Free/Bargain Suspense/Mystery/Thriller April 2013

[koland]

40 mystery/thrillers for $1.99 for today's Kindle deal: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/?docId=1000777851

[mikaelalind]

The Apprentice by Tess Gerritsen is discounted to 1.99. The discount started April 15th and will last for two weeks, according to her blog.

Oh, and like always it is US only. I would be angry, except I think I have it already.

[mitford13]

Free on Amazon:

Toros & Torsos (The Hector Lassiter Series) by Craig McDonald

From Publishers Weekly
Spanning the years from 1935 to 1959, Edgar-finalist McDonald's second novel to feature crime novelist Hector Lassiter (after 2007's Head Games) deftly mixes myth, history and a serial killer who arranges dead bodies to resemble surrealistic art. Lassiter, whose work embodies the write what you live and live what you write ethos, loves hard, drinks hard and keeps an eye on avenging the loss of the beautiful blonde he meets in a Key West bar on page one. As a popular author, Lassiter interacts with such notables as Ernest Hemingway and Orson Welles, whom the author skillfully animates. Other celebrities of the day make cameo appearances. Solidly grounded in such actual events as the Key West hurricane of 1935, the Spanish Civil War and Cuba's last days before Castro, McDonald's imaginative tale takes an enjoyably different approach to art and murder. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[bfisher]

Originally Posted by mitford13

Free on Amazon:

Toros & Torsos (The Hector Lassiter Series) by Craig McDonald

From Publishers Weekly
Spanning the years from 1935 to 1959, Edgar-finalist McDonald's second novel to feature crime novelist Hector Lassiter (after 2007's Head Games) deftly mixes myth, history and a serial killer who arranges dead bodies to resemble surrealistic art. Lassiter, whose work embodies the write what you live and live what you write ethos, loves hard, drinks hard and keeps an eye on avenging the loss of the beautiful blonde he meets in a Key West bar on page one. As a popular author, Lassiter interacts with such notables as Ernest Hemingway and Orson Welles, whom the author skillfully animates. Other celebrities of the day make cameo appearances. Solidly grounded in such actual events as the Key West hurricane of 1935, the Spanish Civil War and Cuba's last days before Castro, McDonald's imaginative tale takes an enjoyably different approach to art and murder. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Thanks. Also free at amazon.ca:
http://www.amazon.ca/Toros-Torsos-He.../dp/B004A14TIE

[Mort1997]

Free today- Brain dead by Eileen Dreyer

When forensic nurse Timmie Leary-Parker moves from LA to Puckett, Missouri to care for her ailing father, she's prepared for the slow pace, the small-town politics and the feeling that everyone knows her business.

Then, patients in the hospital's Alzheimer's Unit start dying in unprecedented numbers.

Everyone refuses to investigate the town's most lucrative business, and no one will come against the hospital's Golden Boy director.

No one, except Timmie.

Convinced a serial killer walks the Alzheimer's Unit where her father lies ill, Timmie digs up a burned-out Pulitzer-winning reporter and dives into a quagmire of corruption and greed.


UK
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Brain-Dead-e...705882&sr=1-30
US
http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Dead-ebo...=eileen+dreyer

[scottken]

Free today on Amazon for Shakespeare's birthday:

His Majesty's Will by David Blixt Main UK

England, 1586. Swept up in the skirts of a mysterious stranger, Will Shakespeare becomes entangled in a deadly and hilarious misadventure as he accidentally uncovers the Babington Plot, an attempt to murder Queen Elizabeth herself. Aided by the mercurial wit of Kit Marlowe, Will enters London for the first time, chased by rebels, spies, his own government, his past, and a bear.

"I LOVE this book! I'm laughing and on the edge of my seat and turning the e-pages so fast, I'm gonna fry my iPad." - C.W. GORTNER, The Queen's Vow and The Tudor Secret

"I loved Her Majesty's Will, a delightful romp through Elizabethan England. When Will Shakespeare and Kit Marlowe stumble onto a plot to assassinate Queen Elizabeth, the fun is non-stop, an irresistible mix of suspense, surprises, and humor I just hope we get to see this zany team again." - SHARON KAY PENMAN, The Sunne In Splendour and Lionheart

[NightBird]

Free Up in Flames by Geraldine Evans. First in her Casey and Catt series. Originally published by Severn House.

If you enjoy some humour with your murders, you'll likely love this British detective series.


When Chandra Bansi and her baby, Leela, are burned to death, DCI ‘Will’ Casey and his less than politically-correct sergeant, Thomas Catt, rapidly come under pressure from their superintendent to put a couple of skinhead thugs behind bars for arson.

Superintendent Brown-Smith, acutely aware, after the fiasco that was the failed inquiry into the murder of black, south London, teenager, Stephen Lawrence, that he is in the hot seat, is desperate for a speedy and politically-satisfactory solution to the case. Worried that his previously smooth and upward career progression will be irretrievably damaged, he places additional pressure on Casey.

But the investigation quickly unearths suspects other than the skinheads, suspects unlikely to endear him either to his superiors or the Asian community.

The resolution of the most difficult case of his career is not eased by the arrival of his impecunious hippie parents. Urgently in need of a temporary home, they selfishly concluded that decamping to Casey's peaceful haven will provide the solution to their current difficulties.

But their raucous, undisciplined lifestyle causes Casey sleepless nights at a time he most needs calm. Bedevilled at home by his irresponsible parents, bedevilled at work by accusations of discrimination from the usual quarters, Casey and Thom Catt must wend a circuitous path through all the additional problems the investigation throws up.

For instance, just how respectable is Chandra’s businessman father? And what about her in-laws, who seem to have blamed their westernised daughter-in-law for the death of their only son? Other members of the victim's family also come under suspicion. Casey must use the utmost sensitivity in his handling of the case if he is not to cause unrest in the Asian community.

And, at the heart of the case is the fact that Chandra, a modern young woman, had been uncomfortably caught between two cultures. It’s hard to say which is the more dangerous.

For lovers of cozy mysteries and procedurals

[NightBird]

Free Sister Suicide by Nick Wilgus from Crime Wave Press.

A nun is torn apart by crocodiles in a Buddhist theme park. Is it a case of suicide or does a monastic community in the Thai provinces harbor a vicious killer? Father Ananda, Buddhist monk and reluctant detective is called from Bangkok to untangle an insidious web of vested interests, corruption and murder in the second episode of the Father Ananda mystery series.

The first book in the series, Mindfulness and Murder, is $2.99.

[NightBird]

Two by Hallie Ephron from HarperCollins for $2.99 each:

Come and Find Me.

Computer security expert and reformed hacker Diana Highsmith has not ventured beyond her home for more than a year—not since that fateful climbing vacation in Switzerland took Daniel's life. Haunted by the sound of Daniel's cries echoing across the gorge as he fell, Diana cannot stop thinking about the life they'll never have—grief that has transformed her into a recluse.

Diana doesn't have to shut herself off completely from the world, though; she and Daniel's best friend run a thriving Internet security company. From her home, in her pajamas, Diana assesses security breaches, both potential and real, and offers clients a way to protect themselves from hackers—the kind of disruptions Diana herself used to create. Once Diana has a game plan she is able to meet with clients in OtherWorld, an Internet-based platform, using Nadia, an avatar she created for herself. Diana knows she'll have to rejoin the "real world" eventually, but right now a few steps from her door each morning is all she can handle.

When Diana's sister goes missing, however, she is forced to do the impossible: brave both the outside world and her own personal demons to find her sister. As one step outside leads to another, Diana soon discovers that she is following a trail fraught with danger—and uncovering a web of deceit and betrayal, both online and real-life, that threatens not only her sister's life, but her own.

Never Tell a Lie

It all started with the yard sale . . .

Eight months pregnant and nervous about the future, Ivy Rose doesn't recognize the woman approaching her and husband David as they attempt to rid themselves of the decades-worth of junk cluttering up their suburban home. The woman says she's Melinda White—their former high school classmate, now pregnant also—and asks if she might revisit the old Victorian house she recalls playing in as a child. David takes her inside. But Melinda never comes out.

With her husband a suspect in the bizarre disappearance and probable murder of the near-stranger he claims not to remember, Ivy must now dive into a deadly whirlpool of deceit, betrayal, and terrifying alternate histories in pursuit of a shocking truth—a truth that could destroy everything . . .

For $3.99 from Simon & Schuster: 1222 by Anne Holt. This is the eighth book in her Hanne Wilhelmsen series but was the first to be translated into English and according to some of the reviewers works as a standalone. The audiobook is also available from Audible for $3.99.

From Norway’s bestselling female crime writer comes a suspenseful locked-room mystery set in an isolated hotel in Norway, where guests stranded during a monumental snowstorm start turning up dead.

A TRAIN ON ITS WAY to the northern reaches of Norway derails during a massive blizzard, 1,222 meters above sea level. The passengers abandon the train for a nearby hotel, centuries-old and practically empty, except for the staff. With plenty of food and shelter from the storm, the passengers think they are safe, until one of them is found dead the next morning.

With no sign of rescue, and the storm continuing to rage, retired police inspector Hanne Wilhelmsen is asked to investigate. Paralysed by a bullet lodged in her spine, Hanne has no desire to get involved. But she is slowly coaxed back into her old habits as her curiosity and natural talent for observation force her to take an interest in the passengers and their secrets. When another body turns up, Hanne realizes that time is running out, and she must act fast before panic takes over. Complicating things is the presence of a mysterious guest, who had travelled in a private rail car at the end of the train and was evacuated first to the top floor of the hotel. No one knows who the guest is, or why armed guards are needed, but it is making everyone uneasy. Hanne has her suspicions, but she keeps them to herself.

Trapped in her wheelchair, trapped by the storm, and now trapped with a killer, Hanne must fit the pieces of the puzzle together before the killer strikes again.

[NightBird]

$1.99 each from Open Road:

Hopscotch by Brian Garfield. Basis for the movie with Walter Matthau. Audiobook from Audible available for $3.99.

Bored with retirement, an ex-spy challenges his old agency to a game

Miles Kendig is one of the CIA’s top deep-cover agents, until an injury ruins him for active duty. Rather than take a desk job, he retires. But the tawdry thrills of civilian life—gambling, drinking, sex—offer none of the pleasures of the intelligence game. Even a Russian agent’s offer to go to work against his old employers seems dull. Without the thrill of unpredictable conflict, Kendig skulks through Paris like the walking dead.

To revive himself, he begins writing a tell-all memoir, divulging every secret he accumulated in his long career. Neither CIA nor KGB can afford to have it in print, and so he challenges them both: Until they catch him, a chapter will go to the publisher every week. Kendig’s life is fun again, with survival on the line.

A Dram of Poison by Charlotte Armstrong.

A longtime bachelor finally marries—only to learn the corrosive power of jealousy

For fifty-five years, Kenneth Gibson has lived in backwaters. A former army clerk, he makes a quiet living teaching poetry to indifferent undergrads. His life is happily dull until the day he meets Rosemary, a damaged girl whose frailty compels Kenneth to try to make her well. They wed, and as Rosemary recovers from her depression, Gibson falls in love, transforming his world. But his wife will never love him.

She is smitten with their landlord, a dashing young chemical engineer named Paul. Gibson wants to let her go, but he cannot bear to be parted with the first love he has ever known. In Paul’s house is a case of poison, and this love triangle can only end in death.

A Dark-Adapted Eye by Ruth Rendell.

In the Edgar Award–winning classic, a niece investigates the shocking secrets that condemned her once proud family

Faith Severn has never understood why the willful matriarch of her high-society family, aunt Vera Hillyard, snapped and murdered her own beloved sister. But long after Vera is condemned to hang, a journalist’s startling discoveries allow Faith to perceive her family’s story in a new light.

Set in post–World War II Britain, A Dark-Adapted Eye is both a gripping mystery and a harrowing psychological portrait of a complex woman at the head of a troubled family.

[NightBird]

Noir from Simon & Schuster for $3.99: Queenpin by Megan Abbott.

Re-released to coincide with Abbott’s newest novel, Dare Me, this eBook edition of Queenpin also includes the original short story, "Policy," that the novel was based on.

A young woman hired to keep the books at a down-at-the-heels nightclub is taken under the wing of the infamous Gloria Denton, a mob luminary who reigned during the Golden Era of Bugsy Siegel and Lucky Luciano. Notoriously cunning and ruthless, Gloria shows her eager young protégée the ropes, ushering her into a glittering demimonde of late-night casinos, racetracks, betting parlors, inside heists, and big, big money. Suddenly, the world is at her feet--as long as she doesn't take any chances, like falling for the wrong guy. As the roulette wheel turns, both mentor and protégée scramble to stay one step ahead of their bosses and each other.

[NightBird]

Free from Accent Press: A Death in the Asylum by Caroline Dunford.

Book three in the Euphemia Martins Murder Mystery series by Caroline Dunford.

Euphemia, the disowned granddaughter of an Earl, is working unhappily as a housekeeper for Bertram Stapleford at his ill advised new property, when the dramatic collapse of the kitchen floor sends her back to where it all began, Stapleford House. A visiting mystic disrupts the Staplefords unleasing old family rumours. Euphemia finds herself playing second fiddle to Bertram's new love, Beatrice Wilton, as she launches a project to investigate the new aslyums.

It is not long before Euphemia realizes that not only does Beatrice have her unscrupulous sights set on Bertram, but that her enterprises may be about to put them all in very great danger. A besotted Bertram will not listen, so once more she turns to the handsome Butler, Rory for aid. Then a midnight attacker strikes at the heart of Stapleford Hall and the stakes are suddenly all too high.

As usual Euphemia only has her quick wits and that defence of all virtuous young ladies to defend herself, her scream.

[caleb72]

Orson Scott Card's novel Hidden Empire is currently $2.89 at Amazon (US).

The war of words between right and left collapsed into a shooting war, and raged between the high-technology weapons on each side, devastating cities and overrunning the countryside.

At the close of Empire, political scientist and government adviser Averell Torrent had maneuvered himself into the presidency of the United States. And now that he has complete power at home, he plans to expand American imperial power around the world.

Opportunity comes quickly. There’s a deadly new plague in Africa, and it is devastating the countryside and cities. President Torrent declares American solidarity with the victims, but places all of Africa in quarantine until a vaccine is found or the disease burns itself out. And he sends Captain Bartholomew Coleman, Cole to his friends, to run the relief operations and protect the American scientists working on identifying the virus. If Cole and his team can avoid dying of the plague, or being cut down by the weapons of fearful African nations, they might do some good. Or they might be out of the way for good.

At the publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management software (DRM) applied.

Reviews seem a bit mixed on this. Apparently it's a sequel to a novel called Empire. Anyway - for what it's worth.

Amazon (US): LINK

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by NightBird

Noir from Simon & Schuster for $3.99: Queenpin by Megan Abbott.

This is a terrific book by a terrific writer. I'm going to repurchase this just for the short story.

[sufue]

Originally Posted by NightBird

$1.99 each from Open Road:

Hopscotch by Brian Garfield. Basis for the movie with Walter Matthau. Audiobook from Audible available for $3.99.

Although the book and the movie are pretty different IMS. It's been a while since I read the book, but I remember it as darker than the movie, which is really pretty humorous, even with an underlying more serious message.