Mr. E. Reviews: Midsomer Murders Set 15

Review of Midsomer Murders Set 15.

Set 15 includes the first three episodes from the 11th season of Midsomer Murders that originally aired on ITV during May 2008.

John Nettles is terrific as always in the role of DCI Tom Barnaby, and I must say I'm coming to the conclusion that Jason Hughes as DS Ben Jones is the best of the three characters who have played Barnaby's protégé over the years.

Read the full text of our review at Mr. E. Reviews.

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Midsomer Murders Set 15
Director: Various

Original air date(s): 05/10/2008 to 05/24/2008.
DVD release: 06/01/2010.
Studio: Acorn Media.

Recurring character(s): Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby (John Nettles), Detective Sergeant Ben Jones (Jason Hughes), Joyce Barnaby (Jane Wymark), Cully Barnaby (Laura Howard), Dr. Bullard (Barry Jackson).

Rating: Not Rated.
Running time: 300 minutes.

Episodes in this series are based on characters created by Caroline Graham.

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Mr. E. Reviews is your source for mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime drama reviews of television and film.

Rick Mofina's Vengeance Road Free To Read Online

Rick Mofina's Thriller Award-nominated novel Vengeance Road, which introduced Buffalo (NY) crime reporter Jack Gannon, is available to be read for free for a limited time only from the mystery author's website.

Visit RickMofina.com or use this link to bring a copy of the book up in your browser. It cannot be downloaded or saved, but you can read it online.

About Vengeance Road (from the publisher): The murder of a broken-hearted woman …

The body of Bernice Hogan, a troubled young former nursing student with a tragic past, is found in a shallow grave near a forest creek.

… and the chilling disappearance of her friend …

Jolene Peller, a single mom struggling to build a new life with her little boy, vanishes the night she tries to find Bernice.

… raise questions about their ties to a respected detective …

Hero cop Karl Styebeck is beloved by his community, but privately police are uneasy with the answers he gives to protect the life—and the lie—he's lived.

… and lead to one journalist's obsession to find the truth …

The case haunts Jack Gannon, a gritty, blue-collar reporter whose own sister ran away from their family years ago. Gannon risks more than his job to pursue the story behind Styebeck's dark secret, his link to the women, and the mysterious big rig roaming America's loneliest highways on its descent into eternal darkness.

First Episode of AMC's New Series Rubicon Online to View

Last week we posted a trailer for AMC's new original drama Rubicon, which will premiere in August. But today, following last night's sneak peek of the series during the season finale of Breaking Bad, the network is offering viewers an opportunity to watch the entire first episode online.

Thirteen episodes of the series, a conspiracy thriller starring James Badge Dale as an analyst at a New York City think-tank who is thrown into a story where nothing is as it appears to be, have been ordered.

Watch the first episode for the series, titled "Gone in the Teeth", below.

Mystery Book Review: The Tulip Virus by Daniëlle Hermans

Review of The Tulip Virus by Daniëlle Hermans

Danielle Hermans' debut novel relates two tales of greed, set centuries apart, but linked through the history of a graceful, elegant but flawed, tulip in The Tulip Virus.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews.

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The Tulip Virus
Daniëlle Hermans
Non-series

St. Martin's Minotaur (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-312-57786-9 (0312577869)
ISBN-13: 978-0-312-57786-5 (9780312577865)
Publication Date: April 2010
List Price: $24.99

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

The Mystery Bookshelf: Depraved Heart by Alysse Aallyn

The Mystery Bookshelf, where you can discover a library of new mysteries, is pleased to feature a new mystery series title we recently received from the publisher.

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Depraved Heart by Alysse Aallyn
Non-series
Midnight Reader (Trade Paperback)
Publication Date: March 2010
ISBN-13: 978-0-9821439-1-9

About Depraved Heart (from the publisher): "Depraved heart" is a legal term for a certain kind of careless murder ... could that explain why Bronte White-Hawke, eighteen year old part-time poet and full-time spitfire, is forced to sit through the trial of the century? Did her foster father murder her foster stepmother and if so, why? Luckily she has a thirty room mansion with a full wine cellar to return to at the end of the day to party with siblings, lawyers and bodyguard. Or is it?

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About the author: Melissa Clark, who writes under the pen name of Alysse Aallyn, is the author of three other psychological thrillers: Devlyn, Find Courtney and Woman into Wolf. She says, "I'm inspired by the noir genre but I approach it from the feminine angle. Personally, I'm compulsive about mysteries. I'll cross a crowded sports bar to turn up the TV to hear more about a body found in a freezer. I think need to know is hardwired into the human psyche. The answer should come as a revelation, but, deep down, it should be something you knew all along." Visit her website at TheMidnightReader.com.

Mystery Book Review: Lies of the Heart by Michelle Boyajian

Review of Lies of the Heart by Michelle Boyajian

Michelle Boyajian's debut novel, Lies of the Heart, is a thriller that's overshadowed -- in a good way -- by a multi-faceted, frequently poignant, story of a woman coming to terms with her true self through the aftermath of tragic events involving those she loves.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews.

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Lies of the Heart
Michelle Boyajian
Non-series

Viking (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-670-02131-8 (0670021318)
ISBN-13: 978-0-670-02131-4 (9780670021314)
Publication Date: April 2010
List Price: $25.95

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Games of Mystery: Cate West in The Vanishing Files is BFG's Catch of the Week

Games of Mystery is pleased to provide our readers with current promotions that offer discounts or other incentives for purchasing mystery-themed products and services.

Below is a special offer we recently received that may be of interest to you.

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Starting today, Monday June 14th, through Sunday, June 20th, Big Fish Game's Catch of the Week is Cate West: The Vanishing Files. Simply use coupon code CATCH299 at checkout to purchase this game for only $2.99.

In Cate West: The Vanishing Files, police are baffled by a series of unexplained cases dubbed "The Vanishing Files". These unsolved cases have paralyzed the city. Enter Cate West, celebrated novelist and insightful visionary! Help Cate find clues, compile evidence, track down the hideout, and name the culprit! Are these mysterious crimes connected? Featuring loads of locations to search, an engrossing storyline, and addictive gameplay, Cate West: The Vanishing Files is an original whodunit!

Find more (regularly priced) mystery games to download on our BFG Adventure Games and BFG Hidden Object Games pages.

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Games of Mystery is your source for mystery-themed video, electronic, and board games, parties for kids and adults, and murder mystery weekends and mystery getaway vacations!

Mysteries on TV: The MacGyver TV Movies and Trial & Retribution, New This Week on DVD

Mysteries on TV, your source for the most complete selection of detective, amateur sleuth, private investigator, and suspense television mystery series now available or coming soon to DVD or Blu-ray disc, is profiling one series and two made-for-television films based on a series being released this week.

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MacGyver starred Richard Dean Anderson as the Angus MacGyver, man who could create useful tools out of everyday items or devise clever solutions to seemingly impossible problems. The series ran for 7 seasons on ABC from September 1985 through May 1992.

Following its cancellation by the network, two made-for-television films based on the character (and starring Anderson) were produced, both airing in 1994.

In "Lost Treasure of Atlantis", which was filmed on location in England and Greece, MacGyver and his former college professor search for (you guessed it!) the lost treasure of Atlantis. In "Trail to Doomsday", also filmed in Europe, MacGyver must stop a terrorist plot to hold the world hostage.

Both of these films are included on the DVD set MacGyver: The TV Movies.

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Created by crime novelist Lynda La Plante, Trial & Retribution is a police procedural that began production in 1997 and ran for 12 series (seasons) on ITV. (We don't think it has been officially canceled, but there seems to be no indication that a 13th series is coming soon.)

The series stars David Hayman as Detective Superintendent Mike Walker and Victoria Smurfit as Detective Inspector Roisin Connor, and has a format similar in style to the original Law & Order series, recently canceled by NBC.

The Trial & Retribution: Set Four DVD set of 3 discs contain three episodes from the 10th series (season) that originally aired in 2007: "Paradise Lost", "Curriculum Vitae", and "Mirror Image".

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Visit our Mysteries on TV website to discover more television mystery series currently available on DVD and Blu-ray disc.

Mystery Godoku Puzzle for June 14, 2010

A new Mystery Godoku Puzzle has been created by the editors of the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books and is now available on our website.

Godoku is similar to Sudoku, but uses letters instead of numbers. To give you a headstart, we provide you a mystery clue to fill in a complete row or column (if you choose to use it!).

This week's letters and mystery clue:

B E I L N O R T U

Mr. Monk is this in the title of the 9th mystery in this TV tie-series by Lee Goldberg (9 letters).

We now have two weeks of our puzzles on one page in PDF format for easier printing. Print this week's puzzle here.

Previous puzzles are stored in the Mystery Godoku Archives.

Enjoy the weekly Mystery Godoku Puzzle from the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, and Thanks for visiting our website!

100 Classic Books Released for Nintendo DS

Tomorrow, June 14th, Nintendo is releasing 100 Classic Books on a disc for the DS.

Released about 6 months ago in the UK and earlier this year in Australia, this collection of one hundred public domain works of literature has proved popular with owners of the game system.

There are (probably not surprising given the average age of DS owners) a lot of adventure stories, but aren't all that many mystery and suspense titles. Still, included are Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe, The Woman in White and The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins, Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Dracula by Bram Stoker, The Man Who Was Thursday by G. K. Chesterton, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, and a few others. The entire list can be viewed on a website created for the collection, 100ClassicBooks.com, which also includes 10 bonus titles that can be downloaded.

Mystery Book Review: The Marks of Cain by Tom Knox

Review of The Marks of Cain by Tom Knox

Tom Knox explores controversial historical efforts to identify -- and exploit -- potential -- and speculative -- human speciation in his second religiopolitical thriller The Marks of Cain.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews.

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The Marks of Cain
Tom Knox
Non-series

Viking (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-670-02191-1 (0670021911)
ISBN-13: 978-0-670-02191-8 (9780670021918)
Publication Date: May 2010
List Price: $26.95

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Third Season of True Blood Premieres Sunday June 13th on HBO

Tomorrow, Sunday June 13th at 9 PM (ET/PT), the third season of True Blood premieres on HBO.

Based on the series of Southern Vampire mysteries by Charlaine Harris, True Blood stars Anna Paquin as telepathic barmaid Sooke Stackhouse, who is "cursed" with the ability to listen in on people's thoughts but is tolerant of vampires who have no brainwave activity. She's also open about the integration of vampires in the community, particularly when it comes to Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer), a handsome 173-year-old living up the road.

In the third-season premiere, titled "Pack of Wolves", Sookie gets little cooperation from Eric in her frantic search for a missing Bill. Meanwhile, Andy persuades Jason to keep quiet about Eggs' death, which leaves Tara beside herself with grief and Lafayette with the difficult task of consoling his cousin.

HBO airs a "pre-show" preview of the season at 8:45 PM.

Watch a catch-up summary of the series below:

Mystery Book Review: Beachfront "Holiday" by John Howard Reid

Review of Beachfront "Holiday" by John Howard Reid

While on an extended vacation -- furlough, as he later characterizes it -- in Australia, Miami police sergeant Merryll "Merry" Manning finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation -- one in which he is the prime suspect -- in Beachfront "Holiday", the third mystery in this series by John Howard Reid, originally published in 1985 as The Beach-Front Murders, but recently reissued by the author with a new title in trade paperback.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews.

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Beachfront "Holiday"
John Howard Reid
A Merryll Manning Mystery

Lulu (Trade Paperback)
ISBN-10: 0-557-36691-7 (0557366917)
ISBN-13: 978-0-557-36691-0 (9780557366910)
Publication Date: March 2010
List Price: $12.50

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

Reviews of Mystery and Suspense Books for Kids, New This Week on Book Trends (100612)

Book Trends, a review site for young adult and children books, published several new book reviews this past week. We're presenting here a summary of those in the mystery / suspense category.

The Case of the Wounded Pigeon by Fred Rexroad. The first mystery in the Whiz Tanner series, recommended for readers aged 10 to 12. Lexile measure: N/A. Reviewed by a 6th grade student who writes, "This book is really amazing, and at parts, it actually pushed me of my chair. Literally! I think that Fred Rexroad is an amazing author and that he has a great sense of humor."

For more reviews of children and young adult books of all genres, visit Book Trends; their reviews will amaze you!

Games of Mystery: Midnight Mysteries, the Salem Witch Trials

Games of Mystery is pleased to announce the availability of a new mystery casual game from Big Fish Games released today and available to BFG Club members. You can find out more about these games by visiting our Mystery Games: Big Fish Download Games page or by clicking on the links provided below.

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The spirit of a famous novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne needs your help in this sequel to Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy! The famed writer has died during a freak snow storm in May, and his ghost has come to you, asking for help. Travel back and forth in time from the scene of the author’s demise to the 17th century, where a town is going mad with rumors of witchcraft and a woman is facing the gallows. Explore the gloomy village of Salem, look for different hidden objects, solve challenging puzzles, and unravel all the secrets of this ill-boding place.

See also the first game in this series, Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy.

Also available: Midnight Mysteries: Salem Witch Trials Strategy Guide.

Midnight Mysteries 2: Salem Witch Trials may be downloaded and purchased for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (100.43 MB) may be downloaded and played for free for one hour.

Watch a preview video below:

Get any standard game for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. Other benefits include the $2.99 Daily Deal, Tomorrow's Game Today, and special member rewards. And if you purchase any 6 games within a single month, you earn a free game with the Big Fish Game Club Monthly Punch Card! (Collector's Editions earn 3 punches each, half-way towards your free game!)

Read Ms. Terri's reviews of the adventure and casual mystery games featured on this site, including Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy, Nancy Drew Dossier: Lights, Camera, Curses!, Enlightenus, and many more!

Big Fish Games: Bestsellers

Big Fish Games: New releases

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Games of Mystery is your source for mystery-themed video, electronic, and board games, parties for kids and adults, and murder mystery weekends and mystery getaway vacations!