Film Adaptation of Dead Reckoning by Susan and Pierre LaTour Planned

ComingSoon.net is reporting that a film adaptation of the 1995 thriller Dead Reckoning by Susan and Pierre LaTour, Jr., is being planned. Cody Horn (Twelve, Flipped) is in negotiations to star.

The plot involves Catherine Lakey, a chemistry professor, who disappears one morning while walking along a Cape Cod beach. The police assume she committed suicide, but the woman's niece, Nancy, is not convinced. She soon learns that little is arbitrary in her aunt's disappearance, and that the tiny clues left behind point to more than her aunt's whereabouts.

TNT Renews Leverage, The Closer, and Rizzoli & Isles

Earlier today we reported that Timothy Hutton, star of TNT's drama caper series Leverage, tweeted that the network had ordered a fourth season.

Now The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that TNT has also ordered a seventh season of The Closer and a second season of its freshman crime drama Rizzoli and Isles, based on characters created by mystery author Tess Gerritsen.

"All three shows feature terrific casts, sharp writing and top-notch production teams," said Michael Wright, Executive VP and Head of Programming for TNT.

Prison Break Creator Nick Santora To Write Thriller for Mulholland Books

Several years ago we had the pleasure of reviewing Nick Santora's debut novel Slip and Fall. Yesterday, Mullholland Books announced that they have signed the author, who is also the writer/creator of several television series including the suspense drama Prison Break, to write a thriller titled Fifteen Digits, "about five 'invisible' thieves who work under the radar at a white shoe New York law firm and perpetrate a multi-million dollar heist."

Mulholland Books is a new crime novel imprint of Little, Brown.

Leverage Renewed for a 4th Season

Timothy Hutton (@timhutton) tweeted a few hours ago that Leverage, one of our "can't miss" shows on television, has been renewed for a fourth season on TNT!

The Mystery Bookshelf: A New Omnibus of Crime, Tony Hillerman and Rosemary Herbert, editors

The Mystery Bookshelf, where you can discover a library of new mysteries, is pleased to feature an anthology of short stories we recently received from the publisher.

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A New Omnibus of Crime by Tony Hillerman and Rosemary Herbert, editors
Oxford University Press (Trade Paperback)
Publication Date: May 2010
ISBN-13: 978-0-19-537071-3

In 1929, Dorothy L. Sayers published her landmark anthology, The Omnibus of Crime. In 2005, Tony Hillerman and Rosemary Herbert decided it was time to produce a definitive new anthology representing the best of the genre since then, the result being A New Omnibus of Crime. This summer, the trade paperback edition of this updated anthology was published by Oxford University Press.

In an introduction, co-editor Rosemary Herbert outlines the process by which this anthology came into being: (1) Selecting stories from the 1930s to the 1970s that were groundbreaking in their day and influential on later writers; (2) Selecting stories published since 1980 that show the range of crime writing in our time; (3) Culling the stories to pick out the best, with the assistance of Sue Grafton and Jeffery Deaver; and (4) Using the omnibus format to present them.

Fittingly, first up is a 1932 short story written by Dorothy L. Sayers. Like all the other stories included here, it is preceded by an introduction to the author and their body of work. Most of the stories can be broadly categorized as either suspense novels (in short story format) or detective fiction (including amateur sleuth), though there are clearly some exceptions. The benefit most readers will get from this fine anthology is to experience in a relatively short time frame the wide range of writing styles of many authors whose books were (and for many, still are) bestsellers in their day.

The Amateur Historian by Julian Cole (Book Review)

The Amateur Historian by Julian Cole. A Rounder Brothers Mystery. Minotaur Books Hardcover, June 2010.

Julian Cole introduces the Rounder brothers, Rick an ex-Yorkshire police officer now a private investigator and Sam, a Detective Chief Inspector with the York Police Department, investigating a case that may be linked to the death of a young girl that occurred over a century ago in The Amateur Historian.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: The Amateur Historian by Julian Cole.

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Redemption Cemetery: Curse of the Raven Collector's Edition, a New Game of Mystery 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 getting into a car accident, you wander into a mysterious graveyard while searching for help. The doors slam shut behind you and you realize that you are trapped! Escape from the eerie Redemption Cemetery by helping trapped spirits save their loved ones, and free their souls! Use your hidden object skills to help these ghosts and escape!

This special Collector's Edition release is full of exclusive extras you won’t find in the standard version, including bonus gameplay, an integrated strategy guide, original soundtrack, concept art, and more.

Redemption Cemetery: Curse of the Raven Collector's Edition may be downloaded and purchased for $19.95 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (157.74 MB) may be downloaded and played for free for one hour; the full version is 441.47 MB.

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 July 30, 2010

A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending July 30th, 2010 has been posted on the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books website.

No change in the order for the top three bestselling mysteries this week, with The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson still at number 1, but last week's featured title, The Rembrandt Affair by Daniel Silva, moves into the 4th spot. One new title enters the list this week.

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The latest south Florida comic thriller by Carl Hiaasen, Star Island, debuts in 11th position.

Meet twenty-two-year-old Cherry Pye (née Cheryl Bunterman), a pop star since she was fourteen—and about to attempt a comeback from her latest drug-and-alcohol disaster.

Now meet Cherry again: in the person of her “undercover stunt double,” Ann DeLusia. Ann portrays Cherry whenever the singer is too “indisposed”—meaning wasted—to go out in public. And it is Ann-mistaken-for-Cherry who is kidnapped from a South Beach hotel by obsessed paparazzo Bang Abbott.

Now the challenge for Cherry’s handlers (über–stage mother; horndog record producer; nipped, tucked, and Botoxed twin publicists; weed whacker–wielding bodyguard) is to rescue Ann while keeping her existence a secret from Cherry’s public—and from Cherry herself.

The situation is more complicated than they know. Ann has had a bewitching encounter with Skink—the unhinged former governor of Florida living wild in a mangrove swamp—and now he’s heading for Miami to find her ...

Will Bang Abbott achieve his fantasy of a lucrative private photo session with Cherry Pye? Will Cherry sober up in time to lip-synch her way through her concert tour? Will Skink track down Ann DeLusia before Cherry’s motley posse does?

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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.

Columbia Moves Forward with New, Contemporized Adaptation of Total Recall

In a press release today (read it on /Film), Columbia Pictures announced that Len Wiseman is in negotiations to direct the Kurt Wimmer-written film adaptation of the short story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale by Philip K. Dick, effectively moving the project forward after being somewhat in limbo for 16 months or so now. A classic sci-fi thriller, it was originally made into the 1990 film Total Recall starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Studios today are loathe to use the word "remake", so Columbia is calling this "a new, contemporized adaptation" based on the film, but, somewhat oddly, not on the source material.

For more information about the original adaptation, visit Cinemystery: Total Recall.

Troublemaker Book One by Janet Evanovich and Alex Evanovich (Book Review)

Troublemaker Book One by Janet Evanovich and Alex Evanovich. A Barnaby and Hooker Graphic Mystery. Dark Horse Books Hardcover, July 2010.

Janet Evanovich introduced racecar spotter Alexandra "Barney" Barnaby in 2004 in Metro Girl, a mystery heavy on action and adventure. A second book followed in 2006 (Motor Mouth) and now the series continues in graphic novel format with the first volume in Troublemaker, co-written with her daughter Alex Evanovich, with artwork by Joelle Jones.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Troublemaker Book One by Janet Evanovich and Alex Evanovich.

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Mr. E. Reviews Poirot Set 5: The Movie Collection

Review of Poirot Set 5: The Movie Collection.

Three episodes comprise Series X of Agatha Christie's Poirot, which are included in this movie collection DVD set. "Murder on the Orient Express" is one of four new episodes filmed for the 12th series (season) of Poirot to air on ITV in the UK, with "Third Girl" and "Appointment with Death" having originally aired in September 2008 and December 2009, respectively, as part of the 11th series (season) for the network. All three episodes aired over successive weeks earlier this month on PBS Masterpiece Mystery!

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

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

Amazon.com Announces Kindle Wi-Fi

Amazon.com announced this morning its latest Kindle, a Wi-Fi only version of the standard Kindle that retains all of the features of the original (except, of course, 3G wireless) and weighs slightly less.

The Kindle Wi-Fi, available only in graphite (as shown), is currently priced at $139 and will begin shipping August 27, 2010; it may be pre-ordered now.

Far Cry by John Harvey (Book Review)

Far Cry by John Harvey. A Will Grayson and Helen Walker Mystery. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Hardcover, June 2010.

Cambridge police officers Helen Walker and Will Grayson investigate the disappearance of a 10-year-old girl in a case eerily similar to one that took place 13 years earlier -- and involving the same family -- in Far Cry, the second mystery in this series by John Harvey.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Far Cry by John Harvey.

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Nightfall Mysteries: Asylum Conspiracy, a Mysterious New Game 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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Christine, a young orphan, decides to go to travel to a desolute island, the location of the Ashburg Asylum, in order to find her missing grandfather, who is her only living relative. When Christine arrives and starts to explore the place, she begins to understand that something strange and foreboding is going on here. Your objective is to help Christie explore the island and seek numerous hidden items that will help you to solve some challenging puzzles. Step by step you will unravel the mystery and find out terrible secrets of asylum's past.

See also the previous game in this series, Nightfall Mysteries: Curse of the Opera.

Also available for this game: Nightfall Mysteries: Asylum Conspiracy Strategy Guide and Nightfall Mysteries: Asylum Conspiracy Game Walkthrough.

Nightfall Mysteries: Asylum Conspiracy may be downloaded and purchased for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (176.59 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!

Bones of Contention by Jeanne Matthews (Book Review)

Bones of Contention by Jeanne Matthews. A Dinah Pelerin Mystery. Poisoned Pen Press Hardcover, June 2010.

Jeanne Matthews introduces 30-year-old underemployed Dinah Pelerin, who is unexpectedly summoned to the home of a distant (in more ways than one) and dying uncle -- "a chain-puller extraordinaire and a master of manipulation" -- in Bones of Contention.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Bones of Contention by Jeanne Matthews.

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.