The Printed Page

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

If you’re new to Mailbox Monday welcome! Thank you to everyone who stops by Mailbox Monday. Whether you comment or visit I appreciate your taking the time to drop in.

Finally this week’s MM post. Crazy doings in the Larsen house this weekend. Callie kitty got a bit too close to one of her housemates and took a claw to the eye. She’ll be fine. And the Internet is back from its vacation. I think it took a hint from last week’s blog theme and decided that the beach looked mighty inviting. We were in Vegas so my Internet service also took a little R&R.

*** The Botticelli Secret by Marina Fiorato (new-to-me author/thank you to Kimm at My Eclectic Reads for sending me her copy) (Claimed by Jenny)

In this exhilarating cross between The Da Vinci Code and The Birth of Venus, an irrepressible young woman in 15th-century Italy must flee for her life after stumbling upon a deadly secret when she serves as a model for Botticelli… When part-time model and full-time prostitute Luciana Vetra is asked by one of her most exalted clients to pose for a painter friend, she doesn’t mind serving as the model for the central figure of Flora in Sandro Botticelli’s masterpiece “Primavera.” But when the artist dismisses her without payment, Luciana impulsively steals an unfinished version of the painting–only to find that somone is ready to kill her to get it back. What could possibly be so valuable about the picture? As friends and clients are slaughtered around her, Luciana turns to the one man who has never desired her beauty, novice librarian Brother Guido. Fleeing Venice together, Luciana and Guido race through the nine cities of Renaissance Italy, pursued by ruthless foes who are determined to keep them from decoding the painting’s secrets.

The Executor by Jesse Kellerman (new-to-me author/Shelf Awareness) (Claimed by Kim)

Things aren’t going well for Joseph Geist. He’s broke. His graduate school advisor won’t talk to him. And his girlfriend has kicked him out of her apartment, leaving him homeless and alone. It’s a tough spot for a philosopher to be in, and he’s ready to give up all hope of happiness when an ad in the local paper catches his eye. ‘Conversationalist wanted’, it reads. Which sounds perfect to Joseph. After all, he’s never done anything in his life except talk. And the woman behind the ad turns out to be the perfect employer: brilliant, generous, and willing to pay him for making conversation. Before long, Joseph has moved in with her, and has begun to feel very comfortable in her big, beautiful house. So comfortable, in fact, that he would do anything to stay there – forever.

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What books came into your house last week? You have the choice of using inlinkz or Mr. Linky. With inlinkz you can include a book cover if you’d like along with the link to your Mailbox Monday post (clicking on the image takes you to the blog post.) Duplicate links will not count toward the fundraising efforts.

Don’t forget to fill out either inlinkz or Mister Linky or leave a comment with a list of books if you don’t blog. If you’re interested in Read It Forward you will need to leave a comment in addition to filling out a link feature.

• In the “Your name:” box, please enter either your name or your blog’s name.

• In the “Your URL:” box please enter the URL/link that will lead directly to the post you are submitting (also called the permalink). This is not the URL to the blog’s home page.

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Read It Forward details

Due to a trifecta of events in our household such as no Internet service at home, my work schedule and a pet medical emergency this monring Mailbox Monday will post Monday this week. See you all tomorrow

Thirteen year-old Johnny Merrimon had the perfect life: a warm home and loving parents; a twin sister, Alyssa, with whom he shared an irreplaceable bond. He knew nothing of loss, until the day Alyssa vanished from the side of a lonely street. Now, a year later, Johnny finds himself isolated and alone, failed by the people he’d been taught since birth to trust. No one else believes that Alyssa is still alive, but Johnny is certain that she is—confident in a way that he can never fully explain.

Determined to find his sister, Johnny risks everything to explore the dark side of his hometown. It is a desperate, terrifying search, but Johnny is not as alone as he might think. Detective Clyde Hunt has never stopped looking for Alyssa either, and he has a soft spot for Johnny. He watches over the boy and tries to keep him safe, but when Johnny uncovers a dangerous lead and vows to follow it, Hunt has no choice but to intervene.

Then a second child goes missing . . .

Undeterred by Hunt’s threats or his mother’s pleas, Johnny enlists the help of his last friend, and together they plunge into the wild, to a forgotten place with a history of violence that goes back more than a hundred years. There, they meet a giant of a man, an escaped convict on his own tragic quest. What they learn from him will shatter every notion Johnny had about the fate of his sister; it will lead them to another far place, to a truth that will test both boys to the limit.

Title: The Time Weaver Author: Shana Abe Release date: 2010

Honor Carlisle may have been born into the drákon clan but she’s always felt like a stranger to her kin. It’s an intuition that proves true when she receives a mysterious letter – a letter sent by her future self. Honor learns she is a Time Weaver: a creature with the extraordinary ability to transport herself into the past or future.

But the letter contains a dire warning. If Honor remains in her home at Darkfrith, she is certain to be killed. Fleeing for sanctuary among old friends in Spain, she practices her Weaving and unknowingly draws closer to an even more immediate danger. For on one of her Weaves into the future, Honor encounters the very man she should most avoid: the prince of a rival tribe of drákon.

Drawn to Prince Alexandru of Zaharen, Honor is unable to resist the temptation of Weaving to him again and again across time. As they surrender to a desire that brings the present and future ever closer, they realize they are true soulmates. But they also risk fulfilling a terrible prophecy – for their union is destined to wreak havoc. Now Honor and Sandu must place their trust – and their lives – in each other’s hands, and their faith in a magical love that could restore order to the drákon universe – or destroy it forever.

*** I don’t read fantasy so you won’t see The Time Weaver reviewed here but I sure do love the cover.

Title: Married by Morning (Hathaways, book #4) Author: Lisa Kleypas Release date: May ’10

Leo, Lord Ramsay, makes the unwelcome discovery that he and the other Hathaways may lose their beloved Ramsay House . . . unless he marries immediately and sires a son within a year . . .

Title: Love in the Afternoon (Hathaways, book #5) Author: Lisa Kleypas Release date: June ’10

Captain Christopher Phelan has been corresponding with the beautiful golden-haired Prudence Mercer while he was away fighting in the Crimean War. What he doesn’t know, however, is that the woman who wrote to him is actually Prudence’s best friend, Beatrix Hathaway.

Upon his return home to Hampshire, it becomes clear that Christopher’s experiences in war have changed him. In this scene, Beatrix and Christopher argue over the dog he brought back with him, a regimental mascot named Albert . . .

I love Lisa’s historical fiction romances

Fin-de-siecle Vienna comes to life in this colorful historical thriller featuring the artist Gustav Klimt

It’s the summer of 1898 and Austria is transfixed by a series of brutal murders. When renowned painter Gustav Klimt’s female model becomes the fifth victim, the artist is fingered as the culprit. Klimt’s lawyer, Werthen and his friend, the famed criminologist Inspector Gross must delve into a nationwide conspiracy in order to acquit the unusual and unpredictable artiste. With an unmatched knowledge of Vienna’s history, culture, and politics, J. Sydney Jones introduces a gripping new mystery series set in a cosmopolitan city at the height of its artistic and social importance.

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I have the second book in this series, Requiem in Vienna sitting on my review shelf. As I have this ‘thing’ about reading series in order book #1 must come before book #2 and this counts as my next historical read.

Title: The Stones Cry Out Author/website(s): Sibella Giorello 267 pages Publisher: Revell Publication date: January ’07 Genre: Police procedural/faith-based author Review book or pleasure reading: Pleasure reading New-to-me author: Yes Would I recommend this book: Maybe Would I read more from this author: I do have book #3 in this series, The Clouds Roll Away coming to me as a review book so I will be reading book #2, The Rivers Run Dry. Journal notes: Pleasure reading – no review though I found the story a bit slow for me.

When nobody talks… the stones cry out.

During a rally in the searing heat of a Virginia summer, two men plummet from a building into the crowd below. The victims are a white police officer and a young black man with a troubled past. And though hundreds of people stood at the scene, nobody saw what happened. Or are they just not talking? FBI agent Raleigh Harmon, one of Richmond’s own, has to solve the case—fast.

The Bureau wants a quick verdict, with or without the truth. But with tight-lipped witnesses, Raleigh must rely on her instincts and her training in forensic geology to uncover the facts. Working her connections with the city’s powerful families and its seedy underbelly, Raleigh is determined to see justice prevail. Will she solve the case before the growing racial unrest rages out of control? Or will her choices ultimately bring down everyone involved—including Raleigh herself?

When nobody talks… the stones cry out.

During a rally in the searing heat of a Virginia summer, two men plummet from a building into the crowd below. The victims are a white police officer and a young black man with a troubled past. And though hundreds of people stood at the scene, nobody saw what happened. Or are they just not talking? FBI agent Raleigh Harmon, one of Richmond’s own, has to solve the case—fast.

The Bureau wants a quick verdict, with or without the truth. But with tight-lipped witnesses, Raleigh must rely on her instincts and her training in forensic geology to uncover the facts. Working her connections with the city’s powerful families and its seedy underbelly, Raleigh is determined to see justice prevail. Will she solve the case before the growing racial unrest rages out of control? Or will her choices ultimately bring down everyone involved—including Raleigh herself?

*** I spotted book #3 of the Raleigh Norman series, The Clouds Roll Away over at Shelf Awareness last week. It immediately appealed to me so I put book #1, The Stones Cry Out on hold at the library. The very next day I was offered a review copy of The Clouds Roll Away. The last thing I need is another new series to hook me but I’m hopeless addicted to suspense series.

Title: The Vanishing Point Author/website(s): Mary Sharratt 364 pages Publisher: Mariner Books Publication date: June ’06 Genre: Historical fiction Review book or pleasure reading: Pleasure reading New-to-me author: Yes Would I recommend this book: Probably Would I read more from this author: Looking forward to reading her newest coming this April, Daughters of Witching Hill Journal notes: Pleasure reading – no review.

In the tradition of Philippa Gregory’s smart, transporting fiction comes this tale of dark suspense, love, and betrayal, featuring two star-crossed sisters, one lost and the other searching.

Bright and inquisitive, Hannah Powers was raised by a father who treated her as if she were his son. While her beautiful and reckless sister, May, pushes the limits of propriety in their small English town, Hannah harbors her own secret: their father has given her an education forbidden to women. But Hannah’s secret serves her well when she journeys to colonial Maryland to reunite with May, who has been married off to a distant cousin after her sexual misadventures ruined her marriage prospects in England.

As Hannah searches for May, who has disappeared, she finds herself falling in love with her brother-in-law. Alone in a wild, uncultivated land where the old rules no longer apply, Hannah is freed from the constraints of the society that judged both her and May as dangerous – too smart, too fearless, and too hungry for life. But Hannah is also plagued by doubt, as her quest for answers to May’s fate grows ever more disturbing and tangled.