Mystery and Suspense Films, New This Week on DVD (110712)

Checking through our list of films currently scheduled for release this week on DVD and/or Blu-ray disc, shown below are those that fall into the mystery, suspense, thriller and adventure categories.

— ◊ —

Purchase/Rental Options

The Lincoln Lawyer (2011)

Matthew McConaughey stars as Michael “Mickey” Haller, a slick, charismatic Los Angeles criminal defense attorney, who operates out of the back of his Lincoln Town Car. Having spent most of his career defending petty, gutter variety criminals, Mickey unexpectedly lands the case of a lifetime: defending a rich Beverly Hills playboy (Ryan Phillippe), who is accused of attempted murder. However, what initially appears to be a straightforward case with a big money pay-off swiftly develops into a deadly match between two masters of manipulation and a crisis of conscience for Haller.

The Lincoln Lawyer is adapted from the first mystery in the Mickey Haller series by Michael Connelly.

Telemystery: Damages, MI-5, and Poirot, New This Week on DVD

Telemystery, your source for one of the most comprehensive listings of crime drama, amateur sleuth, private investigator, mystery and suspense television series, mini-series and made-for-television movies, now available on or coming soon to DVD or Blu-ray disc, is profiling three series being released this week.

— ◊ —

The third season of Damages once again follows a single case in which high-powered attorney Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) goes after the billions of dollars that investor Louis Tobin (Len Cariou) has allegedly stolen from his clients. Even after Tobin's suicide, she goes after his heirs, wife Marilyn (Lily Tomlin) and son Joe (Campbell Scott), convinced they must have been in on the scheme. Leonard Winstone (Martin Short), the Tobin's family attorney, blocks Patty's moves at every step of the way.

The series also stars Tate Donovan as Tom Shayes and Rose Byrne as Ellen Parsons.

Damages: Season Three is available on DVD, Amazon Instant, and iTunes (click on the icons displayed for more details), and consists of 13 episodes that originally aired on FX Networks from January through April, 2010.

— ◊ —

MI-5, which airs as Spooks in the UK, opens its penultimate season with a largely new cast.

Relations between the CIA and MI-5 reach breaking point over mysterious hackers. And a horrific truth about Lucas North's (Richard Armitage) past is uncovered by Harry Pearce (Peter Firth) when they come face to face in a compelling interrogation. Friendships are tested to the limit, Harry and Ruth Evershed's (Nicola Walker) bond intensifies and the depth of deceit leads to the ultimate game of cat and mouse.

MI-5 (Spooks): Volume Nine is available on DVD and Amazon Instant (click on the icons displayed for more details), and consists of 8 episodes that originally aired on BBC from September through November, 2010.

— ◊ —

David Suchet reprises his role as Belgian private detective Hercule Poirot in three new adaptations of the Queen of Crime's mysteries in Agatha Christie: Poirot.

The novels adapted for this set are: Three Act Tragedy, in which deadly dinners whet Poirot's investigative appetite; The Clocks, in which Poirot identifies a man whose time ran out; and Hallowe'en Party, in which Poirot looks for ghosts from a young girl's past.

Poirot: The Movie Collection 6 is available on DVD and Blu-ray disc (click on the icons displayed for more details), and consists of these three made-for-television adaptations that originally aired on PBS's Masterpiece Mystery! during June and July, 2011.

— ◊ —

Visit the Telemystery website to discover more television mystery series currently available on and coming soon to DVD, Blu-ray disc, or video on demand.

Mystery Godoku Puzzle for July 11, 2011

A new Mystery Godoku Puzzle has been created by the editors of the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books and is now available on our website.

Godoku is similar to Sudoku, but uses letters instead of numbers. To give you a headstart, we provide you a mystery clue to fill in a complete row or column (if you choose to use it!).

— ◊ —

This week's letters and mystery clue:

A B D E J M N O S

Jeffery Deaver’s 2011 thriller Carte Blanche continues the series featuring this British spy (9 letters).

We now have two weeks of our puzzles on one page in PDF format for easier printing. Print this week's puzzle here.

Previous puzzles are stored in the Mystery Godoku Archives.

Enjoy the weekly Mystery Godoku Puzzle from the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, and Thanks for visiting our website!

New Posters for Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

Two new posters for Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows have been posted on the Yahoo! movies website. The film, a sequel to 2009's Sherlock Holmes, reunites Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law as Holmes and Watson, this time matching wits with Holmes's arch-nemesis Professor James Moriarty (Jared Harris). The film, which is scheduled to be in theaters December 16th, 2011, also stars Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler, Stephen Fry as Mycroft Holmes, and Eddie Marsan as Inspector Lestrade.

With posters now out, a trailer can't be far behind. Click on the image for a larger version.

 

Winners of the 2011 Thriller Awards Announced

Last night the winners of the 2011 Thriller Awards were announced at Thrillerfest, hosted by the International Thriller Writers organization.

The winners are ...

◊ Best Novel: Bad Blood by John Sanford (Putnam)

◊ Best Paperback Original: The Cold Room by J. T. Ellison  (Mira)

◊ Best First Novel: Still Missing by Chevy Stevens  (St. Martin's Press)

◊ Best Short Story: The God for Vengeance Cry by Richard Helms (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)

R. L. Stine was honored as ThrillerMaster while Joe McGinniss received the True Thriller Award for non-fiction and Karin Slaughter received the Silver Bullet Award in recognition of her outstanding achievement in the pursuit of literacy and the love of reading.

 indicates a review is available from Mysterious Reviews.

(Hat tip to The Rap Sheet.)

Telemystery: The Closer and Rizzoli & Isles, Season Premieres Monday, July 11th

Two prime time crime series have their season premieres tomorrow, Monday July 11th, and they're both on TNT.

At 9 PM (ET/PT), The Closer opens its 7th season with an episode titled "Unknown Trouble". Brenda Leigh Johnson (Kyra Sedgwick) and the squad investigate the owner of a hip-hop record label when one of his rap artists and six innocent bystanders are gunned down. The case hits home for Gabriel who knows two of the victims from church. Meanwhile, Chief Delk (Courtney B. Vance) is getting ready to announce the department's new organizational chart just as Brenda becomes the target of a civil suit against the police department.

And at 10 PM (ET/PT), the second season of Rizzoli & Isles airs. This drama, adapted from characters created by crime novelist Tess Gerritsen, stars Angie Harmon as Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and Sasha Alexander at medical examiner Maura Isles, who work together to solve crimes in their city. In "We Need Another Hero", Rizzoli is honored as a hero at a public event following her taking a bullet (in the final episode of last season). The celebration is short-lived, however, when disaster strikes. The ensuing case reunites Jane with an old high-school flame, Sgt. Major Charles "Casey" Jones (Chris Vance), who may be just the person she needs to heal her emotional scars.

Finally, as we mentioned a couple of days ago, TNT will be showing sneak peeks of its new series Dallas during the shows. Dallas is based on the original CBS prime time drama of the same name that aired from 1978 through 1991.

Snake Skin by C. J. Lyons is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Snake Skin by C. J. Lyons as our second free mystery ebook today. 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.

— ◊ —

Snake Skin by C. J. Lyons
Non-Series
CreateSpace

About Snake Skin (from the publisher): Just your average Pittsburgh soccer mom, baking brownies and carrying a loaded forty-caliber Glock ...

Lucille Teresa Guardino. A woman of many identities. Lucille to her doting mother, Lulu to her devoted husband, Mom to her pre-teen daughter, Lucy to her friends, LT to her co-workers, and Supervisory Special Agent Guardino to the criminals she captures for the FBI's Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement squad.

A loving mom and wife, dutiful daughter, consummate professional, and kick-ass federal agent, Lucy is living the perfect life.

Until the day she comes up against a predator more vicious and cunning than any she's ever tackled before, one who forces Lucy to choose between the life of the young victim she is fighting to save and her own daughter's ... and Lucy's dream life is shattered.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Free Kindle Edition Download Link.

B&N Free Nook Book Download Link.

Review: Trapped on the D.C. Train! by Ron Roy

Trapped on the D.C. Train! by Ron Roy. A Capital Mystery. Random House Paperback, May 2011.

This is an exciting, if highly improbable plot-wise, entry in this series of early reader chapter books featuring the President's stepdaughter and her best friend on a train trip from Washington DC to Pennsylvania. A diverse cast of supporting characters adds interest and intrigue.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Trapped on the D.C. Train! by Ron Roy.

Purchase Options:

Winners of the 2010 Strand Critics Awards Announced

The Strand Magazine has posted on its website the winners of the 2010 Strand Critics Awards, which recognize excellence in the field of mystery fiction. The winners are chosen by a select group of book reviewers from the nation's top daily newspapers, as well as by the editor of The Strand Magazine.

The winners are ...

◊ Best Novel: The Reversal by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown)

◊ Best First Novel: The Poacher's Son by Paul Doiron (Minotaur Books)

Review: Old Loves Die Hard by Lauren Carr

Old Loves Die Hard by Lauren Carr. A Mac Faraday Mystery. CreateSpace Trade Paperback, April 2011.

The uneven start to this mystery may be excused as the well developed plot that emerges offers an interesting twist or two along way, and delivers a surprise "whodunit" to the murder of Mac's ex-wife and her estranged boyfriend.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Old Loves Die Hard by Lauren Carr.

Purchase Options: