This Week's Bestselling Mystery and Suspense Television and Film Video on Demand (120622)

Here is this week's list of the top bestselling mystery and suspense television and film videos available to download from Amazon Instant.

We're using a script to embed an RSS feed from Amazon.com, which is frequently updated, but if you cannot see the box below — or have scripts blocked — you can use this link to see the relevant page on Amazon.com.

The Bourne Legacy Release Date Delayed a Week

There are probably some lessons for young filmmakers to be learned from the making and marketing of The Bourne Legacy.

First, the title: With three Bourne films already released, had you not known any different, you'd think this fourth one would include Jason Bourne as well. It does not. Jeremy Renner steps in as Aaron Cross, a substitute Bourne, if you will. We're sure Renner will do a fine job in the role, but why risk alienating viewers by implying this is a "Bourne" film when it's not?

Second, the title: The first three Bourne films were adapted from novels written by Robert Ludlum. He only wrote three before his death, with the subsequent books in the series written by Eric Van Lustbader. Indeed, the fourth book in the series, published in 2004 and the first credited to Lustbader, is titled The Bourne Legacy. But is this book the basis for the film? No, it is not. There are lots of words in the English language; couldn't the marketing folks have come up with a few that wouldn't cause viewers (and readers) to assume that the book and the film have some link?

And now today's news. The release of The Bourne Legacy is being bumped a week — from August 3rd to August 10th — so that it doesn't have to compete with Total Recall and, rather more interestingly, The Dark Knight Rises, which will have come out two weeks earlier. Now this may be a smart move on the part of the studio, time will tell, but if the studio doesn't think the film has what it takes to go up against these other two films, especially one that will have already been out for two weeks, are they trying to tell us something? Hmm …

Here's the studio's statement; read between the lines — or not — as you see fit … though it is interesting that no mention of Total Recall, the film with which it actually competed on August 3rd, is made:

"Just as The Avengers demonstrated marketplace sustainability that well outpaced traditional patterns earlier this summer, the industry expects a similar trajectory for The Dark Knight Rises. Moving one week further from its release will give The Bourne Legacy an even greater opportunity to maximize its opening box office potential. Moving to August 10 will also allow us to extend valuable promotion for the film across all NBCUniversal platforms during the Olympics, which will dominate television and digital audiences beginning July 27. We are excited about this new chapter in our "Bourne" franchise and confident that August 10 is the right date for our film and for our industry as a whole."

Review: The Fallen by Jassy Mackenzie

We've just published our Review of The Fallen by Jassy Mackenzie. A Jade de Jong Mystery. Soho Crime Hardcover, April 2012.

Our rating:

Available to purchase from …

Today's Bestselling Free Kindle MystereBooks (120622)

Here is today's list of the top bestselling free Kindle mysteries, suspense novels and thrillers.

We're using a script to embed an RSS feed from Amazon.com, which is updated hourly, but if you cannot see the box below — or have scripts blocked — you can use this link to see the relevant page on Amazon.com.

UK Poster for Paranormal Thriller Red Lights

The paranormal thriller Red Lights opened in theaters last week in the UK and here is the poster for the film (right; click for larger image). The tagline: "You only see what you want to believe."

Written and directed by Rodrigo Cortés, Red Lights stars Robert De Niro as Simon Silver, a world-renown psychic, who returns after thirty years of mysterious absence to become the world's greatest challenge to orthodox science and professional skeptics. Margaret Matheson (Sigourney Weaver) and Tom Buckley (Cillian Murphy) are rationalist scientists, who dissect phenomena from the metaphysical world, exposing it as fraud, and see Silver as both dangerous and a challenge. But Buckley begins to develop a dense obsession for Silver, whose magnetism is enhanced dangerously with each new manifestation of inexplicable phenomena.

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January and opens in limited release here in the US on July 13th. The casting looks perfect here, and this is a movie we're looking forward to seeing. Watch the UK trailer for Red Lights below.

European Poster for Action Thriller Lockout

The space-based action thriller Lockout has already come and gone from US theaters, but it's still being released at a somewhat leisurely pace throughout the rest of the world. Here is a European version of the poster for the film that is nearly identical to the French version (right; click for larger image). We think adding the explosion here tried to give the poster some "action", but it doesn't seem particularly well executed. (In truth, we like the French version better.)

Set in the near future, the storyline follows a falsely convicted ex-government agent (Guy Pearce), whose one chance at obtaining freedom lies in the dangerous mission of rescuing the President's daughter (Maggie Grace) from rioting convicts at a maximum-security prison orbiting 50 miles above the earth.

Lockout is directed by James Mather from an original screenplay by Stephen St. Leger. The film is on our Netflix queue, scheduled to be available July 17th. Watch a trailer below.

Deadly Legacy by Alison Bruce is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Deadly Legacy by Alison Bruce as today's second free mystery ebook.

This title was listed as free as of the date and time of this post. Prices are subject to change without notice. The price displayed on the vendor website at the time of purchase will be the price paid for the book. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your transaction.

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Deadly Legacy by Alison Bruce
Publisher: Imajin Books

About Deadly Legacy (from the publisher): In 2018, rookie detective Kate Garrett lives in the shadow of her near-legendary father Joe. When Joe dies unexpectedly, he leaves Kate half interest in Garrett Investigations, his last case that ties to three murders, a partner she can't stand and a legacy to live up to.

Jake Carmedy has lost a partner, mentor and friend, but grief will come later. First, he has a case to solve, one that has detoured from a simple insurance case to a murder investigation. If that isn’t enough, Joe's daughter seems to want to take her father’s place as his boss.

No matter how hard they try, Carmedy and Garrett can't avoid each other — and they might be next on a killer's list.

Important Note: This book was listed for free on the date and time of this post. Prices can and do change without prior notice. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Kindle Edition Download Link.

For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.

Headhunters by Charlie Cole is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Headhunters by Charlie Cole as today's free mystery ebook.

This title was listed as free as of the date and time of this post. Prices are subject to change without notice. The price displayed on the vendor website at the time of purchase will be the price paid for the book. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your transaction.

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Headhunters by Charlie Cole
Publisher: Charlie Cole

About Headhunters (from the publisher): Simon Parks is a headhunter by trade, finding the best talent in the industry. Simon's industry happens to be the international spy game. When tragedy rips his life apart he relocates to a new town and starts over, only to find that his old life has followed him home. Pursued by industrial spies, domestic terrorists, and his old boss, Simon must unravel a plot to steal secrets from the Department of Homeland Security and frame him for murder. Cut off from official channels and hounded by the police, Simon recruits his own rogue team of operatives to take down the conspirators.

Important Note: This book was listed for free on the date and time of this post. Prices can and do change without prior notice. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Kindle Edition Download Link.

For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.

Mystery Bestsellers for the Week Ending June 22, 2012

A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending June 22nd, 2012 has been posted by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

The stand-alone thriller Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn retains the top spot this week, though only by a tiny margin over last week's highest debuting title, the spy thriller Mission to Paris by Alan Furst.

Three new titles enter the list this week.

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New at number 9, Lizzy Tucker and Diesel return for the second in this series, Wicked Business by Janet Evanovich.

Lizzy Tucker's once normal life as a pastry chef in Salem, Massachusetts, turns upside down as she battles both sinister forces and an inconvenient attraction to her unnaturally talented but off-limits partner, Diesel.
 
When Harvard University English professor and dyed-in-the-wool romantic Gilbert Reedy is mysteriously murdered and thrown off his fourth-floor balcony, Lizzy and Diesel take up his twenty-year quest for the Luxuria Stone, an ancient relic believed by some to be infused with the power of lust. Following clues contained in a cryptic nineteenth-century book of sonnets, Lizzy and Diesel tear through Boston catacombs, government buildings, and multimillion-dollar residences. On their way they'll leave behind a trail of robbed graves, public disturbances, and general mayhem.
 
Diesel's black sheep cousin, Gerwulf Grimoire, also wants the Stone. His motives are far from pure, and what he plans on doing with the treasure, no one knows … but Lizzy Tucker fears she's in his crosshairs. Never far and always watching, Grimoire has a growing, vested interest in the cupcake-baker-turned-finder-of-lost-things. As does another dangerous and dark opponent in the hunt — a devotee of lawlessness and chaos, known only as Anarchy.
 
Treasures will be sought, and the power of lust will be unmistakable as Lizzy and Diesel attempt to stay ahead of Anarchy, Grimoire, and his medieval minion, Hatchet, in this ancient game of twisted riddles and high-stakes hide-and-seek.

Purchase Options:

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The prequel to Savages, Kings of Cool by Don Winslow, comes in at number 11.

In Savages, Ben and Chon, twenty-something best friends, risk everything to save the girl they both love, O.

Now, Winslow reaches back in time to tell the story of how Ben, Chon, and O became the people they are. Spanning from 1960s Southern California to the recent past, The Kings of Cool is a breathtakingly original saga of family in all its forms — fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, friends and lovers. As the trio at the center of the book does battle with a cabal of drug dealers and crooked cops, they come to learn that their future is inextricably linked with their parents' history. A series of breakneck twists and turns puts the two generations on a collision course, culminating in a stunning showdown that will force Ben, Chon, and O to choose between their real families and their loyalty to one another.

Purchase Options:

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The first in a new series, The Risk Agent by Ridley Pearson, debuts at number 13.

A Chinese National working for an American-owned construction company is grabbed off the streets of Shanghai in broad daylight. His one-man security detail goes missing as well.

Rutherford Risk is a firm specializing in extraction: the negotiation for, and the recovery of hostages. Private investigation is illegal in today's China. Operating within her borders will be difficult at best.

The security company recruits two unique outsiders to do their bidding. Grace Chu is a forensic accountant hired to follow the money; John Knox is a civilian with unparalleled training in both combat and culture. Grace's top-notch American education and Chinese military service make her an unassuming, but effective, operative, while Knox's take-no-prisoners attitude brings them perilously close to harm. Following the money leads to more complex — and dangerous — consequences than either anticipated. Who is actually behind the kidnapping? And more important, can Knox and Grace locate the two hostages ahead of the deadline?

Purchase Options:

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For more mystery books news, 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.

First Promo for Dexter Season 7

Showtime has released a short promo video for the seventh season of Dexter. "Truth brings light."

There are no clips from the new season but for those who may not have seen the sixth season, it is rather spoilerish.

The series is based on a character created by crime novelist Jeff Lindsay, whose most recent book to feature Dexter Morgan — the 6th — is Double Dexter.

Dexter Season 7 premieres on September 30th, 2012 at 9 PM (ET/PT).

Four More Stephanie Plum Mysteries and a New Series from Janet Evanovich

Random House announced today that crime novelist Janet Evanovich will write four more "Stephanie Plum" mysteries. Already under contract is the next in the series, Notorious Nineteen, which hits bookstores this coming November. No word on the breakdown between numbered and between-the-numbers titles.

The publisher also announced that Evanovich will team up with Lee Goldberg — who is probably best known as the author of the popular "Mr. Monk" novels — to write a new series, which "will feature FBI agent Kate Winslow and international fugitive Danny Cole and will be a thrilling combination of crime, romance, and adventure. The first in the series is scheduled for publication in fall 2013."

Evanovich's most recent mystery is the second in the "Lizzy Tucker / Diesel" series, Wicked Business, which was published earlier this week, and has already hit the bestseller list.

Shock to the System, Free to Watch on Hulu

This is our second entry in what we hope to be a weekly feature of free, but more importantly recommended, films of mystery and suspense on Hulu.

This week's title: Shock to the System.

Richard Stevenson introduced Albany private investigator Don Strachey in 1981 in the mystery Death Trick and since then has written 11 more books in the series. Four of these titles were adapted into made-for-television movies, starring Chad Allen as Strachey, which initially aired on the cable network Here! Shock to the System is the fifth book in the series but was the second to be filmed.

Here's a summary of the film:

When hard boiled private eye Donald Strachey (Chad Allen) finds his latest client dead, an apparent suicide, Albany's favorite gay detective smells a rat and decides to take matters into his own hands. With the help of his straight-laced but adoring husband and his occasionally too-eager assistant, Strachey's investigation leads him on a dark and dangerous trail into the world of gay conversion therapy — a twisted mix of psychology and religion designed by a doctor to turn homosexuals straight.

We've seen — and enjoyed — all four of these telefilms, publishing three of our reviews on Mr. E. Reviews. (The review for Shock to the System has apparently been lost; we know it was written but it has somehow disappeared.) The storyline in the present film, as in the others, is credibly plotted, though maybe not quite as clever as it could have been. We think Chad Allen nails his role, however, not only here but in all of the movies, becomes Donald Strachey in such a way that it is hard to imagine anyone else playing the character. His portrayal of Strachey is one of the strongest aspects of the film. We're less enthusiastic about his screen partner, Timmy Callahan (played by Sebastian Spence), who varies from being warm and caring to cold and distant — and we don't think this is the intent of either the director or the screenwriter. It's as if he can't quite figure out how to play the character.

Shock to the System is rated R for some sexual content, nudity, language and a violent image. We've embedded it below, but free films on Hulu aren't generally available for very long. (The film is also available on DVD.)

This Week's Bestselling Mystery and Suspense Television and Film Blu-ray Discs (120621)

Here is this week's list of the top bestselling mystery and suspense television and film Blu-ray discs available from Amazon.com.

We're using a script to embed an RSS feed from Amazon.com, which is frequently updated, but if you cannot see the box below — or have scripts blocked — you can use this link to see the relevant page on Amazon.com.

Special Offer: Beastly Things by Donna Leon

Earlier today we posted about Kindle mysteries priced $2.99 or less, and the fact that publishers are doing temporary price reductions on ebooks in order to promote their sales or to simply as a way of introducing new readers to their authors.

And coincidentally, several hours later we came across a great example of this: Atlantic Monthly Press has temporarily reduced the price of the most recent Commissario Guido Brunetti mystery by Donna Leon, Beastly Things, which was published in hardcover this past April, to just $1.99, as of the date and time of this post. (It appears to be the only crime novel by the publisher so priced.)

We think Donna Leon is among the best novelists writing crime fiction today. Is Beastly Things among her finest work? In a word, No. And, in our opinion, it probably suffers more in comparison to the other books in the series than to the genre in general. [You can read our review on Mysterious Reviews.] Too, when she decides to incorporate a moral or social or environmental issue or injustice into her books, which is frequently, she sometimes errs on the side of emphasizing this element over the murder mystery itself. Still, if we were to meet someone on the street and they asked us to list a few of our favorite authors, Donna Leon's name would certainly come up.

Here's a synopsis of the book:

When the body of man is found in a canal, damaged by the tides, carrying no wallet, and wearing only one shoe, Brunetti has little to work with. No local has filed a missing-person report, and no hotel guests have disappeared. Where was the crime scene? And how can Brunetti identify the man when he can't show pictures of his face? The autopsy shows a way forward: it turns out the man was suffering from a rare, disfiguring disease. With Inspector Vianello, Brunetti canvasses shoe stores, and winds up on the mainland in Mestre, outside of his usual sphere. From a shopkeeper, they learn that the man had a kindly way with animals.

At the same time, animal rights and meat consumption are quickly becoming preoccupying issues at the Venice Questura, and in Brunetti's home, where conversation at family meals offer a window into the joys and conflicts of Italian life. Perhaps with the help of Signorina Elettra, Brunetti and Vianello can identify the man and understand why someone wanted him dead.

This special price appears to be available only for the Kindle edition of the book; other vendors we checked still show it at its list price. And the book doesn't appear to be part of the current Big Deal promotion at Amazon, which ends June 24th, 2012, so we're guessing this is a very short term price reduction on the part of the publisher, maybe lasting only a day or two.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without notice. The price shown on the vendor website at the time of the sale is the price of the book. Please confirm the price before completing your purchase.

Today's Bestselling Free Kindle MystereBooks (120621)

Here is today's list of the top bestselling free Kindle mysteries, suspense novels and thrillers.

We're using a script to embed an RSS feed from Amazon.com, which is updated hourly, but if you cannot see the box below — or have scripts blocked — you can use this link to see the relevant page on Amazon.com.