Dear Burning Questions,
Is there a new Wilbur Smith novel coming out in the new year?

Suzanne Thomas
Greenacres, Florida

You're in luck. Wilbur Smith's new novel, The Triumph of the Sun, will be released in May by St. Martin's. In this, Smith's 30th novel, the author returns to Egypt, the country that inspired such previous epics as River God, The Seventh Scroll and Warlock.

A native of Rhodesia, Smith wrote his first adventure novel, When the Lion Feeds, in 1964. As his writing career took off, he created an entire universe around When the Lion Feeds which became the wildly prolific Courtney series, spanning three centuries.

Smith's latest novel, The Triumph of the Sun, is set during the real-life siege of Khartoum in 1884. British trader Ryder Courtney is trapped in the city during a rebellion led by the religious leader El Mahdi. Teaming up with Capt. Ballantyne and the British consul, Courtney must struggle to get out alive.

R u 4 REAL?

Caroline B. Cooney is my fav Author is she going 2 write another book about janie? the last one she wrote was What Janie Found . . . what is her address . . . i just have so many questions . . . i love all her books that r about janie . . . i just have 2 find out what happened with janie and reeve . . . please help me.

Sincerely,
a big question asker

SQUEE!!!1!!!11! caroline b. cooney is THE BEST!!! the face on the milk carton is one of our fave books. it's so grate you asked about her! :-D

we looked and looked, but according to TPTB at random house, what janie found is the last of the janie novels. WOE! we wanted 2 know what happened to janie 2!!!! :-(

FYI—cooney's newest book code orange is scheduled to be published by random house in september. IMHO, agent orange might be even more suspenseful than the janie books. JM2C. ;-P

TTFN,
burning questions

LET SLEEPING DOGS LIE

Dear Burning Questions,
Several years ago I read a paperback whose protagonist was a full-blooded American Indian, I believe from one of the Iroquois tribes of New York. I remember little about her other than that she was physically agile and endowed with intuitive and other powers, perhaps of observation and the ability to move about without being detected. I also vaguely remember there was a secretive aspect to her persona.

Alas, I can recall neither her name nor the name of the author of the book. Can you solve this conundrum? I hope so, as I'd like to read more from this capable and creative author.

Katherine Brouwer
Clinton Township, Michigan

Hmm, good question. When we drew a blank, we turned to the people who really have all the answers: librarians. And, as always, they came through for us. Patricia Scott of the Omaha Public Library says the heroine you are searching for is Jane Whitefield, star of a five-book series by author Thomas Perry. Though calling herself a "guide," Jane is best compared to a one-woman witness protection program. A member of the Wolf Clan of the Seneca tribe, Whitefield, who first appeared in Sleeping Dogs, can fool any pursuer, cover any trail and then provide her clients with new identities, complete with authentic paperwork.

Perry's next book, Nightlife, due from Random House in January 2006, will feature a Portland homicide detective on the trail of a murderer who changes her identity after each murder she commits.

GEOGRAPHY LESSON

The Nevada Barr mystery set in Michigan's Isle Royale National Park is A Superior Death, not Ill Wind, as we reported in February.

THREE TIMES THREE

Dear Burning Questions,
I love Kay Hooper's Shadow and Evil trilogies and Thief books. I was wondering if she had any more of these coming out, and especially if there is going to be a third Thief book. I would like to know more about the characters in these series.

Rene Mayo
Battle Creek, Michigan

Hooper's publicist at Bantam says cat burglar Quinn, the hero of the Thief books, "is taking a well deserved rest—for now!" The wily Quinn will return at some point, but Hooper is currently concentrating on her Fear trilogy, which debuted last year with the bestseller Hunting Fear.

We hope you're good at math because it will take some decent arithmetic skills to keep up with Hooper's work. Her Fear trilogy is actually the third trilogy featuring FBI agent Noah Bishop and his Special Crimes Unit. First came the Shadow and Evil trilogies, which captured fans like you with their blend of suspense and the supernatural. In Hooper's next book, Chill of Fear, due out in July, Diana Brisco visits a resort hoping to find out why it has been haunting her dreams. An agent in Bishop's SCU must convince Diana that her visions could be key to solving a murder that took place there 20 years ago.