A charming tale of a 6-year-old boy who believes in unicorns and miracles *** 3 Stars

By Gabrielle Pantera

A Kid for Two Farthings, a lost classic

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 3/8/2010 – A Kid for Two Farthings is being published by the Bloomsbury Group as a “lost classics” of the early 20th century. A Kid for Two Farthings is Wolf Mankowitz’s 1953 novel based on his experiences growing up Jewish in London’s East End. The story explores the life of Joe, a six-year-old waiting to join his father in Aftrica. Joe lives with his mother in the East End of London’s poor immigrant community Whitechapel.

In A Kid for Two Farthings, the tailor Mr. Kandinsky tells Joe that a unicorn can grant any wish. Joe finds a unicorn that he buys for two farthings and brings home. Although the adults see that the unicorn is really just a goat, they perpetuate Joe’s belief that it’s a unicorn. Will Joe’s belief be strong enough to make miracles happen?

Despite a misstep with James Bond, Mankowitz had a very successful career as a novelist and playwright. Mankowitz was a screenwriter on the first Bond film, Doctor No, until he insisted on having his name removed because he thought the film would be a flop. In 1962 Mankowitz had introduced his friend Cubby Broccoli to James Bond rights-holder Harry Saltzman. Mankowitz later (more…)

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Mystery writers Rhys Bowen and Michael Mallory contribute to anthology of stories of Sherlock Holmes in America **** 4 stars

By Gabrielle Pantera

Sherlock Holmes, the American Years, before he returned to England

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 3/5/2010 – “I thought this tied in well with Sherlock’s ability to pick up the smallest clue,” says Sherlock Holmes Cutting For Signs author Rhys Bowen. “I read about the Shadow Wolves, the members of the Tohono Odom tribe on the border who are used by US customs because they are so famous for their tracking skills and how they can read a blade of grass accurately. The most amazing research was finding out that the Shadow Wolves were sent to Afghanistan to hunt for Osama Bin Laden.”

Sherlock Holmes: The American Years is the third anthology of Sherlock Holmes stories edited by Michael Kurland. Set between 1870 and 1880, ten stories chronicle Sherlock Holmes’ time in America. They’re written by ten top mystery writers, with a forward by Leslie Klinger.

Bowen’s next book will be a Molly Murphy novel set in New York Chinatown. Boewn’s website www.rhysbowen.com has details of her touring schedule and a trailer of her new Houdini book, The Last Illusion. She blogs at www.jungleredwriters.com and www.theladykillers.com.

“A lot of my early research was all thrown out along with the first, failed version of the story,” says Sherlock Holmes The Sacred White Elephant of Mandalay author Michael Mallory. “After laboring over the story for a couple months and having completed about 10,000 words, I had to accept that (more…)

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Was Carroll in love with 11-year-old Alice Liddell who inspired Alice in Wonderland and other mysteries of the famous author and mathematician *** 3 Stars

By Gabrielle Pantera

The Mystery of Lewis Carroll, secrets of the author of Alice in Wonderland

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 2/13/2010 – “I’ve had a laugh at some of the odd things people have sent when they knew I was writing a book,” says The Mystery of Lewis Carroll author Jenny Woolf. “One of the funniest, and creepiest, was a link of the Queen of Hearts and the playing-card gardeners as dressed up praying mantises. It can be viewed in 3-D and I’ve put it on the fan page for the book.”

The Mystery of Lewis Carroll reveals new facts about the famous mathematician and author of Alice In Wonderland. Lewis Carroll’s real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. Woolf uses recently discovered facts, such as Carroll’s accounts ledger and unpublished correspondence with his Alice Liddell’s family. Alice was the daughter of his dean at Oxford and inspiration for Alice In Wonderland. Woolf explores how Carroll was repressed by the Victorian era as well as his upbringing as a cleric’s son. There were many rumors about Carroll, was he in love with young girls or was it the idea of innocents? There are also rumors that he had affairs with (more…)

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Nora Lofts novel tells the story what happened before Robin Hood, of King Richard the Lionhearted, yet leaves open the question whether he was gay *** 3 Stars

By Gabrielle Pantera

The Lute Player, was Richard the Lionhearted gay?

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 2/13/2010 – The 20th century best-selling author Norah Lofts said that when she was a child, “Richard Plantagenet was my hero, though I took care not to reveal this eccentricity.”

The Lute Player was first published in 1951. Lofts took four years researching Richard to write the book. Lofts said she was astounded by the warmth and enthusiasm with which people responded to the news that she was writing about Richard I and the Third Crusade. In her book, Richard is already being called Richard the Lionhearted. He’s a legendary soldier of the Crusades and heir to the British throne. Richard’s younger brother John will famously betray him. The Lute Player reveals what happens before Robin Hood’s rebellion against John.

The Lute Player is a story of unrequited love and betrayal. Each (more…)

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Novel about Samson and Delilah brings new light to characters from the Bible *** 3 Stars

By Gabrielle Pantera

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 1/29/2010 – “Delilah’s been a favorite of mine ever since I saw Cecil B. DeMille’s 1949 Samson & Delilah at an impressionable age,” says Delilah author India Edghill. “The color! The glamour! The passion! The peacock feather dress! So when St. Martin’s wanted another biblical woman novel from me after Queenmaker and Wisdom’s Daughter, I naturally thought of Delilah.”

As a young child, Delilah is given to temple of Atargatis so she may become a priestess to the Five Cities that rule Canaan. She is trusting. When Aylah, a young girl purchased at the slave auction, comes to the temple, Delilah is (more…)

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Johnson’s biography of Winston Churchill looks at a life that became an emblem of democracy *** 3 Stars

By Gabrielle Pantera

Churchill by Paul Johnson

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 1/23/2010 – “It is a joy to write his life,” says Churchill author Paul Johnson. “Of all the towering figures of the twentieth century, Winston Churchill was the most valuable to humanity and also the most likable. No man did more to preserve freedom and democracy and the values we hold dear in the West. None provided more public entertainment with his dramatic ups and downs, his noble oratory, his powerful writings and sayings, his flashes of rage, and his sunbeams of wit.”

Churchill never wavered, although he (more…)

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Latest Tobias Hill novel plunges archeologists into terror in Greece ** 2 Stars

By Gabrielle Pantera

The Hidden, archeological terror

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 1/20/2010 – “The Hidden is a story about fear or terror, what terror does to those who use it as a tool, as well as what it does to those it’s used against,” says The Hidden author Tobias Hill. “In English we say that truth is stranger than fiction, which suggests the two things are different. I don’t think they are. A good novel is true in a way that facts are often not. I think good fiction gets at the truth regardless of the facts.”

A key figure in The Hidden is a young archaeologist, an Oxford colleague of the protagonist, called Eberhard Sauer. “In early drafts this character was called Alfred, but it became apparent to me that his family background was Germanic, so I wanted a Germanic Christian name, Eberhard,” says Hill. Where did the name come from? “I met a woman who loved the book, but had been surprised to find a friend of hers fictionalized in it, one Eberhard Sauer, an archaeologist, currently working at a prestigious British university. Turns out my imagination isn’t quite as original as I’d hoped. I must have come across Professor Sauer’s name during my research.”

Ben Mercer leaves Oxford and his failed marriage. Mercer is a student who follows archaeology professor Eberhard Saurer to a dig in Sparta. Can Ben complete his (more…)

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Books to read this holiday season, today’s installment is the last in series

By Gabrielle Pantera

Pride and Prejudice Graphic Novel from Marvel Comics

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 12/30/2009 – We’ve covered what’s new in mysteries and historical fiction in previous articles this week. Let’s finish with non-fiction, Sci-Fi, and more.

Sci-Fi

The Accidental Sorcerer by K. E. Mills

K.E. Mills excels at witty dialog. In The Accidental Sorcerer, third-grade wizard Gerald Dunwoody gets into trouble when he tries to do a good deed. Gerald’s best friend Monk helps him get a new job as a court wizard to King Lional at the New Ottosland court. Can Gerald stay out of trouble with the king, princesses, princes, a holy man and a dragon or two? Can he ever come home? Mass Market Paperback, 560 pages, Publisher: Orbit Release Date: January 1, 2009 ISBN: 9780316035422 $7.99

Young Adult

Morganville Vampire series

When 16-year-old Claire Danvers arrives in the sleepy Texas town of Morganville for a year at Texas Prairie University before heading off to MIT she doesn’t know what to expect. Certainly not vampires. A quick life-saving move to off-campus housing help protect her and introduces her to three new friends: teen rocker Michael Glass, Goth Eve Rosser, and hottie/slacker Shane Collins. Books one and two are in a Tradepaper back size $9.99 or each one individually is available in mass market paperback. $6.99.

Fiction

The Finishing Touches by Hester Browne

Finishing Touches is the story of Betsy, left on the doorstep of th (more…)

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Books to read this holiday season, today’s installment is historical fiction, catch tomorrow’s installment for non-fiction and Sci-Fi

by Gabrielle Pantera

Cleopatra's Daughter, prisoner of Rome

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 12/29/2009 – Yesterday we listed book ideas for mysteries. Today lets look at what’s new in historical fiction.

Cleopatra’s Daughter by Michelle Moran

Cleopatra’s Daughter traces the three children of Cleopatra VII and Marc Antony. They’re taken to Rome by their father’s greatest rival, Octavian Caesar. Orphaned by the suicide deaths of their parents Cleopatra Selena and Alexander Helios, twins make it alive to Rome. Their younger brother Ptolemy dies of illness on the ship. The eleven-year-old twins lives , but will it be a life worth living once in Rome? Hardcover: 448 pages, Publisher: Crown; 1st edition (September 15, 2009), Language: English, ISBN: 9780307409126 $25.

The Foundling by Georgette Heyer

Gilly, the Duke of Sale, is a (more…)

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Books to read this holiday season, today’s installment is mysteries and biographies, catch tomorrow’s installment for historical fiction

by Gabrielle Pantera

Expose by Hannah Dennison, the dangers of snail racing

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 12/28/2009 – Book gift cards from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other booksellers make great holiday gifts. If you’re wondering what to get using a gift card you received, or just looking for a good read during the holidays, let’s take a look at some great mysteries

Mysteries

Exposé! By Hannah Dennison

Exposé! is the third adventure in the Vicky Hill mysteries. Dennison always introduces an unusual British pastime or profession in her books. This time it’s snail racing season in the small town of Gipping-on-Plym. Obituary writer Vicky Hill receives an anonymous tip of the (more…)

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