FREE/BARGAIN - Mystery, Suspense, Thriller - August 2014

[sufue]

Originally Posted by BetterRead

Murder by the Book (A Nero Wolfe Mystery) by Rex Stout, is currently $1.99 at Amazon US, Kobo and Google Play.



This is the first time I've seen one of Stout's Nero Wolfe mysteries this low in price. Hopefully, more will follow.

plus 1

[sufue]

There are two mysteries published by Melville International Crime on sale at Amazon US right now, which are actually cheaper at Kobo US if you use the unlimited use PERKOPOLIS coupon code to get 40% off. (And yes, they are couponable even in the US, so probably pretty much everywhere...)

I haven't read anything in either series, so can't comment...


The books are:


Phantoms of Breslau by Marek Krajewski

Amazon US, $2.51: http://www.amazon.com/Phantoms-Bresl...dp/B00DXKJ4WY/

Kobo US $2.99, or $1.79 with PERKOPOLIS coupon code: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebo...s-of-breslau-1

blurb:

Spoiler:

“Phantoms of Breslau is a cynical, moody thriller which solidifies Krajewski’s position as a distinctive voice in contemporary European fiction.”
—Irish Examiner

Breslau, 1919: The hideously battered, naked bodies of four sailors are discovered on an island in the River Oder. When Criminal Assistant Eberhard Mock, back from the war, arrives at the scene to investigate, he finds an enigmatic note addressed to him insisting that he admit to past mistakes and become a believer.

As he endeavors to piece together the elements of the brutal crime, Mock combs the brothels and drinking dens of the then still-German city of Breslau and is drawn into an insidious game: it seems that anyone he questions during the course of the investigation is destined to become the next victim.

Meanwhile, Mock uncovers a secret society that has the Criminal Assistant himself clearly in its sights.

Dark, sophisticated, and uncompromising, the distinctive Breslau series has already received broad critical acclaim. Phantoms of Breslau confirms Eberhard Mock as one of the most outrageous and original detectives in crime fiction.

Brenner and God by Wolf Haas

Amazon US, $2.09: http://www.amazon.com/Brenner-God-Me...dp/B005MU3VIQ/

Kobo US: $2.99, or $1.79 with PERKOPOLIS coupon code: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/brenner-and-god

blurb:

Spoiler:

Introducing one of Europe's most widely popular detective series

Wanting out of high-stress detective work, Simon Brenner takes a calming job as a chauffeur, shuttling a two-year-old girl back and forth in a soothing ride along the Autobahn between her father, a construction tycoon in Munich, and her mother, an abortion doctor in Vienna.

Except then one day he stops at a gas station to buy the little girl a chocolate bar and comes back to find she’s been kidnapped . . . and suddenly he’s out of a job, thoroughly stressed out, and a detective again.

With no shortage of leads—both the father’s latest development and the mother’s clinic are under siege by protestors—Brenner makes his way through a powerful cast of characters and a growing pile of bodies to solve the crime in the only way he knows how: By being in precisely the right place at the worst possible time.

Told with sharp-edged wit, suspense that’s even sharper, and one of the most quirky, hilarious, and compelling narrative voices ever.

[sufue]

Also the same deal on The Hidden Child, by Camilla Läckberg, published by Pegasus - on sale at Amazon US for $2.99, but available and couponable at Kobo US with the unlimited use PERKOPOLIS code for 40% off, making it $1.79 there.

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Hidden-Child-N...dp/B00IDEQM8Y/

Kobo US: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebo...-child-a-novel

blurb:

Spoiler:

The brilliant new psychological thriller from worldwide bestseller Camilla Läckberg—the chilling struggle of a young woman facing the darkest chapter of Europe’s past.

Crime writer Erica Falck is shocked to discover a Nazi medal among her late mother’s possessions. Haunted by a childhood of neglect, she resolves to dig deep into her family’s past and finally uncover the reasons why. Her enquiries lead her to the home of a retired history teacher. He was among her mother’s circle of friends during the Second World War but her questions are met with bizarre and evasive answers. Two days later he meets a violent death. Detective patrik Hedström, Erica’s husband, is on paternity leave but soon becomes embroiled in the murder investigation. Who would kill so ruthlessly to bury secrets so old? Reluctantly Erica must read her mother’s wartime diaries. But within the pages is a painful revelation about Erica’s past. Could what little knowledge she has be enough to endanger her husband and newborn baby? The dark past is coming to light, and no one will escape the truth of how they came to be . . .

[ymmv]

I just got this mail from Hard Case Crime books:

Hard Case Crime has your summer reading sorted with a special e-book sale. All of the incredible titles featured on the list below are $1.99 each on Amazon.com and B&N.com, so don't miss the chance to load your e-reader with the very best crime fiction.

Spoiler:

The Valley of Fear
A. C. Doyle

Fifty-to-One
Charles Ardai

Money Shot
Christa Faust

Blackmailer
George Axelrod

The Vengeful Virgin
Gil Brewer

Honey in His Mouth
Lester Dent

Stop This Man!
Peter Rabe

Songs of Innocence
Richard Aleas

Passport to Peril
Robert B Parker

Kill Now, Pay Later
Robert Terrall

The Murderer Vine
Shepard Rifkin

House Dick
E. Howard Hunt

Quarry in the Middle
Max Allan Collins

Murder is My Business
Brett Halliday

Home is the Sailor
Day Keene

Night Walker
Donald Hamilton

Top of the Heap
Erle Stanley Gardner

Fake I.D.
Jason Starr

Bust
Jason Starr, Ken Bruen

Slide
Jason Starr, Ken Bruen

The Max
Jason Starr, Ken Bruen

The Last Quarry
Max Allan Collins

The First Quarry
Max Allan Collins

Deadly Beloved
Max Allan Collins

Dead Street
Mickey Spillane

Dutch Uncle
Peter Pavia

Little Girl Lost
Richard Aleas

Shooting Star/Spiderweb
Robert Bloch

Gun Work
David J. Schow

Baby Moll
John Farris

Fade to Blonde
Max Phillips

Robbie's Wife
Russell Hill

Witness to Myself
Seymour Shubin

The Corpse Wore Pasties
Jonny Porkpie

[ymmv]

Originally Posted by ymmv

I just got this mail from Hard Case Crime books:

Hard Case Crime has your summer reading sorted with a special e-book sale. All of the incredible titles featured on the list below are $1.99 each on Amazon.com and B&N.com, so don't miss the chance to load your e-reader with the very best crime fiction.

Spoiler:

The Valley of Fear
A. C. Doyle

Fifty-to-One
Charles Ardai

Money Shot
Christa Faust

Blackmailer
George Axelrod

The Vengeful Virgin
Gil Brewer

Honey in His Mouth
Lester Dent

Stop This Man!
Peter Rabe

Songs of Innocence
Richard Aleas

Passport to Peril
Robert B Parker

Kill Now, Pay Later
Robert Terrall

The Murderer Vine
Shepard Rifkin

House Dick
E. Howard Hunt

Quarry in the Middle
Max Allan Collins

Murder is My Business
Brett Halliday

Home is the Sailor
Day Keene

Night Walker
Donald Hamilton

Top of the Heap
Erle Stanley Gardner

Fake I.D.
Jason Starr

Bust
Jason Starr, Ken Bruen

Slide
Jason Starr, Ken Bruen

The Max
Jason Starr, Ken Bruen

The Last Quarry
Max Allan Collins

The First Quarry
Max Allan Collins

Deadly Beloved
Max Allan Collins

Dead Street
Mickey Spillane

Dutch Uncle
Peter Pavia

Little Girl Lost
Richard Aleas

Shooting Star/Spiderweb
Robert Bloch

Gun Work
David J. Schow

Baby Moll
John Farris

Fade to Blonde
Max Phillips

Robbie's Wife
Russell Hill

Witness to Myself
Seymour Shubin

The Corpse Wore Pasties
Jonny Porkpie

I just noticed that a number of HCC ebooks are actually $1.39 on Amazon, so it's an even better deal.

[Fbone]

Wrecked (A Regan Reilly Mystery Book 13) by Carol Higgins Clark [Simon & Schuster] is $1.99 at your favorite retailer.

[GA Russell]

Heads up!

Open Road says that on August 26, three Raoul Whitfield novels will become available for $1.99.

The Virgin Kills
Green Ice
Death in a Bowl

[peachiekene]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Heads up!

Open Road says that on August 26, three Raoul Whitfield novels will become available for $1.99.

The Virgin Kills
Green Ice
Death in a Bowl

Open Road is a couponable publisher in the US too.

[Fbone]

Citadel by Kate Mosse is $1.99 [HarperCollins] at your favorite retailers. More historical fiction although classified as sci-fi.

https://play.google.com/store/books/...d=w2wpAgAAQBAJ

France, 1942. While war blazes at the front lines of Europe, in the walled southern city of Carcassonne, nestled deep in the Pyrenees, a group of courageous women is engaged in an equally lethal battle. Like their ancestors who fought northern invaders seven hundred years before, these members of the French Resistance—code-named Citadel—fight to liberate their home from the Nazis.
Led by a daring eighteen-year-old, Sandrine Vidal, and her elder sister, Marianne, the women of Citadel work quickly to sabotage their German occupiers,
safeguard their neighbors and smuggle refugees over the mountains into neutral territory. But that is only part of their mission. Their struggle will reveal an older, darker combat being fought in the shadows, one meant to protect an ancient secret that, if it fell into the wrong hands, could change the course of history.

[sufue]

Tony Dunbar has a couple of mysteries in the Tubby Dubonnet mystery series listed as Amazon US Kindle Countdown Deals right now. Both are at $0.99 for 2 more days and change. It's the morning of Aug 12, US Pacific time here right now.

Trick Question is the 3rd in the series:

http://www.amazon.com/Trick-Question...dp/B00AR5H53I/

Spoiler:

Trick Question is the THIRD mouth-watering mystery in Edgar- and Anthony-nominated author Tony Dunbar's beloved TUBBY DUBONNET series.

"A real work of mystery art.” -New Orleans Times-Picayune

"(Tubby Dubonnet) makes a charming guide to a side of New Orleans few see.” -Booklist

DUNBAR'S INVENTED A NEW GENRE: CALL IT CREOLE-FOODIE-NOIR.

For the discerning reader who enjoys a knowing chuckle, a sazerac, a bit of pompano en papillote, and a running travelogue of New Orleans along with his murders…

Medical lab janitor Cletus Busters is caught red-handed in a restricted area with the frozen head of Dr. Whitney Valentine, one of the lab's most prestigious researchers. Busters won't say much, except that he's innocent. But given his conspicuous record and past as a voodoo guru, all signs point to life in prison.

Calling Tubby Dubonnet!

With the trial less than a week away, Busters' lawyer has made exactly two motions - heading to the bar for several rounds of Wild Turkey and begging Tubby for help. Meanwhile, Tubby's taken on a new client - a female boxer with an abusive boyfriend - and also has to referee the romantic entanglements of his ex-wife and three teenage daughters.

But as Buster's trial proceeds, and the jury savors the startling evidence (alongside Dunbar's succulent descriptions of Crescent City cuisine), the danger mounts. Revealing the murderer could prove to be Tubby's biggest triumph – or his last case ever.

Warning: Do not attempt to read this book without a handy snack – preferably a Hubig's pie or a pack of Zapp's potato chips. Both would be better.

"Dunbar’s understated, syncopated delivery makes you wonder if there are enough honest men in New Orleans for a rubber of bridge" -Kirkus

"Dunbar weaves together the many strands of his highly entertaining tale with much skill and wit." -Publisher’s Weekly

Crime Czar is the 5th in the series:

http://www.amazon.com/Crime-Czar-Har...dp/B00GCR75YE/

Spoiler:

The FIFTH funny, offbeat, and surprising legal thriller in the Tubby Dubonnet series.

“Take one cup of Raymond Chandler, one cup of Tennessee Williams, add a quart of salty humor, and you will get something resembling Dunbar’s crazy mixture of crime and offbeat comedy.” -The Baltimore Sun

CORRUPTION, MURDER, AND A REALLY GREAT PO’BOY…

A New Orleans lawyer who'd rather eat, drink, and swap stories than get caught in court, Tubby Dubonnet can't forget the last words that escaped an old friend's lips, and he can't get out of the way of a political campaign that's turning rough. Obsessed with the idea that a shadowy crime boss may be pulling the strings that have cost good people their lives, Tubby is entering into a test of courage with the most violent men in New Orleans. And if that weren't dangerous enough, he’s just picked up the worst ally he could ever find: a beautiful prostitute gunning for revenge.

A funny-hard-boiled mystery with as many laughs as chills.

“Dunbar has an excellent ear for dialogue … His stylish take on Big Easy lowlife is reminiscent of the best of Donald Westlake and Elmore Leonard.” -Booklist

“Dunbar revels in the raffish charm and humor of his famously rambunctious city.” -The New York Times Book Review

“…Subtly wry humor, stylish writing, and authentic New Orleans flavor…” -The New Orleans Times-Picayune

I haven't read this series so can't offer an opinion, but much like Julie Smith, Dunbar rotates through offering his books at reduced prices from time to time. I haven't seen his be totally free as often as Smith's, but have still managed to pick up a few to add to my TBR pile.

There is also a free short story in the same series right now, which may always be free, I don't know...

Envision This: http://www.amazon.com/Envision-This-...dp/B007YBRIAI/

[sufue]

This just hit my email a little while ago, from Open Road publishers:

The Best of the Brits: A selection of novels written by British authors or with English settings for $1.99 each.

Although the quote doesn’t indicate it, they all seem to be mystery (crime for you Brits) or thrillers.

No idea how long the sale - or even if it truly is a sale - is on.

The books are:

• Ruth Rendell: An Unkindness of Ravens
• Adam Hall: The Ninth Directive
• Christianna Brand: Green for Danger
• Jack Higgins: Comes the Dark Stranger
• Tim Heald: Yet Another Death in Venice
• MRC Kasasian: The Mangle Street Murders
• John Harvey: Good Bait
• Brian Freemantle: Charlie M
• John Gardner: The Nostradamus Traitor
• John Harvey: Lonely Hearts
• Gillian White: Copycat
• Arthur Hailey:Airport

I think a few of these have been mentioned in this thread already, but I wasn't going to cross-check all of them against the list. I've read a couple of the Freemantle/Charlie M books, and enjoyed the somewhat dark humor in them.

The link to the Open Road Media page which lists them all is:

http://www.openroadmedia.com/britishcrimemysteries?

Once you are there, it’s pretty non-intuitive. You have to click on the cover to get a pop-up box, and then go down to the “Buy the Ebook” button. Click on that, and you’ll get a list of links to various retailers. It's probably easier to just go to your favorite retailer and search!

Open Road books tend to be couponable in the US (and probably, therefore, almost everywhere) and as of late last night PERKOPOLIS was still working at Kobo US for 40% off.

[GA Russell]

sufue, I cannot recommend The Ninth Directive too highly. I think it's the book I've most enjoyed in the past ten years!

[sufue]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

sufue, I cannot recommend The Ninth Directive too highly. I think it's the book I've most enjoyed in the past ten years!

Cool, for $1.19 (using Kobo PERKOPOLIS) and a recommendation, I'll give it a try...

And I have all of about $2.43 left on my Kobo gift card, so WTH!

Thanks!

[BetterRead]

The Hollow Man by Oliver Harris is currently $1.99 at your favorite retailer.

The first book in a series of tense and twisting police procedurals, The Hollow Man starts with London police detective Nick Belsey at rock bottom, and then embroils him in a brazen identity theft scam and possible murder that could leave him either wealthy or dead.

It’s time to discover Oliver Harris, a new master of noir who’s destined to be a big man at the scene of the crime.

My 2 cents: I read this book a couple weeks ago. It took a few chapters to really kick in, but then when it did.... Whoa! I couldn't put it down. A really impressive debut.

[Synamon]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

sufue, I cannot recommend The Ninth Directive too highly. I think it's the book I've most enjoyed in the past ten years!

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll give it a try for free with my Kindle Unlimited subscription.