July's Hottest New Novels: George R.R. Martin returns with A Dance with Dragons; Glen Duncan debuts with The Last Werewolf

With the arrival of George R.R. Martin's A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, it feels like Christmas in July. Washington Post book critic Ron Charles warns ravenous readers to "prepare to have your monster world turned upside down" by Glen Duncan's THE LAST WEREWOLF, a smart, sexy, decidedly 21st century take on an age-old legend. For readers who believe that sultry days and short stories go together like surf and turf, we suggest Alethea Black's stunning debut collection, I KNEW YOU'D BE LOVELY.

To thank our subscribers, we are happy to offer free ground UPS shipping on your purchases. Simply enter coupon code "SUNNY11" at checkout to qualify.

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A DANCE WITH DRAGONS Written by George R.R. Martin $35.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeRvcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyn

Dubbed "the American Tolkien" by Time magazine, George R. R. Martin has earned international acclaim for his monumental cycle of epic fantasy. Now the #1 New York Times bestselling author delivers the fifth book in his landmark series--as both familiar faces and surprising new forces vie for a foothold in a fragmented empire.

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THE LAST WEREWOLF Written by Glen Duncan $25.95 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeR_cStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyk

Meet Jake. A bit on the elderly side (he turns 201 in March), but you'd never suspect it. Nonstop sex and exercise will do that for you--and a diet with lots of animal protein. Jake is a werewolf, and after the unfortunate and violent death of his one contemporary, he is now the last of his species. In Jake, Glen Duncan has given us a werewolf for the twenty-first century--a man whose deeds can only be described as monstrous but who is in some magical way deeply human.

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I KNEW YOU'D BE LOVELY Written by Alethea Black $14.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeRPcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyl

Alethea Black's deeply moving and wholly original debut collection features a coterie of memorable characters who have reached emotional crossroads in their lives.

"Alethea Black's characters are witty [...] without turning caustic, and remain mostly cheerful about their uncertain futures--just the kind of people with whom we want to connect."--Corrie Pikul, Oprah.com

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CONQUISTADORA Written and read by Esmeralda Santiago $45.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeRfcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyq

From the author of the bestselling memoir, WHEN I WAS PUERTO RICAN, comes a lush and cinematic story--burning with passion and violence, epic in scope--of two tumultuous decades in the history of Puerto Rico, through the eyes and heart of one conquistadora: a daring, fiery woman who defies the expectations of her time and place to seek her fortune far from home.

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THE DEVIL ALL THE TIME Written by Donald Ray Pollock $26.95 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeWvcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyr

In THE DEVIL ALL THE TIME, Donald Ray Pollock, author of the critically acclaimed KNOCKEMSTIFF, marries the twisted intensity of Oliver Stone's "Natural Born Killers" with the religious and Gothic over?tones of Flannery O'Connor at her most haunting. Set in rural southern Ohio and West Virginia, THE DEVIL ALL THE TIME follows a cast of compelling and bizarre characters from the end of World War II to the 1960s. With his first novel, Pollock proves himself a master storyteller in the grittiest and most uncompromising American grain.

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FRENCH LESSONS Written by Ellen Sussman $15.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeW_cStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyo

A single day in Paris changes the lives of three Americans as they each set off to explore the city with a French tutor, learning about language, love, and loss as their lives intersect in surprising ways.

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SWAMPLANDIA! Written by Karen Russell Available Jul. 26th $14.95 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeWPcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyp

From the celebrated author of the everywhere-heralded short-story collection ST. LUCY'S HOME FOR GIRLS RAISED BY WOLVES comes a blazingly original debut novel that takes us back to the swamps of the Florida Everglades, and introduces us to Ava Bigtree, an unforgettable young heroine.

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THE VIPS Written by Scott Poulson-Bryant $15.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeWfcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyu

In the tradition of E. Lynn Harris comes this rip-roaring tale of secrets, sex, and betrayal.

On a steamy June day in New York City, mega-star rapper TNT gathers a group of four successful men together, childhood friends who called themselves "the VIPs," signaling the big dreams they all once had. THE VIPs, who haven't seen one another in years, are greeted at the Hotel Gansevoort by an openly hostile TNT, who asks them the bombshell question: "Which one of you bastards is my father?"

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NEXT TO LOVE Written by Ellen Feldman Available Jul. 26th $25.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeXvcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyv

A story of love, war, loss, and the scars they leave, NEXT TO LOVE follows the lives of three young women and their men during the years of World War II and its aftermath, beginning with the men going off to war and ending a generation later, when their children are on the cusp of their own adulthood.

"A powerful, haunting, deeply ambitious novel about love and war, impeccably executed, impossible to put down."--Stacy Schiff, author of CLEOPATRA: A LIFE

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MIDNIGHT MOVIE Written by Tobe Hooper and Alan Goldsher $14.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeX_cStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplys

From the legendary director of The "Texas Chain Saw Massacre" comes a horror novel that mixes fact and fiction to tell the story of what happens when one of Tobe Hooper's films causes a strange contagion to spread across America, forcing Hooper to delve into long-forgotten corners of his past to save thousands of lives and solve the mystery.

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NORTHWEST CORNER Written by John Burnham Schwartz Available Jul. 26th $26.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeXPcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyt

Novelist John Burnham Schwartz reintroduces readers to RESERVATION ROAD's unforgettable characters in a superb new novel that stands magnificently on its own. NORTHWEST CORNER is a riveting story about the complex, fierce, ultimately inspiring resilience of families in the face of life's most difficult and unexpected challenges.

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SHUT YOUR EYES TIGHT (DAVE GURNEY, NO. 2) Written by John Verdon $24.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeXfcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyy

Dave Gurney, protagonist of John Verdon's bestselling thriller debut THINK OF A NUMBER returns to tackle his toughest case yet, a battle of wits with an implacable opponent who is not only brilliant and murderous, but eager to target Dave's greatest vulnerability--his family.

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THE WIDOWER'S TALE Written by Julia Glass $15.00 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeUvcStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyz

With equal parts affection and satire, Julia Glass--National Book Award-winning author of THREE JUNES--spins a captivating tale about the loyalties, rivalries, and secrets of a very particular family.

"Marvelous. . . . A delicate, nuanced, socially conscious story of one family's near-destruction, and how a slew of seemingly bad moves reconnects it."--USA Today

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BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS

THE SUMMER I LEARNED TO FLY Written by Dana Reinhardt $15.99 http://information.randomhouse.com/HS?a=ENX7CkR1RUUm8SA9MOBdvFnnGHxKQhmeU_cStGb5lw8W0bBhOG5mpqVsje_HheFjplyw

This timeless new book is a story about a cautious girl swept up by new feelings. It's about a charismatic boy in search of a miracle. It's about what happens when they find each other. ======================================================================

This offer is valid for customers residing in the United States of America who place orders online through www.randomhouse.com. Note: www.randomhouse.com does not fulfill orders internationally. Customers must enter the promotion code "SUNNY11" at checkout to qualify for the promotion. Coupon code valid through September 30, 2011.