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Brian Freeman's Blog, page 45
July 15, 2011
The Bookstore at Fitger's
June 26, 2011
What's New?
After a whirlwind travel schedule this spring, we're back home now for most of the summer. Usually, that means there isn't too much to report, because I'm spending the days tucked away in my office in front of my computer, doing what I'm supposed to do -- write. I'm in the process of wrapping up the first draft of the second Ally O'Brien novel right now (it's a lot of fun...all of the humor and wackiness of The Agency with lots of heart), and then I'll be diving into my eighth suspense novel.
For those of you who are wondering -- and writing to me -- yes, book eight takes me back to Duluth and Jonathan Stride!
So as I sit and write, here's what's news close to home and around the world:
There's a nice profile of me in the Washington County section of the Star Tribune newspaper on June 26. Click here to read the article.
My fifth book (The Burying Place, which is a finalist for Best Hardcover Novel of 2010 in the International Thriller Writer Awards) was released this month in Italy as Il Respiro del Ghiaccio. You can visit my author page at my Italian publisher's web site by clicking here.
The pocketbook edition of my third novel (Stalked) was released in France this month as Le Prix du Peche. My fourth novel is available there now, too, as Le Voyeur. Book five will be published in France next February. For those of you who parlent Francais, there's a nice interview here at the wonderful Plume Libre web site.
We have sold my books in 20 languages now! We recently did deals in Thailand and Turkey. We have also signed up for a new release with my Taiwanese publisher.
The release of my sixth book BRANDMERK in the Netherlands has been scheduled for January.
Meanwhile, stay tuned for announcements soon about the release of my seventh suspense novel in both the US and UK! My editor says it took her breath away. That's what I love to hear.
May 20, 2011
The Cottage
We're back home after a 2,600-mile driving tour to visit libraries throughout the Midwest. Thanks from me and Marcia to everyone who joined us on the road to make the trip so memorable. We'll be trying to reach other locations throughout the U.S. - and around the world, wherever possible - in the coming years.
One of our stops took us to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where the wonderful Aunt Agatha's mystery bookstore is located. As we were heading west, we stopped for the night near St. Joseph, a picturesque town on the shore of Lake Michigan. For me, it was like coming home.
I grew up in Chicago in the 1960s and early 1970s, before my family moved to California. While we lived there, my parents had a small cottage a few miles north of St. Joe, which we visited on summer weekends. I hadn't been back to see the cottage in many years, and I was curious what we would find.
To my surprise, it was as if time had stood still. It may as well have been 1973, the last time we set foot inside the small home. Nothing had changed. The roads were still unpaved. Peering in the windows (yes, I'm a voyeur), the rooms were much as they'd been in those years, with furniture still covered for the winter season. Only the trees had grown larger to soar over the area. If I closed my eyes, I could have been ten years old again, and I haven't felt that way in a long time.
Why is the cottage important? It's because much of what I write traces to those days. When we moved to California, I missed the Midwest - but it wasn't really Chicago that I missed. It was Michigan. The cottage was my image of the Midwest, with its lonely rural roads, its deep woods, its open fields, and the looming presence of the great lake. Sound familiar? Yes, it sounds a lot like the environs you'll find in most of my novels.
I went to college in Minnesota because I wanted to get back to the Midwest I remembered. That's still the Midwest you'll find in my books.
May 19, 2011
Portage County Public Library
April 17, 2011
Nice Company
Some great news this week: My fifth book THE BURYING PLACE was announced as a finalist for Best Novel of 2010 in the International Thriller Writer Awards.
I'm in some nice company. The other four finalists for the award are bestselling authors Michael Connelly (for The Reversal), Jeffery Deaver (for Edge), Mo Hayder (for Skin), and John Sandford (for Bad Blood). The winner will be announced during the annual Thriller Fest in New York, sponsored by the International Thriller Writers organization.
An interesting plus: This means that two Minnesotans, me and John Sandford, are nominees for best novel of 2010. We always knew that "Minnesota noir" was a genuine phenomenon, and now it looks like it's getting noticed. We have a large community of exceptionally talented mystery and suspense writers here in the north land.
So cross your fingers for me for July. I'll be hoping THE BURYING PLACE brings home the gold. Regardless, however, it's an amazing thrill to have my book up there with some of the most successful writers in the genre.
April 3, 2011
In Stride Country
I spent the weekend doing events in Duluth and Superior for the launch of THE BONE HOUSE. As always, it's like coming home for me.
We visited the libraries and bookstores in both cities and also did a special event for a wonderful group of teachers in the town of Solon Springs. Wherever we went, Marcia and I received a warm, gracious welcome. We may not live in the northland, but it's a community of dear friends for us.
The launch event at Fitgers was a chance to visit with many readers who have been with me since the release of IMMORAL in 2005. Everyone was excited to explore my new literary venture in Door County with THE BONE HOUSE...and of course, I reassured them that Stride would rise again!
We will be in London soon for the annual London Book Fair, and then we'll be getting ready for our driving tour through the upper Midwest in the first two weeks of May. We'll be looking forward to meeting many of you in the weeks ahead!
Kiel Library
March 30, 2011
In Stores Now
For all of you who have been waiting for the release of my sixth psychological suspense novel, THE BONE HOUSE, the wait is over! The new book is available in bookstores today.
One reviewer describes THE BONE HOUSE this way: "It's like someone has lit a fuse and we are caught captivated, waiting breathlessly for the bomb to go off. Eerie, atmospheric and melancholic, THE BONE HOUSE delivers an astute thriller with a very human subtext." Of course, I also like the simple feedback from a reader who wrote to tell me: "I loved loved loved this book!" Another reader reported: "What a truly fantastic read it was. I am utterly speechless!" You can find out more about THE BONE HOUSE -- and read the exciting prologue -- on the special page for THE BONE HOUSE at my web site. I think you'll find that it's the best book yet.
I hope you'll look for your copy at your local bookstore this week. Or, to buy the book right now, go to my Buy the Books page.
My first five novels, IMMORAL, STRIPPED, STALKED, IN THE DARK, and THE BURYING PLACE are all now available in paperback, if you missed any of the early novels -- or if you need gifts for family and friends. (For something lighter, don't forget my book THE AGENCY written under the pseudonym "Ally O'Brien.")
Look For Me on Tour!
I will be on a driving tour in May to visit with readers throughout the upper Midwest. So look for me this spring in Milwaukee, Chicago, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Ann Arbor, as well as smaller venues in Wisconsin, including Cumberland, Eau Claire, Janesville, Green Bay, Sturgeon Bay, Sister Bay, and Rice Lake. Closer to home, I have events scheduled in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Duluth, and Superior this week! Complete details of my entire tour, including times, dates, and locations, are on the Events page of my web site. If you're in any of the areas I'll be visiting, I hope you'll make it a point to come and say hello and get your books signed.
You can purchase signed copies of my books at any of my tour events this spring. In addition, several independent bookstores will have signed copies available for mail and phone orders, including Once Upon a Crime (Minneapolis, Minnesota), M is for Mystery (San Mateo, California), and Poisoned Pen (Scottsdale, Arizona).
So enjoy the new book -- and please tell your reader friends!
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