Books with author B. Hartman

Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1967. Nick Martin has just started graduate school when he’s dragooned into serving as the driver, guide and confidant of a blind poet by the name of Jorge Luis Borges. Together they must address an extraordinary series of crimes and the equally baffling conundrums of literature and philosophy, including Zeno’s paradoxes, the mind/body problem, and the mysteries of destiny, personal identity and artistic creation. Nick plays the parts of Watson, Sancho Panza, Dante and Stephen Daedalus, and before the story ends he hears the last tale of Scheherazade and finds the love of his life. Forty-five years later, struggling with pain and grief, he looks back with wonder at the magical year when he wandered into the labyrinth and took his first steps to self-understanding. Lighthearted but deeply serious, The Philosophical Detective is a unique journey into the visionary world of a genius. Kirkus Reviews called The Philosophical Detective “...a suspenseful, pitch-perfect novel with an unlikely lead detective: a fictionalized version of iconic Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986)..... An intelligent, original detective novel.”

Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1967. Nick Martin has just started graduate school when he’s dragooned into serving as the driver, guide and confidant of a blind poet by the name of Jorge Luis Borges. Together they must address an extraordinary series of crimes and the equally baffling conundrums of literature and philosophy, including Zeno’s paradoxes, the mind/body problem, and the mysteries of destiny, personal identity and artistic creation. Nick plays the parts of Watson, Sancho Panza, Dante and Stephen Daedalus, and before the story ends he hears the last tale of Scheherazade and finds the love of his life. Forty-five years later, struggling with pain and grief, he looks back with wonder at the magical year when he wandered into the labyrinth and took his first steps to self-understanding. Lighthearted but deeply serious, The Philosophical Detective is a unique journey into the visionary world of a genius.

Peter Cloud lost his partnership in a top law firm and his license to practice thanks to the machinations of Neil Babylon, its senior partner. When Babylon is murdered, Cloud is the prime suspect. To save his skin he must find the real killer, which means taking on the law firm, the police, the Mafia, a psychopathic skinhead and the large contingent of people who wanted to see Babylon dead. Perfectly Healthy Man Drops Dead is a lively, funny and exciting mystery which has become a minor classic. “... a gripping mystery from first page to last, a top pick for community library mystery collections." - Midwest Book Review.Perfectly Healthy Man Drops Dead won the Salvo Press Mystery Novel award and was published by Salvo Press in 2008. It is presented here in a slightly revised Tenth Anniversary Edition. (For reviews, please look under the original edition (with the smoking man on the cover. It's the same book but those reviews can't be displayed here).

"A riveting story that hinges on clues so elusive that the tension is exquisite." - Midwest Book ReviewDisillusioned with her corporate legal career, attorney Charlotte Ambler volunteers to handle the final appeal of Christopher Ritter, a Florida death row inmate whose execution is imminent. Ritter had been a prominent biologist before being convicted ten years earlier for the brutal murder of a prostitute. He denies killing the woman but is tormented by guilt for other, secret transgressions. The only appeal he will allow is to prove that he is innocent—a kind of appeal which is almost impossible to win. Ritter claims he was framed by a shadowy figure named Craft, but as Charlotte studies the evidence she concludes that Ritter is a dangerous psychopath who should not go free. Then a piece of evidence turns up that confirms a key part of his story. Pursuing her investigation, she is thwarted by hidden forces that seem determined to see him executed. In a race against the clock, she searches for the elusive Craft and finds herself in the cross-hairs of a psychopathic killer.THE DEVIL’S CHAPLAIN is a gripping tale of deception and self-deception, betrayal and violence, in which lawyer and client find common ground in their quest for justice and human values. "Brilliant... A highly entertaining mystery with a heroine as compelling as she is gutsy." -- Ken Bruen

Have you ever wondered why life seems so complicated, so exhausting, so fattening, and yet so pointless and idiotic? It's all part of the Potlatch. To Alice Coggins, the 24-year-old daughter of a South Philadelphia scam artist, everything looks like a racket: endless serflike internships, student loans that can never be repaid, high-minded charities run by swindlers for the benefit of rich donors. Things only get worse when she meets Andrew Ogleby, a scion of blue-bloods who is engaged to a bulimic pet-food heiress he can't bring himself to marry.As their Cinderella romance unfolds, Alice and Andrew must battle their families, the mob, and most of all the ubiquitous "Potlatch": a vast conspiracy of conspicuous waste directed by the powers that be to keep the populace -- and especially the young people -- from even thinking about doing anything useful."Exceptionally well written, funny, ironic, and with a touch of being iconoclastic in attitude and insight, Bruce Hartman's Potlatch is an original and unfailingly entertaining read from cover to cover." --- Midwest Book Review"Bruce Hartman does to contemporary fiction what Douglas Adams did to Science Fiction and Terry Pratchett did to Fantasy... Hartman is a master of satire and with Potlatch he really raises the bar." - Amazon reviewer Donnie Burgess"Get ready for a hilarious ride in Potlatch... One of the most amusing reads ever to be published.” -- Lisa McCombs for Readers’ Favorite Book Reviews.

Inspired by Hope Hartman's after school program, Girls in the Spotlight A Guided Journal for Girls Volume 2, continues to give a girl the gift of self-expression, creativity and finding her voice. If you know a girl between ages 8-11, this guided journal is an invitation for her to be her unique self! Its pages are filled with a variety of activities based around the theme of what it means to "be a champion."Activities include: Think & Write Creative Space Gratitude BlastReflectionsAnd More!Encourage a girl to go on a self - paced journey through the journal, and it will become a source of inspiration and positive reinforcement for socio-emotional balance. Although this is the second in a series of guided journal for girls who participate in Girls in the Spotlight programs, your girl does not have to be in a program to enjoy and explore its contents. In fact, you'll bring the part of the program to her in case you live in a place that isn't offering programs yet...If interested in learning more about the Girls in the Spotlight programs, contact us via our website or join our mailing list: www.girlsinthespotlight.org

Awarded the Kirkus Star for Books of Exceptional MeritNicole P. is an Irish graduate student pursuing a doctorate in literary theory in New York. She checks herself in to the Palmer Institute (a posh upstate mental hospital), seeking help with anxiety and disorientation triggered by a recent breakup and her quest for a dissertation topic. But by the time she's discharged two weeks later, her life has become dangerously entangled with those of her psychiatrist, who has fallen in love with her, and two schizophrenic patients, Hunter and Antonia Morgan, 21-year-old twins whose mother, Maria Morgan, committed suicide seven years earlier. Maria Morgan's suicide has cast a spell over the Institute, enmeshing everyone there in a world of deception, delusion, and death. Prompted by a blackmailer named Dubin, Nicole realizes that she must untangle the mystery of that suicide and its consequences in order to keep from losing her mind."A mind-bending marriage of ambitious literary theory and classic murder mystery... An exciting, original take on the literary mystery genre." Kirkus Reviews."A great read and highly recommended." - Jack Magnus, Readers' Favorite Book Reviews

“You can get out of jail, but you never get out of parole.” Kenny Ruffin, a former gang leader serving hard time in San Quentin, looks forward to his release so he can get his life back and meet his teenage son for the first time. His destiny becomes entangled with that of a redneck career criminal called Cat McGrath when the two of them are sent back to L.A. on the same bus. McGrath warns Ruffin that the gangs will never allow him back on the street and he will end up back in prison no matter what he does. As predicted, they are met with gunfire as they step off the bus. Ruffin vows to track down the shooters to redeem his honor and status, as McGrath draws him into a crackbrained scheme to even old scores with a gang of dirty cops. With memorable characters, lots of action, a suspenseful plot and plenty of humor, PAROLE is a crime thriller in the tradition of Elmore Leonard. “...A tale that is hard to put down and satisfyingly original: a standout in its genre.” — Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review “...A joy to read!” — Ken Bruen, author of the award-winning Jack Taylor series

Popular storyteller Bob Hartman is renowned for his fresh take on often-told stories, bringing them to life with vibrant characters and a lively twist in the tale. Bob now launches a new series of stories " The Unauthorized Versions " which are packed full of humour, mischief, silliness, and fun - but which all have a good-hearted and memorable conclusion. These easy-to-read Old Testament stories are inspired by the Bible - but given a completely original slant. Retold at a cracking pace, this black and white line illustrated book (in a style perfectly matched to Bob's mischievous storytelling) makes an ideal read for those who prefer something a little more wayward on their bookshelves, particularly boys aged 7-9.