I'm Buying Books for the Holidays...

...does it count if they're for me?

I had a coupon for a free book and a $20 gift certificate from the Poisoned Pen burning holes in my wallet, so after going to see the film 2012, Denis and I hopped in the Jeep and headed for my favorite bookstore. I had carefully compiled a list of books to look for, hoping that I wouldn't choose any that Denis had already purchased for me. Denis and one of the employees chatted while I roamed up and down the shelves. Denis would take my selections up to the counter, which meant that he could take a look at each one and make sure there wouldn't be any duplicates.

I came home with a bag of ten books, and two were free. I think Denis had something to do with getting that second book free. The postcard merely mentioned buying five books and getting the least expensive of the five free, but when he saw that I'd chosen ten, he batted his baby blues and asked if that meant I got two free books, and they said yes. Dummy me wouldn't have thought to ask, being thrilled enough over the one!

You can see my stack in the photo up top. They're sitting here next to me, and I keep wanting to stroke them and murmur, "My precious!" (My name is Cathy, and I'm a book addict.) For those like me who get a kick out of lists, here's the rundown:

1. Dead and Kicking by Wendy Roberts, the third in the cozy Ghost Dusters mystery series. (I've reviewed other titles in this series.)
2. Blood of the Wicked by Leighton Gage, the first in the Mario Silva mystery series set in Brazil.
3. Jade Lady Burning by Martin Límon, the first in the Sueno and Bascom mystery series set in Seoul, Korea.
4. An Expert in Murder, A Josephine Tey Mystery by Nicola Upson, a debut mystery featuring one of my favorite writers as a main character.
5. Phoenix Noir edited by Patrick Millikin, a collection of short stories set in Phoenix written by authors such as Diana Gabaldon, Lee Child, James Sallis and Luis Alberto Urrea.
6. Effigies by Mary Anna Evans, the third in the Faye Longchamp mystery series.
7. Murder Off the Books by Evelyn David, the first in the Sullivan Investigations mystery series.
8. Bitter Recoil by Steven F. Havill, the second in the Posadas County mystery series set in New Mexico.
9. Cool in Tucson by Elizabeth Gunn, the first in the Sarah Burke mystery series.
10. halfhead by Stuart MacBride, a futuristic mystery set in Glasgow, Scotland.
    

Four authors have already been personally taste tested, but now I have an additional six brand new authors to sample! There ought to be an award for such gluttony....shouldn't there?