Leather Maiden -- Joe R. Lansdale

While you can't read this book until later in the year (official release date is 8/5), I happen to have special powers that allow me to see things in advance. So I'll tell you a little about it.

Cason Statler's a veteran of the Iraq war and a Pulitzer-nominated reporter who's had a little trouble on his last job. He also has a drinking problem. So he's reduced to looking for work in his hometown of Camp Rapture. He gets a job as a columnist for the local paper, and in the course of looking through his predecessor's files, he comes across some notes about a young woman's mysterious disappearance. When he starts digging into the story, he uncovers any number of unexplained events, from the seemingly innocent to the bizarre. The deeper he digs, the more bizarre things get, and when you're reading a book by Joe Lansdale, that can be pretty bizarre. Like the title. You might think you have an idea of what the title means, but I figure you're wrong.

By the time Booger shows up in town, Statler's into the middle of a conspiracy so twisted that only Lansdale could have dreamed it up. Booger, by the way, is a sociopath who counts Statler as one of his few friends. His other friends are a guy called Runt and his weapons, including Mr. Lucky, his .45 automatic. Before the end, Statler and Booger are literally in a race against the clock.

Violence, humor, snappy patter, suspense: Leather Maiden has 'em all. Too bad you have to wait until August, but now you know you have something to look forward to with eager anticipation.