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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 Echo Park by Michael 1 3 Connelly (Little, Brown: $26.99) LAPD Det. Harry Bosch wrestles with the idea that his oversight in an old murder case allowed a serial killer to continue his spree.
2 The End by Lemony Snicket 2 2 (HarperCollins: $12.99) The Baudelaire orphans and evil Count Olaf are swept onto a strange island in Book 13, the last in “A Series of Unfortunate Events.”
3 The Collectors by David -- 1 Baldacci (Warner: $26.99) Four eccentric crime solvers train their sights on a renegade CIA assassin implicated in the murder of a rare-books expert and in selling U.S. secrets.
4 For One More Day by Mitch 6 4 Albom (Hyperion: $21.95) An alcoholic tries suicide and encounters his mother’s ghost, who tells him about her life and sacrifices as a single mother.
5 Paint It Black by Janet 7 6 Fitch (Little, Brown: $24.99) An art model in the punk scene tries to make sense of her boyfriend’s death and his relationship with his narcissistic mother.
6 The Road by Cormac 4 4 McCarthy (Knopf: $24) A father’s fierce love for his son is his last link with humanity as they struggle to survive in a post-apocalyptic world of cannibalistic marauders.
7 Thirteen Moons by Charles 3 3 Frazier (Random House: $26.95) A man recalls being adopted by a Cherokee elder, becoming a chief, fighting for the Confederacy and frittering away a fortune.
8 What Came Before He Shot -- 1 Her by Elizabeth George (HarperCollins: $26.95) How three brothers from a tough part of London crossed paths with Inspector Lynley’s late wife.
9 Suite Francaise by Irene 10 27 Nemirovsky (Knopf: $25) Two novellas by a writer killed at Auschwitz about the exodus from Paris ahead of the Germans’ arrival and on life in a farming village under occupation.
10 Under Orders by Dick 8 4 Francis (Putnam: $25.95) Against a backdrop of Internet gambling, ex-jockey Sid Halley is hired to find out why a horse collapsed upon winning and why its rider was killed.
11 Act of Treason by Vince 5 2 Flynn (Atria: $25.95) CIA operative Mitch Rapp searches for the bombers who struck a motorcade, killing a presidential candidate’s wife and Secret Service agents.
12 Lisey’s Story by Stephen -- 1 King (Scribner: $28) Clues left among her writer husband’s papers set widow Lisey Landon on a trail to uncover his childhood secrets in rural Maine.
13 The Thirteenth Tale by 9 5 Diane Setterfield (Atria: $26) A bookseller’s daughter travels to Yorkshire to interview a dying author who tells a tale of a governess, a ghost and an abandoned baby.
14 The Bancroft Strategy by -- 1 Robert Ludlum (St. Martin’s Press: $26.95) A former intelligence agent tries to rescue a kidnapped colleague while a beautiful hedge-fund analyst seeks her inheritance.
15 Memorial by Bruce Wagner -- 2 (Simon & Schuster: $26) An architect’s campaign for the job of erecting a billionaire’s memorial to two people killed in the 2004 tsunami reveals Los Angeles’ underbelly.
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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 State of Denial: Bush at 1 4 War, Part III by Bob Woodward (Simon & Schuster: $30) The inside story of a White House that dismisses bad news about the war in Iraq and how it is fueling terrorism.
2 The Innocent Man by John 2 3 Grisham (Doubleday: $28.95) A true crime tale about a former big league baseball player sent to death row for a murder he didn’t commit.
3 The Audacity of Hope by -- 1 Barack Obama (Crown: $25) The U.S. senator from Illinois argues that his Democratic Party and the GOP must forgo partisanship to reclaim the American dream.
4 I Feel Bad About My Neck: 3 12 And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron (Knopf: $19.95) The screenwriter considers the effects of gravity and aging.
5 Ageless by Suzanne Somers 4 2 (Crown: $25) The actress touts anti-aging and plant-hormone therapies to detoxify the body, boost the immune system, treat menopause and stay healthy.
6 The Life and Times of the -- 1 Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson (Broadway: $25) Recollections of an Iowa childhood, a sportswriting dad, a movie-loving mom and county fairs.
7 Why We Want You to Be Rich 7 2 by Donald J. Trump, Robert T. Kiyosaki et al (Rich Press: $24.95) The real estate magnate and the financial guru explain why some people get rich and others don’t.
8 Culture Warrior by Bill 8 4 O’Reilly (Broadway: $26) The Fox News TV host rails against “secular progressives,” billionaire Democrat George Soros, the ACLU and critics he dubs “smear merchants.”
9 Life After Death: The -- 1 Burden of Proof by Deepak Chopra (Harmony: $24) The New Age author explores the possibility of life beyond bodily existence through a classic Vedanta Hindu tale.
10 The Greatest Story Ever 5 6 Sold by Frank Rich (Penguin: $25.95) The New York Times writer dissects the Bush administration’s “truthiness” on Iraq, its response to Katrina and the Sept. 11 attacks.
11 I Like You: Hospitality 14 2 Under the Influence by Amy Sedaris (Warner: $27.99) A guide to throwing the perfect party, with helpful hints and arch observations from the comic writer.
12 Truth or Delusion: Busting -- 1 Networking’s Biggest Myths by Ivan R. Misner (Nelson: $19.99) Separating the fact from fiction about networking and professional referrals.
13 The God Delusion by -- 2 Richard Dawkins (Houghton Mifflin: $27) The Oxford biologist criticizes religion for its intolerance, rejection of scientific truth and the threat of eternal damnation.
14 I Feel Earthquakes More -- 7 Often Than They Happen by Amy Wilentz (Simon & Schuster: $26) Leaving the East Coast behind, the author takes on California.
15 Thunderstruck by Erik -- 1 Larson (Crown: $25.95) As Guglielmo Marconi and a rival spar over credit for wireless communication, the device leads to a killer’s capture.
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