Here are some novels and fiction titles that have crossed our desks recently.
HARDBACKS
"HEAT RISES," by Richard Castle, Hyperion, $25.99, 305 pages (f)
It's a mystery with the byline of a fictional character from ABC's "Castle" that debuted No. 1 on the New York Times' hardcover fiction best-seller list. In this third book in the series, NYPD detective Nikki Heat and her team, along with writer Jameson Rook, must solve the case of a parish priest found dead in a bondage club. The clues don't add up and become dangerous. The book is racier, more graphic and violent than the television series it's based on.
"FLASH AND BONES," by Kathy Reichs, Scribner, $26.99, 278 pages (f)
Dr. Temperance Brennen investigates a body found in a barrel of asphalt that could possibly be that of a girl who disappeared 12 years earlier but is complicated by a mysterious and deadly substance.
More hardbacks recently released:
"ROBERT LUDLUM'S THE ARES DECISION: A Covert-One Novel," by Kyle Mills (f): In investigating a global threat, Covert-One investigates a U.S. Special Forces team in Africa along with what may be a parasitic infection.
"BONNIE," by Iris Johansen (f): In this third installment, Eve Duncan thinks she is closer than ever to finding her 7-year-old daughter Bonnie, and she realizes that the girl's father can be a key player.
"RIVER OF SMOKE," by Amitav Ghosh (f): Second in the Ibis series, three ships in the Bay of Bengal are threatened by a cyclone as they fight their way to Canton's Fanqit-town. Each ship has its own cast of characters fighting for a different chance from seeing the world to making money.
"PHOBOS," by Steve Alten (f): Third in the Mayan Prophecy series, this doomsday thriller follows Immauel Gabriel as he tries for one more conversation with his grandfather who knows much, much more about the Mayan secrets.
"ZONE ONE," by Colson Whitehead (f): In this post apocalyse-zombie thriller, a plague has swept through the country leaving the living and the living dead, and now the uninfected are attempting to resettle Manhattan. A team starts to slowly check the city building by building to find the more innocuous of the living dead until things start to go wrong.
"VACATION," by Matthew Costello (f): After droughts, crop failures and food riots, canabalistic "Can Heads" emerge, making safety a priority everywhere. After being injured by one, an NYPD cop decides to take his family on a vacation to a protected camp in the Adirondacks, but even there, things aren't as they seem.
"THE TEMPLE MOUNT CODE," by Charles Brokaw (f): Linguistics expert Thomas Lourds heads to Jerusalem to decode an ancient manuscript that his friend is murdered over, and political leaders want to wage a global war.
"CITY OF WHISPERS," by Maricia Muller (f): Private investigator Sharon McCone searches through San Francisco for her missing half brother and uncovers connections to several unsolved murders.
"BLINK OF AN EYE," by William S. Cohen (f): Penned by a former secretary of defense, a nuclear bomb has been detonated off Savannah, Ga., and Sean Falcone, the national security adviser, is tasked with bringing down the attackers in this political thriller.
"THE FUTURE OF US," by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler (f): It's 1996, and high school students Emma and Josh just got a computer and AOL. When they log in, they see their Facebook pages 15 years in the future.
PAPERBACKS
"NEVER BITE ANYTHING THAT BITES BACK," by Jim Toomey, Andrews McMeel Universal, $12.99, 128 pages (f)
The 16th collection of the comic strips of "Sherman's Lagoon."
"HOW'S THAT UNDERLING THING WORKING OUT FOR YOU?" by Scott Adams, Andrews McMeel Universal, $12.99, 128 pages (f)
A collection of Dilbert comics.
"RESTORATION," by Joe Costanzo, Charles River Press, $15.95, 372 pages (f)
In this novel by a former Deseret News reporter, an Italian-American returns to the tiny Italian town of his birth, where he sets out to rebuild a crumbling church only to be caught in a vendetta that's a half-century old.
More paperbacks recently released:
"A WEDDING INVITATION," by Alice J. Wisler (f): An invitation to a friend's wedding leads Samantha Bravencourt to a reunion with a man who once broke her heart and a desire to help a young girl.
"IF THIS IS PARADISE, I WANT MY MONEY BACK," by Claudia Carroll (f): Charlotte Grey nearly dies and sees how she's made a complete mess of her life. She goes back to Earth and is assigned to watch over her lying, cheating ex-boyfriend.
"THE WOMAN WHO HEARD COLOR," by Kelly Jones (f): When Lauren O'Farrell seeks to learn more about a mysterious art dealer in the 1930s in Munich as she seeks to retrieve art stolen by the Nazis, she ends up finding out more about her mother and her story during the war.
"HOUSE OF SECRETS," by Tracie Peterson (f): A surprise trip for three sisters ends up being a surprise reunion, and long-lost memories of their mother's death and other memories come out.
"RECLAIMING LILY," by Patti Lacy (f): Gloria Powell adopted the now teenage Lily from China and Dr. Kai Chang has come to reclaim the sister she gave up during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Kai also brings with her news of a genetic disease in her family during this story of family and adoption.
"THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES," by Eduardo Sacheri (f): Recently translated from Spanish, this novel follows a retired detective who tries his hand at writing about a devastating case of a woman murdered in her home and the inability to find justice.
"CAT LOVERS REJOICE," by Yasmine Surovec (f): Collections of the comic strip about cats and humans.
"BATTLEFIELD 3: The Russian," by Andy McNab and Peter Grimsdale (f): Based on the Battlefield 3 video game, the Kremlin wants Special Forces operator Dima to bring in a dangerous fugitive but is tracked by U.S. Marine Sgt. Henry Blackburn.
"ASSUMPTION," by Percival Everett (f): Small-town New Mexico Sheriff Ogden Walter hunts down the murderer of an old woman.
"BODY OF WATER," by Sarah Dooley (f): Drawing on personal experiences, the author tells the story of 12-year-old Ember, whose family is homeless due to a trailer fire that may be arson, as they live in a campground. School is about to start and she wants to make a fresh start.
— compiled by Christine Rappleye