BOOKCLUB RECOMMENDATIONS FEBRUARY 2012

A Common Loss    Kirsten Tranter    Fourth Estate    $29.99
	They were originally five. Elliot. Brian. Tallis. Cameron. And Dylan - charismatic Dylan - the mediator, the leader, the man each one turned to in a time of crisis. Five close friends, bonded in college, still coming together for their annual trip to Las Vegas. This year they are four. Four friends, sharing a common loss: Dylan��s tragic death. A common loss that, upon their arrival in Vegas, will bring with it a common threat: one that will make them question who their departed friend really was, and whether he is even worthy of their grief.
The Midwife of Venice    Roberta Rich     Ebury Press    $32.95
	At midnight, the dogs, cats, and rats rule Venice. The Ponte di Ghetto Nuovo, the bridge that leads to the ghetto, trembles under the weight of sacks of rotting vegetables, rancid fat, and vermin. It was on such a night that the men came for Hannah,, a midwife in the Jewish ghetto, who was known throughout Venice for her skills. When the Conte di Padovani appears at Hannah's door imploring her to attend his wife in her travails, Hannah's compassion is tested. Not only is it illegal for Jews to render medical treatment to Christians, it's also punishable by death. But Hannah cannot turn down the money the Count will reward her with if she is successful in delivering him an heir.
Lionheart    Sharon Penman    _    $26.99
	They were called "The Devil's Brood", though never to their faces. They were the four surviving sons of Henry Plantagenet and Eleanor of Aquitaine. With two such extraordinary parents, much was expected of them. But the eldest � charming yet mercurial � would turn on his father and, like his brother Geoffrey, meet an early death. When Henry died, Richard would take the throne and, almost immediately, set off for the Holy Land. This was the Third Crusade, and it would be characterized by internecine warfare among the Christians and extraordinary campaigns against the Saracens. And, back in England, by the conniving of Richard's youngest brother, John, to steal his crown.
Believing the Lie    Elizabeth George    Hodder & Stoughton    $32.99
	Detective Inspector Lynley is approached by business magnate Brian Fairclough for a confidential review - not a formal investigation - of the circumstances of his nephew's demise. The coroner's verdict is accidental death. Still grieving for his murdered wife, Lynley has personal reasons for welcoming a spell away from London. He heads to the wild beauty of the Lake District, with Deborah and Simon St James to provide cover for his inquiries. Barbara Havers, back at base, makes her own unique contribution to the case, distracted only by Isabelle's ambitions to improve her Detective Sergeant's appearance. When he comes to know the various members of the extended Fairclough dynasty, Lynley finds many possible motives for murder, and uncovers layers of deceit and betrayal that expose the lies at the heart of the Cumbrian community.
11.22.63    Stephen King     Hodder & Stoughton    $32.99
	What if you could go back in time and change the course of history? What if the watershed moment you could change was the JFK assassination? 11/22/63, the date that Kennedy was shot - unless . . . King takes his protagonist Jake Epping, a high school English teacher from Lisbon Falls, Maine, 2011, on a fascinating journey back to 1958 - from a world of mobile phones and iPods to a new world of Elvis and JFK, of Plymouth Fury cars and Lindy Hopping, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake's life - a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time.
Storyteller    Donald Sturrock     Harper Collins    $24.99
	Roald Dahl pushed children�s literature into new and uncharted territory. The man behind the stories, however, remains an enigma. A single-minded adventurer, an eternal child, Dahl�s public persona was characterised by his blunt opinions on taboo subjects. Described as an anti-Semite, a racist and a misogynist, he felt ignored and undervalued by the literary establishments of London and New York. To his readers, though, Dahl was always a hero and, since his death, his reputation has been transformed. His wild imagination is now celebrated, along with his quirky humour and his linguistic elegance. In this masterly biography, Donald Sturrock draws on a huge range of source material that has become available since Dahl�s death. Revealing, compelling and a pure joy to read.