Napoleon's Pyramids by William Dietrich is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Napoleon's Pyramids by William Dietrich as today's second free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically for a limited time only or until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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Napoleon's Pyramids by William Dietrich
An Ethan Gage Thriller
HarperCollins

In our review of this first book in a series, we said that "there's something about Ethan's journey that is so fantastic and so incredible that the reader is able to readily dismiss notions of the utter implausibility of some of the action and simply share in the adventure as presented."

About Napoleon's Pyramids (from the publisher): Ethan Gage, assistant to Ben Franklin and expatriate American in post-revolutionary France, wins an ancient—and possibly cursed—medallion in a card game one night. It turns out that the medallion, covered in seemingly indecipherable symbols, may be linked to a Masonic mystery. That same night, however, Ethan is framed for a prostitute's murder and barely escapes France with his life.

Faced with either prison or death, Gage is offered a third choice: to accompany the new emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, as France sails to conquer Egypt—with Lord Nelson's fleet following close behind. Once Gage arrives, he encounters incredible surprises: one in the form of a beautiful Macedonian slave and another in the dawning knowledge that the medallion may solve one of the greatest riddles of history—who built the Great Pyramids, and why. What is revealed to Gage is more shocking than anyone could ever have imagined.

Read our review of Napoleon's Pyramids by William Dietrich.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Free Kindle Edition Download Link.

B&N Free Nook Book Download Link.

Apple Free iBook Download Link (via iTunes).

For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.

A Singularly Unsuitable Word by Mary Anna Evans is Today's Featured Free MystereBook Short Story

MystereBooks is pleased to feature A Singularly Unsuitable Word by Mary Anna Evans as today's free mystery ebook short story. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically for a limited time only or until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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A Singularly Unsuitable Word by Mary Anna Evans
Non-Series
Joyeuse Press

We rarely list short stories as our featured free mysterebook, but we're making an exception for Mary Anna Evans, author of the Faye Longchamp mystery series, the books of which regularly make our annual "best of" lists. Simple but elegant prose and intricately crafted plots are the hallmarks of her writing.

About A Singularly Unsuitable Word (from the publisher): Bootleggers. Prohibition. The primeval Florida swamp. And eight-year-old Lila cowering on the riverbank as a drunken man hauls her teen-aged sister Iris away at gunpoint. If Iris fades away into the night with Jeb Gibson, Lila will never see her sister again. Gibson has every reason to think that he can get away with murder and more. But Gibson doesn't know little Lila …

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Free Kindle Edition Download Link.

For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.

Run by Blake Crouch is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Run by Blake Crouch as today's free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically for a limited time only or until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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Run by Blake Crouch
Non-Series
CreateSpace

About Run (from the publisher): Picture this: A landscape of American genocide …

5 days ago
A rash of bizarre murders swept the country …
Senseless. Brutal. Seemingly unconnected.
A cop walked into a nursing home and unloaded his weapons on elderly and staff alike.
A mass of school shootings.
Prison riots of unprecedented brutality.
Mind-boggling acts of violence in every state.

4 days ago
The murders increased ten-fold …

3 days ago
The President addressed the nation and begged for calm and peace …

2 days ago
The killers began to mobilize …

Yesterday
All the power went out …

Tonight
They're reading the names of those to be killed on the Emergency Broadcast System. You are listening over the battery-powered radio on your kitchen table, and they've just read yours.

Your name is Jack Colclough. You have a wife, a daughter, and a young son. You live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. People are coming to your house to kill you and your family. You don't know why, but you don't have time to think about that any more.

You only have time to … run.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Free Kindle Edition Download Link.

For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.

"The Dead Man" Books 1-5 by Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin is Today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal

MystereBooks is pleased to feature "The Dead Man" Books 1-5 by Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin as today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal. The deal price of $0.99 for each book is valid only for today, Friday, December 23, 2011.

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"The Dead Man" Books 1-5 by Lee Goldberg and William Rabkin
The Dead Man Series of Thrillers
47North

About "The Dead Man" Books 1-5 (from the publisher): These original short thrillers blend elements of horror books with the action of classic adventure novels. The eligible titles in this promotion are Face of Evil, Ring of Knives, Hell in Heaven, The Dead Woman, and The Blood Mesa.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Kindle Daily Deal 12/23/2011 Download Link.

Mystery Bestsellers for the Week Ending December 23, 2011

A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending December 23rd, 2011 has been posted by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

It's been a quiet holiday week, with no new additions to the bestselling mystery list. Indeed, there was little change in the top ten with last week's number one title, The Litigators by John Grisham, remaining atop the list again this week … though in a virtual tie with Death Comes to Pemberley by P. D. James. Last week's featured title, The Leopard, the 8th Harry Hole mystery by Jo Nesbø, didn't move up quite as much as we expected, but did jump six spots to number 12.

Best wishes from all of us at Omnimystery to all of our readers for a wonderful holiday season!

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For more mystery books news, 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.

New Promo for Second Series of BBC's Sherlock

The Guardian has posted a tantalizingly short teaser promo for the second series (season) of Sherlock, which premieres on BBC One January 1st, 2012. (Those of us in the US will have to wait until May to see it.) We've embedded it below.

Benedict Cumberbatch stars as Sherlock Holmes with Martin Freeman as Dr. John Watson in this contemporary reimagining of the series of novels and short stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

The second series will consist of three adapted episodes: A Scandal in Belgravia, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and The Reichenbach Fall ("The Final Problem").

(Related article: The Guardian.)

Review: Chelsea Mansions by Barry Maitland

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Chelsea Mansions by Barry Maitland.

Review: Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman.

Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn is Today's Featured Free MystereBook

MystereBooks is pleased to feature Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn as today's free mystery ebook. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically for a limited time only or until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so we urge you to download it while it is still available for free.

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Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn
A Mitch Rapp Thriller
Atria Books

This special ebook edition of the first thriller in the Mitch Rapp series also includes a sneak peek of the next in the series, Kill Shot, scheduled to be published in early February 2012.

About Transfer of Power (from the publisher): On a busy Washington morning, the stately calm of the White House is shattered in a deadly terrorist attack on the executive mansion. The president is evacuated to an underground bunker, but not before nearly one hundred hostages are taken. Mitch Rapp, the CIA's top counterterrorism operative, determines that the president is not as safe as Washington's power elite had thought. Indeed, Rapp has made a chilling discovery that could rock Washington to its core: someone within his own government wants his rescue attempt to fail.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Free Kindle Edition Download Link.

B&N Free Nook Book Download Link.

Apple Free iBook Download Link (via iTunes).

For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.

The High Heels Mysteries Boxed Set by Gemma Halliday is Today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal

MystereBooks is pleased to feature The High Heels Mysteries Boxed Set by Gemma Halliday as today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal. The deal price of $1.99 is valid only for today, Thursday, December 22, 2011.

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The High Heels Mysteries Boxed Set by Gemma Halliday
The Maddie Springer Mysteries
Leisure Books

About The High Heels Mysteries Boxed Set (from the publisher): This collection of five mysteries includes Spying in High Heels, Killer in High Heels, Undercover in High Heels, Alibi in High Heels, and Mayhem in High Heels.

Important Note: Prices can and do change without prior notice, so please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.

Download Link(s):

Amazon Kindle Daily Deal 12/22/2011 Download Link.

OMN Welcomes Thriller Novelist Bob Robustelli

Omnimystery News is pleased to welcome Bob Robustelli, whose debut thriller is Teamwork (CreateSpace, November 2011 trade paperback and ebook editions).

Today Bob tells prospective writers … just do it!

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Teamwork was formulating in my head for many years. I really wasn't sure where it was going to go until I sat down, and started to write. It has taken me places I never knew existed. The concept began to develop as I traveled around the world in the late 1970's through the 1990's … yes it was in the brain for some time! I worked for a family business which got involved in American football in Mexico, Europe and the USSR. Along with those responsibilities I ran incentives and meetings throughout the world. As I travelled I read … as I read I dreamed.

Three years ago I sat down and started to write.

This book is my first novel, but I do have the first draft of the second book finished, and book number three is halfway done. Writing is a process, but a process I love. Like some first novels a few of the people and problems are real … the rest is a story which I hope you'll like.

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Photo provided courtesy of
Bob Robustelli

After his college days at the University of Connecticut, Bob Robustelli worked in the family corporate travel and sports marketing business. His responsibilities included promoting American football in Mexico, Europe, and Russia. Robustelli's father played for the New York Giants and is a member of the NFL Hall of Fame, credentials that helped with his associations with football. Throughout his travels, which took him to all parts of the world, he read thrillers and always thought his job was a good cover for a CIA agent. The idea for Teamwork had been formulating with Robustelli for some time, when three years ago he committed to writing it, taking courses at the Westport Writers Workshops and attending numerous seminars. He's enjoyed the process of learning the trade, but realizes there is much more to learn. He's looking forward to the journey.

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About Teamwork:

Football promoter Mickey Rossetti never knew who he was or what he really wanted. Until it was almost game over. Combining international espionage with international business and the action-packed arena of American football, Bob Robustelli's debut Cold War-era spy thriller Teamwork delivers a tough-skinned, highly suspenseful addition to the genre that is certain to enthrall anyone who is a fan of hard-boiled fiction, or a fan of the great American pastime of football.

For hard-partying, directionless Mickey, growing up the third son of the famous Hall of Famer Benny Rossetti from the New York Giants often seemed as tough as the sport that defined his family's lives. An all-American kid on the outside, Mickey had long been on a straight shot to epic addiction that took a sharp, cocaine-fueled turn for the worse after his failed marriage. However, as he hobbles along at his family's business of promoting American football in Mexico, Europe, and the USSR, Mickey instead finds himself thrown into a game with perilously high international stakes.

In Teamwork, fates are conjoined through a decades-long relationship between two spooks of matched skills, and dramatically opposing loyalties. Through a slew of mishaps, Mickey finds himself on the brink of real trouble with the FBI. Enter Pete Martin, a crusty old codger of a CIA operative. When Mickey eventually lands in Moscow on business, Pete is there to keep him under tight reins. Suddenly, the top is blown off of a KGB plot to take over the USSR and likely decimate the world.

With a coup to take over the Russian government, an NFL game in Moscow, missing nukes, and a renegade Russian agent, Teamwork reveals that, when it comes to one man, the game may just be far from over. Bringing together business, football, and spooks as the Cold War heats up, this fast-paced, edgy debut spy thriller offers play-by-play thrills, laughs, and game-changing redemption.

HBO Cancels Bored to Death

After airing three seasons of its "noir-otic" comedy, HBO has canceled Bored to Death.

Created by author Jonathan Ames, and based his own short story of the same title, the series stars Jason Schwartzman as a fictional version of himself, a writer who moonlights as a private investigator, offering his unlicensed services through an online ad.

The series premiered in September 2009. The first two seasons are available to download and on DVD and Blu-ray disc.

The Mystery Bookshelf: The October Killings by Wessel Ebersohn, an Abigail Bukula Mystery

The Mystery Bookshelf, where you can discover a world of mystery and suspense, is pleased to feature a new crime novel we recently received from the publisher.

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The October Killings by Wessel Ebersohn
An Abigail Bukula Mystery (1st in series)
Minotaur Books (Trade Paperback)
Publication Date: December 2011
ISBN-13: 978-0-312-55273-2

About The October Killings (from the publisher): Abigail Bukula was fifteen years old when her parents were killed in a massacre of antiapartheid activists by white apartheid security forces. Because a young soldier spoke up in her defense, she was spared. Now she’s a lawyer with a promising career in the new government, and while she has done her best to put the tragedy behind her, she’s never forgotten Leon Lourens, the soldier who saved her life. So when he walks into her office almost twenty years later, needing her help, she vows to do whatever she can. Someone is slowly killing off members of the team who raided the house where her parents were murdered, and now Leon and an imprisoned colonel are the only targets left.

Abigail turns to Yudel Gordon, an eccentric, nearly retired white prison psychologist for help. To save Leon’s life they must untangle the web of politics, identity, and history before the anniversary of the raid — only days away.

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About the author: Wessel Ebersohn was born in Cape Town (South Africa) and currently lives with his wife in Johannesburg. He wrote three books featuring psychiatrist Yudel Gordon — published in 1979, 1981, and 1992 — who makes an appearance (after a 20 year absense) in his new series. For more information about the author, visit his website at WesselEbersohn.com.

 Crime novels by Wessel Ebersohn reviewed by Mysterious Reviews: The October Killings (2011).

Purchase Options for The October Killings:

OMN Welcomes Michael Scott and Colette Freedman, Authors of The Thirteen Hallows

Omnimystery News is pleased to welcome Michael Scott and Colette Freedman, authors of The Thirteen Hallows (Tor Books, December 2011 Hardcover), a thrilling tale of ancient magic and modern times and the first in a new series.

Today Michael and Colette share their collective expertise with us, offering up 13 (amusing) ways to read a thriller.

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1. Carefully, checking for spelling errors (and then write to the authors and tell them).
2. Quickly, ignoring spelling errors.
3. Read the end first then ruin the entire book.
4. With chocolate. (Nothing less than 85% cocoa will do.)
5. With ice-cream. (Get small tubs — the large ones melt too quickly.)
6. With chocolate and ice-cream.
7. By flashlight under the covers (not good for the eyes).
8. By the swimming pool — though not in the swimming pool. Books are unforgiving that way.
9. Alone, in a cabin in the woods (though we do have to ask what you’re doing alone in a cabin in the woods in the first place!).
10. Listen to it. (We’re both huge fans of Books on Tape — and The Thirteen Hallows has a fabulous audio version.)
11. While listening to classical music.
12. While listening to a soundtrack (choose one that matches the scene and mood).
13. Resting in bed, propped up by pillows with a dog curled at your feet. (Must own dog. This does not work with a cat.)

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Michael Scott is an authority on mythology and folklore, and the author of The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. He lives in Dublin, Ireland.

Colette Freedman is an award-winning, internationally produced playwright. She lives in Los Angeles.

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About The Thirteen Hallows:

The Hallows. Ancient artifacts imbued with a primal and deadly power. But are they protectors of this world, or the keys to its destruction?

A gruesome murder in London reveals a sinister plot to uncover a two-thousand-year-old secret.

For decades, the Keepers guarded these Hallows, keeping them safe and hidden and apart from each other. But now the Keepers are being brutally murdered, their prizes stolen, the ancient objects bathed in their blood.

Now, only a few remain.

With her dying breath, one of the Keepers convinces Sarah Miller, a practical stranger, to deliver her Hallow — a broken sword with devastating powers — to her American nephew, Owen.

The duo quickly become suspects in a series of murders as they are chased by both the police and the sadistic Dark Man and his nubile mistress.

As Sarah and Owen search for the surviving Keepers, they unravel the deadly secret the Keepers were charged to protect. The mystery leads Sarah and Owen on a cat-and-mouse chase through England and Wales, and history itself, as they discover that the sword may be the only thing standing between the world … and a horror beyond imagining.

Watch a trailer for the book below.

Enter to Win Exclusive MysteriousPress.com Character Profiles

No doubt we weren't the only ones who were thrilled to see the return of Mysterious Press after a too long absence from the crime fiction publishing world. And now, to help get the word out, they're running a contest where you could win two very cool, very exclusive publications from MysteriousPress.com authors.

Here's how the contest works:

Tell your friends to follow Mysterious Press on Facebook and Twitter. Simply tag the publisher in your posts, which means on Twitter use @eMysteries, and on Facebook use @MysteriousPress.com, so they can make sure your entry is counted. You can enter on both Facebook and Twitter, but you can only win once.

On Thursday, December 22nd, 2011 at noon, they're going to name six winners — three from Twitter, three from Facebook. Recommend them at least once on either of these social networks, and you're eligible.

Each winner gets Mysterious Profiles for Ken Bruen's series character Jack Taylor and John Harvey's series character Charlie Resnick. These are exclusive publications commissioned by Otto Penzler through The Mysterious Bookshop, written by the authors about their fictional detectives, and not available anywhere else.

About the Mysterious Press: Founded by Otto Penzler in 1975, it was dedicated to putting out the best books by acclaimed authors, featuring fine paper and top dust jackets. Now the press has gone digital with MysteriousPress.com, bringing classic works of crime, mystery, suspense and espionage to electronic reading formats, with the same standard of quality.

New Poster for 21 Jump Street

A new poster for the film adaptation of the late 1980s television series 21 Jump Street has been released (right; click for larger version).

Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum star, respectively, as Schmidt and Jenko, who are more than ready to leave their adolescent problems behind. Joining the police force and the secret Jump Street unit, they use their youthful appearances to go undercover in a local high school. As they trade in their guns and badges for backpacks, Schmidt and Jenko risk their lives to investigate a violent and dangerous drug ring. But they find that high school is nothing like they left it just a few years earlier — and neither expects that they will have to confront the terror and anxiety of being a teenager again … and all the issues they thought they had left behind.

The film will also feature a cameo by Johnny Depp as Officer Tom Hanson, the character he played in the original series.

Maybe we're just old fuddy-duddies, but there's little here that appeals to us. Maybe it'll be good for a couple of laughs, but the trailer — which we've embedded below — could have been rated L for Lame … or maybe YAUROOC for Yet Another Unnecessary Reimagination of a Once Original Concept.

21 Jump Street opens in theaters March 16th, 2012.

Review: Storm Damage by Ed Kovacs

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: Storm Damage by Ed Kovacs.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Opens in US Theaters Tuesday, December 20th

Tomorrow, Tuesday December 20th, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has a rare early-in-the-week opening in US theaters. Adapted from the bestselling novel of the same title by Stieg Larsson — the first in his "Millennium" trilogy — the studio has made it very clear this is not a remake of the 2009 Swedish-language adaptation but an original interpretation of the book. (We're not exactly sure what the difference is here since the plots of both movies seem to mirror the book pretty closely.)

Daniel Craig stars as Mikael Blomkvist, a disgraced journalist hired by Swedish industrialist Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer) to find his daughter … who disappeared decades ago. He's joined on his quest by the enigmatic Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), a computer hacker extraordinaire, who may — or may not — have a separate agenda to pursue.

We greatly enjoyed the Swedish-language film adaptation, calling it a superior suspense thriller — read Mr. E.'s review of Män Som Hatar Kvinnor here — and are greatly looking forward to this film, one of the few that we intend to actually venture out to a theater to see (instead of waiting for the DVD).

Watch a lengthy (8+ minute) trailer for the film below. (No spoilers; just character and plot background plus some exciting action sequences.)

Mystery and Suspense Films, New This Week on DVD (111220)

Checking through our list of films currently scheduled for release this week on DVD and/or Blu-ray disc, shown below are those that fall into the mystery, suspense, thriller and adventure categories.

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Purchase/Rental Options

Straw Dogs (2011)

Film Synopsis (from the studio): A young couple (James Marsden and Kate Bosworth) moves to a quaint southern town. Soon their perfect getaway turns out to become a living hell when dark secrets and lethal passions spiral out of control. Trapped by a pack of depraved locals led by a ruthless predator (Alexander Skarsgård), they face a night of agonizing suffering and endless bloodshed. Now their only hope for survival is to become more savage than their merciless torturers.

Adapted from the Gordon M. Williams 1969 novel The Siege of Trencher's Farm, which was also the basis for the 1971 film Straw Dogs starring Dustin Hoffman. Rated R. 110 minutes.

Watch a trailer for the film below:

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Purchase/Rental Options

Margin Call (2011)

Film Synopsis (from the studio): Set in the high-stakes world of the financial industry, this entangling thriller involves the key players at an investment firm during one perilous 24-hour period in the early stages of the 2008 financial crisis. When an entry-level analyst (Zachary Quinto) unlocks information that could prove to be the downfall of the firm, a roller-coaster ride ensues as decisions both financial and moral catapult the lives of all involved to the brink of disaster.

First shown in January 2011 at the Sundance Film Festival, this film had a limited release in the US during October 2011. Rated R. 107 minutes.

Watch a trailer for the film below: