To continue our monthly series of book lists, the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library would like to recommend the following fiction series. Series are great if you like an author and you don’t want the story to end. It can also be enjoyable to watch a character develop over three or more books. WTBBL has most if not all the titles in the following series. They’ve been chosen to represent different kinds of fiction.
August 2010—Series: When one book isn’t enough.
Westerns
The First Mountain Man by William W. Johnstone [#1, First Mountain Man Series]
Oregon Trail, 1837. East of the Absaroka Range, the mountain man called Preacher encounters an unfriendly band of Arapaho and their terrified captives. Preacher frees the missionaries--two men and two women--and promises them safety, although toting four greenhorns through hostile territory won't be easy. Precedes Blood on the Divide (RC 53030, DB 53030). Some violence. 1991. Cassette Book RC 57247. Digital Book DB 57247. Also available as a downloadable talking book from BARD http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.57247 .
Mysteries
First Avenue by Lowen Clausen [#1, Seattle Police Mysteries Series]
Seattle cop Sam Wright is called to an old hotel where the body of a baby has been found. Sam knows he saw the baby and its young mother just a few weeks earlier, and his discovery that some cops may be involved in the crime makes him all the more determined to find out who's responsible. Precedes Second Watch (CBA 7695, DBW 7695, BRW 1099). Some strong language. 1999. Braille Book BRW 1088. Cassette Book CBA 7663. Digital Book DBA 7663. Also available as a downloadable book from WTBBL http://www.wtbbl.org/login.aspx .
Christian Inspirational
An Untamed Land by Lorraine Snelling [#1, Red River of the North Series]
1880. Roald Bjorklund, his wife Ingeborg, and their five-year-old son Thorliff leave Norway in search of a better life in America. They journey to the Dakota Territory where they build a homestead in the Red River Valley with faith, love, and hard work. For senior high and older readers. Precedes A New Day Rising (RC 68069, DB 68069, BR 16730, LP 18797). Angel Award. 1996. Braille Book 16728. Cassette Book RC 67616. Digital Book DB 67616. Large Print Book LP 18665.
Adventure
Serpent by Clive Cussler and Paul Kemprecos [#1, NUMA Series] National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) investigators Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala use their aquatic skills and keen minds to try to retrieve a mysterious object from an armored car on the sunken "Andrea Doria." They face numerous adventures fraught with complications and impeded by political schemes Precedes Blue Gold (RC 50937). . Bestseller. 1999. Cassette Book 48719. Also available as a downloadable talking book from Bookshare http://www.bookshare.org/web/SingleTitle.html?submittitleid=10184 .
Romance
16 Lighthouse Road by Debby Macomber [#1, Cedar Cove Series]
Judge Olivia Lockhart recalls her friends in Cedar Cove, Washington. They include Cecilia and Ian, whom she denies a divorce; her opinionated mother, Charlotte; her daughter, Justine, engaged to an older man; and the new newspaper editor. Prequel to 204 Rosewood Lane (RC 55516). Some descriptions of sex and some strong language. 2001. Cassette Book 55515.
Science Fiction
Engines of God by Jack McDevitt [#1, Engines of God Series]
Early in the twenty-third century, young Priscilla "Hutch" Hutchins serves as a space pilot for a team of archaeologists investigating a long-extinct galactic civilization. Marveling at the monuments left on distant planets, Hutch and her colleagues confront the natural hazards of new worlds and stay one step ahead of human colonizers, as the archaeologists unravel a secret that may be the key to human survival. Precedes Deepsix (RC 51893). Some strong language. 1994. Cassette Book RC 41883.
Supernatural
Greywalker by Kat Richardson [#1, Greywalker Series]
Seattle, WA. When private investigator Harper Blaine is brutally assaulted, the two minutes she spends clinically dead alters her perceptions. Her new ability to move in between the world of humans and the Grey, the world of ghosts, begins to attract otherworldly clients. Precedes Poltergeist (CBA 8019, DBW 8019). 2006. Cassette Book CBA 7992. Digital Book DBW 7992. Also available as a downloadable talking book from WTBBL http://www.wtbbl.org/login.aspx
Thriller
The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry [ #1, Cotton Malone Series]
Cotton Malone, retired top operative of the U.S. Justice Department, comes to the aid of his former supervisor Stephanie Nelle, who is pursuing the legendary treasure of the Knights Templar. Precedes The Alexandra Link (RC 63516). Violence, strong language, and some descriptions of sex. 2006. Cassette Book 61331. Digital Book 61331 is available as a downloadable talking book from BARD http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.61331
Historical Fiction
The Winter King by Bernard Cornwell [#1, Warlord Chronicles]
Britain, 480 A.D. The orphan Derfel tells the story of how King Arthur unified England. In Dark Age Britain, native kings fight amongst themselves as well as against the Irish, Scots, and Saxons; and Druids vie with Christians for followers. Into this melee Arthur comes advocating internal peace and unity against foreign invaders. Precedes "Enemy of God" (RC 46297, LP 13367). Some violence. 1995. Cassette Book 46305. Large Print 13067.