If You Like Michael Connelly...

If you like Michael Connelly and his Harry Bosch series, you might enjoy these authors and series as well.

	John Rebus series by Ian Rankin This series is set in Edinburgh, Scotland and features a brooding, troubled cop who loves include good scotch, classic rock, and the crime-filled streets of his city. First in the series is Knots & Crosses.
	Strange & Quinn series by George Pelecanos This series features two police-officers-turned-private-investigators working the drug-ridden, racially-charged streets of inner-city Washington, D.C.. First in the series is Right as Rain.
	Prey series by John Sandford This series centers around Twin Cities cop Lucas Davenport, a compelling, complex character who goes up against criminals of all kinds — from bank robbers and serial killers to corrupt politicians and computer hackers. First in the series is Rules of Prey.
	Elvis Cole series by Robert Crais This series takes place in Los Angeles. Wisecracking P.I. Elvis Cole and his brooding sidekick (and former LAPD officer) Joe Pike take on cases that lead them to the darkest corners of the city and of human nature. First in the series is The Monkey’s Raincoat.
	Alex McKnight series by Steve Hamilton This series features a former Detroit cop trying to escape the demons of his past in the isolated locale of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. He starts over as a P.I. and finds that crimes old and new abound. First in the series is A Cold Day in Paradise.
	Matthew Scudder series by Lawrence Block This series is about a hard-boiled, hard-drinking P.I. in New York City trying to piece together crimes and put back together his personal life. First in the series is The Sins of the Fathers.
	Dave Robicheaux series by James Lee Burke This series features a former New Orleans cop who is suspended from the force and retires to a small town. There he must do battle with the demons of his past and of the bottle, while facing crimes old and new. First in the series is The Neon Rain.

Sara Paretsky is Visiting the Library

On Friday, September 25, acclaimed writer and Lawrence native Sara Paretsky will be at the library for a reading and book signing. Paretsky’s latest book Hardball was released earlier this week.

Hardball is the thirteenth book to feature V.I. Warshawski—Paretsky’s female, no-nonsense private investigator. The book finds Warshawski taking the case of an elderly woman whose son has been missing for forty years. It draws on Paretsky’s own experience in Chicago during the late 1960s to address themes of race, corruption, and long buried secrets.

For more about Paretsky, check out the recent article about her in the Lawrence Journal-World or visit her website at www.saraparetsky.com. Reviews of Hardball can be found at Barnes and Noble Review and the New York Times.

The Raven Bookstore will make copies of Hardball available for purchase. The event begins 7 PM and is free and open to the public.

Staff Pick: Darling Jim

Darling Jim by Christian Moerk

This debut novel opens with the discovery of a grisly murder scene and quickly unfolds into the story of three Irish sisters and their aunt who all fall for the same man -- a darkly seductive lothario who travels the countryside telling mesmerizing tales. Wherever he goes, dead bodies soon follow, yet few seem to notice, blinded as they are by his charming ways. Part folktale, part gothic romance, part supernatural thriller, this complex story-within-a-story is a satisfying, genre-bending read.

Susan - Adult Services

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