If you've been watching HBO's Game of Thrones, you'll want to check out this amazing "infographic" that has been constructed illustrating the relationships between the characters. A small version is embedded below, which is linked to the the full size version on the HauteSlides website. Another infographic on the site illustrates the relationships between the houses that are vying for the Iron Throne.
Our thanks to Magda Maslowska of HauteSlides for her efforts in producing these infographics.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Check Out This Amazing Game of Thrones Infographic
The Mystery Bookshelf: Gunshot Road by Adrian Hyland
The Mystery Bookshelf, where you can discover a world of mystery and suspense, is pleased to feature a new crime novel we recently received from the publisher.
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Gunshot Road by Adrian Hyland
An Emily Tempest Mystery
Soho Crime (Trade Paperback)
Publication Date: May 2011
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-942-1
About Gunshot Road (from the publisher): Emily Tempest is appointed an aboriginal community police officer for the Moonlight Downs station. Investigating the possible murder of an elderly geologist, she encounters Danny, an emotionally fragile Stonehouse mob teenager who is traumatized by the image of “poison flowing green.” The terrain of Australia, a Japanese rock garden painter, a rash of unexplained illnesses, and the implausibility of two elderly friends killing each other present Emily with a unique puzzle.
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About Adrian Hyland: The winner of Australia's Ned Kelly Award in 2007 for Best First Novel, he spent many years in the Northern Territory living and working among the indigenous people. He now teaches at LaTrobe University and lives in Melbourne.
Review: Murder at the Villa Byzantine by R. T. Raichev
Murder at the Villa Byzantine by R. T. Raichev. A Country House Crime Mystery with Antonia Darcy and Hugh Payne. Soho Constable Hardcover, April 2011.
The plot of this manor house mystery is routine, the characters predictably stereotypical of the British upper class. Still, fans of the series will no doubt be pleased with this effort ... though they may also be slightly disappointed at how obvious the identity of the killer is.
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Murder at the Villa Byzantine by R. T. Raichev.
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Prime Time Crime: Fox Orders Two New Series, Cancels Three Others
May is upfront month for the Fall television season, and we'll be following -- or trying to -- all the news regarding Prime Time Crime.
Late last night Fox ordered two shows and canceled three others.
New are the Bones spin-off The Finder (about a former military policeman who has the reputation -- and ability -- to find anyone and anything) and J. J. Abrams's mystery Alcatraz (set in the present but involving something very odd that happened on the prison island 50 years ago).
Canceled are Human Target (after two seasons), Lie To Me (after three seasons), and The Chicago Code (which premiered just this past February as a mid-season replacement).
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
The Mystery Bookshelf: A Curtain Falls by Stefanie Pintoff
The Mystery Bookshelf, where you can discover a world of mystery and suspense, is pleased to feature a new crime novel we recently received from the publisher.
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A Curtain Falls by Stefanie Pintoff
A Simon Ziele Mystery (2nd in series)
Minotaur Books (Trade Paperback)
Publication Date: May 2011
ISBN-13: 978-0-312-57321-8
About A Curtain Falls (from the publisher): The careers of New York City detective Simon Ziele and his former partner, Captain Declan Mulvaney, went in remarkably different directions after the tragic death of Ziele’s fiancée in the 1904 General Slocum ferry disaster. While earmarked for bigger things, Ziele moved north of the city to escape the violence, and Mulvaney dug in deeper, heading up the precinct in the most crime-ridden part of New York.
Yet with all of the resources at Mulvaney’s disposal, a puzzling crime compels him to ask his former partner for help. A chorus girl has been found dead on a Broadway stage dressed as the lead. There is no sign of violence. The coroner would call it a suicide, but then she’d be the second actress to die that way in only days.
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About Stefanie Pintoff: An Edgar Award winner for Best First Novel as well as a nominee for the Anthony and Sue Feder Historical Mystery Awards, she is a graduate of Columbia University Law School and has a Ph.D. in literature from New York University. She lives with her husband and daughter in New York City. Visit her website at StefaniePintoff.com.
Read the first chapter(s) of A Curtain Falls below. Use the Aa settings button to adjust text size, line spacing, and word density.
Review: Drawing Conclusions by Donna Leon
Drawing Conclusions by Donna Leon. A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery. Atlantic Monthly Press Hardcover, April 2011.
The mysteries in this series are frequently multi-layered with well-conceived and developed plots, with this one being no exception. The pacing, however, is inconsistent; a more balanced narrative would have made this very good mystery an excellent one.
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Drawing Conclusions by Donna Leon.
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Enter to Win Three Novels by Laura Lippman
Omnimystery News is pleased to be hosting a giveaway for three of Laura Lippman's novels: I'd Know You Anywhere, The Girl in the Green Raincoat, and Life Sentences.
Laura Lippman has won virtually every major award given to U.S. crime novelists since the publication of her first novel, Baltimore Blues, which introduced PI Tess Monaghan in 1997. She has recently been alternating between writing series and non-series novels, with the books featured in this giveaway being her three most recently published works.
Authors on the Web is generously providing our readers with an opportunity to win three novels by Laura Lippman. Visit Mystery Book Contests, click on the "Laura Lippman: Mystery Novels" contest link, enter your name, e-mail address, and this code (2987) for a chance to win! (One entry per person; contest ends 05/17/2011.)
Watch a video of Laura Lippman discussing I'd Know You Anywhere below, followed by more information about each of the three books featured in this giveaway.
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About I'd Know You Anywhere:
There was your photo, in a magazine. Of course, you are older now. Still, I'd know you anywhere.
Suburban wife and mother Eliza Benedict's peaceful world falls off its axis when a letter arrives from Walter Bowman. In the summer of 1985, when Eliza was fifteen, she was kidnapped by this man and held hostage for almost six weeks. Now he's on death row in Virginia for the rape and murder of his final victim, and Eliza wants nothing to do with him. Walter, however, is unpredictable when ignored—as Eliza knows only too well—and to shelter her children from the nightmare of her past, she'll see him one last time.
But Walter is after something more than forgiveness: He wants Eliza to save his life ... and he wants her to remember the truth about that long-ago summer and release the terrible secret she's keeping buried inside.
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About The Girl in the Green Raincoat:
In the third trimester of her pregnancy, Baltimore private investigator Tess Monaghan is under doctor's orders to remain immobile. Bored and restless, reduced to watching the world go by outside her window, she takes small comfort in the mundane events she observes ... like the young woman in a green raincoat who walks her dog at the same time every day.
Then one day the dog is running free and its owner is nowhere to be seen. Certain that something is terribly wrong, and incapable of leaving well enough alone, Tess is determined to get to the bottom of the dog walker's abrupt disappearance, even if she must do so from her own bedroom.
But her inquisitiveness is about to fling open a dangerous Pandora's box of past crimes and troubling deaths ... and she's not only putting her own life in jeopardy but also her unborn child's.
See also our review of The Girl in the Green Raincoat, a "well-plotted mystery with interesting characters", adding that this novella is "[an] ostensibly familiar whodunit that plays out in an unexpected manner."
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About Life Sentences:
Author Cassandra Fallows believes she may have found the story that could become her next bestseller.
When she was a girl growing up in a racially diverse middle-class neighborhood in Baltimore, a shy, quiet, unobtrusive child named Calliope Jenkins orbited Cassandra's circle of friends. Later Calliope would be accused of an unspeakable crime and would spend seven years in prison for refusing to speak about it. But by delving too deeply into Calliope's dark secrets, Cassandra may inadvertently unearth a few of her own — forcing her to reexamine the memories she holds most precious, as the stark light of truth illuminates a mother's pain, a father's betrayal ... and what really transpired on a terrible day that devastated not only a family but an entire country.
Monday, May 09, 2011
Nominations for the 2011 Anthony Awards Announced
The nominees for the 2011 Anthony Awards have been announced. These awards are given at the annual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention with the winners selected by attendees. The award is named for the late Anthony Boucher (William Anthony Parker White), well-known writer and critic from the New York Times, who helped found the Mystery Writers of America. The winners will be announced at an awards brunch on September 18th, 2011 at Bouchercon in St. Louis.
◊ Best Novel
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin (William Morrow)
Faithful Place by Tana French 
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton (Minotaur Books)
I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman (William Morrow)
Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny (Minotaur Books)
◊ Best First Novel
Damage Done by Hilary Davidson (Forge Books)
Rogue Island by Bruce DiSilva (Forge Books)
The Poacher's Son by Paul Doiron (Minotaur Books)
The Sherlockian by Graham Moore (Twelve)
Snow Angels by James Thompson (Putnam)
◊ Best Paperback Original
Long Time Coming by Robert Goddard (Bantam)
The Hanging Tree by Bryan Gruley
Drive Time by Hank Phillipi Ryan
Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski (Minotaur Books)
Vienna Secrets by Frank Tallis
◊ Best Short Story
"Scent of Lilacs" by Doug Allyn (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
"Swing Shift" by Dana Cameron (Crimes By Moonlight)
"The Hitter" by Chris Holm (Needle)
"So Much in Common" by Mary Jane Maffini (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
"Homeless by Pat Morin" (Mystery Montage)
"The Frame Maker" by Simon Wood (The Back Alley)
◊ Best Graphic Novel
Scalped Volume 6: The Gnawing by Jason Aaron (Vertigo Crime)
Richard Stark's Parker Volume 2: The Outfit by Darwyn Cooke (IDW Press)
Beasts of Burden by Jill Thompson and Evan Dorkin (Dark Horse)
Sickness in the Family by Denise Mina (Vertigo Crime)
The Chill by Jason Starr (Vertigo Crime)
Tumor by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Noel Tuazon (Archaia Studio Press)
◊ Best Critical Non-Fiction
The Wire: Truth Be Told by Rafael Alvarez (Grove Press)
Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks by John Curran (HarperCollins)
Sherlock Holmes for Dummies by Steve Doyle (For Dummies)
Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous with American History by Yunte Huang (Norton)
Thrillers: 100 Must Reads by David Morrell (Oceanview)
◊ Best Website/Blog
Jen's Book Thoughts
The Rap Sheet
Sirens of Suspense
Spinetingler
Stop. You're Killing Me
Hap tip to Mystery Fanfare for alerting us to this list of nominations.
Rob Marshall to Direct Johnny Depp in The Thin Man
Several weeks ago we reported that Johnny Depp's contemporary adaptation of Dashiell Hammett's 1934 novel The Thin Man was moving forward with screenwriter Jerry Stahl.
Now we're learning that the film has a director, Rob Marshall, who worked with Depp on Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
Depp will play Nick Charles, a retired private detective who teams up with his wife Nora (not yet cast) to investigate the disappearance of an eccentric inventor and the murder of his secretary. The titular character actually refers to the missing man, Clyde Wynant.
Though Hammett published only one novel and one short story featuring the New York socialites, six films starring William Powell and Myrna Loy based on the characters were released between 1934 and 1947.
The Thin Man, a Warner Bros. production, is set for a 2013 release.
(Source: The Wrap.)
Brett Ratner to Direct Film Adaptation of The 39 Clues
The film adaptation of The 39 Clues series of young adult adventure thrillers is taking a step forward.
Brett Ratner (Prison Break, Chaos) is on board to direct the DreamWorks production from a script by Jeff Nathanson (Catch Me If You Can, Rush Hour 3). The project has been in the planning stages since at least 2008, when the first book in the series was published. The most recent information we have is that the film won't be released until 2013 or 2014.
The 39 Clues started as a series of 10 books featuring siblings Amy and Dan Cahill in a race around the world to discover the secret to the family's secret power. A second phase of the series, which is to consist of 6 books, began last month with the publication of Vesper's Rising.
(Source: Deadline|New York.)
Review: The Bone Yard by Jefferson Bass
The Bone Yard by Jefferson Bass. A Body Farm Mystery. William Morrow Hardcover, March 2011.
Two murder mysteries duel for the forensic anthropologist's attention, though the one involving old bones takes center stage here. For fans of the series, there is a generous helping of forensic analysis to help close the cases, but it should also be said that there are passages that are exceptionally troubling to read.
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: The Bone Yard by Jefferson Bass.
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Review: Moving Can Be Murder by Susan Santangelo
Moving Can Be Murder by Susan Santangelo. A Carol and Jim Andrews Mystery. Baby Boomer Mysteries Press Trade Paperback, May 2011.
This thinly plotted novel -- subtitled "Every Wife Has a Story" -- is more along the lines of a tale on how difficult it is to undertake a life-changing event such as downsizing, even more so when a dead body inconveniently intrudes, than it is a whodunit-style mystery.
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Moving Can Be Murder by Susan Santangelo.
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First Story from L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories Available to Read Online
A couple of days ago we reported on where you can purchase L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories when it is published on June 6th. (For those who may have missed it, this anthology of short stories is a tie-in the game L.A. Noire, which will be released exclusively for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 next week.)
For those who can't wait (for the stories, that is), Rockstar Games has published the first story -- "What's in a Name?" by Jonathan Santlofer -- on its website; it can be read online or downloaded as a PDF. (There's also an excerpt from another story, "The Girl" by Megan Abbott, available.) The game's developers plan on publishing more (either full stories or excerpts) between now and the game's release on May 17th.
L. A. Noire: The Collected Stories is scheduled to be published by Mulholland Books (the crime imprint of Little, Brown) on June 6th, 2011 in digital format only. It is currently available to pre-order from Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and the Apple iBookstore.
More Details on Film Adaptation of The Last Days of American Crime
The last we heard about the film adaptation of the comic The Last Days of American Crime was way back in November 2009, when Sam Worthington was cast in an unspecified role (but presumably the lead character, Graham Bricke). Now we're learning that F. Gary Gray (The Italian Job, Law Abiding Citizen) will direct a script written by Karl Gajdusek (Dead Like Me).
Published last year as a three volume series written by Rick Remender and illustrated by Greg Tocchini, the plotline involves a heist set in the not-too-distant future. The U.S. government plans -- in secret, of course -- to broadcast a signal making it impossible for anyone to knowingly commit unlawful acts. To keep this from the public, the government creates a distraction, installing a new currency system using digital charge cards. Enter Graham Bricke, a career criminal never quite able to hit the big score. Graham intends to steal one of the charging stations, skip the country and live off unlimited funds for the rest of his life. But the media has leaked news of the anti-crime signal one week before it was to go live ... and now Graham and his team have just a few days to turn the crime of the century into the last crime in American history.
Production is expected to begin later this year.
(Source: Deadline|New York.)
Teaser Trailer for 6th Season of Dexter
Showtime has released a teaser trailer for the sixth season of Dexter, which you can see below. The season's tagline: "Dexter returns and nothing can prepare you for what happens next. This fall, hell breaks loose."
Based on the novels by Jeff Lindsay, Michael C. Hall stars as forensic blood spatter expert Dexter Morgan, who ought to know a thing or two about his work as he's a serial killer himself. Five books have been published in the series, the most recent being last fall's Dexter is Delicious, which will be published in trade paperback by Vintage this July.
The first four seasons of the series are available on DVD and/or Blu-ray Disc from Telemystery: Dexter. A release date for the fifth season, which aired last fall, has not yet been announced.
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