Review: Black Current by Karen Keskinen

A Mysterious Review of Black Current by Karen Keskinen. A Jayme Zarlin Mystery.

Review summary: The core storyline of this murder mystery is solidly structured and developed, so much so that it's nearly impossible to determine whodunit from a very limited number of suspects. Overall, a strong entry in this series though one that places too much attention on the lead character's personal life. (Click here for text of full review.)

Our rating:

Black Current
Karen Keskinen
A Jayme Zarlin Mystery
Minotaur Books (June 2014)

Publisher synopsis: It's August, and Santa Barbara, California hasn't tasted a drop of rain for months when P.I. Jaymie Zarlin learns a popular high school athlete has drowned in a tank at the city aquarium. The police are calling Skye Rasmussen's death an accident, but his distraught parents, unconvinced, hire Jaymie to find out the truth.

Eager to prove she's up to the challenge of solving the case, Jaymie investigates and uncovers an array of suspects. But when information begins to surface about her own brother, who died three years ago in the downtown jail, Jaymie is torn between doing right by her clients and exposing the truth about a mystery that lies much closer to home.

        

New This Week: The Spy Paramount, a British Library Spy Classic by E. Phillips Oppenheim

This classic thriller, first published in 1934 — and undoubtedly an influence on Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels — is now republished for the first time since the 1930s. With its yachts and cocktail parties, its steely hero and brutal assassins, and its cinematic range across the cities of Europe, this is a gripping and sophisticated tale of a spy who saves the world.

The Spy Paramount by E. Phillips Oppenheim

The British Library Spy Classics

Publisher: British Library Publishing

Price: $2.99 (as of 07/29/2014 at 4:30 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Rome, 1934. Martin Fawley leaves the American secret service and is recruited by General Berati, the most feared man in fascist Italy, as a spy. After a brief encounter with a glamorous yet murderous Italian princess, Fawley's mission takes him undercover to Monaco.

Suave and worldly, Fawley is quite at home in the casinos and golf courses of Monte Carlo — but he is soon entangled in a game with higher stakes. As the nations of Europe vie for power, Fawley reveals the secret weapon that will determine the outcome of the looming war.

— The Spy Paramount by E. Phillips Oppenheim

Eyes Wide Open, A Novel of Suspense by Andrew Gross, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy. Today, we're pleased to feature the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the publisher, HarperCollins …

Eyes Wide Open by Andrew Gross

A Novel of Suspense

Publisher: HarperCollins

Price: $1.99 (as of 07/29/2014 at 4:00 PM ET).

Read our review of this book on Mysterious Reviews.

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Jay Erlich's nephew has been found at the bottom of a cliff at Morrow Bay. It's all just a tragic suicide, until secrets from the past begin to rear up again. Did a notorious killer, jailed for many decades, have his hand in this?

Years ago, Jay Erlich's older brother, Charlie, a wayward child of the sixties, set out for California, where he fell under the sway of a charismatic but deeply disturbed cultlike figure. Tragedy ensued and lives were destroyed, but as the decades passed, Charlie married and raised a family and lived a quiet, secluded life under the radar. Yet the demons that nearly destroyed him never completely disappeared.

When Jay heads out west to help his grieving brother, he is pulled back into Charlie's past—and begins to suspect that his nephew's suicide may not have been that at all. With eyes wide open, Jay puts his own life at risk to uncover the truth, a quest that goes beyond the edge of madness and a family haunted by a secret past … and into the depths of evil.

— Eyes Wide Open by Andrew Gross

Full Fury, A David Mallin Mystery by Roger Ormerod, Now Available at a Special Price

Amazon Kindle Countdown Deals are limited-time discounts on Kindle-exclusive books.

Omnimystery News is pleased to present you with one of today's titles … but take advantage of this deal now as the price will go up to its digital list price soon! (See the countdown clock on the book product page to see how much time remains on this deal.)

Full Fury by Roger Ormerod

A David Mallin Mystery (4th in series)

Publisher: Endeavour Press

Price: $0.99 (as of 07/29/2014 at 3:30 PM ET).

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Dave Mallin is eagerly awaiting his first case as a Private Detective when two clients knock on his door. One is a crook, Finn Carter, known for getting his way through violent means. The other, a young wannabe writer, is seemingly out of place and out of his depth. But they both want Mallin's help on the same case: the mystery of Neville Gaines, a man who had been hanged 12 years before for shooting and killing a farmer called Andy Paterson.

With no apparent connection to each other, or to the case, Mallin is baffled by their interest, especially when the murderer was so obviously guilty. What was to be gained by going over the case again?

Due to be married in a couple of days, and a less than enthusiatic fiancé, Mallin decides it would be better to turn down the case. But when events take a violent turn, Mallin is keen to find out why. And when another murder intrudes, it looks as though his impatient fiancée may have to wait …

— Full Fury by Roger Ormerod

The Big Four, A Hercule Poirot Mystery by Agatha Christie, Now Available at a Special Price

Omnimystery News is always searching for newly discounted mystery, suspense, thriller and crime novels for our readers to enjoy. Today, we're pleased to feature the following title, now available at a special price courtesy of the publisher, William Morrow …

The Big Four by Agatha Christie

A Hercule Poirot Mystery

Publisher: William Morrow

Price: $1.99 (as of 07/29/2014 at 3:00 PM ET).

An adaptation of this novel aired on PBS's Masterpiece Mystery! this past Sunday.

  

Important Note: Price(s) verified as of the date and time shown. Price(s) are subject to change at any time. Please confirm the price of the book before purchasing it.

Hercule Poirot is preparing for a voyage to South America. Looming in the doorway of his bedroom is an uninvited guest, coated from head to foot in dust and mud. The man's gaunt face registers Poirot for a moment, and then he collapses. The stranger recovers long enough to identify Poirot by name and madly and repeatedly scribble the figure "4" on a piece of paper.

Poirot cancels his trip. An investigation is in order. Fortunately, Poirot has the faithful Captain Hastings at his side as he plunges into a conspiracy of international scope -- one that would consolidate power in the deadly cabal known as "The Big Four".

— The Big Four by Agatha Christie