Fantastic Sales:

• For the best sales on the web check out our new article Girlawhirl Goodies!

 

In theaters this Friday:

• The Dark Knight—PG-13—In this follow-up to Batman Begins, Batman (Christian Bale) sets out to dismantle the city's remaining criminal organizations with the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart). Their partnership proves effective, but soon a rising criminal mastermind known as the Joker (Heath Ledger) unleashes a new reign of chaos on Gotham.

• Mama Mia!—PG-13—Meryl Streep leads an all-star cast in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical inspired by the music of super group ABBA. Streep plays Donna, an independent, single mother who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek Island. Her daughter Sophie is about to get married and Donna has invited her two best friends – and former backup singers – to the wedding. But Sophie, on a quest to find her father, has secretly invited three men from Donna's past, one of whom could be her dad.

• Space Chimps—G—When a $5 billion space agency probe disappears into a wormhole, the agency recruits Ham III, grandson of the first chimp in space, to help retrieve it. But Ham is a free-spirited circus performer more interested in goofing around in zero gravity than in living up to his heritage. But he learns the true meaning of courage when he and his crewmates risk everything to save the peaceful inhabitants of a distant planet from an evil dictator.

 

New DVD releases:

• College Road Trip – Raven-Symone plays Melanie, an overachieving high school student who is ready to go check out colleges on a "girls only" road trip. But then her overprotective police chief father insists on going with her instead and the trip turns into a hilarious father-daughter nightmare/adventure.

•Penelope – Christina Ricci plays the title character, a young woman trapped by a family curse that gave her the nose of a pig. Kept hidden away at her family's estate her entire life, her parents parade a string of suitors by her in hopes she'll find true love – the only way to break the curse. One suitor, Max (played by James McAvoy), is actually a down on his luck gambler hired by a tabloid reporter to get a photo of the mysterious heiress. But when Max finds himself falling for Penelope he decides the best thing to do is disappear. Fed up and determined to finally live life on her own terms, Penelope ventures out into the world where she finds Annie (played by Reese Witherspoon) who becomes her first real friend – and she learns to love herself and the way she looks.

• Shutter – Newlyweds Ben (Joshua Jackson) and Jane (Rachael Taylor) discover disturbing ghostly images in photographs they develop after a tragic accident. Fearing the images and the accident may be connected, they investigate and learn that some mysteries are better left unsolved.

• The Bank Job – Based on real events; thieves tunnel into the vault of a London bank in 1971 and rob safe deposit boxes filled with cash and jewelry worth millions of pounds. But it turns out there was something else in those boxes – secrets about government corruption and a sex scandal with links to the Royal family. Now the robbers are in the middle of something much bigger than they bargained for.

• And don't miss all of your favorite TV shows released on DVD this week:

     Season 1: Saving Grace; Evening Shade

     Season 5: Reno 911

     Season 9: Dallas

 

New CD releases:

• Ace Young – Ace Young

• Around the Bend – Randy Travis

• Delta – Delta Goodrem

• Life, Death, Love & Freedom – John Mellencamp

• Passing Strange – Original Broadway Cast

• Stay Positive – The Hold Steady

• The Dark Knight (Soundtrack) – Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard

 

New Book releases:

• Just Too Good To Be True by E. Lynn Harris — As a successful, single, and religious mother, Carmyn has done everything in her power to support her son Brady's dream to play in the NFL, and encourage his dedication to the church. Brady has followed his mother's wishes and even pledged abstinence in his church's “Celibacy Circle.” Now Brady is on the brink of fulfilling his dream of playing professional football. A college senior, Brady is poised to win the Heisman Trophy and a position in the NFL. As sports agents set their sights on the new star a beautiful cheerleader, Barrett, does the same. She wants in on the action and has a plan to do it: get Brady to break his celibacy vow. Carmyn is determined to protect her son, and a secret she's kept from Brady his whole life. As things heat up, their perfect relationship begins to crack and mother and son begin to realize maybe the other isn't so perfect after all.

• Killer View by Ridley Pearson — Sheriff Walt Fleming assembles his crack search team – including his best friend Mark Aker and deputy Tommy Brandon – to look for a missing skier at Sun Valley's Galena Summit. But almost as soon as they head out things begin to go wrong. First, a shot is fired, leaving a team member dead. Then Mark goes missing. Walt finds himself torn between duty and friendship. Should he stay the course, or search for his friend? Then, workers at a local water-bottling plant become ill and are sent to the hospital setting off bio-hazard warnings. Following the clues leads Walt into something much deeper than he imagined, with crimes much larger than he ever dreamed, and he suspects the whole operation is under the direction of some very powerful people. All the while his friend's life hangs in the balance.

• The Likeness by Tana French — It's been six months since the events of In The Woods, and Detective Cassie Maddox is still trying to recover. She's transferred from the murder squad to a new post and started a relationship with Detective Sam O'Neill, but she's still not ready to commit to either. Then Sam calls her to a crime scene. The victim was stabbed to death, but what's more interesting is that her ID says her name is Lexie Madison – an undercover alias Cassie used years ago. And this girl looks exactly like Cassie. With no clues to the case, her old boss, Frank, asks her to go back undercover and assume the dead girl's identity. The police will make it seem like the stabbing wasn't fatal. Cassie thinks the idea is crazy but is excited by the idea of working undercover again. She's drawn into Lexie's world as a graduate student with a tight knit group of friends. But after a while, the friends begin to suspect something isn't right. And Frank starts to think Cassie's emotional involvement could end up blowing the whole case.

• Rules of Deception by Christopher Reich—World-class mountaineer and Doctor's Without Borders physician Jonathan Ransom and his wife Emma are hiking the Swiss Alps when a blizzard sets in. While trying to escape the storm Emma falls to her death. The next day John receives an envelope containing two baggage claim tickets addressed to Emma. Confused by the envelope, he sets off for the remote train station to retrieve the bags only to find himself in a struggle to the death with two men. He discovers his attackers –one dead, the other wounded – are actually Swiss police. Now he's at the center of an international manhunt and the target of a master assassin. Forced on the run, his only chance to survive means uncovering the truth about his wife and stopping the master plot that threatens world annihilation.

 

Girlawhirl found all of the new CD, DVD and book releases in her online shopping mall at barnesandnoble.com

 

And as always Girlawhirl has great things to share in this week's Girlawhirl Giveaway.

 

This week's Girlawhirl Giveaway includes:

• Friends on a Rotten Day: The Astrology of Friendship by Hazel Dixon-Cooper

• Aveeno Continuous Protection Sunblock Spray

• Save Your World skincare products

• Bobbi Brown Quick Face Collection

• additional goodies courtesy of Girlawhirl

 

Girlawhirl has even more great stuff to share in her Special Monthly Giveaway Drawing!

 

This month's Girlawhirl Giveaway includes:

• Check out Giralwhirl's Mega Summertime Giveaways!