The Program,  by Stephen White

New Orleans District Attorney Kirsten Lord is on her way to meet her husband to celebrate their wedding anniversary when she sees him killed before her eyes by a hit man--who escapes.  Kirsten had successfully prosecuted a drug dealer and he had threatened her in court by telling her, "Every precious thing I lose, you will lose two."  Kirsten has a nine-year-old daughter and fears she will be next so she agrees to join the Witness Protection Program, even though she had been very publicly critical of the program in the past.  Kirsten and Amy, her daughter, are relocated to Boulder, Colorado but they are far from safe.  It soon becomes apparent that not only do they seem to have the drug dealer after them, they are also being sought by disgruntled employees of the Witness Protection Program, who hold Kirsten responsible for the firing of several of their fellow employees.  To make matters worse, a third person may be after her because of a murder case she was involved in six years before.  Luckily, she becomes friends with a retired hit man for the mob named Carl Luppo, who is living in Boulder and is also in the Witness program.  Together they must try to discover who is after her while keeping her daughter safe at the same time.  This is the first book I've read by Stephen White and I enjoyed its nice build up of suspense and surprise ending.
 

The Whitechapel Conspiracy, by Anne Perry

Perry's latest novel featuring policeman Thomas Pitt and his wife Charlotte is also one of her best.  The time is 1892 and Queen Victoria's long reign continues.  She has been living a life of seclusion since the death of her husband.  Her son, the Prince of Wales, is both running wild and running up huge debts.  There is much poverty and unrest--especially in the East End.  As the story opens, Pitt is testifying in the trial of a gentleman named John Adinett, who is accused of killing his best friend, Martin Fetters.  The evidence is all circumstantial but Adinett is convicted and put to death largely on the strength of Pitt's testimony.  The trial's result will set into motion a series of actions that will have Thomas and Charlotte investigating a secret conspiracy  to overthrow the government and monarchy.  Could the seeds of the conspiracy have been planted in Whitechapel four years earlier with the infamous Jack the Ripper murders?  Perry has done a great job of linking fact and fiction in this enjoyable read.
 

Headwind, by John J. Nance

In a review of an earlier novel by Nance I mentioned that he is a pilot and also a lawyer, in addition to being the aviation analyst for ABC News.  His latest book draws upon this knowledge and is a combination airline and courtroom suspense novel.  Former American president John Harris is in Athens aboard a flight preparing to leave for Rome when he receives word that he is about to be arrested for alleged torture crimes against Peruvians that were supposedly authorized during his presidency.  Harris swears that he is innocent but according to the international treaty against torture, he can be arrested and sent to Peru to stand trial.  The plane's pilot, American Craig Dayton, is not about to let this happen to Harris and he decides to take off without permission from the tower.  This buys some time but they seemingly have no place to go.  All the European nations have signed the treaty and Harris will be arrested no matter where the plane lands.  The plane is a 737 and it doesn't have the range to reach American soil.  While they are airborne Harris and Dayton must come up with a plan that will prevent the former president from facing a kangaroo court in Peru that will most certainly find him guilty.  This was an enjoyable read--interesting story line and the aviation and courtroom scenes were equally good.
 

A Painted House, by John Grisham

The time is 1952 and the place is the eighty acre Chandler farm outside the small farming community of Black Oak, Arkansas.  The dirt-poor Chandlers raise cotton and it is increasingly a losing proposition.  Luke Chandler, aged seven, lives with his parents and grandparents in an unpainted house on the farm.  Through his eyes we experience one very memorable harvest season as the Chandlers struggle to bring in their crop with the help of ten Mexican migrant workers and a family from the Ozarks.  You might think this couldn't be very interesting but there is plenty going on as the three groups interact with each other.  Last year David Baldacci, known for his suspense novels, wrote a delightful coming of age novel set in southwest Virginia in the late 1940's.  Now, Grisham has abandoned his usual lawyers to write this unexpected novel based on his own childhood in Arkansas and it is a pure pleasure to read.  This is easily his best book since his first, A  Time to Kill.
 

You Only Die Twice, by Edna Buchanan

I sometimes wonder why some authors are elevated to Super Author status with multi-million dollar contracts and others just as talented never get as much recognition as they deserve.  Case in point--Edna Buchanan.  She has a wonderful series going that is every bit as good as Sue Grafton's "alphabet" series but so far she remains relatively unknown.  Nobody ever asks me when the new Edna Buchanan book is coming out--as they do all the time with Grafton.  Her new book, "P" is for Peril, has a first printing of 750,000.  You Only Die Twice has an initial order of only 50,000.  But, on the bright side, that's a select group of very lucky readers. Why don't you be one of them and give Buchanan a try while you're waiting to get your hands on the next Grafton?

Single, beautiful, witty, thirtysomething Britt Montero is a Miami newspaper reporter who usually works the crime beat.  Her latest assignment is investigating the death of an attractive woman who has washed ashore on Miami Beach.  At first, the woman can't be identified but she is finally discovered to be Kaithlin Jordan, thought to have been murdered by her wealthy and abusive husband, R.J. Jordan,  ten years ago.  He is on death row and scheduled to be put to death after having been convicted of her murder even though the body was never found.  Britt's got herself a very interesting mystery now.  What happened ten years ago?  Where has Kaithlin been all this time and what has she been doing?  And, most importantly, why has she turned up in Miami now and who killed her this time?  It's great fun following the very likable Britt through the twists and turns as she uncovers one of the great stories of her career.
 

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