Deborah Harkness is an American scholar, novelist and wine enthusiast best known as a historian and the author of the All Souls Trilogy. The series consists of The New York Times’ best-selling novel ‘A Discovery of Witches’ and the sequels ‘Shadow of Night’ and ‘The Book of Life.’ The story centers around Diana Bishop, a young scholar and a descendant of witches. It was adapted into a television series by Sky One, a British network, and will premiere on Sundance Now on Thursday January 17. Cast includes Matthew Goode, Alex Kingston and Teresa Palmer.
In ‘A Discovery of Witches,’ Diana Bishop discovers a long-lost and enchanted alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782, deep in Oxford’s Bodleian Library. Its reappearance summons a fantastical underworld, which she navigates with her leading man, vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont. Despite a long-held mistrust between witches and vampires they form an alliance and set out to protect the book and solve the mysteries hidden within while dodging threats from the creature world.
The movie adaptation of Philip Reeve’s ‘Mortal Engines’ opens on Friday December 14.
Philip Reeve is a British author and illustrator of children’s books and is best known for the 2001 young adult novel “Mortal Engines” and its sequels. “Mortal Engines” won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize in ages 9-11 years and made the Whitbread Book Award shortlist. The book is the first in a series called the Mortal Engines Quartet which includes “Predator’s Gold,” “Infernal Devices” and “A Darkling Plain.” This was followed by the Fever Crumb prequel series: “Fever Crumb,” “A Web of Air” and “Scrivener’s Moon,” which depict events many years prior to those of “Moral Engines.” The books feature two young adventurers, Tom Natsworthy and Hester Shaw, who live in a lawless post-apocalyptic world inhabited by moving cities. The movie adaptation of “Mortal Engines,” directed by Christian Rivers and a screenplay by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Peter Jackson, opens this Friday December 14. It stars Hugo Weaving, Hera Hilmar, Robert Sheehan, Jihae, Ronan Raftery and Stephen Lang.
“Mortal Engines” is set in a post-apocalyptic world that is a product of a “Sixty Minute War” which caused geological upheaval. To escape the earthquakes, volcanoes and other instabilities, a nomadic leader named Nikola Quercus installed huge engines and wheels on London and enabled it to dismantle (or eat) other cities for resources. London is now hunting again, chasing a terrified little town across the wastelands and soon, it will eat. The book focuses on a futuristic steampunk version of London, now a giant machine striving to survive on a world running out of resources. Tom is a young Londoner who has never lived outside his traveling hometown. His first taste of the outside world comes when he gets in the way of an attempt by the masked Hester to kill Thaddeus Valentine, a powerful man she blames for her mother’s murder and both Hester and Tom end up thrown out of the moving “traction” city to fend for themselves.
Adrian Davila’s “Cowboy Barbecue” celebrates the culinary legacy of the original Texas Vaqueros. Courtesy photo, used with permission.
Adrian Davila is a third generation BBQ restauranteur, BBQ Chef and Pit Master at the acclaimed Davila’s BBQ in Seguin, TX. He spent most of his youth in the restaurant’s kitchen mastering the techniques until he could prepare everything on the menu to perfection. In his debut cookbook “Cowboy Barbecue: Fire & Smoke from the Original Texas Vaqueros,” he shares authentic Texas barbecue with a uniquely Latin twist. It highlights the flavors and stories of the Mexican-American community from the simple, everyday cooking to the celebratory feasts that bring family and friends together. Co-authored with Ann Volkwein. (Countryman Press, 2018)
In “Cowboy Barbecue,” chef and restauranteur Adrian Davila celebrates traditions of Latin America and Texas, taking inspiration from the vaquero lifestyle and his own family history. His signature dishes trace their culinary roots back to the vaqueros, the Latino cowboys who once roamed the plains of Texas and Mexico. These vaqueros may have been the first “pit masters” who combined the local ingredients with the bright flavors of the Iberian Peninsula. For three generations, Davila’s BBQ has infused classic brisket, ribs and sausage with Latin flavors. Aside from grilling tips, he also offers techniques for smoking, cooking directly on the embers, underground, on a spit and more. Recipes include Mesquite Brisket, Vaquero Chili con Carne, Fire-Roasted Tomato, Onion and Serrano Salsa and more as well as more than fifty color photographs. Available on Amazon.
John Bellairs was an American author best known for his fantasy novel “The Face in the Frost” and many gothic mystery novels for young adults featuring the characters Lewis Barnavelt, Rose Rita Pottinger, Anthony Monday and Johnny Dixon. One of his biggest works, “The House with a Clock in Its Walls,” is a juvenile mystery novel illustrated by Edward Gorey and the first in the series of novels featuring the fictional American boy Lewis Barnavelt. It follows the adventures of a young boy who goes to live with his uncle in a creaky old house. The movie adaptation starring Jack Black and Cate Blanchett and directed by Eli Roth is now in theaters everywhere.
According to Amazon, when Lewis Barnavelt, an orphan, goes to stay with his uncle Jonathan, he expects to meet an ordinary person. It turns out that his Uncle Jonathan and his next-door neighbor Mrs. Zimmerman, are both magicians. His uncle’s house was previously owned by Isaac and Selenna Izard, a sinister couple who practiced black magic and plotted to bring about the end of the world. Before he died, Isaac hid a clock inside the walls of the house; it was meant to eternally tick and as it pulled the world into the magical alignment and allow him to destroy it. When Lewis befriends a popular and athletic boy named Tarby Corrigan, he tries to impress him by raising the dead in the local cemetery on Halloween and ends up releasing Selenna from her tomb. Her ghost wreaks havoc in town and leads to a final confrontation in Jonathan’s basement where Lewis must stop her from finishing her husband’s work to destroy the world.
San Antonio artist Gary Sweeney will be having a book signing at Blue Star Contemporary on Friday September 7. Photo: Gary Sweeney, used with permission.
Gary Sweeney, a San Antonio-established artist known for his humorous text-based work and art installations throughout the United States, debuts his new book, ‘Manhattan Beach Memoir: Artist Gary Sweeney Says Goodbye to His Childhood Home,’ based on his most popular art installation, A Manhattan Beach Memoir: 1945-2015. The actual on-site piece was in Manhattan Beach throughout February 2016. Sweeney will debut his book and host a book signing at his art showcase at Blue Star Contemporary on Friday, September 7 from 6p.m. to 9p.m. (Blue Star Contemporary, 2018)
‘Manhattan Beach Memoir’ documents the installation at 320 35th Street, made as a tribute to his family who owned and occupied it for over 70 years. The site-specific installation pays homage to his upbringing, family, and the Manhattan Beach of the past. The photography exhibit consisted of 80 large-scale graphics of personal family photos, which were printed on MDO plywood and cover the outside of the artist’s childhood home.
The first 100 copies of “Manhattan Beach Memoir: Artist Gary Sweeney Says Goodbye to His Childhood Home” will be available exclusively at the book signing for $35 plus tax. Sweeney’s memoir is also available for purchase on Amazon presale starting at $45.
Gary Sweeney is an artist who works in many forms—from photography to painting to sculpting, resulting in a body of work ranging from neon signs, billboards and murals to wooden furniture, books and flower arrangements. Born into the fertile artistic climate of 1950s Southern California, Sweeney was surrounded by art and artists. He has become known for his appealingly nostalgic and humorous artwork and gained notability for his project Post-Obsessive, where he mailed more than 20,000 personalized, handwritten postcards that were altered with witty images, clippings and quotes taken from newspapers around the country. He also has permanent collections on view including America, Why I Love Her at the Denver International Airport, which is inspired by family road trips and bizarre monuments and roadside attractions, and Nostalgia, Texas at the San Antonio International Airport, where Sweeney designed neo-retro tourist posters with tongue-in-cheek slogans.
Blue Star Contemporary
116 Blue Star
San Antonio TX 78204
‘Walking Shadows’ is the new Decker/Lazarus novel by Faye Kellerman
Faye Kellerman is an American author of mystery novels, including The New York Times’ bestselling mysteries that feature the husband-and-wife team of Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus. She has also written the free-standing novels ‘The Quality of Mercy,’ ‘Moon Music’ and ‘Straight Into Darkness.’ As co-author, she has partnered with her best-selling author husband Jonathan Kellerman and recently, with her daughter Aliza Kellerman to write the teen novel ‘PRISM.’ Her latest novel, ‘Walking Shadows: A Decker/Lazarus Novel’ was released last week and has the title characters risking life and limb to solve a pair of brutal murders that may or may not be tied to a crime from more than twenty years ago.
According to Amazon, ‘Walking Shadows’ takes place on a quiet suburban street in upstate Greenbury, New York where the brutally beaten body of a young man is discovered in the woods adjacent to an empty vacation home. Twenty-six-year-old Brady Neil lived in the neighboring town of Hamilton and had no criminal record, few friends, worked full-time and attended community college. His only fault is being Brandon Gratz’ son, who was convicted of robbing and killing the owners of a local jewelry store. Gratz and his partner Kyle Masterson admitted to the robbery, but swear when they left, the owners were still alive. Decker begins to suspect that the son’s murder may be connected to the father’s sins, but when one of Brady’s friends is also found dead, Decker must use all his skills and knowledge to see justice done and find out who would kill two innocent men.
The movie adaptation of Ron Stallworth’s ‘The Black Klansman’ is now in theaters.
Ron Stallworth is a highly-decorated law enforcement veteran who worked undercover narcotics, vice, criminal intelligence and organized crime beats in four states. As the first African-American police officer and detective in the Colorado Springs, Colorado Police Department, he overcame fierce racial hostility to achieve a long and distinguished career in law enforcement. In his memoir ‘Black Klansman: Race, Hate, and the Undercover Investigation of a Lifetime’ he writes about his experiences as he sets out to infiltrate and expose the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1970s. The movie adaptation written and directed by Spike Lee is now in theaters and stars John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier and Topher Grace.
According to Amazon, ‘Black Klansman’ is the extraordinary true story of Ron Stallworth who comes across a classified ad in the local paper asking for all those interested in joining the Ku Klux Klan to contact a PO Box. He responds using his real name while posing as a white man. He thought he would only receive information through the mail, but a few weeks later he receives a phone call asking if he would like to join their cause. Ron recruits his partner Chuck to play the ‘white’ Stallworth and thus begins one of the most incredible undercover investigations in history. During this investigation, he sabotages cross burnings, exposes white supremacists in the military and befriends the Grand Wizard of the KKK himself, David Duke.
The movie adaptation of ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ by Kevin Kwan will be in theaters starting Wednesday August 15, 2018
Kevin Kwan is a Singaporean-American novelist best known for his satirical novels that comprise the Crazy Rich Asians Trilogy. He was named as one of the ‘Five Writers to Watch’ on The Hollywood Reporter’s list of Hollywood’s Most Powerful Authors. In 2018, he made Time magazine’s list of 100 most influential people and was inducted into The Asian Hall of Fame. ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ follows a young Asian American woman who travels to meet her boyfriend’s family, only to find out they are one of the richest families in Singapore. It became a best seller and is followed by ‘China Rich Girlfriend’ and ‘Rich People Problems.’ Kwan once stated that this intention in writing ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ was to introduce a contemporary Asia to a North American audience and that it is loosely based on his own childhood in Singapore. The movie adaptation of ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ will be released on Wednesday August 15 and stars Constance Wu, Henry Golding and Gemma Chan.
According to Amazon, ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is the story of New Yorker Rachel Chu who agrees to spend the summer in Singapore with her boyfriend Nicholas Young. She pictures a humble family home and quality time with the man she hopes to marry someday. What Nicholas failed to tell her is that his childhood home looks like a palace, that he grew up riding in more private planes than cars and that he just happens to be the country’s most eligible bachelor. On Nick’s arm, Rachel may as well have a target on her back as soon as she steps off the plane. Soon, her relaxed vacation turns into an obstacle course of old money, new money, nosy relatives and scheming social climbers.
The television adaptation of ‘Dietland’ premieres on AMC on Monday June 4, 2018.
Sarai Walker is a magazine writer whose articles have appeared in national publications including Seventeen and Mademoiselle. ‘Dietland,’ her first novel, explores the beauty industry and society’s obsession with weight loss. It has been adapted into a television series by Marti Noxon and is set to premiere on AMC on Monday June 4 with back to back episodes. Joy Nash stars as Plum Kettle and Julianna Margulies as Kitty Montgomery.
‘Dietland’ centers around Plum Kettle, who tries her best not to be noticed because to be noticed is to be judged. She works at a popular teen girls’ magazine answering fan mail and is looking forward to having weight loss surgery because she believes it will improve her life. When a mysterious woman starts following her, she becomes involved with an underground community of women who live life on their own terms. She agrees to a series of challenges that force her to deal with her past, her doubts and the real cost of becoming ‘beautiful.’ In the meantime, a dangerous guerrilla group called ‘Jennifer’ begins to carry out increasingly violent acts of vigilante justice against those who mistreat women and Plum soon finds herself at the center of a sinister plot.
‘The President Is Missing’ is the new thriller by Bill Clinton and James Patterson
In book news this week, Bill Clinton and James Patterson have joined forces to write the new thriller ‘The President Is Missing’ which is due out on Monday June 4, 2018. It is a political thriller that confronts a threat so big that it jeopardizes not just Pennsylvania Avenue and Wall Street, but all of America in a story that could happen.
According to Amazon, in ‘The President Is Missing,’ uncertainty and fear grip the nation. There are whispers of cyberterrorism, espionage and a traitor in the Cabinet. Eventually the President himself becomes a suspect until he disappears from public view. The action is set over the course of three days and sheds a light upon the inner workings and vulnerabilities of the United States. Filled with information that only a former Commander-in-Chief could know, this is the most authentic, terrifying novel to come along in many years. It is a timely, historic story that will be read and discussed for years to come.
James Patterson is the best-selling author of thrillers, children’s books, non-fiction books, romance novels as well as many stand-alone novels. He is best known for the Alex Cross, Women’s Murder Club and Middle School series. As a generous supporter of universities, teachers, colleges, independent bookstores, school libraries and college students, he has donated millions of dollars in grants and scholarships to encourage Americans of all ages to read more books.
Bill Clinton was elected President of the United States in 1992 and he served until 2001. After leaving the White House, he established the Clinton Foundation, which helps improve global health, increase opportunity for girls and women, reduce childhood obesity and preventable diseases, create economic opportunity and growth and address the effects of climate change. He has written several nonfiction books, including ‘My Life,’ which was an international bestseller. This is his first novel.
Deborah Harkness is an American scholar, novelist and wine enthusiast best known as a historian and the author of the All Souls Trilogy. The series consists of The New York Times’ best-selling novel ‘A Discovery of Witches’ and the sequels ‘Shadow of Night’ and ‘The Book of Life.’ The story centers around Diana Bishop, a young scholar and a descendant of witches. It was adapted into a television series by Sky One, a British network, and will premiere on Sundance Now on Thursday January 17. Cast includes Matthew Goode, Alex Kingston and Teresa Palmer.
SA Examiner 