The third Nikki Heat mystery by Richard Castle is scheduled to be published this September, and now the plotline has been revealed.
The bizarre murder of a parish priest at a New York bondage club is just the tip of an iceberg that leads Nikki Heat to a dark conspiracy that reaches all the way to the highest level of the NYPD. But when she gets too close to the truth, Nikki finds herself disgraced, stripped of her badge, and out on her own as a target for killers with nobody she can trust. Except maybe the one man in her life who’s not a cop. Reporter Jameson Rook. In the midst of New York’s coldest winter in a hundred years, there’s one thing Nikki is determined to prove. Heat rises.
Richard Castle is the fictional crime novelist on ABC's Castle, played by Nathan Fillion. Heat Wave and Naked Heat, the first two Nikki Heat mysteries, both of which have been integrated into episodic storylines on the show, were bestsellers.
(Source: EW's Shelf Life.)
Friday, April 08, 2011
Plot Revealed for Heat Rises, the Third Nikki Heat Mystery by Richard Castle
Winners of the 2010 RT Bookreviewer's Awards Announced
The winners of the 2010 RT Bookreviewer's Awards have been announced. (We're not actually quite sure when they were announced, but we just learned about it!) The winners, in various categories, are selected by a staff of over 50 reviewers representing the readers' voice in the women's fiction industry.
The winners of the mystery awards for books published in 2010 are:
◊ Amateur Sleuth: Bone Appetit by Carolyn Haines (Minotaur Books)
◊ Contemporary Mystery: Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin (William Morrow)
◊ First Mystery: Murder at Mansfield Park by Lynn Shepherd (St. Martin's Griffin)
◊ Historical Mystery: Royal Blood by Rhys Bowen (Berkley)
◊ Inspirational Mystery: The Bishop by Steven James 
◊ Suspense / Thriller: One Grave Less by Beverly Connor (Obsidian)
Help Solve the Mystery of Your Parents' Death in Margrave: The Curse of the Severed Heart, New from BFG
Games of Mystery is pleased to announce the availability of a new mystery casual game from Big Fish Games released today and available to BFG Club members. You can find out more about these games by visiting our Mystery Games: Big Fish Download Games page or by clicking on the links provided below.
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Deep in the English countryside, Edwina Margrave has returned to the cottage where her parents died, eager to speak with the one person who might shed light on the tragedy – the volatile landlady, Miss Thorn. But her shocking revelations are not what Edwina expected! Take on the role of Edwina and go on a journey into the supernatural to enlist the aid of the spirit world and evade the wrath of a disfigured beast as you explore the picturesque village where your mysterious host is hiding something.
See also the other games in this series, The Secret of Margrave Manor and Margrave Manor 2: The Lost Ship.
Margrave: The Curse of the Severed Heart may be downloaded and purchased for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (179.46 MB) may be downloaded and played for free for one hour.
Watch a preview video below:
Get any standard game for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. Other benefits include the $2.99 Daily Deal, Tomorrow's Game Today, and special member rewards. And if you purchase any 6 games within a single month, you earn a free game with the Big Fish Game Club Monthly Punch Card! (Collector's Editions earn 3 punches each, half-way towards your free game!)
Read Ms. Terri's reviews of the adventure and casual mystery games featured on this site, including Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy, Nancy Drew Dossier: Lights, Camera, Curses!, Enlightenus, and many more!
Big Fish Games: Bestsellers
Big Fish Games: New releases
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Games of Mystery is your source for mystery-themed video, electronic, and board games, parties for kids and adults, and murder mystery weekends and mystery getaway vacations!
Mystery Bestsellers for April 08, 2011
A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending April 8th, 2011 has been posted on the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books website.
Last week's featured title, The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party, the 12th case for the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith, moves into the top spot this week. Three new titles either move up or debut in the top 15.
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Moving from 19th position to 8th is the 10th Kurt Wallander mystery, The Troubled Man by Henning Mankell.
On a winter day in 2008, Håkan von Enke, a retired high-ranking naval officer, vanishes during his daily walk in a forest near Stockholm. The investigation into his disappearance falls under the jurisdiction of the Stockholm police. It has nothing to do with Wallander—officially. But von Enke is his daughter’s future father-in-law. And so, with his inimitable disregard for normal procedure, Wallander is soon interfering in matters that are not his responsibility, making promises he won’t keep, telling lies when it suits him—and getting results. But the results hint at elaborate Cold War espionage activities that seem inextricably confounding, even to Wallander, who, in any case, is troubled in more personal ways as well. Negligent of his health, he’s become convinced that, having turned sixty, he is on the threshold of senility. Desperate to live up to the hope that a new granddaughter represents, he is continually haunted by his past. And looking toward the future with profound uncertainty, he will have no choice but to come face-to-face with his most intractable adversary: himself.
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Also moving into the top 15, landing in the 11th spot, is Mystery, the 24th mystery featuring Alex Delaware by Jonathan Kellerman.
The closing of their favorite romantic rendezvous, the Fauborg Hotel in Beverly Hills, is a sad occasion for longtime patrons Alex Delaware and Robin Castagna. And gathering one last time with their fellow faithful habitués for cocktails in the gracious old venue makes for a bittersweet evening. But even more poignant is a striking young woman—alone and enigmatic among the revelers—waiting in vain in elegant attire and dark glasses that do nothing to conceal her melancholy. Alex can’t help wondering what her story is, and whether she’s connected to the silent, black-suited bodyguard lingering outside the hotel.
Two days later, Alex has even more to contemplate when police detective Milo Sturgis comes seeking his psychologist comrade’s insights about a grisly homicide. To Alex’s shock, the brutalized victim is the same beautiful woman whose lonely hours sipping champagne at the Fauborg may have been her last.
But with a mutilated body and no DNA match, she remains as mysterious in death as she seemed in life. And even when a tipster’s sordid revelation finally cracks the case open, the dark secrets that spill out could make Alex and Milo’s best efforts to close this horrific crime not just impossible but fatal.
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Debuting in 14th position is the fourth Mickey Haller legal thriller, The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly.
Mickey Haller has fallen on tough times. He expands his business into foreclosure defense, only to see one of his clients accused of killing the banker she blames for trying to take away her home.
Mickey puts his team into high gear to exonerate Lisa Trammel, even though the evidence and his own suspicions tell him his client is guilty. Soon after he learns that the victim had black market dealings of his own, Haller is assaulted, too—and he's certain he's on the right trail.
Despite the danger and uncertainty, Haller mounts the best defense of his career in a trial where the last surprise comes after the verdict is in.
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The top four mystery bestsellers this week are shown 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.
Thursday, April 07, 2011
New Carina eBook Mysteries for April 2011
Each month, Omnimystery News is pleased to present new mystery and suspense titles from Carina Press, an ebook only publisher. Links are provided to purchase the ebook from, where available, Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble, or Kobo Books; click on the banner to the right to be taken to the CarinaPress.com website to browse for other titles.
New ebooks of mystery and suspense for April 2011 from Carina Press include:
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Snowball in Hell by Josh Lanyon
A Doyle & Spain Mystery
Los Angeles, 1943: Reporter Nathan Doyle had his reasons to want Phil Arlen dead, but when he sees the man's body pulled from the La Brea tar pit, he knows he'll be the prime suspect. He also knows that his life won't stand up to intense police scrutiny, so he sets out to crack the case himself.
Lieutenant Matthew Spain's official inquiries soon lead him to believe that Nathan knows more than he's saying. But that's not the only reason Matt takes notice of the handsome journalist. Matt's been drawn to men before, but he must hide his true feelings—or risk his entire career.
As Nathan digs deeper, it becomes increasingly difficult to stay one step ahead of Matt Spain—and to deny his intense attraction to him. Nathan's secrets may not include murder, but has his hunt put him right in the path of the real killer?
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Courting Disaster by Carol Stephenson
A Legal Weapons Mystery
A year ago, criminal defense attorney Carling Dent woke up in a conference room with a bullet wound, a murdered client and no memory of what happened. Since then, she's grown reckless. She's gained a reputation for representing defendants no one else will, and her own partners are beginning to question her conduct.
Then a car accident triggers flashbacks, and Carling is driven by the need to find out what really happened that day. Her investigation begins to uncover a twisted web of secrets someone doesn't want exposed. The threats against Carling escalate, and she turns to the one person she wants to trust—her former lover, prosecutor Jared Manning. The passion between them is as hot as ever, but when more memories start trickling back, Carling starts to wonder just whose side the man she loves is on ...
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Photographs & Phantoms by Cindy Spencer Pape
The Gaslight Chronicles
Brighton, 1855: As a member of the Order of the Round Table, Kendall Lake is overqualified to be investigating strange phenomena at a seaside photography studio. But since the photographer is related to the Order's most powerful sorcerer, Kendall reluctantly boards a dirigible to Brighton.
Amy Deland is haunted by a shadow that appears in some of her recent portraits. In each case, the subject died within days of the sitting. Does she have her grandmother's gift of foresight, or has she somehow caused the deaths?
As Kendall and Amy search for answers, their investigation draws them together in a most improper way—but it seems the evil presence in the studio is determined to keep them apart ...
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Carina Press, a division of Harlequin, is a digital-first publisher offering ebooks in a variety of genres, including mystery. eBooks from Carina can be read on the Apple iPad, Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, B&N Nook, Kobo eReader
For more mystery, suspense and thriller ebooks, visit MystereBooks.com.
Hanna Opens in Theaters Friday, April 8th
The action/adventure thriller Hanna opens in theaters tomorrow, Friday April 8th.
The film stars Saoirse Ronan as the titular character, a 16-year-old girl raised by her father (played by Eric Bana), an ex-CIA man, in the wilds of Finland. Hanna's upbringing and training have been one and the same, all geared to making her the perfect assassin. The turning point in her adolescence is a sharp one; sent into the world by her father on a mission, Hanna journeys stealthily across Europe while eluding agents dispatched after her by a ruthless intelligence operative (Cate Blanchett) with secrets of her own. As she nears her ultimate target, Hanna faces startling revelations about her existence and unexpected questions about her humanity.
Watch a trailer for the film below.
Devil-Devil by Graeme Kent (Mystery Book Review)
Devil-Devil by Graeme Kent. A Ben Kella and Sister Conchita Mystery. Soho Crime Hardcover, February 2011.
One of the year's best mysteries, this extraordinary novel introduces two well developed and realized characters investigating a series of disparate events -- including the murder of a young man and his grandfather -- on the Solomon Islands in 1960 that may be related to the disappearance of a professor studying the local culture.
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Devil-Devil by Graeme Kent.
Purchase Options: 
Read the first chapter(s) of Devil-Devil below. Use the Aa settings button to adjust text size, line spacing, and word density.
Unravel the Mystery When Your Sister Disappears in Gravely Silent: House of Deadlock (Collector's Edition), New from BFG
Games of Mystery is pleased to announce the availability of a new mystery casual game from Big Fish Games released today and available to BFG Club members. You can find out more about these games by visiting our Mystery Games: Big Fish Download Games page or by clicking on the links provided below.
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After having a disturbing vision, you receive a troubling phone call from your brother-in-law: your sister is missing. Set off on a dark adventure to scour hidden object scenes for valuable clues and unravel the mystery behind your sister's disappearance. Uncover the truth and save your sister from the grave! This is a special Collector's Edition, full of exclusive extras including an integrated strategy guide, bonus gameplay, wallpapers and a screensaver, concept art, musical soundtrack, and early access.
Gravely Silent: House of Deadlock (Collector's Edition) may be downloaded and purchased for $13.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (325.19 MB) may be downloaded and played for free for one hour.
Watch a preview video below:
Get any standard game for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. Other benefits include the $2.99 Daily Deal, Tomorrow's Game Today, and special member rewards. And if you purchase any 6 games within a single month, you earn a free game with the Big Fish Game Club Monthly Punch Card! (Collector's Editions earn 3 punches each, half-way towards your free game!)
Read Ms. Terri's reviews of the adventure and casual mystery games featured on this site, including Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy, Nancy Drew Dossier: Lights, Camera, Curses!, Enlightenus, and many more!
Big Fish Games: Bestsellers
Big Fish Games: New releases
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Games of Mystery is your source for mystery-themed video, electronic, and board games, parties for kids and adults, and murder mystery weekends and mystery getaway vacations!
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
On the Nickel by Maggie Toussaint (Mystery Book Review)
On the Nickel by Maggie Toussaint. A Cleopatra Jones Mystery. Five Star Hardcover, April 2011.
Though the mystery itself here is weakly developed, there are several family-driven subplots that help add interest and humor to Cleo's efforts to clear her mother of the hit-and-run murder of a prominent member of their community.
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: On the Nickel by Maggie Toussaint.
Purchase Options:
Mulholland Books to Publish J. J. Abrams/Doug Dorst Thriller
Mulholland Books, the crime imprint of publisher Little, Brown, has acquired the North American rights to a new thriller to be written by Doug Dorst from an original idea by J. J. Abrams. No information about the plot was released -- typically of any Abrams project in development -- but the book is scheduled to be published in Fall 2012.
"Doug and J.J.’s story will explode the bonds of the novel in ways no book has ever done," said Michael Pietsch, Executive Vice President and Publisher of Little, Brown. "It is a privilege to work with this wildly creative team of writers and thinkers."
Abrams is probably best known as the creator of the television series Lost. His other small screen credits include Alias, Fringe, and the new series Alcatraz; he also produced (and co-wrote the script for) the fourth "Mission: Impossible" film and directed the 2009 "Star Trek" reboot. Dorst is the author of the paranormal noir thriller Alive in Necropolis.
