TheBestseller
Observatory

Best Sellers

Hardcover Fiction

Week of August 9, 2009

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1
NEW
THE DEFECTOR
Daniel Silva
Cover of THE DEFECTOR

THE DEFECTOR

by Daniel Silva · Putnam

1 wks at #1 · 1 on list

In Moscow Rules Gabriel Allon went up against the sadisitc Ivan Kharkov. Now he must outsmart him once and for all in this #1 New York Times bestseller from Daniel Silva. Grigori Bulganov once saved Gabriel Allon's life in Moscow—and Allon always repays his debts. So when the former Russian intelligence officer vanishes, Allon gathers his team of operatives to go after those responsible. But, in a running battle that rages across the globe, Allon soon realizes that his enemy may already hold the key to victory. And that if he continues, it will cost him more than he can bear...

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BEST FRIENDS FOREVER
Jennifer Weiner
Cover of BEST FRIENDS FOREVER

BEST FRIENDS FOREVER

by Jennifer Weiner · Atria

2 wks on list

Jennifer Weiner, author of Good in Bed,In Her Shoes and the forthcoming Who DoYou Love, explores the nuances of female friendship with relish... Addie Downs and Valerie Adler were eight when they first met and decided to be best friends forever. But, in the wake of tragedy and betrayal during their teenage years, everything changed. Val went on to fame and fortune. Addie stayed behind in their small Midwestern town. Destiny, however, had more in store for these two. And when, twenty-five years later, Val shows up at Addie's front door with blood on her coat and terror on her face, it is the start of a wild adventure for two women joined by love and history who find strength together that they could not find alone.

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TWENTIES GIRL
Sophie Kinsella
Cover of TWENTIES GIRL

TWENTIES GIRL

by Sophie Kinsella · Dial Press

1 wks on list

The hilarious romantic comedy from NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING AUTHOR Sophie Kinsella If you suddenly had a friend that only you could see or hear, what would you do? You could worry that your stressful life has tipped you over the edge and you have lost the plot, big time . . . you could hide under your duvet, hoping that they would go away . . . Or You could have some fun . . . You could make your ex-boyfriend take you back . . . You could solve the mystery of the dragonfly necklace, make a fool of yourself many times, get your business back on its feet . . . You could dance with a gorgeous man who just can’t resist you . . . And you could just discover the best friend you ever had. ***** EVERYBODY LOVES SOPHIE KINSELLA: ***** 'Funny, fast and farcical. I loved it' JOJO MOYES 'I couldn’t put it down.' LOUISE PENTLAND (SprinkleofGlitter) 'I almost cried with laughter' DAILY MAIL 'Life doesn't get much better than a new Sophie Kinsella novel' RED 'Hilarious . . . you'll laugh and gasp on every page' JENNY COLGAN [Cover may vary]

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BLACK HILLS
Nora Roberts
Cover of BLACK HILLS

BLACK HILLS

by Nora Roberts · Putnam

3 wks on list

In this #1 New York Times bestseller, Nora Roberts takes readers deep into the rugged hills of South Dakota, where the shadows keep secrets, hunters stalk the land, and a friendship matures into something more.... Cooper Sullivan spent the summers of his youth on his grandparents’ South Dakota ranch, sharing innocent games and stolen kisses with the neighbor girl, Lil Chance. Now, twelve years after they last walked together hand in hand, fate has brought them back to the Black Hills. Though the memory of Coop’s touch still haunts her, Lil has let nothing stop her dream of opening the Chance Wildlife Refuge, but something—or someone—has been keeping a close watch. When small pranks and acts of destruction escalate into a heartless attack on Lil’s beloved cougar, memories of an unsolved murder have Coop springing to action to keep Lil safe. Both of them know the natural dangers that lurk in the wild landscape of the Black Hills. But a killer of twisted and unnatural instincts has singled them out as prey....

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FINGER LICKIN’ FIFTEEN
Janet Evanovich
Cover of FINGER LICKIN’ FIFTEEN

FINGER LICKIN’ FIFTEEN

by Janet Evanovich · St. Martin’s Press

5 wks on list

Recipe for disaster: Celebrity chef Stanley Chipotle comes to Trenton to participate in a barbecue cook-off and loses his head – literally. Throw in some spice: Bail bonds office worker Lula is witness to the crime, and the only one she'll talk to is Trenton cop, Joe Morelli. Pump up the heat: Chipotle's sponsor is offering a million-dollar reward to anyone who can provide information leading to the capture of the killers. Stir the pot: Lula recruits bounty hunter Stephanie Plum to help her find the killers and collect the moolah. Add a secret ingredient: Stephanie's Grandma Mazur. Enough said. Bring to a boil: Can Stephanie hunt down two killers, a traitor, five skips, keep her grandmother out of the sauce, solve Ranger's problems and not jump his bones? Warning: Janet Evanovich's Finger Lickin' Fifteen is habanero hot. So good you'll want seconds.

8
NEW
FIRE AND ICE
J. A. Jance
Cover of FIRE AND ICE

FIRE AND ICE

by J. A. Jance · Morrow.HarperCollins

1 wks on list

“In the gripping Fire and Ice, Jance showcases both Beaumont and Brady….The prolific Jance…is in fine form.” —Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel New York Times bestseller J.A. Jance reunites two of her most popular series characters—Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Brady and Seattle detective J.P. Beaumont—in Fire and Ice, as the separate investigations into grisly homicides in two different states shockingly intertwine. As Jance proved in her previous Beau/Brady pairing, Partner in Crime, when these two join forces, fireworks happen. Fire and Ice is not to be missed.

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RAIN GODS
James Lee Burke
Cover of RAIN GODS

RAIN GODS

by James Lee Burke · Simon & Schuster

2 wks on list

When Hackberry Holland became sheriff of a tiny Texas town near the Mexican border, he'd hoped to leave certain things behind: his checkered reputation, his haunted dreams, and his obsessive memories of the good life with his late wife, Rie. But the discovery of the bodies of nine illegal aliens, machine-gunned to death and buried in a shallow grave behind a church, soon makes it clear that he won't escape so easily. As Hack and Deputy Sheriff Pam Tibbs attempt to untangle the threads of this complex and grisly case, a damaged young Iraq veteran, Pete Flores, and his girlfriend, Vikki Gaddis, are running for their lives, hoping to outwit the bloodthirsty criminals who want to kill Pete for his involvement in the murders. The only trouble is, Pete doesn't know who he's running from: drunk and terrified, he fled the scene of the crime when the shooting began. And there's a long list of people who want Pete and Vikki dead: crime boss Hugo Cistranos, who hired Pete for the operation; Nick Dolan, a strip club owner and small-time gangster with revenge on his mind; and a mysterious God-fearing serial-killer-for-hire known as Preacher Jack Collins, with enigmatic motives of his own. With the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and a host of cold-blooded killers on Pete and Vikki's trail, it's up to Sheriff Holland to find them first and figure out who's behind the mass murder before anyone else ends up dead. In this thrilling and intricate work, James Lee Burke has once again proven himself a master storyteller and a perceptive chronicler of the darkest corners of the human heart.

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DEAD AND GONE
Charlaine Harris
Cover of DEAD AND GONE

DEAD AND GONE

by Charlaine Harris · Ace

12 wks on list

Now it's the turn of the weres and shifters to follow the lead of the undead and reveal their existence to the ordinary world. Sookie Stackhouse already knows about them, of course - her brother turns into a panther at the full moon, she's friend to the local Were pack and Sam, her boss at Merlotte's bar, is a shifter. At first the great Were revelation seems to go well - then the horribly mutilated body of a were-panther is found outside Merlotte's. Though Sookie never cared that much for the victim, no one deserves such a horrible death, so she agrees to use her telepathic talent to track down the murderer. But what Sookie doesn't realise is that there is a far greater danger than this killer threatening Bon Temps: a race of unhuman beings, older, more powerful and far more secretive than the vampires or the werewolves is preparing for war ...

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THE APOSTLE
Brad Thor
Cover of THE APOSTLE

THE APOSTLE

by Brad Thor · Atria

4 wks on list

From #1 New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author, Brad Thor, comes the white-knuckled thriller The Apostle. A new administration and a new approach to dealing with America’s enemies have left covert counterterrorism operative Scot Harvath without a job. But when American doctor Julia Gallo is kidnapped in Afghanistan, the terms of her ransom leave the president with only one course of action. In a dangerous assignment that the United States government will deny any knowledge of, Scot Harvath must secretly infiltrate Kabul’s notorious Policharki Prison and free the man the kidnappers demand as ransom—al-Qaeda mastermind Mustafa Khan. But when Harvath arrives, he quickly learns that there is more to the kidnapping than anyone dares to admit. And as the subterfuge is laid bare, Harvath must examine his own career of hunting down and killing terrorists, and ask himself if he has what it takes to help one of the world’s worst go free. Brimming with the kind of ripped-from-the-headlines authenticity Brad Thor’s internationally bestselling novels are known for, The Apostle doubles down on the blockbuster success of The Last Patriot and reaffirms Thor’s status as the master of the political thriller.

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THE DOOMSDAY KEY
James Rollins
Cover of THE DOOMSDAY KEY

THE DOOMSDAY KEY

by James Rollins · Morrow/HarperCollins

5 wks on list

Three brutal murders, three high-profile victims, three bodies marked with a mysterious and archaic symbol...The massive SIGMA Force thriller from the NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of MAP OF BONES and THE LAST ORACLE. At Princeton University, a famed geneticist dies inside a biohazard lab. In Rome, a Vatican archaeologist is found dead in the heart of St Peter's Basilica. In Africa, a US Senator's son is slain within a Red Cross camp in Ghana. These three murders on three continents bear a horrifying tie: all the victims are marked by a Druidic pagan cross burned into their flesh. The bizarre murders thrust Commander Gray Pierce and SIGMA Force into a global hunt for a powerful group of industrialists who have a stranglehold on the world's food supply. Aided by two women from his past, Gray flees a trio of high-tech assassins as he pieces together the clues. But saving the world comes at a price: Pierce must sacrifice one of the women. Yet even that price might not be enough, for, as he soon discovers, the only true path to salvation lies with the Doomsday Key.

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THE ANGEL'S GAME
Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Cover of THE ANGEL'S GAME

THE ANGEL'S GAME

by Carlos Ruiz Zafón · Doubleday

5 wks on list

'A heady brew of detective thriller, supernatural horror tale, magical realist fable and a heartbreaking love story' DAILY MAIL 'Readers familiar with The Shadow of the Wind will find themselves back in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books where, from a labyrinthine library, volumes seem to select their readers . . . rattling good gothic fun' SPECTATOR In an abandoned mansion in the heart of Barcelona, a young man, David Martín, makes his living by writing sensationalist novels under a pseudonym. The survivor of a troubled childhood, he spends his nights spinning baroque tales about the city's underworld. But perhaps his dark imaginings are not as strange as they seem, for in a locked room deep within the house lie photographs and letters hinting at an unsolved mystery. Like a slow poison, the history of the place and an impossible love bring David close to despair. But then he receives a letter from a reclusive French editor who makes him the offer of a lifetime . . . 'Will grip you from start to finish' DAILY EXPRESS

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