1ST BIRTHDAY DECORATING IDEAS

1st to Die (The Women's Murder Club)

Imagine a killer who thinks, "What is the worst thing anyone has ever done?"--and then goes far beyond it. Now imagine four women --a police detective, an assistant DA, a reporter, and a medical examiner --who join forces as they sidestep their bosses to track down criminals. Known as the Women's Murder Club, they are pursuing a murderer whose twisted imagination has stunned an entire city. Their chief suspect is a socially prominent writer, but the men in charge won't touch him. On the trail of the most terrifying and unexpected killer ever, they discover a shocking surprise that turns everything about the case upside down.

The Women's Murder Club pits four San Francisco women professionals against a serial killer who's stalking and murdering newlyweds in bestselling author James Patterson's newest thriller. Lindsay Boxer is a homicide inspector who's just gotten some very bad news. She deals with it by immersing herself in her newest case and soliciting the personal as well as professional support of her closest friend, who happens to be the city's medical examiner. The two women, along with an ambitious and sympathetic reporter and an assistant DA, form an unlikely alliance, pooling their information and bypassing the chain of command in an engaging, suspenseful story whose gruesome setup is vintage Patterson.
"What is the worst thing anyone has ever done?" the killer muses to himself early in the narrative. "Am I capable of doing it? Do I have what it takes?" Answering his own question, he embarks on a murderous spree that takes him from the bridal suite in a Nob Hill hotel to a honeymoon destination in the Napa Valley and thence to a wedding reception at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. Dispatching his victims on the happiest day of their lives, he purposefully leaves enough clues for his distaff trackers to discover his identity and put him behind bars. But just when the women think they've got the case all wrapped up, the killer turns the tables on them in a bloody denouement that even the most discerning reader won't see coming. Patterson, author of the popular Alex Cross mysteries, promises future adventures for the Women's Murder Club, which may give him an opportunity to develop his heroines' characters more completely and win new fans among those who prefer their detectives in high heels and lipstick. --Jane Adams

The word "replicar" and "Carroll Shelby" seem to go together as well as a Cobra and a wet hairpin curve, but the legendary snake charmer has agreed to lend his name to a host (85 in fact) of commemorative Ford GT40 reproductions in honor of his 85th birthday.

Based on the replica built by Superformance, the Shelby cars are trimmed to simulate the triad of GT40s that finished 1-2-3 at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. All cars are built as Mk. IIs (although Superformance does offer a Mk. I replica) and are decorated in your choice blue with white stripes, black with silver stripes, or red with white stripes.

Although much of the car is standard Superformance fair, Shelby's touches are limited mostly to branding: Door handles and headlamp covers sport the man's name, as do dash badges, floor mats, and other special details.

Likewise, we're told powertrain is limited to "Shelby-branded" crate motors - no details on which have been provided, but we do know the top-end mill is a massive 427-cubic inch V-8, like the original Mk. II cars themselves.

You can count on the fact that Shelby did not do this for free. No idea how much he got for the right to use his name but at the Amelia Concours in March he was charging $200 for his autograph.

The word "replicar" and "Carroll Shelby" seem to go together as well as a Cobra and a wet hairpin curve, but the legendary snake charmer has agreed to lend his name to a host (85 in fact) of commemorative Ford GT40 reproductions in honor of his 85th birthday.

Based on the replica built by Superformance, the Shelby cars are trimmed to simulate the triad of GT40s that finished 1-2-3 at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. All cars are built as Mk. IIs (although Superformance does offer a Mk. I replica) and are decorated in your choice blue with white stripes, black with silver stripes, or red with white stripes.

Although much of the car is standard Superformance fair, Shelby's touches are limited mostly to branding: Door handles and headlamp covers sport the man's name, as do dash badges, floor mats, and other special details.

Likewise, we're told powertrain is limited to "Shelby-branded" crate motors - no details on which have been provided, but we do know the top-end mill is a massive 427-cubic inch V-8, like the original Mk. II cars themselves.

You can count on the fact that Shelby did not do this for free. No idea how much he got for the right to use his name but at the Amelia Concours in March he was charging $200 for his autograph.

Four women-four friends-share a determination to stop a killer who has been stalking newlyweds in San Francisco. Each one holds a piece of the puzzle: Lindsay Boxer is a homicide inspector in the San Francisco Police Department, Claire Washburn is a medical examiner, Jill Bernhardt is an assistant D.A., and Cindy Thomas just started working the crime desk of the San Francisco Chronicle.

But the usual procedures aren't bringing them any closer to stopping the killings. So these women form a Women's Murder Club to collaborate outside the box and pursue the case by sidestepping their bosses and giving one another a hand.

The four women develop intense bonds as they pursue a killer whose crimes have stunned an entire city. Working together, they track down the most terrifying and unexpected killer they have ever encountered-before a shocking conclusion in which everything they knew turns out to be devastatingly wrong.

The Women's Murder Club pits four San Francisco women professionals against a serial killer who's stalking and murdering newlyweds in bestselling author James Patterson's newest thriller. Lindsay Boxer is a homicide inspector who's just gotten some very bad news. She deals with it by immersing herself in her newest case and soliciting the personal as well as professional support of her closest friend, who happens to be the city's medical examiner. The two women, along with an ambitious and sympathetic reporter and an assistant DA, form an unlikely alliance, pooling their information and bypassing the chain of command in an engaging, suspenseful story whose gruesome setup is vintage Patterson.
"What is the worst thing anyone has ever done?" the killer muses to himself early in the narrative. "Am I capable of doing it? Do I have what it takes?" Answering his own question, he embarks on a murderous spree that takes him from the bridal suite in a Nob Hill hotel to a honeymoon destination in the Napa Valley and thence to a wedding reception at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. Dispatching his victims on the happiest day of their lives, he purposefully leaves enough clues for his distaff trackers to discover his identity and put him behind bars. But just when the women think they've got the case all wrapped up, the killer turns the tables on them in a bloody denouement that even the most discerning reader won't see coming. Patterson, author of the popular Alex Cross mysteries, promises future adventures for the Women's Murder Club, which may give him an opportunity to develop his heroines' characters more completely and win new fans among those who prefer their detectives in high heels and lipstick. --Jane Adams

Four women-four friends-share a determination to stop a killer who has been stalking newlyweds in San Francisco. Each one holds a piece of the puzzle: Lindsay Boxer is a homicide inspector in the San Francisco Police Department, Claire Washburn is a medical examiner, Jill Bernhardt is an assistant D.A., and Cindy Thomas just started working the crime desk of the San Francisco Chronicle.

But the usual procedures aren't bringing them any closer to stopping the killings. So these women form a Women's Murder Club to collaborate outside the box and pursue the case by sidestepping their bosses and giving one another a hand.

The four women develop intense bonds as they pursue a killer whose crimes have stunned an entire city. Working together, they track down the most terrifying and unexpected killer they have ever encountered-before a shocking conclusion in which everything they knew turns out to be devastatingly wrong.