Mystery Bestsellers for February 08, 2008

A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending February 08, 2008 has been posted on the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books website.

Three new novels enter the mystery bestseller list this week.

The seventh entry in the Women's Murder Club series by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro, 7th Heaven, debuts in the 8th position. A terrible fire in a wealthy suburban home leaves a married couple dead and Detective Lindsay Boxer and her partner Rich Conklin searching for clues. And after California's golden boy, Michael Campion has been missing for a month, there finally seems to be a lead in his case--a very devastating lead. As fire after fire consume couples in wealthy, comfortable homes, Lindsay and the Murder Club must race to find the arsonists responsible and get to the bottom of Michael Campion's disappearance. But suddenly the fires are raging too close to home. Frightened for her life and torn between two men, Lindsay must find a way to solve the most daunting dilemmas she's ever faced--at work and at home. Publishers Weekly calls 7th Heaven "gripping" and adds, "Fans won't be disappointed with the twist at the end that not even Lindsay sees coming."

Debuting in 9th position is the seventh mystery in the Jesse Stone series by Robert B. Parker, Strangers in Paradise. The last time Jesse Stone, chief of police of Paradise, Massachusetts, saw Wilson "Crow" Cromartie, the Apache Indian hit man was racing away in a speedboat after executing one of the most lucrative and deadly heists in the town's history, never to be seen again. Until now. So when Crow shows up in Jesse's office some ten years after the crime, it's not to turn himself in. Crow is on another job, and this time he's asking for Jesse's help-by asking him to stay out of his way. Crow's mission is simple: find young Amber Francisco and bring her back to her father, Louis, in Florida. It should be an easy payday for a pro like Crow, but there are complications. Meanwhile, Jesse's on-again, off-again relationship with ex-wife Jenn picks up steam. However, the life of a young girl hangs in the balance, and saving Amber could be the miracle Jesse and his Jenn need for themselves, too. Publishers Weekly calls Stranger in Paradise "sizzling" and states that "Stone and Crow make an appealing odd couple." (MBN note: For more information about the Jesse Stone character, visit Squidoo: Jesse Stone. Also, to purchase the movies made from the books in this series, visit Mysteries on TV: Jesse Stone.)

The third newcomer this week is L. A. Outlaws by T. Jefferson Parker, the 15th thriller in his California crime series. Los Angeles is gripped by the exploding celebrity of Allison Murietta, her real identity unknown, a modern-day Jesse James with the compulsion to steal beautiful things, the vanity to invite the media along, and the conscience to donate much of her bounty to charity. Nobody ever gets hurt - until a job ends with ten gangsters lying dead and a half-million dollars worth of glittering diamonds missing. Rookie Deputy Charlie Hood discovers the bodies, and he prevents an eyewitness - a schoolteacher named Suzanne Jones - from leaving the scene. Drawn to a mysterious charisma that has him off-balance from the beginning, Hood begins an intense affair with Suzanne. As the media frenzy surrounding Allison's exploits swells to a fever pitch and the Southland's most notorious killer sets out after her, a glimmer of recognition blooms in Hood, forcing him to choose between a deeply held sense of honor and a passion that threatens to consume him completely. The Washington Post states of Parker, "All his skills are on display here: vivid writing, strong characters, clockwork plotting, agonizing suspense and, finally, an ending that manages to be just right."

On our bestseller page, we've added an icon next to every title that is available for immediate download onto the Amazon Kindle. To learn about this wireless reading device, visit the Amazon Kindle page for more information.

The top four mystery bestsellers this week are depicted below:

Please visit the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books where we are committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

Return to Mystery Books News ...