Mystery Bestsellers for the Week Ending August 30, 2014

A list of the top 15 Mystery Hardcover Bestsellers for the week ending August 30th, 2014 has been posted by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

No change in the order of the top five bestsellers, with the third and final book in the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness, The Book of Life, remaining in the top spot.

One new title enters the list this week; debut position in [brackets].

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[8]: The Long Way Home
Louise Penny
— The Armand Gamache Series (10th)

Happily retired in the village of Three Pines, Armand Gamache, former Chief Inspector of Homicide with the Sûreté du Québec, has found a peace he'd only imagined possible. On warm summer mornings he sits on a bench holding a small book, The Balm in Gilead, in his large hands. "There is a balm in Gilead," his neighbor Clara Morrow reads from the dust jacket, "to make the wounded whole."

While Gamache doesn't talk about his wounds and his balm, Clara tells him about hers. Peter, her artist husband, has failed to come home. Failed to show up as promised on the first anniversary of their separation. She wants Gamache's help to find him. Having finally found sanctuary, Gamache feels a near revulsion at the thought of leaving Three Pines. "There's power enough in Heaven," he finishes the quote as he contemplates the quiet village, "to cure a sin-sick soul." And then he gets up. And joins her.

Together with his former second-in-command, Jean-Guy Beauvoir, and Myrna Landers, they journey deeper and deeper into Québec. And deeper and deeper into the soul of Peter Morrow. A man so desperate to recapture his fame as an artist, he would sell that soul. And may have. The journey takes them further and further from Three Pines, to the very mouth of the great St. Lawrence river. To an area so desolate, so damned, the first mariners called it the land God gave to Cain. And there they discover the terrible damage done by a sin-sick soul.

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A Conversation with Novelist Eden Baylee

with Eden Baylee

We are delighted to welcome novelist Eden Baylee to Omnimystery News today.

Though a published author in several genres, Eden's first mystery thriller is Stranger at Sunset (lowercase publishing; June 2014 ebook format), a psychological suspense novel as seen through the eyes of different narrators, each with their own murky sense of justice.

We recently had the opportunity to talk with Eden about her new book.

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Omnimystery News: Introduce us to Stranger at Sunset and tell us a little more about its lead character.

Photo provided courtesy of
Eden Baylee

Eden Baylee: Stranger at Sunset is the first of a trilogy, which features my protagonist, Dr. Kate Hampton. What appeals to me most about her is her sharp mind. I always write intelligent women into my fiction. In this case, Kate is also infused with an odd sense of humor and a warm, somewhat volatile personality. She is a force to be reckoned with, even though you won't necessarily know that right away.

I think both men and women will relate to her, but for different reasons.

OMN: We had a hard time pinning down a category for Stranger at Sunset. How do you categorize it?

EB: I've never been a fan of labels for anything, and that includes books. When I started writing full-time back in 2010, I wrote literary erotica. I have several books of anthologies and novellas in this vein. My latest, Stranger at Sunset is my first novel and considered a psychological mystery/thriller.

Labels give readers an idea of what to expect, and they help marketers promote books. As a writer, however, I've found labels to be restrictive, and I'm not one to be pigeonholed. Given the misunderstanding around erotica, I had to consider the most seamless way to move into a different genre without creating a whole new identity. It helped that I had written flash fiction and short stories in multiple genres previously, but I'm new to the mystery/thriller genre as a novelist.

Many books cross genres. Certainly, authors should be able to as well.

OMN: Give us a summary of the book in a tweet.

EB: I love it when readers give me headlines for my book, so here's one that combines my tagline with one from a reviewer.

Vacation can be a killer in STRANGER AT SUNSET ~ "A psychological mystery/thriller of literary quality."

OMN: How much of your own personal or professional experience have you included in the book?

EB: People I've known inspired the characters, though no character is an accurate portrayal of any one specific person. For some, I've adopted character traits of real people and enhanced them. For others, I've toned down the real-life personalities. Truth is stranger than fiction sometimes!

For example, the antagonist, Matthew Kane has traits of someone I knew well. His nemesis in the book, Adam, is modeled after someone I've observed from afar. If these two men ever had to spend a day with each other in real life, they would most certainly kill one another.

OMN: How true are you to the setting of Stranger at Sunset?

EB: The setting of my book is based at a resort in Jamaica, where I have stayed. I took minor liberties with the description, but for the most part, it is accurate.

I enjoyed highlighting different parts of the setting throughout the book — from the people, to the landscape, to the history. No one who reads the book should say "Wow, that is completely inaccurate!” because I represented the setting and history as realistically as possible. It helps that I have been there, but regardless of this fact, there is no excuse to get things wrong unless you are a sloppy researcher or you don't care. In this Internet age, we are able to obtain information to create authentic settings even if we've never visited a place.

The setting is vital for my book because the theme of water is important. Stranger at Sunset takes place in an environment that would not normally lend itself to conflict. That's part of the mystery.

OMN: If you could travel anywhere in the world, all expenses paid, to research the setting for a book, where would it be?

EB: My next book will take place in Asia, probably Indonesia, Thailand, and Hong Kong. I've been to these locations before, but it's been some years, and I'm due another trip. It's always best to have the sights and sounds of a place fresh in my mind when writing about it. Being there enhances the other senses as well and makes for a more sensual experience for the reader.

OMN: What are some of your outside interests? Have any of these found their way into your books?

EB: I'm a music snob and a fan of 60s and 70s rock, blues, jazz, and I write about music regularly on my blog. There is even a soundtrack available from iTunes, which is the companion piece to Stranger at Sunset. I play harmonica and guitar and both these instruments are present in my book.

I love good conversation, which to my mind is the exchange of ideas (not gossip about people or regurgitating current events). It's the best way to spend my time getting to know someone. You will always find scenes of conversation mixed with prose in my stories.

OMN: Tell us more about the book's cover and title.

EB: I like covers that are discreet, so you will never see full faces portrayed on my books. I prefer the reader to imagine what my characters look like, and I don't provide full details about characters' appearances in my stories. Beauty or ugliness is always in the eye of the beholder.

The cover of Stranger at Sunset can be easily understood by reading the prologue, readily available via the "Look Inside" option on Amazon. I love the "noir-ish" appearance of it, and less is always more for me. My covers represent my writing — spare, but with room to discover more along the way.

Stranger at Sunset wasn't my first title. I had several others including: Strangers in Paradise, Stranger at Sundown, and so on. I settled on Stranger at Sunset because there are several meanings the title can take. "Stranger" can be both a noun and an adjective, and it alludes to how we view others as well as ourselves. "Sunset" refers to the time when a pivotal scene takes place in the book as well as the name of the resort in Jamaica where the story takes place.

OMN: Complete this sentence for us: "I am a psychological mystery/thriller writer and thus I am also ...".

EB: I am a psychological mystery/thriller writer and thus I am also ... adept at analyzing your thoughts while meticulously planning your demise.

OMN: Do you enjoy watching movies?

EB: I love mystery thrillers and gangster films, many directed by David Fincher, the Coen Brothers, Guy Ritchie, and Quentin Tarantino.

Of course, I love the classic directors like Alfred Hitchcock, Orson Welles, Mike Leigh. In film, I tend toward off-the-wall characters and storylines that are not linear. It's not all that different from the books I like to read.

OMN: Create a Top 5 list for us on any subject.

EB: Top 5 professions I wanted to be as a child:

• Assassin
• Photojournalist
• Blues guitarist
• Escort
• Gymnast

As you can see, I was always destined to be a writer. There was no way I could do all these things except in fiction.

OMN: What's next for you?

EB: As a full-time author, it's the next book in my series with Kate Hampton, entitled A Fragile Truce. Writing will be balanced with reading, researching, and promoting of my current books. Along the way, I hope to fit in sleep, travel, and some leisure time. Maybe I'll even sneak in a game of Scrabble.

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Eden Baylee left a twenty-year banking career to become a full-time writer. She incorporates many of her favorite things into her writing such as: travel; humor; music; poetry; art; and much more. Stranger at Sunset is her first mystery novel, on the heels of several books of erotic anthologies and short stories. She writes in multiple genres.

An introvert by nature and an extrovert by design, Eden is most comfortable at home with her laptop surrounded by books. She is an online Scrabble junkie and a social media enthusiast, but she really needs to get out more often!

To stay apprised of Eden's book-related news, please add your name to her mailing list.

For more information about the author, please visit her website at EdenBayleeBooks.com or find her on Facebook and Twitter.

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Stranger at Sunset
Eden Baylee
A Suspense Thriller

Vacation can be a killer …

Dr. Kate Hampton, a respected psychiatrist, gathers with a group of strangers at her favorite travel spot, Sunset Villa in Jamaica. Included in the mix are friends of the owners, a businessman with dubious credentials, and a couple who won the trip from a TV game show.

It is January 2013, following the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. The luxury resort is struggling, not from the storm, but due to a scathing review from caustic travel writer, Matthew Kane. The owners have invited him back with hopes he will pen a more favorable review to restore their reputation.

Even though she is haunted by her own demons, Kate feels compelled to help. She sets out to discover the motivation behind Kane's vitriol. Used to getting what he wants, has the reviewer met his match in Kate? Or has she met hers?

  

Jack Stone by Steven Savile and Steve Lockley is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook

Omnimystery News is pleased to feature …

Jack Stone by Steven Savile and Steve Lockley

The Jack Stone Series

Publisher: BadPress

… as today's second free mystery ebook.

  

This title was listed for free as of August 30, 2014 at 7:10 AM ET. Prices are subject to change without notice. The price displayed on the vendor website at the time of the 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.

More on today's free book, below.

This book contains the entire Jack Stone series including Northern Fire, Northern Grit, and Northern Soul.

No good deed goes unpunished for men like Jack Stone. His best friend lies bleeding slowly to death when a bad situation goes to worse. A favour's being cashed in. He can't say no. Not that he ever would. He owes Micky Brannon big time. Once upon a time they'd been the Three Musketeers, Micky, Chris Drury and Jack Stone. Then Chris had come back to Brize Norton in a box and Micky had lost his legs thanks to an IED.

Shrinks called it Survivor's Guilt, Jack called it being a mate.

Micky's baby sister, Carly, is in trouble. Jack's promised to find her and bring her home safe. She's not the innocent young kid he remembers — but then he hasn't seen her since she was six and called him Uncle Jack. His search leads Jack into a seedy underworld of sex clubs, violent crime, and desperate people. The locals call it Paradise, the girls trapped there call it Hell. Jack calls it home.

And when he thinks he's done … it's only just beginning. Because trouble has a way of finding men like Jack Stone.

This time it comes in the guise of an old school friend looking for a favour. A grand up front, no questions asked. The job sounds simple enough, an overnight drive down South, pick up some merchandise, bring it back up North. Nothing to it. But Jack doesn't do 'no questions'. When something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. So Jack walks away.

For any other man that would be the end of it, but not Jack. A simple haircut turns into a front row seat for a shakedown and his innate sense of justice won't let Jack walk away this time, even if it means he's on the wrong side of the local mob. If he's going to help he's got to find an old cabaret singer from the 70s. The problem is she doesn't want to be found, and for good reason.

Jack's good at what he does though. It's only when he brings finds the girl that he realises just how badly he's screwed-up.

He's brought the devil to her door.

And now there's hell to pay.

— Jack Stone by Steven Savile and Steve Lockley

Gray Ghost by C. L. Swinney is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

Omnimystery News is pleased to feature …

Gray Ghost by C. L. Swinney

A Bill Dix Mystery

Publisher: RJ Parker Publishing

… as today's free mystery ebook.

  

This title was listed for free as of August 30, 2014 at 7:00 AM ET. Prices are subject to change without notice. The price displayed on the vendor website at the time of the 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.

More on today's free book, below.

While on a fly fishing vacation to Andros Island in the Bahamas, narcotics detectives Dix and Petersen discover their fishing guides were killed when a sudden blast of gunfire fractured their speedboat, Gray Ghost. Local gossip has it that Gray Ghost went to the ocean floor with a hundred million dollars' worth of cocaine in the hull.

Dix and Petersen, against their better judgment, are drawn into helping their island friends even though it could cost them their careers. Leads are chased down in the Bahamas and Miami. The two detectives identify a diabolical plot of a sinister man known only as "The Caller."

An elaborate trap is set for The Caller, but he's two steps ahead of the detectives. As the drama unfolds, it's unclear who can be trusted. When it appears The Caller will get away once again, lead detective Dix and his sidekick Petersen exhaust everything they have in an effort to capture the criminal mastermind.

— Gray Ghost by C. L. Swinney

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta is Today's Teen Kindle Daily Deal

Omnimystery News is pleased to feature Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta as today's Teen Kindle Daily Deal.

The deal price of $1.99 is valid only for today, Saturday, August 30, 2014.

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

A Mystery

Publisher: HarperTeen

Price: $1.99 (as of 08/30/2014 at 6:20 AM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

"What do you want from me?" he asks. What I want from every person in my life, I want to tell him. More.

Abandoned by her mother on Jellicoe Road when she was eleven, Taylor Markham, now seventeen, is finally being confronted with her past. But as the reluctant leader of her boarding school dorm, there isn't a lot of time for introspection. And while Hannah, the closest adult Taylor has to family, has disappeared, Jonah Griggs is back in town, moody stares and all.

Nothing is as it seems and every clue leads to more questions as Taylor tries to work out the connection between her mother dumping her, Hannah finding her then and her sudden departure now, a mysterious stranger who once whispered something in her ear, a boy in her dreams, five kids who lived on Jellicoe Road eighteen years ago, and the maddening and magnetic Jonah Griggs, who knows her better than she thinks he does. If Taylor can put together the pieces of her past, she might just be able to change her future.

— Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Today's Mystery and Suspense Update from Big Fish Games (140830)

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

• The New Release is Amaranthine Voyage: The Shadow of Torment.

• The Daily Deal is Echoes of the Past: The Kingdom of Despair, just $2.99 today only!

• The current Catch of the Week is Deadly Voltage: Rise of the Invincible, just $2.99 through Sunday, August 31, 2014 only.

• Today's Special Deal — Labor Day Sale: All games are Two for the Price of One! Use coupon code LABOR for Collector's Edition games and use coupon code DAY for Standard games. Offer valid through September 1st, 2014 only until 11:59 PM PT.

Visit the Omnimystery Entertainment Network for more games of mystery and suspense!

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The New Release is Amaranthine Voyage: The Shadow of Torment

Long ago, Anther was a realm of beauty and magic, but the appearance of a being named Torment drained their magic and forced the survivors to flee to a world called Earth. Years later, one of their artifacts has been uncovered, reopening the way between both worlds. You must enter the portal and stop Torment before it turns its sights toward Earth. An ancient prophecy declares that you will be the one to save both worlds, but will it come true? Find out in this breathtaking Hidden Object Puzzle Adventure game!

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

Also available for this game:

• Get the Strategy Guide
• Check out the Blog Walkthrough
• For a more in-depth experience, see the Collector's Edition

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Today's Daily Deal is Echoes of the Past: The Kingdom of Despair

End the witch's evil reign at last! Explore the twists and turns of a mysterious world as you travel through a strange, cursed kingdom, where the characters have been robbed of their beauty and talents by a cruel sorceress. Test your wits as you gather the missing amulets, restore the lives of the cursed characters — and open the portal to return home!

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

Also available for this game:

• Get the Strategy Guide.
• Check out the Blog Walkthrough.
• For a more in-depth experience, see the Collector's Edition.

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The current Catch of the Week is Deadly Voltage: Rise of the Invincible

A mysterious force from a parallel universe wreaks havoc on a small town as a scientist fights to stop it from taking over the world! With its dazzling animation, super-charged gameplay and electrifying story, this is a hidden object adventure for all ages! Plug in today!

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

Murder in Mystic Cove, An Addie Gorsky Mystery by Daryl Anderson, 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, Carina Press …

Murder in Mystic Cove by Daryl Anderson

An Addie Gorsky Mystery (1st in series)

Publisher: Carina Press

Price: $0.99 (as of 08/29/2014 at 5:00 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Guarding the manicured wilds of an exclusive retirement community might seem like exile to a homicide cop. But Addie Gorsky moved to Florida to live with her ailing father, not to chase criminals. In fact, her new job as head of Mystic Cove security is a nice break from all the big-city bloodshed.

But when the community's most despised resident is found dead in his tricked-out golf cart, Addie's ready for action. The local cops focus on the obvious suspect — the unhappy wife — but Addie knows there's more to the story. When the sheriff asks for assistance, she can't resist. Only the deeper she digs, the more questions she turns up.

Surrounded by secretive, tight-lipped residents, Addie soon finds herself hip-deep in a mystery as tangled as cypress roots — and directly in the sights of a cool, clever killer who has no compunction about killing again …

— Murder in Mystic Cove by Daryl Anderson

New This Week: Dead Man Stalking, A Barbara Marr Mystery by Karen Cantwell

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 August 2014 and priced $4.99 or less …

Dead Man Stalking by Karen Cantwell

A Barbara Marr Mystery (5th in series)

Publisher: Boundless

Price: $0.99 (as of 08/29/2014 at 4:30 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

When Howard and the girls leave town, Barb thinks she'll have some quiet, peaceful alone time. Of course, this is calamity-prone Barbara Marr. Her life doesn't know quiet or peaceful. And forget alone.

With her air conditioning on the fritz, Barb accepts an invitation from a famous thriller writer to spend a few days in a cool and comfortable lakeside house. There is just one problem: the house has a few odd characters lurking about. They aren't after Barb, but that doesn't stop her from becoming outrageously tangled in the lunacy and danger than ensues.

— Dead Man Stalking by Karen Cantwell

40 Days 40 Nights, A Tom Crane Thriller by Wendy Cartmell, Now Available at a Special Price

Amazon Kindle Countdown Deals are limited-time discounts on Kindle-exclusive books.

Omnimystery News is pleased to present you with one of today's titles … but take advantage of this deal now as the price will go up to its digital list price soon! (See the countdown clock on the book product page to see how much time remains on this deal.)

40 Days 40 Nights by Wendy Cartmell

A Tom Crane Thriller (2nd in series)

Publisher: Endeavour Press

Price: $0.99 (as of 08/29/2014 at 4:00 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Summer 2012. Aldershot Garrison has been overrun by Team GB as they make their final preparations for the Olympic Games. Tasked with babysitting the athletes for the duration of their stay, Sergeant Major Crane has braced himself for an uneventful few weeks.

But when the body of a soldier is discovered and supplies start disappearing from the garrison, Crane knows that something sinister is afoot. As a faceless evil infiltrates the Army barracks, Crane sets out to investigate.

But what is the connection between these seemingly unrelated events? Can Crane find the source of the looming threat? And can he do it before his 40 days and 40 nights are up?

— 40 Days 40 Nights by Wendy Cartmell

Flashpoint by Gordon Korman, a New 39 Clues Adventure

Omnimystery News is pleased to present in this post a new First Clues: Mysteries for Kids series title published this month …

Flashpoint by Gordon Korman

Series: The 39 Clues

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Format(s): Hardcover, eBook

Recommended for Cadet Sleuths, Ages 10 to 12

  

For more information about the book, see a synopsis, below.

Tick Tock. Sixteen-year-old Amy Cahill only has few days to live. There's a poison coursing through her, and her only chance is to collect ingredients for an antidote. Too bad the antidote ingredients are scattered around the world. And too bad that survival is by far Amy's smallest problem.

The antidote she needs is also the only thing capable of stopping a deadly enemy. J. Rutherford Pierce is on the brink of becoming the most powerful man in the world, and if he does, no one will be safe. Amy and her younger brother, Dan, will do everything it takes to bring Pierce down. Even if Amy must pay the ultimate price.

— Flashpoint by Gordon Korman

New This Week: The Housewife Assassin's Killer App, A Housewife Assassin Mystery by Josie Brown

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 August 2014 and priced $4.99 or less …

The Housewife Assassin's Killer App by Josie Brown

A Housewife Assassin Mystery (8th in series)

Publisher: Signal Press

Price: $3.99 (as of 08/29/2014 at 3:00 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

In order to flush out an internationally renowned hacker who is wreaking havoc with top secret documents inside the United States' Intelligence Community's secured database, housewife assassin Donna Stone infiltrates three very successful high tech corporations:

• A company providing smart phones and other wireless devices with an operating system that contains artificial intelligence designed to meet your every need — even if it kills you;
• A tech conglomerate CEO who plans to broker the country's intelligence secrets to the highest bidder, be it a terrorist or enemy state;
• And an interactive game start-up with an avatar on the deadliest mission of all: kill Donna.

Can she save the world from terror — and at the same time protect her children from the painful knowledge of the father who deserted them?

— The Housewife Assassin's Killer App by Josie Brown

Assassin's Game by Ward Larsen, New in Bookstores during August 2014

Today's featured new hardcover mystery, suspense, or thriller title scheduled to be published during August 2014 is …

Assassin's Game by Ward Larsen

A Suspense Thriller

Publisher: Forge Books

        

For a list of more new hardcover titles to be published this month, visit our New Mysteries page for August 2014. For new paperback mysteries, visit The Mystery Bookshelf where a selection of August 2014 mysteries, novels of suspense, and thrillers are shelved.

More about our featured title, below …

David Slaton has a good life. He has a new wife and a house in the Virginia suburbs. But he also has a dark past. Slaton is a former kidon, the most lethal Israeli assassin ever created.

After decades of work, a brilliant scientist has taken Iran to the threshold of its dream — a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile. Mossad must eliminate the man, but with a spy lurking high in its ranks there is only one option: bring back Slaton. The kidon has vowed to never kill again, but when his wife is attacked and forced to flee across Europe, events force his hand.

Slaton plots to assassinate one of the most closely guarded men on earth. Success is improbable. Survival unlikely. Only when he learns the labyrinthine truth does Slaton see one high-stakes chance. A chance for an assassin's game.

— Assassin's Game by Ward Larsen

Telemystery: A&E Cancels Longmire after Three Seasons

In what came as a complete surprise to us — and maybe to you, too — A&E has canceled Longmire, a Wyoming-set crime drama based on a character created by mystery author Craig Johnson.

"We would like to thank the phenomenal cast, crew and producers of Longmire, along with our partners at Warner Horizon, for their tireless work on three seasons of quality dramatic storytelling," A&E said in a statement. "We are incredibly proud of what we have achieved together."

The most recently concluded third season ended on a cliffhanger, suggesting the producers and scriptwriters were caught off guard as well. Warner Horizon is expected to immediately start shopping the popular show to other networks.

Murder by the Seaside, A Patience Price Mystery by Julie Anne Lindsey, 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, Carina Press …

Murder by the Seaside by Julie Anne Lindsey

A Patience Price Mystery (1st in series)

Publisher: Carina Press

Price: $0.99 (as of 08/29/2014 at 1:30 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Armed with a new counseling degree, Patience Price is eager to move back home to Chincoteague Island to help folks with their problems. But she finds the streets awash in more than East Coast charm. There's been a murder, and Adrian Davis, the town golden boy who once stomped her heart into a zillion pieces, is the main suspect. Now he's on the run, claiming he's innocent. Patience finds this … poetic. Not that she holds a grudge.

Adrian's mom is sure that with her FBI background Patience can find the truth. Yes, she was at the FBI — in human resources. Still, she looks into it, but not everyone is happy with her snooping. Either that, or the welcome wagon has some bold new policies involving drive-by shootings.

Things really heat up when a hunky former coworker, an actual FBI agent, arrives to help. But he may be too late; the quaint island harbors deadly secrets — and Patience is running out of time.

— Murder by the Seaside by Julie Anne Lindsey

Pulse, A Frank Quinn Mystery by John Lutz, 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, Pinnacle Books …

Pulse by John Lutz

A Frank Quinn Mystery (7th in series)

Publisher: Pinnacle Books

Price: $2.99 (as of 08/29/2014 at 1:00 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Some killers come back for more …

The killer's depravity is insatiable. What he does to his victims is unthinkable. Homicide detective turned P.I. Frank Quinn has seen this M.O. before. A demented ritual, it's the work of Daniel Danielle — a notorious serial killer who blurs the line between male and female, human and monster.

Danielle disappeared ten years ago. Is a copy cat repeating the crimes? Or has Danielle made a deadly return? Either way, this time the killing won't stop …

— Pulse by John Lutz

New This Week: Hollywood Enemy, A Hollywood Alphabet Series Thriller by M. Z. Kelly

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 August 2014 and priced $4.99 or less …

Hollywood Enemy by M. Z. Kelly

A Hollywood Alphabet Series Thriller (5th in series)

Publisher: M. Z. Kelly

Price: $2.99 (as of 08/29/2014 at 12:30 PM ET).

  

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So you think you’ve got problems…

Meet LAPD Detective Kate Sexton and her canine partner, Bernie. Thirty years after Kate's father was murdered in cold blood his killer is back and he's coming for her. After the department decides to temporarily assign her to work with the FBI to get her out of harm's way, Kate soon learns that things have gone from bad to worse when she's assigned to help track down The Artist, one of the most deranged and sadistic serial killers in the history of the agency.

As The Artist's killing cycle approaches, Kate teams with hard-headed FBI agent Joe Dawson, who has recently come out of retirement to work the case. As Kate and Joe track the killer, things take an unexpected turn. The Artist returns to the place where his killing cycle began, at the same time Kate herself is stalked by the deranged mad man who shattered her family by killing her father when she was a little girl.

— Hollywood Enemy by M. Z. Kelly

A Conversation with Thriller Writer Daniel O'Neil

with Daniel O'Neil

We are delighted to welcome novelist Daniel O'Neil to Omnimystery News today.

Dan's debut thriller is Bodies on the Potomac (Open Road; July 2014 ebook formats) and we recently had the opportunity to spend some time with him talking about the book.

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Omnimystery News: Introduce us to the lead characters of Bodies on the Potomac.

Photo provided courtesy of
Daniel O'Neil

Daniel O'Neil: Taylor Clark is a former chief of staff to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Now he lives a cushy life in the Lowcountry of South Carolina, but it's not enough. He's driven to help keep his country safe from terrorists, and his arrangement with Loraine Sinatra suits him perfectly.

Loraine heads up a black unit deep within one of America's most visible but misunderstood law enforcement organizations, and Clark is her go-to guy. His arrangement with Loraine is free-lance, creating even more running room than is typical for a black operator. But it's his internal moral compass that keeps Clark within boundaries that he considers acceptable, even if others in Washington might not. While Loraine is a lifer, having clawed her way to the top in Federal law enforcement, she too is willing to turn a blind eye to certain actions if it means capturing or killing those who wish to harm the USA.

Clark and Loraine work well together, enjoy light moments even under the crush of pressure, and both possess an indomitable spirit along with a fierce will to eradicate the bad guys. In the next book, more backstory will emerge about Clark. That manuscript is in the early stages of rewrite.

OMN: Tell us something about the book that isn't mentioned in the publisher's synopsis.

DO: Bodies on the Potomac is about the characters. For instance, Alice Estero and Calloway Ridge are members of the US House of Representatives. Both are enormously corrupt, memorable, and difficult not to love.

Clark's love for his fiancée and his yellow lab paint him with a softer brush than might be expected, and Rasey Campbell is a complex woman whose role in the story has many facets.

OMN: How did you go about researching the plot points of the story?

DO: The Internet is a bonanza for writers. But everything isn't in Dr. Google's brain, and that means sometimes relying on old-fashioned methods such as actually talking with those who would have an answer or valid opinion. Maybe the owner of a restaurant, or a current car dealer, or a firearms manufacturer, a government contractor. Interesting tidbits come from sources such as those, things that would never be found in a written account. And it's an on-going pleasure that nearly every stranger I called out of the clear blue sky was willing to offer time and input. Plus I can never thank friends and colleagues enough for putting up with my pestering.

OMN: How true are you to the settings in Bodies on the Potomac?

DO: The locations portrayed are real, and while literary license was certainly available, it was used sparingly. I believe readers enjoy a taste of travelogue in their fiction, and so I stay pretty true to the locations where I set the action. The choice of locales is obviously subjective, an author's prerogative, and so I used regions that I love personally and with which I'm familiar. I did use a totally fabricated automobile manufacturer, however, as that gave me considerably more flexibility in story construction.

OMN: What is the best advice you've received as an author?

DO: I believe it was the author Michael Connelly who wrote that if you want to be a writer, then write something every day. I always remember that, even if it's a day off. Just a line, just a paragraph. Or a note for a later scene. But something. It keeps me in the game.

OMN: What have you learned, or can others learn, from advice and criticism?

DO: When someone tells you that rejection isn't personal, they're wrong. It is very personal and hurts like hell. But you need to go on.

OMN: What might you say to aspiring writers?

DO: The short answer is, don't take "no" for an answer. That doesn't mean, in my opinion, being obstinate or resisting sound advice from professionals, but if a writer caves at the first sign of resistance, the chances of ever completing the process is quite small. Again, in my opinion.

OMN: Tell us a little more about the book's title and cover.

DO: My publisher/distributor, Open Road Integrated Media, is to be commended for the cover. Once I had the title, the basic concept of the cover was simple: a cool photo across the Potomac with the Lincoln Memorial the focal point (you'll need to read the book to understand the significance of the looming Lincoln Memorial). Once the photo was selected, cropping, intensity, and coloring would make or break the cover. The first effort they sent blew me away. No changes were ever made. One swing, a home run. The title wasn't as quick and easy. I went through a number of working titles, but during one of the rewrites a passage in a certain scene captured my attention. From the mind of the villain I fashioned the title, Bodies on the Potomac .

OMN: What kinds of books did you read when you were young?

DO: Early in my life I discovered Ian Fleming. Well, better said, I discovered James Bond. And what teenage boy could resist addiction to fast cars, speeding bullets, hot women and high stakes gambling — all in the name of saving the world from ingenious bad guys who hung around with women named Pussy Galore, spoke with deep foreign accents, and were protected by bodyguards they called Oddjob. Heck, the Cold War was at its zenith, yet along comes a book titled From Russia With Love. What would you expect me to do?

OMN: Create a Top Five list for us on any subject.

DO: Top Five place to visit: Santorini; Portofino; Venice; Capri; and San Francisco.

OMN: What's next for you?

DO: More Clark and Sinatra is on the way. It's a chilling story that could easily be tomorrow's headline. Clark is left chasing his tail after a hotel explosion kills or maims hundreds of people. If he doesn't get out ahead of events, the slaughter of innocents will continue …

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Daniel O'Neil is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a former sports broadcaster and current insurance consultant. His personal collection of fiction is extensive and serves as his inspiration to introduce readers to Bodies on the Potomac, his debut novel. O'Neil, the father of two sons, has lived in a variety of locations, including Wisconsin, California, Indiana, Kentucky, and South Carolina. He currently resides in Florida where he is at work on his next book.

For more information about the author, please visit his website at DanielOneilBooks.com or find him on Facebook and Twitter.

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Bodies on the Potomac
Daniel O'Neil
A Thriller

Karl Blumenthal's Bluffton, South Carolina automobile dealership is being terminated by Universal Motors. He believes it's because he's failed to financially back the reelection efforts of the sitting US president.

For guidance, Blumenthal calls on good friend and former Washington power broker Taylor Clark. But Clark is skeptical. However, when a live round fired from a silenced pistol narrowly misses him, Clark begins to fear the worst — that the country could be on the edge of the messiest national scandal since Watergate.

Clark immediately engages his boss, Loraine Sinatra, a feared Washington operator who secretly controls a black unit buried deep within one of America's least understood but most powerful and autonomous law enforcement organizations. Clark and Sinatra search desperately for footing in the investigation, tapping sources they haven't called on for years. When they arrive seconds too late to prevent a firearms confrontation on Blumenthal's front lot, it becomes clear that a national catastrophe looms. It isn't long before they discover that Bluffton is nothing more than a single speck in a bold scheme masterminded by Russian billionaire Mikael Azarov to bend the president of the United States to Moscow's will by seizing control of Universal Motors for himself.

Azarov's daring plot places his $25 billion fortune at risk — but he has killed before, and he's willing to kill again if that's what it takes to win. It's up to Clark to stop him.

From the Lowcountry of South Carolina to the halls of power in the nation's capital, from the skyscrapers of San Francisco's famed financial district to the stormy streets of flooded Savannah, Clark's resourcefulness and nerve fuel his pursuit of the truth — a pursuit that ultimately ends in violent public death.