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I am sure by now you are doing a double take at the new look of our June issue. It's part of an overall development plan to reach a wider audience of readers through broader distribution in stores, a newly designed website which is underway and will be launching in late summer complete with a dynamic interactive blog, a digital version of the magazine for those who have gone paperless, as well as many other exciting things planned for the future of RT and its readers.
In the meantime, enjoy phase one with our fresh new look featuring one of the most prolific authors of the day, Brenda Jackson, who will see 13 new books in stores for 2009. Brenda's is one of those uplifting stories that shows how hard work, perseverance and following a dream can lead to success.
Our features this month are entertaining as well as informative. In our "Decoding Book Covers" article, we provide tips for how to tell a book by its cover even if you do not judge it by the cover. The article explains how you can scan covers in a store and know at a glance which genre it is by the art elements on the cover. These is also a fun quiz where 10 lucky readers will win a grab bag of books. Be sure to enter.
Another feature in the new issue is about how and why publishers stopped a beloved series before it ended or, in some cases, never published a sequel to a story (or about its characters) that readers were waiting for. We contacted a couple dozen authors, some of whom were not willing to speculate on the outcome of the stories and some who were delighted to share their thoughts. So if we have not included your favorite series or characters in the article it's probably because the author did not want to participate.
Our interviews this month are quite diverse, beginning with a pair of bestselling thriller writers. James Rollins interviewed multi-million copy bestseller David Baldacci and not only asked the burning questions on fans' minds, but also asked some candid questions that give insight into the man behind the blockbuster books. Nicely done and an RT exclusive!
Next up are the ladies. Beloved bestseller Debbie Macomber shares with us how her Cedar Cove books have impacted tourism in the real-life locations in the great northwest she uses in the books, as well as how the locals have organized to celebrate her in an annual festival. She also talks about her upcoming debut children's book (for readers age 9 to 12) called THE TRULY TERRIBLY HORRIBLE SWEATER ... THAT GRANDMA KNIT
. She also talks about a new inspirational nonfiction book coming out from a Simon & Schuster imprint Howard titled ONE SIMPLE ACT, which was inspired by an act of generosity bestowed upon her by a complete stranger. There is also a cookbook in the pipeline from Harlequin titled DEBBIE MACOMBER'S CEDAR COVE COOKBOOK. She is one busy lady and one heck of a talent!
And speaking of talent, few compare to Mary Balogh whose hardcover from Delacorte, SEDUCING AN ANGEL, is book four in her Huxtable family series. The story follows three back-to-back love stories (released in paperback) and stars another Balogh trademark: a nontraditional hero. Stephen Huxtable is 17 at the start of the series, FIRST COMES MARRIAGE (March '09), but he's grown up a lot for his own love story!
For young adult fans, we interviewed Sarah Dessen, whose ninth YA novel, ALONG FOR THE RIDE, hits stores in June. She shares with us the inspiration for the book as well as some little-known facts about herself.
We also bring you the RT Career Achievement and Reviewers' Choice winners, who will be formally announced this week in Orlando at the 26th annual RT Booklovers Convention where many of the RT staff members will be on hand to meet you, including editors Faygie Levy, Liz French, Stephanie Klose and Elissa Petruzzi; Advertising and Marketing Director Giselle Hirtenfeld/Goldfeder will also be there along with RT reviewers Kathe Robin,
Jill Smith and Jill Brager.
There will be lots of blogging going on at the convention and daily reporting on the workshops and the events, so be sure to check out our blog and lots of photos on RTBookReviews.com.
The July issue is in the works and Allison Brennan will be our cover story promoting her upcoming suspense novel, CUTTING EDGE, which is due out in late July. We met Allison at the RWA PASIC Conference in New York last month where she shared a funny story about the adventures of a research trip to the morgue with fellow author Brenda Novak. She will share it with all of you in the next issue.
We thought it would be fun to explore which celebrities are reading what and the article is coming together nicely as we uncover many surprising finds. In keeping with the celebrity theme we are getting an exclusive look behind the scenes of the HBO smash hit True Blood, based on Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse books
. There will be photos from the upcoming season as well as some idea of what direction the series will go into this year. True Blood resumes in June, so stay tuned for the latest HBO blockbuster series directed by Alan Ball of Six Feet Under fame.
Our interview this month is of legal thriller favorite Steve Martini, which will be conducted by suspense author Lori Andrews, who is also a huge fan. We love these "author on author" interviews because they seem to get to the nitty-gritty of what motivates the author from an insider's perspective.
We also catch up with Carla Neggers for a look at the next installment in her Boston Police Department/FBI series titled THE MIST. She's also a part of Harlequin's "Famous First" collection in honor of their 60th Anniversary. Her 1986 Harlequin Temptation titled CAPTIVATED will be out in September and we will have all the details.
Our lead Clubhouse for July is author Linda Castillo, whose first straight thriller, SWORN TO SILENCE, is coming out from St. Martin's Minotaur Books imprint in July. Not only does SWORN TO SILENCE mark Linda's hardcover debut, it launches a new trilogy.
For all the gloom-and-doom reports about books and publishing, the New York Times recently did a story on the strength of romance fiction in these hard economic times and how once again our beloved books will bail out the slumping industry. Harlequin reported in the article that their fourth-quarter earnings were up 32 percent and Barnes and Noble reported that while overall sales were expected to drop 4-6 percent, sales for romance are up, proving that love does indeed conquer all!
In the next issue, there will be lots to report from our fabulous fun convention in Orlando and lots of photos, so stay tuned!
In the meantime, keep reading and keep buying "new" books. It's the least we can do to help the economy recover ... or at least that's our story and we are sticking to it :)
 Happy reading,
Carol Stacy
Publisher
RT Book Reviews Magazine
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