FICTION

THE FORTUNE by Michael Korda (Warner: $5.95). Young widow, married secretly to a billionaire, is embroiled in an inheritance fight with his avaricious family.

A TRAP FOR FOOLS by Amanda Cross (Ballantine: $4.95). University politics complicates Prof. Kate Fansler’s investigation into the death of an unpopular colleague.

FOR LOVE OF EVIL by Piers Anthony (Avon: $4.95). Weary of the protracted war with God, Satan pulls out all the stops. Sixth in the “Incarnations of Immortality” series.

THE EIGHT by Katherine Neville (Ballantine: $5.95) takes place in the 18th and 20th Centuries simultaneously: Two young novices and a computer expert set out to solve the mystery of the Montglane Chess Service.

LATECOMERS by Anita Brookner (Vintage: $7.95). Poignant tale of two middle-age German expatriates who forge a new life and friendship in England.

NONFICTION

MAJOR BUTLER’S LEGACY: Five Generations of a Slaveholding Family by Malcolm Bell Jr. (University of Georgia: $17.95). Meticulous documentation of the economic role slavery played in developing and sustaining one family’s wealth and standing in the community.

THE PROFESSOR AND THE PROSTITUTE: And Other True Tales of Murder and Madness by Linda Wolfe (Ballantine: $4.95). Eight true tales of the malicious deeds folks do for love and lesser reasons.

THANK GOD FOR THE ATOM BOMB: And Other Essays by Paul Fussell (Ballantine: $4.95). Fussell, author of “Class,” takes aim at an eclectic range of subjects and comes up with opinions sure to aggravate almost everybody.

YOUNG KATE by Christopher Andersen (Delta: $12.95). This authorized biography of Katharine Hepburn’s first 21 years stresses the effects of her family’s involvement in social causes.

ONE UP ON WALL STREET by Peter Lynch with John Rothchild (Penguin: $8.95). Lynch discloses how, as investment manager of the $12 billion Fidelity Magellan Fund, he outmaneuvered his colleagues. As a bonus, he suggests how readers might do the same.

SELF-HELP / REFERENCE

IN BAD TASTE: The MSG Syndrome by George R. Schwartz MD (Signet: $4.50). Study of the widely used flavor enhancer, its potential ill effects and how to recognize allergic reactions to it.

COMPLETE GUIDE TO SODIUM by Barbara Kraus (Plume: $8.95). Index of more than 7,000 foods and their sodium contents.