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PAM W'S TOP TEN OF 2010
1. Nancy Pickard, THE SCENT OF RAIN AND LIGHTNING. Ballantine, $25.00
2. Steve Hamilton, THE LOCK ARTIST. Minotaur, $24.99
3. Laura Lippman, I'D KNOW YOU ANYWHERE. William Morrow, $25.99
4. Jacqueline Winspear, THE MAPPING OF LOVE AND DEATH. Harper, $25.99
5. Lisa Lutz, THE SPELLMANS STRIKE AGAIN. Simon & Schuster, $25.00
6. Seth Grahame–Smith, ABRAHAM LINCOLN, VAMPIRE HUNTER. Grand Central Publishing, $21.99
7. Harlan Coben, CAUGHT. Dutton, $27.95
8. Rebecca Cantrell, A NIGHT OF LONG KNIVES. Forge, $24.99.
9. Alan Bradley, THE WEED THAT STRINGS THE HANGMAN'S BAG. Delacorte, $24.00
10. Anglea Choi, HELLO KITTY MUST DIE. Tyrus Books, $24.95; simultaneous trade paperback, $14.95
and an honorary 11 to Sue Grafton, U IS FOR UNDERTOW, which was released in 2009, but too late for me to put it on last year's list. Kinsey is back in her best form yet.
NOVEMBER 2010
 April Lindner, JANE
Poppy (Little, Brown) $17.99 (unsigned first edition). Young Adult.
It's JANE EYRE for the 21st century. College student Jane Moore must drop out of school and get a job after the death of her parents. What she finds is a position as nanny in the household of Nico Rathburn, a legendary rock star on the verge of a comeback. Of course they fall in love, and of course Nico is hiding a terrible secret – but even if you think you know how this story plays out, you'll find surprises here.
SEPTEMBER 2010
 Laura Lippman, I'D KNOW YOU ANYWHERE.
William Morrow, $25.99 (signed first edition).
Lippman's latest standalone is our alternate August Crime Club selection and one of Bobby's picks for last month. Twenty–five years ago, Eliza was kidnapped by Walter, a rapist and murderer who held her hostage. She survived the ordeal, married, had children, moved to England. Now she is back in the Washington, DC area with her family, and Walter is on death row, weeks from execution. Nevertheless Walter is able to reach across the years and terrorize Eliza once again, and Eliza must discover – or remember – just how strong her survival instinct is.
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or telephone us on our toll–free number, (800) 821-9017.
 DAVID ROSENFELT drops in to sign DOG TAGS
Grand Central Publishing, $24.99
Lawyer and dog lover Andy Carpenter does his friend a favor and represents Milo, a German Shepherd that was an accomplice during a robbery and murder. As Andy proceeds to get the dog out from protected custody, he finds that the dog's owner, an ex–cop and Iraq war vet, is mixed up in a bigger game of chess than anyone imagined. As Andy unravels layer and layer of cover–ups from New Jersey to Iraq, he protects Milo from would–be assassins and finds that if he's to uncover the whole truth, he has to bond with the dog. Rosenfelt weaves a nice complex story, with humor sprinkled throughout.
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or telephone us on our toll–free number, (800) 821-9017.
 Gregg Hurwitz,THEY'RE WATCHING
St. Martin's, $24.99
JULY CRIME CLUB SELECTON and KIRK'S FAVORITE and PAM W.'S FAVORITE
Half the Mystery Bookstore's staff would have made this their July favorite, but that wouldn't have been fair. It's a phenomenal breakout thriller for our friend Gregg Hurwitz. Screenwriter Patrick Davis is dealing with career disasters and a crumbling marriage when he starts getting DVDs in the mail – DVDs filmed inside his own house, showing him and his wife living their everyday lives. It's only a matter of time before the emails start, offering to make the stalking stop if Patrick will follow instructions carefully. Nothing is as it seems in this twisty thriller, and you won't be able to put it down. Come to the event and quiz Gregg on his self-proclaimed Hitchcockian homage!
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or telephone us on our toll–free number, (800) 821-9017.
 THE INCORRIGIBLE CHILDREN OF ASHTON PLACE, BOOK I: THE MYSTERIOUS HOWLING by Mayrose Wood
Balzer & Bray, $15.99 (unsigned first edition) Ages 8–12.
Miss Penelope Lumley, a 15-year-old young woman recently graduated from the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, has been hired by Lord Frederick to be a governess at Ashton Place. When she arrives at the manor, she discovers that her three young charges (the incorrigibles of the title) were found living wild in the forests surrounding Ashton Place, where they were raised by wolves. Penny takes in stride her first introduction to her charges, with their near–naked bodies, matted hair, and indecipherable growling. Soon she has them listening to poetry and playing about with Latin, but mystery abounds at Ashton Place. How did Lord Frederick come upon these children? Who wants them out of Ashton Place? Will Penny be able to teach them the schottische? This cross between Jane Eyre and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is great fun.
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or telephone us on our toll–free number, (800) 821-9017.
 Laurie R. King, THE GOD OF THE HIVE
Bantam, $25.00 (signed first edition)
The latest Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes mystery (King's 10th) picks up where last year's THE LANGUAGE OF BEES left off. Russell and Holmes are on the run in Europe, but separately, not together; their pursuers are not only followers of a deadly cult, but agents of an unknown government as well. Raising the stakes even more, Mary Russell has Holmes' young granddaughter in her care, and can only communicate with Holmes through coded messages. The entire Holmes family is in danger, including Holmes' brother, Mycroft, in an adventure that proves to be King's most thrilling yet.
Please contact us directly to purchase this title.
You may email
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or telephone us on our toll–free number, (800) 821-9017.
Seth Grahame–Smith, ABRAHAM LINCOLN, VAMPIRE HUNTER
Grand Central Publishing, $21.99 (signed first edition)
 Abe Lincoln is a bookish boy with no taste for killing, until the day his mother dies from vampire sickness. Ax in hand, he embarks on a single–minded mission to destroy all undead. Henry Sturges, a worldly, benevolent vampire, saves him from an early demise and becomes his mentor. Abe becomes one of America's greatest Vampire Hunters, until the day when Sturges sets him a greater task: become President, and win the coming war with the South, where the worst vampires take refuge and plot the enslavement of all mankind. Seth Grahame–Smith, the author of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES, molds a fascinating, grotesque, oddly poignant and sometimes hilarious secret life for the 16th President out of real Lincoln quotations and his own imagination.
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