VJ Books has received:  Jonathan Nasaw – Boys from Santa Cruz,  Stephen Coonts – The Disciple,  Charles Todd – The Red Door,  Steve Hamilton – The Lock Artist, and  Spencer Quinn – Thereby Hangs a Tail.

I assume you are one of those people who buy a signed first edition for their collection and then picks up a reading copy at Costco, or better yet, waits for a paperback to show up at the Goodwill.  No insult intended – I’m one of those people.  For (non-antiquarian) collectible books I recommend:

1.  Jackets should be covered in acid-free book jacket covers.

2.  Books should stand up-right on a book shelf, so as not to create a slant of the spine.

3.  Books should be kept out of direct sunlight, where air can circulate freely.

4.  Store them away from windows and don’t put them on shelves against outside walls.

5.  Store them on flat, smooth shelves that are strong enough to support their weight.

6.  Books should not be in contact with unsealed wood because it can release damaging acidic vapors.  Line shelves with acid free boards if necessary to prevent this problem.

7.  Use bookends to keep the books from falling over, and be sure they are high enough to support the books completely.

8.  Avoid storing books in an attic or basement because attics get too hot and basements get too damp.  Both are also subject to rapid changes in temperature and humidity levels.  Keep books out from under plumbing and water pipes; water damage from these sources is all too common.

9.  You can also consider custom-fitted archival boxes made from high-quality materials.

Good Reading!

VJ Books has received:  James Patterson – Worst Case,  Alex Berenson – Midnight House,  Sarah Blake – The Postmistress,  and Chuck Logan – Devils In Exile.

Ben Bova is the author of more than one hundred works of science fact and fiction, and has been involved in science and high technology since the very beginnings of the space age. He has worked with leading scientists in fields such as high-power lasers, artificial hearts, and plasma dynamics and in 2001 was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). He is also a Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society.

In his various writings, Bova has predicted solar power satellites (Powersat), the discovery of organic chemicals in interstellar space, virtual reality (Death Dream), human cloning, the discovery of life on Mars, stem cell therapy, the discovery of ice on the Moon (Moonwar), electronic book publishing and zero-gravity sex.

In Bova’s most recent novel Able One, a nuclear missile is launched by a rogue North Korean faction and explodes in space resulting in a shockwave that destroys the world’s satellites and throws global communication into chaos. The United States military satellites, designed to withstand such an assault, show that two more missiles are sitting on the launch pad in North Korea, ready to be deployed. Faced with the threat of a thermonuclear attack, (more…)

Press Release

Tualatin, Oregon, February 1, 2009 – With his first three books featuring tough-as-nails CIA agent John Wells—The Faithful Spy, The Ghost War, and The Silent Man—Alex Berenson earned praise for creating stories that are “highly plausible, even inevitable” (USA Today).

In The Midnight House he explores issues surrounding a topic that has lead to some of the most contentious debates this country has experienced since 9/11—torture rendition, and some of the extra-legal activities that have been used by the U.S. during the war on terror—and delivers the seamless plotting and edge-of-the-seat action that have made him one of the premier suspense thriller authors writing today.

“A superbly crafted spy thriller that doubles as a gripping mystery; the reader has no idea who the killer is until Wells figures it out.” (Kirkus Reviews). (more…)