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Issue:  April, 2009
I'm honestly running out of excuses for being delinquent. It's been a busy month here at Poisoned Pen Press.  It's true.  I swear! I think I just need a clone...or a cylon copy (for those Battlestar Galactica fans out there.  Yes, I am just that nerdy).

As always, we're working hard to bring you excellence in mystery!



What's New...
Well, Rob and I just returned from our second successful sales conference with Ingram Publisher Services. As you know, our titles are now distributed through IPS. As a result, we pitch our new titles to their sales force three times a year.  What does this mean?  I get to put together a song and dance for the sales reps, obviously! Really, it's a chance for us to discuss publicity plans for the titles, give the reps the highlights, and let them know where we think these titles will do best.

We spent the last two days discussing the Fall 2009 titles.  There's great stuff coming, and the reps seem excited.  I still can't get over the fact that we are now planning that far in advance.  It boggles the mind.

On another note, I've started pestering our authors for news. After all, I want to hear about what's going on with them, and I'm sure you do, too.  So here's some of the latest from the author channels.

Vicki Delany is publishing another book... So it's not from Poisoned Pen Press.  But it is still worth a gander if you like Vicki's other mysteries.

Gold Digger: A Klondike Mystery.  First in a new series from Rendezvous Crime (A Canadian publisher).  April 2009.
 
It's the spring of 1898 and Dawson, Yukon Territory, is the most exciting town in North America. The great Klondike Gold Rush is in full swing and Fiona MacGillivray has crawled over the Chilkoot Pass determined to make her fortune as the owner of the Savoy dance hall. Provided, that is, if her 12-year-old son, growing up much too fast for her liking; the former Glasgow street fighter who's now her business partner; a stern, handsome NWMP constable; an ageing, love-struck, ex-boxing champion; a wild assortment of headstrong dancers, croupiers, gamblers, madams without hearts of gold, bar hangers-on, cheechakos and sourdoughs; and Fiona's own nimble-fingered past don't get to her first. And then there's a dead body on centre stage.

More good news from other publishers and our authors.  Charles Benoit apparently has a contract for a young adult book.  I don't know much....I just know he's excited.  Maybe the lovely Charles will send us some details for next month's news. (Hint, hint)

 
Lone StarLone Star by Ed Ifkovic

In 1955 Edna Ferber is basking in the success of her blockbuster novel Giant. Director George Stevens and Warner Brothers Studio are in the final days of filming her Texas oil epic, and Edna looks forward to meeting Rock Hudson, Liz Taylor, and especially young James Dean. But there is trouble brewing. James Dean, the new box-office sensation and teen heartthrob, has been accused of fathering a child with an unstable extra named Carisa Krausse. The studio fears the negative publicity will jeopardize the release of the movie.

Then the actress is murdered, and James Dean is the prime suspect.

With character-actress Mercedes McCambridge as her sympathetic sidekick, a shaken Edna investigates the killing, determined to clear Dean's name.

Edna soon entrenches herself in the life of the often secretive maverick actor. But can she prove his innocence? The more she investigates the more she uncovers simmering rivalries, petty jealousies, and cruel infidelities-the dark underside of glittering Hollywood.

Publishers Weekly notes that "the main pleasure" of this dynamite debut "is looking beneath the surface of the movie business to see the stars as people, in particular the doomed Dean."


This is the third of Charles' books to feature Callie Anson. Publisher's Weekly contends that Deep Waters"Charles combines credible characters and a puzzling mystery with a tantalizing look at the world of reality TV." (Hardcover, $24.95)
 

The Pain NurseThe Pain Nurse by Jon Talton.
 
Cheryl Beth Wilson is an elite nurse at Cincinnati Memorial Hospital who finds a doctor brutally murdered in a secluded office. Wilson had been having an affair with the doctor's husband, a surgeon, and this makes her a "person of interest" to the police, if not at outright suspect. But someone other than the cops is watching Cheryl Beth.

The killing comes as former homicide detective Will Borders is just hours out of surgery. But as his stretcher is wheeled past the crime scene, he knows this is no random act of violence. Instead, it has all the marks of a serial killer case he supposedly solved years before.

Rebuked by his former partner and unable even to walk, Borders starts to investigate. He teams up with Cheryl Beth, who is desperate to clear her name. But as the city teeters on the edge of violence and a killer grows closer, the two are running out of time to unlock the secrets of the murder and the brooding, old hospital.

The Pain Nurse garnered a starred review from Library Journal who praised Talton for "demonstrat[ing] his versatility in depicting the little-known world of the hospital pain nurse. A strong series launch, for all collections."
   (Hardcover, $24.95)
 

Probable ClawsProbable Claws by Clea Simon

When cats start getting sick, feline-loving freelance writer Theda Krakow suspects an accident is to blame. But her shelter-owning rocker buddy Violet claims the contaminated kibble was poisoned.

When Theda starts looking at shelter politics she finds a number of people who could have happily committed this heinous crime. The city shelter may be backing down from a healthy pet initiative, a series of threatening letters suggests a darker motive, and old-fashioned jealousy may factor in as well. The pressure mounts as Theda's editor grabs onto the idea of a hot story-and dangles a prime job as bait.

But how can Theda investigate when feelings run so high?
As the music scene rallies to raise funds to save the cats, Theda finds herself on the outs with both her buddies and her longtime boyfriend Bill.

And when she's caught at a murder scene, bloody scalpel in hand and only her beloved cat Musetta as a witness to what really happened, Theda must scramble to find the real killer before she, and Musetta, become the next victims.

Publishers Weekly comments that Simon's "Well-drawn characters, a plot with many strings to unravel and plenty of appealing cats make this another winner."

($24.95 Hardcover)

And we're happy to announce that Jon Talton's David Mapstone backlist are now all available from Poisoned Pen Press

Don't miss the critically acclaimed series that takes a hard look at the dark underbelly of the Phoenix desert.

Where Are Our Authors...
In order to avoid last month's debacle, I'm clearing the list with the authors BEFORE I send out the events, but I'm a bit behind.  I hope to have the events to you by Monday.  I apologize again for the delay. I just want to ensure that I am getting you the most accurate information. 

 
Happy Reading!
 

Jessica Tribble
Poisoned Pen Press