Mystery Book Review: Angels Fall by Baron R. Birtcher

Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of Angels Fall by Baron R. Birtcher. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.

Angels Fall by Baron R. Birtcher
A Mike Travis Mystery

Iota Publishing (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-9793720-1-1 (0979372011)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9793720-1-8 (9780979372018)
Publication Date: April 2008
List Price: $23.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): The disappearance of a teenage girl draws former Los Angeles detective Mike Travis away from his scuba charter business into the bowels of an underground culture driven by designer narcotics and violent sex. What he uncovers is a world built on secrets and entire lives built on lies. But as Travis unravels one set of deceits, he finds himself confronted with visions of his own past: his own complicity in an act of shocking cruelty. His investigation glimpses a hellish side of paradise unseen by tourists, painted with the dark brushstrokes of hard-boiled tropical noir. This is the story of one man's desire to outrun the corrosive powers of vast wealth and personal vengeance while attempting to tame the demons that dwell in his own dark and violent past. The cost of moral corruption and the high price of redemption plays out against a backdrop of coffee fields and lush jungle, of rich sunsets and the rhythmic swell of the Hawaiian sea.

Review: Scuba charter owner Mike Travis becomes embroiled in the investigation of a missing teenager in Angels Fall, the third mystery in this series by Baron R. Birtcher.

Mike's Hawaiian life is nearly ideal in paradise. He lives on his yacht, the love of his life returns his love, his scuba diving business is going well, and he's part owner of a lucrative coffee bean operation. But he also finds himself with his spoiled teenage runaway nephew, Miles. When Edita, the daughter of Mike's partner, asks him to locate her missing friend, he's hesitant. Ashley hasn't been seen or heard from in four days, but her parents refuse to involve the police. Ashley's 18 years old and has a right to disappear, he reasons. Besides, he has no authority to be involved. Regardless, he finally does agree to look into the matter, and Mike, together with Miles and Edita, enter a dark world of religious prejudice, designer drugs, date rape, suicide, and murder.

The narrative moves along at a rapid clip in Angels Fall which is probably a good thing as it doesn't allow the reader too much time to dwell on some of the seemingly far-fetched plot points. The characters are colorfully drawn, a little larger than life maybe, not quite caricatures, but close. The contrast between the dark and sometimes lurid environment in which Mike finds himself and the nearly idyllic image that many people have of the islands is almost surreal and stylishly accomplished.

Angels Fall is not quite the crime noir novel that the author may have intended, but as a suspense thriller with a number of unexpected plot twists, it works well.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Angels Fall and to Breakthrough Promotions for providing a copy of the book for this review.

Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.

For more mystery book reviews visit Mysterious Reviews, a partner with the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books which is committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Mystery Bestsellers for April 04, 2008

A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending April 04, 2008 has been posted on the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books website.

There are a number of significant changes this week, with three new titles entering the top 15 and Jonathan Kellerman's latest Alex Delaware thriller, Compulsion, taking over the top spot.

Jumping into the 6th position is Hollywood Crows, the second mystery in the Nathan "Hollywood Nate" Weiss series by Joseph Wambaugh. When LAPD cops Hollywood Nate and Bix Rumstead find themselves caught up with bombshell Margot Aziz, they think they're just having some fun. But in Hollywood, nothing is ever what it seems. To them, Margot is a harmless socialite, stuck in the middle of an ugly divorce from the nefarious nightclub-owner Ali Aziz. What Nate and Bix don't know is that Margot's no helpless victim: the femme fatale is setting them both up. But Ms. Aziz isn't the only one with a deadly plan.

Private investigator Harry Dresden, the only professional wizard to advertise his services in the Chicago Yellow Pages, returns in Small Favor, the 10th mystery in this series by Jim Butcher. No one's tried to kill Harry for almost an entire year, and his life finally seems to be calming down. For once, the future looks fairly bright. But the past casts one hell of a long shadow. An old bargain has placed Harry in debt to Mab, monarch of the Winter Court of the Sidhe, the Queen of Air and Darkness-and she's calling in her marker. It's a small favor he can't refuse ... one that will trap Harry between a nightmarish foe and an equally deadly ally, and one that will strain his skills -- and loyalties -- to their very limits. Publishers Weekly says Small Favor "will intrigue seasoned fans as well as newcomers attracted by last year's TV adaptation of the series."

For White House advisors Jon and Erin Bennett, the world seems to be spinning dangerously out of control in Joel C. Rosenberg's 5th thriller in this series, Dead Heat. A new dictator is rising in Iraq. China is making threatening new moves toward Taiwan. North Korean forces appear ready to strike south. Israel is feverishly trying to complete the Third Temple. Oil prices are surging. And in the wake of an horrific war in the Middle East, President James MacPherson’s second term is coming to an end. Now the battle to succeed him is heating up into one of the most fiercely contested presidential elections in American history, and the Bennetts realize the stakes could not be higher. Who will lead a bitterly divided country over the next four years? What can the U.S. do to shape the new world order? And just what role--if any--does the U.S. play in the last days? As the presidential campaign narrows into a dead heat, the Secret Service learns of a catastrophic plot to assassinate one of the candidates--but which one, and can the terrorists be stopped in time?

On our bestseller page, we've added an icon next to every title that is available for immediate download onto the Amazon Kindle. To learn about this wireless reading device, visit the Amazon Kindle page for more information. And don't forget to check our Pre-Order Mysteries page where you can save an additional 5% when you purchase your mystery books prior to their publication date.

The top four mystery bestsellers this week are shown below:

Please visit the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books where we are committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Mystery Book Review: The Stolen Gem by Alissa Wood

Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of The Stolen Gem by Alissa Wood. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.

The Stolen Gem by Alissa Wood
A Vicki Silver Mystery

Summertime Books (Paperback)
ISBN-10: 0-9801861-0-2 (0980186102)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9801861-0-9 (9780980186109)
Publication Date: November 2007
List Price: $7.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): When a priceless diamond is stolen from the Heritage Museum, Vicki Silver and her best friend C.J. are immediately on the case. The girls get jobs as tour guides for the museum, and hope to unearth all the clues they will need to solve the mystery. Once on the inside, can they piece together the puzzle and discover the thief's identity, or will he discover their's first? Police Chief Stevens isn't much help when the girls present evidence pointing to the mastermind. So, they must set out on their own to bring the suspects to justice.

Review: Alissa Wood introduces 17-year-old Vicki Silver in the first book of a young adult mystery series, The Stolen Gem. The series is set in (fictional) Sport, Maine.

Vicki and her friend C. J. Summers look forward to their first case when a valuable diamond is reported missing, presumed stolen, from a local museum. They get hired as tour guides and befriend Rick, the security guard for the museum, who allows them access to places off-limits to visitors and other staff. When the girls are threatened, they know they must be close to finding the answers to what happened to the stolen gem.

The Stolen Gem borrows heavily from the Nancy Drew series of mysteries which works both to its advantage and to its detriment. On the positive side, the characters, plot outline, and setting are all tried and true winners and should be capable of sustaining a new series. On the negative side, the book lacks a fresh voice and that's a bit of a disappointment.

A more serious problem in this first book is that the plot details simply aren't well thought out. The premise behind the girls' investigation, for example, is to locate the missing diamond. It's found rather early in the book. The logical move here is to turn it over to the police. Case closed. But inexplicably, the gem is replaced in its hiding place opening up all sorts of possibilities for the thief to dispose of it before it is "found" again, and the focus suddenly shifts to identifying the culprit. The logic here doesn't follow. When the plot loses its credibility, the rest of the story suffers.

Though The Stolen Gem is a weak start to the series, the characters are likable and the action sequences are well done. With stronger storylines, the Vicki Silver Mysteries definitely has the potential to develop into an interesting series.

Special thanks to Summertime Books for providing a copy of The Stolen Gem for this review.

Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.

For more mystery book reviews visit Mysterious Reviews, a partner with the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books which is committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Compendium of Mystery News 080402

A compendium of recently published mystery news articles:

• Variety is reporting that The Hallmark Channel is moving forward with a pilot for a potential series of mystery movies. Titled Dear Prudence, the movie stars Jane Seymour as the host of a television show who helps people solve mysteries on the side. The Hallmark Channel already has several other mystery series that air as made-for-television movies on an irregular basis, including Mystery Woman, Jane Doe, Murder 101, and McBride.

• In other television news, SciFi.com is reporting that David Eick, producer of Battlestar Galactica, is working on a pilot for a proposed series based on P. J. James' Children of Men which inspired a 2006 film of the same name. James, author of the wonderful Dalgliesh mysteries and the Cordelia Gray mystery series, wrote the science fiction novel Children of Men in 1992.

• Adventure Gamers has reviews of two recently released mystery games for the Nintendo Wii, Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None and CSI: Hard Evidence. [MBN note: Both games are available from Games of Mystery: Nintendo Wii.]

• In a press release, Whodunit Productions announces they have teamed up with Carnival Cruise Lines to produce a series of "Whodunit Cruises" that sail from Long Beach in 2008 and 2009. [MBN note: For more information about mystery weekends, cruises, and trains, visit Mystery Getaways.]

Sail to a mystery destination with CruiseDirect.com

New, used, and rare books at Abebooks.com

Get the magic of Disney delivered right to your door

Rent unlimited MP3 mystery books at booksfree.com

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Mystery Book Review: The Dark Tide by Andrew Gross

Mysterious Reviews, mysteries reviewed by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, has written a review of The Dark Tide by Andrew Gross. For our blog readers, we are printing it first here in advance of its publication on our website.

The Dark Tide by Andrew Gross
Non-series

William Morrow (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-06-114342-1 (0061143421)
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-114342-7 (9780061143427)
Publication Date: March 2008
List Price: $25.95

Synopsis (from the publisher): An explosion rips through New York City's Grand Central Station one morning, destroying the train Karen Friedman's husband, a successful hedge fund manager, is riding in to work. Days later, with many bodies still unidentifiable, Karen resigns herself to the awful truth: her husband of eighteen years is dead.

On that same day, a suspicious hit-and-run accident leaves a young man dead in Karen's hometown of Greenwich, Connecticut. Ty Hauck, a detective, becomes emotionally caught up in the case and finds a clue that shockingly connects the two seemingly unrelated events.

Months later, two men show up at Karen's home digging into Charles's business dealings. Hundreds of millions of dollars are missing -- and the trail points squarely to Charles. With doubt suddenly cast on everything she has ever known, Karen, with Hauck, steps into a widening storm of hedge fund losses, international scams, and murder. And as the investigations converge, these two strangers touched by tragedy are pulled into a deepening relationship and unwittingly open the door to a twisted -- and deadly -- conspiracy.

Review: Andrew Gross' second thriller, The Dark Tide, is a gripping story of a woman whose husband was killed in an explosion, the detective investigating the case, and a fortune suddenly missing.

Charles Friedman, a successful hedge fund manager, is on a commuter train from his home in Greenwich (CT) when, as it enters Grand Central Station, it is suddenly torn apart by an explosion, killing passengers in the first few cars including Friedman. The damage was so extensive, the dead were identified by random personal effects, in Friedman's case, the handle from his briefcase bearing his initials. That same day, a young man on a bicycle is deliberately run down in Greenwich. Detective Ty Hauck, assigned to the accident case, finds the name of Charles Friedman and his phone number in a pocket. Several months later, Friedman's widow, Karen, is confronted by auditors who had been going over the books of her late husband's firm. Two hundred and fifty million dollars could not be accounted for, and Friedman was suspected of taking it. When her family is threatened, she contacts Hauck. Together they begin a journey into the secretive world of international finance where millions of dollars can be made ... or lost ... with the rewards for winning incredible and the consequences of losing deadly.

The Dark Tide is a fast-paced thriller with a solid and intelligent plot. The characters, particularly Karen and Hauck, are deeply developed and credible in their roles. But other characters are also well drawn, with the criminals dark and to be feared, justifiably so. A high level of suspense is consistently maintained throughout, and when Karen and Hauck travel to the Caribbean when they believe Friedman may still be alive, all the while pursued by those who believe the missing money is theirs, the apprehension becomes particularly intense.

A superb novel, The Dark Tide is a must-read for thriller fans and those looking for a high-stakes adventure that doesn't let go. Highly recommended.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of The Dark Tide and to HarperCollins for providing a copy of the book for this review.

Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.

For more mystery book reviews visit Mysterious Reviews, a partner with the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books which is committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

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Mystery Bookshelf: New Paperback Mysteries for April 2008

The Mystery Bookshelf has updated its website to include about 70 new mass market paperback mystery books scheduled for publication in April 2008. Below is a preview of these mysteries:

Though the scheduled publication date is reported to be April for these books, actual available dates tend to be somewhat fluid with some books already on the shelves and a few not shipping until the following month.

For more information on any of these titles, please visit The Mystery Bookshelf website. Paperback mysteries published over the past 6 months are also available for browsing, conveniently sorted by author, series character, and date.

Discover a library of new mysteries at the The Mystery Bookshelf!

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