite her loathing for his mother, the beautiful, dangerous Lettice Knollys who presides over her own glittering court -- a dazzling array of the mad, bad, dangerous and disaffected. When John Shakespeare infiltrates this dissolute world he discovers not only that the Queen herself is in danger -- but that he and his family is also a target. With only his loyal footsoldier Boltfoot Cooper at his side, Shakespeare must face implacable forces who believe themselves above the law: men and women who kill without compunction. And in a world of shifting allegiances, just how far he can trust Robert Cecil, his devious new master?

The Lady's Slipper by Deborah Swift
It is 1660. The King is back, but memories of the Civil War still rankle. In rural Westmorland, artist Alice Ibbetson has become captivated by the rare Lady's Slipper orchid. She is determined to capture its unique beauty for posterity, even if it means stealing the flower from the land of recently converted Quaker, Richard Wheeler. Fired by his newfound faith, the former soldier Wheeler feels bound to track down the missing orchid. Meanwhile, others are eager to lay hands on the flower, and have their own powerful motives. Margaret Poulter, a local medicine woman, is seduced by the orchid's mysterious herbal powers, while Sir Geoffrey Fisk, Alice's patron and a former comrade-in-arms of Wheeler, sees the valuable plant as a way to repair his ailing fortunes and cure his own agonizing illness. Fearing that Wheeler and his new friends are planning revolution, Fisk sends his son Stephen to spy on the Quakers, only for the young man to find his loyalties divided as he befriends the group he has been sent to investigate. Then, when Alice Ibbetson is implicated in a brutal murder, she is imprisoned along with the suspected anti-royalist Wheeler. As Fisk's sanity grows ever more precarious, and Wheeler and Alice plot their escape, a storm begins to brew, from which no party will escape unscathed. Vivid, gripping and intensely atmospheric, "The Lady's Slipper" is a novel about beauty, faith and loyalty. It marks the emergence of an exquisite new voice in historical fiction.

THE INDIE NEXT JULY MYSTERY/SUSPENSE NOTABLES

 

 The Case of the Man Who Died Laughing
From the Files of Vish Puri, Most Private Investigator, by Tarquin Hall
Simon & Schuster, $24 Signed

“Vish Puri, master of disguise and lover of all things spicy,
does not believe that Dr. Suresh Jha’s death was brought
about by supernatural powers. While he sets his team of
operatives—Facecream, Tubelight and Flush—off to investigate, he tries to ignore
the fact that his wife and mother are investigating their own crime. The second
book in this series set in India is a hoot!”

The Devil Amongst the Lawyers
A Ballad Novel, by Sharyn McCrumb
(Thomas Dunne Books, $27 Signed)

“Erma Morton, a beautiful, educated woman from the
mountains of Virginia, is accused of murdering her father in
1935. Journalists from big city newspapers flock to remote
Wise County to report their version of life and death in ‘them
thar hills.’ McCrumb has utilized a true murder case to set
the facts straight about her beloved Appalachian way of life. This is a novel of
passion, mystery and magic, as well as a wake-up call to the power and influence
of the media.”

The Left Hand of God
A Novel, by Paul Hoffman
(Dutton, $26)

“The Left Hand of God is one fantasy novel that steps out
of the mold, focusing on culture and character without the
razzle-dazzle of beasties and magic. With an intriguing array
of characters, plot twists, and just a touch of mystery, this
story will keep you guessing. Dark, unpredictable, and witty;
this is a real page-turner that will leave you thirsting for more.”

Pray for Silence
by Linda Castillo
(Minotaur, $25 Signed)

“In this sequel to Sworn to Silence, Police Chief Kate
Burkholder is faced with the slaughter of an Amish family of
seven. Her search for the killer takes her on a dark journey of
discovery and uncovers a disturbing realm of violence and
brutality. As before, Castillo keeps the pace quick, the story
compelling, and her manner towards the Amish reverent.”

New Signed Books Just In

ROBERT K TANENBAUM - BETRAYED

 * "This high-energy romp invites repeat visits by young browsers--there's plenty to pore over and giggle about.  Delicious!"--Kirkus Reviews

Also from Publishers Weekly;

A massive backstory slows Tanenbaum's 22nd novel featuring New York City district attorney Roger "Butch" Karp and his crime-busting family (after Capture). The plot takes too long to build up a head of steam, and once on course simply waddles straight ahead with little in the way of twists and turns. Butch is prosecuting Sharif Jabbar, last seen in Escape, who's facing trial for his part in an attack on the New York Stock Exchange. Meanwhile, Butch's wife, Marlene Ciampi, steps in to defend Dirty Warren, a friend of Butch's who owns the newsstand in front of Manhattan's Criminal Courts Building. Dirty has been arrested for killing an escort service owner. A murderous judge and a retired CIA man known as the Fixer also figure in the action. Readers familiar with the ongoing characters will enjoy the book far more than those who are dipping their toes into the Karp pool for the first time. 

Order your copy from The Poisoned Pen HERE.

 

Amazing reviews for 

BRAD THOR'S

FOREIGN INFLUENCE

“Quite possibly the next coming of Robert Ludlum.” —Chicago Tribune, on The Last Patriot

"The Master of thrillers"
—Bookreporter.com

“One of the best thriller writers in the business."
—The Ottawa Citizen 

From Publishers Weekly

In Thor's formulaic ninth Scot Harvath thriller (after The Apostle), the ex–navy SEAL has lost his job with the disbanding under a new presidential administration of the Apex Project, a Department of Homeland Security secret antiterrorist program that didn't worry about obeying any rules. Fortunately, Harvath lands on his feet with the Carlton Group, funded covertly by the Department of Defense, with an identical mission. After a bus full of Americans is blown up in Rome, Harvath travels to Europe to track down a man known as the Troll, who's been implicated in the bombing. Meanwhile, John Vaughn, a Chicago cop who somehow moonlights as an attorney for private clients, seeks to identify the Middle Eastern–looking man who ran down a woman with his cab. Predictably, Vaughn uncovers a plot against civilian targets in Chicago. Bumbling CIA agents make members of the secret Carlton Group look even more heroic. Fans of TV's 24 may enjoy the over-the-top setups, but even they might wish for a little more sophistication.  

Last, but certainly not least...

Signed Copies of Sue Grafton's A-E 

A is for Alibi 
B is for Burglar 
C is for Corpse
D is for Deadbeat
E is for Evidence

Just a brief bit of trivia from Wikipedia on the award count for Sue Grafton. 


Grafton's "B" Is for Burglar and "C" Is for Corpse won the first two Anthony Awards, which are selected by the attendees of the annual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention, ever awarded.^[11] She has won the Anthony Award once more, and has been the recipient of three Shamus Awards.^[12]
On June 13, 2000, Sue Grafton was the recipient of the 2000 YWCA of Lexington Smith-Breckinridge Distinguished Woman of Achievement Award.^[13]
In 2004, Grafton received the Ross Macdonald Literary Award, given to "a California writer whose work raises the standard of literary excellence."
In 2008 Grafton was awarded the Cartier Dagger by the British Crime Writers' Association, honoring a lifetime's achievement in the field.
In 2009 Grafton received the Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America.