New Releases by Richard Condon

A darkly funny novel of mobsters, murder, and marriage: "The surprise ending will knock your reading glasses off." — The New York Times Charley Partanna works as a hitman for the Prizzis, New York''s most dangerous crime family. When he meets Irene Walker, an LA-based tax consultant, it''s pretty much love at first sight. But Irene also moonlights as a hit woman—and had a hand in a big-money heist in Vegas. Now Charley has been told that she''s got to go. Faced with divided loyalties, he must make a choice—between the only family he''s ever known and the woman he loves. A New York Times Notable Book and made into an award-winning film, Prizzi''s Honor is a dark, rollicking read from an "old pro at mixing satire with suspense" ( The New York Times).

Vous avez aimé Les Trois jours du Condor, les Hommes du Président ? Vous allez adorer La Conspiration K, le chef-d''œuvre oublié du roman paranoïaque ! 1960, Philadelphie. Des coups de feu sont tirés en direction du cortège présidentiel. Timothy Kegan, président des États-Unis, est mortellement touché. Une commission d''enquête est mise en place, qui conclut à la thèse du tireur unique. 1974 : Nick Kegan, demi-frère du président assassiné, est appelé au chevet d''un homme sur son lit de mort. Celui-ci lui avoue qu''il a fait partie d''un commando secret à l''origine de la mort du président. Nick décide de reprendre l''enquête. Explorant ses zones d''ombre, il remonte de nombreuses pistes, allant des magnats du pétrole à la CIA en passant par la mafia et les syndicats. Dans ce labyrinthe de mensonges, de secrets et de révélations, tout le monde a vite fait de devenir suspect, y compris son propre père, qui est à la tête de l''une des plus grosses fortunes des États-Unis. Bientôt, Nick réalise que lui aussi risque sa vie. Il ira néanmoins jusqu''au bout, afin de faire toute la lumière sur ce terrible complot. Œuvre culte par excellence, La Conspiration K, inspirée par la famille Kennedy, est tenue dans le monde anglo-saxon pour un modèle absolu de thriller conspirationniste. Le livre n''avait cependant jamais été publié en français. Son adaptation au cinéma, en 1979, avec, dans les rôles principaux, Jeff Bridges, John Huston et Anthony Perkins a été retirée des salles dès sa sortie, du fait de la campagne de Ted Kennedy.

A Prohibition-era bootlegger builds a savage empire in this “whiplash entertainment” by the author of Prizzi’s Honor and The Manchurian Candidate (Kirkus Reviews). Millions of acres of forest separate Edward Courance West from the outside world. In his remote Adirondack retreat, he is tended by servants dressed in black and green, the color of West’s empire—and of money. The son of an Irish powerbroker of the rough-and-tumble Lower East Side, West has been forging his kingdom since the day his father died, leaving him with a small fortune, a few bordellos, and a burning hunger to escape New York and make his mark upon the world—a mark he will leave in blood. The moment Congress passes Prohibition, West sets about building a one-man monopoly of bootlegging, smuggling, and murder. Clawing ruthlessly to the top in hopes of forgetting his father, West won’t stop until he becomes the greatest criminal the world has ever seen.

For the sake of vengeance, a woman plots to destroy the US government It’s June 1976, and a bullet has shattered Agatha Teel’s shoulder. The gunman has fled, gushing blood from a bullet wound of his own, and Teel has just a few minutes to save her own life. She marches herself to the bathroom—the most lavish room she has ever owned—strips, and does what she can to dress the wound. A needle of morphine dulls the pain enough for her to walk, and she wraps a sable coat around her nude body and presses for the elevator. She can’t die tonight. She has a coup to stage. Six months earlier, Teel set her plot to overthrow the government of the United States in motion. On July 4, 1976, she will crush America beneath her heel. For Teel, it’s not about ideology, nor politics. This is strictly personal: It’s revenge.

A Jewish woman in love with a Prussian officer moves to Hitler’s Berlin in this ominous, “spectacular” novel by the New York Times–bestselling author (Kirkus Reviews). Every afternoon, Paule tends to her father’s newspaper clippings and listens to his stories. An actor, Paul-Alain Bernheim has a sexual appetite and a lust for life that have made him a legend of the Paris stage. He is also a fiercely proud Jew, and he has imbued his daughter with an unshakeable pride in the history of her people. So why, she wonders, has she fallen in love with a German? From the moment Paule spots Wilhelm von Rhode at an embassy reception, she can’t take her eyes off him. So after a whirlwind Paris romance, when von Rhode is recalled to Berlin, Paule follows as his wife. But as the Nazis tighten their stranglehold on Germany and the world prepares for war, their love may not survive what is to come. “Fascinating.” —Life

In this prequel to Prizzi’s Honor, the mafia hitman finds himself in more trouble than even he can handle—“earthy, quirky, fast-moving entertainment” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). Charley Partanna sits in his office, quietly rigging an election. As the chief executioner for the Prizzi family, he has taken time out of his busy schedule of cold-blooded murder to ensure that New York reelects its mayor, and that dirty money continues to flow his way. When he isn’t killing snitches or stealing votes, Partanna goes to night school, but tonight, his homework will have to wait. The Prizzis are going to war. For Partanna, a mob war is nothing but an inconvenience. The streetwise underboss can make a hit completely undetected. But when he makes the mistake of falling in love with the don’s granddaughter, Partanna will see just what kind of trouble the Prizzi family can cause. Prizzi’s Family is the 2nd book in the Prizzi series, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.

A crime family goes legit—sort of—and enters politics, in this “razor-sharp satire on the American dream” (Publishers Weekly). If Charley Partanna is lucky, he can go a few months without falling in love. During these stretches, he’s able to focus on his job as chief executioner for the Prizzi family. But once romance strikes, Partanna—a criminal manager who still commits the odd murder for old time’s sake—is lost to the world. So he knows there will be trouble when he meets his latest infatuation at an orgy. She’s clothed from neck to ankles, but she’s the sexiest woman Partanna has ever seen, and she hits his heart hard. His latest affair may be consuming Partanna body and soul, but he’ll have to make sure it doesn’t interfere with the Prizzi family’s latest venture: politics. And with the Prizzis’ sights set on the White House, Partanna will discover the campaign trail is a bloody one indeed. Prizzi’s Glory is the 3rd book in the Prizzi series, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.

The classic thriller about a hostile foreign power infiltrating American politics: “Brilliant . . . wild and exhilarating.” —The New Yorker A war hero and the recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, Sgt. Raymond Shaw is keeping a deadly secret—even from himself. During his time as a prisoner of war in North Korea, he was brainwashed by his Communist captors and transformed into a deadly weapon—a sleeper assassin, programmed to kill without question or mercy at his captors’ signal. Now he’s been returned to the United States with a covert mission: to kill a candidate running for US president . . . This “shocking, tense” and sharply satirical novel has become a modern classic, and was the basis for two film adaptations (San Francisco Chronicle). “Crammed with suspense.” —Chicago Tribune “Condon is wickedly skillful.” —Time

A whistleblower looks too deeply into a president’s assassination in this darkly satiric conspiracy thriller from the author of The Manchurian Candidate. It has been more than a decade since the assassination of US President Timothy Kegan, who was gunned down while riding in a motorcade through the streets of Philadelphia. The “lone gunman” responsible was arrested and convicted, and the country has moved on. President Kegan’s half-brother Nick tries to move on as well—until he overhears the deathbed confession of a man who claims to have been a second shooter. Suddenly Nick’s embroiled in a Kafkaesque conspiracy that stretches from Washington DC to Cuba and all the way into England’s Court of St. James. He’s surrounded by mobsters, oil magnates, crooked cops, religious leaders, CIA “spooks,” Hollywood celebrities, and international power brokers—including the renowned Washington hostess, fixer, and femme fatale, Lola Camonte—all of whom seem intent upon doing him in. And the closer Nick comes to the startling truth about the assassination, the less he really wants to know. Winter Kills is an outrageously dark and funny take on the John F. Kennedy assassination and the conspiracy furor that followed it, from the master storyteller who brought you The Manchurian Candidate and Prizzi’s Honor.

Vous avez aimé Les Soprano ? Vous allez adorer les Prizzi ! Vous avez aimé Les Soprano ? Vous allez adorer Les Prizzi ! Ils ont la main sur l''économie du pays. Ils génèrent plus de cash, créent plus de jobs, possèdent plus de sociétés, influencent plus de politiciens et de juges que n''importe quelle entité américaine. Et tout cela juste en investissant judicieusement les millions de dollars de revenus non imposables que leur rapportent chaque année les désirs le plus vils de leurs concitoyens. Ce sont les Prizzi. Don Corrado, le père, ses deux fils, et leur tueur à gages, Charley Partanna, l''espoir de la famille. Celui que Maerose, la petite-fille du Don, aimerait bien mettre dans son lit, afin de prendre les rênes du clan. Encore faudrait-il que Charley fût sensible à ses charmes, lui dont toutes les attentions vont à une strip-teaseuse qui n''est peut-être pas aussi innocente qu''il y paraît. Lorsque des associés de la famille décident de témoigner contre eux, le temps n''est plus à la romance pour les Prizzi. Mais à l''intelligence, ou bien, à défaut, à la force. Bienvenue dans le monde des Prizzi, le monde du crime désorganisé ! Les Prizzi est le premier des quatre romans consacrés à la famille Prizzi. Le deuxième, L''Honneur des Prizzi, a été adapté par John Huston, avec Jack Nicholson dans le rôle de Charley Partanna. Avec ce cycle, Richard Condon a créé un véritable mythe de la littérature mafieuse. On comprend pourquoi à la lecture de cette magnifique comédie noire. Peuplé de personnages inoubliables, d''une ironie constante, Les Prizzi est tout simplement un régal pour les amateurs du Parrain ou des Affranchis.

Raymond Shaw, 24 ans, le sergent de l''armée américaine le plus décoré de la guerre de Corée, est enlevé avec son groupe de reconnaissance par un commando soviétique. Après avoir été soumis à un lavage de cerveau, il est autorisé à rentrer au pays. Non sans avoir étranglé un de ses camarades... Il ignore seulement que, manipulé à distance, il a été programmé pour tuer. À son futur tableau de chasse est déjà inscrit... le président des États-Unis. Paru en 1959, en pleine guerre froide, ce roman a été porté à l''écran en 1962 par John Frankenheimer. Transposé au Moyen-Orient pendant la première guerre du Golfe, ce classique a connu en 2004 une nouvelle adaptation, avec Denzel Washington et Meryl Streep. Cette intrigue est à la base de la série à succès Homeland. (Première édition, l''Archipel 2004)

Unlike many flute books which give long series of exercises, but no instruction on how to play the flute, the Illustrated Method for Flute uses the resources of language, illustration, and photography to help you to learn to play the flute quickly and successfully. It is based not only on the musical and teaching experience of its authors, but also on current research in the physics of sound production in the flute and physiological and anatomical aspects of flute playing. Great care was taken to carefully describe the workings of the muscles, the breathing aperture, the acoustical principles, and the common phenomena (such as vibrato) associated with the flute. the Illustrated Method for Flute also includes five brilliantly written etudes and a fingering chart for easy reference.

When a nuclear bomb destroys the White House and devastates Washington, D.C, Army colonel Caesare Appleton becomes the Emperor of the United States in this political satire from the author of Prizzi’s Honor. In the aftermath of an assumed nuclear accident that destroys Washington, D.C., an Army colonel steps up to assume command of the nation. Or, so he thinks. At the same time, the Royalist Party and the National Rifle Association take responsibility for the accidental atomic explosion, but that doesn’t reveal itself to be the case, leaving the citizens of the United States confused and lost in the midst of a tragedy. As the nation begins to crumble in the wake of the nuclear attack, including bank failures, crumbling airlines, and the threat of disasters across the world, Caesare Appleton is not so sure he has the power to control the country as he once thought he did. This bestselling international tale of politics has it all from cocaine, the mafia, and abortion to sibling rivalry and momism. Condon has penned a tale of the American scene and presidency with “humor that is wild enough to work” (The New York Times).

In the sequel to Prizzi''s Honor, Julia Asbury, upon discovering her husband''s betrayal, sets out to outsmart the Prizzis at their own game. By the author of The Manchurian Candidate. 35,000 first printing. $35,000 ad/promo.

From the bestselling author of The Manchurian Candidate and Prizzi''s Honor comes a hilarious new novel about a nice hot-dog salesman who, while looking for his long-lost mother, becomes involved with a scheming billionaire who is trying to get her idiotic husband elected president. Martin''s.

As the story begins...It is the early 1970s, when every American man, woman, and child is fighting the threat of Communist invasion. Leila Aluja, an Iraqi-American lawyer, becomes a film star as part of her job with the government''s top counter-espionage unit, in an effort to track down a ring of Sino-Albanian spies operating out of Hollywood''s most powerful talent agency. Leila accomplishes her mission, but not before she falls in love with Albanian spymaster Josef Shqitonja, and compromises her organization by allowing him to escape, bringing an end to her budding undercover career. Leila bounces back to become a partner of Washington''s largest lobbying firm, representing the National Gun Carriers Association, C.A.N.C.E.R. (Center for American National Cigarette Education and Research), and Barkers Hill Enterprises, investment arm of organized crime. From her law practice, Leila moves onto public relations, and then to the head of the world''s largest fast-food conglomerate, all the while separated from her true love, Shqitonja, as he scours Albania for a secret, life-prolonging yogurt formula. Despite the occasional, not to say habitual, affairs, daliances, and marriages, Leila and Shqitonja cling to their love for each other - until the secret of the yogurt finally reunites them. More than just a love story, The Venerable Bead is a saga of love for self, money, unassailable corruption, and power. All just kidding, of course.

The Prizzi family is headed by Don Corrado. Charley Partanna is Corrado''s favourite hitperson and money collector and when he marries Irene Walker, also a hitperson, the confusion begins as each is contracted to kill the other. This book was made into a film starring Jack Nicholson.