Bookmarks

Here are some books that have crossed our desks recently.

HARDBACKS

"SERVANT OF A DARK GOD," by John Brown, Tor Books, $25.99 (f)

Talen lives in a world where the days of a person's life can be harvested, bought and stolen. Only the great Divines, who rule every land, and the human soul-eaters, dark ones who steal from man and beast, know the secrets of this power. This land's Divine has gone missing, and soul-eaters are found among Talen's people. Talen finds himself trapped in a web of lies and ancient secrets and must struggle to identify his true enemy before true disaster hits.

More hardbacks recently released:

"To Try Men's Souls," by Newt Gingrich and William R. Forstchen (f); "Neon Mesa: Wonders of the Southwest," by Rob Atkins (nf, photography); "A Year on the Wing: Four Seasons in a Life With Birds," by Tim Dee (nf); "Enemies of the People: My Family's Journey to America," by Kati Marton (nf); "The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire That Saved America," by Timothy Egan (nf); "Jacques Cousteau: The Sea King," by Brad Matsen (nf); "The Butcher: Anatomy of a Mafia Psychopath," by Philip Carlo (nf); "Tommy Gun: How General Thompson's Submachine Gun Wrote History," by Bill Yenne (nf)

PAPERBACKS

"BLUE GENES: A Memoir of Loss and Survival," by Christopher Lukas, Anchor, $15 (nf)

Christopher Lukas' mother committed suicide when he was a boy. He and his brother, Tony, were not told how she died. No one spoke of the family history of depression and bipolar disorder. The brothers grew up to achieve remarkable success. After suffering bouts of depression, Christopher was able to confront his family's troubled past, but Tony never found the contentment Christopher attained; he committed suicide in 1997. Lukas writes of this family's legacy of depression and details the strength and hope that can provide a way of escaping its grasp.

More paperbacks recently released:

"Lincoln President-Elect: Abraham Lincoln and the Great Secession Winter 1860-1861," by Harold Holzer (nf, reprint); "The End of Time: The Maya Mystery of 2012," by Anthony Aveni (nf); "The Reagan I Knew," by William F. Buckley Jr. (nf); "Set Up in Soho," by Dee Davis (f); "An Imperfect Offering: Humanitarian Action for the Twenty-First Century," by James Orbinski (nf)

YOUNG READERS

"MARCHING FOR FREEDOM: Walk Together Children and Don't You Grow Weary," by Elizabeth Partridge, Viking Juvenile, $19.99 (ages 10 and up)