Patricia Cornwell’s newest release, Book of the Dead, is No. 1. Jessica Seinfeld’s controversial book is number 4 (it peaked at number 2). The competing book, Missy Chase Lapine’s The Sneaky Chef, debuted at 102 this week, likely due to the controversy. Laurell K Hamilton’s latest entry in the Merry Gentry series, Lick of Frost shows up at No. 6.
Despite the official release date for Harlequin Enterprise books, a number of them sold well enough to show up on the list including Sharon Sala’s second entry in the Cat Dupree series.
For all the talk about historicals being dead (and I actually heard that historicals are seeing an uptick in sales after being flat for years), an interesting comparison can be seen in the much hyped book of JR Ward, Lover Unbound, which fell out of the list this week and Lisa Kleypas Mine Till Midnight which remains on the print list for the 5th week a row. “Mine Till Midnight”‘s release date was October 2, 20007 and “Lover Unbound” was September 25, 2007. Both were widely available before the release date but only Mine Till Midnight showed up on the list that showed sales ending on September 30, 2007. Lover Unbound fell quickly and out of the list after four weeks. Mine Till Midnight is still in the top 50 after five weeks.
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Christmas Wishes, Debbie Macomber (Mira), $7.99, No. 11 (debut).
The Marriage Game, Fern Michaels (Pocket Star), $7.99, No. 15 (debut).
The Gift: Home For Christmas\All I Want For Christmas\Gabriel’s Angel, Nora Roberts (Silhouette Special Releases), $7.99, No. 26 (Peak 7).
Free Fall, Fern Michaels (Zebra), $6.99, No. 37 (Peak 8).
Truly, Madly Manhattan, Nora Roberts (Silhouette Special Releases), $14.95, No. 41 (debut).
The Dangers of Deceiving a Viscount, Julia London (Pocket), $6.99, No. 42 (debut).
Mine Till Midnight, Lisa Kleypas (St. Martin’s Paperbacks), $7.99, No. 48 (Peak 5).
Cut Throat, Sharon Sala (Mira), $7.99, No. 59 (debut).
The Seance, Heather Graham (Mira), $7.99, No. 75 (Peak 18).
The Other Boleyn Girl, Philippa Gregory (Pocket Star), $7.99, No. 83 (Peak 94).
Bloodfever, Karen Marie Moning (Delacorte), $22.00, No. 88 (Peak 41). This is the second in her new series.
Queen's Lady, Shannon Drake (Harlequin), $7.99, No. 101 (debut).
74 Seaside Avenue, Debbie Macomber (Mira), $7.99, No. 105 (Peak 1).
A Cold Day In Hell, Stella Cameron (Mira), $7.99, No. 122 (debut).
Secrets of a Proper Lady, Victoria Alexander (Avon), $7.99, No. 124 (Peak 27).
The Boleyn Inheritance, Philippa Gregory (Touchstone), $16.00, No. 128 (Peak 36).
Becket's Last Stand, Kasey Michaels (HQN Books), $6.99, No. 129 (debut).
Mistletoe and Molly, Janet Dailey (Zebra), $6.99, No. 138 (Peak 61).
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Out of the list:
Lover Unbound, J.R. Ward (Signet), $7.99, No. 105 (Peak 10).
Where Angels Go, Debbie Macomber (Mira), $16.95, No. 112 (Peak 56).
On Tall Pine Lake, Dorothy Garlock (Grand Central Publishing), $6.99, No. 145 (Peak 113).
Mending Fences, Sherryl Woods (Mira), $6.99, No. 149 (Peak 51).
I keep telling myself that I’m done with Cornwell, but I’ve already ordered Book of The Dead. Big effing sigh.
Cornwell lost me during the whole werewolf thing…Black Notice? I think the last of hers I read was actually her non-fiction book on the Jack the Ripper murders and, though I thought she made a very compelling case, I was so turned off by her declaring the case solved I’ve never read another.
I finished with Cormwell at Trace. I just couldn’t take it anymore.
Oops. I mean Cornwell. That was a typo.
I’m definitely done with Cornwell myself.
I was just commenting last week that, barring any big drop, Ward’s Lover Unbound could probably make it for 5 weeks in the USA Bestseller list. Well, the big drop did occur and the book was out of the list before the 28th, or to be precise, by the 26th of October as per stats. It seems that it can’t break the 4 weeks maximum stay of the previous books. And for all the talk and publicity this book has generated, I wonder why is that.
I don’t know if it was disappointment or whether she has a capped audience. I don’t suppose it bodes well for a hardcover debut though unless Phury’s book really rocks. I think the problem is that her world is in such shambles that I don’t know if it can be revived well enough for enough people.
I can’t remember whether this was in the fall of 2004 or 2005. But Eloisa James came to Austin and gave a workshop. And all the way back then she said that she believed historicals were on an upswing, because print run numbers for herself and her historical-writing colleagues were going up.
Since then, however, I haven’t really seen solid data to back it up. From what the booksellers said at RWA this past July, it seems that the growth for historicals is still sort of flat, in the low-to-mid single-digits whereas paranormal and YA are growing by leaps and bounds.
But I certainly hope that the uptick is finally here. Goodness knows I could use a high tide when my boat launches.
I think books likes yours and Joanna Bourne’s will prove to be a huge boon for the historical genre because they are so rich in detail and full of romanticism.
In my humble opinion I think historicals are a mainstay of the romance industry. They may not be a “growth” subgenre, but they never really go away. It’s like blue chip stocks, always there, neither zinging skyward or plummeting to nothing.
Paranormals are still growing by leaps and bounds, but I have to wonder when that’s going to level off. I have a paranormal out this month (The Black Dragon, by Allyson James) and I’ve been amazed at the deluge of paranormals out Oct-Dec of this year. I fear that market will be saturated soon, and we’ll see a downturn.
Speaking for myself, the numbers on my historicals have only grown since I started. Each book so far sells more than the last (knock on wood).
The paranormals market is already saturated. Every time I browse in a bookstore, all I see are paranormals. And, to be honest, I haven’t bought a paranormal book in almost 2 years, with the exception of Ward’s book–and that might be the last. Oh, and there’s Kelley Armstrong, but thankfully her paranormals have strong women and don’t feature magic vaginas, so I’ll keep buying her.
What I’ve been missing is a good medieval historical. I realized the other day I haven’t read one in ages and would love to revisit that time period. I want to read about drafty castles and knights and the women who actually run things behind the men’s backs (sorry, no dragons or wizards or any other magical creature/being need apply). Any suggestions?
Ann, I’m right there with you. I miss a good rompy medieval. Where did those disappear off to?
This was my first Cornwell book and I have to say Book of the Dead was really good. It kept my attention the entire time. After reading this one I am for sure going to check out her other books.