FREE/BARGAIN - Mystery, Suspense, Thriller - 2015

[BearMountainBooks]

thanks, Mitford! I'll watch for Lei Crime to go free and check out the 30s one. I normally don't go for historicals, but I recently read (stops to go look it up)...The Maggie Sullivan books and I really enjoyed the atmosphere the author created. No Game for Dame is the first in that series.

[mitford13]

Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks

thanks, Mitford! I'll watch for Lei Crime to go free and check out the 30s one. I normally don't go for historicals, but I recently read (stops to go look it up)...The Maggie Sullivan books and I really enjoyed the atmosphere the author created. No Game for Dame is the first in that series.

I just checked - I do have the first four Lei Crimes (that series has really grown!) and they're lendable for kindle. Would be happy to send any or all your way if/when you feel like taking a look.
(Think I have Maggie Sullivan too--oh, the freebie TBR stacks...!!)

[ATDrake]

Free from the author via KDP Select @ Amazon:

Oscar Caliber Gun by Henry Baum, a timely Hollywood noir thriller originally out from formerly independent small publisher Soft Skull Press (Wikipedia), who've published a few award-nominees back in the day before being bought out by Counterpoint, in 1997.

Hollywood celebrity stalker Ray Tompkins prowls the underbelly of Los Angeles, his new target is A-List Actor Tim Griffith, and Ray's going to see this one through to the star-studded end. This Noir thriller set in pre-Internet 90s LA will be enjoyed by fans of Schrader, Easton-Ellis and Bukowski.

Free again from the author via KDP Select @ Amazon:

Mind Game by Edgar & Barry Award-finalist Ben Rehder (SYKM, Wikipedia), a short story in his Blanco County mystery series starring a Texas game warden and his sherriff buddy, originally published in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. It's kind of sad that the author feels the need to warn directly in the blurb that this is a short story after getting negative reviews solely because it was short (do people have no reading comprehension?!).

The sheriff of Blanco County has a problem on his hands. One local resident is making vague threats—hypothetically speaking, of course—to unsettle another local resident, who stole the first man's girlfriend. The problem escalates and violence is almost certain, until the sheriff comes up with a brilliant and ironic solution.

Rehder also offers a non-fiction collection of his magazine articles about his real-life experience game wardening which he drew on when writing his mysteries, x-linked in the Non-Fiction megathread: Fun & Game Wardens: A Collection of Warden and Wildlife Magazine Articles

[ATDrake]

Free again from small press Imajin (a previous Read An Ebook Week participant) via KDP Select @ Amazon:

Soul and Shadow by Susan J. McLeod, 1st in her Lily Evans Mystery series with strong paranormal elements starring the eponymous Egyptology student, this installment involving the archaeological discovery of an ancient mummy to whom Evans is convinced she has a psychic link. This 1st-in-series apparently also has strong romantic elements to setup Evans' supporting cast, but from then on apparently they focus on paranormal suspense.

In ancient Egypt, a young priestess of the goddess Hathor is laid to rest in a beautiful tomb with everything she needs for her journey into the afterlife...

Three thousand years later, archaeologist Ursula Allingham discovers the mummy of Amisihathor and is confronted by a mystery. Is the man buried with the priestess really her husband? Or was she actually in love with a scribe called Kamenwati and separated from him in life as well as death?

To answer these questions, Dame Ursula turns to Egyptology student and artist Lily Evans, who reluctantly agrees to help. Lily learns that she is psychically linked to Amisihathor and experiences a strange, unsettling phenomenon--the memories and emotions of the Egyptian woman. Luckily, Lily has her beloved pet Cleocatra and her irrepressible friend Katy to keep her grounded in reality. Or so she hopes.

Dealing with the challenges of falling in love with Ursula's grandson Kent, the reappearance of her ex-fiance Stephen and the demands of her mother and her boss Professor Briggs, Lily soon realizes she has taken on much more than she bargained for.

[sufue]

Three of four of John Leslie's Gideon Lowry/Key West mysteries, originally published in DTB in the 1990's, are repeat US Kindle Countdown deals right now. He also has one non-series title on countdown. All four are $1.99, down from $3.99, for about six more days.

The three Gideon Lowry titles are:

Night and Day (#2)
Love for Sale (#3)
Blue Moon (#4)

Information and links for these can be found in this previous post:
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho....php?p=2910444

Oddly enough, the first in the series, Killing Me Softly, is not on sale. Strange marketing!

The non-series title is Havana Hustle.
link: http://www.amazon.com/Havana-Hustle-.../dp/B00OP6QVEO

Spoiler:

Dealing with criminals his way led Tony Harwood to a parting of the ways with the Miami cops. Now he's trying to make it as a private eye in the funky Florida Keys -- and gaining a reputation for getting results...his way.

Ramon Marquesa has a reputation, too. As the scion of South Florida's most powerful family, and the untouchable brother of a political strongman, he's got a stranglehold on Key West that can't be broken. But now he's frantic to hide the only witness who can prove his guilt in a cold-blooded drive-by shooting. Prosecuting for the State Attorney's office, Kay Fulton needs the Marquesa conviction to keep her from abandoning her own convictions about the law, life and love. That's why she turns to Tony Harwood. But finding the key witness in Key West will mean penetrating the sun, surf and sub-machine gun subculture of the island's Cubano community -- where everyone, cops included, mambos to Ramon Marquesa's tune. That means Tony Harwood will have to play hardball...or die hard.

[sufue]

Sudden Death, the first in the 1990's Chris Ludlow mystery series, previously published (this one at least) by Headline, is free from Endeavour Press at Amazon US, for an unknown amount of time.

link: http://www.amazon.com/Sudden-Death-M.../dp/B00T7R11KK

Spoiler:

The man who can putt is a match for anyone’ is a golf truism.

And Brian Harley, a journeyman pro with an unsavoury past, is proving its truth, with the help of an ultra-high-tech putter.

Suddenly he’s winning tournaments and even the Open seems to be within his grasp.

But Chris Ludlow, dubbed the ‘upper-crust’ caddie by the tabloid Press, is suspicious of Harley and his associates, especially when one of his caddies ends up dead.

The caddy, Froggy Davies, was a former third-rate pro who had been having a sudden career revival.

But someone stabbed him through the neck with a golf club shaft.

And the shaft was made by Supersight - the company who made Harley’s new putter, which has given him such sudden success…

Plunged into an alarming sequence of murder and treachery, Chris Ludlow has to solve the mystery.

The clock is ticking as the final round of the Open Championship comes to a close ...

Would Harley really kill to secure his winnings?

Or is someone else trying to sabotage the tournament…?

Chris must try to solve the mystery before the perpetrators find a way to silence him – permanently.

‘Sudden Death’ is a thrilling, complex crime caper around the golf courses of Britain. It is the first of the Chris Ludlow Golf Mysteries.

‘A bright debut in the sports thriller genre’ - Daily Mail


‘The author has used his inside knowledge of the professional game to create a very readable thriller’ - Sunday Telegraph

‘Cracking fast-paced action set against the background of the Open Championship’ - Yorkshire Evening Press

Malcolm Hamer has been an agent for sportsmen since the early ‘70s. His writing career began when he and his wife, Jill Foster, published The Family Welcome Guide – about family-friendly hotels, pubs and restaurants in the UK. He is the author of the Chris Ludlow Golf Mysteries as well as ‘Patriotic Games’, also published by Endeavour Press.

[sufue]

The Disposable Man, the ninth in the Joe Gunther mystery series by Archer Mayor, is on US Kindle Countdown, at $0.99 for about 2 1/2 more days before going up to $4.99. I haven't spotted this one on sale before - someday I need to check and see how many of the series I've now managed to pick up either free or at $0.99. No promises on actually reading them, of course

link: http://www.amazon.com/Disposable-Man...dp/B00C3LSSMG/

Spoiler:

When a local quarry yields up a garroted body with bad dental work and toes tattooed in Cyrillic, Joe Gunther figures it for a Russian mafia killing, rare as that might be in Vermont. But it's so very… tidy. So very… professional. Then the CIA calls, inviting Gunther down to Washington for some friendly “assistance” with his case. Suddenly he‘s caught up a shadowy game of cross and double-cross—manipulated by cynical cold warriors who seem not to have gotten the memo—and Gunther soon realizes that he's a pawn that both sides are willing to sacrifice.

[sufue]

Farewell Performance by Joseph Flynn is a non-series title, published by Flynn's own "Stray Dog Press". However, although I haven't read this one (I haven't noticed it on sale before), I have read a number of Flynn's other titles, both conventionally published and self-published, and have enjoyed them. So, I'm going ahead and posting this one...

It's on sale via US Kindle countdown, at $1.99 for about 5 1/4 more days, before going up to $2.99.

link: http://www.amazon.com/Farewell-Perfo...dp/B002UKOWP2/

Spoiler:

Two Cops Chasing a Rumor ...
Sergeant Rick Valkonen, all but retired from the LAPD, is given
a final no-worries assignment to carry him into his new life as a
beach bum with a pension. Make sure the new chief of police’s
teenage twins, Justin and Justine, don’t get into trouble in big, bad
L.A. But Justine gives Valkonen the slip one night and that’s when
things start getting crazy.
Detective Joan Duarte of the Santa Monica PD is fresh off a week’s
suspension from duty for assaulting a fellow officer. She coldcocked
the guy who’d been sexually harassing her. Returning to duty,
Duarte is told to go see an L.A. cop named Valkonen.
Valkonen tells Duarte what happened to Justine after she ditched
him. She was invited to an underground rock concert with a great
new band. Only thing is, the band plans to commit suicide on stage —
and the audience is supposed to follow right along into the hereafter.
Has to be a gag, doesn’t it? In SoCal, maybe not. When Valkonen
and Duarte start to investigate, they don’t like the vibe they get.
The death concert begins to look more and more real. Problem is,
the two cops don’t know the band’s name, the date, or the venue
for the concert.
On top of that, Duarte has a blowup with her teenage son, Sebi.
He disappears, but his girlfriend’s body washes up on a beach.
Did Sebi drown, too? Or is he headed for the farewell performance?
Two cops who were supposed to debunk a hoax suddenly find
themselves working the most deadly case of their careers.

[sufue]

A bunch of repeat US Kindle countdown deals from Endeavour Press, in case you missed one the first time around. All are at $0.99, for various amounts of time, before going back up to $3.99. I'm not going to post all the descriptions again - you can search/find them in previous posts, or just go look at Amazon...

Blackstone and the House of Secrets by Sally Spencer (pen name for Alan Rustage), about 5 1/4 more days, http://www.amazon.com/Blackstone-Hou...dp/B00NMOYCPA/

Dead Secrets by Frederic Lindsay, about 5 1/4 more days, http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Secrets-I...dp/B00FYW8ZTC/

A Canterbury Crime by Brian Kavanagh, about 4 1/4 more days, http://www.amazon.com/Canterbury-Cri...dp/B00MNSYRSS/

Girl Gone Missing by J M Gregson, about 5 1/4 more days, http://www.amazon.com/Girl-Gone-Miss...dp/B00MWX2OZ2/

A Kind of Dying by Frederic Lindsay, about 4 1/4 more days, http://www.amazon.com/Kind-Dying-Ins...dp/B00EO1ZOO8/

Third Time Fatal by Roger Ormerod, about 6 1/4 more days, http://www.amazon.com/Third-Time-Fat...dp/B00NWTDD4Q/

A Death to Remember by Roger Ormerod, about 4 1/4 more days, http://www.amazon.com/Death-Remember...dp/B00L6H0XA8/

[sufue]

And finally, whew, three Sherlock Holmes pastiches are on sale from (of course) Endeavour Press, all at $0.99.

Sherlock Holmes and the Mayfair Murders by David Britland is at $0.99 for about 4 1/4 more days before going up to $3.99.
link: http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holme...dp/B00ODC81HK/

Spoiler:

Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson are back - this time to try and catch the Ripper.

Only a few short years ago the monster known as Jack the Ripper held the East End of London in a grip of terror.

Now there are rumours that the Ripper has returned.

Three respectable young women have been slaughtered in Mayfair, the city's most respectable and exclusive district.

But instead of consulting Sherlock Holmes, the official police prefer to seek advice from Dr. Karl Schermann.

And while the flamboyant German enjoys official approval and public acclaim, Holmes sits at home, brooding.

But when another woman is murdered, Holmes decides to take matters into his own hands.

Before Holmes can bring the Mayfair murderer to justice, however, he must uncover the truth about Dr. Karl Schermann…

Can Holmes and his faithful sidekick Dr Watson unmask the killer?

Or will the Ripper once again slip away into obscurity…?

'A must read for any Holmes fan.' - Tome Kasey, best-selling author of 'Trade Off'.

David Britland is a freelance writer specialising in magic, psychology, the paranormal, con tricks and illusion. He has worked on shows such as Channel 4's Equinox series, The Real Hustle for BBC3 and is a consultant on the hugely popular Derren Brown programmes. In 2005 he was awarded a Literary Fellowship by the Academy of Magical Arts.

Sherlock Holmes and the Morphine Gambit by Jason Cooke is at $0.99 for about 4 1/4 more days before going up to $3.99.
link: http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holme...dp/B00R6321D8/

Spoiler:

The year is 1912.

Sherlock Holmes is called out of retirement by brother Mycroft, acting on behalf of the British Government, to investigate a break-in at the Norfolk home of a wealthy German financier, Sir Edward Muster.

Holmes is soon at work dismantling a German spy ring, but the investigation is quickly clouded by his suspicions concerning Mycroft’s pivotal role in those events.

What agenda is Mycroft pursuing?

What is the truth behind the loss of the fishing vessels the Misty Jane and the Yarmouth Adventuress in the North Sea?

And why is the Royal Navy seemingly operating incognito along the Norfolk coast?

Before long a number of very different events come together to reveal a dangerous conspiracy.

As the story unfolds against the background of an International Opium Conference, Holmes and Watson find themselves embroiled in espionage and arms smuggling in the tense period leading up to the First World War.

'A memorable story that will delight any Holmes fan.' - Robert Foster, best-selling author of 'The Lunar Code'.

Jason Cooke, a keen student of the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, received his Masters Degree in Modern History from the University of Birmingham.

Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Poisoned Lilly by Roger Riccard is at $0.99 for an unspecified amount of time.
link: http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holme...dp/B00SYH73HE/

Spoiler:

Lillian Fields is young, talented and beautiful.

Known on stage as ‘Loraine Fontaine’; the public love her, and the critics predict a glittering future as one of Victorian England’s most celebrated actresses.

But someone wants her dead.

Scared for her safety, she confides her fears to her friend Mary, who happens to be married to Dr. John H. Watson…

When both Lillian and Mary become hospitalised, Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes must push themselves to the limit to catch the poisoner before it is too late.

They find themselves applying their powers of observation and analysis to the only clues they have: a poisoned pitcher of milk and a bunch of meticulously arranged flowers.

In pursuit of the truth, the trail leads them to Lyceum Theatre, St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, Scotland Yard and even rural Hertfordshire.

Who would want to kill Lillian?

Could it be her understudy, Lily Harley, who is desperate for a leading role…?

Her old director, Harrison Colby, bitter because Lillian left his scandalous play…?

Or the elusive Mr. Henshaw, who keeps appearing in the case…?

With a list of suspects to choose from, and plenty of possible motives, can Sherlock Holmes solve The Case of the Poisoned Lilly?

"Roger Riccard is an extremely good pastiche writer. Personally, I think the best since the late Val Andrews passed over Reichenbach." - Joel Senter, publisher of the Sherlockian E-Times

Roger Riccard is also the author of ‘Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Twain Papers’.

[sufue]

I'm not really sure whether these are really sales, or long-term prices, but some discussion in the Kobo sticky thread about prices going up in the Kobo India store prompted me to take a little trip to India just to check it out.

I found that a lot of prices seemed to have gone up, but I also noticed quite a number of Allison & Busby and Robert Hale (publisher, not author) mysteries in the range of 60 to 120 rupees (about US$0.90 to US$1.20). I was able to use some older coupons (30%, 35%) from the front of the Kobo thread, and that brought them down to the range of 40-ish to 70-ish rupees, or about $0.60 to $1.00, and for me, that puts them well in the range where I'll buy backlist books.

Among the Allison & Busby titles were several titles each by Jacqueline Winspear, Edward Marston, Priscilla Masters, Janie Bolitho, Rebecca Tope, and Michael Bond, and then a bunch of singletons in that range from a bunch of other authors, usually, but not always, the first in series. These included (not exhaustive):

Anna Dean
Adrian Magson
Laurie R King
Judith Cutler
Jonathan Gash
Andrea Frazer
Martin Edwards
Catherine Shaw
Elizabeth Corley
Kjell Erickson
Caro Fraser
Kate Charles

From Robert Hale, there were several from a few authors, including Roy Lewis, John Paxton Sherriff, Keith Souter, Veronica Black, and others. (Also a bunch of Nicholas Rhea titles in the 140 rupees range.)

This is a price sorted link for the Allison & Busby titles:

https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/se...&sort=PriceAsc

And one for the Robert Hale titles:

https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/se...&sort=PriceAsc

I think you have to have already traveled to India for these links to work in that store.

[Lynx-lynx]

Thanks sufue for finding those publishers!!

[koland]

free pre-order: The Vince Flynn Encyclopedia

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C4GJ8RY

For whatever reason, though, I apparently ordered this TWO YEARS AGO! Wonder if they took it off sale and just put it back as a pre-order or if it used to point to a different book?

[melmac]

Fridays Nook special was 3 books from Richard North Patterson for $1.99 each but they've already gone back up to regular price thankfully Amazon had price matched them and they have not yet reverted to full price

Outside Man

Spoiler:

A Yankee through and through, Adam Shaw never felt at ease among the upper crust of the Deep South. An attorney to some of the most powerful people in Alabama, he is close with only two of them. When Adam’s best friend, Henry Cantwell, disappears after his wife is murdered, Adam starts asking questions, delving beneath the town’s tranquil facade. While the police hunt for the killer, Adam risks everything—his professional standing, his marriage, and his very life to save Henry from the electric chair and bring the right man to justice.

Escape the Night

Spoiler:

Peter Carey was born into privilege during the McCarthy era, when the paranoia of Washington infected his parents’ house and seeped into Peter’s bones. His father was so obsessed with the family publishing business that he never had time for his son. Even as a teenager, Peter barely knew his father—and one dark night, an accident on a lonely road ensured he never would.

Peter’s memories of that horrific night have been erased by amnesia, but decades later he is still tortured by nightmares. When a strange conspiracy threatens to steal his company and take his life, he will have to remember . . . and find the key to survival that is locked in his own mind.

Private Screening - Tony Lord 1

Spoiler:

A presidential candidate is shot dead and one attorney dares to defend the assassin in #1 New York Times–bestselling author Richard North Patterson’s tour de force legal thriller

All of America is watching when a sniper’s bullet cuts down presidential hopeful James Kilcannon. As the nation rises up in outrage, one lawyer is bold enough to represent the Vietnam veteran accused of firing the fatal shot. Tony Lord has never shied away from a fight, and he will do whatever it takes to get his client a fair trial.

A year later, tragedy strikes Kilcannon’s rock-star girlfriend, Stacy Tarrant. Her assistant is kidnapped by a masked terrorist known as Phoenix, who threatens to execute him on live television unless he meets Phoenix’s demands. As Tony helps Stacy through the ordeal, he discovers that Phoenix has connections to the Kilcannon slaying and intends to mount his own televised trial—in which Tony and Stacy are the defendants and Phoenix is the executioner.

[sufue]

State vs. Lassiter is the ninth (per the SYKM website) or tenth (per Amazon) in the Jake Lassiter series by Paul Levine. Also per SYKM this was a finalist for the 2014 Shamus Award for Best Indie PI Novel.

It's a US Kindle Countdown deal at $0.99 for about 4 3/4 more days before going up to $3.99.

link: http://www.amazon.com/STATE-LASSITER...dp/B00F9B20X0/

Spoiler:

BESTSELLING LEGAL THRILLER NOMINATED FOR SHAMUS AWARD

Jake Lassiter's law practice is booming...
He's crazy about the new woman in his life...
His delinquent nephew is getting A's in school...
Then, Lassiter is charged with murder.

It's supposed to be a romantic weekend at the Fontainebleau for Jake Lassiter and Pamela Baylins. Then they quarrel, and Pamela - who's Jake's banker as well as lover - accuses him of stealing from clients. Hours later, she's found strangled. With all the evidence pointing to Jake, it will take an explosive murder trial to reveal the truth.

"Lassiter stands tall like Jack Reacher, Travis McGee or Spenser. I want more Lassiter!" -- Pick of the Literate