Mystery Bestsellers for the Week Ending August 26th, 2011

A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending August 26th, 2011 has been posted by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Very little change among the top tier of the bestseller list, with Portrait of a Spy by Daniel Silva retaining the top spot. Two new titles debut.

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Entering the list at number 9 is Flash and Bones the 14th mystery to feature forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan by Kathy Reichs.

Just as 200,000 fans are pouring into town for Race Week, a body is found in a barrel of asphalt next to the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The next day, a NASCAR crew member comes to Temperance Brennan’s office at the Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner to share a devastating story. Twelve years earlier, Wayne Gamble’s sister, Cindi, then a high school senior and aspiring racer, disappeared along with her boyfriend, Cale Lovette. Lovette kept company with a group of right-wing extremists known as the Patriot Posse. Could the body be Cindi’s? Or Cale’s?

At the time of their disappearance, the FBI joined the investigation, only to terminate it weeks later. Was there a cover-up? As Tempe juggles multiple theories, the discovery of a strange, deadly substance in the barrel alongside the body throws everything into question. Then an employee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention goes missing during Race Week. Tempe can’t overlook the coincidence. Was this man using his lab chemicals for murder? Or is the explanation even more sinister? What other secrets lurk behind the festive veneer of Race Week?

Purchase Options:

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New at number 14 is the latest stand-alone thriller by Laura Lippman, The Most Dangerous Thing.

Years ago, they were all the best of friends. But as time passed and circumstances changed, they grew apart, became adults with families of their own, and began to forget about the past — and the terrible lie they all shared.

But now Gordon, the youngest and wildest of the five, has died and the others are thrown together for the first time in years.

And then the revelations start.

Could their long-ago lie be the reason for their troubles today? Each one of these old friends has to wonder if their secret has been discovered — and if someone within the circle is out to destroy them.

Purchase Options:

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For more mystery books news, 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.

New Quad Poster for The Woman in Black

A week or so ago we posted the terrifying trailer for the upcoming Gothic thriller A Woman in Black. Now the studio has released a new UK quad poster for the film; click on the image for a larger version. The tagline reads, "Do you believe in ghosts?"

Adapted from the 1983 novel of the same title by Susan Hill, A Woman in Black stars Daniel Radcliffe as young lawyer Arthur Kipps, who who travels to a remote village where he discovers the vengeful ghost of a scorned woman is terrorizing the locals. It is scheduled to be in US theaters on February 3rd, 2012.

USA Renews White Collar for a Fourth Season

In what we hope is the most unsurprisingly prime time crime news of the week, USA Network has renewed its caper drama White Collar — and one of our favorite series — for a 16-episode fourth season.

White Collar, which is currently on its mid-season hiatus, stars Matt Bomer as con man — and ex-con — Neal Caffrey, who works with his FBI handler Peter Burke (Tim DeKay) to solve white collar crimes in New York City.

New Hardcover Mysteries for September 2011

The Hidden Staircase Mystery Books has updated its list of new hardcover mysteries with books scheduled for publication in September 2011. Please note that some titles may publish early, and may already be available) and some may be delayed, published at a later date.

Below we're listing those authors with returning series characters, new series characters, and non-series or stand-alone mysteries in separate sections. All titles are available on our September new mystery books page, which will become the default home page for the site on September 1st).

• Authors with mysteries featuring returning series characters (in italics) this month:

Susan Wittig Albert (The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter, 8th) —  Carrie Bebris (Mr. and Mrs. Darcy, 6th) —  James R. Benn (Billy Boyle, World War II, 6th) —  Lisa Black (Theresa MacLean, 4th) —  Rhys Bowen (Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, 5th) —  Michael Brandman (Jesse Stone, 10th) —  James Lee Burke (Hackberry Holland, 3rd) —  Gianrico Carofiglio (Guido Guerrieri, 4th) —  Richard Castle (Nikki Heat, 3rd) —  Joelle Charbonneau (Rebecca Robbins, 2nd) —  Lee Child (Jack Reacher, 16th) —  Barbara Cleverly (Joe Sandilands, 9th) —  Margaret Coel (Catherine McLeod, 2nd) —  John Connolly (Charlie "Bird" Parker, 11th) —  Clive Cussler and Justin Scott (Isaac Bell, 4th) —  Judith Cutler (Lina Townend, 4th) —  William Deverell (Arthur Beauchamp, 5th) —  Sandy Frances Duncan and George Szanto (Islands Investigations International, 3rd) —  Ellen Hart (Jane Lawless, 19th) —  Veronica Heley (Ellie Quicke, 12th) —  Joseph Heywood (Grady Service, Woods Cop, 8th) —  Claude Izner (Victor Legris, 5th) —  Steven James (Patrick Bowers, 5th) —  D. E. Johnson (Will Anderson, 2nd) —  Nicholas Kilmer (Fred Taylor, 8th) —  Laurie R. King (Mary Russell, 11th) —  Paul Levine (Jake Lassiter, 8th) —  Archer Mayor (Joe Gunther, 22nd) —  Aly Monroe (Peter Cotton, 3rd) —  Helen Macie Osterman (Emma Winberry, 3rd) —  Sandra Parshall (Rachel Goddard, 4th) —  Spencer Quinn (Chet and Bernie, 4th) —  Ruth Rendell (Wexford, 23rd) —  J. D. Robb (Eve Dallas, "In Death", 33rd) —  Laura Joh Rowland (Sano Ichiro, 15th) —  S. J. Rozan (Bill Smith and Lydia Chin, 11th) —  Annelise Ryan (Mattie Winston, 3rd) —  Jeff Shelby (Noah Braddock, 3rd) —  Sally Spencer (Monika Paniatowski, 4th) —  Kelli Stanley (Miranda Corbie, 2nd) —  Stuart Woods (Stone Barrington, 21st)

• Authors with mysteries introducing characters (in italics) in a new series this month:

Gordon Cope (Jack Kenyon) —  Cheryl Crane (Nicki Harper) —  Angela Gerst (Susan Callisto) —  Patricia Hall (Kate O'Donnell) —  Paula LaRocque (Ben Gallagher) —  Mitchell Scott Lewis (David Lowell) —  Michael Lister (Jimmy "Soldier" Riley) —  G. M. Malliet (Max Tudor) —  Leonard Rosen (Henri Poincaré) —  Kirk Russell (Ben Raveneau) —  Jason Webster (Max Cámara) —  Simon Wood (Aidy Westlake)

• Authors with non-series or stand-alone mysteries this month:

Raymond Benson —  Lawrence Block —  Sandra Brown —  Tania Carver —  Sam Christer —  Ben Coes —  Eoin Colfer —  Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee —  Richard Doetsch —  Zoran Drvenkar —  J. E. Fishman —  Denise Hamilton —  Linda Howard —  Arnaldur Indridason —  Jim Ingraham —  Lesley Kagen —  Gary Madden —  Nicole "Coco" Marrow and Laura Hayden —  Neil Mcmahon —  Deon Meyer —  Denise Mina —  Mary McGarry Morris —  Thomas Mullen —  Michael Savage —  Trevor Shane —  Neal Stephenson —  Simon Toyne —  Fred Wiehe —  Dave Zeltserman

For more information on any of these titles, please visit the September new mysteries page on our website. If you're interested in new paperbacks, visit The Mystery Bookshelf where you can discover a library of new mystery, suspense and thriller books, also updated with September 2011 releases.

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.

Review: A Case of Hometown Blues by W. S. Gager

A Case of Hometown Blues by W. S. Gager. A Mitch Malone Mystery. Dark Oak Mysteries Trade Paperback, July 2011.

Appealing and engaging characters help keep this fast-paced murder mystery moving right along. The resolve of the lead character to set aside old rivalries and not dwell on the past but instead focus on the present is handled quite well, and lends a lot of credibility to the story.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: A Case of Hometown Blues by W. S. Gager.

Trailer for Unordered Fox Series Locke & Key

One of the shows that Fox once considered for the upcoming television season was Locke & Key, based on the series of graphic novels, written by Joe Hill and illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez. A pilot was filmed, but Fox passed on a series commitment. Despite this, the pilot was shown this summer at Comic-Con and now the trailer for the series has surfaced online; we've embedded it below.

It should be noted that the producers have stated emphatically that there is no chance for Locke & Key to become a series on Fox or any other network. Still, based on the trailer, one has to wonder how the storyline would have evolved.

In the comic series, the storylines are divided into six-issue "acts", of which the fifth, Clockworks, is currently being published. (The second issue comes out August 31st.) The publisher, IDW, has released the first four acts as graphic novels; see Joe Hill's author page for details.

Beautiful Dead Bella by Margaux Sky is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Beautiful Dead Bella by Margaux Sky as today's free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically only until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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Beautiful Dead Bella by Margaux Sky
A Lana Cloud Mystery (1st in series)
Smashwords

Margaux Sky may be best known as the (former?) owner of Art Cafe and Bakery in San Luis Obispo, which Oprah Winfrey declared the best sandwich shop in America. Sky has also published cookbooks, and several recipes are included in Beautiful Dead Bella.

About Beautiful Dead Bella (from the publisher): Teenage crime solver Lana Cloud has a fascination with food, full moons, and murder. When high-class herbalist Bella Reinig winds up dead, Lana insists she’s the perfect person to crack the case. She enlists the help of her two best friends Clancy Adams and Johnny Schoonover to help her find the murderer of beautiful Bella. Not one to shy away from confrontation, Lana’s shenanigans cause uproarious ado about everything as she involves a slew of props and people to accomplish the task of solving the murder.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

B&N Free Nook Book Download Link.

Smashwords Free Book Download Link.

The Cookie Caper by Nicholas Sheridan Stanton is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Cookie Caper by Nicholas Sheridan Stanton as today's second free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically only until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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The Cookie Caper by Nicholas Sheridan Stanton
A KK Undercover Mystery
Smashwords

It isn't often we see a free mystery for kids, but we're guessing adults will enjoy this light-hearted story as well.

About The Cookie Caper (from the publisher): KaSandra Dang — KK to her friends — and her colorful crew of grade school sleuths tackle the mystery of disappearing student lunches plaguing dear old Deer Canyon Elementary School. The team hatches a plan to hunt and trap the ''Lunchito Bandito'' in a whirlwind investigation that will involve teachers, family members, and every resource at their disposal. Together they gather clues and formulate a course of action that leads to the unmasking of this super-hungry fiend and to a surprise ending that will make you smile.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

B&N Free Nook Book Download Link.

Smashwords Free Book Download Link.

Mr. E. Reviews The Lincoln Lawyer

Purchase/Rental Option(s)

Matthew McConaughey — admittedly much to my surprise — hits all the right notes as defense attorney Mickey Haller in this film adaptation of Michael Connelly's bestseller of the name title. The plot is well conceived and executed and paced just right for a thriller, with Haller as the master of manipulating the legal system to the advantage of his clients, who suddenly finds himself the one being played.

Read the full text of our review at Mr. E. Reviews The Lincoln Lawyer.

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Mr. E. Reviews is your source for mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime drama reviews of television and film.

OMN Welcomes Crime Novelist Shirley Wells

Omnimystery News is pleased to welcome Shirley Wells, whose second Dylan Scott mystery, Dead Silent (Carina Press, August 2011 eBook), is published this week.

Today Shirley writes about detectives, amateur sleuths, and private investigators — the characters that compel us readers to return to the series that feature them.

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Photo provided courtesy of
Shirley Wells

I fell in love with sleuths at a very early age. As a teenager and a Brit, my favourite was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s creation, Sherlock Holmes. I loved Holmes’s lightning-quick brain, his energy, his impatience and the way he made the police look like imbeciles. I was also an Agatha Christie addict and a fan of the polite, perfectly correct Miss Jane Marple who concentrated on her knitting while solving the latest murder case. Dapper Belgian and retired police officer, Hercules Poirot, was another I couldn’t resist.

When we Brits were treated to re-runs of American shows, a whole new world opened up. Columbo was totally different to anything we’d seen before. In Columbo, we knew exactly who the killer was because we saw the murder being committed. Yet viewers remained gripped as the disheveled detective hunted his prey.

Spenser: For Hire, the TV series based on the character created by Robert B Parker, was another must-see.

These days, mystery books and TV shows have become grittier and darker perhaps, but no less addictive. I’m eagerly awaiting the next series of Dexter. A blood splatter analyst working for the Miami Metro Police Department who just happens to be a serial killer? Great stuff!

This love affair with detectives and investigators meant that, when I started writing, I’d soon have a sleuth of my own.

The hero in my latest book, Dead Silent, is reluctant private investigator Dylan Scott. Dylan used to be a detective sergeant in the police force with a bright future ahead of him. Used to be. All that was lost to him when an habitual criminal accused him of using excessive force during an arrest. The force was keen to show the public that complaints about their officers were taken seriously and Dylan spent time behind bars and lost his job. Is he bitter? Hell, yes.

Dylan is a chauvinist and a poor excuse for a husband, but he’d lay down his life for his wife and son. He loves Arsenal Football Club and good beer. He despairs of the “dope-smoking irritation” he’s forced to call mother.

And, like all the best sleuths, he’ll stop at nothing to unearth the truth.

To find out more about Dylan Scott or me, visit my website or connect with me via Twitter or Facebook.

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Multi-published author Shirley Wells was born in the Cotswolds and lived in Cyprus and Orkney before settling in Lancashire, the UK, where the spectacular Pennine Hills provide the inspiration for her popular mystery novels. She and her husband share their home with two dogs, two cats and any other strays who fancy a pampered life.

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About Dead Silent: Ten months ago, Samantha Hunt set off for work … and was never seen again.

Despite the statistics of cold cases, Dylan Scott wants to believe the young woman's alive—and not just because her father, his client, is desperate to find his missing daughter before he dies of cancer. By all accounts Sam was a lovely girl, devoted to her younger stepsisters, well-liked at her work, in love with her boyfriend.

But as usual not everything is as it seems in sleepy Dawson's Clough. Sam's boyfriend has a violent past. She may have been having an affair with her boss. And Dylan can't shake the feeling that her stepfather is hiding something. Meanwhile, someone is trying to scare Dylan off the case.

Who wanted to silence Sam, and why? The truth turns out to be worse than anyone expected …

Dead Silent is available to download from Amazon.com (Kindle edition), Barnes & Noble (Nook book), Kobo eBooks, and other retailers of eBooks.

Medical Error by Richard L. Mabry is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Medical Error by Richard L. Mabry as today's free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically only until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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Medical Error by Richard L. Mabry
A Prescription for Trouble Medical Thriller
Abingdon Press

Originally published in trade paperback in July 2010, Medical Error is the second in this four book series that also includes Code Blue and Diagnosis Death. Lethal Remedy, the final book in the series, which the author collectively calls "medical suspense with heart", is due out in October.

About Medical Error (from the publisher): Dr. Anna McIntyre's life was going along just fine until someone else started living it. Her patient died because of an identity mix-up, her medical career is in jeopardy because of forged prescriptions, and her credit is in ruins. She thought things couldn't get worse, but that was before she opened the envelope and saw a positive HIV test with her name on it. Her allies are two men who are also competing for her affection. Dr. Nick Valentine is a cynic who carries a load of guilt. Attorney Ross Donovan is a recovering alcoholic. The deeper Anna digs to discover who's behind the identity thefts, the higher the stakes. Finally, when her life is on the line, Anna finds that her determination to clear her name might have been a prescription for trouble.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Free Kindle Edition Download Link.

B&N Free Nook Book Download Link.

The Case of the Flashing Fashion Queen by N. L. Wilson is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Case of the Flashing Fashion Queen by N. L. Wilson as today's free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically only until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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The Case of the Flashing Fashion Queen by N. L. Wilson
A Dix Dodd Mystery (1st in series)
Smashwords

N. L. Wilson is romance novelist Norah Wilson.

About The Case of the Flashing Fashion Queen (from the publisher): Tired of getting no respect at the big P.I. firm where she’s worked for years, Dix Dodd has hung out her own shingle at the ripe age of 40. There are plenty of cheating husbands to go around, and Dix has a knack for busting them. Problem is, it doesn’t always pay so well. Conscious that the guys back at the old firm are laying bets about how soon she’ll come crawling back, she figures she’s got six months to make a go of it.

The going gets even tougher when she hires Dylan Foreman. When he told her about getting fired from his law firm and disbarred for putting common decency before the firm’s interests, she hired him on the spot. In addition to being smart, he’s gorgeous enough to remind her she’s a woman. And at 28, young enough to make her feel like a total cougar.

Things start looking up when Dix gets hired by millionaire businessman Ned Weatherby’s wife Jennifer Weatherby, to tail Ned 24/7 for a week, for a cool ten grand. Easy-peasy, right? Wrong! The job lands Dix in the middle of a murder investigation – with her as the prime suspect and her arch-enemy Detective Richard Head (a.k.a., Dickhead, one of the cheating husbands she’d nailed) gunning for her.

Dix will need all her ingenuity, as well as the help of Dylan and her oddball cast of supporters to extricate herself from this one.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Apple Free iBook Download Link (via iTunes).

Smashwords Free Book Download Link.

Telemystery: TNT Announces Fall/Winter 2011 Crime Drama Dates

In a press release earlier today, TNT announced its Fall and Winter 2011 schedule, including returning dates for its crime dramas and the launch date for TNT Mystery Movie Night. (Yes, that's yet another new name for the series, dropping the word "Tuesday", but the reason for the change will soon become clear.)

Leverage returns with the first of eight new episodes on Sunday, November 27th, followed a day later with the first of five episodes of The Closer and the first of five episodes of Rizzoli & Isles. Then, on January 17th, the fourth season of Southland premieres.

The TNT Mystery Movie Night opens its six episode run on Tuesday, November 29th with an adaptation of Scott Turow's Innocent. The next day, Wednesday, November 30th, an adaptation of Sandra Brown's Ricochet airs. The following week, also on consecutive days, December 6th and 7th, we'll see adaptations of Hide by Lisa Gardner and Silent Witness by Richard North Patterson. Then on Tuesday, December 13th, TNT airs Good Morning, Killer, April Smith's adaptation of her own mystery featuring FBI agent Ana Grey. Finally, on Tuesday, December 20th, the holiday-themed Deck the Halls will air, an adaptation of a mystery by Mary Higgins Clark and her daughter, Carol Higgins Clark.

At least one of the above made-for-television film adaptations — Good Morning, Killer by April Smith — is believed to be a pilot for a potential series.

(Source: TNT Press Release.)

The Mystery Bookshelf: A Hidden Affair by Pam Jenoff, a Jordan Weiss Mystery

The Mystery Bookshelf, where you can discover a world of mystery and suspense, is pleased to feature a new crime novel we recently received from the publisher.

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A Hidden Affair by Pam Jenoff
A Jordan Weiss Mystery (2nd in series)
(Trade Paperback)
Publication Date: August 2011
ISBN-13: 978-1-4165-9072-9

About A Hidden Affair (from the publisher): Ten years ago, U.S. State Department intelligence officer Jordan Weiss’s life was turned upside down when she was told her college boyfriend, Jared, drowned in the River Cam. In a shocking discovery, though, she realizes that things weren’t as they seemed and that she had been lied to and betrayed by those closest to her. Reeling from the shock— and the knowledge that Jared is still alive—Jordan resigns her State Department post and sets off in search of answers. Traveling to Jared’s last known whereabouts on the French Riviera, she encounters Nicole, a mysterious woman who flees after refusing to disclose what she knows about Jared.

Following Nicole across Europe, Jordan soon discovers that she is not alone in her pursuit— Aaron, a handsome and enigmatic Israeli, is chasing Nicole for his own cryptic reasons. Though distrustful of each other, Jordan and Aaron join forces on a journey that takes them half a world away, and only steps ahead of grave peril.

As Jordan draws closer to finding the answers that have eluded her for a decade, larger questions remain: Can she reconcile her attraction to Aaron with her unresolved feelings for Jared, the only man she ever loved? Will the truth be too devastating to handle or finally set her free?

Will she have a chance at happiness at last? Thrilling, romantic, and impossible to put down, A Hidden Affair gives us a brave and relentless heroine who never gives up on her search for the truth.

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About the author: A former Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Army and State Department officer, Pam Jenoff lives in the Philadelphia area, where she teaches law school. For more information about the author and her books, visit PamJenoff.com.

Purchase Options for A Hidden Affair: