We've just published our Review of Fifteen Digits by Nick Santora. Mulholland Books Hardcover, April 2012.
Our rating:
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Friday, April 27, 2012
More Prime Time Crime for Sweden's TV4
Sweden's TV4 is planning a new slate of prime time crime.
Six episodes of Annika Bengtzon, based on a character created by crime novelist Liza Marklund, are being produced. (It isn't clear if these are based on any of the author's novels or not.) In the books, Annika Bengtzon is an investigative journalist in Stockholm.
Another crime novelist, Dagmar Lange, is having her books adapted in a series titled Maria Lang, which is the pen name she used. Quite honestly, we know little about this author, who died in 1991, and don't even know if her mysteries include a series character. Six episodes have been ordered.
Two of romantic suspense author Viveca Sten's books are being adapted for two 3-part episodes of The Sandhamn Murders, Sandhamn being a resort community on island of Sandön off Sweden's east coast. We don't believe any of this author's books have been translated into English — from her website, we can see that four have been published between 2008 and 2011 — and can't determine which of them are being adapted for this series.
Finally, TV4 has commissioned six new episodes of Wallander, which will begin filming this summer. Based on a character created by Henning Mankell, the series stars Krister Henriksson as police Inspector Kurt Wallander. This will be the last season for the series. (These episodes are not to be confused with from those produced in the UK for BBC, which star Kenneth Branagh in the title role.)
Today's Bestselling Free Kindle MystereBooks (120427)
Here is today's list of the top bestselling free Kindle mysteries, suspense novels and thrillers.
We're using a script to embed an RSS feed from Amazon.com, which is updated hourly, but if you cannot see the box below — or have scripts blocked — you can use this link to see the relevant page on Amazon.com.
BBC Commissions Mayday, a 5-Part Crime Thriller
BBC has commissioned a new 5-part crime thriller titled Mayday.
When a young girl goes missing on her way to the Mayday parade, the small community in which she lives looks to one another for answers.
But beneath the picture-postcard idyll lies a sinister other world and the dark woods teem with myth.
As the community reels from Hattie's disappearance, the drama follows the mass hysteria and ensuing search from the point of view of the central characters, each of whom fears that someone they know is responsible. As they keep silent, their suspicions intensify over the course of the five episodes.
Sophie Okonedo plays Fiona, a young mum determined to protect her family, who spies on a neighbor. Peter Firth plays Malcolm, a community leader married to Gail, played by Lesley Manville.
Aidan Gillen plays Everett, a single father to the sensitive Linus (Max Fowler) who has fallen in love with Hattie's twin sister Caitlin (Leila Mimmack) — who can feel it in her bones that her sister is dead.
Mayday also stars Sam Spruell as Steve, brother to Seth (Tom Fisher), an outcast who hides in the woods.
"A highly authored serial from Ben Court and Caroline Ip, which has attracted a brilliant cast and takes an original look at a familiar story," said Jane Featherstone, Chief Executive of Kudos Film and Television, which is producing Mayday. "There are no police incident rooms, autopsies or crime scene investigations, instead this is about a town facing the reality that the killer is among them, one of them."
(Source: Press release.)
Fatal Tango by Wolfram Fleischhauer; Dance Interpretation and Giveaway
Wolfram Fleischhauer was born in Karlsruhe, Germany, and developed a passion for foreign cultures at an early age. He spent a year abroad at an American high school before going on to study comparative literature at the Free University of Berlin and at the University of California-Irvine. He has lived in Spain, France, Italy, and Belgium and traveled on four continents. His eight novels combine American storytelling with the thematic richness of the wider European tradition.
His latest book to be translated into English is Fatal Tango (trade paperback, Kindle ebook, and audiobook editions); it was originally published in German in 2002 as Drei Minuten mit der Wirklichkeit.
In the story, Giulietta Battin has devoted herself to ballet, earning a coveted spot as a dancer with the Staatsoper Berlin. But when she decides to explore a new style of music — the tango — life as she knows it changes forever. Soon after beginning her musical adventure, she meets Argentinean tango dancer Damián Alsina. They begin a torrid affair … which quickly turns into a nightmare. Damián suddenly sabotages his own performance with a bizarre, improvised choreography. His passionate creativity excites Giulietta, until Damián's strange behavior culminates in a shocking act: he kidnaps and tortures her jealous father. Horrified, she demands answers, but Damián has fled to Buenos Aires and her father, his victim, is being suspiciously unforthcoming. So Giulietta follows her lover to South America, where her journey into the world of tango confronts her with the unspeakable horrors of the country's brutal past.
But denial will never silence art, and as Giulietta learns to decipher the true significance of Damián's dance style, she finds the key to the mystery of her lover's past and the terrifying truth that connects it with her own.
We are thrilled to be giving away three copies of Fatal Tango, courtesy of EMG Promotions. At the bottom of this post is information on how you can enter to win one of these books. But first, the author gives us a brief introduction this exotic dance, the tango.
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The Art of Tango …
In real life, tango can also be in code. Wolfram Fleischhauer interviewed professional dancers in Buenos Aires and asked them to reveal their personal tango notation systems. Most couples have some kind of system to memorize their complex choreographies.
How Tango Can Reveal Secrets …
In the example below, Fleischhauer shows from a dancer's perspective how tango code might reveal the truth about a romance — will it be a thriller, or just more filler?
The music starts …
Step: Tijera — Scissor: A movement, usually danced by the man, in which an extended leg is withdrawn and crossed in front of the supporting leg without weight so that it remains free for the next step or movement.
Possible Interpretation: "Interesting, he really likes to dance these tijeras. Not the kind of sequence you would expect the first time you are dancing with a stranger, but let's wait and see where this is all going."
Step: Enganche — Hooking; coupling; the little hook: Occurs when a partner wraps a leg around the other's leg, or uses a foot to catch and hold the other's foot or ankle.
Possible Interpretation: "That enganche is really a little early for my taste. Strange, he does not really strike me as the pushy type at all. I've been watching him with other women, obviously, and I know he has been watching me. Is he doing all of this to show off to someone else?"
Step: Adorno — Adornment; embellishment; decoration: Complicated or syncopated movements which the dancer uses to demonstrate their skill and to interpret the music.
Possible Interpretation: "Yes. I better stay on my guard with this guy. All these adornos probably aren't event meant for me. Is he dancing with me at all? He's so self-absorbed he probably would not even notice if I did one myself. Let's see. OK, I was wrong. He did notice. And I can just sense he is going to pick up on it …"
Step: Desplazamiento — Displacement: Displacing the partner's leg or foot using one's own leg or foot.
Possible Interpretation: "I was right. But what is he really trying to say now with this desplazamiento. My guess still is he is just very much in love with himself."
Step: Ocho Cortado — Cut eight: change of direction. Typical in club-style tango where many such brakes are used to avoid collisions. Describes a movement done on either foot, pivoting forward or backward, and going either left or right.
Possible Interpretation: "Well, maybe not, after all. The way he just looked at me while he was doing these subtle ocho cortados. I must say, that was really exquisite. I wouldn't mind to dance a whole tanda with him."
Step: Rabona — A walking step with a syncopated cross. Done forward or backward the dancer steps on a beat, quickly closes the other foot in cruzada, and steps again on the next beat. Adapted from soccer.
Possible Interpretation: "Hmmm, I just love it when the ochos get even more syncopated into rabonas. And he's only looking at me now. Who is he, anyway? He's cautious, but confident, and likes to surprise with suggestive little details."
The music stops. We stand in a tight embrace, maybe a little too tight now, leaning on each other as the cortina jingle sets in.
"Otra vez?" he asks as the cortina fades and tango music sets in again. "Once more?" And then the penny drops: tijeras, enganche, adorno, desplazamiento, ocho cortado, rabono … otra vez? "Te adoro" … I adore you! What a charmer.
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For a chance to win a trade paperback edition of Fatal Tango, visit Mystery Book Contests and click on the "Wolfram Fleischhauer: Fatal Tango" contest link, enter your name, e-mail address, and this code: 9872. (One entry per person. US and Canada residents only. Contest ends May 5th, 2012.)
Wolf Tickets by Ray Banks is Today's Third Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature Wolf Tickets by Ray Banks as today's third 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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Wolf Tickets by Ray Banks
Publisher: Blasted Heath
About Wolf Tickets (from the publisher): Sean Farrell — thief, petrol smuggler and all-round scoundrel — just got shafted by the love of his life. Nora ran off with twenty grand, a gram of coke, and his favorite leather jacket, leaving him with little more than a hangover and a Dido soundtrack. But Nora’s sights are on the two hundred grand Farrell supposedly stashed somewhere in the middle of Northumberland, and she’s enlisted the help of her old boyfriend, a former hit man, to retrieve it.
Farrell hooks up with an old Army mate, the shoplifting, rotgut-swilling arsonist Jimmy Cobb and sets off after them. When this pair catch up with Nora and her ex, there’s going to be hell to pay, 'cause nobody messes with Farrell and Cobb …
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.
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For more free mystery ebooks, visit our Free MystereBooks page.
The Dead Room by Robert Ellis is Today's Second Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature The Dead Room by Robert Ellis 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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The Dead Room by Robert Ellis
Publisher: Pinnacle/Robert Ellis
About The Dead Room (from the publisher): A young woman has been found, brutally murdered and left on gruesome display … in the "safety" of her own home. The atrocity kicks off an investigation into a bizarre string of increasingly disturbing murders, all believed to be perpetrated by someone of unprecedented savagery and cunning.
As the city’s panic rises, civil attorney Teddy Mack is thrown headlong into the grisly homicide case — and into a world of dirty politics and corrupt justice, where deceptions are as deadly as a killer’s twisted secrets. Now, another woman is about to meet the same horrific fate as the others. To end a madman’s reign, Teddy must enter his maze — a place of unimaginable terror … and shocking revelations.
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.
Everything but the Squeal by Timothy Hallinan is Today's Featured Free MystereBook
MystereBooks is pleased to feature Everything but the Squeal by Timothy Hallinan 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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Everything but the Squeal by Timothy Hallinan
A Simeon Grist Mystery
Publisher: Dutton/Hallinan Consulting
This is the second mystery to feature the Los Angeles private investigator.
About Everything but the Squeal (from the publisher): Simeon Grist is a private eye and Los Angeles is his city, and in the mid-nineties it's a city of lost children. Against his better judgment — this is heartbreak territory — Grist is on a new case, one that leads him down the streets of LA and into the dead, dark places of a killer's heart.
Missing is a thirteen-year-old from Kansas, Aimee Sorrell, a/k/a Dorothy Gale, who didn't find Oz over this rainbow. In fact, from the Polaroids her mother got in the mail, Aimee found nothing less than hell. The not-so-pretty pictures convince Grist to take the Sorrell case, hoping against hope for a happy ending. But the trail soon leads him to the city morgue, and the first of a string of victims. The trail leads Simeon — and his willful god-daughter, Jessica — on a perilous journey to find out what happens to America's lost children when they go looking for love in all the wrong places.
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.
Mystery Bestsellers for the Week Ending April 27, 2012
A list of the top 15 mystery hardcover bestsellers for the week ending April 27th, 2012 has been posted by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.
One of last week's featured titles, The Innocent by David Baldacci, assumes the top spot this week by a comfortable margin.
One title, which debuted last week just off the list, moves up.
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Moving up from 17 to 11 is Prague Fatale, the 8th Bernie Gunther political thriller by Philip Kerr.
September 1941: Reinhard Heydrich is hosting a gathering to celebrate his appointment as Reichsprotector of Czechoslovakia. He has chosen his guests with care. All are high-ranking Party members and each is a suspect in a crime as yet to be committed: the murder of Heydrich himself.
Indeed, a murder does occur, but the victim is a young adjutant on Heydrich’s staff, found dead in his room, the door and windows bolted from the inside. Anticipating foul play, Heydrich had already ordered Bernie Gunther to Prague. After more than a decade in Berlin's Kripo, Bernie had jumped ship as the Nazis came to power, setting himself up as a private detective. But Heydrich, who managed to subsume Kripo into his own SS operations, has forced Bernie back to police work. Now, searching for the killer, Gunther must pick through the lives of some of the Reich’s most odious officials.
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, April 26, 2012
Winners of the 2012 Edgar Awards Announced
The Mystery Writers of America handed out their annual Edgar Awards honoring the best of crime writing this evening in a ceremony in New York City. Thanks to everyone who tweeted the results, which are listed below:
• Best Novel: Gone by Mo Hayder (Atlantic Monthly Press)
• Best First Novel: Bent Road by Lori Roy (Dutton)
• Best Paperback Original: The Company Man by Robert Jackson Bennett (Orbit Books)
• Best Fact Crime: Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard (Doubleday)
• Best Critical/Biographical: On Conan Doyle by Michael Dirda (Princeton University Press)
• Best Short Story: "The Man Who Took His Hat Off to the Driver of the Train" (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine) by Peter Turnbull
• Best Juvenile: Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby (Scholastic Press)
• Best Young Adult: The Silence of Murder by Dandi Daley Mackall (Knopf)
• Best Play: The Game's Afoot by Ken Ludwig (Cleveland Playhouse)
• Best Television Episode Screenplay: "Pilot" (Homeland) by Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon, and Gideon Raff
• Robert L. Fish Memorial Award: "A Good Man of Business" (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine) by David Ingram (Dell Magazines)
• Grand Master: Martha Grimes
• Raven Award: M is for Mystery Bookstore
• Raven Award: Molly Weston, Meritorious Mysteries
• Ellery Queen Award: Joe Meyers, Connecticut Post/Hearst Media News Group
• Simon & Schuster/Mary Higgins Clark Award: Learning to Swim by Sara J. Henry (Crown)
First Clues, Mysteries for Kids: New Titles for May 2012
First Clues: Mysteries for Kids is pleased to announce a selection of new mystery, suspense and thriller books (including series books) scheduled for publication during May 2012, listed in approximate order of reading level, from books for younger readers to books for teens.
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Cape Mermaid Mystery
Carolyn Keene
Nancy Drew: The Clue Crew
Nancy and her friends are headed for the shores of Cape Mermaid, New Jersey, where they are hoping to spend a fun-filled week. But as soon as they arrive at an old inn on the beach, strange things start to happen—spooky noises, a message for help, and a possible ghost sighting. Could the rumored ghost of Cape Mermaid actually exist? Or is there more to the story than meets the eye? It’s up to the Clue Crew to solve the mystery!
Nancy Drew: The Clue Crew mysteries are recommended for readers aged 7 to 9.
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Madhattan Mystery
John J. Bonk
All set to spend their summer in New York City with their aunt while their father is honeymooning with his new wife, Lexi and her younger brother Kevin’s snoozy summer plans turn into high-stakes adventure when Lexi overhears a plot to steal Cleopatra’s famous jewels from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Joining forces with budding investigative journalist Kim Ling Levine, they ditch day camp to track down the thieves and rake in the reward money. Can Lexi, Kevin, and Kim find out who’s behind the jewel heist without getting into too much trouble themselves?
This caper is recommended for readers aged 7 to 9.
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The Great Cat Conspiracy
Katie Davies
The New Cat keeps bringing dead things into the house as gifts for Tom. When he brings in the head of the Vicar’s most expensive Koi carp and the Vicar asks Mum for a ton of money for a replacement, Anna’s Dad is so cross he locks the New Cat out of the house. Tom argues for the cat to be let back in, but by the time Dad finally concedes, the New Cat has disappeared altogether. Anna, Suzanne and Tom are convinced he’s been kidnapped—but can they find out who is behind the Great Cat Conspiracy?
This mystery is recommended for readers aged 7 to 9.
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Two Crafty Criminals
Philip Pullman
Benny Kaminsky and Thunderbolt Dobney lead a rag-tag gang of neighborhood rowdies. Their territory is the New Cut on London's South Bank — a place bristling with swindlers, bookies, pickpockets, and the occasional policeman. And their aim is to solve crimes.
When counterfeit coins start showing up in their neighborhood, Thunderbolt fears his own father may be behind the crime. But his friends devise a way to trap the real culprit. Then the gang takes on the case of some stolen silver. They have just two clues — a blob of wax, and an unusually long match. But even this slippery thief is unmasked by the determined kids of the New Cut.
This mystery is recommended for readers aged 7 to 9.
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Neil Flambe and the Crusader's Curse
Kevin Sylvester
Neil Flambe
World-class chef — and royal pain in the neck — Neil Flambé is used to serving his dishes to resounding applause and overwhelming approval. And Neil’s super-sensitive nose does more than enable him to cook sophisticated meals and run his own restaurant; it also allows him to help local police solve mysteries in his spare time.
Then things start going wrong. His plates are returned. A group of critics visit the restaurant and leave completely dissatisfied. Worse yet, Chez Flambé is closed by an order of the Department of Health!
Suddenly, Neil finds himself amid the cook-off of his life — and his entire reputation is at stake. Then he discovers the root of all his problems: a dark curse that has plagued Flambé chefs for centuries. Has Neil finally met a mess he can’t smell his way out of?
The Neil Flambe capers are recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.
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Rush for the Gold
John Feinstein
Steve and Susan Sports Mysteries
Susan Carol Anderson isn't reporting the Olympics—she's in them, competing as a swimmer at her first Olympic games. Stevie Anderson is both proud and envious of her athletic prowess. And he's worried by the agents and sponsors and media all wanting to get up close and personal with Susan Carol. But the more disturbing question becomes—how far might they go to ensure that America's newest Olympic darling wins gold?
Steve and Susan Sports mysteries are recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.
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The Cahill Files: Operation Trinity
Clifford Riley
The 39 Clues
This extraordinary stand-alone novel cracks open the Cahill vault to tell the story of the most coveted piece of artwork in the world, a masterpiece that has been the target of seven separate theft attempts: Jan van Eyck’s altarpiece at Ghent. Operation: Trinity chronicles the first Vesper attack on the altarpiece in the 1600s, then jumps to WWII and young Grace Cahill’s desperate bid to save the masterwork from the Nazis. The final piece of the novel tells the story of Ian and Natalie Kabra’s first solo operation and features an 11th hour appearance by Grace Cahill on her final mission.
The 39 Clues series books are recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.
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Theodore Boone: The Accused
John Grisham
Theodore Boone
Theo Boone might only be thirteen, but he's already uncovered key evidence in a groundbreaking murder trial and discovered the truth behind his best friend's abduction. Now with the latest unfolding of events in Strattenburg, Theo will face his biggest challenge yet.
Theodore Boone books are recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.
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Mystery at Riddle Gully
Jen Banyard
Pollo di Nozi, a reporter-in-training, has a nose for news. Weird things are happening in Riddle Gully and Pollo smells a major scoop. With Shorn Connery, her sheepish sidekick, Pollo is determined to track down the truth. But is Will, the new boy in town, conspiring with the pushy mayor, the Graffiti Kid, and a strange Transylvanian to send her sniffing up the wrong trail?
This investigation is recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.
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Three Times Lucky
Sheila Turnage
Rising sixth grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC, where everyone's business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she's been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her "upstream mother," she's found a home with the Colonel — a café owner with a forgotten past of his own — and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.
This mystery is recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.
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The Homemade Stuffing Caper
John V. Madormo
Seventh grader Charlie Collier has always been able to solve brain teasers in no time at all. And his favorite books have always been mysteries. So when Charlie dons his father's old trench coat — the one his mother thought she brought to Goodwill — and a fedora that should have suffered the same fate, he thinks solving mysteries will be as easy as pie. But then Charlie is presented with a big case. A huge one. That involves the entire town. And Charlie needs more than just smarts to crack this case. He'll need his friend Henry, their client Scarlet, and a class bully who turns out to have some surprising secrets of his own.
This mystery is recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.
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First Clues: Mysteries for Kids is your source for information on over 200 mystery series for children and young adults, where each series is conveniently listed under four different age categories (New Sleuths, ages 4 to 6; Future Sleuths, ages 7 to 9; Sleuths in Training, ages 10 to 12; and Apprentice Sleuths, ages 13 and older).
Today's Bestselling Free Kindle MystereBooks (120426)
Here is today's list of the top bestselling free Kindle mysteries, suspense novels and thrillers.
We're using a script to embed an RSS feed from Amazon.com, which is updated hourly, but if you cannot see the box below — or have scripts blocked — you can use this link to see the relevant page on Amazon.com.
Review: Chomp by Carl Hiaasen
We've just published our Review of Chomp by Carl Hiaasen. Knopf Hardcover, March 2012.
Our rating:
Available to purchase from …
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