February's Hot Titles

Yesterday, I previewed the February book releases I already have in my closet.  Today, I'll mention some of the other February book releases.  If I missed any February titles that you're waiting to read, let me know.

 Nancy Atherton's latest cozy mystery, Aunt Dimity and the Family Tree, kicks off the list.  When Fairworth House is renovated, a mysterious family tree is uncovered.  Aunt Dimity is called on for guidance as to Fairworth House's shadowy past.

Police Constable Hamish Macbeth has to deal with murder and rumors after a body is found stuffed in the chimney of a villager's home in M.C. Beaton's Death of a Chimney Sweep.

One of my favorite young sleuths returns in Alan Bradley's A Red Herring Without Mustard, featuring Flavia de Luce.   Flavia comes to the rescue of a Gypsy woman charged with abducting a child, drawing from her knowledge of poisons and gypsy lore.

When a woman's daugther dies in a canoeing accident, and her body is never recovers, she continues to see her daughter from time to time.  Is it just that she refuses to accept her death?  Or is Marcy's daughter really still alive?  It's Joy Fielding's Now You See Her.

Everyone's favorite bakery owner/sleuth returns in the latest Hannah Swensen mystery, Devil's Food Cake Murder by Joanne Fluke.  When a visiting minister is found face down in a plate of devil's food cake with a bullet in his head, Hannah's investigation reveals that the dead preacher wasn't what he appeared.

Judith Jance sets her latest mystery, Fatal Error, in Yavapai County, Arizona, where a murder leaves a trail of broken hearts and many suspects.  Ali Reynolds, media relations officer for the Yavapai Sheriff's Dept., tries to prove a close friend is innocent, only to put herself in a killer's path.

Red Wolf by Liza Marklund should be popular with readers who appreciate Scandinavian crime fiction.  Crime reporter Annika Bengtzon investigates when a journalist is murdered in a northern Swedish town, suspecting the death is linked to an attack on a n isolated air base. 

Gideon's Sword by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child finds Gideon handling his first assignment as a rogue operative, finding a Chinese scientist to steal the plans he's carrying for a new weapon of mass destruction.

J.D. Robb's Treachery in Death turns into an investigation of dirty cops, possibly guilty of corruption and murder.  It's up to Det. Eve Dallas, her partner, Peabody, and Eve's husband, Roarke, to prove it.

On Borrowed Time is David Rosenfelt's latest crime novel.  When Richard and his fiancee, Jennifer, are involved in a wreck, he's knocked unconscious, and she disappears.  But, not only is she gone, her existence can't be confirmed by the police or anyone in Richard's life.

Charlie Fox returns in Zoë Sharp's new thriller, Fourth Day.  Five years earlier, Thomas went inside a cult to gather evidence that its leader, Randall Bane, was responsible for his son's death.  When Charlie and her partner, Sean, go to get him out, they discover Thomas might not want to leave, and Randall easily pinpoints Charlie's weaknesses.

In Though Not Dead by Diana Stabenow, Kate Shugak inherits her uncle's estate, along with a letter saying, "Find my father."  Easier said than done, and within three days, Kate has been shot at, hit on the head, and run off the road.

Randy Wayne White's latest is Night Vision.  The manager of a trailer park, working for the syndicate, will do whatever he's told to develop the park.  When a teen girl sees him kill someone, her only hope for survival is Doc Ford.

I'll wrap up this list of forthcoming novels with a few debut novels.  Maybe one of these authors will become the next author whose books are anxiously awaited.  Good luck to all of them!

In Sara J. Henry's Learning to Swim, Troy Chance jumped in to save a boy she  saw thrown into Lake Champlain from the rear of a ferry.  Then she learned he had been kidnapped, and was part of a bizarre, bloody plot.

Darynda Jones' debut novel is First Grave on the Right.  Charley sees dead people, and sometimes helps them go into the light.  She can even handle the murder victims who want Charley to bring their killers to justice before they move on.  But, what about the Entity who has followed Charley all her life?

I mentioned Michael David Lukas' novel, The Oracle of Stamboul, when I discussed possible books for book clubs.  Elenora Cohen's birth in 1877 fulfills a prophecy by a former king of the Ottoman empire.  She would grow up to charm a sultan and change the course of an empire's history.

One Rough Man is Brad Taylor's first Pike Logan thriller.  The unit called Taskforce was essential, but illegal.  They had been commissioned at the highest level of the U.S. government, and built around top operators from various intelligence and Special Forces' agencies.  Pike Logan was the most successful operator in this unit, until a personal tragedy changed his outlook.  Now, he must avert an attack planned by two men who controlled a powerful weapon.

February promises cozy mysteries, thrillers, and some interesting debuts.  I hope you find a book or two here to entice you.  What are you waiting to read?  Let me know, and let me know what I missed.  Happy Reading!