NEW AND UPCOMING RELEASES WITH STARRED REVIEWS:

★ Blood and Oil

By Justin Scheck and Bradley Hope

Kirkus – Starred Review

Mohammed bin Salman's Ruthless Quest for Global Power

A thorough delineation of the rapacious, ambitious new economic plan for Saudi Arabia by the heir apparent to the throne, Mohammed bin Salman.

Like Ben Hubbard in his recent scathing assessment, MBS, dogged Wall Street Journal reporters Hope and Scheck diligently chart the rapid rise—and recent faltering—of MBS (as he is known colloquially), though this book focuses less on biography and more on his determination to remake the Saudi economy. With the accession of his father to the Saudi Arabian throne in 2015, his seventh son was already expertly positioned at his father’s side to succeed and to carry out a sweeping set of reforms. King Salman, who was the governor of Riyadh for nearly 50 years (until 2011), has been known as the enforcer and disciplinarian in the corrupt, far-flung family. Beginning in 2015, MBS served as defense minister and moved swiftly over the ensuing four years to consolidate his power by squeezing out relatives. Among many other initiatives, he waged war on Yemen; set out to enrich his family in stock trading and other ways, which his father had been loath to do; instigated a staggering economic reform for the country called Vision 2030, which he has consistently touted internationally; courted Donald Trump, “treating him like a king” during his first foreign visit; shook down the richest men in his country by holding them hostage at the Ritz-Carlton until they shelled out; moved ahead with the public listing of the state oil company, Aramco; and, most brazenly, continued to ruthlessly silence his critics—e.g., the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi. The last murder nearly derailed him, as the authors point out in their meticulous, highly relevant narrative, and while the international community has grown wary of this lethal upstart, it is too early to tell if MBS will fulfill his bloody-minded vision. The cast of characters and Al Saud family tree are especially helpful.

An excellent work of impressive research on a dangerous world leader.

Hachette: September 1, 2020; ISBN: 9780306846663

★ We Keep the Dead Close

Publishers Weekly – Starred Review

In this mesmerizing debut, former New Yorker staffer Cooper recounts her pursuit of justice for Jane Britton, a 23-year-old Harvard anthropology grad student who was murdered in her Cambridge, Mass., apartment in 1969. After Britton didn’t show up for an exam, her boyfriend and Britton’s neighbors found her bludgeoned body face-down on her bed. The red powder on the corpse suggested that her killer had conducted an ancient burial ritual and was someone with “an intimate knowledge of anthropology.” The crime made headlines nationally, but despite multiple suspects, including a Harvard archaeology professor rumored to have had an affair with Britton, no one was charged. Cooper, who learned of the mystery in 2009 when she was a junior at Harvard, became obsessed with it and pursued leads pointing to a link between Britton’s killing and a similar murder of a woman in Harvard Square committed a month later. Her dogged effort to access police files was the impetus for DNA testing that yielded proof of the killer’s identity in 2018.

Cooper does a superior job of alternating her present-day investigation with flashbacks depicting Britton’s life and the initial police inquiries. In addition to presenting a tense narrative, she delves into the phenomenon and morality of true crime fandom. This twist-filled whodunit is a nonfiction page-turner.

November 10, 2020, ISBN: 9781538746837

★ Nophek Gloss

Library Journal – Starred Review

Teenager Caiden has only known his life serving the overseers, until they betray his people in a horrific massacre that destroys his entire world but opens him to the multiverse that actually exists. Rescued by a crew of unusual salvagers and a mysterious ship that can exist in its own universe, Caiden focuses on his own fury and exacting vengeance for his family. Finding a way to advance his age and abilities, he maps an internal course to make his slavers pay by destroying their entire regime. Yet as personal and political truths are revealed, Caiden finds the path to his revenge means embracing his origins and destroying them from the inside, all along trying to save his sanity. An intriguing bubble universe setting, flawed characters, and advanced technology from a compelling sf story that will draw in and hold readers until the very last page.

VERDICT Hansen’s marvelous debut is a fast-paced, action-filled ride through the multiverse, introducing a complex found family of gender- and neurodiverse characters.

Nov. 2020. 480p. ISBN: 9780316430654

★ The Truth About Dukes

Publishers Weekly – Starred Review

Burrowes reunites two characters who have been unfairly judged by Regency society in her powerful and sensitive fifth Rogues to Riches romance (after A Duke by Any Other Name). Robert Rothmere, Duke of Rothhaven, was confined to an asylum as an adolescent due to his epilepsy. There he befriended Constance Wentworth, who was working as a maid after having fled her family home under scandalous circumstances. Ten years later, the Wentworth family has come into money and titles, and Robert is surprised to see Constance at a ball hosted by her sister. Their rekindled friendship soon blossoms into sweet, believable romance. When Robert proposes marriage, Constance accepts, but her brother, Quinton, Duke of Walden, is wary of the kind of life she’ll have with a man who has debilitating seizures and urges Constance to share her scandalous secret with Robert before the wedding. Their happiness is threatened further when a bigoted local solicitor seeks to have Robert declared incompetent and to act as guardian over the Rothhaven estate. Readers will root for the fierce, resolute Constance and passionate Robert as they bond over their shared pasts and mutual determination to overcome adversity and stigma. Burrowes takes her series to new heights with this tender, turbulent romance.

Forever Mass Market; 9781538700334; November 10, 2020

★ Any Rogue Will Do

By Bethany Bennett

BookPage and Publishers Weekly – Starred Reviews

BookPage:

Bethany Bennett combines two beloved tropes in Any Rogue Will Do. In this Regency-set enemies-to-friends-to-lovers story, a reformed rogue finally gets the lady of his dreams. Ethan, Viscount Amesbury, tried to win Lady Charlotte Wentworth's heart before, but the attempt ended in gossip and disaster. Years later, Ethan now has a chance to help the woman he once maligned. Self-aware, never self-indulgent and ready to go after what she wants, Charlotte knows she's no longer the simpering miss that Ethan first met. But the two must also address disparities in class, wealth and gender autonomy. This is a fast-paced and spicy debut, with likeable characters and a feel-good finale that boasts a just-right blend of tenderness and groveling.

Publishers Weekly:

A young woman recruits a fake fiancé to avoid an arranged marriage in Bennett’s splendid Regency-set debut, the first in the Misfits of Mayfair series. Lady Charlotte “Lottie” Wentworth, a former debutante whose reputation has been stained with gossip, has little recourse but to marry the man chosen by her father—unless she can convince him she’s already engaged to someone else. The ingenious 26-year-old turns to reformed rogue Lord Ethan “Mac” Amesbury, the man responsible for inciting the rumors about her seven years ago and who is eager to make up for his past mistake—but his increasing desire for her complicates their arrangement. Lottie, meanwhile, is torn between her fear that Mac will again betray her trust and her growing reliance on his kindness and intense attraction to him. Bennett turns a spotlight on the class distinctions and gender restrictions of 1819 England, with a formidable leading lady and a swoon-worthy hero with lower-class roots. Mac is a credible and sympathetic rogue-turned-gentleman whose tumultuous past is neatly woven into the narrative, revealing the reasons for his prior bad behavior. Filled with gripping drama, strong characters, and steamy seduction, this tantalizing story is sure to win the hearts of Regency fans.

Forever, ISBN: 9781538735664

★ Looking to Get Lost: Adventures in Music and Writing

Peter Guralnick
 

Library Journal – Starred Review

Early on in the prolific and always interesting Guralnick’s (Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock ’n‘ Roll) new collection of musical portraits, the author references the old saw that “writing about music is like dancing about architecture.” He then spends the next 500-plus pages demonstrating exactly why that quote is so very wrong. Through the very best criticism, the writer instills into readers and would-be listeners the magic, creativity, and the vibrating synapses of excitement that result from the first taste of life-changing sounds. It’s not an easy task, but Guralnick is among the greatest at this. Holding forth on everyone from Robert Johnson to Leiber & Stroller, from Ray Charles to Tammy Wynette, Guralnick takes readers through a wide swath of the essential figures in American music, including those we know and those we should know, in a way that demonstrates both the unique qualities of these amazingly artistic individuals and the author’s own extraordinary ability to get to the heart of the matter.

VERDICT A wide-ranging vision and appreciation of American musical creativity from a writer who is himself an essential voice.—Bill Baars, formerly with Lake Oswego P.L., OR

Little, Brown. Oct. 2020. 576p. ISBN 9780316412629.

★ The King Of Confidence

By Miles Harvey

Publishers Weekly – Starred Review

A Tale of Utopian Dreamers, Frontier Schemers, True Believers, False Prophets, and the Murder of an American Monarch by Miles Harvey

Little, Brown; July 14, 2020; ISBN 9780316463591; Hardcover

★ The Indomitable Florence Finch

Library Journal - Starred Review

“ROBERT MRAZEK expertly...showcases a wealth of primary-source material, and skillfully invites readers into Florence's remarkable life. An engaging read for all interested in women's or 20th-century history.”

Hachette Books: July 21, 2020 ISBN: 9780316422277; Hardcover

★ x + y: A Mathematician's Manifesto for Rethinking Gender.

By Eugenia Cheng

Booklist - Starred Review

On yet another adventure in using the logic of math to address social and emotional issues, author Cheng (How to Bake Pi, 2015) takes on gender equality. Using mathematical models that consider ingressive (personal, self-oriented) and congressive (community-oriented, good-of-thegroup) traits, Cheng determines definitions, looks for patterns, creates models, and states her ultimate goal as the eradication of gender bias—and this is just in her book's introduction. She spends the next 150 pages lampooning assertions regarding supposed gender-based qualities and gender-determined capabilities that have risen from patriarchal social structures, falsified research, biased interpretation of data, and systemic discrimination. She frames her thinking with relatable examples and anecdotes and proffers a plea for more congressive thinking and action. She cites historic disasters that led to positive outcomes (the Black Death of the Middle Ages made the Renaissance possible; WWII opened doors for women) and wonders if the current pandemic and compliance/non-compliance with public health mandates might be the impetus for lasting social change. She ends with suggestions on how to become more congressive: look for similarities, not differences; seek to support and not advise; create mutually beneficial situations; and practice charity. Her arguments are both passionate and logical. — Kathleen McBroom

Sept. 2020. 288p. Basic, $28 (9781541646506). 510

★ Gordon Ramsay Quick and Delicious: 100 Recipes to Cook in 30 Minutes or Less.

By Gordon Ramsay

Booklist - Starred Review

Home chefs certain they could never meet Ramsay's exacting culinary standards on TV's Kitchen Nightmares will be pleasantly surprised by this approachable and forgiving selection of dishes and tips. Here, Ramsay encourages robust international flavors and careful preparation and instructs in simple ways to cut time without sacrificing freshness, taste, or style. Before diving into the recipes (which are uniformly appealing and accompanied by enticing full-color photographs), a tips and tools section helps focus the reader on the most important rules of cooking in this style: preparation makes for a smoother time, practice improves speed, and there's no shame in convenience foods without adulteration like peeled butternut squash, canned tomatoes, or spice blends. Prime among his instructions is to read the recipe first, and here in particular this is a good caution. The notes before and within each recipe are essential! They are full of information about ingredient selection, sustainable options, tricks for timing the dish correctly, and encouragements. Each section of recipes includes an ample—but not overwhelming—variety that spans a range of flavor palates. Among the traditional organization, Ramsay includes a meat-free main dish section. An instructive and inspiring entry that stands out among the vast array of quick-meal cookbooks. — Heather Booth

Sept. 2020. 256p. illus. Grand Central, $32 (9781538719336); e-book, $15.99 (9781538719329). 641.5

★ Blood and Oil: Mohammed bin Salman's Ruthless Quest for Global Power.

By Justin Scheck and Bradley Hope

Booklist - Starred Review
Wall Street Journal reporters Scheck and Hope (Billion Dollar Whale, 2018) investigated the dramatic rise of Mohammed bin Salman, documenting the Saudi crown prince’s disruptive ambitions, utter ruthlessness, and luck in seizing power at a time when authoritarians are ascendant and the prevailing global order tilts into disarray. Complex and impetuous, bin Salman—known as ”MBS” to critics and admirers alike—was low in the royal pecking order but eager to increase (not just spend) his inherited wealth. Fascinated by international business practices, MBS implemented “key performance indicator” metrics in the state-affiliated companies he controlled. Shrewd in leveraging social media, he tantalized young Saudis with advocacy for social reform. But the internet provided new means for rooting out dissent, and reform provided political cover to clear the field of rivals. The brutal killing of columnist and U.S. resident Jamal Khashoggi will stain MBS’s reputation for years to come. Unlike other recent reporting focusing on MBS’s enigmatic personality, Scheck and Hope follow the money, emphasizing the crucial role that billion-dollar development projects, investment funds, and public stock offerings played in securing MBS’s legitimacy among international elites and the chaotic and highly transactional Trump administration. The authors also caution that MBS, just turning 35, remains a work in progress. — Brendan Driscoll

Sept. 2020. 368p. Hachette, $29 (9780306846663). 324

★ Stakes Is High: Life after the American Dream.

By Mychal Denzel Smith

Booklist - Starred Review
Journalist Smith (Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching, 2016) takes on the failure and possibility of the American dream in this slim, impactful book. While Stakes Is High begins with Donald Trump’s election, Smith makes it clear that Trump is a symptom of a bigger disease: the belief in an America whose ideals set it apart from other countries, an America in which hard work ensures success, an America that offers liberty and justice for all. “As Americans,” Smith writes, “we are eager . . . to believe the most flattering narratives about ourselves.” But the truth is darker. The American dream takes inequality as its central premise, a baseline state of being that hard workers may aspire to rise above. That the country betrays this premise—through over-policing in Black neighborhoods, gendered violence, and environmental racism, to name a few—is almost beside the point, when the starting premise is already predicated on inequality.  Stakes Is High is a polemic in the best sense of the word, holding up a mirror to America in the hope that a clear-eyed glimpse of its failings will assist in the never-ending struggle to bring about the righteous nation it has always aspired to be. — Jenny Hamilton

Sept. 2020. 192p. Perseus/Bold Type, $26 (9781568588735); e-book, $14.99 (9781568588728). 306

★ The Paris Secret.

By Natasha Lester

Booklist - Starred Review

Her grandmother is a complete stranger. That is the only conclusion Kat Jourdan can reach once she discovers a cache of Dior gowns hidden away in Margaux Jourdan’s old cottage in Cornwall. Now Kat must not only figure out how Margaux became the owner of 65 priceless dresses, but she must also determine whether historian Elliott Beaufort’s claim that Kate’s grandmother is the very same WWII spy he has been researching for his latest book. As Kat and Elliott work together to uncover more information about Margaux, they find a connection not only to the House of Dior but also to the remarkable Penrose women and their friends and lovers, whose daring helped win the war. Best-selling Lester (The Paris Orphan, 2019) effectively finesses multiple timelines in her latest sweeping family saga written in elegant, evocative prose that is as carefully stitched together as a couture gown. Her meticulous attention to period details, impeccable plotting, and rich characterization will delight fans of Kate Morton or anyone in need of a gorgeously wrought, old-fashioned (in the best possible way, with echoes of Rosamunde Pilcher's The Shell Seekers) tale of love, loss, courage, and compassion. — John Charles

Sept. 2020. 496p. Forever, paper, $16.99 (9781538717288); e-book, $9.99 (9781538717271)

★ The Once and Future Witches.

By Alix E. Harrow

Booklist - Starred Review

Harrow solidifies her status as an exceptional storyteller with her outstanding sophomore effort (after The Ten Thousand Doors of January, 2019). Once upon a time (1893, to be exact), there were three sisters, Bella, Agnes, and Juniper Eastwood. Estranged for years, the sisters are brought back together by a seemingly unnatural force. Could it have been witchcraft? No, for there has been no magic (and therefore no witches) since the Purge. When one of the sisters unknowingly calls forth a mythic tower known only from fairy tales, it’s proof that magic lives once more. As women of the town march for their right to vote, the Eastwood sisters are witching to regain even more rights for women. But every fairy tale has a villain, and this one will do whatever it takes to end witching once and for all. Using magic as a metaphor for women’s rights, this novel cleverly connects the dots between the suffragist movement of the past to the Me Too movement of today. Compelling, exhilarating, and magical, The Once and Future Witches is a must-read.

Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020

— LynnDee Wathen

Oct. 2020. 384p. Orbit, $28 (9780316422048); e-book, $14.99 (9780316422031)

★ The Book of Lamps and Banners

By Elizabeth Hand
Kirkus – Starred Review
In a dystopian world of heavy fog, Nazi demonstrations, and a creeping virus, photographer Cass Neary searches for an ancient book that might have supernatural power.
Cass is a wreck. She’s lost her camera; she hasn’t heard from the love of her life, ex-con Quinn O’Boyle, in several days; and she’s jonesing for alcohol, speed, or anything else she can get her hands on. When she runs into rare-book runner Gryffin Haselton in London, he confesses that he’s about to make the sale of a lifetime to up-and-coming tech genius Tindra Bergstrand: a mysterious, arcane book that may have been written by Aristotle. Of course, things go horribly wrong: The middleman is murdered, and Cass and Gryffin escape only to be picked up by Tindra’s people. It turns out that Tindra wants the Aristotle text to scan into an app she’s developing that's supposed to heal the brains of people suffering from PTSD—but when Cass gets a glimpse of the Ludus Mentis app, she flashes back viscerally to the greatest trauma of her life. Reunited with Quinn, Cass is soon on the run, dodging neo-Nazis as they rally in London and following clues to a remote Scandinavian island, hoping that if she recovers the book it could pay her and Quinn’s way to a new start. Cass is walking wounded; still she views the world through the eyes of a true artist, an artist who feels the full weight of her calling. “Because what is a photographer,” she asks, “but a chooser of the slain, someone who decides who or what is destined for immortality?” Cass Neary is a tough, self-destructive character who still exudes compassion, courage, and love for the beauty and pain of life – even more so because she recognizes it impermanence. Part The Club Dumas, part The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, all punk attitude and beautiful ache.