VJ Books has received: Phillip Margolin – Supreme Justice, David Hewson – City of Fear, Olen Steinhauer – The Nearest Exit, Clive Cussler – Hotsy Totsy Limited Editions.

Watchlist is a two-part thriller by Jeffery Deaver, who created the characters and set the plot in motion.  In turn, twenty-one of the world’s greatest thriller writers contributed to the work, some of which include Linda Barnes, Brett Battles, Lee Child, David Corbett, Joseph Finder, Jim Fusilli, John Gilstrap, James Grady, David Hewson, P.J. Parrish, S.J. Rozan, and Lisa Scottoline.  Each author wrote a chapter and Deaver then completed this thrilling sequel.

In part one, The Chopin Manuscript, former war crimes investigator Harold Middleton possesses a previously unknown score by Frédéric Chopin. But he is unaware that, locked within its handwritten notes, lies a secret that now threatens the lives of thousands of Americans.

In part two, The Copper Bracelet, Harold Middleton, an ex-U.S. military intelligence officer returns as he’s drawn into an international terror and assassination plot that threatens to send India and Pakistan into full-scale nuclear war.

Additional great authors who contributed to this exciting novel include Jon Land, David Liss, Gayle Lynds, John Ramsey Miller, Ralph Pezzullo, James Phelan, Jenny Siler, Peter Spiegelman, and Erica Spindler, with an introduction by M.J. Rose.

Order your copy of Watchlist from VJ Books today!

See all Jeffery Deaver books here

Nic Costa is a police detective in modern Rome. Called to an artist’s studio in the Ortaccio, Rome’s traditional artist’s quarter, Nic finds a horrific scene.

Two people have been brutally killed, a petty thief frequently arrested by Costa, and a woman — a French art critic.

Over the bodies is a painting that appears to be an unknown work by a 17th century master — Caravaggio.

And the painting echoes the murder scene.

The crime scene team discovers other bodies buried in the studio — and the perpetrator is still there, hiding in the building. (more…)

Jeffery Deaver’s “The Weapon,” about the limitations of torture, and Ridley Pearson’s “Boldt’s Broken Angel,” which features a race to prevent a cop’s death, provide solid bookends to this nifty all-original anthology, the sequel to 2006’s Thriller: Stories to Keep You Up All Night. The 23 selections—all by members of International Thriller Writers Inc.—score hits more often than misses. One of the few non-Americans, Spaniard Javier Sierra, might claim the blue ribbon with his tale of impending apocalypse, “The Fifth World.” Lisa Jackson’s “Vintage Death” keeps the reader guessing and on tenterhooks from start to finish. Marcus Sakey’s “The Desert Here and the Desert Far Away” tests the strength of the bonds forged in the current Iraq War when comrades return home. Other contributors include Robert Ferrigno, David Hewson, Jon Land, Carla Neggers and R.L. Stine. In addition to a brief general introduction, Cussler supplies intros to the individual stories. (June 2009)

Order your copy from www.vjbooks.com

(Publisher’s Weekly, Mar. 23)

This title is now available to order.

The death mask of the poet Dante is to be exhibited at the premiere of a controversial film, “Inferno”, based on his epic work. But at the grand unveiling this priceless artifact is replaced by a macabre death mask of the film’s star, Allen Prime. And minutes later, the leading actress, Maggie Flavier, is threatened before her attacker is shot. After footage of Prime’s murder is shown over the internet, the Carabinieri are determined to take over the investigation, certain that a crazed Dante fan is behind the killing.

David Hewson (born January 9, 1953) is a contemporary British author of crime and mystery novels. His series of modern crime stories featuring an ensemble of police officers in Rome, led by the young detective Nic Costa, began with A Season for the Dead, and has now been contracted to run to at least nine instalments by British, American, European and Asian publishers

(Publisher’s Weekly, Jan. 26)

Hewson’s fine seventh crime novel to feature Nic Costa (after The Garden of Evil) takes the Italian police detective to San Francisco, where aging, ailing director Roberto Tonti is preparing for the premiere of his first major film in 20 years, Inferno. Based on Dante’s Divine Comedy, the $150-million blockbuster, which was filmed in Tonti’s native Italy, is to be the capstone of the director’s career. In San Francisco, the Questura (Costa’s outfit) and the carabinieri—the former charged with security for Dante artifacts in a tie-in exhibit, the latter with security for the actors—pursue separate, often conflicting agendas after a series of bizarre incidents, including a priceless artifact’s theft, a movie star’s kidnapping and an attack on another star that results in death. The SFPD also gets into the act as more murders plague the film’s debut. A convoluted plot, eccentric characters and numerous sinister connections to Hitchcock’s Vertigo all contribute to the suspense. (Mar.)

See all of David Hewson signed books at www.vjbooks.com

In a deserted artist’s studio in the heart of Rome, detectives stumble upon a scene of shocking brutality: two bodies, freshly killed. Looming over them is a painting that bears all the hallmarks of a Caravaggio: a brilliantly colored canvas depicting a violent tableau of beauty and depravity. . . . In David Hewson‘s bold new novel of suspense, this grisly discovery sends Detective Nic Costa on a desperate chase through the streets of his city.

From modern forensics to the realm of the Medicis, from the force of faith to the corruption of power, The Garden of Evil is a novel steeped in Roman history-and an unforgettable experience in richly atmospheric, modern-day suspense.

See David Hewson books at www.vjbooks.com

(www.davidhewson.com)

David Hewson’s novels have been translated into a wide range of languages, from Italian to Japanese, and his debut work, Semana Santa, set in Holy Week Spain, was filmed with Mira Sorvino. Dante’s Numbers is his thirteenth published novel.

David was born in Yorkshire in 1953 and left school at the age of seventeen to work as a cub reporter on one of the smallest evening newspapers in the country in Scarborough. Eight years later he was a staff reporter on The Times in London, covering news, business and latterly working as arts correspondent. He worked on the launch of the Independent and was a weekly columnist for the Sunday Times for a decade before giving up journalism entirely in 2005 to focus on writing fiction.

Semana Santa won the WH Smith Fresh Talent award for one of the best debut novels of the year in 1996 and was later made into a movie starring Mira Sorvino and Olivier Martinez. Four standalone works followed before A (more…)

Hello friends!

2008 was a great year for books.  We had the pleasure of bringing hundreds of new titles to you this year, and introducing you to dozens of new authors.

When it was suggested to make a list of our favorites and give you one last chance to add them to your collection, I found picking titles kind of like choosing between my children! 
 
Of course all your favorites climbed the charts and we were proud to bring you new books by Michael Connelly, Patricia Cornwell, James Patterson, George Pelecanos, Janet Evanovich, Robert Crais, Clive Cussler, Jonathan Kellerman, Gregg Hurwitz, and all the other usual suspects.
 
So we have picked our favorites in ten different catagories.  If you didn’t already pick these up, here’s your last chance to get them, and save 25%.

Looking ahead, we have already ordered titles for the first quarter of ’09.  It promises to be another big year with exciting new authors making their first appearance in our store as well as new books from all the bestselling authors you’ve come to expect at VJ Books.  Take a look at our Upcoming Titles to see what is ahead for 2009.

For now, grab these before they are gone!
 
Good reading,
 
John

Best New Author:  Mark Alpert (Final Theory)
Best New Legal: James Scott Bell (Try Dying)
Best Psychological Thriller:  Alan Jacobson (7th Victim)
Best Political Novel: Eric Van Lustbader (First Daughter)
Best Spy Novel:  Dan Fesperman (The Amateur Spy)
Best Youth Novel: Ridley Pearson and Dave Barry (Science Fair)
Best from the UK: David Hewson (The Garden of Evil)
Best Movie Tie-in: James Rollins (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
John’s Top Pick: Joe Domenici (Bringing Back the Dead)
Best Anthology: Lee Child (Killer Year)
New Friend of VJ Books:  Iris Johansen (Dark Summer)
Best Translation: Alnauldur Indridason (The Draining Lake)