The Lost City of the Monkey God
by Douglas Preston
To pigeonhole Douglas Preston a true-crime author is a gross understatement of his skills as a writer. Yes, his many best-sellers with Lincoln Child are fun, suspenseful romps chronicling the adventures of an FBI agent. But he's also an extremely capable investigator who, along with Italian journalist Mario Spezi wrote 2008's fabulous 'The Monster of Florence: A True Story,' a spellbinding work of nonfiction about a series of grisly murders in Tuscany. This time, the subject matter is equally compelling an ancient and sacred city in Honduras known as the White City or the Lost City of the Monkey God. For generations, indigenous people passed along stories of ancestors who fled there to escape Spanish invaders and that anyone who enters would get sick and die.
Why you should read it
In 2012, Preston joined a group of scientists, archaeologists, photographers and film producers who traveled to La Mosquitia, an unexplored and dangerous region of Central American jungle. They faced floods, mountains, jaguars, deadly snakes, disease-carrying insects and other inherent challenges. They brought along a new piece of NASA-owned laser technology known as LIDAR or Light Detection and Ranging, which confirmed a sprawling metropolis inhabited around the same time as the Mayan civilization in modern-day Mexico. Their intent was to map the city as well as explore and protect its rumored riches. Preston unspools the history of the White City, the expedition and the journey itself in detail.
The Beautiful Dead
by Belinda Bauer
Art, obsession and the pull between one's professional life and personal life make a searing background for British author Belinda Bauer's new stand-alone psychological thriller. Although 'The Beautiful Dead' succumbs to some stereotypes of the serial killer novel, Bauer's strong character study and sense of place keep the taut plot churning with surprises.
The Plot
Eve Singer, a crime reporter for London's iWitness News, becomes a murderer's obsession when she covers the stabbing of his latest victim. The killer's gimmick is that he chooses to murder in the middle of a crowd while London's Christmas shoppers linger on the streets. He poses these victims in gruesome tableaus, considering them 'exhibitions.' At work, Eve is being pressured to pursue the story, no matter the cost. At home, Eve deals with another kind of pressure, caring for her father, whose dementia is escalating.
Why you should read it
Eve proves to be a formidable heroine. On the surface, a crime reporter for a tabloid-like network isn't the most sympathetic, but Bauer delves deep to show Eve's humanity. She is a serious journalist who is more interested in justice than a story. The scenes with her father, who raised her as a single parent, realistically show their close relationship, her need to do the right thing by her father and her frustration with his declining health. Readers will also root for Detective Sgt. Emily Aguda, whose petite size belies her mad self-defense skills. Relentlessly paced, 'The Beautiful Dead' delivers a solid psychological thriller.
Perfume: A Century of Scents
by Lizzie Ostrom
Fragrance has always been wrapped in social and economic issues, controversy, memories and history as Lizzie Ostrom so persuasively shows in the lively 'Perfume: A Century of Scents.' The 10 chapters (each devoted to a single decade) examine 10 different perfumes that influenced that decade. A sharply focused introduction to each chapter further puts the decade (and its fragrance fashion) in perspective.
Why you should read it
While 'Perfume' is by no means an encyclopedia about scents, it is a solid pop culture guide that incorporates fragrance fashion into the shifting tides of society. Many of the perfumes mentioned through the decades have disappeared (a mere whiff of a memory, no matter how popular at the time.) This is true not just of those from the 1920s but also those manufactured in the 1990s. Others such as Chanel No. 5 have been classics from the first day and remain favorites of all generations. Ostrom shows that each decade had certain scents that define it. During the global depression of the 1930s, Joy by Jean Patou, 'the most expensive scent ever released,' was introduced and is still available today. World War II brought a new challenge as many perfumeries urged their customers to 'treasure your last pinch' of fragrance as advertisers urged against buying until after the war. As a result, France ceased being the epicenter of fragrance production as more began to be manufactured in America. The return of fragrance during the 1940s was seen as a symbol of hope.
Based on the descriptions, which book are you most likely to pick? Tell us why in the comment sections.