NEW AND NOTEWORTHY
THE WAVE
J.G. Sandom's THE WAVE is finally available @ lulu.com and through most major booksellers and online bookstores.
If you liked GOSPEL TRUTHS or THE HUNTING CLUB, if you enjoyed THE UNRESOLVED or RESURRECTION MEN, check out THE WAVE - A John Decker Thriller.
Kirkus said, "Sandom’s strength lies in the verve of his story, with writing that has both muscle ... (and) brains ... Races from improbable to crazywild, all in good fun, with Sandom always one step ahead ... (Delivers) enough manic energy to be worthy of a nuclear explosion."
When Cryptanalyst John Decker of the FBI is assigned to the Joint Terrorist Task Force in New York, he has no idea he is about to be thrust into a deadly plot of eco-terrorism masterminded by El Aqrab, the Scorpion, a diabolical killer recently arrested in Tel Aviv.
Following the theft of 8 kilos of Highly Enriched Uranium, an ultimatum is issued to the West: Release El Aqrab or a nuclear bomb will be detonated. But, at the last moment, El Aqrab escapes...and the authorities never get the bomb.
While Homeland Security is convinced it's headed for New York, only Agent Decker -- assisted by brilliant and beautiful oceanographer Emily Swenson -- believes the bomb’s true destination is La Palma, in the remote Canary Island chain.
Now, Decker and Swenson have less than six hours to prove their theory, defuse the bomb, and prevent a mega-tsunami from annihilating the Eastern Seaboard.
J.G. Sandom's most recent TV interview on "Breezin' with Bierman" is available at YouTube. See the author read from THE WAVE, and chat about his other recent publications.
For an excerpt from THE WAVE, click here.
We'll be adding a new chapter from the book each month until THE GOD MACHINE goes on sale in 2008. Enjoy!
THE WAVE is already generating buzz in Hollywood: "I was pretty excited when I read Sid (Alexander Siddig) was a part of author J.G. Sandom's dream cast for his book The Wave..." says TOC at SidCity. For the complete Dream Cast, click here.
The results are in for last month's READERS' POLL. The question was, "How did Bartolo, Decker's partner, die?" Only one third of you got this one right! The correct answer was, "He fell to his death from a building."
For the results of previous polls, click here.
Check out the Readers' Poll to the left and test your knowledge of THE WAVE.
To buy your copy, click here.
THE GOD MACHINE
THE GOD MACHINE, the long-awaited sequel to GOSPEL TRUTHS, is currently with the publisher. The novel is scheduled to be released by Bantam later this year.
When Ben Franklin's coded journal is accidentally unearthed in Philadelphia, it reveals the presence of a secret map, hidden by Franklin at the birth of our nation, a map to the possible resting place of the Gospel of Judas -- a 2,000-year-old Gnostic text that threatens to unravel Christianity and to undermine the very foundation of the Church.
Working unwittingly for a secret Gnostic Masonic lodge, mathematician and architect Joseph Koster (who appeared in GOSPEL TRUTHS), accompanied by the beautiful and intelligent engineer Savita Sajan, begin a quest to discover the gospel's hiding place, a quest that takes them from Philadelphia to England and France.
But they are not alone. For the Knights Hospitaller of Malta, military agents of the Catholic Church in Rome, and minions of the Evangelical Christian right, are right behind them...and they'll do anything, kill anyone, to prevent the discovery of the Gospel of Judas.
All seems lost when Koster realizes that Franklin's map leads not just to the Gospel of Judas, but reveals a plan for the construction of a terrible device -- a God machine -- that, if completed, could open a doorway to heaven itself...or to hell.
IN OTHER NEWS
GOSPEL TRUTHS
Before The Da Vinci Code...before Holy Blood, Holy Grail and Labyrinth...before The Secret -- there was GOSPEL TRUTHS! Re-released after more than a decade, it's time to read the book that started it all.
J.G. Sandom is featured under One to Watch at BookReporter.com. Check out the in-depth author interview.
Booklist called GOSPEL TRUTHS, "a splendid, tautly woven thriller...(and) an intelligent mystery of tremendous spiritual and literary depth." Library Journal said, "A masterful first novel, based on a true incident, which spins a complicated web of corruption, greed and deception." Mostly Murder characterized it as, "A fascinating mystery ... captivating and engrossing." And the (New York Daily) News said, "GOSPEL TRUTHS is a monumental novel of suspense ... almost epic in proportion ... complex, yet skillfully crafted."
When City of London Police Inspector Nigel Lyman is assigned to investigate the death of a notorious Italian Banker found hanging under Blackfriars Bridge in London, the inquiry leads him to the Amiens and Chartres cathedrals in France in pursuit of a shadowy arch criminal -- leader of a corrupt Masonic lodge, the I Four -- intent on acquiring an ancient Gnostic Gospel whose discovery would undermine the very foundations of Christianity.
For an excerpt from GOSPEL TRUTHS, click here.
To challenge yourself with a GOSPEL TRUTHS puzzle, click here
To buy your copy, click here.
RESURRECTION MEN
RESURRECTION MEN has been named a Junior Library Guild selection.
Publishers Weekly called RESURRECTION MEN, "A haunting tour of London's underclass during the 1830s...(Sandom's) visceral descriptions of industrial London are unflinching...Teens will likely be both captivated by Victor's harrowing story as well as his ability to prevail in the face of harsh injustices." VOYA said, "(Sandom's) plot and writing style are reminiscent of Oliver Twist by Dickens but far more graphic. Teen readers will thoroughly enjoy the hair-raising suspense in this historical thriller." And KLIATT said, "Like M.T. Anderson's The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, this look at sinister events in history makes the era come alive and lingers in the memory."
Inspired by the 1831 "Italian Boy trial" of body snatchers in London, England, RESURRECTION MEN is a spine-tingling murder mystery that pits a beggar boy named Victor against a nefarious group of Resurrection Men. In this tumultuous dark underworld, where a fresh subject can fetch as much as nine guineas -- the yearly salary of a working man -- Victor must risk his life to uncover the identity of the murderer who is at the heart of London's furtive trade in human corpses.
For a sample chapter of RESURRECTION MEN, click here.
If you already own a copy, click here to access a secret section of the site...just for you. [NOTE: Make sure to enter the name Secret (S-e-c-r-e-t) and the correct Password, printed at the rear of the book.]
(NOTE: J.G. Sandom writes his young adult novels under the name T.K. Welsh.)
To buy your copy, click here!
THE UNRESOLVED
Ranked one of the Top Ten Children's Books of 2006 by the Washington Post, THE UNRESOLVED was recently nominated for a Young Adult Library Services Association -- YALSA 2007 Teens' Top Ten, the only book award recommended and awarded solely by teens. The novel was previously named a 2007 Association of Jewish Libraries Notable Book for Teens by the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, which recognized only six works in Jewish teen literature last year. THE UNRESOLVED was also nominated for the 2006 Cybils literary awards, and for the 2007 Best Books for Young Adults (BBYA) by the American Library Association. It's currently featured as one of the Best Teen Books of the year 2006 at BarnesAndNoble.com.
The Washington Post said, "(Sandom) writes with a precision and delicacy unusual for YA fiction." School Library Journal said, "THE UNRESOLVED tells a remarkable story in a remarkable way." Horn Book Magazine called THE UNRESOLVED, "A decidedly unconventional ghost story ... (and) a tightly wound novel." Kirkus Reviews termed it, "A remarkable account." Romantic Times said, "THE UNRESOLVED is a book you shouldn't pass up." The Edge of the Forest said, "It may be the most beautifully written novel I've read this year." All About the Book said, "THE UNRESOLVED is a great one. Mallory is the most well-developed ghostly character I've seen in a long, long time." Midwest Book Review called THE UNRESOLVED, "a wonderfully different kind of ghost story." And Bookslut.com said, "THE UNRESOLVED scores on several levels, most notably as a drama that blows apart all preconceived notions of how history can be retold."
Inspired by the tragic events of 9/11, THE UNRESOLVED reaches back into history to explore what was, until recently, the greatest disaster in New York City history. Based on the sinking of the General Slocum steamship -- which caught fire in the East River, New York, in 1904, resulting in the death of over 1,000 mostly German immigrants on a church outing -- THE UNRESOLVED is at once a ghost story, a courtroom drama, an examination of immigrant life, and a tale of love, redemption and revenge. The novel dramatizes how a single life -- and death -- can have a powerful influence on history.
(NOTE: J.G. Sandom writes his young adult novels under the name T.K. Welsh.)
For a sample chapter of THE UNRESOLVED, click here!
To buy your copy, click here!
REVIEWS (Excerpted in December)
RESURRECTION MEN -- Reader Reviews
Elizabeth at www.tkwelsh.com
"Hello, your book is quiet an inspiration to me. I, as a 12 (going on 20) year old girl, love to write. Sometimes my friends think I'm crazy that I'm writing for fun. Even yet, I'm consistent of writing my book. Your book, has helped me with this process. I think it would be a great honor on my part, if you came to the Book Smith, in the Cumberland mall! Though I am not finished with the book, I am very close to the end, (and on the edge of my seat I might add). The settings and perspective of story telling between Victor's life, and the story telling within the military setting, intrigues me so. I find that it is hard to put down this book, and at times, I would absentmindedly say something out loud while reading, such as encouragement for Victor to run, or 'No... Tatters...', but of course, I know full well the characters cannot hear me. Here I am, getting off subject; me and my mother would be very honored, once again, if you came to Book Smith. I will try my best in school to 'market' the placing around, and put up some flyers in local libraries, and the book store itself. New Jersey doesn't get this much excitement, so when people hear that a writer, as sucessfull as yourself, is coming to a book store locally, I'm sure fellow book readers will jump at the chance! Also, I have yet to read your book "The Unresolved", (which is probly next on my list, after I'm free of all the papers for school I must write). I'm a Jewish teen myself, and think it would be an enriching book to read! We need more writers like you, that are tangible to the public. Thank you again. Aspiring writer, Elizabeth."
ohioyalibrarian @ LibraryThing
"A very well-written and grisly fictional account based on the body-snatching trials of the early 1800's."
To buy your copy, click here!
THE UNRESOLVED -- Reader Reviews
Lizette @ Barnes & Noble.com
Fantastic Ghost Story
"I loved this book. It was really, really scary and yet full of hope. Mallory is a great character. I couldn't put it down."
To buy your copy, click here!
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