Compendium of Mystery News 071007

Today's compendium of recently published mystery news articles:

• Sarah Weinman writes about recent books featuring serial killers in her monthly column on LATimes.com.

• Mary Wisniewski reports on the 20th anniversary of the founding of Sisters in Crime on SunTimes.com.

• Court TV and Gather.com have teamed up to create a contest to search for the next great crime writer. The winner will receive a publishing and distribution contract with Borders and a $5000 cash advance.

• Gaming Today is reporting on a new point-and-click adventure game under development called The Abbey, a murder mystery set at an old abbey. No release date yet.

• More gaming news: Nancy Drew: The Deadly Secret of Olde World Park, the first game in this series for the Nintendo DS, has begun shipping. It is available from the Games of Mystery: Nancy Drew website. Visit the official game site here. (MBN note: We've been experimenting with creating Squidoo lenses, authoritative sites on subjects of interest to the author. Visit our Nancy Drew page and let us know what you think by leaving feedback in the form at the bottom of the page.)

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.

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Mystery Bestsellers for October 04, 2007

A list of the top ten mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending October 04, 2007 has been posted on the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books website.

Shoot Him if He Runs, the 14th thriller in the Stone Barrington series by Stuart Woods, displaces James Patterson's You've Been Warned at the top of the bestselling mystery list this week. Patterson needn't worry too much, though: he still has three books in the top 15.

New this week: Dark of the Moon by John Sandford Virgil Flowers, a character introduced in Sandford's Davenport series, and a member of the the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, has never seen a case like this. A house way up on a ridge explodes into flames, its owner, a man named Judd, trapped inside. There is a lot of reason to hate him, Flowers discovers. Years ago, Judd had perpetrated a scam that'd driven a lot of local farmers out of business, even to suicide. There are also rumors swirling around: of some very dicey activities with other men's wives; of involvement with some nutcase religious guy; of an out-of-wedlock daughter. In fact, Flowers concludes, you'd probably have to dig around to find a person who didn't despise him. But it's not an isolated incident. Three weeks before, there'd been another murder-two, in fact-a doctor and his wife. Flowers knows it isn't a coincidence, it had to be personal. But just how personal is something even he doesn't realize, and may not find out until too late. Because the next victim ... may be himself. Publishers Weekly states that "Sandford keeps the reader guessing and the pages turning while Flowers displays the kind of cool and folksy charm that might force Davenport to share the spotlight more often."

'Tis the season for trimming the tree, caroling, baking cookies, and curling up by the Yuletide waiting for Santa to drop down the chimney. But in Candy Cane Murder, a festive collection of holiday whodunits, murder is also paying a visit. Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine, and Leslie Meier have each written a mini-mystery featuring their respective series character (Fluke's Hannah Swensen in Candy Cane Murder, Levine's Jaine Austen in The Dangers of Candy Canes, and Meier's Lucy Stone in Candy Canes of Christmas Past). Kirkus Reviews states that, "Like a box of holiday chocolates, this recipe-studded assortment gives all readers a crack at their favorites."

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.

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Mystery Book Review: In the Shadow of the Glacier by Vicki Delany

Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of In the Shadow of the Glacier by Vicki Delany. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.

In the Shadow of the Glacier by Vicki Delany
A Molly Smith Mystery

Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-59058-448-1 (1590584481)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-448-4 (9781590584484)
Publication Date: October 2007
List Price: $24.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): Trouble is brewing in the small, bucolic mountain town of Trafalgar, British Columbia. An American who came to Trafalgar as a Vietnam War draft dodger has left land and money to the town but there’s a catch: the money must be used to build a garden to honor draft dodgers. This bequest has torn the close-knit, peaceful town apart. Then the body of a leading opponent is found in an alley, dead from a single blow to the head.

Constable Molly Smith is assigned to assist veteran Detective Sergeant John Winters in the investigation. But Winters doesn’t want the help of the enthusiastic rookie, and suspects that he’s been assigned Smith for political reasons – her mother, a life-long activist, is the leader of the group arguing for the park.

Egged on by a muck-raking TV personality, outside agitators from both sides are soon streaming into Trafalgar, while Smith and Winters search through small-town secrets for a killer.

Review: The first book in Vicki Delany's new series featuring Constable Molly Smith, In the Shadow of the Glacier, takes on a controversial subject that, after more than thirty years, is still alive for many today: the war in Vietnam.

It is estimated that more than 50,000 young men, in order to avoid the draft in the US during the Vietnam War, became draft dodgers and fled to Canada, leaving their homes and families in America. Some never returned, even though amnesty was offered. One draft dodger settled in the small mountain town of Trafalgar, British Columbia. He spent his life there, and when he died he left all of his land and money to the city, but only if it would used to create a beautiful garden to honor all draft dodgers. This idea split the normally close-knit city right in two. There were those who heartily supported the plan, and those who still felt draft dodgers were traitors to America. Reginald Montgomery, a building planner, was one of the chief opponents to the garden. He wanted to build a huge resort in Trafalgar, called the Grizzly Bear, which he said would bring in money for the city, make jobs, and welcome visitors and vacationers from both Canada and America. Now there is another division to this small town. Montgomery wants to build The Grizzly Bear on the grounds that are homes to the bears, deer, and other animals of the forest. The animal rights people are dead set against such a venture. Others feel this would be a great boon for their city. With so many of the town folk angry at Reg, it was no surprise to find him beaten over the head and left dead in a dark alley.

Detective Sergeant John Winters, newly transferred into Trafalgar, is assigned the case. Constable Molly Smith, born and raised in the city, is assigned as his assistant. But her interest in the case is not completely objective: her parents came to Trafalgar when her father dodged the draft. Molly, eager and fast to jump to conclusions, is a good counterpart to Winters, who is rather slow and methodical. After Smith makes it clear who's in charge, he eases up on Molly who has a hard time telling when he is serious or joking. Their banter becomes a joy to read. They interview Reg’s widow, the local dentist, the shopkeepers, anyone known to oppose Reg’s opposition to the garden, and anyone who opposed his plans for the Grizzly Bear. Getting no where, they even interview a local kid who stole Molly’s locked bike from behind the police station. Though discouraged, as they begin to review their notes, they realize one of these peoples is a murderer.

In the Shadow of the Glacier is a terrific murder mystery replete with delightful characters and good humor; a very promising start to this new series. And anyone who lived through the era of the 1960s will undoubtedly smile when Molly's given name is revealed: Moonlight Legolas.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of In the Shadow of the Glacier and to Poisoned Pen Press for providing an ARC of the book for this review.

Review Copyright © 2007 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.

For more mystery book reviews visit Mysterious Reviews, a partner with the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books which is committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Mystery Book Review: Noble Lies by Charles Benoit

Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of Noble Lies by Charles Benoit. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.

Noble Lies by Charles Benoit
A Mark Rohr Mystery

Poisoned Pen Press (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-59058-450-3 (1590584503)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59058-450-7 (9781590584507)
Publication Date: September 2007
List Price: $24.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): For Mark Rohr, a decorated Desert Storm vet, the last ten years have been filled with shady jobs and countless mis-adventures around the globe. The low point is his current stint as a bouncer at a nameless whorehouse/bar in Thailand. When the beautiful and naive Robin Antonucci arrives in Phuket City from the States and hires him to help find her missing brother Shawn, Mark sees the chance to make some easy money. It is simple: guide her around until she gets bored or until the money runs out and she heads home.

But what should be an easy job in a tropical paradise quickly sours when they meet the stunning Pim who claims to be Shawn's wife. Within hours two men are dead and Jarin, southern Thailand's most notorious gangster, wants Mark to pay. Getting away alone would be difficult. Getting away with Robin and Pim, plus an old man and a small boy - the only members of Pim's family to survive the tsunami - might prove impossible.

With nowhere to hide and ho idea where they are heading, they set off around the Thai coast, racing through beach resorts and remote villages, staying one step ahead of Jarin's men as they search for the truth about Shawn.

Review: If only one word could be used to describe Noble Lies by Charles Benoit, it might be "unpredictable". And for a mystery thriller, that's a very good word indeed.

For former Marine Mark Rohr, working in a bar in Phuket City, Thailand, the job he's hired to do seems simple enough: find Shawn, the brother of an American woman Robin, presumed dead after the tsunami but identified on a recent photograph. But the missing person investigation turns complicated very quickly. They locate Pim who claims to be married to Shawn, but who works for Jarin, a local crime lord who doesn't take kindly to anyone interferring in his affairs. She volunteers to take Mark and Robin to Shawn, but only if they take along her grandfather and young nephew. As their journey continues from Thailand to Malaysia, they discover that though Shawn may be alive and well, he might not want to be found.

"Noble lies" are those told by people who don't know the answer to a question but, in order to save face, give any answer to prevent being perceived as ignorant. Since it isn't clear at any time if anyone is telling the truth in this story, the unpredictability of the plot is one of the great assets of Noble Lies. Benoit provides many detailed descriptions of the region, most of which aren't likely appear on the government tourist brochures for the country, but they add a sense of danger and excitement. When Mark and Robin meet up with modern-day international pirates, which could have been rather ridiculous in any other context, it's just another unexpected, unanticipated, yet thoroughly entertaining bump in the road on their journey to discover the truth about Shawn.

Though there is an occasional chapter from a another character's point of view that tends to unnecessarily muddle the story somewhat, for the most part, Noble Lies is a thrilling adventure worth experiencing.

Special thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for providing an ARC of Noble Lies for this review.

Review Copyright © 2007 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.

For more mystery book reviews visit Mysterious Reviews, a partner with the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books which is committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Mysteries on TV: Criminal Minds and Inspector Lynley

Mystery television series being released this week on DVD:

An elite team of FBI profilers who analyze the country's most twisted criminal minds are featured in Criminal Minds, Season 2. The series stars Mandy Patinkin as Senior Supervisory Special Agent Jason Gideon of the Behaviorial Analysis Unit. Each member of the team brings his or her own area of expertise to the table as they pinpoint predators' motivations and identify their emotional triggers in the attempt to stop them.

Criminal Minds first aired on CBS in September 2005. This DVD set includes all 23 episodes from the second season.

For more information on Criminal Minds, visit the series website on CBS.com.

Four mystery movies are featured on Inspector Lynley, Set 5. Starring Nathaniel Parker as Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley and Sharon Small as Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, the series is based on characters created by mystery author Elizabeth George.

The four movies included on this set, originally shown in the UK on BBC-1 during the summer of 2006 and in the US on PBS in September 2006, are: Natural Causes, One Guilty Deed, Chinese Walls, and In the Blink of an Eye.

For more information, visit the Inspector Lynley Mysteries website on PBS.org.

Visit the Mysteries on TV website to discover more television mystery series currently available on DVD.

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Mystery Godoku: Weekly Puzzle for October 01, 2007

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 D E H K O R S U. This descriptive structure is in the title of the 10th Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James mystery by Deborah Crombie (9 letters).

New! We now have our puzzles 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!

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News: Mystery Book Awards Announced This Week

A busy week for mystery book awards! The following organizations handed out their respective awards for excellence in mystery fiction this past week; the winners of the major awards are listed below:

The Macavity Award (Mystery Readers International)

Best Mystery Novel: The Virgin of Small Plains by Nancy Pickard (Ballantine)
Best First Mystery Novel: Mr. Clarinet by Nick Stone (HarperCollins)

The Anthony Award

Best Novel: No Good Deeds by Laura Lippman
Best First Novel: Still Life by Louise Penny
Best Paperback Original: Ashes and Bones by Dana Cameron

The Shamus Award (Private Eye Writers of America)

Best P. I. Hardcover: The Dramatist by Ken Bruen (Irish PI Jack Taylor)
Best First P. I. Novel: The Wrong Kind of Blood by Declan Hughes (Irish PI Ed Loy)
Best P. I. Paperback Original: An Unquiet Grave by P. J. Parrish (Florida PI Louis Kincaid)

The Barry Award (Deadly Pleasures)

Best Novel: The Night Gardener by George Pelecanos
Best First Novel: Still Life by Louise Penny
Best British Crime Novel: Priest by Ken Bruen
Best Paperback Original: The Cleanup by Sean Doolittle
Best Thriller: The Messenger by Daniel Silva

Congratulations from Mystery Books News to all the winners!

Please visit the Mystery Book Awards website where lists of winners from over 20 different organizations that recognize excellence in mysteries, including all of the above, are presented.

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Compendium of Mystery News 070929

Today's compendium of recently published mystery news articles:

• It's a bit surprising it took this long, given the unqualified success of the Nancy Drew 3D interactive games for the PC by Her Interactive, but now The Adventure Company is bringing The Hardy Boys to adventure gaming. The first title, The Tower Treasure, is expected to be released in late 2008. Read the press release here. (MBN note: visit An Introduction to Nancy Drew for more information about the teenage sleuth, and Games of Mystery: Nancy Drew to purchase PC games in this series.)

• On the subject of mystery games, IGN Entertainment recently interviewed the project lead for the upcoming Nintendo DS game Touch Detective 2 1/2, discussing what fans can expect from the sequel. In the original Touch Detective, you become Mackenzie, a private investigator in a unique mystery adventure.

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.

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News: ITW Interviews Jeffery Deaver on The Chopin Manuscript

This past week, the International Thriller Writers (ITW) and Audible.com launched The Chopin Manuscript, the first audio-only original novel written by some of today's top mystery authors. (Read the press release here.)

Jeffery Deaver will write the opening and closing chapters of the story. He discussed his thoughts on why he agreed to participate in the project in an interview published on ITW's website. Listen to the first chapter of The Chopin Manuscript on the Audible.com website.

The plot is intriguing: Former war crimes investigator Harold Middleton possesses a priceless, previously-unknown manuscript by Frederic Chopin. Within the notes of this work, which was originally found and hidden by the Nazis during World War II, lies a secret that has left death in its wake – and could kill tens of thousands more. As Middleton races to unlock the mystery of the manuscript, he is accused of murder, pursued by federal agents and targeted by assassins. But the greatest threat comes from a man known only as Faust - a shadowy figure from Middleton’s past.

The Chopin Manuscript is being delivered serially with new installments available every Tuesday.

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.

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Mystery Bestsellers for September 28, 2007

A list of the top ten mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending September 28, 2007 has been posted on the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books website.

Two mysteries that debuted last week on the list move into the top four this week: Dead Heat by Dick Francis and his son Felix Francis, and Dexter in the Dark by Jeff Lindsay. You've Been Warned by James Patterson remains at the top.

New this week: Shoot Him if He Runs by Stuart Woods, the latest in this bestselling series featuring New York attorney Stone Barrington. Teddy Fay, a rogue agent last seen escaping an imploding building in Iron Orchid, has been considered dead for some time now. But President Will Lee thinks Teddy may still be alive. In a top-secret Oval Office meeting, Stone learns that he and his cohorts, Holly Barker and Dino Baldachetti, are being sent to the beautiful Caribbean island of St. Marks, courtesy of the CIA, to track down Teddy once and for all. St. Marks is a vacationer's paradise, but its luxurious beach clubs and secluded mountain villas are home to corrupt local politicians and more than a few American ex-pats with murky personal histories. Stone and Holly soon discover that in St. Marks, everyone is hiding something, and Teddy Fay may just be hiding in plain sight.

The third mystery in the Harper Connelly series by Charlaine Harris, An Ice Cold Grave, has the psychic detective hired to find a boy gone missing in Doraville, North Carolina. She and her brother Tolliver head there-only to discover that the boy was only one of several who had disappeared over the previous five years. All of them teenagers. All unlikely runaways, All calling for Harper. Harper soon finds them-eight victims, buried in the half-frozen ground, all come to an unspeakable end. Afterwards, what she most wants to do is collect her fee and get out of town ahead of the media storm that's soon to descend. But when she's attacked and prevented from leaving, she reluctantly becomes a part of the investigation as she learns more than she cares to about the dark mysteries and long-hidden secrets of Doraville-knowledge that makes her the next person likely to rest in an ice cold grave.

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.

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Mystery Book Review: Boca Moon by Frank Foster

Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of Boca Moon by Frank Foster. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.

Boca Moon by Frank Foster
Non-series

Hilliard & Harris (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-59133-218-4 (1591332184)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59133-218-3 (9781591332183)
Publication Date: August 2007
List Price: $28.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): Lynn Woo's former commanding officer in Naval Intelligence is vacationing on a tropical island in Southwest Florida. Retired Admiral Whit Jenkins' son-in-law chooses the wrong night to take his infrared camera to the salty back bays in search of panthers. He pays for it with his life and Lynn discovers his murdered, mutilated body strung between two mangrove trees. It's been years since she's seen the result of violent death and she hasn't missed it.

But now Lynn must tell Jenkins about the murder, and, ignoring her new back bay nature tour business, she plunges into the investigation. Along the way, Lynn deals with more murders, live alligators, seamy commercial fishermen, a fiery Seminole Indian girl, and attempts on her own life. She's helped by her best island friend, who is a mammoth, black sheriff's deputy, and her lover, who is a hand-washing germ freak. It all happens in a real place - Boca Grande - a tony tropical island on Florida's southwest coast. It's home to coconut palms and banyans, pelicans and iguanas, and rich people who mingle freely with the island folks.

When Lynn Woo closes in on a den of greed and ego which will stop at nothing, including murder, she's met with a jolting surprise ending to this twisting tale of tropical skullduggery.

Review: Frank Foster's debut mystery, Boca Moon, has as its central character the smart, street-wise, and tough Lynn Woo, a former Navy diver, and is set on the southwest Florida island of Boca Grande (about half-way between Tampa and the Everglades), shortened to just "Boca" by its residents.

Three men, who are on Boca Grande for very different reasons, are murdered within a very short time of each other. Millard Savage, the first to die, had come to Boca for a month’s vacation with his wife and his father-in-law, Ret. Admiral Whitman Jenkins IV. Next, Sammy Osceola, a full blooded Seminole Indian, had come down to Boca from Tallahassee for a few days to visit with Lynn, his friend from college, and to see his daughter studying at Florida State. Finally there was Aubry Lowe, a fisherman and guide who had lived in Boca his whole life. It is up to the local police force, with the unsolicited help of Lynn, to solve the mystery linking these crimes.

This intriguing book has a lot going for it. The unconventional characters are appealing and Boca Grande is the perfect setting for a mystery. The narrative is fast-paced and the conclusion thrilling. Late in the story, how Lynn escapes from her assailants, finding herself 18 miles off-shore in the cold waters of the Gulf of Mexico, is truly compelling.

The only downside to the book is the author's insistence in relating what each person is wearing at all hours of the day or night, whether they were about to go fishing or getting ready to dine at a fine restaurant. Not only is it distracting, it takes away from the suspense of story he's written.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Boca Moon and to Strategic Vision for providing a copy of the book for this review.

Review Copyright © 2007 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.

For more mystery book reviews visit Mysterious Reviews, a partner with the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books which is committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Mystery Book Review: A Killer's Kiss by William Lashner

Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of A Killer's Kiss by William Lashner. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.

A Killer's Kiss by William Lashner
A Victor Carl Mystery

William Morrow (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-06-114346-4 (0061143464)
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-114346-5 (9780061143465)
Publication Date: August 2007
List Price: $24.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): There's nothing easier—or more dangerous—than falling into bed with an old lover. Especially when you're Victor Carl.

Once upon a time, Victor was engaged to a woman named Julia. She was beautiful and elegant and not the kind of woman to end up with a second-rate lawyer on the edge of insolvency. Victor always assumed she'd burn him, and she did. Now she's back, trailing an expensive perfume that reeks of trouble.

Julia's husband has been murdered, her fingerprints are all over the crime scene, and $1.7 million in cash is missing. Julia is suddenly in desperate need of a fall guy. Is that why she turns up on Victor's doorstep on the night of the murder, with her lipstick fresh and her heels high? It's all enough to make Victor doubt the healing power of love.

But in Victor's world lust trumps reason seven days a week. As he reaches for his old lover, he convinces himself that Julia truly wants to make amends for the past, that they might have a future together, and that the Beatles were right—all you need is love. Until two cops troop into his apartment and start fingering Victor for the murder.

Suddenly, Victor Carl, a man who has spent a lifetime making bad decisions for the worst reasons, is no longer fighting to rekindle a lost love. He's fighting to save his life.

Review: The seventh mystery in the Victor Carl series, A Killer's Kiss by William Lashner, is one of the most entertaining novels of the year ... and a first rate mystery as well.

"Who was that?" She stood there, trim and tawny, long legs falling out of a towel wrapped tightly around her body. To see her standing in my living room was to see a future devoid of want and strife, all my dreams satisfied, all my hopes fulfilled. She was a worker's paradise in one stunning figure. I stared for a moment, I couldn't help myself. "It was the cops," I said finally. "Really, what did they want?" I looked at her for a moment longer and then turned back to the window. "They came," I said without turning around, "to tell me that your husband's been murdered."

What a terrific way to start a book. Philadelphia attorney Victor Carl finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation in which he is intimately involved. The husband of an ex-girlfriend, someone with whom he is still desperately in love, has been murdered, and if he's not the prime suspect, Julia, the victim's wife, is, and therefore he is too by association. Victor has to figure out a way to prove that not only is he innocent, but Julia as well. Only he's not quite sure Julia is innocent. Then there's the missing money. One point seven million dollars. Julia doesn't have it and apparently knows little about it. But several people are looking for it, and finding the money seems to be more important than finding the killer.

It's hard not to like Victor Carl. He's sarcastic and quick with a verbal comeback but he's also charming and witty. He's not above negotiating when he's clearly in no position to do so. He cares deeply for others but not at the expense of neglecting to look out for himself. And he's devious. His maneuvering to get all the principal parties together in the same place at the same time toward the end of the story is quite clever. Better yet, the unexpected final plot twist makes for an apt conclusion to this exceptional book.

Unfortunately, A Killer's Kiss will be the last of the Victor Carl mysteries for a while. In a postscript, the author states he and his character are going to take a break. Until he returns, Victor will be sorely missed.

Special thanks to Authors on the Web for providing a copy of A Killer's Kiss for this review.

Review Copyright © 2007 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.

For more mystery book reviews visit Mysterious Reviews, a partner with the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books which is committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Mysteries on TV: Midsomer Murders, Numb3rs, and The Streets of San Francisco

Mystery television series being released this week on DVD:

The villages of Midsomer County reveal their most sinister secrets in Midsomer Murders Set 9. Based on characters created by Caroline Graham, the series stars John Nettles as Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby and John Hopkins as Sergeant Dan Scott.

The four mysteries included in this 4 disk DVD set were originally shown in the UK on ITV1 from October 2004 through January 2005: Things That Go Bump in the Night, Dead in the Water, Orchis Fatalis, and Bantling Boy.

Numb3rs: Season 3 stars Rob Morrow as FBI Special Agent Don Eppes who recruits his younger brother Charlie (played by David Krumholtz), a mathematical genius, to help him solve crimes in Los Angeles. The series also stars Judd Hirsch as their father.

Numb3rs first aired on CBS in January 2005 and remains in production today. This DVD set includes all 23 episodes from the third season on 6 disks.

The premiere of the 4th season of Numb3rs is scheduled for Friday, September 28, on CBS. For more information on the series, visit its website on CBS.com.

The Streets of San Francisco, Season 1 Volume 2 starred Karl Malden as Detective Lieutenant Mike Stone and Michael Douglas as his rookie partner Inspector Steve Keller. The series was filmed entirely in and around San Francisco.

The 1st season ran for 26 episodes during the 1972/1973 television season on ABC. Paramount is releasing episodes from this season on two separate DVD sets. The first set was released last April; this DVD set includes the final 13 episodes of the season on 4 disks. See the opening credits on YouTube here.

Visit the Mysteries on TV website to discover more television mystery series currently available on DVD.

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Mystery Godoku: Weekly Puzzle for September 24, 2007

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 D E H I L O S U. This is the last name of an irrepressibly curious amateur sleuth created by Alexander McCall Smith (9 letters).

New! We now have our puzzles 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!

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Compendium of Mystery News 070923

Today's compendium of recently published mystery news articles:

• Marilyn Stasio reviews several new mysteries in her Crime column on The New York Times, including Dead Heat and Dexter in the Dark, both of which hit the mystery bestsellers list last week.

• News-Press.com reporter Charles Runnells interviews Jeff Lindsay, author of the Dexter series. (MBN note: The first season of the Showtime series Dexter based on Lindsay's novels is available from Mysteries on TV.) In a related article, mystery columnist Oline H. Cogdill reviews Lindsay's latest Dexter thriller, Dexter in the Dark, on the Sun-Sentinel.com.

• The Edmonton Journal is asking readers to help it write a serialized murder mystery. Edmonton author Thomas Wharton has penned the first chapter, a riveting opener about a bloody murder aboard the Edmonton Queen on the North Saskatchewan.

• The ABC affiliate in Los Angeles reports on companies designing more video games for girl gamers. They specifically cite the Nancy Drew games for the PC, which are available from our partner website Games of Mystery.

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.

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