TheBestseller
Observatory

Best Sellers

Hardcover Fiction

Week of April 26, 1981

FictionNonfiction
WeekMonth
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1
7
GORKY PARK
Martin Cruz Smith
Cover of GORKY PARK

GORKY PARK

by Martin Cruz Smith · Random House

2 wks at #1 · 3 on list

A triple murder in a Moscow amusement center: three corpses found frozen in the snow, faces and fingers missing. Chief homicide investigator Arkady Renko is brilliant, sensitive, honest, and cynical about everything except his profession. To identify the victims and uncover the truth, he must battle the KGB, FBI, and the New York City police as he pursues a rich, ruthless, and well-connected American fur dealer. Meanwhile, Renko is falling in love with a beautiful, headstrong dissident for whom he may risk everything. -- Book Description.

4
2
CREATION
Gore Vidal
Cover of CREATION

CREATION

by Gore Vidal · Random House

4 wks on list
5
5
REFLEX
Dick Francis
Cover of REFLEX

REFLEX

by Dick Francis · Putnam's

3 wks on list

A jockey unravels nasty secrets of corruption, blackmail, and murder in this mystery from grand master of crime fiction Dick Francis. Longtime jockey Philip Nore is no hero. But when he begins to suspect that a racetrack photographer’s fatal accident was really murder, he sets out to discover the truth and trap the killer. Slowly, he unravels some nasty secrets of corruption, blackmail and murder—and unwittingly sets himself up as the killer’s next target... “Reflex enthralls.”—The New York Times

9
2
TAR BABY
Toni Morrison
Cover of TAR BABY

TAR BABY

by Toni Morrison · Knopf

2 wks on list
12
3
ANSWER AS A MAN
Taylor Caldwell
Cover of ANSWER AS A MAN

ANSWER AS A MAN

by Taylor Caldwell · Putnam's

18 wks on list

"The powerful odyssey of a man of passionate principles in a decadent age ... A valiant man, haunted by forbidden yearnings. An innocent Pennsylvania town, under siege by the forces of corruption, a widening net of scandal and tragedy, threatening both the good and the evil alike.

14
NEW
GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE
Frank Herbert
Cover of GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE

GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE

by Frank Herbert · Putnam's

1 wks on list

THE CROWNING ACHIEVEMENT OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL SCIENCE FICTION SERIES IN HISTORYWith more than ten million copies sold, Frank Herbert's magnificent DUNE books stand among the major achievements of the imagination. God Emperor of Dune is the astonishing fourth book in the series. Centuries have passed on Dune itself, and the planet is green with life. Leto, the son of Dune's savior, is still alive but far from human, and the fate of all humanity hangs on his awesome sacrifice... Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

Historical bestseller data sourced from the New York Times Book Review, archived by Hawes Publications.