March '09 Indie Next List

"Conscripted as a special advisor to Scotland Yard, psychologist and investigator Maisie Dobbs once again takes us to an unsettled postwar London. After her proximity to a veteran's suicide, Maisie searches for a madman, whose deadlines threaten havoc for the government and people of London. Jacqueline Winspear consistently delivers strong characters and an intelligent, thought-provoking story." --Becky Milner, Vintage Books, Vancouver, WA

"Reading more like a script for Indiana Jones than a work of nonfiction, this book vividly brings to life the British explorer Percy Fawcett and the Amazon he loved and explored. Grann seamlessly brings together elements of history, anthropology, and biography into a superb narrative." --Ann Carlson, Harborwalk Books, Georgetown, SC

"You must take some time and fall in love with the characters of Nafisa Haji's debut novel about Saira Qader, a rebellious journalist and a Muslim-American of Indo-Pakistani descent, and her family members, each with their own hopes and dreams. This is a rich novel, full of joys and sorrows, laughter and tears, rebellion and tenderness." --Sina Herkelrath, Kepler's Books & Magazine, Menlo Park, CA

"Castle Freeman, Jr.'s latest thriller takes us back to the deep woods of Vermont, where law is a complicated and subtle thing. Sheriff Wing is a sensitive, thinking man, preoccupied with the differences between the work of the policeman and that of the sheriff. When real criminals come to his county his slow-motion, low-key methods of protecting his community are put to a serious test. A real treat for readers." --Paul Ingram, Prairie Lights Books, Iowa City, IA

"Returning to New Orleans after WWI, Sam Simoneaux wants nothing more than a normal life. But when a child disappears during his shift at work, his life takes an unexpected turn as he sets off on a quest to find her. I have been waiting for a new Tim Gautreaux novel, and he does not disappoint with The Missing." --Teresa Huggins, Blue Elephant Book Shop, Decatur, GA

"The ultimate terrorist biological weapon is about to be unleashed on U.S. soil, and our only hope is Joe Ledger. Filled with zombies, terrorists, and some of the best action in years, Patient Zero, an electric thriller, will warm up those cold March nights with pure terror." --Katie Glasgow, Mitchell Books, Fort Wayne, IN

"Some authors create characters who do what you think they'll do, some who do what you hope they'll do, some who do what they 'ought' to do. But other authors allow their characters to live and breathe as they would if they were real. This powerful debut novel -- set in a present-day Pennsylvania steel town  -- is filled with those kinds of characters. Meyer captures the danger, decay, and destruction that run through the heart of America's landscape in a story about life and death and loyalty and love." --Kester Smith, Book People Bookstore, Austin, TX

"Milo Weaver was once a 'tourist' (aka an undercover agent) for the CIA. After retiring and marrying -- and trying to settle into his new life -- the past resurfaces with the arrest of a wanted assassin, and Milo is drawn back into his old life as a tourist. Full of intrigue and betrayal, this is a first-rate, fast-paced thriller." --Sue Richardson, Maine Coast Book Shop, Damariscotta, ME

"This international bestseller is a rollicking, surreal family saga of three generations of a Norwegian family, complete with humor and heartbreak. Ramsland is a Danish Richard Russo!" --Carol Schneck, Schuler Books & Music, Okemos, MI

"Henry Dorn loses his wife and grown son in an accident in 1921 and, a year later, embarks for Amsterdam, where he meets the young and entrancing Lydia Pearce. In After You've Gone, the language is clean and precise with not a word wasted, the characters well drawn and interesting, and the plot just complex enough to keep the reader enthralled. In short, a very fine novel." --Penny McConnel, Norwich Bookstore, Norwich, VT