Ring of Lies by Victoria Howard is Today's Third Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Ring of Lies by Victoria Howard as today's third free mystery ebook (A Suspense Thriller; Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, September 19, 2013 at 7:30 AM ET. 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.

For a summary of all of today's featured titles, plus any that may have appeared before and are repeat freebies, visit our Free MystereBooks page. This page is updated daily, typically by 8 AM ET.

— ♦ —

Ring of Lies
Victoria Howard
A Suspense Thriller
Publisher: L Cooper Press

When English accountant Daniel Elliott dies in a car accident one rainy night, his widow, Grace, is overcome with grief … and panic. Daniel was controlling and their marriage loveless, but he always took care of the sheltered Grace.

Or so she thought.

She soon discovers Daniel kept secrets: an alias, mob ties, a list of numbers, a mysterious beach house in Florida … and a girlfriend who looks like Grace. Swallowing her fear, she flies to Miami to claim the house Daniel left her. But the price of her curiosity is peril. Underworld figures stalk her. The other woman has left a damning trail of evidence pointing her way. And handsome, troubled FBI agent Jack West has crossed precarious paths with Grace before. He could be her savior or her damnation. All she knows for certain is that she longs to be in his arms.

With little to go on and danger at every turn, Grace must depend on Jack to help her navigate the criminal world of south Florida, and find the truth behind the ring of lies.

  

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.

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

Murder in Steeple Martin by Lesley Cookman is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Murder in Steeple Martin by Lesley Cookman as today's second free mystery ebook (A Libby Sarjeant Mystery; Kindle and iTunes formats).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, September 19, 2013 at 7:20 AM ET. 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.

For a summary of all of today's featured titles, plus any that may have appeared before and are repeat freebies, visit our Free MystereBooks page. This page is updated daily, typically by 8 AM ET.

— ♦ —

Murder in Steeple Martin
Lesley Cookman
A Libby Sarjeant Mystery
Publisher: Accent Press

Artist and ex-actress Libby Sarjeant is busy directing a play for the opening of a new theatre in her village when one of her cast is found murdered. The play, written by her friend Peter, is based on real events in his family, disturbing and mysterious, which took place in the village during the last war. As the investigation into the murder begins to uncover a tangled web of relationships in the village, it seems that the events dramatised in the play still cast a long shadow, dark enough to inspire murder.

Libby's natural nosiness soon leads her into the thick of the investigation, but is she too close to Peter s family, and in particular his cousin Ben, to be able to recognise the murderer?

    

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.

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

The Cleaner by Mark Dawson is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Cleaner by Mark Dawson as today's free mystery ebook (A John Milton Mystery; Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, September 19, 2013 at 7:10 AM ET. 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.

For a summary of all of today's featured titles, plus any that may have appeared before and are repeat freebies, visit our Free MystereBooks page. This page is updated daily, typically by 8 AM ET.

— ♦ —

The Cleaner
Mark Dawson
A John Milton Mystery
Publisher: Black Dog Publishing

A career of state-sanctioned murder has taken its toll. John Milton is troubled by nightmares, a long line of ghosts who torment his dreams. He resolves to make his next job his last and, then, perhaps, he can start to make amends for everything that he has done.

Sharon Warriner is a single mother in the East End of London, suicidal with fear that she's lost her young son to a life in the gangs. After Milton saves her life, he promises to help. But the gang, and the charismatic rapper who leads it, is not about to cooperate with him.

As London burns through summer riots, Milton finds himself in unfamiliar territory, dealing with an unfamiliar foe. And when his employer sends another agent after him, the odds against him are stacked even higher.

  

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.

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

The Hiding Place by David Bell is Today's Kindle Daily Deal

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Hiding Place by David Bell as today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal.

The deal price of $2.99 is valid only for today, Thursday, September 19, 2013.

— ♦ —

The Hiding Place
David Bell
A Novel of Suspense
NAL

Sometimes it's easier to believe a lie …

Twenty-five-years ago, the disappearance of four-year-old Justin Manning rocked the small town of Dove Point, Ohio. After his body was found in a shallow grave in the woods two months later, the repercussions were felt for years.

Janet Manning has been haunted by the murder since the day she lost sight of her brother in the park. Now, with the twenty-fifth anniversary of Justin's death looming, a detective and a newspaper reporter have started to ask questions, opening old wounds and raising new suspicions. Could the man convicted of the murder — who spent more than two decades in prison — really be innocent? Janet's childhood friend and high school crush, who was in the park with her that day, has returned to Dove Point, where he is wrestling with his own conflicted memories of the events. And a strange man appears at Janet's door in the middle of the night, claiming to know the truth.

Soon, years of deceit will be swept away, and the truth about what happened to Janet's brother will be revealed. And the answers that Janet has sought may be found much closer to home than she ever could have imagined.

Important Note: This book was listed at the price mentioned above 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.

Prisoners in Theaters September 20, 2013

Prisoners. Opens in theaters September 20, 2013.

Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) is facing every parent's worst nightmare. His 6-year-old daughter and her young friend are missing, and as minutes turn to hours, panic sets in. The only lead is a dilapidated RV that had been parked on their street. Heading the investigation, Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) arrests its driver, but a lack of evidence forces the only suspect's release. Knowing his child's life is at stake, the frantic Dover decides he has no choice but to take matters into his own hands. The desperate father will do whatever it takes to find the girls, but in doing so, may lose himself, begging the question: When do you cross the line between seeking justice and becoming a vigilante?

Directed by Denis Villeneuve from an original screenplay by Aaron Guzikowki.

Running time: 146 minutes. Rated R for disturbing violent content including torture, and language throughout.

Watch a trailer for the film below:

Thread of Hope, A Joe Tyler Mystery by Jeff Shelby, Now at a Special Price

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Thread of Hope by Jeff Shelby, now available at a special price, courtesy of the author.

This was one of our highest rated books of 2011, a book we called "a superior mystery from a plot perspective, one that takes unexpected turns that lead to surprising outcomes. The clues to what really happened are deftly hidden in plain sight, with plenty of clever misdirection to keep the reader off guard."

The ebook format of this title was priced at $0.99 from the listed vendors (below) as of the date and time of this post (09/18/2013 at 5:30 PM ET). 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.

— ♦ —

Thread of Hope by Jeff Shelby
A Joe Tyler Mystery (1st in series)
Publisher: Jeff Shelby

Read our review of Thread of Hope by Jeff Shelby

Seven years after Joe Tyler's daughter Elizabeth was abducted, he hasn't stopped looking for answers, and he hasn't forgotten the friend who stood by him as he lost his wife, his home, and his career in his search. Now he's been brought back to San Diego by the news that this friend has been arrested for beating up a teenage girl — a girl not much older than Elizabeth would be now.

Joe is convinced Chuck Winslow is innocent, but Chuck is in a coma and can't explain what happened. And the more Joe hears about what Chuck's been up to in the years he's been gone, the less Joe recognizes his old friend. To find out the truth, he will have to face his ex-wife, his former bosses, and a hometown full of wealth, lies, and illicit privilege. When Chuck's accuser goes missing, Joe must decide where his loyalties truly lie.

  

Important Note: This book was listed at the above mentioned price 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.

Alan Glynn's Graveland Optioned for Film

New Regency has optioned Alan Glynn's most recent thriller Graveland for film. Brian Koppelman (Runner Runner, Ocean's Thirteen, Runaway Jury) will write the adapted screenplay for David Levien to direct.

We reviewed Graveland earlier this year, calling it "a solidly written novel with strongly developed characters" but adding that "there's a sense that there might be too much going on here for one book". With some deliberate and creative editing on the part of the screenwriter, we think this would make for a compelling murder mystery thriller film.

More about the book, below.

— ♦ —

Graveland
Alan Glynn
A Novel of Suspense

 Read our review of Graveland by Alan Glynn.

On a bright Saturday morning, a Wall Street investment banker is shot dead while jogging in Central Park. Hours later, one of New York City's savviest hedge-fund managers is gunned down outside a restaurant. Are these killings a coordinated terrorist attack, or just a coincidence?

Investigative journalist Ellen Dorsey has a hunch they're neither, and when an attempt is made on the life of another CEO, her theory is confirmed. The story blows wide open, and as Ellen races to stay ahead of the curve, her path collides with that of a recession-hit architect, Frank Bishop, whose daughter's disappearance may be tied to the murders.

      

A New MystereBook: Tropic of Darkness by Tony Richards

Here is a mystery, suspense, or thriller ebook that we recently found by sleuthing (as it were) through new or recently reissued titles from independent publishers …

Tropic of Darkness by Tony Richards is an original full-length supernatural thriller set in Havana, Cuba. It's not from an independent publisher, but it looks interesting and is priced right!

— ♦ —

Tropic of Darkness by Tony Richards
A Supernatural Thriller
Publisher: Pocket Star
Publication Date: September 16, 2013

Jack Gilliard is a man with a dark past, and he hasn't been back to the United States for more than a decade. But when he washes up in Havana, Cuba, he finds himself being drawn into a business darker than he ever dared think. Ancient passions, ancient treacheries, an age-old curse, and the evils of his past are now consuming the present — and Jack is caught in the midst of it all. To survive, all he has to do is leave the country — a prospect much more difficult than anticipated. But the real question is: can Jack escape before the darkness claims him altogether?

  

Death on a Budget, An Emerson Ward Mystery by Michael W. Sherer, Now at a Special Price

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Death on a Budget by Michael W. Sherer, now available at a special price, courtesy of the publisher, Five Star.

The ebook format of this title was priced at $0.99 from the listed vendors (below) as of the date and time of this post (09/18/2013 at 4:00 PM ET). 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.

— ♦ —

Death on a Budget by Michael W. Sherer
An Emerson Ward Mystery (6th in series)
Publisher: Five Star

There's nothing like having kids to change your outlook on life. A toddler has Chicago freelance writer Emerson Ward thinking twice about his habit of tilting at windmills and riding a white charger to people's rescue. It's no wonder he turns down his friend Brandt's pleas to find out why a banker they both knew was shotgunned to death in the park near Montrose Harbor.

But when the love of Emerson's life leaves for Seattle with their daughter to care for her ailing mother, Emerson has no reason to turn down a cry for help from a childhood friend. It means climbing back in the saddle of his old GMC motor home and returning to the small town where he grew up and swore he'd never return to confront old demons, family, friends and foes he hasn't seen for 25 years.

Soon he's up to his eyeballs in a high-stakes commercial real estate scam and a decades-old family secret that threaten everything he holds dear. The deeper he digs, the less he likes what he learns, about his old hometown, the people in it, and even himself. When he links the dead banker to the real estate scam and a group of fundamentalist Muslim businessmen raising funds for terrorists, the FBI steps in to let him know he stands to lose even more — his life.

  

Important Note: This book was listed at the above mentioned price 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.

Buried in Benidorm, A Max Castillo Mystery by L. H. Thomson, Now at a Special Price

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Buried in Benidorm by L. H. Thomson, now available at a special price, courtesy of the publisher, J. I. Loome.

The ebook format of this title was priced at $0.99 from the listed vendors (below) as of the date and time of this post (09/18/2013 at 3:00 PM ET). 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.

— ♦ —

Buried in Benidorm by L. H. Thomson
A Max Castillo Mystery (1st in series)
Publisher: J. I. Loome

Ex-priest and newly minted agnostic Max Castillo ekes out a living as a private investigator from his houseboat in Benidorm, Spain. He finally has a little free time … until a big-shot turns up dead at a local golf course. Now, his former employer is calling in an old debt, and Max is neck-deep in gangsters, grifters and girls with grudges.

A decades-old secret could hold the key to solving the case, but can Max figure it out before one of them leaves him …

  

Important Note: This book was listed at the above mentioned price 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.

The Final Cut by Catherine Coulter and J. T. Ellison, New in Bookstores This Week

Today's new hardcover mystery title, scheduled to be published this week by Putnam, is The Final Cut by Catherine Coulter and J. T. Ellison.

For a list of more new hardcover mysteries published this month, visit our New Mysteries page for September 2013. For new paperback mysteries, visit The Mystery Bookshelf where a selection of September 2013 mysteries, novels of suspense, and thrillers are shelved.

— ♦ —

The Final Cut
Catherine Coulter and J. T. Ellison
Series: Nicholas Drummond (1st)

Scotland Yard's new chief inspector Nicholas Drummond is on the first flight to New York when he learns his colleague, Elaine York, the "minder" of the Crown Jewels for the "Jewel of the Lion" exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, was found murdered. Then the centerpiece of the exhibit, the infamous Koh-i-Noor Diamond, is stolen from the Queen Mother's crown. Drummond, American-born but raised in the UK, is a dark, dangerous, fast-rising star in the Yard who never backs down. And this case is no exception.

Special Agents Lacey Sherlock and Dillon Savich from Coulter's bestselling FBI series don't hesitate to help Drummond find the cunning international thief known as the Fox. Nonstop action and high stakes intensify as the chase gets deadly. The Fox will stop at nothing to deliver the Koh-i-Noor to the man who believes in its deadly prophecy. Nicholas Drummond, along with his partner, FBI Special Agent Mike Caine, lay it on the line to retrieve the diamond for Queen and country.

      

CWA Margery Allingham Short Story Competition Now Open for Submissions

The Crime Writers' Association has announced the Margery Allingham Short Story Competition for unpublished short stories.

Published and unpublished writers are encouraged to enter, with the winner to receive £1000.

Submitted stories must be previously unpublished, be no longer than 3500 words, and fit Margery Allingham's definition of a mystery: "The Mystery remains box-shaped, at once a prison and a refuge. Its four walls are, roughly, a Crime, a Mystery, an Enquiry and a Conclusion with an Element of Satisfaction in it." (Margery Allingham was an English crime writer best known for her detective stories featuring the gentleman sleuth Albert Campion.)

The entry deadline is Sunday, March 16th, 2014 at 4 PM UK time.

For more details about the competition, see the Entry Form page on the CWA website.

MystereBooks: The Lawyer's Lawyer by James Sheehan, Available this Month at a Special Price

Every month Amazon releases a new selection of Kindle books priced $3.99 or less.

Today's featured title from the Mystery & Thrillers category is The Lawyer's Lawyer by James Sheehan. This Kindle book was listed at $1.99 as of the date and time of this post, Wednesday, September 18, 2013 at 1:30 PM ET, and should be available at this price through the end of the month.

More information about the book is below; if other vendors have priced-matched this title, links to their sites are also shown.

— ♦ —

The Lawyer's Lawyer by James Sheehan
A Jack Tobin Legal Thriller
Publisher: Center Street

Jack Tobin, known as the lawyer's lawyer — the guy the best lawyer's say they'd want to represent them in a courtroom battle — undertakes the representation of a serial killer who he believes to be innocent.

The Chief of Police is outraged, the citizens of Oakville where the murders occurred, erupt, and the State Attorney is out for blood as Jack challenges the criminal justice system once again.

      

Important Note: 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.

The 7th Victim, A Karen Vail Mystery by Alan Jacobson, Now at a Special Price

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The 7th Victim by Alan Jacobson, now available at a special price, courtesy of the publisher, Premier Digital.

The ebook format of this title was priced at $2.99 from the listed vendors (below) as of the date and time of this post (09/18/2013 at 1:00 PM ET). 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.

— ♦ —

The 7th Victim by Alan Jacobson
A Karen Vail Mystery (1st in series)
Publisher: Premier Digital

The Dead Eyes Killer lurks in the backyard of the famed FBI Profiling Unit. His brutal murders, unlike any others previously seen, confound the local task force, despite the gifted profiling skills of Special Agent Karen Vail. But along with Vail‘s insight and expertise comes considerable personal and professional baggage.

On leave pending a review of her assault on her abusive ex-husband, Vail must battle forces determined to bring her down, as she fights to find Dead Eyes before he murders more young women. But the seventh victim is the key to all that stirs this killer … the key that will unlock secrets perhaps too painful for Vail to bear. These are secrets that threaten to destroy her, secrets that will bring down her storied and promising career. For Karen Vail, the truth rests at the heart of a lie. And uncovering it could get her killed …

    

Important Note: This book was listed at the above mentioned price 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.

A New MystereBook: Booked for a Hanging by Bill Crider

Here is a mystery, suspense, or thriller ebook that we recently found by sleuthing (as it were) through new or recently reissued titles from independent publishers …

Booked for a Hanging by Bill Crider is the sixth mystery in this Anthony Award-winning series featuring Blacklin County (Texas) Sheriff Dan Rhodes, first published in hardcover by St. Martin's Press in October 1992.

— ♦ —

Booked for a Hanging by Bill Crider
A Dan Rhodes Mystery
Publisher: Crossroad Press
Publication Date: September 12, 2013

Dan Rhodes is confronted with what seems at first to be a suicide: the body of a man newly arrived in the county is found hanged in the dilapidated building he has taken over for his business. Simon Graham was a rare-book dealer. If it seems unlikely to find such an arcane entrepreneur in this extremely rural and sparsely populated part of Texas, it becomes less strange when it turns out that Graham was more con man than bibliophile.

The presumed suicide begins to look more and more like murder when several newcomers swoop down on the scene and try to beat out one another to find a reputedly valuable rare book that Graham was rumored to have among his collection of hardly worthwhile items. Although Rhodes's two attenuated and eccentric jailhouse employees have gone overboard for the magic of the department's new computer, the steady, if put-upon, Rhodes and his clear-eyed observations of human nature have invariably been more useful to the solution of a crime — and that is still true in the case of the hanged book dealer.