1. “A Dirty Job,” by Christopher Moore (William Morrow: $24.95) A San Francisco shopkeeper is tapped to collect souls from the newly departed in this dark comedy.
2. “Two Little Girls in Blue,” by Mary Higgins Clark (Simon &Schuster: $25.95) Parents return from an evening out to discover their 3-year-old twins missing and an $8-million ransom demand.
3. “Gone,” by Jonathan Kellerman (Ballantine: $22.95) Psychologist Alex Delaware and an LAPD detective combine forces to solve the disappearance and death of an aspiring actress.
4. “Tomb of the Golden Bird,” by Elizabeth Peters (William Morrow: $25.95) Archaeologist Amelia Peabody and her assorted supporters and competitors race to find King Tut’s tomb.
5. “Veronica,” by Mary Gaitskill (Pantheon: $23) A former fashion model who faces some of life’s ugly realities recalls a friendship with a woman who was an early casualty of AIDS.
6. “False Impression,” by Jeffrey Archer (St. Martin’s: $27.95) A young art expert investigates the forces behind the murder of an English aristocrat and the theft of her Van Gogh.
7. “The Templar Legacy,” by Steve Berry (Ballantine: $24.95) Intrigue swirls around a medieval monastic order and its long-lost archive that purports to disprove central Christian dogma.
8. “In the Company of the Courtesan,” by Sarah Dunant (Random House: $23.95) A cunning dwarf and a celebrated courtesan remake themselves in Venice after fleeing conflict in Rome in 1527.
9. “The Da Vinci Code,” by Dan Brown (Doubleday: $24.95) A Louvre curator’s killing leads to clues hidden in Leonardo’s paintings and a secret society with something to hide.
10. “Labyrinth,” by Kate Mosse (Putnam: $25.95) The intertwined tales of a 13th century girl and a modern-day female archaeologist and their quests for the Holy Grail in southwestern France.
1. “Marley &Me,” by John Grogan (William Morrow: $21.95) A columnist recalls how Marley, an incorrigible Labrador retriever, flunked obedience school, terrorized a pet sitter and won over his family.
2. “American Theocracy,” by Kevin Phillips (Viking: $26.95) Phillips argues that an overzealous global reach, a rise in fundamentalist religion and high debt historically lead to downfall.
3. “Game of Shadows,” by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams (Gotham: $26) The authors chronicle alleged steroid use among some of baseball’s brightest stars.
4. “My Life in France,” by Julia Child with Alex Prud’homme (Knopf: $25.95) The late chef’s memoir of her formative years in France, studies at the Cordon Bleu and the best Parisian restaurants.
5. “Cobra II,” by Michael R. Gordon and Bernard E. Trainor (Pantheon: $27.95) A military expert and the New York Times’ Pentagon reporter chronicle America’s invasion and occupation of Iraq.
6. “The Gospel of Judas,” edited by Rodolphe Kasser et al. (National Geographic: $22) The lost gospel of the apostle Judas Iscariot suggests that he was doing Jesus’ bidding when he betrayed him.
7. “The Year of Magical Thinking,” by Joan Didion (Knopf: $23.95) The author explores the nature of grief and survival in the months after her writer-husband’s sudden death.
8. “The Jesus Papers,” by Michael Baigent (HarperSanFrancisco: $27.95) A historian tries to reconcile the facts about Jesus’ life, crucifixion and death against the mythology surrounding him.
9. “Burlesque and the Art of the Teese,” by Dita Von Teese (ReganBooks: $34.95) A former Playboy model and burlesque stripper known for her elaborate costumes expounds on the art of the tease.
10. “Cesar’s Way,” by Cesar Millan with Melissa Jo Peltier (Harmony: $24.95) The popular host of a TV show on dog training gives tips on understanding and correcting common canine behavior problems.
Los Angeles Times
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