The countdown to Valentine's Day is on! (Already?) The wonderful folks at Bookrerporter.com have some sweet and heart-themed treats for you. From January 25th through February 6th, readers will have the chance to win one of five Bookreporter.com Valentine's Day baskets. They are filled with one copy of each of the featured books - from heartwarming novels, philosophical commentary, musical analogies, to some titles that are just plain fun.

I am especially excited with Beginner's Greek by first time novelist (former editor at the Times) James Collins.

Peter Russell is a deeply romantic guy who believes the woman of his dreams is destined to sit next to him on an airplane. And there is Holly, a pretty, strawberry blonde woman who reads Thomas Mann for pleasure. A thousand complications ensue in this delicious novel of missed opportunities, second chances, and lost love. I won't spoil it for you. Enjoy the ride.

Need to generate some real Christmas spirit?

Full of incident, local New York City color, and excitement (both romantic and suspenseful) Silver Bells is a lovely, quick Christmas read.

Christopher Byrne, widowed Nova Scotian Christmas tree farmer, brings his trees to Manhattan each December, bringing his son and daughter. Last year his teen-age son ran away while in New York.

Catherine Tierney, widowed New York librarian, lives in a row house in Chelsea near Christy Byrne's treelot.

Might they meet, might the son reappear?

Hurry, there are eight copies on the shelf right now.

I have been saving this for a leisurely read and I was not disappointed.

Princeton professor Sophie Gee's lively, highly literate debut Scandal of the Season* provides the backstory to Alexander Pope’s famous poem "The Rape of the Lock".

1711, London. The anti-Catholic sentiments and secretive Jacobite plots to overthrow the Protestant queen makes for an uneasy social season. Pope’s growing literary reputation allows him entry into high society where he watches with interest the courtship and secret affair between beautiful Arabella Fermor and Robert, Lord Petre.

When Robert is forced to offer marriage to a wealthier heiress, Arabella’s disappointment and humiliation brings on the scandalous event that inspires the famous poem and launches Pope's career.

“Delightfully gossipy, psychologically insightful and historically fascinating”, this novel is "sprinkled with literary cameos, ...crackling verbal one-upmanship and crude double entendres...". For readers of Mary Balogh and regency romance.

* = Starred Review

In a committed relationship, a couple inevitably chooses a slow-dancy, romantic tune as “their song.” Choosing the number is tricky. Sometimes it chooses you; at a relationship milestone (first kiss, dance, visit to Red Lobster) you hear faintly a beautiful ballad and boom! Song chosen. Of course, if you and your sweetheart meet at, say, a Beastie Boys concert, and “Sabotage” doesn’t send your hearts aflutter, you might have to choose a song. You could go with the easies, “Just The Way You Are” by Billy Joel, Elton John’s “Your Song,” etc., great songs you’re guaranteed to hear a lot, prompting an alarming rate of swooning. Of course, thousands of other couples will be swooning around you. Now, if as a loving couple, a popular love song is your song, that's great, so don’t go changing. But for you still looking for a song to be your song and don’t want to write one—and, come on, why would you?—then I have a list of rarer love songs. And don’t be afraid to pick one you like thinking lots of people will snatch them up, because no one reads my blogs.

Lovers of fairies, and romance - mixed with some wickedness and ancient magical battles will eat up the new book, Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr. Seventeen year old Aislinn, who has the rare ability to see faeries, is drawn against her will into a centuries-old battle between the Summer King and Winter Queen, and the survival of her life, her love, and summer all hang in the balance. Check out all of the other great books on Fairies that AADL owns.

If you love adventures, steamy romance, political intrigues, religious passion, a bit of history painted in vivid colors, or simply a good story well told, you wouldn’t want to miss Tim Willock’s The Religion*.

First of a planned trilogy, it is set against the backdrop of the 1565 Great Siege of Malta. Roguish and disarmingly handsome Mattias Tannhauser, kidnapped by Muslim raiders as a child and trained as a holy warrior is now a soldier of fortune. What he does not bargain for is the charming Contessa Carla La Penautier to complicate his wild and boozy ways.
On the eve of the Turkish blockage of the island - the last strong hold of The Knight of St. John (a.k.a. The Religion), Carla agrees to marry Tannhauser (thus making him a Lord) if he would travel to Malta with her to rescue her son abandoned at birth. With the largest ever Ottoman armada on their tail and a vicious battle imminent, their quest is made even more overwhelming when the Pope’s brutal inquisitor with a secret agenda is working against them.

The story moves at a break-necked pace with non-stop action, without sacrificing good character development, historical details and a complex plot. Remarkable. Sure to become this summer’s blockbuster.

* = Starred Reviews

Calliope is tired of being dragged by her mother cross-country from one Renaissance Faire to another. Eliot longs for the day when his father used to sell swimming pools -- before he "found God," and subsequently founded the fat camp for Christian kids ("What would Jesus eat?"). When Cal and Eliot meet, there's instant chemistry -- literally and figuratively. Do they have a future? Or will Eliot's father and Cal's mother (and her jouster boyfriend) tear them apart? posted by Greg Leitich Smith

Scrambled Eggs at Midnight is a romantic comedy with an almost classic feel. Check out Cynsations to learn how co-authors Barkley and Hepler got together on this book.

Written in short lines of free verse, Street Love tells a story of love across social-class lines. Damien who excels at both basketball and academics has been accepted into a top college. In contrast Junice is desperate to protect her little sister after their single-parent mom is sentenced to 25 years for dealing drugs.

From the moment they meet on the bench in the school office, it’s clear they’re drawn to one another. Coming from such different worlds “love” is the only thing Damien and Junice have in common. Is it enough to keep them together?

Edward Glyver - booklover, scholar, and murderer is the narrator in this exemplary blend of intrigue, history and romance, marking a standout literary debut with The Meaning of Night: A confession by Michael Cox. It took the author 30 years to complete, and snagged him the highest advance in publication history. Read more.

Glyver always believes he is destined for greatness, but standing between him and his rightful inheritance is his archnemesis, the poet-criminal Phoebus Rainsford Daunt. Resourceful Eddy will stop at nothing to claim what is his.

Fans of Wilkie Collins, Iain Pears, and David Liss would appreciate the expectedly wicked twists, and the well drawn cast of characters. Anyone interested in scrupulously researched background and details of everyday Victorian life, as in Michel Faber’s The Crimson Petal and the White and Sarah Waters’s Fingersmith would find an enthralling and suspenseful read here.

All-starred reviews from Booklist, Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly. Highly recommended.

Blow the House Down by Robert Baer. Riveting and complex debut spy thriller by an ex-CIA operative whose memoir inspired the film Syriana.

A Field of Darkness* by Cornelia Read. A tough-talking, shotgun-toting, ex-debutante being drawn into a cold case involving a double homicide. (A noteworthy FFF - primed as a mystery series opener).

The Futurist* by James P. Othmer. Wildly entertaining and deadly serious satire on global politics and personal integrity. (A FFF)

The Girls* by Lori Lansens. The lives, loves and dreams of a set of conjoined twins. Unforgettable, from a noted Canadian author.

Inside the Mind of Gideon Rayburn* by Sarah Miller. A wild ride inside the head of a sensitive, funny, and a bit lusty 15 year-old prep school hunk. (Another FFF!)

The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World by A.J. Jacobs. Entertaining nonfiction account of one man's attempt to read the whole Encyclopedia Britannica. (Recommended by Sancho Panza).

Little Beauties by Kim Addonizio. FFF from a noted poet, about a has-been junior beauty queen, a pregnant teenager and a baby girl determined to carve out her own future. Moving and engaging. Reminds me of Billie Lett's debut novel Where the Heart is.

Owl Island by Randy Sue Coburn. A romantic and wise look at first loves, set in the Pacific Northwest. You will be hard pressed to find a better beach read.

* = Starred reviews

It sneaked in under the media radar…

Before Chocolat and Five Quarters of the Orange, there was Sleep, Pale Sister.

It was Joanne Harris’ debut novel, originally published in 1993 in England but never before available in the U.S.

This haunting gothic romance is set in 19th century London. Middle-aged Henry Chester, an artist of independent means has an unhealthy interest in virginal young girls. Beautiful, fatherless Effie - his model/wife is kept drugged with laudanum so as to remain his vision of feminine perfection — passive, docile, innocent, unsullied. That is, until a roguish fellow artist awakes her passion.

Multiple plot twists complete with ghosts, illicit sex and murder make for a page-turner. Harris' sensual, elegant style and atmospheric prose admired in her subsequent works, is very much evident here. You will love this one.

You asked for it and here they are - staff picks from a few of our very well read folks. We asked them to suggest fiction titles and authors that are engaging and fun, nothing dark. Some are old favorites, a few are new stars. It's a long list. Be sure to click on "read more". Hope you'd enjoy them.

Albert's Picks:
The British mystery series by Deborah Crombie.
At Weddings and Wakes by Alice McDermott.
Revenge of the Middle-age Woman by Elizabeth Buchan.
The Young Wan by Brendan O'Carroll.
Saying Grace by Beth Gutcheon.
A Big Storm Knocked it Over by Laurie Colwin.
Love and Other Impossible Pursuits by Ayelet Waldman.
The Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear.
The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri.

From a very shy librarian:
Crazy for You by Jennifer Crusie.
Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married by Marian Keyes.
Bubbles Unbound by Sarah Strohmeyer.
The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn.
Little Bitty Lies by Mary Kay Andrews.

Amy's picks:
In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant.
The Minotaur by Barbara Vine.

His Majesty's Dragon* by Naomi Novik. Alternate history set in the Napoleonic Wars, flying dragons and sea battles make for a fantastic read.

The Last Spymaster by Gayle Lynds. Young maverick CIA agent matches wit with a legendary spymaster. Complex and engrossing.

Looking for Mr. Goodfrog by Laurie Graff Searching for one's prince in the rather muddled urban dating pond. Deadly hilarious.

Love in the Present Tense by Catherine Ryan Hyde. An engaging encore from the author of Pay it Forward, on the many incarnation of love and the nature of family.

Make Him Look Good* by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez. Six women and their relationships with one Latin heartthrob. Sexy fun.

The Penultimate Chance Saloon* by Simon Brett. Comedy of sexual manners for a mature single guy, with wit and compassion. For fans of Julie and Romeo and Philosophy Made Simple.

The Virgin of Small Plains* by Nancy Pickard. Love and deceit behind a 17-year-old unsolved murder in a small town. A stand-along from the award-winning author of the Jenny Cain and Marie Lightfoot series. A must for Cold Case fans.

The World to Come* by Dara Horn. Two siblings are tangled up with a stolen Chagall of suspect provenance, Jewish folklore and family history. Intelligent and imaginative.

* = Starred reviews

School’s out. Grab these and head out for some fun and a little sun. Remember to sign up for the Summer Reading program.

The Attack by Yasmina Khadra. A Tel Aviv surgeon’s life is turned upside down by his link to a suicide bomber. Intense and timely.

Eye Contact by Cammie McGovern. Autistic Adam is the only witness and the prime suspect in another child’s murder. A gripping literary thriller.

The Mangler of Malibu Canyon by Jennifer Colt. Second crime-solving romp by the sleuthing McAfee twins on their pink Harley – this time involving a headless corpse in Aunt Reba’s Malibu digs. Wildly entertaining.

The Piano Man by Marcia Preston. A grieving mother tries to save the talented musician who received her son's transplanted heart. Compelling and graceful.

Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher. Modern crime fantasy series set in Chicago where wizards battle black magic to protect the mortal population. A TV pilot is expected to air this summer.

Restoring Grace by Katie Fforde. A sparkling, breezy read about an old crumbling mansion, three women in need of a home, and finding much more in the end. (Her previous titles are just as delightful).

Revenge of the Kudzu Debutantes by Cathy Holton. Three Georgian beauties exact revenge from straying spouses with aplomb and style. The Ya Ya Sisterhood meets the First Wives Club!

Slipstream by Leslie Larson, Drama, romance, and misfortune entangle the desperate souls working at LAX. Rich and seriously frightening.

They are delightfully fresh voices in fiction, for the most part still under the media radar. That also means no long waiting lists. Enjoy.

The Faithful Spy by Alex Berenson. A deep cover CIA agent in the al-Qaeda camp is sent home to unleash the most devastating post-9/11 terrorist attack. A heart-pounding debut thriller by a former New York Times reporter.

Last Bite by Nancy Barr. A debut culinary romance by veteran cookbook author and Julia Child’s executive chef. Delicious and dishy, and rumored to be slightly autobiographical.

London is the Best City in America by Laura Dave. Emmy accompanies her very confused brother, Josh on a pre-wedding road trip and comes to see herself clearly for the first time. An absorbing debut novel not to be missed.

The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets by Eva Rice. An impulsive taxi ride with a stranger in 1950s London indelibly changes Penelope Wallace's life. British Chick Lit. with substance.

Sun Storm by Asa Larsson. Winner of Sweden’s Best First Crime Novel Award. Attorney Rebecka Martinsson is drawn into a murder case and a dark, nostalgic trip home. An atmospheric and chilling procedural.

Triangle by Katharine Weber. The truth behind the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire that killed 146 and the secrets kept by feisty Esther Gottesfeld, the last remaining survivor. Another gem by the author of The Little Women.

Voodoo Heart by Scott Snyder. Dark and an absurdly funny collection of short stories by a fiercely original young writer, populated by odd and unforgettable characters that will steal your heart before you know it. A sure bet.