Telemystery: ABC Announces Summer 2013 Schedule of New and Returning Series

ABC has announced the Summer 2013 premiere dates for its two new — one scripted, one unscripted — and one returning series.

• Rookie Blue Season Four: Thursday, May 23rd at 10 PM (ET/PT).

• Motive Season One: Special premiere episode on Tuesday, May 21st at 10 PM (ET/PT) before moving to its regular air day and time, Thursdays at 9 PM (ET/PT). This CTV drama is currently airing in Canada, and features a pair of investigators who use a crime's motive to commit murder to identify the killer (who is known at the beginning of each episode).

• Whodunnit? Season One: Sunday, June 23rd at 9 PM (ET/PT). Anthony E. Zuiker (CSI) has created this unscripted (reality) series in which players will use a variety of crime scene investigation techniques to meticulously uncover evidence that will ultimately reveal who among them is the killer. Each week one will leave the game until one player (of the three remaining at the end) identifies the killer.

Keep up to date on the status of your favorite mystery and suspense television with our Telemystery Scoresheet. We've updated it with today's news.

Winner of the 2013 Dilys Award Announced

Before the Poison by Peter Robinson is the winner of the annual Dilys Award in recognition for the book booksellers most enjoyed selling last year; the news was announced last night at Left Coast Crime.

Named in honor of Dilys Winn, founder of the first mystery bookstore in the US, the award is sponsored by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association.

(Hat tip to Janet Rudolph of Mystery Fanfare.)

The Vanished Lady by Vickie Britton and Loretta Jackson is Today's Fourth Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Vanished Lady by Vickie Britton and Loretta Jackson as today's fourth free mystery ebook (A Novel of Suspense; Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, March 22, 2013 at 7:40 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.

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The Vanished Lady
Vickie Britton and Loretta Jackson
A Novel of Suspense
Publisher: Vickie Britton and Loretta Jackson

Dana Lawrence doesn’t imagine when she buys the quaint Victorian house in the remote mountains of Colorado that her life will soon be in danger. She has heard the legend of Lelia Glenn and how she vanished in the 1800’s, but no one told her about the more recent disappearance of Amy Walden two years ago.

On the night of her arrival, Dana spies someone digging on her land. The sheriff tells her that on the day Amy disappeared Glenndale’s jewelry store was robbed. Amy’s boyfriend, Donnie Thorpe, is still on the run, and his accomplice, Jed Hoyt, has just been released from prison. Bennett believes a third party masterminded the robbery — her handsome neighbor, Logan Rand.

While Dana tries to beat the thieves to the stolen goods, she uncovers a grave. Threats and attempts on her life follow in rapid succession. Dana must identify the killer before she becomes the next vanished lady.

  

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.

Wintertide by Debra Doxer is Today's Third Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Wintertide by Debra Doxer as today's third free mystery ebook (A Novel of Suspense; Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, March 22, 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.

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Wintertide
Debra Doxer
A Novel of Suspense
Publisher: CreateSpace

When college sophomore, Daniel Hiller, reluctantly returned home to Cape Cod for the holidays, he never planned on rekindling old friendships. He had easily left his life behind, and he never looked back. But back at home, after a year and a half away, unexpected nostalgia finds him once again in the company of old friends. On a night out together, one of those friends commits a heinous crime. When Daniel witnesses that crime, he is asked to keep a dark secret that could forever tie him to the place he has always despised.

As Daniel tries to get through the rest of his winter break pretending that nothing is wrong, he rekindles a relationship with his high school girlfriend and he referees the all too familiar arguments between his parents. All the while, he is attempting to avoid the constant threats of retribution if he breaks his silence. Soon, avoidance becomes impossible. Not knowing who to trust, but realizing that his former friends are far from trustworthy, Daniel must make a choice. When he does, he discovers that keeping the secret may have been the lesser of the evils.

Daniel wants to believe that he is nothing like his friends. He wants to think that he’s better than that. But when his own future is threatened, he realizes that he is not better. In fact, he may be much, much worse.

  

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 Thirteenth Skull by Bonnie Ramthun is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Thirteenth Skull by Bonnie Ramthun as today's second free mystery ebook (An Eileen Reed Mystery; Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, March 22, 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.

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The Thirteenth Skull
Bonnie Ramthun
An Eileen Reed Mystery
Publisher: Bonnie Ramthun

Discovering an ancient skeleton can be murder, as homicide detective Eileen Reed discovers when her parents ask for her help in a missing person's case.

The missing man, an archeologist, has been excavating a Lakota buffalo jump at the Reed Ranch near Devil's Tower, Wyoming. The discovery of his murdered corpse and the treasure he took from the ancient skeleton are complicated further when a hired assassin targets Eileen's fiancé, Joe Tanner, a top-secret defense programmer. The big-city killers come to do murder in a small Wyoming town, and Eileen Reed finds herself in a fight for her life and the lives of her family, trying to solve a very personal murder and keep two very impersonal murderers from their intended slaughter.

Her investigations include the mystery surrounding the flawless crystal skull unearthed from the arms of the Aztec warrior who died trying to deliver it to the Lakota tribe. The crystal skull exhibits mysterious properties that seem to defy explanation. Eileen must unlock the secrets of the skull in order to save her family from the killers and fulfill the Aztec's ancient mission.

  

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.

House 23 by Eli Yance is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature House 23 by Eli Yance as today's free mystery ebook (A Mystery Thriller; Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, March 22, 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.

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House 23
Eli Yance
A Mystery Thriller
Publisher: Compulsion Books

Joesph Lee is wealthy, safe, and alone. His wife was murdered, butchered in her own house. They never found the killer. The police blamed him, as did everyone else.

He's been alone since her death. Confined to the house where she was murdered, forced to live a hermit's existence as he struggles with his grief and self-loathing. But there's hope: a beautiful woman, a woman who looks uncannily like his dead wife, moves into the house across the road and befriends him.

Joesph Lee's life seems to be improving, but after the light at the end of the tunnel there's another descent into a world of darkness, because the stunning look-alike, and the imposing structure of house 23, are hiding disturbing secrets.

  

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.

Sunrise in a Garden of Love & Evil by Barbara Monajem is Today's Kindle Romance Daily Deal

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Sunrise in a Garden of Love & Evil by Barbara Monajem as today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal.

The deal price of $1.99 is valid only for today, Friday, March 22, 2013.

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Sunrise in a Garden of Love & Evil
Barbara Monajem
A Bayou Gavotte Novel of Romantic Suspense (1st in series)
Love Spell

Dark secrets abound in the town of Bayou Gavotte, Louisiana …

Being irresistible sucks. Ophelia Beliveau learned that at puberty. When her friends grew breasts, she sprouted fangs as well. The effect on boys was even more dangerous.

Ophelia's peril has only increased. As a woman, there's been only one solution, but she can't avoid men forever. Solitude satisfies no craving, and now her self-imposed exile must end. A vandal has destroyed her garden. A web of blackmail and murder is being woven across town, with Ophelia at its heart. And then there's Gideon O'Toole, a detective sworn to uncover more secrets than she thirsts to bare …

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.

Mystery Bestsellers for the Week Ending March 22, 2013

A list of the top 15 Mystery Hardcover Bestsellers for the week ending March 22nd, 2013 has been posted by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Some minor shuffling among the top four titles this week, with Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn again retaining the top spot.

But we're thinking that may change next week; Harlan Coben's new stand-alone had one of the strongest debuts we've seen in a long time (below; position in backets).

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[6]: Six Years
Harlan Coben

Six years have passed since Jake Fisher watched Natalie, the love of his life, marry another man. Six years of hiding a broken heart by throwing himself into his career as a college professor. Six years of keeping his promise to leave Natalie alone, and six years of tortured dreams of her life with her new husband, Todd.

But six years haven't come close to extinguishing his feelings, and when Jake comes across Todd's obituary, he can't keep himself away from the funeral. There he gets the glimpse of Todd's wife he's hoping for … but she is not Natalie. Whoever the mourning widow is, she's been married to Todd for almost two decades, and with that fact everything Jake thought he knew about the best time of his life—a time he has never gotten over — is turned completely inside out.

As Jake searches for the truth, his picture-perfect memories of Natalie begin to unravel. Mutual friends of the couple either can't be found, or don't remember Jake. No one has seen Natalie in years. Jake's search for the woman who broke his heart, who lied to him, soon puts his very life at risk as it dawns on him that the man he has become may be based on a carefully constructed fiction.

Purchase Options

          

Today's Mystery and Suspense Update from Big Fish Games (130322)

Here is today's mystery and suspense update from Big Fish Games …

• The New Release is Secrets of the Dark: Mystery of the Ancestral Estate (Collector's Edition).

• The Daily Deal is Ghost Towns: The Cats of Ulthar, just $2.99 today only!.

• The current Catch of the Week is Amazing Adventures: Riddle of the Two Knights, just $2.99 through Sunday, March 24, 2013 only.

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Today's New Release is Secrets of the Dark: Mystery of the Ancestral Estate (Collector's Edition)

You will have to challenge yourself as a professional who specializes in most tangled cases and defeat the darkness to rescue an innocent soul. Earlier you’ve already had a chance to investigate strange cases in ancient Thai and Mexico. Now it’s time visit the Mediterranean coast and reveal the secret of an ancient family estate which was inherited by a young woman who is now begging you for help. Her life hangs in the balance and her fate is up to your strength and courage.

This is a special Collector's Edition release full of exclusive extras you won't find in the standard version, including: an integrated strategy guide; replayable mini-games and puzzles; and bonus gameplay.

A sample version is available to download and play for free for one hour.

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Today's Daily Deal is Ghost Towns: The Cats of Ulthar

Upon arriving in a strange city, you find the citizens ready to burn Menes at the stake! Wander the streets of Ulthar and discover what Menes did that got him in so much trouble in this incredible Hidden Object Puzzle Adventure game. Find out why the citizens worship cats from ancient times and try to save Menes from his gristly fate!

A sample version is available to download and play for free for one hour. You can purchase this game today only — Friday, March 22, 2013 — for $2.99.

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The current Catch of the Week is Amazing Adventures: Riddle of the Two Knights

An ancient chessboard is unearthed and the missing pieces need to be found. A curious trail leads you from the crowded bazaars of Morocco to the snow-swept summits of the Swiss Alps. With each new piece, a strange tale of two Medieval Knights is revealed. Complete 25 missions by finding hidden items and solving unique puzzles. Good luck!

A sample version is available to download and play for free for one hour. You can purchase this game at the special price of $2.99 through Sunday, March 24, 2013.

Telemystery: TNT Sets New and Returning Series Summer 2013 Premiere Dates

TNT announced today the Summer 2013 premiere dates for its new and returning series.

For Telemystery fans, here's a summary:

• Major Crimes Season Two: Monday, June 10th at 9 PM (ET/PT).

• King & Maxwell Season One: Monday, June 10th at 10 PM (ET/PT). This new series is based on characters created by crime novelist David Baldacci.

• Rizzoli & Isles Season Four: Tuesday, June 18th at 9 PM (ET/PT).

• Perception Season Two: Tuesday, June 18th at 10 PM (ET/PT).

• Cold Justice (working title) Season One: Tuesday, August 27th at 10 PM (ET/PT). This new unscripted procedural drama follows two top-notch female investigators as they dig into small town murder cases that have lingered for years without answers or closure.

Watch a quick promo for TNT's Summer 2013 season, below.

Keep up to date on the status of your favorite mystery and suspense television with our Telemystery Scoresheet. We've updated it with today's news.

MystereBooks: The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry, Now at a Special Price

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry, now available at a special price, courtesy of the publisher, .

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 (03/21/2013 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.

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The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry
Publisher:

Every gift has a price … every piece of lace has a secret …

Towner Whitney, the self-confessed unreliable narrator, hails from a family of Salem women who can read the future in the patterns in lace, and who have guarded a history of secrets going back generations. Now the disappearance of two women is bringing Towner back home to Salem — and is bringing to light the shocking truth about the death of her twin sister.

      

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.

Review: Birthdays for the Dead by Stuart MacBride

A Mysterious Review of …

Birthdays for the Dead by Stuart MacBride.

Review summary: The crimes depicted in this police procedural are horrific beyond description, but are intended not to shock the reader but to help define, and later develop, the detective investigating them. Too much misdirection, some of it introduced in a surprisingly clumsy manner, both slows down and muddles the storyline as it is unfolding. (Click here for text of full review.)

Our rating:

Birthdays for the Dead
Stuart MacBride
Harper (January 2013)

Publisher synopsis: Detective Constable Ash Henderson has a dark secret …

Five years ago his daughter, Rebecca, went missing on the eve of her thirteenth birthday. A year later the first card arrived: homemade, with a Polaroid picture stuck to the front — Rebecca, strapped to a chair, gagged and terrified. Every year another card: each one worse than the last.The tabloids call him "The Birthday Boy". He's been snatching girls for twelve years, always in the run-up to their thirteenth birthday, sending the families his homemade cards showing their daughters being slowly tortured to death.

But Ash hasn't told anyone about Rebecca's birthday cards — they all think she's just run away from home — because if anyone finds out, he'll be taken off the investigation. And he's sacrificed too much to give up before his daughter's killer gets what he deserves…

      

MystereBooks: A Novel Death by Judi Culbertson, 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 A Novel Death by Judi Culbertson. This Kindle book was listed at $1.99 as of the date and time of this post, Thursday, March 21, 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.

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A Novel Death by Judi Culbertson
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Like many other used booksellers, Delhi Laine, proprietor of Secondhand Prose, dreams of making the Great Find if not a Shakespearean Folio, then at least a fragment of an Emily Dickinson or Edgar Allan Poe manuscript. But after receiving a very rare and valuable children's book into her collection, she finds out such treasures can come at a terrible cost the suspicious death of one colleague and another left for dead days later. Her investigation into the true owner of the book reveals that those around her are not what they seem, as she is drawn into a world of deception, backroom dealings, and forgery.

Despite the dangers, Delhi is determined to protect the treasure while coping with avaricious booksellers, her estranged famous-poet husband, and whoever is behind the attack who now has her in their sights.

  

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.

New Green Band Trailer for Heist Thriller Trance

A few weeks ago we had the red-band trailer for the heist thriller Trance; today the studio has released a new green-band trailer (below).

James McAvoy stars as Simon, a fine art auctioneer, who teams up with a criminal gang to steal a Goya painting worth millions of dollars. But after suffering a blow to the head during the heist he awakens to discover he has no memory of where he hid the painting. When physical threats and torture fail to produce answers, the gang's leader Frank (Vincent Cassel) hires hypnotherapist Elizabeth Lamb (Rosario Dawson) to delve into the darkest recesses of Simon's psyche. As Elizabeth begins to unravel Simon's broken subconscious, the lines between truth, suggestion, and deceit begin to blur.

Directed by Danny Boyle from an original screenplay by Joe Ahearne and John Hodge, Trance opens in theaters April 5th, 2013.

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The Flower Master by Sujata Massey is Today's Third Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Flower Master by Sujata Massey as today's third free mystery ebook (A Rei Shimua Mystery; Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, March 21, 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.

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The Flower Master
Sujata Massey
A Rei Shimua Mystery
Publisher: HarperCollins

Winner of the 2000 Macavity Award for Best Mystery Novel.

Rei Shimura, a twentysomething part-California girl, part-Japanese antiques dealer, can't quite find her place in Tokyo society. Lately Rei's love life has fallen off the radar screen, and despite all her efforts, her new business isn't doing much better.

At her aunt's insistence, Rei enrolls in a course in ikebana, the famous Japanese art of flower arranging. Little does she realize what a cutthroat class it will be; she's hardly completed a lesson before her instructor is murdered.

Rei is ready to track down the killer, but suddenly the case hits close to home. She and her aunt are battered by waves of police questioning, press attention, and mysterious warnings. Skeletons are rattling in her family's closet, and Rei must open the door to a dangerous secret.

Rei's in for the excitement she's been missing as her search for the truth takes her through twisting new corridors of intrigue, romance, and murder. It's up to Rei, the black sheep, to keep her family name clear-and her own life safe-from an enemy with an unknown agenda.

  

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.

Missing Flowers by Karen Magill is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Missing Flowers by Karen Magill as today's second free mystery ebook (Kindle format only).

This title was listed for free as of the date and time of this post, March 21, 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.

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Missing Flowers
Karen Magill
Publisher: Saga Books

A Novel of Suspense

When psychic Julie Seer moves to Vancouver, her dreams are filled with visions of women being murdered. She doesn't know who is being killed, or why, until the day Julie goes to a press conference held by the Vancouver Police Station: a press conference to announce the formation of a special task force that will investigate the case of the prostitutes who have gone missing from Vancouver's East Side.

Detective Constable Santoro Ricci, an officer with the Vancouver Police Department, wants on the special task force. When he happens upon Julie at the press conference, Ricci finds himself unofficially investigating the case.

Julie also finds herself having visions where she is transported back in time into the body of a Chinese prostitute in the late 1800s. Through these visions, and stories told to her by long time residents of the city, Julie learns more of the history of Vancouver.

With the help of Francine, an east side prostitute, Julie and Santoro work together to solve the mystery of the missing women. When Francine and Julie are taken by the killer, Santoro must find the missing answers fast.

  

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.