We've updated our Calendar of Mystery Events with mystery-themed conferences and festivals to be held in 2011 (through August or thereabouts). See the sidebar on this page for a list of these events, dates, and venues.
If you know of an event not mentioned here, please e-mail us at info(@)omnimystery.com and we'll be pleased to add it to the list.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Calendar of Mystery Events Updated for 2011
Conspiracy in Kiev by Noel Hynd is Today's Featured Free Kindle Mystery
Kindle Mysteries is pleased to feature a mystery title that is currently available in Kindle eBook format for free from Amazon.com. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically only until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so download it today!
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Conspiracy in Kiev by Noel Hynd
The Russian Trilogy (1st in series)
Zondervan (Kindle eBook)
Download Link
About Conspiracy in Kiev (from the publisher): A shrewd investigator and an expert marksman, Special Agent Alexandra LaDuca can handle any case the FBI gives her. Or can she?
While on loan from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Alex is tapped to accompany a Secret Service team during an American Presidential visit to Ukraine. Her assignment: to keep personal watch over Yuri Federov, the most charming and most notorious gangster in the region. Against her better judgment—and fighting a feeling that she’s being manipulated—she leaves for Ukraine. But there are more parts to this dangerous mission than anyone suspects, and connecting the dots takes Alex across three continents and through some life-altering discoveries about herself, her work, her faith, and her future.
Read the first chapters of Conspiracy in Kiev below.
Help FBI Agent Nicole Bonnet Find a Ruthless Serial Killer in Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny, New from BFG
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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A mysterious package begins an epic duel of minds between FBI Agent Nicole Bonnet and a ruthless serial killer, who leaves playing cards by the bodies of his victims as signature. Does Nicole have what it takes to understand the mind of a psychopath, as complicated as his puzzles? If not, she might end up as his next trophy! Find crucial clues in gorgeous hidden object scenes and stop the murderer in this thrilling adventure! Warning: This game contains some graphic content.
See also the two previous games in this series, Art of Murder: FBI Confidential and Art of Murder: Hunt for the Puppeteer.
Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny may be downloaded and purchased for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (333.62 MB) may be downloaded and played for free for one hour; the full version is 1.78 GB.
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!
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Storyline Details Emerge
It's generally been known that the fourth film in the Pirates of the Caribbean series is based, at least in part, on Tim Powers' 1987 adventure novel On Stranger Tides. Indeed, the title of the film is taken from the book.
Now, ComingSoon.net has some more details on the film's storyline, straight from the director, Rob Marshall, who spoke at a special event at Disneyland where the first trailer for the film was initially screened.
"The story takes us to some different places," Marshall explained, "which makes it nice that it's not the same old thing. The whole opening and the first third of the film takes place in London. So we start on dry land and there is an impostor that Jack is looking for. He then escapes from the palace, gets captured by King George and there is a huge carriage chase ... [W]e set sail and that is sort of the second act. It's a new ship, Blackbeard's ship, the Queen Anne's Revenge. Then Barbossa has a new ship called the Providence. The third act is this incredible jungle adventure through caves where they are looking for the Fountain of Youth."
Compare this to a synopsis of the book, which follows the exploits of John "Jack Shandy" Chandagnac, who travels to the new world after the death of his puppeteer father to confront his uncle, who has apparently made off with the family fortune. During the voyage, he befriends Beth Hurwood and her father Benjamin Hurwood, an Oxford professor. Before they arrive at their destination, their ship is waylaid by Blackbeard and his band of pirates. With the help of the professor and his assistant, the captain is killed and Chandagnac is pressed into piracy and sorcery as Blackbeard searches for the Fountain of Lost Youth. Chandagnac, newly dubbed "Jack Shandy," must stop the evil plot and save Beth Hurwood.
There are clearly some similarities here, though the film seems to be a loose adaptation of the book, at best.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, starring Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow (the Jack Shandy character in the book) and Ian McShane as Blackbeard, opens in theaters May 20th, 2011.
Sony Announces James Patterson: Catch a Killer, a New Facebook Game
In a press release today, Sony Online Entertainment announced James Patterson: Catch a Killer, a new free-to-play puzzle adventure game on Facebook.
In the game, players can search for clues and hidden items in gritty crime scene photos, and unearth the terrifying truths behind each clue by piecing together fingerprints or unlocking DNA sequences. James Patterson: Catch a Killer also features a virtual world where players can interact with friends and invite them to play the game, gift items and publish achievements in their News Feed. Energy packs and other in-game items can also be purchased through micro-transactions using Station Cash, SOE's virtual currency, to help in solving crimes.
Features of the game include:
• Play Free or Upgrade: James Patterson: Catch a Killer is a free-to-play game, but players can further enhance their gameplay by unlocking new cases and purchasing a variety of items through micro-transactions.
• Solve the Puzzle, Crack the Case: Search crime scenes for evidence, examine clues, piece together fingerprints and match DNA to unlock secrets, advance gameplay and get closer to solving the case.
• Unique Enemies: Players will chase unique criminals inspired by James Patterson, such as The Changeling, Ladykiller and Anniversary Killer.
• Gritty, Realistic Graphics: Mature and edgy graphics depict gruesome scenes equivalent to what is featured in the Alex Cross novels and on crime TV shows.
• Immersive Virtual World: Create an avatar and chat with friends in the James Patterson: Catch a Killer city. Swap tips, gift items to friends or just brag about your sleuthing skills.
• Customization and Achievements: Advance through the game earning or purchasing special elite items that can be displayed or gifted to friends.
For more information about the game, visit the James Patterson: Catch a Killer website.
eHarlequin Silhouette Romantic Suspense Titles for January 2011
Sparked by danger, fueled by passion, eHarlequin.com has released the January 2011 titles in their Silhouette Romantic Suspense series. Let yourself be swept away with characters who fall in love under larger-than-life circumstances. In Silhouette Romantic Suspense, suspense, emotion and glamour combine to create these highly charged books! For more information or to purchase any of the books below, click on the book title or book cover. (Previous months titles can be found on the backlist page.)
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Cowboy Deputy
An unknown darkness walks the streets of Black Rock. With a killer at large, Deputy Benjamin Grayson knows that an elderly man's claims of a supernatural phenomenon won't help matters. Yet what he doesn't know is that summoning the man's only relative will make her a target … one in need of his protection.
Edie Burnett comes to the sleepy Kansas town for her grandfather's sake—not to let down her guard for a handsome lawman. But Benjamin seems determined to prove that her hard-knock life has been void of friendship, passion and security for too long. She wants to be safe in his arms, but when danger closes in she may not get the chance …
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Underground Warrier
"He's your enemy."
Those three words echo in Sibyl Daine's mind. Trace Beaudry's father—a member of a powerful secret society, the Comitatus—is responsible for imprisoning her for a crime she didn't commit. She's a hacker, not some thug. She doesn't know where Trace's true loyalties lie, but she soon finds the line between love and hate blurring …
Trace Beaudry is finished paying for his father's sins. But he intends to find answers about the sword he's uncovered—a weapon tied to the Comitatus. All he knows is that he is painfully attracted to sexy Sibyl. Can he get close enough to keep her safe—or will the secrets of the sword kill them both?
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The Sheik's Lost Princess
Sheik Shakir Kadir, scarred by warfare and lost love, is ready for the ultimate confrontation. But his deadly mission to bring down his family's archenemy is compromised by the discovery that the princess who destroyed his heart is now a prisoner.
Held captive in a war-ravaged country, Nikki Olivier has her own life-or-death task to complete: bring her kidnapped son home alive. Her only hope is Shakir, the man she's never stopped wanting. Royal obligation had forced her to hurt Shakir and keep the volatile secret that her missing child is also his. Once the truth is revealed, will they create their own family legacy—or will it be their destruction?
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Danger in the Desert
"She who finds it is a messenger from the goddess herself …"
When Jaci Thornton finds a seemingly worthless scarab in a Cairo street, the timid librarian morphs from vacationer to adventurer. Unwittingly, she's fulfilled an ancient Egyptian prophecy, and unless sexy OMEGA agent Deke Griffin can protect her from its consequences, she may end up in Cairo's City of the Dead! Convincing Deke that she's innocent—not a part of a terrorist plot against Egypt—isn't easy. Seducing him is.
Passion must wait, though. With the real terrorists in pursuit of the scarab, Jaci flees with Deke to a deliciously sensual desert hideout. Jaci knows she's playing with fire, but this is her dream trip. Why not take a few scorch marks home as a souvenir?
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Keep up to date by subscribing to eHarlequin.com's free newsletter that contains the latest information about their series of books as well as informing you about subscriber-only special offers and new products. Click on the banner below to subscribe for free:
The Last Matryoshka by Joyce Yarrow (Book Review)
The Last Matryoshka by Joyce Yarrow. A Jo Epstein Mystery. Five Star Hardcover, December 2010.
There is some interest in following Jo Epstein as she tries to discover the reason her stepfather is being blackmailed, especially when the action transitions from New York City to Russia, but overall, there is little suspense in this mystery.
Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: The Last Matryoshka by Joyce Yarrow.
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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.
Help Maggie Gold Solve Her Money Problems in Slingo Mystery: The Golden Escape, New from BFG
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 adventure continues! In the previous entry in this series, Maggie Gold tracked down her ex-husband's murderer. Now she seeks to find out why Freddy’s money, which she's inherited, hasn’t solved her problems ... it has just created more! Once you get pulled in to this exciting hidden object game, it will be hard to break free!
See also the first Maggie Gold game, Slingo Mystery: Who's Gold?.
Slingo Mystery: The Golden Escape may be downloaded and purchased for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (425.37 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!
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
A&E Developing Two New Crime Dramas
Deadline|Hollywood is reporting that A&E is developing two light crime dramas, projects that are currently in the cast-contingent pilot stage. Both are compared in style and tone to A&E's most recent success, last summer's The Glades (which has been renewed for a second season).
First is Big Mike, about a plus-sized San Diego police detective who's the best at what he does ... except in the romance department.
The second is Longmire, named for Walt Longmire, the sheriff of northern Wyoming's rural (and fictional) Absaroka County, and based on a character created by crime novelist Craig Johnson. (Although we haven't published it yet, we're including Johnson's most recent mystery in this series, Junkyard Dogs, on our list of the best crime novels of 2010.)
Kirkus Reviews: The Best Mysteries of 2010
Kirkus Reviews has released its "Best of 2010" lists, including its selection of the 15 best mysteries of the year, which are listed below, alphabetically by author.
We've only read a handful of these titles ourselves; our reviews are indicated by the 
C. J. Box: Nowhere To Run, Joe Pickett (10th)
Noah Boyd: The Brick Layer, Steve Vail (1st)
James Lee Burke: The Glass Rainbow, Dave Robicheaux (18th)
Lee Child: Worth Dying For, Jack Reacher (15th)
Jeffery Deaver: Edge, Non-series
Paul Doiron: The Poacher's Son, Mike Bowdith (1st)
Elly Griffiths: The Crossing Places, Ruth Galloway (1st)
Elly Griffiths: The Janus Stone, Ruth Galloway (2nd)
Bryan Gruley: The Hanging Tree, Gus Carpenter (2nd)
Charles Kipps: Crystal Death, Conor Bard (2nd)
Alexander McCall Smith: The Charming Quirks of Others, Isabel Dalhousie (7th)
Louise Penny: Bury Your Dead, Armand Gamache (7th)
Chevy Stevens: Still Missing, Non-series
Wallace Stroby: Gone 'Til November, Non-series
Inger Ash Wolfe: The Taken, Hazel Micallef (2nd)
Crossing the Line by Stephen Jay Schwartz is Today's Featured Free Kindle Mystery
Kindle Mysteries is pleased to feature a mystery title that is currently available in Kindle eBook format for free from Amazon.com. We don't know how long it will be offered at this special price (typically only until a certain number of downloads have been completed), so download it today!
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Crossing the Line by Stephen Jay Schwartz
A Hayden Glass Short Story
Forge Books (Kindle eBook)
Download Link
About Crossing the Line (from the publisher): Hayden Glass is on the fast track to making detective with the LAPD, but first he’s got to work his way through Vice. But as any cop can attest, you can’t leave your work at the office, and with Hayden’s cursed and troubled past, his soul is not in the best shape. His marriage is on the rocks and he’s carries a deep guilt and anger that nothing can seem to quench. Until one day he finds something that can make it all go away.
This short story sets the stage for the author's debut novel, Boulevard, and its follow-up, Beat, both following Hayden Glass into crimes unimaginable and personal hells and healing.
Harlequin Intrigue Titles for January 2011
eHarlequin.com has released the January 2011 titles in their Intrigue, breathtaking romantic suspense series. Get these edge-of-your-seat reads today with characters who conquer everything from kidnappings to murder mysteries, only to find themselves irresistibly drawn to one another! For more information or to purchase any of the books below, click on the book title or book cover. (Previous months titles can be found on the backlist page.)
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Brandishing a Crown
He'd come to Wyoming on business, but the moment Prince Stefan Lutece met the beautiful forensics expert, all he could think about was pleasure. Unfortunately, Jane Cameron had a job to do—one that involved missing evidence and possibly murder—and she wasn't falling for Stefan's royal charms. But everything changed when Jane became the target of her own investigation and Stefan, with his military training and commanding presence, her self-imposed guardian. Protecting her 24/7 guaranteed Jane's survival…and stirred up the attraction practically burning between them. Stefan guaranteed he'd keep Jane out of the line of fire—but not out of his big, lonely bed.
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The Texas Lawman's Last Stand
Texas lawman Bo Duggan got the shock of his life when Mattie Collier showed up on his doorstep, claiming his daughter was really hers and not his son's twin. But before Bo could argue, Mattie became a gunman's target and duty compelled him to protect her. After getting the children to safety and then going on the run, Bo couldn't help but admire the way Mattie wouldn't back down—from a fight and from believing she was his baby's mother. Bo had trouble imagining a life without the little girl he'd given his heart to. And before long, he had to admit, he had trouble imagining living without her mother, too.
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Twilight Warrior
The past could never truly be left behind, and Detective Travis Blacksheep had learned that lesson well. His past had brought him back to the Navajo Nation and kept him devoted to his ancestral traditions. But now a faded memory stood on his doorstep asking for help—the woman he had never been able to forget.
Laura Perry was back in Three Rivers to catch a serial killer, and she was willing to use herself as bait. Without Travis protecting her, she'd be an easy target. But keeping Laura alive was easier than keeping his hands off her. And with a relentless predator on their trail, distractions weren't something either of them could afford …
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Guns and the Girl Next Door
Agent Holden Price didn't have to go far to find his next case—it crashed right into his living room! Not only had the beautiful blonde lost control of her car, but if she was telling the truth, someone was also trying to kill her. As a recovery agent, he had an obligation to investigate. And he couldn't deny that Mia Landers interested him more than she should.
Nothing made sense to Mia—especially not the attempt on her life. All she could do was trust Holden, the tall, dark and devastating agent who discovered that he and Mia had a common enemy … and a fierce attraction. But in order to act on it, they'd first have to come face-to-face with their darkest fears and a deadly revelation that might put their newfound love on the line.
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Solid as Steele
P.I. Mack Steele had loved Jamie Shepherd from the moment he'd met her … but she'd always been off-limits—until her frantic phone call reached out to him in the dead of night …
Jamie couldn't deny her fear when her "gift" returned. Her disturbing dreams were too real—trapped in a macabre fun house, a woman needed her help. Nor could Jamie deny her forbidden attraction to her dark, sexy protector. Lured back to the hometown she'd long ago escaped, Jamie had only Mack to save her from her dreams … and the very real, very twisted killer who'd lured her into his game. But would Mack be enough?
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Mountain Midwife
Kidnapped, blindfolded and driven to a desolate Rocky Mountain lodge—for midwife Rachel Devon it's the most terrifying birth she has ever attended to. But now that the baby's mother is dead, it's up to Rachel to get the child to safety. Much to Rachel's surprise, one of the kidnappers helps her escape. Cole McClure claims to be an undercover FBI agent, though Rachel doesn't trust him for a minute. He's got that sexy bad-boy edge, the type Rachel's been burned by way too often. But Cole comes through and with a blizzard bearing down on them, with killers and cops hot on their trail, they team up to find this innocent baby a home. And try to resist temptation when they're "forced" to share a bed through the cold winter nights …
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