Murder, Mystery & Mayhem

On Shelves – The Chalk Girl by Carol O’Connell

2012-01-29T09:51:00.000-05:00

*note new URL - www.murdermysterymayhembooks.com

The Chalk Girl
Carol O'Connell
January, 2012

On shelves - and not a moment too soon...

Kathleen Mallory is a great character and if you haven't discovered this series yet write down Carol O'Connell's name right now, on your hand if you have to, and go out and find the first title - Mallory's Oracle - and read it. O'Connell never disappoints and Mallory never ceases to be a bit of a sociopath ..... complicated goodness ......

From the publisher -

The little girl appeared in Central Park: red-haired, blue-eyed, smiling, perfect-except for the blood on her shoulder. It fell from the sky, she said, while she was looking for her uncle, who turned into a tree. Poor child, people thought. And then they found the body in the tree.

For Mallory, newly returned to the Special Crimes Unit after three months' lost time, there is something about the girl that she understands. Mallory is damaged, they say, but she can tell a kindred spirit. And this one will lead her to a story of extraordinary crimes: murders stretching back fifteen years, blackmail and complicity and a particular cruelty that only someone with Mallory's history could fully recognize. In the next few weeks, she will deal with them all . . . in her own way.

Read an Excerpt from The Chalk Girl

Carol O'Connell -

The Kathleen Mallory Series

Mallory’s Oracle (1994), The Man Who Cast Two Shadows (1995), Killing Critics (1996), Stone Angel (1997), Shell Game (1999), Crime School (2002), Dead Famous (2003), Winter House (2004), Find Me (2006), Chalk Girl (2012)

A New British Crime Author - John Barlow

2012-01-27T20:13:00.001-05:00

You don’t choose your family
by John Barlow, author of HOPE ROAD

About the time I started to think about writing HOPE ROAD, I made a discovery that came as quite a surprise: my uncle John had been an international arms dealer. He died on a flight from Amsterdam in 1984, slumped in the toilet, his throat cut.

Funny, isn’t it, how certain things in a family’s past are simply ignored, never talked about, as if everyone agrees that some dark, shared secret must remain unspoken. No one had EVER mentioned uncle John when I was growing up.

John Lord was actually a half-uncle, and that side of the family had always been a bit unusual. His granddad invented SPIK in the 1940s (long before political correctness), a carpet-cleaning powder. He also had a hat shop in Leeds with a small pigsty behind it. One day my dad’s auntie Jean, who worked in the shop as a teenager, found crates of army issue rifles in an outbuilding next to the pigs.

But uncle John was a different kind of arms dealer. He was licensed to carry arms, and apparently was well liked and respected in the firearms community. Back in the 70s, when airports were all free-and-easy, he used to carry a specially designed attaché case with sample guns in it right through customs. He’d hand it over to the captain when he boarded a flight.

He made various trips to Libya for reasons unknown during this time, and when he died his wife claimed that he’d been in contact with someone about working undercover, although she didn’t know who. Whatever the truth, after his death it was revealed that he’d been dealing in munitions stolen from the British army. An intelligence report then surfaced, suggesting a possible link with para-military organisations in northern Ireland.

As a novelist, though, my interest is in the fact that he was so damn normal. I also found it interesting that although he was an international arms dealer, he also bought and sold military memorabilia; so, he’d sell you a commemorative teaspoon from the battle of Waterloo, or a crate of landmines. His death left a young wife and two daughters, and a small suburban home. Yet he was flying to Libya and stealing stuff from the freakin army?

My novel HOPE ROAD is about a criminal family. Not mine. A far more complex one, in which one son exists in the non-criminal world, but finds it difficult to escape the inevitable taint of his family name. His police detective girlfriend helps, but once he starts investigating the murder of a young girl in which he is implicated, the boundaries start to break down.

Families, eh? Well, HOPE ROAD is also about fine wine, second hand cars, counterfeit money, Ukrainian tractors... But essentially it’s about John Ray, caught up in an environment not of his making, but inevitably shaping his outlook on life.

I hope you like it.

John Barlow

John Barlow was born in Yorkshire, UK, but now lives in Spain. His fiction and non-fiction has been published by HarperCollins, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, and 4th Estate. HOPE ROAD is his first crime mystery, and is the opening book in a series of nine novels about the Rays, a criminal family from Leeds.

Contact John:
www.johnbarlow.net
twitter.com/John_Barlow_LS9
www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=570882863

Buy HOPE ROAD:
Amazon
Amazon UK
Smashwords
Kobobooks

2011 Hammett Prize Nominees

2012-01-26T18:47:00.001-05:00

The North American Branch of the International Association of Crime Writers has announced the nominees for the 2011 Hammett Prize for literary excellence in the field of crime fiction.

The winner will be announced during the Bloody Words Conference in Toronto, June 1st through 3rd, 2012.

The nominees are:
Feast Day of Fools by James Lee Burke
Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran
The Cat's Table by Michael Ondaatje
The Informant by Thomas Perry
The Killer is Dying by James Sallis

The Nominees for the 2012 Edgar Allan Poe Awards

2012-01-21T14:34:00.003-05:00

Mystery Writers of America announced its Nominees for the 2012 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction and television published or produced in 2011. The Edgar® Awards will be presented to the winners at their 66th Gala Banquet, April 26, 2012 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York City. Mark your calendar.......

BEST NOVEL
The Ranger by Ace Atkins
Gone by Mo Hayder
The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino
1222 by Anne Holt
Field Gray by Philip Kerr

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
Red on Red by Edward Conlon
Last to Fold by David Duffy
All Cry Chaos by Leonard Rosen
Bent Road by Lori Roy
Purgatory Chasm by Steve Ulfelder

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
The Company Man by Robert Jackson Bennett
The Faces of Angels by Lucretia Grindle
The Dog Sox by Russell Hill
Death of the Mantis by Michael Stanley
Vienna Twilight by Frank Tallis

BEST FACT CRIME
The Murder of the Century:
The Gilded Age Crime That Scandalized a City and Sparked the Tabloid Wars by Paul Collins
The Savage City:
Race, Murder, and a Generation on the Edge by T.J. English
Destiny of the Republic:
A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard
Girl, Wanted:
The Chase for Sarah Pender by Steve Miller
The Man in the Rockefeller Suit:
The Astonishing Rise and Spectacular Fall of a Serial Imposter by Mark Seal

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
The Tattooed Girl:
The Enigma of Stieg Larsson and the Secrets Behind the Most Compelling Thrillers of our Time by Dan Burstein, Arne de Keijzer & John-Henri Holmberg
Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making by John Curran
On Conan Doyle: Or, the Whole Art of Storytelling by Michael Dirda
Detecting Women: Gender and the Hollywood Detective Film by Philippa Gates
Scripting Hitchcock: Psycho, The Birds and Marnie by Walter Raubicheck and Walter Srebnick

BEST SHORT STORY
"Marley’s Revolution" – Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine by John C. Boland
"Tomorrow’s Dead" – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by David Dean
"The Adakian Eagle” – Down These Strange Streets by Bradley Denton
"Lord John and the Plague of Zombies" – Down These Strange Streets by Diana Gabaldon
"The Case of Death and Honey" – A Study in Sherlock by Neil Gaiman
“The Man Who Took His Hat Off to the Driver of the Train” – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Peter Turnbull

BEST JUVENILE
Horton Halfpott by Tom Angleberger
It Happened on a Train by Mac Barnett
Vanished by Sheela Chari
Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby
The Wizard of Dark Street by Shawn Thomas Odyssey

BEST YOUNG ADULT
Shelter by Harlan Coben
The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
The Silence of Murder by Dandi Daley Mackall
The Girl is Murder by Kathryn Miller Haines
Kill You Last by Todd Strasser

BEST PLAY
Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Suicide Club by Jeffrey Hatcher
The Game’s Afoot by Ken Ludwig

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY
“Innocence” – Blue Bloods, Teleplay by Siobhan Byrne O’Connor
“The Life Inside” – Justified, Teleplay by Benjamin Cavell
“Part 1” – Whitechapel, Teleplay by Ben Court & Caroline Ip
“Pilot” – Homeland, Teleplay by Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon & Gideon Raff
“Mask” – Law & Order: SVU, Teleplay by Speed Weed

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD
"A Good Man of Business" – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by David Ingram

GRAND MASTER
Martha Grimes

RAVEN AWARDS
M is for Mystery Bookstore, San Mateo, CA
Molly Weston, Meritorious Mysteries

ELLERY QUEEN AWARD
Joe Meyers of the Connecticut Post/Hearst Media News Group

THE SIMON & SCHUSTER - MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD
(Presented at MWA’s Agents & Editors Party on Wednesday, April 25, 2012)

Now You See Me by S.J. Bolton
Come and Find Me by Hallie Ephron
Death on Tour by Janice Hamrick
Learning to Swim by Sara J. Henry
Murder Most Persuasive by Tracy Kiely

Win - The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen By Thomas Caplan

2012-01-10T22:27:00.002-05:00

The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen
By Thomas Caplan
January 2012

Through a generous offer from Penguin - Murder, Mystery and Mayhem readers have a chance to win a hardcover copy of Thomas Caplan's new book, The Spy Who Jumped off the Screen.

A new thriller for 1 lucky winner - Tell your friends and enter to win below....

From the publisher-
"A former soldier turned movie star turned spy must stop a catastrophic nuclear weapons deal.

This gripping thriller from Thomas Caplan propels readers around the globe-from Hollywood to Rome, the Black Sea to the Mediterranean-and to the very brink of nuclear abyss.

The novel's charismatic hero, former covert operative Ty Hunter, has become, almost by accident, the number one film star in the world. When he is recruited on a clandestine mission to thwart the transfer of nuclear warheads into rogue hands, he must deploy every skill he has as an actor, soldier, and spy. Donning his fame as a disguise, Ty matches wits and muscle with the enigmatic billionaire Ian Santal and his nefarious protégé Philip Frost-two supremely sophisticated adversaries- even as he falls in love with the entrancing young woman closest to them both, the jewelry designer Isabella Cavill.

In prose that is both elegant and powerful, The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen gives us a breakneck parable of good and evil-and a hero in the tradition of James Bond and Jason Bourne, who is sure to become an icon of the genre."

npr stories about thomas caplan

So, you want this book for your very own? It's easy....all you have to do is leave a comment below or e-mail your entry HERE. Winners will be chosen on a whim, unfairly, and yes, answering the question does matter! Who is your favorite spy?

Please include your e-mail address in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net).

Enter by January 31
The winner will be announced on or around February 1

The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. The book will be shipped by media mail and can take from 2-4 weeks to arrive after the closing date of the contest.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation and we are moving to www.murdermysterymayhembooks.com - check it out!

Win Audio Book - The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

2012-01-03T21:03:00.002-05:00

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
Alan Bradley
Audio Book
Unabridged - 8 compact discs
Random House

Win!

Alan Bradley's The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie which introduced a new amateur sleuth the eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce, an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison and a little revenge.

If you've never read any books in this series this is a great opportunity to start at the beginning with the very first title. Enter for a chance to escape into Flavia's world.

Set in 1950's England in the de Luce's decaying family Manor, Buckshaw, a dead snipe appears on the doorstep and a late night visitor soon becomes a body in the cucumber patch. Flavia is left to piece it all together by outwitting the adults, picking locks, and applying her scary knowledge of chemistry.

This book is a combination of Alexander McCall Smith and the Addams Family. A quick read, not always plausible but refreshingly snide. Perfect for the cozy reader that likes their books a little dark. Young adults would eat this up.

The Flavia de Luce series:

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (2009), The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag (2010),
A Red Herring Without Mustard (2011), I Am Half-Sick of Shadows (2011)

So, you want this audio book for your very own? It's easy....all you have to do is leave a comment below or e-mail your entry HERE. Winners will be chosen on a whim, unfairly, and yes, writing something interesting for a comment does matter! So, Murder, Mystery and Mayhem is getting a new website and we want you to tell us what you're interested in seeing included?

Please include your e-mail address in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net). Why don't you stay in touch by becoming a follower?

Enter by January 31
The winner will be announced on or around February 1

The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. The audio book will be shipped by media mail and can take from 2-4 weeks to arrive after the closing date of the contest.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation.

New Year's Resolution - Read More Crime Books

2012-01-01T13:43:00.004-05:00

A Confession....here is the list of all the books I said I was going to read.

The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen
Operation Napoleon by Arnaldur Indridason
In Search of the Rose Notes by Emily Arsenault
Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson,  Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson
Bloodline by Mark Billingham (on the bedside table)
A Game of Lies by Rebecca Cantrell
The Burning Soul by John Connolly and
The Infernals by John Connolly
The Cemetery of Prague by Umberto Eco
A Simple Act of Violence by R. J. Ellory
The Good Thief’s Guide to Venice by Chris Ewan
One of Our Thursdays Is Missing by Jasper Fforde
Bad Intentions by Karin Fossum
Love You More by Lisa Gardner
An Evil Eye by Jason Goodwin
Fadeaway Girl by Martha Grimes
Gone by Mo Hayder
Bad Bird by Chris Knopf
The Preacher by Camilla Lackberg
The Girl in the Green Raincoat by Laura Lippman and
The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman (on the bedside table)
Stagestruck by Peter Lovesey
The Troubled Man by Henning Mankell
Stolen Lives by Jassy Mackenzie
The Snowman by Jo Nesbø, The Leopard by Jo Nesbo (Just Bought!)
The Inspector and Silence by Håkan Nesser
Tigerlily's Orchids by Ruth Rendell
The Wreckage by Michael Robotham
Cell 8  by Roslund-Hellstrom
The Ronins Mistress by Laura Joh Rowland
The Two Deaths of Daniel Hayes by Marcus Sakey
Thick as Thieves by Peter Spiegelman (on the bedside table)
Kiss Her Goodbye by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins
Fun and Games by Duane Swierczynski (on the bedside table)
A Lonely Death by Charles Todd (on the bedside table)
A Lesson in Secrets by Jacqueline Winspear

The Taint of Midas by Anne Zouroudi (on the bedside table)

Egads...did I read anything?

January New Releases 2012 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

2011-12-30T21:06:00.002-05:00

Justice Deferred by Jeffrey Ashford
A Charitable Body by Robert Barnard
The Rope by Nevada Barr
Lunatics by Dave Barry; Alan Zweibel
Cold Comfort by Quentin Bates
The Golden Scales by Parker Bilal
The Crown by Nancy Bilyeau
The Night Swimmer by Matt Bondurant
Queen Without a Crown by Fiona Buckley
Vulture Peak by John Burdett (review of an earlier title)
The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen by Thomas Caplan
Hard Knocks by Howie Carr
The Whisperer by Donato Carrisi
The Way Between the Worlds by Alys Clare
A Parliament of Spies by Cassandra Clark
The Look of Love by Mary Jane Clark
The Cat Sitter’s Pajamas by Blaize Clement
Taken by Robert Crais (review of an earlier title)
The Evil That Men Do by Jeanne M. Dams
Pineapple Grenade by Tim Dorsey (review of an earlier title)
Rat Poison by Margaret Duffy
Gone West by Carola Dunn
Those Who Love Night by Wessel Ebersohn
Guilty Consciences - A Crime Writers' Association Anthology by Martin Edwards
A Quiet Vendetta by R.J. Ellory (review of an earlier title)
The Exterminators by Bill Fitzhugh
Boca Daze by Steven M. Forman
Believing the Lie by Elizabeth George
Mr. Monk on Patrol by Lee Goldberg
Hard Target by Howard Gordon
Blindside by Ed Gorman
The Face Thief by Eli Gottlieb
Mystery in Minster by Susanna Gregory
The House at Sea’s End by Elly Griffiths (our review)
Need You Now by James Grippando
Bloodland by Alan Glynn
$10,000 in Small, Unmarked Puzzles by Parnell Hall
The Fear Index by Robert Harris
Four Below by Peter Helton
A Devil Is Waiting by Jack Higgins
Mystery in Prior's Ford by Evelyn HoodA Grown-Up Kind of Pretty by Joshilyn Jackson
The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson
The Silent Oligarch by Chris Morgan Jones
Third Grave Dead Ahead by Darynda Jones
Gun Games by Faye Kellerman
The Secret Crown by Chris Kuzneski
Defending Jacob by William Landay
The Hunter by John Lescroart
Raylan by Elmore Leonard
Dead Low Tide by Bret Lott
The Retribution by Val McDermid
Chocolate Covered Murder by Leslie Meier
All I Did Was Shoot My Man by Walter Mosley
Start Shooting by Charlie Newton
Chalk Girl by Carol O’Connell
The Rook by Daniel O'Malley
Breakdown by Sara Paretsky
The Jaguar by T. Jefferson Parker
Private: #1 Suspect by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
What It Was by George Pelecanos (review of an earlier title)
The Invisible Ones by Stef Penney
Gideon’s Corpse by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
Scarecrow Returns by Matthew Reilly
Love, Honour, and O’Brien by Jennifer Rowe
The Darkening Field by William Ryan
Fifth Victim by Zoë Sharp
Red Means Run by Brad Smith
Agent 6 by Tom Rob Smith
Angel Face by Stephen Solomita
The Confession by Charles Todd
The Best Bad Dream by Robert Ward

Should auld acquaintance be tied in knots ...? Book List of New Year's Mysteries

2011-12-30T09:36:00.002-05:00

The Marlene Dietrich Murder Case by George Baxt
Full Cry by Rita Mae Brown
Snow Candy by Terry Carroll
The Enemy by Lee Child
Raven Black by Anne Cleeves
City of Bones by Michael Connelly
Bag Men by Mark Costello
Cause of Death by Patricia Cornwell
The Devils Teardrop by Jeffery Deaver
Secret of Annexe 3 by Colin Dexter
Fountain of Death by Jane Haddam
The New Year's Eve Murder by Lee Harris
Name Withheld by J.A. Jance
New Year's Evil (Nancy Drew) by Carolyn Keene
Murder at Longbourn by Tracy Kiely
Ringing in Murder by Karen Kingsbury
Blood Hollow by William Kent Krueger
New Year's Eve Murder by Leslie Meier
Lullaby by Ed McBain
The Golden One by Elizabeth Peters
The Mummers' Curse by Gillian Roberts
The Nine Tailors Dorothy Sayers
Cold Front by Kathleen Taylor
A Long Shadow by Charles Todd
The Clock Strikes Twelve by Patricia Wentworth
'Tis the Season to be Murdered by Valerie Wolzien

Recommended - Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman

2011-12-29T23:16:00.004-05:00

Reed Farrel Coleman
Hurt Machine
December 2011

This book was provided to Murder, Mystery & Mayhem by Tyrus Books for review.

Why haven't I heard of this series before? Reed Farrel Coleman's book, Hurt Machine, number seven in the Moe Prager mystery series is definitely added to the recommended list.

In his 60s, Moses (Moe) Prager, a retired New York Police Department detective and part-time PI, has seen and heard it all. He's old, a bit beat up, and sick, very sick but that's not going to stop him when his ex-wife and investigative partner, Carmella, asks him to investigate the stabbing of her sister Alta. Facing one of the best times in his life, his daughters wedding, and one of the worst, his own mortality, Moe takes the case. Alta an EMT died in disgrace, ostracized along with her partner in the press for failing to come to the aid of a dying man while off duty. The story just doesn't add up and Moe can't leave it alone picking at the string of lies and secrets. A tough Brooklynite, Moe's not going to give up without a good fight.

Coleman is the winner of almost every mystery award out there - check out the details here.

Hurt Machine reviews around the blogosphere -
Noir Journal 47: Hurt Machine "Wow!.....It's hard to strike a balance between a hard-edged crime tale and a novel involving a man dealing with the news of ....."

Publisher's Weekly: Hurt Machine "Razor-edged contemporary whodunits don’t get much better than Shamus-winner Coleman’s seventh Moe Prager mystery..."

Kirkus Reviews: Hurt Machine "In his seventh appearance (Innocent Monster, 2010, etc.), Moe Prager copes with an old love, a complex murder and a belly-full of trouble..."

The Moses Prager series:

Walking the Perfect Square (2002), Redemption Street (2004), The James Deans (2005), Soul Patch (2007), Empty Ever After (2008), Innocent Monster (2010), Hurt Machine (2011)

Recommended - Until Thy Wrath Be Past by Asa Larsson

2011-12-06T20:36:00.003-05:00

Until Thy Wrath Be Past
by Asa Larsson
November 2011

Until Thy Wrath Be Past by Åsa Larsson was made available through LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.

Asa Larsson's fourth book in the Rebecka Martinsson series, Until Thy Wrath be Past, will surprise you. Yes, it is another skillfully written Scandinavian crime novel. Yes, it is set in the landscape of the far north where cold and snow are a constant companion and isolation is a given. And yes, the crimes are brutal. The unexpected part is the compassion.

This psychological crime novel is infused with a bit of the supernatural and is told from multiple perspectives including the observations of the victim, a local girl found drowned in the spring thaw. This seems like it wouldn't work but the small community of Karuna, in the far north of Sweden, is so dependent on each other for survival and so tightly wrapped together in their secrets, myths, and superstitions that the connection between the dead and the living is imaginable. Visited by the murdered girl in her dreams Rebecka Martinsson, the prosecutor of Karuna, is drawn into the investigation calling on Inspector Anna-Maria Mella for help and risking more than her life in tracking down the communities secrets.

Expect to cringe involuntarily and for the hair to raise on the back of your neck - Recommended

From the publisher -
"A vivid tale of suspense from one of Sweden's finest crime writers.

As spring arrives in the far north of Sweden, a young woman's body surfaces through the breaking ice of the River Thorne. At the same time, visions of a shadowy figure haunt the dreams of Rebecka Martinsson, a prosecutor in nearby Karuna. Could the body belong to the ghost in her dreams? And where is the dead girl's boyfriend?

Joining forces once again with Police Inspector Anna-Maria Mella, Rebecka finds herself drawn into an investigation that stirs up long-dormant rumors of a German supply plane that went missing in 1943--and of Nazi collaborators in the town, where shame and secrecy shroud the locals' memories of the war.

And on the windswept shore of a frozen lake lurks a murderer who will kill again to keep the past buried forever beneath half a century's silent ice and snow."

Asa Larsson bibliography -
Rebecka Martinsson series:
Solstorm (2003) - Sun Storm (2006), Det blod som spillts (2005) - The Blood Spilt (2007), Svart stig (2006) - The Black Path (2008), Till dess din vrede upphör (2008) - Until Thy Wrath Be Past (2011),
Guds starka arm (2009)

Win - Colin Cotterill's New Book - Slash and Burn

2011-12-04T21:52:00.001-05:00

Soho Press Editor Juliet Grames says that Colin Cotterill kills off a character in the most unusual way yet in the forthcoming Slash and Burn—the newest installment in Colin Cotterill’s bestselling Dr. Siri mystery series, set in Laos. For your chance to win a free copy, tell us about the weirdest crime fiction murder you’ve encountered.

Tell your friends and enter to win below....

About the book -
"Dr. Siri might finally be allowed to retire (again). Although he loves his two morgue assistants, he’s tired of being Laos’s national coroner, a job he never wanted in the first place. Plus, he’s pushing eighty, and wants to spend some time with his wife before his untimely death (which has been predicted by the local transvestite fortune teller).

But retirement is not in the cards for Dr. Siri after all. He’s dragged into one last job for the Lao government: supervising an excavation for the remains of U.S. fighter pilot who went down in the remote northern Lao jungle ten years earlier. The presence of American soldiers in Laos is a hot-button issue for both the Americans and the Lao involved, and the search party includes high-level politicians and scientists. But one member of the party is found dead, setting off a chain of accidents Dr. Siri suspects are not completely accidental. Everyone is trapped in a cabin in the jungle, and the bodies are starting to pile up. Can Dr. Siri get to the bottom of the MIA pilot’s mysterious story before the fortune teller’s prediction comes true?"

Colin Cotterill's bibliography -

The Coroner’s Lunch (2004), Thirty-Three Teeth (2005), Disco for the Departed (2006), Anarchy and Old Dogs (2007), Curse of the Pogo Stick (2008), The Merry Misogynist (our review) (2009), Love Songs from a Shallow Grave (2010), Slash and Burn (2011)

It's easy....all you have to do is leave a comment below or e-mail your entry HERE.

Please include your e-mail in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net). Why don't you stay in touch by becoming a follower?

Enter by December 9

U.S. entries only please - Lisa is the winner!

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation.

Mystery Fanfare: Nero Award 2011: Louise Penny's Bury Your Dead

2011-12-04T11:23:00.002-05:00

Mystery Fanfare: Nero Award 2011: Louise Penny's Bury Your Dead: Louise Penny won the Nero Award for Bury Your Dead . The award was presented by the Wolfe Pack last night at the Black Orchid Banquet in ...

December New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

2011-12-01T20:41:00.003-05:00

Triple Shot by Sandra Balzo
Getting Lucky by D.C. Brod (our review coming soon)
Vigilante by Stephen J. Cannell
The Villa of Death by Joanna Challis
Locked On by Tom Clancy; Mark Greaney
Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman (our review coming soon)
Death Benefit by Robin Cook
Red Mist by Patricia Cornwell
Slash and Burn by Colin Cotterill (giveaway ends Dec. 9)
Egypt by Nick Drake
Murder Season by Robert Ellis
Threadbare by Monica Ferris
Danger in the Wind by Jane Finnis
A Vine in the Blood by Leighton Gage
Collateral Damage by H. Terrell Griffin
Ran Away by Barbara Hambly
Dark Men by Derek Haas
Assume Nothing by Gar Anthony Haywood
Down the Darkest Road by Tami Hoag
1222 by Anne Holt
Soft Target by Stephen Hunter
Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James
The Loner by Quintin Jardine
The Silence by J. Sydney Jones
A Perilous Conception by Larry Karp
The Devil's Elixir by Raymond Khoury
The Cold Room by Robert Knightly
Freezing by Clea Koff
77 Shadow Street by Dean Koontz
Storm Damage by Ed Kovacs
Death at the Wedding Feast by Deryn Lake
Mr. Kill by Martin Limón
A Bespoke Murder by Edward Marston
The Forgotten Affairs of Youth by Alexander McCall Smith
El Gavilan by Craig McDonald
The Immortalists by Kyle Mills
Murder in Abbot’s Folly by Amy Myers
The Leopard by Jo Nesbo
Foul Play at Four by Ann Purser
The Talk Show Murders by Al Roker with Dick Lochte
Father Unknown by Fay Sampson
The Forgotten Affairs of Youth by Alexander McCall Smith
A Fatal Thaw by Dana Stabenow
The Innocent by Taylor Stevens
Murder in Mount Holly by Paul Theroux
Silence by Jan Costin Wagner
D.C. Dead by Stuart Woods
Dark Revelations by Anthony E. Zuiker; Duane Swierczynski

Give the Gift of Crime - Best Mystery, Suspense and Thrillers 2011

2011-11-29T20:56:00.003-05:00

Murder, Mystery and Mayhem's picks of 2011's best mystery/crime titles. Wrap up some murder this holiday season because everyone deserves a little crime.

If they live a bit on the edge - amateur sleuths & private eyes
DVD set - Case Histories based on the books by Kate Atkinson
Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson
Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman (review coming soon)
Very Bad Men by Harry Dolan (our review)
Ranchero by Rick Gavin
The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths (our review)
Black Swan by Chris Knopf (our review)
The Lost Sister by Russel McLean
When the Thrill Is Gone by Walter Mosley (our review)
Though Not Dead by Dana Stabenow
The Gentlemen's Hour by Don Winslow

For the slightly squeamish - cozies, quirky and a bit of the traditional
DVD set - Pie in the Sky (our review)
A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley (review coming soon)
Wicked Autumn by G. M. Malliet
The Magic Bullet by Larry Millett
A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny
The Return of Captain John Emmett by Elizabeth Speller
Assault with a Deadly Glue Gun by Lois Winston

For the arm chair traveller - foreign crime
DVD set - Zen based on the books by Michael Dibdin
The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen
Killed at the Whim of a Hat by Colin Cotterill (our review)
Misterioso by Arne Dahl
The Fatal Touch by Conor Fitzgerald (our review)
Among the Missing by Morag Joss
The Boy in the Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbol, Agnete Friis
The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler
Until Thy Wrath Be Past by Asa Larsson (our review)
Stolen Lives by Jassy Mackenzie
The Troubled Man by Henning Mankell
Trackers by Deon Meyer
The End of the Wasp Season by Denise Mina
The Snowman by Jo Nesbø
Three Seconds by Anders Roslund, Borge Hellstrom (our review)
Death of the Mantis by Michael Stanley
Lucifer's Tears by James Thompson (our review)
The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino (our review)

If they revel in the past - historical crime
The School of Night by Louis Bayard
The Beloved Dead by Tony Hays
Field Gray by Philip Kerr
One True Sentence by Craig McDonald
The Sherlockian by Graham Moore
The Death Instinct by Jed Rubenfeld
Heartstone by C.J. Sansome
City of Secrets by Kelli Stanley
A Lonely Death by Charles Todd

For the law abiding - sheriffs, detectives, lawyers & the police
Now You See Me by S J Bolton
Red on Red by Edward Conlon
Breach of Trust by David Ellis (our review)
Hell Is Empty by Craig Johnson
Drawing Conclusions by Donna Leon
The Complaints by Ian Rankin
On Borrowed Time by David Rosenfelt
Echoes of the Dead by Sally Spencer
Two for Sorrow by Nicola Upson

If they like it twisted - the psychological & suspense
The End of Everything by Megan Abbott
In Search Of The Rose Notes by Emily Arsenault
Feast Day of Fools by James Lee Burke
A Simple Act of Violence by R.J. Ellory
These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf
The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman
Bent Road by Lori Roy
Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson

If nothing shocks them - hard boiled crime & thrillers
Electric Barracuda by Tim Dorsey (our review)
Buried Secrets by Joseph Finder
Love you more by Lisa Gardner
The Cypress House by Michael Koryta
The Cut by George Pelecanos (our review)
The Informant by Thomas Perry
Thick as Thieves by Peter Spiegelman
Cold Shot to the Heart by Wallace Stroby
The Terror of Living by Urban Waite

Recommended Pie in the Sky - British Mystery TV Series

2011-11-29T18:24:00.000-05:00

Pie in the Sky: Series 3
September 2010

Recommended - Detective Henry Crabbe is a reluctant officer of the law. He was supposed to have earned early retirement with the bullet he took to the leg and he'd much rather be tracking down that perfect ingredient than finding another clumsy criminal. Crabbe is food obsessed and his restaurant, Pie in the Sky, is his muse.

But Crabbe is only a part-time restaurateur and his boss won't let him forget it. When Assistant Chief Constable Freddy Fisher calls Henry must abandon his customers, his souffles, and that perfect sauce to someone else to finish, usually an ex-con Crabbe is determined to rehabilitate. According to Fisher, Crabbe's only job is to make him look good and this usually involves extricating him from a sticky situation.

With a cast of quirky characters, including Crabbe's penny pinching wife, Pie in the Sky is a wonderful British cozy series. It's too bad smell-o-vision hasn't been invented yet.

From Acorn Media -
After 25 years on the force, DI Henry Crabbe yearns to retire and open a restaurant. Soon his plate is full with the demands of running a business, a bean-counting wife who doesn’t think the numbers add up, and a self-serving boss who won’t let him go. Richard Griffiths (Harry Potter) stars in a lighthearted British mystery series seen on public television in the 1990s.

Series 3 is 6 episodes; 294 min. on 2 DVDs.

Disc 1
Episode 1: Money Talks
Understaffed at the restaurant and under pressure from ACC Fisher for quick results on a surveillance case, Crabbe finds an out-of-work chef who may solve both his problems. The death of an arch criminal also gives him hope that early retirement is just a bit nearer.

Episode 2: Game Pie
ACC Fisher attends a pheasant shoot with fellow senior officers, and Crabbe handles the catering for the event. When Fisher fires a shot at a low-flying bird that appears to kill one of the estate hands, Crabbe is ordered to investigate.

Episode 3: Irish Stew
An American writer marries into a boisterous Irish family, who book Pie in the Sky for the wedding feast. After the author’s briefcase is stolen from his hotel room, Crabbe learns that the new husband has lost documents that he very much wants to keep secret.

Disc 2
Episode 4: Doggett’s Coat and Badge
At a celebratory lunch for a retiring police officer (alas, not Crabbe), DCI Doggett takes a keen interest in a fellow diner, one of the restaurant’s regulars. Intrigued, Crabbe decides to look into the link between the two men.

Episode 5: This Other Eden
Someone is stealing trees and shrubs from the yards of wealthy homes in the area. The police call in the National Horticultural Division, but Crabbe has an inside track for finding the green-thumbed thieves.

Episode 6: Coddled Eggs
Everywhere he turns, Crabbe feels bossed around. An officious food inspector tells him he must improve hygiene standards at Pie in the Sky or be shut down. And at his other job, Det. Supt. Chalmers dictates how to run his investigation of a stolen car ring.

Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Awards Nominees - Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

2011-11-24T10:09:00.001-05:00

Here is a list of the Mystery, Suspense, and Thriller nominees announced by the Romantic Times for its annual Reviewers’ Choice Awards. To see the entire list of nominees click here.

Contemporary Mystery
Stagestruck by Peter Lovesey
Ringer by Brian M. Wiprud
Killed at the Whim of a Hat by Colin Cotterill (our review)
The Woodcutter by Reginald Hill
In Search of the Rose Notes by Emily Arsenault
V Is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton

Historical Mystery
A Lonely Death by Charles Todd
The Beloved Dead by Tony Hays
The Illusion of Murder by Carol McCleary
Bye Bye, Baby by Max Allan Collins
City of Secrets by Kelli Stanley
Troubled Bones by Jeri Westerson

First Mystery
The Breath of God by Jeffrey Small
Cookie Dough or Die by Virginia Lowell
Thou Shalt Kill by Daniel Blake
Purgatory Chasman by Steve Ulfelder
Death on Tour by Janice Hamrick

Amateur Sleuth
To Have and to Kill by Mary Jane Clark
The Busy Woman’s Guide to Murder by Mary Jane Maffini
Killing Kate by Julie Kramer (our review)
Tempest in the Tea Leaves by Keri Lee Townsend
Naughty in Nice by Rhys Bowen

Suspense/Thriller
Love You More by Lisa Gardner
In Desperation by Rick Mofina
Among the Missing by Morag Joss
The Girl Who Disappeared Twice by Andrea Kane
Now You See Me by S. J. Bolton
You’re Next by Gregg Hurwitz
Death in High Places by Jo Bannister
New York to Dallas by J.D. Robb
Ghost Hero by S. J. Rozan

Unwanted Guests? A Menu for Murder - Book List

2011-11-22T23:13:00.000-05:00

Unwanted guests for the holiday dining table?

Poisoned sweets, deadly drinks, and carving knives - a book list of culinary mysteries.

Very sorry can't come. Lie follows by post. ~ Charles Beresford, telegram reply to a dinner invitation

Aperitifs
A Touch of the Grape by Claudia Bishop
The Merlot Murders by Ellen Crosby
Dying on the Vine by Peter King
Dirty Martini: A Jack Daniels Mystery by J. A. Konrath
Whiskey Sour: A Jack Daniels Mystery by J. A. Konrath
Murder Uncorked by Michele Scott
Champagne for One by Rex Stout

Appetizers
The Quiche of Death by M. C. Beaton
Eggs in Purgatory by Laura Childs
Turn up the Heat by Susan Conant & Jessica Conant-Park
Holy Guacamole by Nancy Fairbanks
Mozzarella Most Murderous by Nancy Fairbanks
Body in the Bouillon by Katherine Hall Page

The Main Course
Chile Death by Susan Wittig Albert
Marinade for Murder by Claudia Bishop
The Case of the Tough-Talking Turkey by Claudia Bishop
Bone in the Throat by Anthony Bourdain
Steamed by Jessica Conant-Park
Fowl Prey by Mary Dahiem
Lamb to the Slaughter and Other Stories by Roald Dahl
The Grilling Season by Diane Mott Davidson
Prime Cut by Diane Mott Davidson
Turkey Flambe by Nancy Fairbanks
Dial M for Meatloaf by Ellen Hart
Death Al Dente by Peter King
Spiced to Death by Peter King
Something in the Water by Charlotte MacLeod
Cooked Goose by G. A. McKevett
Murder Makes an Entree by Amy Myers
The Butter Did It by Phyllis Richman
Murder on the Gravy Train by Phyllis Richman
Stiffs and Swine by J. B. Stanley

Sides
French Fried by Nancy Fairbanks
State of the Onion by Julie Hyzy
A Stiff Risotto by Lou Jane Temple
Bread on Arrival by Lou Jane Temple

Dessert
Grounds for Murder by Sandra Balzo
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
Death by Darjeeling by Laura Childs
Simmer Down by Susan Conant & Jessica Conant-Park
Decaffeinated Corpse by Cleo Coyle
Dark Tort by Diane Mott Davidson
Sweet Revenge by Diane Mott Davidson
Cherry Cheesecake Murder by Joanne Fluke
Devil's Food by Kerry Greenwood
Just Desserts by G. A. McKevett
Murder a la Mode by G. A. McKevett

The Guests
Death of a Glutton by M. C. Beaton
Monsieur Pamplemousse by Michael Bond
The Bobby Gold Stories by Anthony Bourdain
The Thin Woman by Dorothy Cannell
How to Murder your Mother-in-Law by Dorothy Cannell
Hercule Piorot's Christmas by Agatha Christie
Auntie Mayhem by Mary Dahiem
Death and the Epicure by Janet Laurence
A Family Affair by Rex Stout

The Staff
Cooking Up Murder by Miranda Bliss
A Catered Murder by Isis Crawford
Slice and Dice by Ellen Hart
Beat until Stiff by Claire M. Johnson
Roux the Day by Peter King
Murder in the Smokehouse by Amy Myers
Cooking Up Trouble by Joanne Pence
Little Indiscretions by Carmen Posadas
The Cooking School Murders by Virginia Rich
Too Many Cooks by Rex Stout

With thanks for all the suggestions from LibraryThing users.

Recommended - The Cut by George Pelecanos

2011-11-22T22:13:00.005-05:00

The Cut
by George Pelecanos
August 2011

An Advanced Reader's Copy was provided through the early reviewers program at LibraryThing.

Back from a tour in Iraq ex-marine Spero Lucas is back on his home turf, the streets of DC, but not quite back to a civilian life. Lucas has found work on his own terms. Work that's based on his carefully honed military skills and he will locate anything for a client no questions asked while taking 40 percent for his trouble. The job becomes even more lucrative when he hooks up with a well connected defense attorney who's not afraid to exploit some of the finer points of the law. Lucas's detachment from his environment, his ability to blend in, and his powers of observation all provide an edge until one of the jobs becomes a bit more complicated and an innocent bystander could turn into collateral damage.

Lucas's strong sense of honor combined with a set of morals that allow for death as a result of combat provide for a very complicated character. Like all of Pelecano's books Washington, DC and its varied neighborhoods play a starring role. The book's rich detail and description contrasts with Spero Lucas, who can appear a bit one dimensional in comparison, but this felt appropriate as what ex-marine would give anything away? Tough till the end this is another action packed thriller from a master of crime fiction.

From the publisher - "Spero Lucas has a new line of work. Since he returned home after serving in Iraq, he has been doing special investigations for a defense attorney. He's good at it, and he has carved out a niche: recovering stolen property, no questions asked. His cut is forty percent.

A high-profile crime boss who has heard of Lucas's specialty hires him to find out who has been stealing from his operation. It's the biggest job Lucas has ever been offered, and he quickly gets a sense of what's going on. But before he can close in on what's been taken, he tangles with a world of men whose amorality and violence leave him reeling. Is any cut worth your family, your lover, your life?"

List of books by George Pelecanos-
Nick Stefanos Series: A Firing Offense, Nick's Trip, Shoedog, Down by the River Where the Dead Men Go,The Big Blowdown, Shame the Devil

The Derek Strange/Terry Quinn Novels: Right as Rain, Hell to Pay , Soul Circus , Hard Revolution, Drama City

Stand Alones: King Suckerman, The Sweet Forever, The Night Gardener, The Turnaround

Winners of the 2011 Swedish Crime Novel Awards

2011-11-22T08:01:00.000-05:00

From Omnimystery News -

Founded in 1971, the Swedish Crime Academy (Svenska Deckarakademin) recognizes outstanding crime fiction each year.

2011 Swedish Crime Novel Awards

Winner of Bästa översatta (Best Translated):
The End of the Wasp Season (Getingsommar) by Denise Mina

Winner of Bästa svenska (Best Swedish):
Viskleken (Chinese Whispers) by Arne Dahl

The Grand Master Award: Reginald Hill

Special awards were given to Lars Wendelius and Michael Tapper.

Missed the PBS Masterpiece Mystery Case Histories? Watch it online until December, 7th.

2011-11-18T19:32:00.001-05:00

Did you miss an episode of Masterpiece Mystery's new Case Histories series. I was excited to find out that all three episodes of PBS's new show are available to watch online through November, 29th. I'm going to watch them all again this weekend! Gotta love technology!

Watch Online - here

Episode One

"While searching for a lost cat, Jackson takes on the cold case of a girl who went missing thirty years earlier. He is also talked into helping a grieving father find the man who murdered his daughter, and tracking down the niece of a mysterious seductress." - based on the novel Case Histories by Kate Atkinson

Episode Two

"The only witness to a drowning, Jackson is on a desperate search for the victim's identity when he meets a crime novelist caught in a road rage incident. So begins a strange journey that also involves the wife and dominatrix of a comatose crook." - based on the novel One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson

Episode Three

"Jackson is injured in a train wreck and acquires a teenage sidekick who saves his life and insists that he return the favor by finding her missing employer. Also, while barely conscious in the hospital, Jackson makes a startling declaration to a former police colleague." - based on the novel When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson

Spotlight on Karen E. Olson

2011-11-17T21:37:00.000-05:00

Karen E. Olson a Connecticut native, writes two mystery series. Her debut book, Sacred Cows, featured Annie Seymour a New Haven crime reporter investigating the death of a Yale student after a fall from a downtown high-rise. Sacred Cows won the Sara Ann Freed Memorial Award and the fourth title in the series, Shot Girl, was nominated for the 2009 Shamus Award for Best Paperback. Olson's most recent title Ink Flamingos is the fourth title in the Tattoo Shop series. Set in Los Vegas, the book features shop owner Brett Kavanaugh who's best customer turns up dead while incriminating photos are popping up all over the blogosphere pointing to Brett as the lead suspect.

If you need more of a tease read this great review on Criminal Element - "Fresh Meat: Karen E. Olson’s Ink Flamingos" by Katrina Niidas Holm

Or you can learn more about Karen from her blog - "Twenty years of working in newsrooms with mice, moldy carpeting, out-of-date computer systems, cranky editors, weird reporters.....".

The Annie Seymour series:

Sacred Cows (2005), Secondhand Smoke (2006), Dead of the Day (2007), Shot Girl (2008)

The Brett Kavanaugh - Tattoo Shop series:

The Missing Ink (2009), Pretty in Ink (2010), Driven to Ink (2010), Ink Flamingos (2011)

Win Free Mystery and Suspense Books

2011-11-09T18:32:00.000-05:00

A guide to mystery and suspense contests around the blogosphere -

www.bantam-dellatrandom.com -
Win a Flavia de Luce Series kit!

www.berkleysignetmysteries.com -
Selection of Berkley Prime Crime Titles (Nov)

www.bestsellersworld.com -
Win - Assassin of Secrets by Q.R. Markham (ends Nov. 22)
Win - Zero Day by David Baldacci (ends Nov. 22)

www.bookloons.com
Win - The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz (ends Nov. 30)

www.mulhollandbooks.com -
Win - The Whisperer by Donato Carrisi

www.murdermysterymayhem.blogspot.com
Win - Black Thunder by Aimee & David Thurlo (ends Nov. 15)
Win - REAMDE by Neal Stephenson (ends Nov. 15)

November New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

2011-11-01T11:03:00.002-04:00

Hickory Smoked Homicide by Riley Adams
Zero Day by David Baldacci
Miss Dimple Rallies to the Cause by Mignon F. Ballard
Physical Education by Maggie Barbieri
The Third Reich by Roberto Bolaño
I Am Half-Sick of Shadows by Alan Bradley (on the list to read)
Mrs. Jeffries and the Mistletoe Mix-Up by Emily Brightwell
Getting Lucky by D.C. Brod (our review)
The Temple Mount Code by Charles Brokaw
Death's Other Kingdom by P. J. Brooke
A Dark and Lonely Place by Edna Buchanan
Dangerous Alterations by Elizabeth Lynn Casey
Blink of an Eye by William S. Cohen
To Catch a Leaf by Kate Collins
The Drop by Michael Connelly
The Ionia Sanction by Gary Corby
Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston
Devil's Gate by Clive Cussler and Graham Brown
The Alpine Winter by Mary Daheim
Scotch Mist by Elizabeth Darrell
A Corpse’s Nightmare by Phillip DePoy
Swift Edge by Laura DiSilverio
The Templar Magician by P.C. Doherty
Coffin Man by James D. Doss
Broken Music by Marjorie Eccles
The Cemetery of Prague by Umberto Eco
Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich
A Burial at Sea by Charles Finch
The Scottish Prisoner by Diana Gabaldon
V Is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton
Murder in the Minster by Susanna Gregory
Die Happy by J.M. Gregson
Dead Last by James W. Hall
Deed of Murder by Cora Harrison
Our Man in the Dark by Rashad Harrison
Breaking Point by Dana Haynes
Behind the Seams by Betty Hechtman
The Betrayal of Trust by Susan Hill
The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz
Vacuum by Bill James
Dead Man’s Grip by Peter James
The Hour of the Jackal by Bernhard Jaumann
The Boy in the Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbøl & Agnete Friis (recommended)
Herald of Death by Kate Kingsbury
Fly by Night by Ward Larsen
Forever Rumpole: The Best of the Rumpole Stories by John Mortimer
Cat Telling Tales by Shirley Rousseau Murphy
Hell by Hilary Norman
The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares by Joyce Carol Oates
Facing Justice by Nick Oldham
Fever Dream by Dennis Palumbo
Mercury’s Rise by Ann Parker
Kill Alex Cross by James Patterson
The Impossible Dead by Ian Rankin
The Curse by Harold Robbins and Junius Podrug
The Barbary Dogs by Cynthia Robinson
Angel Condemned by Mary Stanton
Death on a Platter by Elaine Viets

Book Giveaway - Reamde by Neal Stephenson

2011-10-31T12:02:00.001-04:00

Reamde
by Neal Stephenson
September 2011

Our version of Halloween treats! Free books...

Through a generous offer from William Morrow an imprint of Harper Collins, Murder, Mystery and Mayhem readers have a chance to win a hardcover copy of Neal Stephenson's newest book, Reamde.

This is a treat for 1 lucky winner - Tell your friends and enter to win below....

From the publisher -
"Neal Stephenson, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Anathem, returns to the terrain of his groundbreaking novels Snow Crash, The Diamond Age, and Cryptonomicon to deliver a high-intensity, high-stakes, action-packed adventure thriller in which a tech entrepreneur gets caught in the very real crossfire of his own online war game.

In 1972, Richard Forthrast, the black sheep of an Iowa farming clan, fled to the mountains of British Columbia to avoid the draft. A skilled hunting guide, he eventually amassed a fortune by smuggling marijuana across the border between Canada and Idaho. As the years passed, Richard went straight and returned to the States after the U.S. government granted amnesty to draft dodgers. He parlayed his wealth into an empire and developed a remote resort in which he lives. He also created T’Rain, a multibillion-dollar, massively multiplayer online role-playing game with millions of fans around the world.

But T’Rain’s success has also made it a target. Hackers have struck gold by unleashing REAMDE, a virus that encrypts all of a player’s electronic files and holds them for ransom. They have also unwittingly triggered a deadly war beyond the boundaries of the game’s virtual universe—and Richard is at ground zero.

Racing around the globe from the Pacific Northwest to China to the wilds of northern Idaho and points in between, Reamde is a swift-paced thriller that traverses worlds virtual and real. Filled with unexpected twists and turns in which unforgettable villains and unlikely heroes face off in a battle for survival, it is a brilliant refraction of the twenty-first century, from the global war on terror to social media, computer hackers to mobsters, entrepreneurs to religious fundamentalists. Above all, Reamde is an enthralling human story—an entertaining and epic page-turner from the extraordinary Neal Stephenson."

So, you want this book for your very own? It's easy....all you have to do is leave a comment below or e-mail your entry HERE. Winners will be chosen on a whim, unfairly, and yes, writing something interesting for a comment does matter! So, tell us what it is about Neal Stephenson's new book that you're interested in?

Please include your e-mail address in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net). Why don't you stay in touch by becoming a follower?

Enter by November 15

The winner will be announced on or around November 16

U.S. entries only please - Yvette has won!

The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. The book will be shipped by media mail and can take from 2-4 weeks to arrive after the closing date of the contest.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation.

Book Giveaway - Black Thunder by Aimee and David Thurlo

2011-10-31T01:01:00.012-04:00

Black Thunder
by Aimee and David Thurlo
October 2011
An Ella Clah Novel

Our version of Halloween treats! Free books...

Through a generous offer from Forge Books, Murder, Mystery and Mayhem readers have a chance to win a hardcover copy of Aimee and David Thurlo's newest book in the Ella Clah series, Black Thunder.

This is a treat for 1 lucky winner - Tell your friends and enter to win below....

From the publisher -
"A construction crew found the first body. The cops found three more, in a cluster that lay on both sides of the border of the Navajo Reservation.

Because some of the bodies were buried outside the Rez, Navajo Police Special Investigator Ella Clah and her team must work a delicate joint investigation with the New Mexico police. Identifying the dead isn’t easy—some had been buried for years—and at first the cases look to be nothing but dead ends. Then one of the bodies turns out to be that of a missing man who was believed to have embezzled funds from his construction firm and suspicions focus on the man’s partner.

With no obvious links between any of the corpses and the anniversary of their deaths fast approaching, Ella feels frustrated by the investigation’s lack of progress. Unless they can find what connects these victims, someone else may soon be killed. Ella’s ability to concentrate is battered by worries about her teenage daughter, who has been skipping school, and her mother, who is cooking up a storm, a sure sign that trouble is brewing in the household."

Ella Clah series - for the entire Thurlo crime bibliography visit Stop, You're Killing Me!

Blackening Song (1995), Death Walker (1996), Bad Medicine (1997), Enemy Way (1998), Shooting Chant (1999), Red Mesa (2001), Changing Woman (2002), Plant Them Deep (2003), Tracking Bear (2003), Wind Spirit (2004), White Thunder (2005), Mourning Dove (2006), Turquoise Girl (2007), Coyote’s Wife (2008), Earthway (2009), Never-Ending-Snake (2010), Black Thunder (2011)

Please include your e-mail address in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net). Why don't you stay in touch by becoming a follower?

Enter by November 15

The winner will be announced on or around November 16

U.S. entries only please

The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. The book will be shipped by media mail and can take from 2-4 weeks to arrive after the closing date of the contest.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation.

Wicked Bugs........

2011-10-30T10:46:00.000-04:00

Eeks....
Amy Stewart scares us to death with news of creatures that infest, infect, and wreak havoc.......

The book Wicked Bugs by Amy Stewart is almost as useful as the handy tips about poisonous plants in her earlier title Wicked Plants. Hmmm...bugs as a murder weapon - Has that been done?

Mystery Fanfare: Halloween Cocktail Garnish: Eye Balls & Fingers

2011-10-30T10:45:00.000-04:00

With Halloween fast approaching, I thought I'd post some 'fun' Garnishes for the Bloody Halloween Cocktails I posted the other day......

Seriously creepy! Check out Mystery Fanfare's post on Halloween Cocktail Garnish: Eye Balls & Fingers

Black Magic, the Supernatural and the Occult - Mystery, Crime, Suspense, and Thrillers

2011-10-29T20:53:00.000-04:00

Mario Acevedo - The Nymphos of Rocky Flats - humorous - hard-boiled
Madelyn Alt - No Rest for the Wiccan - cozy
Donna Andrews - You've got Murder - cozy - sci-fi mystery
Nancy Atherton - Aunt Dimity: Vampire Hunter - cozy
Jim Butcher - Blood Rites - fantasy mystery
George C. Chesboro - Bleeding in the Eye of a Brainstorm - sci-fi mystery
John Connelly - The Black Angel - thriller
Catherine Coulter - Knock Out - thriller
Heather Graham - Unhallowed Ground - romance
Charlaine Harris - Grave Sight - women sleuth
Carolyn Hart - Ghost at Work - cozy
Daniel Hecht - Bones of the Barbary Coast - women sleuths - thriller
Joe Hill - Heart-Shaped Box - thriller
Kay Hopper - Sense of Evil - suspense
Charlie Huston - Already Dead - thriller - hard-boiled
Shirley Jackson - The Haunting of Hill House - literary
Dean Koontz - Odd Thomas - suspense
Arturo Pérez-Reverte - The Club Dumas - literary thriller
Douglas Preston - Cemetery Dance - thriller
Amanda Quick - Second Sight - romance - suspense
Phil Rickman - The Cure of Souls - women sleuths
David & Amy Thurloo - Second Sunrise - police procedural - dark horror
Nick Stone - The King of Swords - private investigator

On Shelves - The Ronin's Mistress by Laura Joh Rowland

2011-10-28T23:57:00.003-04:00

The Ronin's Mistress
Laura Joh Rowland
September 2011
Sano Ichiro series

Kirkus Reviews - A veteran Japanese sleuth endangers himself to solve a tantalizing samurai murder mystery....read more

The Big Thrill - To write a historical novel in a foreign setting is challenging. To write a fifteen story mystery series about a detective in feudal Japan is an achievement ....read more

From the publisher -
Japan, 1703. On a snowy night, 47 warriors murder the man at the center of the scandal that turned them from samurai into masterless ronin two years before. Clearly this was an act of revenge--but why did they wait so long? And is there any reason they should not immediately be ordered to commit ritual suicide?

Sano Ichiro, demoted from Chamberlain to his old post as Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People, has mere days to solve the greatest mystery of samurai legend--while his own fortunes hang in the balance.

Laura Joh Rowland's bibliography -

Sano Ichiro series - Shinju (1993), Bundori (1996), The Way of the Traitor (1997), The Concubine’s Tattoo (1998), The Samurai’s Wife (2000), Black Lotus (2001), The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria (2002), The Dragon King’s Palace (2003), The Perfumed Sleeve (2004), Assassin’s Touch (2005), Red Chrysanthemum (2006), The Snow Empress (2007), The Fire Kimono (our review) (2008), The Cloud Pavilion (2009), The Ronin’s Mistress (2011)

Charlotte Brontë series -

The Secret Adventures of Charlotte Brontë (2008), Bedlam (2010)

Witches, Goblins, and Ghosts - Halloween Mysteries

2011-10-17T19:34:00.000-04:00

The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.
- - - H. P. Lovecraft

Albert, Susan Wittig - Witches' Bane (Cozy / Amateur Sleuth)
Atherton, Nancy - Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil (Cozy / Supernatural)
Bain, Donald - Murder She Wrote - Trick or Treachery (Cozy)
Braun, Lilian J. - The Cat Who Talked to Gh osts (Cozy)
Brown, Rita Mae -The Hunt Ball (Mystery / Amateur Sleuth)
Burley, W. J. - Wycliffe and the Scapegoat (Police Procedural)
Childs, Laura - Frill Kill (Cozy / Scrapbooking Mystery)
Christie, Agatha - Hallowe'en Party (Mystery / Detective)
Collins, Michael - Lost Souls (Mystery / Crime / Noir)
Crawford, Isis - A Catered Halloween (Cozy / Culinary)
Doherty, P. C. - Ghostly Murders (Historical Mystery)
Evanovich, Janet - Plum Spooky (Mystery / Humor)
Grabenstein, Chris - Hell for the Holidays (Thriller / Mystery)
Graham, Heather - Deadly Harvest (Romantic Suspense)
Graves, Sarah - Nail Biter (Cozy / Amateur Sleuth)
Fluke, Joanne - Fudge Cupcake Murder (Cozy / Culinary)
Haddam, Jane - Skeleton Key (Mystery / Amateur Detective)
Hart, Carolyn - Southern Ghosts (Cozy / Amateur Detective)
Hillerman, Tony - The Fallen Man (Police Procedural)
Isaacs, Susan - Long Time No See (Mystery / Romance)
Jackson, Shirley - The Haunting of Hill House (Suspense)
Mayberry, Jonathan - Dead Man's Song (Thriller / Horror)
McBain, Ed - Tricks an 87th Precinct (Police Procedural)
Meier, Leslie - Wicked Witch Murder (Cozy)
Montanari, Richard - The Violet Hour (Thriller)
O' Nan, Stewart - The Night Country (Horror / Mystery)
Page, Katherine Hall - The Body in the Moonlight (Cozy)
Peter, Ellis - Flight of a Witch (Historical Mystery)
Roberts, Gillian - A Hole in Juan (Cozy / Amateur Detective)
Stanley, J. B. - Carbs and Cadavers (Cozy / Culinary)
Swanson, Denise - Murder of a Royal Pain (Cozy)
Weiner, Jennifer - Goodnight Nobody (Chick Lit / Mystery)
Wolzien, Valerie - All Hollows Evil (Cozy /Amateur Detective)

More Halloween lists here:
Cozy Mystery List
Mystery Fanfare

October New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

2011-10-05T22:54:00.001-04:00

A Crimson Warning by Tasha Alexander
Cold Glory by B. Kent Anderson
The Fine Art of Murder by Jessica Fletcher & Donald Bain
As the Pig Turns by M.C. Beaton
Twelve Drummers Drumming by C.C. Benison
The Night Strangers by Chris Bohjalian
Murder Unleashed by Rita Mae Brown
Headstone by Ken Bruen
The Chocolate Castle Clue by JoAnna Carl
Skeleton Letters by Laura Childs (guest blog)
The Stonehenge Legacy by Sam Christer
Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman
The Infernals by John Connolly (on the list to read)
London Calling by James Craig
Covenant by Dean Crawford
The Sandburg Connection by Mark de Castrique
The Night Eternal by Guillermo Del Toro
Black Diamond by John F. Dobbyn
When Elves Attack by Tim Dorsey (review of previous title)
A Killer’s Christmas in Wales by Elizabeth J. Duncan
Burned by Thomas Enger
Choke Hold by Christa Faust
The Territory by Tricia Fields
Shifting Sands by Anthea Fraser
Ranchero by Rick Gavin
Bad Moon Rising by Ed Gorman
Ballistic by Mark Greaney
The Litigators by John Grisham
With My Little Eye by Gerald Hammond
The Blood Red Indian Summer by David Handler
Grievous Angel by Quintin Jardine
Bonnie by Iris Johansen
The Gravedigger’s Ball by Solomon Jones
The Waiting Game by Jayne Ann Krentz
Double Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
Darkness all Around by Doug Magee
Chelsea Mansions by Barry Maitland
Sweet Money by Ernesto Mallo
A Nice Place to Die by Jane McLoughlin
Black Light by Patrick Melton
The Devil’s Ribbon by D.E. Meredith
Robert Ludlum’s The Ares Decision by Kyle Mills
Icelight by Aly Monroe
A Deadly Injustice by Ian Morson
City of Whispers by Marcia Muller
Stolen Souls by Stuart Neville
Ulysses’ Dog by Jim Nisbet
A Christmas Homecoming by Anne Perry
Seizure by Kathy Reichs and Brendan Reichs
Bad Moon by Todd Ritter
The Strange Death of Father Candy by Les Roberts
Cell 8 by Roslund-Hellstrom (on the list to read)
The Killing Season by Priscilla Royal
Shock Wave by John Sandford
The Consummata by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins
Stolen Hearts by Jane Tesh
Black Thunder by Aimée and David Thurlo
The Chalice of Blood by Peter Tremayne
Deep Cover by Peter Turnbull
Troubled Bones by Jeri Westerson
Waking Hours by Lis Wiehl and Pete Nelson
The Dark at the End by F. Paul Wilson
A Killer’s Essence by Dave Zeltserman

Delicious and Suspicious: Laura Childs pairs food with mystery

2011-10-03T21:37:00.000-04:00

Guest blog by Laura Childs, New York Times Bestselling Author
of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbooking Mysteries,

and Cackleberry Club Mysteries.

Food and mystery make such an inspired pairing. There’s nothing quite so wonderful as snuggling into an easy chair and reading voraciously while sipping cocoa and munching cookies. It just works. Maybe the sugar pumps up your adrenaline, or maybe it harkens back to that wonderful feeling you got as a kid when you popped jujubes and watched the Twilight Zone!

Whatever the reason, I’ve included recipes in all of my mysteries, which now total 23 books and counting. Because when you read a passage that mentions Chocolate Sour Cream Scones, Goat Cheese Truffles, or Lemon Chess Pie, I think your taste buds get curious. There’s also something very interactive about reading a story, then buzzing into your kitchen to whip up those very same truffles and scones.

Since I write three different mystery series right now – three books a year - I’m constantly balancing characters, suspense, and plot lines with deadlines. To add to this crazy soufflé, I include three different sets of recipes in my three different series. Challenging? Yes, it is. Fun? Well, my husband adores my test kitchen.

My just-released Scrapbook Mystery, Skeleton Letters, is set in New Orleans. So it includes recipes such as Chicken Jambalaya, Delta Corn Pancakes, Drunken Pecan Chicken, and Candy Bar Pie. Now don’t those sound good? Don’t you want to set up your own test kitchen? After baking three Candy Bar Pies, I was personally ready to check myself into the Betty Ford . . . er . . . Betty Crocker Center.

But Skeleton Letters is a grand mystery, too. Because the last thing scrapbooking maven Carmela Bertrand expected to bear witness to in St. Tristan’s Church was a crime. But when a beloved member of her scrapbooking circle lies lifeless next to a smashed statue of St. Sebastian – and a mysterious hooded figure absconds with an antique silver-and-gold crucifix – she knows it’s time to act. With suspects that range from a deliveryman, to the strange Brother Paul, to the cult group The Seekers, Carmela and her voodoo shop-owning friend Ava comb New Orleans for clues. And end up in a bayou at midnight, stalked by an enraged killer!

A cross between a cozy and a thriller (a thrillzy!) Skeleton Letters delivers great characters, action, humor, scrapbooking tips, and New Orleans recipes. This is the Halloween read you’ve been waiting for!

And about that recipe for Easy Cheesy Brownies – here it is!

Easy Cheesy Brownies

8 oz. cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 pkg. fudge brownie mix
1 egg

Prepare brownie mix according to directions, then spread brownie batter in a greased 9x12 pan and set aside. Beat cream cheese in mixer until smooth, then add in sugar and mix well. Stir in egg and vanilla until blended. Spread cream cheese mixture over brownie batter. Cut through batter with knife to achieve a marbled effect. Bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool and cut in squares.

Laura Childs is the author of the bestselling Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. Her books have been named to the USA Today and New York Times Bestseller Lists. Find out more about Laura at www.laurachilds.com

To see the Skeleton Letters book trailer, click here: YouTube

Victorian Crimes - Historical Mystery and Suspense

2011-09-30T07:05:00.000-04:00

Alexander, Tasha - And Only to Deceive
Atwood, Margaret - Alias Grace
Bayard, Louis - The Pale Blue Eye
Bowen, Rhys - Tell Me, Pretty Maiden
Carr, Caleb - The Italian Secretary
Collins, Wilkie - The Moonstone
Crichton, Michael - Great Train Robbery
Dibdin, Michael - Rich, Full Death
Finch, Charles - A Beautiful Blue Death
Goodwin, Jason - The Janissary Tree
Hambly, Barbara - Dead Water
Hunter, Evan - Lizzie
Leonard, Elmore - Cuba Libre
Lovesey, Peter - Bertie and the Crime of Passion
Onan, Stewart - Prayer for the Dying
Pearl, Matthew - The Poe Shadow
Perez-Reverte, Arturo - Fencing Master
Perry, Anne - Buckingham Palace Gardens
Peters, Elizabeth - The Hippopatamus Pool
Rowland, Laura Joh - The Secret Adventures of Charlotte Bronte
Waters, Sarah - Fingersmith

Recommended - The Fatal Touch by Conor Fitzgerald

2011-09-27T19:59:00.001-04:00

The Fatal Touch
by Conor Fitzgerald
A Commissario Alec Blume Novel
July 2011

An Advanced Reader's Copy was provided by Bloomsbury through the early reviewers program at LibraryThing.

Loved it!

Absolution, betrayal, corruption, and deceit are the basic elements of The Fatal Touch, the second title in the Commissario Alec Blume series, and the follow up to Conor Fitzgerald's best selling title, The Dogs of Rome.

Someone is mugging foreign tourists but when a body turns up in Piazza De'Renzi the investigation is intensified and Commissario Blume is called in to lead the investigation. When the corpse of what appeared to be an accidental death of a local drunk is identified as Henry Treacy, an infamous art forger and a partner in a successful art gallery, Blume is convinced it isn't an accident. And when the Carabinieri step in and the head of the Heritage division, the corpulent and corrupt Colonel Farinelli, shuts down the investigation Blume knows there is more to the story.

Never one to give in to pressure from above Blume removes evidence from Treacy's home, involves outsiders in the investigation, and starts questioning Farinelli instead. Involving the recently transferred, independent and stubborn, Caterina Mattiola in the investigation, Blume finds she has a lot more to lose and that Colonel Farinelli will risk everything to keep his past buried.

Complicated, detailed and with a strong sense of place A Fatal Touch is more than an international police procedural, it is passport into the world of art forgery and the complicated past and politics of Rome. A detective and a series to keep an eye on.

From the publisher -

"In the early hours of a Saturday morning, a body is discovered in Piazza de’ Renzi.

If it was just a simple fall that killed him, why is a senior Carabiniere officer so interested?

Commissioner Alec Blume is immediately curious and the discovery of the dead man’s notebooks reveals that there is a great deal more at stake than the unfortunate death of a down-and-out... What secrets did he know that might have made him a target? What is the significance of the Galleria Orpiment? And why are the authorities so intent on blocking Blume’s investigations?
___________________

Love police procedurals set in foreign locations you might try - Andrea Camilleri, Michael Dibdin, Donna Leon, Lousie Penny or Roslund-Hellström

The Anthony Award Winners 2011

2011-09-19T07:48:00.001-04:00

And the final awards from this year's Boucheron - The Anthony Awards for 2011

THE ANTHONY AWARD 2011
Best Novel - Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny - THE WINNER
And the NOMINEES
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
Faithful Place by Tana French
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton
I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman (our review)
Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny - THE WINNER

Best First Novel  - Damage Done by Hilary Davidson - THE WINNER
and the NOMINEES
Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva
The Poacher's Son by Paul Doiron
The Sherlockian by Graham Moore
Snow Angels by James Thompson (our review- not for the faint-of-heart)

Best Paperback Original - Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski - THE WINNER
and the NOMINEES
Long Time Coming by Robert Goddard
The Hanging Tree by Bryan Gruley
Drive Time by Hank Phillippi Ryan
Vienna Secrets by Frank Tallis

Best Short Story - "Swing Shift" by Dana Cameron (Crimes By Moonlight) - THE WINNER
and the NOMINEES
"Scent of Lilacs" by Doug Allyn (EQMM)
"The Hitter" by Chris Holm (Needle)
"So Much in Common" by Mary Jane Maffini (EQMM)
"Homeless by Pat Morin" (Mystery Montage)
"The Frame Maker" by Simon Wood (The Back Alley)

Best Graphic Novel - The Chill by Jason Starr - THE WINNER
and the NOMINEES
Scalped Volume 6: The Gnawing by Jason Aaron
Richard Stark's Parker Volume 2: The Outfit by Darwyn Cooke
Beasts of Burden by Jill Thompson and Evan Dorkin
Sickness in the Family by Denise Mina
Tumor by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Noel Tuazon

Best Critical Non-Fiction - Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks by John Curran- THE WINNER
and the NOMINEES
The Wire: Truth Be Told by Rafael Alvarez
Sherlock Holmes for Dummies by Stephen Doyle & David A. Crowder
Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and his Rendezvouz with American History by Yunte Huang
Thrillers: 100 Must Reads edited by David Morrell and Hank Wagner

Best Web Site/Blog -
Stop, You’re Killing Me! edited by Stan Ulrich and Lucinda Surber - THE WINNER
Jen’s Book Thoughts edited by Jen Forbus
The Rap Sheet edited by J. Kingston Pierce
The Sirens of Suspense edited by Chantelle Aimée Osman
Spinetingler Magazine edited by Sandra Ruttan

Shamus Award Winners 2011

2011-09-17T08:13:00.001-04:00

The Private Eye Writers of America have announced the winners of this year's Shamus Awards, given annually to recognize outstanding achievement in private eye fiction, at Boucheron 2011.

Best Hardcover P.I. Novel: No Mercy by Lori Armstrong

Best First P.I. Novel: In Search of Mercy by Michael Ayoob

Best Paperback Original P.I. Novel: Asia Hand by Christopher G. Moore

Best P.I. Short Story: “The Lamb Was Sure to Go” by Gar Anthony Haywood, (AHMM)

The Hammer Award (Best P.I. Series Character): Sara Paretsky for V.I. Warshawski

The EYE (Lifetime Achievement Award): Ed Gorman

Macavity Award Winners 2011

2011-09-17T07:56:00.002-04:00

Mystery Readers International have announced the winners of this year's Macavity Awards, recognizing outstanding crime fiction and non-fiction, at Bouchercon 2011.

The winners are …

Best Mystery Novel: Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny

Best First Mystery Novel: Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva

Best Mystery Non-Fiction: Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks by John Curran

Best Mystery Short Story: "Swing Shift" in Crimes by Moonlight: Mysteries from the Dark Side by Dana Cameron

Sue Feder Historical Mystery: City of Dragons by Kelli Stanley - City of Dragons by Kelli Stanley

Winners of the 2011 Barry Awards

2011-09-16T07:34:00.001-04:00

Deadly Pleasures Magazine has announced the winners of this year's Barry Awards at Boucheron 2011.

The winners are …

Best Novel: The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton

Best First Novel: The Poacher's Son by Paul Doiron

Best British Novel: The Woodcutter by Reginald Hill

Best Paperback Original: Fever at the Bone by Val McDermid

Best Thriller: Thirteen Hours by Deon Meyer

Best Short Story: "The List" by Loren D. Estleman (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)

Mystery Fanfare: Easy Rawlins TV Series

2011-09-12T17:40:00.000-04:00

Mystery Fanfare: Easy Rawlins TV Series: Walter Mosley Deadline Hollywood reports that John Wells Prodctions ( Southland, Mildred Pierce ) has sold the Easy Rawlins series to NB...

Boucheron 2011 - World Mystery Convention

2011-09-09T20:11:00.006-04:00

September 15-18, 2011 - Bouchercon, the World Mystery Convention, will be held in St. Louis where scads of mystery awards will be announced. The Anthony and Shamus Awards, at Boucheron of course, as well as the Barry, and Macavity Awards. Wow! That's a lot of books. See if your favorite author has been nominated and check out their competition. Start reading......

THE ANTHONY AWARD NOMINEES 2011
Best Novel
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
Faithful Place by Tana French
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton
I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman (our review)
Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny - THE WINNER

Best First Novel 
Damage Done by Hilary Davidson - THE WINNER
Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva
The Poacher's Son by Paul Doiron
The Sherlockian by Graham Moore
Snow Angels by James Thompson (our review- not for the faint-of-heart)

Best Paperback Original
Long Time Coming by Robert Goddard
The Hanging Tree by Bryan Gruley
Drive Time by Hank Phillippi Ryan
Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski - THE WINNER
Vienna Secrets by Frank Tallis

Best Short Story
"Scent of Lilacs" by Doug Allyn (EQMM)
"Swing Shift" by Dana Cameron (Crimes By Moonlight) - THE WINNER
"The Hitter" by Chris Holm (Needle)
"So Much in Common" by Mary Jane Maffini (EQMM)
"Homeless by Pat Morin" (Mystery Montage)
"The Frame Maker" by Simon Wood (The Back Alley)

Best Graphic Novel
Scalped Volume 6: The Gnawing by Jason Aaron
Richard Stark's Parker Volume 2: The Outfit by Darwyn Cooke
Beasts of Burden by Jill Thompson and Evan Dorkin
Sickness in the Family by Denise Mina
The Chill by Jason Starr - THE WINNER
Tumor by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Noel Tuazon

Best Critical Non-Fiction
The Wire: Truth Be Told by Rafael Alvarez
Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks by John Curran- THE WINNER
Sherlock Holmes for Dummies by Stephen Doyle & David A. Crowder
Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and his Rendezvouz with American History by Yunte Huang
Thrillers: 100 Must Reads edited by David Morrell and Hank Wagner

Best Web Site/Blog:
Jen’s Book Thoughts edited by Jen Forbus
Stop, You’re Killing Me! edited by Stan Ulrich and Lucinda Surber - THE WINNER
The Rap Sheet edited by J. Kingston Pierce
The Sirens of Suspense edited by Chantelle Aimée Osman
Spinetingler Magazine edited by Sandra Ruttan

THE SHAMUS AWARD NOMINEES 2011 - The Private Eye Writers of America
Best Hardcover P.I. Novel
No Mercy by Lori Armstrong - THE WINNER
The First Rule by Robert Crais
Voyeur by Daniel Judson
If the Dead Rise Not by Philip Kerr
Naked Moon by Domenic Stansberry

Best First P.I. Novel
In Search of Mercy by Michael Ayoob - THE WINNER
One Man’s Paradise by Douglas Corleone
Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva
Random Violence by Jassy MacKenzie (our review)
City of Dragons by Kelli Stanley

Best Paperback Original P.I. Novel
Hostage Zero by John Gilstrap
Nightshade by Tom Henighan
Mister X by John Lutz
The Panic Zone by Rick Mofina
Asia Hand by Christopher G. Moore - THE WINNER
The Little Death by P.J. Parrish

Best P.I. Short Story
“The God of Right and Wrong” by Steven Gore, (AHMM)
“The Lamb Was Sure to Go” by Gar Anthony Haywood, (AHMM) - THE WINNER
“The Girl in the Golden Gown” by Robert S. Levinson, (EQMM)
“Phelan’s First Case” by Lisa Sandlin, (Akashic)
“A Long Time Dead” by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins, (The Strand Magazine)

BARRY AWARD NOMINEES 2011 from Deadly Pleasures Magazine
Best Novel
Nowhere To Run by C.J. Box
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton - THE WINNER
Moonlight Mile by Dennis Lehane
Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny
Savages by Don Winslow

Best First Novel
Gutshot Straight by Lou Berney
Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva
The Poacher's Son by Paul Doiron - THE WINNER
Sherlockian by Graham Moore
The Holy Thief by William Ryan
Once a Spy by Keith Thomson

Best British Novel
Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson
Blood Harvest by S. J. Bolton
The Whisperers by John Connolly
The Woodcutter by Reginald Hill - THE WINNER
Three Seconds by Roslund & Hellstrom (our review)
Fourth Day by Zoe Sharp

Best Paperback Original
The Hanging Tree by Bryan Gruley
The Dead Lie Down by Sophie Hannah
Eggsecutive Orders by Julie Hyzy
Fever at the Bone by Val McDermid - THE WINNER
The Rhetoric of Death by Judith Rock
A Small Death in the Great Glen by A.D. Scott

Best Thriller
Thirteen Hours by Deon Meyer - THE WINNER
American Assassin by Vince Flynn
The Bricklayer by Noah Boyd
Bolt Action by Charles Charters
On Target by Mark Greaney
The Rembrandt Affair by Daniel Silva

Best Short Story
"Requiem for Antlers" by Mitch Alderman, (AHMM)
"Family Values" by Robert Barnard, (EQMM)
"The Body in the Dunes by Caroline Benton, (EQMM)
"The List" by Loren D. Estleman, (EQMM) - THE WINNER
"The Seven Sorrows" by Terence Faherty, (EQMM)
"When the Apricots Bloom" by Ellen Larson, (AHMM)

THE MACAVITY AWARDS NOMINEES from Mystery Readers International
Best Mystery Novel
The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke
Faithful Place by Tana French
The Queen of Patpong by Timothy Hallinan
Thirteen Hours by Deon Meyer
Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny - THE WINNER
The Scent of Rain and Lightning by Nancy Pickard

Best First Mystery Novel
The Damage Done by Hilary Davidson

Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva - THE WINNER

The Poacher's Son by Paul Doiron
Full Mortality by Sasscer Hill
A Thousand Cuts by Simon Lelic

Best Mystery-Related Nonfiction
The Poisoner’s Handbook by Deborah Blum
Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks by John Curran - THE WINNER
Following the Detectives: Real Locations in Crime Fiction edited by Maxim Jakubowski
Charlie Chan by Yunte Huang
Thrillers: 100 Must Reads edited by David Morrell and Hank Wagner

Best Mystery Short Story
“The Scent of Lilacs” by Doug Allyn (EQMM)
“Swing Shift” by Dana Cameron in Crimes by Moonlight: Mysteries from the Dark Side (Berkley) - THE WINNER
“Devil’s Pocket” by Keith Gilman in Philadelphia Noir (Akashic)
“The Gods for Vengeance Cry” by Richard Helms (EQMM)
“Bookworm” by G.M. Malliet in Chesapeake Crimes: They Had It Comin’ (Wildside)

Sue Feder Memorial Historical Mystery
A Marked Man by Barbara Hamilton
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
City of Dragons by Kelli Stanley - THE WINNER
The Red Door by Charles Todd
The Fifth Servant by Kenneth Wishnia

Book Giveaway - The Dog Who Knew Too Much by Spencer Quinn

2011-09-08T09:40:00.002-04:00

The Dog Who Knew Too Much
A Chet and Bernie Mystery
by Spencer Quinn
September 2011
Hardcover

Through a generous offer from Simon & Schuster, Murder, Mystery and Mayhem readers have a chance to win a hardcover copy of Spencer Quinn's newest book in the Chet and Bernie series, The Dog Who Knew Too Much.
This is a treat ......5 lucky winners - Tell your friends and enter to win below....

From the publisher -
"The fourth entry in the irresistible New York Times bestselling mystery series featuring canine narrator Chet and his human companion Bernie—"the coolest human/pooch duo this side of Wallace and Gromit" (Kirkus Reviews).

Combining suspense and intrigue with a wonderfully humorous take on the link between man and beast, Spencer Quinn's exceptional mystery series has captured widespread praise since its New York Times bestselling debut, Dog on It. The Dog Who Knew Too Much marks the duo's triumphant return in a tale that's full of surprises.

Bernie is invited to give the keynote speech at the Great Western Private Eye Convention, but it's Chet that the bigshot P.I. in charge has secret plans for. Meanwhile Chet and Bernie are hired to find a kid who has gone missing from a wilderness camp in the high country. The boy's mother thinks the boy's father—her ex—has snatched the boy, but Chet makes a find that sends the case in a new and dangerous direction. As if that weren't enough, matters get complicated at home when a stray puppy that looks suspiciously like Chet shows up. Affairs of the heart collide with a job that's never been tougher, requiring our two intrepid sleuths to depend on each other as never before. The Dog Who Knew Too Much is classic Spencer Quinn, offering page-turning entertainment that's not just for dog-lovers."

Peter Abrahams writing as Spencer Quinn -
Chet and Bernie series - Dog on It (2009), Thereby Hangs a Tail (our review)(2010), To Fetch a Thief (2010), The Dog Who Knew Too Much (2011)

So, you want this book for your very own? It's easy....all you have to do is leave a comment below or e-mail your entry HERE. Winners will be chosen on a whim, unfairly, and yes, writing something interesting for a comment does matter! So, tell us what it is about the Chet and Bernie series that you're interested in?

Please include your e-mail address in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net). Why don't you stay in touch by becoming a follower?

Enter by September 30

Winners will be announced on or around October 1

U.S. entries only please - Jerry, Patricia, Karen, Harvee and Jean have Won!

The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. The book will be shipped from Simon & Schuster and can take from 2-4 weeks to arrive after the closing date of the contest.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation.

September New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

2011-09-03T08:40:00.003-04:00

The Tale of Castle Cottage by Susan Wittig Albert
Jane and the Canterbury Tale by Stephanie Barron
The Deception at Lyme by Carrie Bebris
A Mortal Terror by James R. Benn
Defensive Wounds by Lisa Black
Getting Off by Lawrence Block
In Sickness and in Death by Lisa Bork
Naughty in Nice by Rhys Bowen
Robert B. Parker’s Killing the Blues by Michael Brandman
Lethal by Sandra Brown
Feast Day of Fools by James Lee Burke
The Potter’s Field by Andrea Camilleri
Temporary Perfections by Gianrico Carofiglio
The Surrogate by Tania Carver
Heat Rises by Richard Castle
Skating Over the Line by Joelle Charbonneau
The Stonehenge Legacy by Sam Christer
The Blood Royal by Barbara Cleverly
The Perfect Suspect by Margaret Coel
Plugged by Eoin Colfer
The Burning Soul by John Connolly (must be read list)
The Race by Clive Cussler & Justin Scott
Guilty Pleasures by Judith Cutler
The Diva Haunts the House by Krista Davis
Forbidden by Ted Dekker
A Crack in Everything by Angela Gerst
End of Days by Robert Gleason
An Angel for Christmas by Heather Graham
Damage Control by Denise Hamilton
The Sookie Stackhouse Companion by Charlaine Harris
The Lost Women of Lost Lake by Ellen Hart
Murder My Neighbour by Veronica Heley

Force of Blood by Joseph Heywood

Prey by Linda Howard
Operation Napoleon by Arnaldur Indridason (on the list to read)

The Assassin in the Marais by Claude Izner
The Queen by Steven James
Motor City Shakedown by D.E. Johnson
Good Graces by Lesley Kagen
The Devil's Elixir by Raymond Khoury
A Paradise for Fools by Nicholas Kilmer
Pirate King by Laurie R. King
Northwest Angle by William Kent Krueger
Lassiter by Paul Levine
Button Holed by Kylie Logan
Wicked Autumn by G.M. Malliet
Angel by Nicole Marrow
Tag Man by Archer Mayor
The Ballad of Tom Dooley by Sharyn McCrumb
Trick of the Dark by Val McDermid
L.A. Mental by Neil McMahon
Trackers by Deon Meyer
The End of the Wasp Season by Denise Mina
Light from a Distant Star by Mary McGarry Morris
The Revisionists by Thomas Mullen
The Devil’s Puzzle by Clare O’Donohue
Under the Dog Star by Sandra Parshall
The Dog Who Knew Too Much by Spencer Quinn (Check back for awesome giveaway 9/4)
The Vault by Ruth Rendell
New York to Dallas by J.D. Robb
All Cry Chaos by Leonard Rosen
The Ronins Mistress by Laura Joh Rowland
Ghost Hero by S.J. Rozan
A Killing in China Basin by Kirk Russell
Children of Paranoia by Trevor Shane
Backlash by Sally Spencer
City of Secrets by Kelli Stanley
The Death of the Mantis by Michael Stanley
Hell to Pay by Wendy Corsi Staub
Sanctus by Simon Toyne
Or the Bull Kills You by Jason Webster
Son of Stone by Stuart Woods
A Killer’s Essence by Dave Zeltserman

The Lights Are On!

2011-09-03T08:21:00.000-04:00

Good-bye Irene!

Labor Day Mysteries - Crime/Suspense/Thriller

2011-08-29T07:49:00.001-04:00

A list of Labor Day mysteries involving unions, tradesman, and workers...thanks to Mystery Fanfare for some additions to this year's list....

For all of us little worker bees...a little murder...

Fiction -
For the Love of Mike by Rhys Bowen (Garment Workers)
White Hot by Sandra Brown (Labor Dispute)
Big Boned by Meg Cabot (Graduate Student Union)
Airframe by Michael Crichton (Union Trouble)
Cactus Blood by Lucha Corpi (Farm Workers' Union)
Third Strike by Philip Craig and William Tappley
(Steamship Authority Strike)
American Tabloid by James Ellroy (Teamsters)
LA Quartet by James Ellroy (Movie Unions)
Dead Reckoning by Patricia Hall (Union Strike)
The Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett (IWW organizer & Strike Breaking)
A More Perfect Union by J.A. Jance (Iron Workers' Union)
As Dead As it Gets by Cady Kalian (Creative Artists' Union)
Death at the Old Hotel by Con Lehane (Hotel Workers' Union)
Any Given Day by Dennis Lehane (Police Union)
Black Water Rising by Attica Locke (Labor Union)
Death at Pullman by Frances McNamara (American Railway Union)
Conferences are Murder by Val McDermid (Journalists' Union)
A Bitter Feast by S. J. Rozan (Restaurant Workers' Union)
Some Cuts Never Heal by Timothy Sheard (Shop Steward)
Absolute Rage by Robert K. Tanenbaum (Coal Miners' Union)
The Porkchoppers by Ross Thomas (Politics & Unions)
Killy by Donald Westlake (Manufacturing Union)

Non-Fiction
American Lightning by Howard Blum (Labor Union)

Would love to add to this list please post comments below-

Book Giveaway - Junkyard Dog by Craig Johnson

2011-08-25T21:40:00.003-04:00

Junkyard Dog
by Craig Johnson
paperback

Starting a book club? Penguin has released Craig Johnson's Junkyard Dogs in a paperback version with a reader's guide. How perfect! And you can enter for a chance to win a copy below....

For more reader's guides on Murder, Mystery & Mayhem, click HERE.

From the publisher -

A missing thumb and dead developers are only the beginning for Sheriff Walt Longmire.

It's a volatile new economy in Durant, Wyoming, where the owners of a multi-million dollar development of ranchettes want to get rid of the adjacent junk-yard. When a severed thumb is discovered in the yard, conflicts erupt, and Walt Longmire, his trusty companion Dog, life-long friend Henry Standing Bear, and deputies Santiago Saizarbitoria and Victoria Moretti find themselves in a small town that feels more and more like a high plains pressure cooker.

Walt Longmire series:
The Cold Dish (2004), Death Without Company (2006), Kindness Goes Unpunished (2007), Another Man’s Moccasins (2008), The Dark Horse (2009), Junkyard Dogs (2010), Hell Is Empty (2011)

So, you want this book for your very own? It's easy....all you have to do is leave a comment below or e-mail your entry HERE. Winners will be chosen on a whim, unfairly, and yes, writing something interesting for a comment does matter! So, tell us what it is about Craig Johnson's series that you're interested in?

Please include your e-mail address in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net). Why don't you stay in touch by becoming a follower?

Enter by September 15
Winners will be announced on or around September 16
U.S. entries only please - George has won!

The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. The book will be shipped, on my dime, by media mail and can take from 2-4 weeks to arrive after the closing date of the contest.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation.

On Shelves - Killing Kate by Julie Kramer

2011-08-24T20:02:00.000-04:00

Killing Kate
by Julie Kramer
July 2011

Riley Spartz, the feisty Minneapolis-based television reporter gets herself on a serial killer's hit list when she recognizes the address of a homicide coming across the assignment desk and volunteers to cover the crime. It's not just the address that's familiar, the victim ends up being the sister of a college roommate and Riley finds herself with unprecedented access to the crime scene, a reporter's dream. Or is it?

An awkward past with the victim's sister, a less than stellar history with the police, and a boss who has recently, and emphatically, banned Riley from reporting homicide stories doesn't make this quite the perfect assignment. And it only gets worse when Riley uncovers the victim's secret past and almost single-handedly takes the station down in the Nielsen ratings while making herself a target.

A fast, breezy, cynical look at the cut-throat world of TV News, Killing Kate is a mystery in quick sound bytes. Enough to keep you tuned in, but not quite enough to keep you riveted.

From the publisher -
"Not all angels are divine…

As TV reporter Riley Spartz discovers a serial killer drawing chalk outlines shaped like angels around the bodies of his victims, she unearths an eerie legend dating back nearly a century. Tracking clues to an Iowa cemetery, Riley finds an infamous Black Angel monument that may be connected to the string of homicides throughout the Midwest. Now she is up against a delusional young man who believes the statue is urging him to kill.

The local police are convinced the killer has left their territory and Riley's boss is convinced viewers are tired of hearing about so much crime, but a personal connection with the latest victim, Kate Warner, makes Riley determined to solve the case.

Riley also gets the scoop on a dog left locked in a hot car. Her pet-loving news director is crazy about this story, but the dog owner goes crazy, too. Is he now stalking Riley? Or has the angel-killer put Channel 3's top investigator on his hit list? Yearning for love and ratings, it's unsure whether Riley will find either before the killer finds her.

When she meets a mysterious stranger, Riley must decide whether he is her guardian angel or an angel of death. The answer doesn't come until a graveyard confrontation where the dead are the only witnesses."

Julie Kramer's bibliography -
The Riley Spartz series -
Stalking Susan (2008), Missing Mark (2009), Silencing Sam (2010), Killing Kate (2011)

Win - The Penguin Book of Victorian Women in Crime

2011-08-21T09:30:00.003-04:00

The Penguin Book of Victorian Women in Crime
Edited by Michael Sims
paperback
January 2011

Ohhhh......another chance to win a great book from Penguin Books. Read the rules below and enter now.......

From the publisher -

Forgotten Cops and Private Eyes from the Time of Sherlock Holmes.......

A wonderfully wicked new anthology from the editor of The Penguin Book of Gaslight Crime.

It is the Victorian era and society is both entranced by and fearful of that suspicious character known as the New Woman. She rides those new- fangled bicycles and doesn't like to be told what to do. And, in crime fiction, such female detectives as Loveday Brooke, Dorcas Dene, and Lady Molly of Scotland Yard are out there shadowing suspects, crawling through secret passages, fingerprinting corpses, and sometimes committing a lesser crime in order to solve a murder.

In The Penguin Book of Victorian Women in Crime, Michael Sims has brought together all of the era's great crime-fighting females- plus a few choice crooks, including Four Square Jane and the Sorceress of the Strand.

So, you want this book for your very own? It's easy....all you have to do is leave a comment below or e-mail your entry HERE. Winners will be chosen on a whim, unfairly, and yes, writing something interesting for a comment does matter! So, tell us what about the Victorian era was cool?

Enter by September 15
Winners will be announced on or around September 16
U.S. entries only please - Bev is the winner!

Please include your e-mail address in the following form - (johndoe AT att DOT net). Why don't you stay in touch by becoming a follower?

The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. The book will be shipped, on my dime, by media mail and can take from 2-4 weeks to arrive after the closing date of the contest.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem has a new Facebook account. Click HERE to join in the conversation.

2011 Shamus Award Nominees

2011-08-21T08:16:00.000-04:00

The Private Eye Writers of America have announced the nominees for the 2011 Shamus Awards.

Best Hardcover P.I. Novel:
No Mercy by Lori Armstrong
The First Rule by Robert Crais
Voyeur by Daniel Judson
If the Dead Rise Not by Philip Kerr
Naked Moon by Domenic Stansberry

Best First P.I. Novel:
In Search of Mercy by Michael Ayoob
One Man’s Paradise by Douglas Corleone
Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva
Random Violence by Jassy MacKenzie (our review)
City of Dragons by Kelli Stanley

Best Paperback Original P.I. Novel:
Hostage Zero by John Gilstrap
Nightshade by Tom Henighan
Mister X by John Lutz
The Panic Zone by Rick Mofina
Asia Hand by Christopher G. Moore
The Little Death by P.J. Parrish

Best P.I. Short Story:
“The God of Right and Wrong,” by Steven Gore (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine)
“The Lamb Was Sure to Go,” by Gar Anthony Haywood (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine)
“The Girl in the Golden Gown,” by Robert S. Levinson (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
“Phelan’s First Case.” by Lisa Sandlin (Lone Star Noir, edited by Bobby Byrd and Johnny Byrd; Akashic Books)
“A Long Time Dead,” by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins (The Strand Magazine)

2011 CWA Dagger Awards Shortlists Announced

2011-08-19T19:24:00.004-04:00

The winners will be revealed at The Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards on Friday, October 7th.

CWA GOLD DAGGER 2011 shortlist nominees

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton
Snowdrops by A.D Miller
The End of the Wasp Season by Denise Mina

CWA IAN FLEMING STEEL DAGGER 2011 shortlist nominees
The Good Son by Michael Gruber
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton
Cold Rain by Craig Smith
Before I Go To Sleep by S. J. Watson

CWA JOHN CREASEY (NEW BLOOD) DAGGER 2011 shortlist nominees
The Dogs of Rome by Conor Fitzgerald (our review)
The Dead Woman of Juárez by Sam Hawken
Kiss Me Quick by Danny Miller
Before I Go To Sleep by S. J. Watson

For all the information, click HERE.

Nosy Parkers, Rabble Rousers, Smart Alecks and Wise Guys

2011-08-15T07:43:00.001-04:00

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams
- Detective, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Humor, British, Comedy, Time Travel

Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell (our review)
- Crime, Dark Humor, Doctor, Gritty, Hit Man, Hospital, Mafia, Medical, Offbeat, Organized Crime

Divorcing Jack by Colin Bateman
- Belfast, Crime, Northern Ireland, Underworld, Marriage, Affair, Comedy

The Sacred Art of Stealing by Christopher Brookmyre
- Black Humor, Crime, Glasgow, Scotland, Thriller, Heist

Anarchy and Old Dogs by Colin Cotterill
- Coroner, Laos, Shaman, Vietnam, Spirit World, Offbeat, 1970s, Humorous

The Big Bamboo by Tim Dorsey
- Black Humor, Crime, Florida, Serge Storms, Serial Killer, Hollywood

Dead Famous by Ben Elton
- Big Brother, British, Contemporary, Social Commentary, Television, Detective

The Good Thief's Guide to Paris by Chris Ewan
- Art Theft, Crime Caper, France, Mystery, Comic, Charlie Howard

The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde (our review)
- Alternate History, Books, Fantasy, Mystery, Time Travel, Thursday Next, Humor

The Stars' Tennis Balls by Stephen Fry
- British, Comedy, Count of Monte Cristo, Revenge, Thriller, Satire

Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene
- British, Cuba, Cold War, Espionage, Spy, Humor, Satire, Literary

The Case of the Missing Servant by Tarquin Hall (our review)
- Cozy, Debut, Delhi, Humor, India, Mystery, Private Investigator, Series, Whodunit

The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie
- Adventurers, Adventure, Crime, Criminals, Murder, Mystery fiction, Detective, Violence

Dearly Devoted Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
- Sociopath, Serial Killer, Dark Humor, Forensics, Horror, Miami, Series, Psychological

Be Cool by Elmore Leonard
- Chili Palmer, California, Comedy, Hollywood, Mafia, Music Industry, Satire

The Automatic Detective by A. Lee Martinez
- Alternate Reality, Detective, Fantasy, Hardboiled, Robots, Science Fiction

Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn
- Historical, Amateur Detective, Witty, London, Victorian, Widow, Aristocracy

The Herring Seller's Apprentice by L. C. Tyler
- Amateur Detective, British, Light, Humor, Traditional, Chocolate, Nosy

Don't Ask by Donald E. Westlake
- John Dortmunder, New York, Heist, United Nations General Assembly, Ring, Diplomacy

From PBS - Watch Zen online until August 30

2011-08-11T18:17:00.002-04:00

See Zen online
Watch all three episodes of Zen available online
through August 30, 2011.

PBS - Masterpiece Mystery!

On Shelves - Blind Fury by Lynda La Plante

2011-08-10T20:00:00.003-04:00

Blind Fury
by Lynda La Plante
July 2011

Lynda La Plante the television screenwriter, producer, and novelist - best known for her acclaimed television series Prime Suspect - has a new title on shelves, Blind Fury, number six in the Anna Travis series.

Blind Fury, a British police procedural - cold cases, dead ends, bad relationships and a serial killer.

A young women is found dead near a rest station on the M1, near London, and Inspector Anna Travis' case comes to a halt when the team are unable to identify the victim. The only thing Anna does know is that this murder appears to match the deaths of three other women found along that stretch of highway. Can these cold cases provide the clues to solve this murder? A lot of leg work and investigation of the cold case files slowly brings Anna closer to identifying her victim but not fast enough for her superiors and the press.

DCI Langton, anxious to close the case, forces Travis to face a killer she's convicted on his home turf - the security block at Barfield prison. Cameron Welsh has finished a child psychology degree while inside and claims to be able to get into the mind of the killer. He should know, he is one. Travis is convinced that these trips provide nothing but sadistic pleasure to Welsh but as the visits turn personal much more may be at stake.

Blind Fury is not the strongest book in this series, so an earlier title might be the best place to start for someone new to Lynda La Plante.

Reading Group Guide for Blind Fury

From the publisher -

"When the body of a young woman is discovered close to a highway service station, Detective Inspector Anna Travis is brought on to the team of investigators by her former lover and boss, Detective Chief Superintendent Langton. As more evidence is uncovered, the team realizes that they are contending with a triple murder investigation—and no suspect.

But then a murderer Anna helped arrest years ago makes contact from prison. Cameron Welsh insists that he can help track down the killer, but he will divulge his secrets only to Anna herself. Does he really have an insight into another criminal’s mind, or is he merely intent on getting into hers?

The team soon realizes that they are dealing with a killer whose deviousness has enabled him to commit horrific crimes, yet remain undetected for years. As the case draws to a close, Welsh’s obsession for Anna fuels a terrifying rage that will have disastrous consequences for Anna, who finds herself staring into the face of a desperate personal tragedy."

The Anna Travis series:
Above Suspicion (2004), The Red Dahlia (2006), Clean Cut (2007), Deadly Intent (2008), Silent Scream (2009), Blind Fury (2010), Bloodline (coming soon)

For Lynda La Plante's full bibliography, click HERE.

Lynda La Plante also works as an actor under the name Lynda Marchal, in movies and television - check out her roles on the Internet Movie Database.

Some of Alfred Hitchcock's cameo appearances

2011-08-10T18:18:00.000-04:00

YouTube -

Loved it! Very Bad Men by Harry Dolan

2011-08-03T19:59:00.001-04:00

Very Bad Men
by Harry Dolan
July 2011

It is hard to follow up a great debut novel but Harry Dolan has scored with his sequel, Very Bad Men, the continuing story of the mysterious David Loogan. Loogan has escaped his past and has ended up editing the mystery magazine Gray Streets in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Very ironic, as the magazine and its previous editor were the cause of Loogan's trouble with the law in the first title of the series, Bad Things Happen, when David was a suspect in his friend's death. Favors can be very dangerous - especially if you are David Loogan.

But Loogan hasn't learned his lesson and this time trouble ends up on his doorstep by way of a hand written manuscript detailing two murders that have happened, very recently, and describing one yet to come. It appears the author has an agenda, a to-do-list of murder in revenge for a seventeen-year-old bank robbery. Loogan just can't stay out of danger and this time he pulls in his police detective girlfriend, Elizabeth Waishkey, and her daughter as accomplices to help stop the crime. A tangle of old lies and grief combined with a very guilty conscious come together in an explosive combination that only Loogan can unravel.

A complicated, multi layered story involving the slow reveal appears to be Dolan's trademark and it works. David Loogan's shadowy past, his knack for landing in trouble, and his total disregard for personal safety combine to make a fascinating character. Don't miss this one and if you haven't read Bad Things Happen track it down.

From the publisher -
David Loogan returns! Loogan is living in Ann Arbor with Detective Elizabeth Waishkey and her daughter, Sarah. He's settled into a quiet routine as editor of the mystery magazine Gray Streets-until one day he finds a manuscript outside his door. It begins: "I killed Henry Kormoran."

Anthony Lark has a list of names-Terry Dawtrey, Sutton Bell, Henry Kormoran. To his eyes, the names glow red on the page. They move. They breathe. The people on the list have little in common except that seventeen years ago they were involved in a notorious robbery. And now Anthony Lark is hunting them down, and he won't stop until every one of them is dead.

August New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

2011-07-31T11:05:00.000-04:00

The Dead of Winter by Jane A. Adams
The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen (on the list to read)

Scorch City by Toby Ball
Death in High Places by Jo Bannister
The Accident by Linwood Barclay
Call Me Princess by Sara Blaedel
Back of Beyond by C.J. Box
The Calling by Alison Bruce
Proof of Life by Karen Campbell
The Burning by Jane Casey
Flowers for Her Grave by Judy Clemens
Bye Bye, Baby by Max Allan Collins
Brute Strength by Susan Conant
The Magdalena Curse by F.G. Cottam
Murder by Mocha by Cleo Coyle
The Sauvignon Secret by Ellen Crosby
All the Pretty Hearses by Mary Daheim
Wyatt by Garry Disher
The Death Factory by Joe Domenici
Cat in a Vegas Gold Vendetta by Carole Nelson Douglas
Spycatcher by Matthew Dunn
Garden of Secrets Past by Anthony Eglin
Death and the Maiden by Gerald Elias
The Hand that Trembles by Kjell Eriksson
Dry Ice by Bill Evans; Marianna Jameson
The Good Thief’s Guide to Venice by Chris Ewan
The Brink of Fame by Irene Fleming
Bad Intentions by Karin Fossum (on the list to read)
Suffer the Children by Sara Fraser
The Ideal Man by Julie Garwood
Hideout by Kathleen George
Call After Midnight by Tess Gerritsen
End of Days by Robert Gleason
Victory and Honor by W.E.B. Griffin; William E. Butterworth IV
Flowering Judas by Jane Haddam
Snitch by Gerald Hammond
Murder, Majorcan Style by Roderic Jeffries
Season of Darkness by Maureen Jennings
Summer Session by Merry Jones
Dead Man's Switch by Tammy Kaehler
A Murder in Tuscany by Christobel Kent
Murder Most Persuasive by Tracy Kiely
Northwest Angle by William Kent Krueger
Sticks and Stones by K.J. Larsen
Until Thy Wrath Be Past by Åsa Larsson (on the list to read)
The Lantern by Deborah Lawrenson
Pampered to Death by Laura Levine
Thirteen Million Dollar Pop by David Levien
A Rhumba in Waltz Time by Robert S. Levinson
The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman (on the list to read)
The Charlestown Connection by Tom MacDonald
The Miser of Charity Hill by Scott Mackay
White Heat by M. J. McGrath
Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains by Catriona McPherson
The Second Messiah by Glenn Meade
Stealing Mona Lisa by Carson Morton
Saint's Gate by Carla Neggers
Angel Rising by Christopher Nicole
Kill Me If You Can by James Patterson & Marshall Karp
The Cut by George Pelecanos
A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny
Acceptable Loss by Anne Perry
Low Town by Daniel Polansky
The Towers by David Poyer
Cold Vengeance by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
Mice by Gordon Reece
Flash and Bones by Kathy Reichs
Where the Shadows Lie by Michael Ridpath
Rip Tide by Stella Rimington
Triple Crossing by Sebastian Rotella
In Malice, Quite Close by Brandi Lynn Ryder
The Killer Is Dying by James Sallis
Kafka's Leopards by Moacyr Scliar
Louise’s War by Sarah R. Shaber
Luminarium by Alex Shakar
Liquid Smoke by Jeff Shelby
Dark Tangos by Lewis Shiner
Targets of Opportunity by Jeffrey S Stephens
A Quiet Death by Marcia Talley
A Bitter Truth by Charles Todd (on the list to read)
Ice Station by Peter Tonkin
Darkness, My Old Friend by Lisa Unger
Two for Sorrow by Nicola Upson
Black Diamond by Martin Walker
The Sixes by Kate White
The Stranger You Seek by Amanda Kyle Williams
Tony and Susan by Austin Wright
Don’t Cry Tai Lake by Qiu Xiaolong
Silent Enemy by Thomas W. Young

Recommended - Killed at the Whim of a Hat by Colin Cotterill

2011-07-25T19:40:00.003-04:00

Exotic, smart, funny, and complicated - If you don't like this book I will eat my shoe!

Killed at the Whim of a Hat
by Colin Cotterill
July 2011

An Advanced Reader's Copy was provided by Minotaur Books through the early reviewers program at LibraryThing.

Only Colin Cotterill can combine two dead hippies in buried VW van and a murdered Buddhist abbot, with a short, pushy, frustrated female crime reporter and her dysfunctional family then set them all in a failing hotel in a tiny fishing village in southern Thailand, and come out with a winner.

But no one should be surprised as Cotterill is the author of the popular Dr. Siri Paiboun series, set in Laos in the 1970s, starring the geriatric, MacGyver like, coroner who rides around the country solving crimes with a little more than a pen knife, luck, and a lot of faith.

Killed at the Whim of a Hat is the first tile in a new series featuring Jimm Juree the wannabee big city crime reporter stuck in the boondocks trying to make a name and a way out. If you are a Cotterill fan you won't be disappointed and if you haven't found your way to this man's lovely language, complicated situations and unusual view of the world you should give Killed at the Whim of a Hat a try. Guaranteed to make you smile.

Colin Cotterill's Dr. Siri Paiboun Series - The Coroner’s Lunch (2004), Thirty-Three Teeth (2005) , Disco for the Departed (2006), Anarchy and Old Dogs (2007), Curse of the Pogo Stick (2008), The Merry Misogynist (our review) (2009), Love Songs from a Shallow Grave (2010), Slash and Burn (coming soon)

Happy Birthday, John D. MacDonald!

2011-07-24T11:37:00.003-04:00

John D. MacDonald

(1916-1986)

Winner of the 1972, Grand Master Award from Mystery Writers of America

John D. MacDonald began his career writing mysteries for "pulp" magazines in the 1940s and 1950s and became well known for his Travis McGee mystery series. While best known for his mysteries, MacDonald produced books in a number of genres including science fiction. A bibliography of all of John D. MacDonald's book can be found on Stop, You're Killing Me!.

McDonald's novelette "Taint of the Tiger" was adapted into the film Man Trap produced by Paramount in 1961 and his novel The Executioners was adapted into Cape Fear by Universal/International in 1962, and remade in 1991 by Martin Scorsese.

Travis McGee series:
The Deep Blue Good-by (1964), A Purple Place for Dying (1964), The Quick Red Fox (1964), Nightmare in Pink (1964), A Deadly Shade of Gold (1965), Bright Orange for the Shroud (1965), Darker Than Amber (1966), One Fearful Yellow Eye (1966), Pale Gray for Guilt (1968), The Girl in the Plain Brown Wrapper (1968), The Long Lavender Look (1970), A Tan and Sandy Silence (1971), Dress Her in Indigo (1971), The Scarlet Ruse (1973), The Turquoise Lament (1973), The Dreadful Lemon Sky (1974), The Empty Copper Sea (1978), The Green Ripper (1979), Free Fall in Crimson (1981), Cinnamon Skin (1982), The Lonely Silver Rain (1984)

Win Free Mystery and Suspense Books

2011-07-23T10:12:00.003-04:00

Enter for your chance to win a great summer read. A guide to mystery and suspense contests around the blogosphere -

Right here on Murder, Mystery and Mayhem you can win Keys to the Kingdom by Senator Bob Graham. (ends July 30)

www.ballantineatrandom.com -

The Silent Girl by Tess Gerritsen (while supplies last)

www.bantam-dellatrandom.com -

Love You More by Lisa Gardner (while supplies last)

www.berkleysignetmysteries.com -

Selection of Berkley Prime Crime Titles

www.bestsellersworld.com -

Strong at the Break by John Land (ends July 31)

www.bookbitch.com -

Killed at the Whim of a Hat by Colin Cotterill (ends July 31)

www.bookloons.com -

Blood of the Reich by William Dietrich (ends July 31)

Never Knowing by Chevy Stevens (ends July 31)

Before I go to Sleep by S. J. Watson (ends July 31)

Hush by Kate White (ends July 31)

Crime Watch -

Ngaio Marsh Award Book Giveaway (ends August 19)

Lesa's Book Critiques -

Betrayal of Trust by J.A Jance (July 28)

Whisper to the Blood by Dana Stabenow (July 28)

www.mulhollandbooks.com -

Triple Crossing by Sebastian Rotella (ends August 1)

Longlists for CWA Gold, Steel and New Blood Daggers

2011-07-22T17:39:00.001-04:00

The longlist for the 2011 CWA Gold Dagger, Steel Dagger, and the New Blood Dagger were announced at the CWA Daggers awards ceremony at the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival.

CWA GOLD DAGGER 2011 longlist

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
The Villa Triste by Lucretia Grindle
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton
Hanging Hill by Mo Hayder
The Cypress House by Michael Koryta
White Heat by M.J McGrath
Snowdrops by A.D Miller
The End of the Wasp Season by Denise Mina

CWA IAN FLEMING STEEL DAGGER 2011 longlist

The Trinity Six by Charles Cumming
The Cobra by Frederick Forsyth
The Good Son by Michael Gruber
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton
An Agent of Deceit by Chris Morgan Jones
Cold Rain by Craig Smith
Before I Go To Sleep by S.J Watson
Savages by Don Winslow

CWA JOHN CREASEY (NEW BLOOD) DAGGER 2011 longlist

The Dogs of Rome by Conor Fitzgerald (our review)
The Dead Woman of Juárez by Sam Hawken
Into The Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes
The Poison Tree by Erin Kelly
Sister by Rosamund Lupton
Kiss Me Quick by Danny Miller
Before I Go To Sleep by S.J Watson
Or The Bull Kills You by Jason Webster

For all the information, click HERE.

Dagger winners announced by the Crime Writers' Association

2011-07-22T16:58:00.000-04:00

The Crime Writers’ Association has announced the winners of some of this year’s Daggers.

International Dagger:
Three Seconds by Anders Roslund & Börge Hellström (Awesome Book - our review)
Non-Fiction Dagger: The Killer of Little Shepherds by Douglas Starr
Dagger in the Library: Mo Hayder
Short Story Dagger: Homework by Phil Lovesey
Debut Dagger: What Hidden Lies by Michele Rowe

The Dagger awards celebrate the very best in crime and thriller writing. For the full list of nominees click HERE.

On Shelves - Hotel Bosphorus by Esmahan Aykol

2011-07-21T20:09:00.000-04:00

Hotel Bosphorus
by Esmahan Aykol
July 2011
Translated

The first title in a newly translated series from Bitter Lemon Press, Hotel Bosphorus, is a light armchair travel mystery set in the exotic city of Istanbul. While the crime isn't original, a hair dryer in the tub, Kati, Istanbul's only crime bookshop owner, is an unusual amateur sleuth. She is a quirky, man obsessed, humorous, stream of consciousness commentator on life as a German living in Turkey. Think Precious Ramotswe meets Stella Hardesty. If you are tired of all those bleak, cold, depressing Nordic crime novels escape to a sunny, hot, and possibly slightly overly optimistic Turkish mystery. Where flirting is the tool of choice for this sleuth and Turkish coffee, sidewalk cafes and crowded streets play the supporting role.

From the publisher -
"Kati Hirschel is a foreigner and the proud owner of the only crime bookshop in Instanbul. When the director of a film starring her old school friend is found murdered in his hotel room, Kati cannot resist the temptation to start her own maverick investigation. After all, her friend Petra is the police’s principal suspect, and reading all those detective novels must have taught Kati something.

This suspenseful tale of murder features a heroine who is funny, feisty and undresses men in her mind more often than she would admit, even to herself. The men are too hot to handle, but is she too cool to resist? Sharp observation and wry, sexy humour expose Western prejudices about Turkey as well as Turkish stereotyping of other Europeans."

Author Information -
Esmahan Aykol was born in 1970 in Edirne, Turkey. She lives in Istanbul and Berlin. She has written three Kati Hirschel mystery novels. Hotel Bosphorus is the first and has been published in eight languages. This is the first time her work is available in English.

Murder, Mystery & Mayhem

On Shelves – The Chalk Girl by Carol O’Connell

*note new URL - www.murdermysterymayhembooks.com

The Chalk GirlCarol O'ConnellJanuary, 2012

Carol O'Connell -

The Kathleen Mallory Series

A New British Crime Author - John Barlow

You don’t choose your familyby John Barlow, author of HOPE ROAD

2011 Hammett Prize Nominees

The Nominees for the 2012 Edgar Allan Poe Awards

Win - The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen By Thomas Caplan

Win Audio Book - The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

New Year's Resolution - Read More Crime Books

January New Releases 2012 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

Should auld acquaintance be tied in knots ...? Book List of New Year's Mysteries

Recommended - Hurt Machine by Reed Farrel Coleman

Recommended - Until Thy Wrath Be Past by Asa Larsson

Win - Colin Cotterill's New Book - Slash and Burn

Mystery Fanfare: Nero Award 2011: Louise Penny's Bury Your Dead

December New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

Give the Gift of Crime - Best Mystery, Suspense and Thrillers 2011

Recommended Pie in the Sky - British Mystery TV Series

Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Awards Nominees - Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

Unwanted Guests? A Menu for Murder - Book List

Recommended - The Cut by George Pelecanos

Winners of the 2011 Swedish Crime Novel Awards

Missed the PBS Masterpiece Mystery Case Histories? Watch it online until December, 7th.

Spotlight on Karen E. Olson

Win Free Mystery and Suspense Books

November New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

Book Giveaway - Reamde by Neal Stephenson

Book Giveaway - Black Thunder by Aimee and David Thurlo

Wicked Bugs........

Mystery Fanfare: Halloween Cocktail Garnish: Eye Balls & Fingers

Black Magic, the Supernatural and the Occult - Mystery, Crime, Suspense, and Thrillers

On Shelves - The Ronin's Mistress by Laura Joh Rowland

Witches, Goblins, and Ghosts - Halloween Mysteries

October New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

Delicious and Suspicious: Laura Childs pairs food with mystery

Victorian Crimes - Historical Mystery and Suspense

Recommended - The Fatal Touch by Conor Fitzgerald

The Anthony Award Winners 2011

Shamus Award Winners 2011

Macavity Award Winners 2011

Winners of the 2011 Barry Awards

Mystery Fanfare: Easy Rawlins TV Series

Boucheron 2011 - World Mystery Convention

Book Giveaway - The Dog Who Knew Too Much by Spencer Quinn

September New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

The Lights Are On!

Labor Day Mysteries - Crime/Suspense/Thriller

Book Giveaway - Junkyard Dog by Craig Johnson

On Shelves - Killing Kate by Julie Kramer

Win - The Penguin Book of Victorian Women in Crime

2011 Shamus Award Nominees

2011 CWA Dagger Awards Shortlists Announced

Nosy Parkers, Rabble Rousers, Smart Alecks and Wise Guys

From PBS - Watch Zen online until August 30

On Shelves - Blind Fury by Lynda La Plante

Some of Alfred Hitchcock's cameo appearances

Loved it! Very Bad Men by Harry Dolan

August New Releases 2011 - Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Suspense Books

Recommended - Killed at the Whim of a Hat by Colin Cotterill

Happy Birthday, John D. MacDonald!

Win Free Mystery and Suspense Books

Longlists for CWA Gold, Steel and New Blood Daggers

Dagger winners announced by the Crime Writers' Association

On Shelves - Hotel Bosphorus by Esmahan Aykol

The Chalk Girl
Carol O'Connell
January, 2012

You don’t choose your family
by John Barlow, author of HOPE ROAD