Larry Grieco, Librarian. Laurell K. Hamilton writes charming novels of the supernatural. They are charming because of her main characters, and supernatural because of the powers her characters possess. One such character is Merry Gentry.

Well, that was her name when she was a practicing private detective. Now she is Princess Meredith NicEssus, “the first faerie princess born on American soil.” She is living in Los Angeles and is pregnant with triplets. She is about to be visited by nobles of both courts of faerie, who will descend on L.A. “because they will do anything to have babies of their own.” Infertility, it seems, has “plagued the high ranks of faerie for centuries.”

However, they are not the only ones on their way to find Princess Meredith. Taranis, King of Light and Illusion, believes that at least one of her babies is his, and he is a very dangerous man. The Princess must call upon equally dangerous powers to protect herself from Taranis. She summons a god of death, a warrior known as Darkness, the Killing Frost, and a king of nightmares to help her. The book is called A Shiver of Light, and is full of fantasy and magic.

We’ve just added a couple of recent films in the DVD format. First, there’s The Tourist, starring Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie. This is one of those seemingly romantic stories, depicting two beautiful young people in an exotic setting, falling in love with each other.

There is much more to this film, though, lingering just underneath the surface.

In the meantime, you will enjoy the lush scenery, as do the lovers, and wait for the “thriller” part of the movie to kick in. Then you will be taken on a joyride of danger as Interpol, the Italian police, and Russian hit men collide around our romantic couple, and you realize this is really a suspense-filled, international action thriller.

The Tourist was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards: Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Motion Picture.

The other newly added film garnered 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and won the Award for Best Picture from the Golden Globes, as well as the New York Film Critics Circle. The movie is American Hustle, starring Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, and Jennifer Lawrence.

This is another wild ride from director David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook, The Fighter), who weaves a web of intrigue centered on a brilliant con man named Irving Rosenfeld (Bale) and his cunning and seductive British partner, Sydney Prosser (Adams), who are forced into an FBI scam by a wild agent (Cooper).

The New Yorker: “American Hustle is the best picture of the year. It is a story of astonishments and a flowing tribute to the love of movies themselves.”

The Friends of the Gilpin County Public Library, the group whose generous donations make the Summer Reading Program, the Artist-in-Residence, the Spring and Fall film series, and many other programs possible, are looking for a couple of new members to fill vacancies on their Board of Directors. If you are interested feel free to contact me, here at the library, or email me at lgrieco@co.gilpin.co.us, or phone 303-582-0161, to learn more about the commitment and responsibilities of the Friends’ board.

Stop by in the next few weeks to look at the Art Studio Tour exhibit at the library. It contains representative works from all of the artists participating in the tour. And remember that the tour itself takes place on the weekend of September 20 and 21, from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm. You can pick up a flyer with a map to the studios and lots of valuable information here in the library, or at various venues around the county. This is the third annual Art Studio Tour, and it looks to be better than ever.