Nominees for the 2014 Lambda Literary Awards have been announced by the Lambda Literary Foundation for LGBT books published during 2014. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on Monday, June 1st, 2015 in New York City.
The nominees for books in the mystery categories are …
Best Gay Mystery:
• A Gathering Storm by Jameson Currier (Chelsea Station Editions)
• Blackmail, My Love by Katie Gilmartin (Cleis Press)
• The Next by Rafe Haze (Wilde City Press)
• Fair Game by Josh Lanyon (Carina Press)
• Moon Over Tangier by Janice Law (Open Road)
• DeadFall by David Lennon (BlueSpike Publishing)
• Calvin's Head by David Swatling (Bold Strokes Books)
• From the Ashes by Marshall Thornton (MLR)
Best Lesbian Mystery:
• Done To Death by Charles Atkins (Severn House)
• Slash and Burn by Valerie Bronwen (Bold Strokes Books)
• The Old Deep and Dark by Ellen Hart (Minotaur Books)
• The Acquittal by Anne Laughline (Bold Strokes Books)
• UnCatholic Conduct by Stevie Mikayne (Bold Strokes Books)
Monday, March 09, 2015
Nominees for the 2014 Lambda Literary Awards Announced
Please Welcome Author S. W. Hubbard and The Mystery of Hoarding
with S. W. Hubbard
We are delighted to welcome author S. W. Hubbard to Omnimystery News.
Susan's second romantic thriller to feature estate sale agent Audrey Nealon is Treasure of Darkness (January 2015 trade paperback and ebook formats) and today she tells us more about "The Mystery of Hoarding".
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Photo provided courtesy of
S. W. Hubbard
Have you ever watched Hoarders on TV?
My husband, a man who recycles Christmas cards before I'm done reading them, doesn't understand the appeal. But most of us experience a chilling shiver of recognition when we see the stories of people who can't let go … of anything. That's because we all have certain items we simply can't bear to part with, even if we know we'll never use them or look at them again. The 20-year-old party dress, the lopsided pottery vase, the tower of Tupperware, the shelves full of books — they represent memories gone by, good intentions run amok, commitments never fulfilled. When I watch Hoarders, the horror stories of people whose lives have been overrun by their stuff make me murmur, "at least I'm not that bad."
I often write to exorcise my own demons. And I suspected hoarding — a little or a lot — was a demon many of my readers might share. So, since hoarding is such a universal experience, I decided to turn it into the centerpiece of a mystery. Luckily, Audrey Nealon, heroine of my Palmyrton Estate Sale Mystery Series, was ready for the challenge, and Treasure of Darkness began to take shape. Audrey would have to search through a hoarder's house to find the one buried gem of treasure. And she would find much, much more than she bargained for.
Although my writing method often involves making stuff up, then backtracking to verify if I have my facts straight, in this case, I did some research on hoarding before I began writing. I discovered that true hoarding is a mental illness, closely related to obsessive-compulsive disorder. And, there are different types of hoarders. I decided to make Harold, the hoarder in my novel, a highly intelligent engineer who can see the usefulness of every conceivable item, from a broken washing machine agitator to a collection of stuffed owls. In Harold's fevered mind, everything has value and nothing can be discarded, only recycled or repurposed.
I worked hard to make Harold scary, infuriating and yet oddly sympathetic. He operates on a logic only he can understand, and that makes him unpredictable. Audrey and her assistant, Jill, want to believe that Harold is odd but harmless, but they're never entirely sure. So the hunt for treasure continues, and the clues to terrible secrets house's past are slowly revealed. The deeper Audrey digs, the more danger she finds herself in.
You can read the first chapter of Treasure of Darkness on my website.
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S.W. Hubbard is the author of the Audrey Nealon estate sale mysteries as well as three Police Chief Frank Bennett mystery novels set in the Adirondack Mountains. Her short stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and the anthologies Crimes by Moonlight, The Mystery Box, and Adirondack Mysteries. She lives in Morristown, NJ, where she teaches creative writing to enthusiastic teens and adults, and expository writing to reluctant college freshmen.
For more information about the author, please visit her website at SWHubbard.net and her author page on Goodreads, or find her on Facebook and Twitter.
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Treasure of Darkness
S. W. Hubbard
A Palmyrton Estate Sale Mystery
What lies buried in a hoarder's house — precious treasure or ghastly secrets?
One moment of misguided generosity throws estate sale organizer Audrey Nealon's life into turmoil. She loses a client's money, cripples her budding romance, and witnesses a murder.
Strapped for cash, she accepts a questionable project: clearing out the home of a mentally ill hoarder who may have hidden valuable Civil War letters. What really lies at the bottom of twenty years' worth of collected buttons and antique dolls and stuffed owls and atlases? As Audrey digs through the hoarder's obsessions, she unleashes a vengeful response from all sides — the hoarder's angry neighbors, his alienated family, and the police. The house has destroyed lives in the past.
Will Audrey and those she loves — her friends, her father, and even her dog — be its next victims? As the final twist reveals, secrets can remain buried, but they never disappear.
Today's Selection of Daily Deals for Monday, March 09, 2015
Omnimystery News is pleased to feature a selection of today's Daily Deals found on Monday, March 09, 2015 at 7:30 AM ET …
Guidebook To Murder by Lynn Cahoon
A Jill Gardner, Tourist Trap Mystery (1st in series)
Publisher: Kensington
Kindle Daily Deal Price: 99¢
The Tenth Justice by Brad Meltzer
A Suspense Thriller
Publisher: HarperCollins
Nook Daily Find Price: $1.99 (price-matched by Amazon)
For more deals that may have been found after this post was created, see our Daily Deals page on Omnimystery News for an updated list.
Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. 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 purchasing it.
Today's Selection of Free MystereBooks for Monday, March 09, 2015
Omnimystery News is pleased to feature a selection of Free MystereBooks found on Monday, March 09, 2015 at 6:30 AM ET …
Angels Mark by Natalie Buske Thomas
A Serena Wilcox Mystery
Publisher: Independent Spirit
Price: FREE!
The Card Counter by James Kipling
A Crime Novel
Publisher: Gobal Village
Price: FREE!
For a summary of all of today's titles, plus any that may have been added since this post was created, visit our Free MystereBooks page. This page is updated daily, typically by 8 AM ET.
Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. 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 purchasing it.
Sunday, March 08, 2015
New This Week: Steeled for Murder, A Jesse Damon Crime Novel by KM Rockwood
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 March 2015 and priced $4.99 or less …
Steeled for Murder by KM Rockwood
A Jesse Damon Crime Novel (1st in series)
Publisher: Wildside Press
Price: $2.99 (as of 03/08/2015 at 7:30 PM ET).
— Steeled for Murder by KM Rockwood
Find more newly released mystery, suspense and thriller titles on the Omnimystery News Facebook page.
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.
