"Toxic Fear"

New from the University of Georgia Press: Toxic Fear: Pollution Anxieties in the American 1980s by Michael Egan.

About the book, from the publisher:

Toxic Fear explores how fear shaped the public and private lives of those seeking to make sense of pollution in the 1980s. Driving Egan’s interest in environmental anxieties is an exploration of the social and political infrastructure that took shape during the final quarter of the twentieth century. Egan ties the uncertainties rippling through American communities and across mainstream media to the neoliberal project and its deference to self-interest as the only path to prosperity. In the 1980s, that meant less government intervention, lower taxes, more privatization, and fewer controls. Above and beyond any economic or social theory, fear unsettled established ways of American life. Just as toxic chemicals became a prominent feature of the American social and physical landscape in the 1980s, traditional forms of state oversight designed to provide security for its people were eroded. Social problems and public safety were outsourced to individuals. The onus of responsibility moved from government and government agencies to a public that had, in the previous decade, abdicated environmental oversight and the necessary scientific literacy to experts no longer equipped for the job.

--Marshal Zeringue

"A Grim Reaper's Guide to Living Twice"

New from Berkley: A Grim Reaper's Guide to Living Twice (A S.C.Y.T.H.E. Mystery) by Maxie Dara.

About the novel, from the publisher:

He’s been charged with possession before, but never like this.

Jack McCoy was a thief and a liar. Then he died.

Margaret Chen transported souls for the biggest afterlife collection company in North America. Then she met Jack.

Possession isn’t really supposed to be possible, but Jack McCoy never let a little thing like reality stop him. Now he’s committing the ultimate identity theft, living a new life in Margaret’s body while his own lies six feet under. Keeping up appearances as a geriatric grim reaper for S.C.Y.T.H.E. is a full-time job, but when Jack is sent to collect the soul of an old friend, his criminal past catches up with him and suddenly he’s planning the heist of his (after)life with a gang of misfits he never thought he’d see again.

Now the only woman he’s ever loved depends on his success in stealing a priceless list of souls from S.C.Y.T.H.E., but someone keeps beating him at his own game. Time is running out. If Jack puts one bunioned foot out of line it will cost him not only the people who matter most but also his second chance at life...

Visit Maxie Dara's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Original City, Original Sin"

New from Cambridge University Press: Original City, Original Sin: King, the Klan, and the Fight for Civil Rights in St. Augustine, Florida by Martin Dobrow.

About the book, from the publisher:

A Klan rally where four Black men were almost burned alive. A hotel manager pouring acid into a pool to chase out Black swimmers. Brutal assaults of peaceful demonstrators at the site of a former slave market downtown. A shooting into the cottage rented for Martin Luther King, Jr. Each form part of a rarely told and riveting story of civil rights in the nation's oldest city, St. Augustine, Florida. At the height of his fame, King found his treasured doctrine of nonviolence challenged as never before-all as the fate of the Civil Rights Act, the most consequential legislation of the twentieth century, hung in the balance. In this intimate exploration based on hundreds of interviews, Martin Dobrow introduces an extraordinary collection of idealists-Black and white, young and old, gay and straight-who were drawn into the movement, putting their lives on the line for racial justice.

Visit Martin Dobrow's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

"The Tribes"

New from Dutton: The Tribes: A Novel by Mari Howes.

About the novel, from the publisher:

A dark and daring debut thriller exploring power, control and resilience against all odds, The Tribes tells the story of a cult member accused of a shocking crime and the lawyer who chooses to defend her.

One quiet night in a rural Vermont town, a panicked woman calls 9-1-1 on a gas station payphone to report that a newborn baby has died. Local police respond to the call and charge Heather Garner, a college drop-out and member of fringe religious community The Messiah’s Tribes, with the murder of her son. Heather’s future is in the hands of her family: but they haven’t seen or heard from her in almost 20 years.

Lawyer Abby Harris’s friends and colleagues are puzzled by her choice to take on the case, especially given she’s pregnant with her first child. But Abby is convinced that there’s more to Heather’s story than meets the eye. The investigation leads her to understand that the community Heather belonged to may not be a peaceful, eccentric bunch of hippies, but a well-organized, exploitative criminal enterprise.

Engrossing and suspenseful, The Tribes reveals the mystery of Heather’s past piece by piece, until a jury must decide: does her indoctrination make her a victim, or a perpetrator?

Visit Mari Howes's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

"The Nile Revealed"

New from Princeton University Press: The Nile Revealed: A Deep History of Earth’s Longest River by Martin Williams.

About the book, from the publisher:

The untold story of an iconic river, from its origins to its possible futures on a rapidly warming planet

The Nile River has captivated explorers and scientists for centuries, and its age and origins have been the subject of intense speculation since at least the days of Herodotus. The Nile Revealed is an authoritative account of how Earth’s longest river came into being, how its flow has changed dramatically and at times almost ceased altogether, and how these changes affected human societies in the Nile valley down through the centuries.

An internationally renowned expert on the Nile and its extraordinarily rich geological history, Martin Williams has traveled the length and breadth of the river during his career. In this book, he draws on his own experiences to explain how scientists reconstruct and date past environments in the Nile basin and offers vivid descriptions of the river and its three major tributaries—the White Nile, the Blue Nile, and the Atbara. He guides readers from the Ethiopian Highlands and downstream to the Nile delta and deep-sea fan, where soils and sediments preserve the record of the Nile’s eventful life. Williams visits prehistoric sites in the Nile valley and considers how its inhabitants adapted to floods, droughts, and other climatic changes—and how the river itself might respond to climate change in the future.

Blending evocative storytelling with the latest science, The Nile Revealed provides an incomparable look at a majestic river whose course has fluctuated widely over time, and whose waters have sustained diverse ecosystems and humankind for millions of years.

Visit Martin Williams's website.

The Page 99 Test: When the Sahara Was Green.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Hate and Other Acts of Fiction"

Coming November 10 from Berkley: Hate and Other Acts of Fiction by Megan Oliver.

About the book, from the publisher:

Former lovers turned rival tour guides must join forces to overcome scandal—in this steamy second-chance romance from the author of Secret Nights and Northern Lights.

Sadie Stockton has the almost-perfect job leading tours through the former home of her favorite author, the enigmatic recluse Hazel Wilmont. But when the owners of the Wilmont House announce plans to increase the estate’s revenue by hosting an overnight murder mystery set in a cocktail lounge, Sadie is less than thrilled. Yet again, Hazel’s legacy is being tarnished by the fictitious, decades-old rumors she poisoned her husband(s).

Worse? The new tour will mean working with none other than Ryan Pearson—local mixologist, owner of Pearson’s Pub Crawls, and Sadie’s long-standing professional rival and personal regret. She can’t stand him. Or his smug grin. Or his boastful T-shirt declaring his pub crawl the city’s number-one rated tour. And no, she doesn’t still think about their short-lived, meaningless college fling. Ever.

With a potential promotion on the line, Sadie must play nice with Ryan in order to make the “Mixtures & Murder” tour a success. But over late nights and cocktail tastings, all clues indicate a reigniting attraction between the two. And as new discoveries at the mansion unfold, Sadie is forced to confront her own narratives about Ryan, about Hazel, and about the past she’s tried for years to bury.

Visit Megan Oliver's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

"The World of Markets"

New from Georgetown University Press: The World of Markets: A Theology of Moral Agency in Economic Life by Christina McRorie.

About the book, from the publisher:

A theological map of markets as ambiguous―and improvable―moral contexts

Do markets corrupt us, or support our character? They do both, argues Christina McRorie in The World of Markets. She engages empirical research on economic decision-making to identify both the conditions under which markets encourage selfish and opportunistic behaviors and those under which markets do the opposite, encouraging just and even generous actions. This influence over our decisions suggests that markets may also shape our agency itself, over time. How should Christians make theological sense of this?

Highlighting the tensions woven into the theological concept of "the world"―given that it is beloved by God and yet also a dangerous realm of moral darkness―The World of Markets builds a case for viewing markets as ambiguous worlds that mediate both sin and grace in our daily lives by influencing our moral agency. In light of God's own love for the world, it proposes that Christians are called to approach markets with an attitude that balances critique with appreciation and to collaborate with others to make markets more grace-filled contexts. Toward this end, The World of Markets identifies concrete ways that markets can become a world where it is easier to be good.

--Marshal Zeringue

"The Seduction"

Coming November 24 from Montlake: The Seduction (Arlington Hall Revisited) by Jodi Ellen Malpas.

About the book, from the publisher:

She’s a London florist who can’t resist an enigmatic man of mystery―or escape his dark past in a blistering-hot romance by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the This Man series.

Abbie Pearson has spent three years trying to forget the night that ruined her for other men―a tryst in France with a dominant stranger who bent her to his will and disappeared by morning. Now a successful florist in London, she meets her best friend’s future brother-in-law…and her world stands still. It’s him. From the Paris hotel. The man who still prowls her fantasies.

A self-made millionaire and London’s most enigmatic new celebrity chef, Casey Harrison is used to getting what he wants. It’s Abbie. As they reconnect with a thousand bolts of pleasure, she can’t resist being drawn deeper into Casey’s world of wealth and wicked sensations. He claims he wants it all―love, marriage, and a future. For Abbie, surrendering to a powerful man never felt so good. This is the second chance she’s dreamed of. But can she trust him? Because Casey comes with secrets.

And when his past finally catches up to them, it could shatter everything between Abbie and Casey forever.

Visit Jodi Ellen Malpas's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Thinkers and Believers"

New from Oxford University Press: Thinkers and Believers: The Making of Modern Islam by Fitzroy Morrissey.

About the book, from the publisher:

It is related that the Prophet Muhammad announced that God would send someone to renew Islam--a concept called tajdid--at the beginning of every century. Over the last two centuries, Islam has been transformed through its encounter with modernity. Yet that transformation was not simply something that happened to Muslims; it was brought about by Muslim thinkers through a process of engagement with their religious tradition. In reforming Islam to meet the challenges of their time, they were able to draw on tajdid. Often claiming to be renewers of the faith themselves, these thinkers set the contours of modern Islam by calling for an end to the blind emulation of juristic authority and fanatical devotion to the schools of law, while also challenging key features of popular piety and introducing the egalitarian idea that ordinary believers could interpret and understand their religion for themselves. They were in fact calling for a return to the Qur'an and Hadith.

Thinkers and Believers traces the development of these ideas, from 'Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulusi and Shah Wali Allah in the 18th century through to Muhammad 'Abduh and Abu A'la Mawdudi in the 20th century. In so doing, it highlights the relevance of classical traditions of Islamic mysticism, theology, philosophy, and law to modern Islamic reform. Covering such topics as the role of dreams and visions in inspiring projects of religious renewal, the rise of Wahhabi and Salafi scripturalism, modern developments in legal theory and philosophy among the Shi'ah, and competing interpretations of the relationship between Islam and politics in the modern Middle East and South Asia, it offers both a comprehensive survey of Islamic reformist thought and a detailed dive into the texts that have defined modern Islam.

--Marshal Zeringue

"The Other Kind of Lion"

New from Lake Union: The Other Kind of Lion: A Novel by Catherine Ryan Hyde.

About the book, from the publisher:

A war widow and a neglected boy form a chosen family in a profoundly moving multigenerational saga about the transformative power of kindness by New York Times bestselling author Catherine Ryan Hyde.

It’s 1970 in rural California where Shirley Bennett, a forty-year-old Vietnam War widow, lives with her two sons. It’s a routine life until she sees Cash Pierce, a scruffy eleven-year-old boy, trailing the fence alongside her Appaloosa, Phoenix. The horse has never given such a welcoming nicker to anyone but her late husband. Even her stubborn old dog Edsel takes to the boy. Out of curiosity and compassion, so does Shirley.

Abandoned by his father, his mother in jail, and being raised by his teenage brother, Cash is lonely, bullied, but smart as a whip and starved for attention. Shirley begins inviting him for dinners, providing lunch money, sewing his shirts, and offering the maternal care he desperately needs. Neither realizes that such simple acts of kindness create a bond that will span five decades and redefine family itself. No matter where life takes Cash, he will never forget her.

Through war, loss, grief, illness, second chances, and years of separation, they will meet again. Shirley was there for Cash. Now it’s his turn to be there for Shirley when she needs him the most.

Visit Catherine Ryan Hyde's website.

Q&A with Catherine Ryan Hyde.

The Page 69 Test: Brave Girl, Quiet Girl.

The Page 69 Test: My Name is Anton.

The Page 69 Test: Seven Perfect Things.

The Page 69 Test: Boy Underground.

The Page 69 Test: Dreaming of Flight.

The Page 69 Test: So Long, Chester Wheeler.

The Page 69 Test: A Different Kind of Gone.

The Page 69 Test: Life, Loss, and Puffins.

The Page 69 Test: Rolling Toward Clear Skies.

The Page 69 Test: Michael Without Apology.

The Page 69 Test: Falling Apart and Other Gifts from the Universe.

--Marshal Zeringue