James Gray to Direct Film Adaptation of Mark Greaney's The Gray Man

Deadline|New York is reporting that James Gray (We Own the Night) will direct the film adaptation of Mark Greaney's debut thriller, The Gray Man. Adam Cozad wrote the screenplay.

In the book, Court Gentry is known as The Gray Man -- a legend in the covert realm, moving silently from job to job, accomplishing the impossible, and then fading away. And he always hits his target. But there are forces more lethal than Gentry in the world. And in their eyes, Gentry has just outlived his usefulness.

Now, he is going to prove that for him, there's no gray area between killing for a living -- and killing to stay alive.

Read the first chapter from The Gray Man below:

Two More Prime Time Crime Pilots Announced

Two more potential prime time crime series are moving forward to the pilot stage.

At ABC, the network has ordered a pilot for Partners, featuring two female homicide detectives who are secretly sisters. (via THR)

And at SyFy, the British series Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) is getting an Americanized pilot. The storyline here is private investigator Hopkirk, who was murdered while working a case, has returned as a ghost, which can only seen by his ex-partner Randall. (via THR)

Plot Details Emerge for Sherlock Holmes 2

The Los Angeles Times Hero Complex blog has some new information on the plotline of the sequel to 2009's film Sherlock Holmes.

"Set in 1891 — a year after the last film's events — the sequel shows Holmes continuing his pursuit of Professor Moriarty, who, if the investigator's instincts are correct, might be the world's first supervillain. Watson, meanwhile, is still trying to be a good partner to his love, Mary Morstan, while keeping Sherlock alive."

Sherlock Holmes 2 (for lack of a better title; it is currently untitled at this point) stars Robert Downey Jr. as the famous consulting detective and Jude Law as his sidekick Dr. John Watson. The film also stars Noomi Rapace as a gypsy woman, Sim, Stephen Fry as Holmes's brother Mycroft, and Jared Harris as Professor Moriarty.

"Unlike last time, where Holmes kept getting Watson into trouble," says Downey, "this time Watson is getting Holmes out of trouble, and they're both in deeper trouble than I think the audience could have imagined we could go … All manner of nastiness has just occurred."

Directed by Guy Ritchie, who also directed the original, Sherlock Holmes 2 opens in theaters December 16, 2011.

Telemystery: Prime Time Crime Series at Risk for Renewal

Inside TV takes a look as all the major network shows on television, and gives us a list of those that are sure to be renewed for next season, and speculates on those that may not. (Cable series are not mentioned here.)

We'll look at the latter here (it's a much shorter list) and focus exclusively (and not surprisingly) on "Prime Time Crime", excluding those that have already been canceled. If any of the shows below are among your favorites, now is the time to start campaigning for their return in the fall.

ABC: Detroit 1-8-7.

CBS: None; all are expected to be renewed.

Fox: Fringe, Human Target, Lie To Me.

NBC: Law & Order LA, The Cape (it just started!), Chase, The Event.

Stop a Mysterious Curse in Haunted Legends: The Queen of Spades, 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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Once upon a time, a countess, having lost a fortune playing cards, made a deal with a great magician and illusionist. She received a set of magical cards that allowed her to win, regaining her wealth and incurring the wrath of the local people. But now Lieutenant Pierre Disparu has disappeared searching for a missing young lady, and Captain Gerard Froussard has reached out to you for help. It is up to you to search a haunted mansion to discover the secret behind the cards, and put a stop to the curse before it claims another victim.

For a more in-depth playing experience, check out the Haunted Legends: The Queen of Spades (Collector's Edition), which is full of exclusive features you won't find in the standard version, including bonus gameplay, an integrated strategy guide, wallpapers and screensavers, and more!

Haunted Legends: The Queen of Spades may be downloaded and purchased for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (433.40 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 January 14, 2011

A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending January 14, 2011 has been posted on the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books website.

It looks like we're starting to see some shake-up in our list this week, though The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson remains solidly at the top. Two new titles enter the top 15 this week.

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Debuting high on the list in the 7th position is The Sentry, the third mystery featuring former LAPD detective Joe Pike by Robert Crais.

Dru Rayne and her uncle fled to L.A. after Hurricane Katrina; but now, five years later, they face a different danger. When Joe Pike witnesses Dru's uncle beaten by a protection gang, he offers his help, but neither of them want it — and neither do the federal agents mysteriously watching them.

As the level of violence escalates, and Pike himself becomes a target, he and Elvis Cole learn that Dru and her uncle are not who they seem — and that everything he thought he knew about them has been a lie. A vengeful and murderous force from their past is now catching up to them ... and only Pike and Cole stand in the way.

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Coming in at number 14 is A Lonely Death, the 13th mystery in the Ian Rutledge series by Charles Todd.

Scotland Yard detective inspector Ian Rutledge, a veteran of the Great War, understands all too well the darkness that lies within men's souls.

Now three men have been murdered in a Sussex village, and Scotland Yard has been called in. It's a baffling case. The victims are soldiers who survived the horrors of World War I only to meet a ghastly end in the quiet English countryside two years later. Each had been garroted, with small ID discs left in their mouths.

But even Scotland Yard's presence doesn't deter this vicious and clever killer. Shortly after Inspector Ian Rutledge arrives, a fourth soldier is found dead. With few clues to go on and the pressure building, Rutledge must gamble everything — his job, his reputation, and even his life — to find answers.

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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.

John Goodman to Star in Fourth Season of Damages

USA Today reported a couple of days ago that John Goodman has joined the cast of Damages for its fourth season, to air exclusively this summer on DirecTV.

Last week, DirecTV began airing episodes from the first season of the critically acclaimed series, which stars Glenn Close as high-stakes attorney Patricia Hewes and Rose Byrne as her sometime ally, sometime foe Ellen Parsons. Weekly airings of previous season's episodes will continue throughout the spring.

According to the article, John Goodman will play the CEO of a military contractor who becomes a defendant in a wrongful death suit over an incident in a war zone.

The fourth season of Damages will premiere on July 13th, 2011.

The Fury by Jason Pinter is eHarlequin's Friday Freebie

It doesn't happen often, but tomorrow's Freebie Friday at eHarlequin features a suspense novel as the free book.

The fourth mystery in the Henry Parker series by Jason Pinter, The Fury, is free with the purchase of any two or more other books tomorrow, Friday January 14th. It will automatically be added to your shopping cart.

Click on the banner above to start shopping!

About The Fury (from the publisher):

Am I my brother's keeper?

If I'd known I had a brother, I might have been. But he's dead—shot point-blank in a rat-hole apartment, wasted by hunger and heroin. Stephen Gaines, a man with whom I shared nothing … except a father.

For some reason this stranger who shared my blood came to me for help … and I blew him off thinking he was just some junkie. Now I'm forced to question everything I ever knew … and figure out why this man was murdered in cold blood.

All I can do for Stephen Gaines now is find his killer—and with the help of Amanda Davies uncover the whole, hard truth. If it means tracking down a vicious drug kingpin—who may or may not exist—then so be it …

ABC Orders (Another?) Pilot for Updated Charlie's Angels

Yesterday we cheered the news that a remake of The Rockford Files had been shelved by NBC.

Today we're learning (via Inside TV) that ABC is moving forward with a remake of Charlie's Angels. A pilot has been approved and casting is underway. (Note: a pilot was announced last October with a different set of producers, with filming to begin this month, so we're not sure if this is the same "announcement" ... but suspect it is not.)

Now Charlie's Angels is certainly not in the same category as The Rockford Files, but still, do we really need another reimagined 1970s-era series? To be sure, a pilot doesn't mean a series (after all, last year NBC ordered a pilot for the new The Rockford Files as well) so we'll just have to wait and see how this latest project (or maybe it's more than one) progresses.

(Added later: Deadline|Hollywood is also reporting this information, but seems to confirm that it is the same pilot previously announced last October by ABC.)

Shane Black to Direct Live-Action Film Adaptation of Death Note Manga Series

Deadline|New York is reporting that Shane Black (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Last Action Hero, Lethal Weapon) will direct a live-action film adaptation of the manga Death Note, written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata.

The series, which was first serialized in 2003, features Light Yagami, a brilliant high school student with great prospects -- but who is also bored out of his mind. But that changes when he discovers a supernatural notebook, the "Death Note", dropped on Earth by a rogue Shinigami death god named Ryuk. The Death Note grants its holder the ability to kill anyone whose name they know, by writing the name in the notebook while picturing their face.

The overall plot centers around Light's vow to create and rule a world cleansed of evil using the notebook. But there are those who want to stop him, notably a detective known as L, and later his successors, Near and Mello.

Death Note has previously been made into several live-action films as well as a television anime series in Japan.

Law & Order UK Second Season Premieres Friday, January 14th on BBC America

Tomorrow, Friday January 14th, the second season of Law & Order: UK premieres on BBC America (9 PM ET/PT).

Based on Law & Order (the original US version), Law & Order: UK follows a group of detectives and prosecutors as they work together to solve crimes and bring perpetrators to justice in London.

Ronnie Brooks (played by Bradley Walsh) is a cop from the East End. His partner, the charming Matt Devlin (Jamie Bamber), has an approach to policing that’s part seduction and part force. Both report to Natalie Chandler (Harriet Walter), a working mom who always has their backs.

On the other side of the court are crown prosecutors James Steel (Ben Daniels) and Alesha Phillips (Freema Agyeman) and their superior, George Castle (Ben Daniels).

The two teams encounter never-ending action in their quest to keep London safe.

In the first episode of the second season (titled "Broken"), the terrifying CCTV image of a toddler being led to his death haunts the team as they deal with the moral complexities of policing and putting on trial children who kill. The season premiere tests the bounds of compassion and questions whether some crimes really are unforgivable.

On a lighter note, watch an amusing video ("Lessons in British Justice") about the series below:

The Green Hornet Opens in Theaters Friday, January 14th

The Green Hornet opens in theaters tomorrow, Friday January 14th.

Based on a character for a 1930s radio program created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, this latest adaptation stars Seth Rogan as Britt Reid, son and heir to Los Angeles' largest newspaper fortune, a rich, spoiled playboy who has been happy to maintain a direction-less existence. When his father James Reid dies, Britt meets an impressive and resourceful company employee, Kato (Jay Chou). They realize that they have the resources to do something worthwhile with their lives and finally step out of James Reid's shadow. Kato builds the ultimate weapon, The Black Beauty, an indestructible car with every weapon imaginable and Britt decides that in order to be heroes, they will pose as villains. With the help of Britt's new secretary, Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz), they learn that the chief criminal in the city is named Benjamin Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz). He has united all the gangs under his power, and he quickly sees that the Green Hornet is a direct threat to the prosperous criminal underworld he controls.

We previously posted a trailer for The Green Hornet; watch a clip ("Front Wheel Drive") from the film below (via Yahoo! Movies):

House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo is Today's Featured Free NookBook Mystery

MystereBooks is pleased to feature a mystery title that is currently available as a NookBook for free from Barnes&Noble. 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 download it today!

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House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo
The Dreamhouse Kings (1st in series)
Thomas Nelson (NookBook)
Download Link

About House of Dark Shadows (from the publisher): When the Kings move from L.A. to a secluded small town, fifteen-year-old Xander is beyond disappointed. He and his friends loved to create amateur films ... but the tiny town of Pinedale is the last place a movie buff and future filmmaker wants to land.

But he, David, and Toria are captivated by the many rooms in the old Victorian fixer-upper they moved into--as well as the heavy woods surrounding the house.

They soon discover there's something odd about the house. Sounds come from the wrong directions. Prints of giant, bare feet appear in the dust. And when David tries to hide in the linen closet, he winds up in locker 119 at his new school.

Then the really weird stuff kicks in: they find a hidden hallway with portals leading off to far-off places--in long-ago times. Xander is starting to wonder if this kind of travel is a teen's dream come true ... or his worst nightmare.

Uncover a Mysterious Conspiracy in Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars, 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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When freelance photo-journalist Nico Collard is invited to interview statesman Pierre Carchon in Paris, she finds herself inextricably drawn into a terrifying conspiracy when the man is murdered! Dissect the clues and help Nico and American tourist George Stobbart discover motive for the murder ... and the secret truths of the Knights Templar. Decipher an ancient manuscript, and race against a mysterious organization in this exciting adventure game.

Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars may be downloaded and purchased for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (560.11 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

— ◊ —

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!

The Rockford Files Remake Shelved at NBC

Good news for fans of The Rockford Files: Deadline|Hollywood is reporting that the project to remake the series has been shelved ... at least for the time being (i.e. the current development season).

Last January, we reported that NBC was interested in reviving the 1970s series that starred James Garner as Los Angeles private investigator Jim Rockford. And in April, it appeared as if the series update was a go, moving forward to the pilot stage. But when NBC announced its Fall 2010 schedule in May, The Rockford Files was conspicuously absent.

With the success of the reboot of Hawaii Five-0 at CBS, it seemed a sure thing that NBC would reconsider its decision at some point regarding The Rockford Files. David Shore, the creative force behind the remake, however, has been unable to devote much attention to it, and thus it has now been back-burnered. We can only hope it stays that way.