Bay Area Books

Hollywood Buzz: A Pucci Lewis Mystery (Poisoned Pen Press, 285 pages, $25, hard cover) by Marin-based Margit Liesche. This is the second of Liesche's Pucci Lewis mysteries (the first, Lipstick and Lies, was published in 2007); it takes the WWII WASP (Women Air Force Service Pilot) to Hollywood, where she becomes involved in the world of film while investigating a murder. One reader review states: “paying homage to the WASP warriors, Margit Liesche writes an engaging WWII military mystery that provides a deep look at the female pilot corps . . . .”

The Water Giver: The Story of a Mother, a Son, and Their Second Chance (Simon & Schuster, 260 pages, $24, hard cover) by Joan Ryan. This personal, grippingly intimate story traces the challenging and rewarding journey Ryan experiences rehabilitating her sixteen-year-old son after he suffers a near-fatal skateboarding accident. Ryan is also the author of Little Girls in Pretty Boxes: The Making and Breaking of Elite Gymnasts and Figure Skaters. 

Andromeda Klein (Delacorte Press, 432 pages, $20.99, hard cover) by Frank Portman. This highly original plot from the author of the much acclaimed King Dork(and frontman for MTX, a.k.a. The Mr. T Experience) seamlessly integrates mythology, numerology, and musicology, rendering a masterpiece of wit, magic, and mystery.