If you're in the St. Louis area next Tuesday — or plan to be — you won't want to miss crime novelist Robert Crais, who will be reading from and signing his latest Elvis Cole/Joe Pike thriller Taken. Presented by the St. Louis County Library Foundation and Left Bank Books, the event will take place on Tuesday, January 31st, at 7 PM at Library Headquarters Auditorium, 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd. It is free and open to the public.
In this 12th book of the series, when the police tell a wealthy industrialist that her missing son has faked his own kidnapping, she hires Elvis Cole and Joe Pike — and Cole soon determines that it was no fake. The boy and his secret girlfriend have been taken, and are now lost in the gray and changing world of the professional border kidnappers who prey not only on innocent victims but also on one another — buying, selling, and stealing victims like commodities. Fortunately, the kidnappers don't yet know who the boy is, but when Cole goes undercover to try to buy the two hostages back, he himself is taken and disappears. Now it is up to Pike to retrace Cole's steps, burning through the hard and murderous world of human traffickers … before it is too late.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Robert Crais to Read from, Sign His Latest Thriller in St. Louis Tuesday, January 31st
Lilyhammer Premieres in Norway to Record Number of Viewers
In a little over a week, Netflix begins streaming its first original series, Lilyhammer. And they've got to be pleased with the reaction to the series in Norway: the premiere episode, which was shown this past Wednesday, scored a 56.3% market share, the largest ever for NRK1, the network on which the episode aired.
Lilyhammer stars Steve Van Zandt (The Sopranos) as Frank "The Fixer" Tagliano, a former mobster who is relocated to Lillehammer (Norway) via a federal witness protection program. A sports fan, Frank wants to make his new life in the town that hosted the 1994 Winter Olympics — or as he calls it "Lilyhammer." Frank has visions of a paradise of "clean air, fresh white snow and gorgeous broads" far away from the temptations of the Big Apple and from mob hit men. Reality, of course, turns out to be spectacularly different.
On Tuesday, February 6th, 2012, Netflix will have available for streaming all eight episodes of the first season. A second season has already been commissioned.
Watch a trailer for the series below.
(Related article: The Hollywood Reporter.)
CBS Orders Pilots for Mommy Track Mysteries, Two Other Crime Dramas
Last September CBS acquired a television project to adapt the Ayelet Waldman "Mommy Track" mysteries. Yesterday, the network ordered a pilot for a potential series.
In the books, Juliet Applebaum — the series has a tentative title of Applebaum — has given up her career as a public defender to stay at home with her young children … but crime finds a way into her neighborhood giving her a chance to solve mysteries (or Nursery Crimes, as the first book in the series is titled).
CBS also gave the go-ahead to a pilot for Quean, featuring a Lisbeth "Dragon Tattoo" Salander-type character, who works with an Oakland (California) police detective to solve crimes. And a third pilot order goes to an untitled 1960s-era drama with a former rodeo cowboy-turned-Las Vegas sheriff.
BBC America to Co-Produce Next Season of Luther
BBC America announced yesterday that the cable network would be co-producing the next season of the crime drama Luther.
Idris Elba stars as Detective Chief Investigator John Luther, a near-genius detective, who might just be as dangerous as the depraved criminals he hunts. Luther follows his own moral code as much as the rules of criminal law.
"We're delighted that Idris' performance in Luther has been recognized this year with a Golden Globe Award, an NAACP Image Award and a Primetime Emmy Award nomination," said Perry Simon, General Manager, Channels, BBC Worldwide America. "His iconic role as John Luther has quickly become one of the most powerful detective characters television audiences have ever seen."
The season will consist of two episodes to be written by Neil Cross, each two parts, and will air later this year.
Last year, screenwriter Cross won the prestigious Edgar Award for Best Television Episode Teleplay.
(Related article: Press Release.)
Head Games by Craig McDonald is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature Head Games by Craig McDonald as today's second free mystery ebook.
This title was listed as free as of the date and time of this post. Prices are subject to change without notice. The price displayed on the vendor website at the time of purchase will be the price paid for the book. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your transaction.
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Head Games by Craig McDonald
A Hector Lassiter Mystery
Publisher: Bleak House/Craig McDonald
Set mostly in 1957, this is the first mystery (of four to date) to feature pulp fiction crime writer Hector Lassiter.
About Head Games (from the publisher): Hector Lassiter has Pancho Villa's long lost skull. He's also got people on his trail. Competing fraternities, Mexican bandits, and US Secret Service are after him. But Lassiter is larger than life. He bedded Dietrich and boxed Hemingway, this can't be too bad. Can it?
Important Note: This book was listed for free on the date and time of this post. Prices can and do change without prior notice. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.
Download Link(s):
For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.
A Skeleton in the Closet by Judith K. Ivie is Today's Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature A Skeleton in the Closet by Judith K. Ivie as today's free mystery ebook.
This title was listed as free as of the date and time of this post. Prices are subject to change without notice. The price displayed on the vendor website at the time of purchase will be the price paid for the book. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your transaction.
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A Skeleton in the Closet by Judith K. Ivie
A Kate Lawrence Mystery
Publisher: Mainly Murder Press
We called this third book of the series "delightful", adding, "The straight-forward plot has some clever twists and readers will quickly relate to the endearing old ladies living in a mysterious mansion with a secret past."
About A Skeleton in the Closet (from the publisher): Everyone has a skeleton or two in their pasts, but the one that turns up at 185 Broad Street in Old Wethersfield is all too real. Afraid that the discovery of a corpse on their property might put off potential buyers, the elderly owners of the historic Victorian house turn to Wethersfield realtor and reluctant amateur sleuth Kate Lawrence to solve their problem.
As if that weren’t enough to contend with, Kate and her longtime love Armando are moving in together. Kate’s partner Strutter has a secret that sends everyone reeling. Best friend Margo sets her cap for a local police officer. And every last one of them is being threatened by an anonymous poison pen.
Read our review of A Skeleton in the Closet by Judith K. Ivie.
Important Note: This book was listed for free on the date and time of this post. Prices can and do change without prior notice. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.
Download Link(s):
For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.
City of Masks by Daniel Hecht is Today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal
MystereBooks is pleased to feature City of Masks by Daniel Hecht as today's Amazon Kindle Daily Deal. The deal price of $1.99 is valid only for today, Friday, January 27, 2012.
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City of Masks by Daniel Hecht
A Cree Black Mystery
Publisher: Bloomsbury
About City of Masks (from the publisher): Parapsychologist Cree and her partner take a case in New Orleans's Garden District that leaves them fearing for their own lives.
The 150-year-old Beauforte House has long stood empty, until Lila Beauforte resumes residence and starts to see some of the house's secrets literally come to life. Tormented by an insidious and violent presence, Lila finds herself trapped in a life increasingly filled with childhood terrors. It takes Cree's unconventional take on psychology and her powerful natural empathy with Lila to navigate the dangerous worlds of spirit and memory, as they clash in a terrifying tale of mistaken identity and murder.
Important Note: Amazon.com updates its Kindle book deal every day at approximately midnight PT. The title referenced above is available at a discounted price for Friday, January 27, 2012 only.
Download Link(s):
Mystery Bestsellers for the Week Ending January 27, 2012
A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending January 27th, 2012 has been posted by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.
P. D. James's stand-alone novel Death Comes to Pemberley has regained the top spot this week … and by a fairly comfortable margin. Elmore Leonard's Raylan takes the biggest jump of the week, from 17 to 4.
One new title debuts.
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Coming in at number 8 is the latest mystery to feature private investigators Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, Taken by Robert Crais.
When the police tell a wealthy industrialist that her missing son has faked his own kidnapping, she hires Elvis Cole and Joe Pike — and Cole soon determines that it was no fake. The boy and his secret girlfriend have been taken, and are now lost in the gray and changing world of the professional border kidnappers who prey not only on innocent victims but also on one another-buying, selling, and stealing victims like commodities.
Fortunately, the kidnappers don't yet know who the boy is, but when Cole goes undercover to try to buy the two hostages back, he himself is taken and disappears.
Now it is up to Pike to retrace Cole's steps, burning through the hard and murderous world of human traffickers … before it is too late.
Purchase Options:
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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.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Jesse Stone: Benefit of Doubt to air May 20th, 2012 on CBS
CBS has announced that the next Jesse Stone made-for-television movie, Benefit of the Doubt, will air on Sunday, May 20th, 2012 at 9 PM (ET/PT).
Tom Selleck reprises his role as (former Paradise Chief of Police) Jesse Stone, who is "forced to rely on his skills and intuition to sort through a maze of misleading clues and hidden meanings in a bid to crack a shocking and horrifying mob-related double homicide." Benefit of Doubt was filmed last year in Nova Scotia from a script co-written by Selleck.
The character is based on one created by the late crime novelist Robert B. Parker, though the last few telemovies — including this one — have been original screenplays, not adapted from any of the books in the series.
(Related article: The Hollywood Reporter.)
Nominees for the 2012 Dilys Award Announced
The nominees for the Dilys Award have been announced by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association. Named in honor of Dilys Winn, the founder of specialty bookshop Murder Ink, this award recognizes the titles booksellers most enjoyed selling during 2011.
The winner will be announced at Left Coast Crime in Sacramento this March.
• Faithful Place by Tana French (Penguin)
• Wicked Autumn by G. M. Malliet (Minotaur Books)
• Tag Man by Archer Mayor (Minotaur Books)
• A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny (Minotaur Books)
• Ghost Hero by S. J. Rozan (Minotaur Books)
(Hat tip to Mystery Fanfare for alerting us to this news.)
MystereBooks: New Carina Press Titles for January 2012
Each month, Omnimystery News is pleased to present new mystery and suspense titles from Carina Press, an ebook only publisher. Links are provided to purchase the ebook from, where available, Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble, or the Apple iBookstore; click on the banner to the right to be taken to the CarinaPress.com website to browse for other titles.
New ebooks of mystery and suspense for January 2012 from Carina Press include:
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Designed for Death by Jean Harrington
A Deva Dunne, Murder by Design Mystery (1st in series)
Interior designer Deva Dunne's latest project comes to a screeching halt when blood on the carpet leads her to the body of her client, an exotic dancer with a mysterious past. But the murdered woman is not the only resident of the posh beachfront condominium with secrets, and investigating officer Lieutenant Victor Rossi considers them all suspects.
Though wary of working in the killer's midst, Deva continues decorating the unit for the new owner. When she stumbles upon clues that might help crack the case, she can't resist doing a little digging of her own, despite Rossi's orders to quit meddling. Now, she's juggling the investigation, her career and sexy neighbor Simon Yaeger, who seems interested in more than her etchings.
Deva can't help but be flattered by all the male attention—that is, until she realizes the killer has designs on her, too …
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His Secret Past by Katie Reus
Non-series
Six years ago, Alexis Baptiste's world was turned upside down when Hunter Cassidy disappeared without a trace, leaving her alone and pregnant. She's finally moving on with her life when he resurfaces, just in time to rescue her from a would-be assassin. Forced to join him on the run to protect herself and her young son, Alexis is now in even more danger: danger of falling for Hunter all over again.
Betrayed by rogue CIA agents after infiltrating an infamous drug cartel, former DEA agent Hunter Cassidy has spent years trying to clear his name. He's not proud of the things he's done, and knows he doesn't deserve a future with Alexis, or the son he never knew he had, but he's determined to protect them from the men who ruined his life. Convincing Alexis to trust him—and denying his feelings for her—is going to be the hardest mission he's ever faced.
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Sex, Lies and Surveillance by Stephanie Julian
Non-series
Janey DeMarco would love to have a sex life—and she has a serious crush on the new guy in her office. As manager for her family's P.I. firm, she knows an office romance would end in disaster. Not only are her parents former spies, but her older brothers are tall, dark and overly protective. Still, a little sex would go a long way to reducing her stress levels, and the man is hot …
NSA operative Mal Laughlin has been sent undercover to find a link between the DeMarcos and the gun smugglers who killed his partner. Unfortunately, the only evidence points to the woman who's making him hot, hard and ready—Janey.
Convinced Mal is hiding something, Janey's determined to find out what. Can she do that while keeping her own secrets? Janey and Mal plot a course of seduction to uncover the truth about each other but when they're thrown together on a dangerous assignment, sensual meltdown is imminent and secrets are about to be revealed.
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The Professor by Cathy Perkins
Non-series
The Professor presses his palm against her flank, the warmth of her blood, hotter than her skin. Hot, like the life force that he has claimed. The power over life and death is the ultimate thrill.
Someone is murdering women on college campuses. Agent Mick O'Shaughnessy's mission is simple: stop the killer. Following every lead, he meets Meg, the faculty advisor for one of the victims, who can help him track the killer through her campus connections.
Meg Connelly is focused on getting her master's degree to show her estranged family she doesn't need anybody's help to succeed. There's something about Mick she can't resist, but the last time she let someone get close to her, it cost her everything.
As the investigation heats up, so does their relationship. But Mick's interest in Meg doesn't just endanger her heart—it puts her in the sights of the killer.
Once he gets her alone, he can take all the time he needs …
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Carina Press, a division of Harlequin, is a digital-first publisher offering ebooks in a variety of genres, including mystery. eBooks from Carina can be read on the Apple iPad, Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, B&N Nook
For more mystery, suspense and thriller ebooks, visit MystereBooks.com.
New Hardcover Mysteries for February 2012
The Hidden Staircase Mystery Books has updated its list of new hardcover mysteries with books scheduled for publication in February 2012. Please note that some titles may publish early, and may already be available, and some may be delayed, published at a later date.
Below we're listing those authors with returning series characters, new series characters, and non-series or stand-alone mysteries in separate sections. All titles are available on our February new mystery books page, which will become the default home page for the site on February 1st.
• Authors with mysteries featuring returning series characters (in italics) this month:
Josh Bazell (Pietro Brnwna/Peter Brown, 2nd) — M. C. Beaton (Hamish Macbeth, 28th) — Alex Berenson (John Wells, 6th) — Simon Brett (Fethering, 13th) — Nancy J. Cohen (Marla Shore, Bad Hair Day, 10th) — Deborah Coonts (Lucky O'Toole, 3rd) — Isis Crawford (Murder with Recipes, 8th) — Deborah Crombie (Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James, 14th) — Hilary Davidson (Lily Moore, 2nd) — Alice Duncan (Daisy Gumm Majesty, 6th) — Sam Eastland (Inspector Pekkala, 3rd) — Amanda Flower (India Hayes, 2nd) — Vince Flynn (Mitch Rapp, 12th) — Jack Fredrickson (Dek Ekstrom, 3rd) — Lisa Gardner (D. D. Warren, 4th) — Paul Garrison (Paul Janson, 2nd) — Keith Gilman (Lou Klein, 2nd) — Philip Gooden (Thomas Ansell, 3rd) — Paul Grossman (Willi Kraus, 2nd) — Cynthia Harrod-Eagles (Bill Slider, 14th) — Tim Heald (Simon Bognor, 12th) — Joan Hess (Claire Malloy, 18th) — J. A. Jance (Ali Reynolds, 5th) — Jonathan Kellerman (Alex Delaware, 27th) — Graeme Kent (Ben Kella and Sister Conchita, 2nd) — Dave Klein (Ed Buck, 2nd) — Bernard Knight (Richard Pryor, 3rd) — K. J. Larsen (Cat DeLuca, 2nd) — Lisa Lutz (Isabel Spellman, 5th) — Priscilla Masters (Joanna Piercy, 10th) — James Patterson and Mark Sullivan (Jack Morgan, Private, 3rd) — J. D. Robb (Eve Dallas, "In Death", 33rd) — Imogen Robertson (Harriet Westerman, 2nd) — Bal Speer (Graphic Novel — Dana Stabenow (Kate Shugak, 20th) — Cath Staincliffe (Sal Kilkenny, 8th) — P. G. Sturges (Dick Henry, 2nd) — Helene Tursten (Inspector Irene Huss, 4th) — Betty Webb (Lena Jones, 7th) — David Willliams (Mark Treasure, 2nd)
• Authors with mysteries introducing characters (in italics) in a new series this month:
Frances Brody (Kate Shackleton) — Jonathan Kellerman, Ande Parks, and Michael Gaydos (Alex Delaware Graphic)
• Authors with non-series or stand-alone mysteries this month:
Cristina Alger — Jeffrey Ashford — David Bishop — Milton T. Burton — Jim DeFelice — Amber Dermont — Patricia Driscoll — Stephen Gallagher — Elizabeth Hand — Mo Hayder — Erin Kelly — Tom Knox — Dick Lochte — Patrick Mascola — Keith McCafferty — Kristina Ohlsson — Sean O'Keefe — Daniel Palmer — Michael Palmer — Matthew Pearl — Kira Peikoff — Ulrich Peltzer — David Perry — Jodi Picoult — James Renner — Anne Rice — Peter Robinson — Michael Robotham — David Rosenfelt — David J. Schow — Gerald Seymour — Abdourahman A. Waberi — Donald E. Westlake
For more information on any of these titles, please visit the February new mysteries page on our website. If you're interested in new paperbacks, visit The Mystery Bookshelf where you can discover a library of new mystery, suspense and thriller books, also updated with February 2012 releases.
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.
Stalking Natalie by Skip Coryell is Today's Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature Stalking Natalie by Skip Coryell as today's free mystery ebook.
This title was listed as free as of the date and time of this post. Prices are subject to change without notice. The price displayed on the vendor website at the time of purchase will be the price paid for the book. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your transaction.
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Stalking Natalie by Skip Coryell
Publisher: Whitefeather Press
About Stalking Natalie (from the publisher): He always stayed in the shadows, hid around corners, or gazed from behind the innocent pages of a paperback book. Sometimes he nursed a vanilla latte with a double shot of espresso, but always without fail, he watched her. He was obsessed … and Natalie was his next chosen one.
Important Note: This book was listed for free on the date and time of this post. Prices can and do change without prior notice. Please confirm the price of the book before completing your purchase.
Download Link(s):
For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.
