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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 1, 2013

QUIRK BOOKS GOES “NORMAL.”

Quirk Books, the independent publisher known for its irreverent reference guides and innovative works of fiction, has gone and done the unexpected once again. Effective immediately, the company is launching a new imprint that will give readers exactly what they expect. Book-lovers of the world, meet Normal Books.

"We think that becoming more conventional is truly the most 'strikingly unconventional' move we could make," says President and Publisher David Borgenicht. "Readers have come to expect the unexpected from us, and I'm pretty sure no one was expecting this."

The Normal Books imprint will offer a completely retooled frontlist of regular, completely straightforward books, with titles including Breakfast for Breakfast, Miss Peregrine's Home for Regular Children, and Pride and Prejudice without Zombies.

This groundbreaking, daringly creative move was engineered with readers in mind, says Associate Publisher and Creative Director Jason Rekulak. "We’re convinced there’s an audience out there that craves the same-old, same-old,” he says. “We're excited to stop pushing the envelope, and start nudging it back into the desk drawer next to the pens and rubber bands." The concept is expected to yield a more manageable workflow as well. “The sales reps have been clamoring for less buzzworthy titles,” notes Moneka Hewlett, Senior Sales Director.

Besides its new catalog of traditional print titles, Normal Books intends to release all subsequent books in eBook format: as plain text with no pictures and in a single small, non-dynamic font. Says Vice President Brett Cohen: "In the digital age, Normal Books will be square in the middle of the pack when it comes to using new, innovative technology. There’s no need to show off."

Below are the titles that Normal Books will be releasing in the coming months:

This April, read the Edgar® nominated book that everyone is talking about for only $2.99.

Slate’s “One of the Best Books of 2012”

Named a Book of the Month by Amazon, Indie Next List, and Shelfari

Named a Book of the Week by Google Play and  the iBookstore

“Ben H. Winters makes noir mystery even darker: The Last Policeman sets a despondent detective on a suspicious suicide case—while an asteroid hurtles toward earth.”—Wired

“I’m eager to read the other books, and expect that they’ll keep me as enthralled as the first one did.”— Boing Boing

“…an insightfully drawn portrait about a police officer living in a world on the edge of the apocalypse.”—io9

“Extraordinary—as well as brilliant, surprising, and, considering the circumstances, oddly uplifting.”—Mystery Scene Magazine

“Exhilarating. . . . do not wait for the movie!”—E! Online

The trilogy continues on July 16, 2013 with Countdown City: The Last Policeman Book II.

Ah, one of the most compelling and, well, dangerous of literary characters – the femme fatale. Love her or hate her (probably both), she’s a staple in many stories. Here’s your guide to the lady (usually) in black.

The femme fatale is most notably a classic in detective fiction and the noir genre, but her origins go back much farther than that. This archetype is part of the folklore of many cultures and she became a prominent literary character in the 19th century. John Keats wrote about the femme fatale in many poems; the character of Matilda in The Monk is a classic example; and Edgar Allen Poe used the archetype in his work. She is also a central piece to a lot of paintings from this time period (by artists like Edvard Munch and Gustav Klimt).

The femme fatale will do the impossible to get what she wants, including flaunting her “sexy-and-she-knows-it” body to wrap millions of men around her red polished finger. However, the femme fatale isn’t a floozy – she won’t just throw herself at anyone. No, she sets her sights after careful consideration and follows through with a plan – one that never portrays her as a sexual prowess.

A common trick is deception, as the femme fatale fakes weakness in order to accept another character’s “help.” Once one has fallen for the femme fatale, there’s no getting away. She’s got you right where she wants you, baby.

The femme fatale character is everywhere. She exists in every corner of pop culture, although not on the cover of Britney Spear’s most recent album (aside from the name – Femme Fatale – the cover art is a terrible portrayal of the character type). Meet a few of our favorite femme fatales:

FAITH LEHANE
The Text: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The Role: A “sometimes rogue, sometimes helpful” vampire slayer.
The Costume: All the cool clothes from the late 1990s + red lipstick.

VIVIAN RUTLEDGE
The Text: The Big Sleep
The Role: A ruthless and spoiled daughter of a very rich man.
The Costume: Classy white dresses + mysterious eyes.

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Maria Vicente is a literary agent intern living in Ottawa, Canada. She likes coffee, books, snail mail, and magic. You can find her on Twitter (@MsMariaVicente) or check out her website (mariavicente.com)

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This Friday, an asteroid is headed for earth. Seriously.

Armageddon it ain’t. Definitely not Deep Impact either. And no, we haven’t confused The Last Policeman with reality–the catastrophically ginormous Asteroid 2011GV1 that looms over Detective Hank Palace as he investigates a suspicious suicide is still pure (awesome) fiction.

But there’s still another rock out there, and it’s coming for us…kinda.

Another year, another con. San Diego Comic Con 2012 was another resounding success.

The booth looked great. We sold a ton of books. We had a successful book signing. We spotted some celebrities. And, saw some pretty great costumes. See the gallery below for a bunch of our photos.

Photo by Jenny Elkins

Ben H. Winters moves to Indianapolis right around the publication date of The Last Policeman, and the kind folks at Big Hat Books are hosting a special book launch party for him at their store.

If you’re in the area, hop over to Big Hat Books on July 10th at 6pm. Ben will be there greeting fans and reading from his latest book. There will also be drinks beforehand.

Come say hi and help welcome our good friend to his new home.

Ben H. Winters @ Big Hat Books
Tuesday, July 10th, 2012, 6pm

Big Hat Books
6510 Cornell Ave Indianapolis, IN 46220
(317) 202-0203
www.facebook.com/bighatbooks