Review: Quicksand by Gigi Pandian

A Mysterious Review of Quicksand by Gigi Pandian. A Jaya Jones Mystery Adventure.

Review summary: This is a very entertaining entry in this series, with engaging characters on the hunt for treasure across France. With plenty of action and historical intrigue in this fact-based storyline, this adventure mystery is highly recommended. (Click here for text of full review.)

Our rating:

Quicksand
Gigi Pandian
A Jaya Jones Mystery Adventure
Henery Press (March 2015)

Publisher synopsis: Historian Jaya Jones finds herself on the wrong side of the law during an art heist at the Louvre. To redeem herself, she follows clues from an illuminated manuscript that lead from the cobblestone streets of Paris to the quicksand-surrounded fortress of Mont Saint-Michel. With the help of enigmatic Lane Peters and a 90-year-old stage magician, Jaya delves into France's colonial past in India to clear her name and catch a killer.

New This Week: Burn Cards, A Crime Noir by Christopher Irvin

Omnimystery News is pleased to present a mystery, suspense, or thriller ebook that we recently found by sleuthing (as it were) through new or recently reissued titles from independent publishers during April 2015 and priced $4.99 or less …

Burn Cards by Christopher Irvin

A Crime Noir

Publisher: 280 Steps

Price: $2.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 7:30 PM ET).

  

Mirna Fowler believes she has been cheated in life, growing up in a broken home alone with a drunken and gambling-addicted father. Now she works at a small hair salon in Reno, doing her best to survive while she saves money for school. Hoping to get a degree that will take her places.

But in the wake of her father's death, Mirna inherits his extravagant debt, an amount of money she can never repay. As her fractured world begins to crumble, the search for the truth sets her on a path where life hangs on her every move.

— Burn Cards by Christopher Irvin

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Buried Slaughter, A Brian McDone Mystery by Ryan Casey, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy.

Today, we're pleased to present the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the publisher, Higher Bank Books …

Buried Slaughter by Ryan Casey

A Brian McDone Mystery (2nd in series)

Publisher: Higher Bank Books

Price: 99¢ (as of 04/14/2015 at 7:00 PM ET).

  

Two years after the shocking events of the Nicola Watson case, Brian McDone's life is finally back on track. He's working in the lower ranks of the police department, but his personal life and mental stability are stronger and more important to him than ever.

That is until news breaks of a series of brutal, ritualistic murders in the idyllic Lancashire countryside. Seven bodies are found, decapitated, bones stripped of flesh, heads piled on top of one another. The police are clueless. Brian is intrigued. Too intrigued.

As Brian grows obsessed with the case, he finds himself drawn out of his peaceful life and into the dangerous depths of the investigation. In a race against time, Brian must put all he cares about on the line, as he faces a ruthless, cunning and methodical serial killer who isn't afraid to make things personal.

— Buried Slaughter by Ryan Casey

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New This Week: The Immortalist, A Sci-Fi Thriller by Scott Britz

Omnimystery News is pleased to present a mystery, suspense, or thriller ebook that we recently found by sleuthing (as it were) through new or recently reissued titles from independent publishers during April 2015 and priced $4.99 or less …

The Immortalist by Scott Britz

A Sci-Fi Thriller

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Price: $4.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 6:30 PM ET).

  

What happens when a new immortality drug leads to an explosive outbreak of a deadly virus that, if not contained, could wipe out humanity once and for all?

World-renowned virologist Dr. Cricket Rensselaer-Wright abruptly abandoned her research in Africa after watching her colleague die tragically from the Ebola virus. When she returns to the States to reunite with her teenage daughter Emmy, her plans are sidetracked. No sooner does she set foot on the campus of Acadia Springs — the research institute where she grew up and Emmy now lives — than her onetime mentor Charles Gifford announces his discovery of the Methuselah Vector, a gene therapy agent that can confer immortality on a patient after a single injection.

Gifford's air of triumph is marred when a young woman on campus dies suddenly from a horrific viral infection, eerily similar to the Ebola that drove Cricket out of Africa. Despite Cricket's pleas to slow down the rollout of the Vector and run more tests, Gifford refuses. And when the unthinkable happens — when Emmy falls ill with the same mysterious disease — Cricket is forced to take matters into her own hands. But is it already too late?

Gifford will stop at nothing to release the Vector into the world. Mobs are clamoring for it. Cricket has only a few hours to find a cure for Emmy, and to convince the public that Gifford's quest for eternal life may cost the very lives he hopes to save.

— The Immortalist by Scott Britz

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Eyes on You, A Novel of Suspense by Kate White, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy.

Today, we're pleased to present the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the publisher, Harper …

Eyes on You by Kate White

A Novel of Suspense

Publisher: Harper

Price: $1.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 6:00 PM ET).

  

After losing her on-air job two years ago, television host Robin Trainer has fought her way back and now she's hotter than ever. With her new show climbing in the ratings and her first book a bestseller, she's being dubbed a media double threat.

But suddenly, things begin to go wrong. Small incidents at first: a nasty note left in her purse; her photo shredded. But the obnoxious quickly becomes threatening when the foundation the makeup artist uses burns Robin's face. It wasn't an accident — someone had deliberately doctored with the product.

An adversary with a dark agenda wants to hurt Robin, and the clues point to someone she works with every day. While she frantically tries to put the pieces together and unmask this hidden foe, it becomes terrifyingly clear that the person responsible isn't going to stop until Robin loses everything that matters to her … including her life.

— Eyes on You by Kate White

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With Vics You Get Eggroll, A Madison Night, Mad for Mod Mystery by Diane Vallere, New This Week from Henery Press

Henery Press — the place to be for mystery — publishes books in the mystery/suspense genre focused on engaging stories with sharp twists and lively characters.

We've selected one of their recently released titles to feature here today …

With Vics You Get Eggroll by Diane Vallere

A Madison Night, Mad for Mod Mystery (3rd in series)

Publisher: Henery Press

Price: $4.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 5:30 PM ET).

  

Business as usual for mid-century modern interior decorator Madison Night involves a rundown ranch restoration and endorsing a set of retro paint colors. But when an investigation into a string of recent abductions turns up a murder vic, and evidence at the scene links the flirtatious Lt. Tex Allen to the crime, Madison's priorities shift faster than she can say "Doris Day."

Voluntary suspension keeps Tex off the case, and pesky reporters force him to live in his car. Madison's own life is complicated by the return of her hunky handyman and her new demanding client. She immerses herself in routine, but suspects come out of the freshly-painted woodwork. When seemingly unrelated events lead back to the abductions, she exposes a secondary agenda, a copycat crime, and a vengeful plot to destroy someone she loves.

— With Vics You Get Eggroll by Diane Vallere

See all three mysteries in the Mad for Mod Series for $4.99 or less each on Kindle.

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A Spirited Tail, A Mystic Notch Cozy Mystery by Leighann Dobbs, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy.

Today, we're pleased to present the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the author …

A Spirited Tail by Leighann Dobbs

A Mystic Notch Cozy Mystery (2nd in series)

Publisher: Leighann Dobbs

Price: 99¢ (as of 04/14/2015 at 5:00 PM ET).

  

Middle-aged bookstore owner Willa Chance is looking forward to the opportunity of appraising a valuable private library that hasn't seen the light of day for fifty years … until she finds a dead body in the backyard and the ghost of the home's previous owner anxiously waiting for her inside.

Hampered by the persistent ghost who insists on keeping secrets from her, Willa navigates a sea of confusing clues as she struggles to uncover the connection between the recent murder and two murders fifty years ago.

Is the answer contained in the secret she found in the library? Or the unusual bequest left by the long-dead owner of the house? Or maybe it has something to do with the mysterious journal that everyone seems to be after.

Once again, Willa's cat Pandora has to help her figure out the clues, while she and the other cats of Mystic Notch try to keep vital mystical knowledge from getting into the wrong hands.

Can Willa discover the identity of the killer in time or will she end up being the fourth victim?

— A Spirited Tail by Leighann Dobbs

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Murder and Mai Tais, A Danger Cove Cocktail Mystery by Sibel Hodge, New This Week from Gemma Halliday

Gemma Halliday Publishing is a boutique publisher of light-hearted mystery, romantic suspense and romantic comedy novels, perfect for popping into your beach bag for a weekend away or cozying up beside a warm fire for a quiet night in.

We've selected one of their recently published titles to feature here today …

Murder and Mai Tais by Sibel Hodge

A Danger Cove Cocktail Mystery (2nd in series)

Publisher: Gemma Halliday Publishing

Price: 99¢ (as of 04/14/2015 at 4:30 PM ET).

  

This is the second title in a new multi-author cozy mystery series set in Danger Cove, a sleepy little town in the Pacific Northwest and home to renowned mystery novelist Elizabeth Ashby.

Murder is on the menu, and someone's about to get served …

Hope Foster's motto is to let fate lead you — which it did in her case right to the quiet town of Danger Cove. But when the owner of the Smugglers' Tavern, where Hope tends bar, is murdered, suddenly fate puts Hope squarely in the role of "prime suspect" in her employer's murder. Not only is she the last one to see him alive, but a new will also reveals that her employer left his whole estate to Hope instead of his ungrateful daughter Elise and nephew Carter.

With the local police convinced Hope is a manipulative "Black Widow" killer, Hope's peaceful life in Danger Cove is about to turn into a white water ride. Along with a sexy underwater archaeologist from England, in town searching for a lost shipwreck, an international yoga guru, and a reformed alcoholic patron, Hope sets out to prove her innocence. But can Team Hope catch the real killer before she trades in her bartending apron for an orange prison jumpsuit?

— Murder and Mai Tais by Sibel Hodge

See also the first mystery in this series, Death by Scones, for 99¢ on Kindle.

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Hour of Need, A Scarlet Falls Novel of Romantic Suspense by Melinda Leigh, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy.

Today, we're pleased to present the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the publisher, Montlake Romance …

Hour of Need by Melinda Leigh

A Scarlet Falls Novel of Romantic Suspense (1st in series)

Publisher: Montlake Romance

Price: $1.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 4:00 PM ET).

  

While fighting in Afghanistan, Major Grant Barrett receives devastating news: his brother and sister-in-law have been murdered in Scarlet Falls, the sleepy suburb of Grant's youth. Emotionally scarred from war, the career soldier returns home on emergency leave to temporarily care for his orphaned nephew and niece. But when someone tries to kidnap the kids and their teenage babysitter, Grant knows it's not a random act … and neither were the murders.

Already devastated by her neighbors' violent deaths, Ellie Ross is shattered by the attempted abduction of her teenage daughter so she desperately turns to Grant for help. As they navigate a deadly search for the truth, they struggle with growing feelings for each other and Grant's impending return to Afghanistan.

But time is running out. The killer is growing bolder by the hour, and Ellie and Grant must find him before the children become his next victims.

— Hour of Need by Melinda Leigh

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Double Vision by Colby Marshall, New on the Mystery Bookshelf during April 2015

New on the Mystery Bookshelf during April 2015 …

Double Vision by Colby Marshall, A Jenna Ramey Mystery (2nd in series)

Publisher: Berkley

  

FBI profiler Jenna Ramey has synesthesia, a neurological condition that causes perceptions of color to flash through her mind, triggered by seemingly unrelated stimuli. But she has learned to understand and interpret these associations. They help her do her job. They can help save lives …

A little girl has witnessed a mass shooting. What she knows may be the key to finding the man responsible. Jenna has been tasked with drawing her out, figuring out what she saw, what she remembers, what it means.

But Molly is an unusual child. She is sweet and bright, and eager to help, but she has a quirk of her own: an intense preoccupation with numbers. It helps her notice things that others don't. It also leads Jenna into a maze of speculation that could turn into a wild goose chase while the body count continues to rise.

Jenna and Molly view the world through their own filters. In some ways, they speak different languages. Now Jenna must learn to communicate, to break Molly's code, to understand the mind of a murderer …

— Double Vision by Colby Marshall

To see more new paperback titles scheduled to be published this month, visit The Mystery Bookshelf for April 2015. For new hardcover mysteries, visit New Mysteries where for a list of April 2015 mysteries, novels of suspense, and thrillers is provided.

The Last Kiss Goodbye, A Charlotte Stone Novel of Romantic Suspense by Karen Robards, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy.

Today, we're pleased to present the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the publisher, Ballantine Books …

The Last Kiss Goodbye by Karen Robards

A Charlotte Stone Novel of Romantic Suspense (2nd in series)

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Price: $1.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 3:00 PM ET).

  

Dr. Charlotte "Charlie" Stone has dedicated her career as a psychiatrist to exploring the darkest territory of all: the hearts and minds of serial killers. It's a job she's uniquely suited for, thanks to the secret talent that gives her an uncanny edge — Charlie can see dead people, whose tormented spirits cry out to her for the justice only she can provide. This blessing — or curse — gives Charlie the power to hunt down and catch madmen and murderers. It's also turned her love life upside down by drawing her into a hopelessly passionate relationship with the lingering ghost of charismatic bad boy Michael Garland.

But there's little time for romance with her supernatural suitor when murder comes pounding at Charlie's door in the form of a terrified young woman fleeing a homicidal maniac. Saving her life places Charlie squarely in the cross-hairs of a sadistic predator nicknamed "the Gingerbread Man," notorious for manipulating his victims like pawns in a deadly chess game. And now the queen this psychopath's bent on capturing is Charlie. Refusal to play will only put more innocent lives in danger. Matching wits with this cunningly twisted opponent will require all of Charlie's training and expert skills. But even with her devilish "guardian angel" — not to mention her favorite flesh-and-blood Fed, Tony Bartoli — watching her beautiful back, the Gingerbread Man's horrifying grin might be the last thing Charlie ever sees.

— The Last Kiss Goodbye by Karen Robards

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Hot Pursuit by Stuart Woods, New in Bookstores during April 2015

Today's featured new hardcover mystery, suspense, or thriller title scheduled to be published during April 2015 is …

Hot Pursuit by Stuart Woods, a Stone Barrington Mystery (33rd in series)

Publisher: Putnam

    

It's not often that Stone Barrington finds a woman as accustomed to the jet-set lifestyle as he, so he's pleasantly surprised when he meets a gorgeous pilot who's soon moving to New York, and available for closer acquaintance. Their travels together lead them from Wichita to Europe, but trailing them is some unwanted baggage: his new lady love's unstable, criminal ex-boyfriend.

And while Stone is fending off his newest adversary, trouble is brewing on the international stage. Several enemy operatives are at large, and only a coordinated intelligence effort will have any chance of stopping their deadly plot. But the clock is ticking … and time has nearly run out.

— Hot Pursuit by Stuart Woods

For a list of more new hardcover titles to be published this month, visit our New Mysteries page for April 2015. For new paperback mysteries, visit The Mystery Bookshelf where a selection of April 2015 mysteries, novels of suspense, and thrillers are shelved.

Predator One by Jonathan Maberry, New on the Mystery Bookshelf during April 2015

New on the Mystery Bookshelf during April 2015 …

Predator One by Jonathan Maberry, A Joe Ledger Thriller (7th in series)

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

  

On opening day of the new baseball season a small model-kit airplane flies down from the stands and buzzes the mound, where a decorated veteran pilot is about to throw out the first ball. The toy plane is the exact replica of the one flown by the war hero. Everyone laughs, thinking it's a prank or a publicity stunt. Until it explodes, killing dozens.

Seconds later a swarm of killer drones descend upon the picnicked crowd, each one carrying a powerful bomb. All across the country artificial intelligence drive systems in cars, commuter trains and even fighter planes go out of control. The death toll soars as the machines we depend upon every day are turned into engines of destruction.

Joe Ledger and the Department of Military Sciences go on the hunt for whoever is controlling these machines, but the every step of the way they are met with traps and shocks that strike to the very heart of the DMS. No one is safe. Nowhere is safe. Enemies old and new rise as America burns.

— Predator One by Jonathan Maberry

To see more new paperback titles scheduled to be published this month, visit The Mystery Bookshelf for April 2015. For new hardcover mysteries, visit New Mysteries where for a list of April 2015 mysteries, novels of suspense, and thrillers is provided.

The Sherlock Holmes Stories of Edward D. Hoch, A Short Story Collection by Edward D. Hoch, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy.

Today, we're pleased to present the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the publisher, Open Road …

The Sherlock Holmes Stories of Edward D. Hoch by Edward D. Hoch

A Short Story Collection

Publisher: Open Road

Price: $1.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 1:00 PM ET).

  

In a heavily mortgaged country house, an heiress's sinister guardian attempts to trap her in a bedroom with a rare Indian swamp adder — a murder averted only by the timely intervention of Sherlock Holmes. Five months after the events of "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," Holmes and Watson are called back to Stoke Moran by a frightened gypsy who claims that the viper has gotten loose again. Holmes is unsure which poses a greater danger: the rumored snake, or the possibility that the gypsy is telling lies.

In these dozen tales, short story master Edward D. Hoch resurrects the most brilliant mind in the history of detective fiction. In the style of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Holmes tangles with circus tigers, Druidic curses, and a pair of Christmas killings. Here is the finest detective of the Victorian age — recreated by one of the greatest mystery writers of the twentieth century.

— The Sherlock Holmes Stories of Edward D. Hoch by Edward D. Hoch

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The Second Man, A Paul Madriani Mystery Novella by Steve Martini, New This Week from Witness Impulse

Every week, Witness Impulse — an imprint of William Morrow — releases new suspense and thriller digital originals, typically priced at just $2.99 (or less) each.

Omnimystery News is pleased to present you with one of this week's titles …

The Second Man by Steve Martini

A Paul Madriani Mystery Novella

Publisher: Witness Impulse

Price: $1.99 (as of 04/14/2015 at 12:30 PM ET).

  

Navy SEALs are the military's elite — highly trained, deadly, and sworn to secrecy about the details of their dangerous and confidential missions. So when one of the men goes public about a high-profile assassination abroad, all of his comrades are thrown into peril.

Attorney Paul Madriani comes to the aid of a Navy SEAL who is pursued by his own government and facing possible prosecution for disclosures he says were made by others. When the soldier disappears, Paul finds himself ensnared in a deadly game of intrigue that forces him to track the man down before it is too late.

— The Second Man by Steve Martini

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