No doubt we weren't the only ones who were thrilled to see the return of Mysterious Press after a too long absence from the crime fiction publishing world. And now, to help get the word out, they're running a contest where you could win two very cool, very exclusive publications from MysteriousPress.com authors.
Here's how the contest works:
Tell your friends to follow Mysterious Press on Facebook and Twitter. Simply tag the publisher in your posts, which means on Twitter use @eMysteries, and on Facebook use @MysteriousPress.com, so they can make sure your entry is counted. You can enter on both Facebook and Twitter, but you can only win once.
On Thursday, December 22nd, 2011 at noon, they're going to name six winners — three from Twitter, three from Facebook. Recommend them at least once on either of these social networks, and you're eligible.
Each winner gets Mysterious Profiles for Ken Bruen's series character Jack Taylor and John Harvey's series character Charlie Resnick. These are exclusive publications commissioned by Otto Penzler through The Mysterious Bookshop, written by the authors about their fictional detectives, and not available anywhere else.
About the Mysterious Press: Founded by Otto Penzler in 1975, it was dedicated to putting out the best books by acclaimed authors, featuring fine paper and top dust jackets. Now the press has gone digital with MysteriousPress.com, bringing classic works of crime, mystery, suspense and espionage to electronic reading formats, with the same standard of quality.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Enter to Win Exclusive MysteriousPress.com Character Profiles
New Poster for 21 Jump Street
A new poster for the film adaptation of the late 1980s television series 21 Jump Street has been released (right; click for larger version).
Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum star, respectively, as Schmidt and Jenko, who are more than ready to leave their adolescent problems behind. Joining the police force and the secret Jump Street unit, they use their youthful appearances to go undercover in a local high school. As they trade in their guns and badges for backpacks, Schmidt and Jenko risk their lives to investigate a violent and dangerous drug ring. But they find that high school is nothing like they left it just a few years earlier — and neither expects that they will have to confront the terror and anxiety of being a teenager again … and all the issues they thought they had left behind.
The film will also feature a cameo by Johnny Depp as Officer Tom Hanson, the character he played in the original series.
Maybe we're just old fuddy-duddies, but there's little here that appeals to us. Maybe it'll be good for a couple of laughs, but the trailer — which we've embedded below — could have been rated L for Lame … or maybe YAUROOC for Yet Another Unnecessary Reimagination of a Once Original Concept.
21 Jump Street opens in theaters March 16th, 2012.
Review: Storm Damage by Ed Kovacs
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Storm Damage by Ed Kovacs.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Opens in US Theaters Tuesday, December 20th
Tomorrow, Tuesday December 20th, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has a rare early-in-the-week opening in US theaters. Adapted from the bestselling novel of the same title by Stieg Larsson — the first in his "Millennium" trilogy — the studio has made it very clear this is not a remake of the 2009 Swedish-language adaptation but an original interpretation of the book. (We're not exactly sure what the difference is here since the plots of both movies seem to mirror the book pretty closely.)
Daniel Craig stars as Mikael Blomkvist, a disgraced journalist hired by Swedish industrialist Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer) to find his daughter … who disappeared decades ago. He's joined on his quest by the enigmatic Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), a computer hacker extraordinaire, who may — or may not — have a separate agenda to pursue.
We greatly enjoyed the Swedish-language film adaptation, calling it a superior suspense thriller — read Mr. E.'s review of Män Som Hatar Kvinnor here — and are greatly looking forward to this film, one of the few that we intend to actually venture out to a theater to see (instead of waiting for the DVD).
Watch a lengthy (8+ minute) trailer for the film below. (No spoilers; just character and plot background plus some exciting action sequences.)
Mystery and Suspense Films, New This Week on DVD (111220)
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.
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Purchase/Rental Options
Straw Dogs (2011)
Film Synopsis (from the studio): A young couple (James Marsden and Kate Bosworth) moves to a quaint southern town. Soon their perfect getaway turns out to become a living hell when dark secrets and lethal passions spiral out of control. Trapped by a pack of depraved locals led by a ruthless predator (Alexander Skarsgård), they face a night of agonizing suffering and endless bloodshed. Now their only hope for survival is to become more savage than their merciless torturers.
Adapted from the Gordon M. Williams 1969 novel The Siege of Trencher's Farm, which was also the basis for the 1971 film Straw Dogs starring Dustin Hoffman. Rated R. 110 minutes.
Watch a trailer for the film below:
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Purchase/Rental Options
Margin Call (2011)
Film Synopsis (from the studio): Set in the high-stakes world of the financial industry, this entangling thriller involves the key players at an investment firm during one perilous 24-hour period in the early stages of the 2008 financial crisis. When an entry-level analyst (Zachary Quinto) unlocks information that could prove to be the downfall of the firm, a roller-coaster ride ensues as decisions both financial and moral catapult the lives of all involved to the brink of disaster.
First shown in January 2011 at the Sundance Film Festival, this film had a limited release in the US during October 2011. Rated R. 107 minutes.
Watch a trailer for the film below:
The St. Paul Conspiracy by Roger Stelljes is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature The St. Paul Conspiracy by Roger Stelljes as today's free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically for a limited time only or 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 St. Paul Conspiracy by Roger Stelljes
A Mac McRyan Mystery
North Star Press/Roger Stelljes
This is the first title in this series introducing the St. Paul homicide detective.
About The St. Paul Conspiracy (from the publisher): The morning after Halloween the city of St. Paul awakens to find that a serial killer terrorizing the blue-collar working women of University Avenue has struck for the fifth time. The citizens of St. Paul are on edge.
For thirty-two-year-old fourth-generation St. Paul Homicide Detective Michael McKenzie "Mac" McRyan, his day was going to be less stressful. His day would involve paper work, coffee, and maybe even an early trip to the pub. Then his cell phone tells him his day is about to change. A body has been found in a high-end condominium between Summit and Grand Avenues; and it's not just anyone.
"Your day just got worse," Mac tells his captain.
The victim is Claire Daniels, the Twin Cities' most prominent political and investigative reporter. Claire was stunningly attractive. She had blonde hair, blue eyes and a curvaceous body she worked on relentlessly. Claire was the desire of every man in town.
With the Daniels murder on top of the latest serial killer attack, the political and media pressure on the St. Paul Police Department only builds and places Mac in the middle of a dangerous and high-stakes murder investigation that will ultimately have national political and security implications.
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):
For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.
Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman is Today's Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman as today's free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically for a limited time only or 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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Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman
A Moe Prager Mystery
Tyrus Books
This is the 7th and most recent — published just this month — title in this series featuring the ex-NYPD cop, now private investigator.
About Hurt Machine (from the publisher): At a pre-wedding party for his daughter Sarah, Moe Prager is approached by his ex-wife and former PI partner Carmella Melendez. It seems Carmella's estranged sister Alta has been murdered, but no one in New York City seems to care. Why? Alta, a FDNY EMT, and her partner had months earlier refused to give assistance to a dying man at a fancy downtown eatery. Moe decides to help Carmella as a means to distract himself from his own life-and-death struggle. Making headway on the case is no mean feat as no one, including Alta's partner Maya Watson, wants to cooperate. Moe chips away until he discovers a cancer roiling just below the surface, a cancer whose symptoms include bureaucratic greed, sexual harassment, and blackmail. But is any of it connected to Alta's brutal 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):
For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.
Mystery Godoku Puzzle for December 19, 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!).
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This week's letters and mystery clue:
A D E F G I L R Y
The 7th mystery to feature Berlin PI Bernie Gunther by Philip Kerr has this title (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!
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Thomas & Mercer to Publish 35 Titles from Ed McBain's 87th Precinct Series
Thomas & Mercer recently announced that it would publish 35 titles from Ed McBain's 87th Precinct series of police procedurals. The first two titles, The Mugger and The Con Man, were released a few days ago as ebooks; the remaining 33 titles will be released later this month, also as ebooks. All 35 titles will be available in new trade paperback editions this coming February.
Ed McBain, a pseudonym used by Evan Hunter, published his first 87th Precinct title in 1956, a series of books that eventually totalled 55 in number. "The city in these pages is imaginary," he tells readers. "The people, the places are all fictitious. Only the police routine is based on established investigatory technique."
In The Mugger, the second book in the series, this mugger is special. He preys on women, waiting in the darkness … then comes from behind, attacks them, and snatches their purses. He tells them not to scream and as they're on the ground, reeling with pain and fear, he bows and nonchalantly says, "Clifford thanks you, madam." But when he puts one victim in the hospital and the next in the morgue, the detectives of the 87th Precinct are not amused and will stop at nothing to bring him to justice.
Dashing young patrolman Bert Kling is always there to help a friend. And when a friend's sister-in-law is the mugger's murder victim, Bert's personal reasons to find the maniacal killer soon become a burning obsession … and it could easily get him killed.
The Mugger was adapted into a short feature film in 1958.
In The Con Man, the fourth in the series, the titular character is plying his trade on the streets of Isola: conning a domestic for pocket change, businessmen for thousands, and even ladies in exchange for a little bit of love. You can see the world, meet a lot of nice people, imbibe some unique drinks, and make a ton money … all by conning them for their cash.
The question is: How far is he willing to go?
When a young woman's body washes up in the Harb River, the answer to that question becomes tragically clear. Now Detective Steve Carella races against time to find him before another con turns deadly. The only clue he has to go on is the mysterious tattoo on the young woman’s hand — but it’s enough. Carella takes to the streets, searching its darkest corners for a man who cons his victims out of their money … and their lives.
Later in 2012, Thomas & Mercer will publish new editions of Ed McBain's other series character, Florida criminal attorney Matthew Hope.
