FREE/BARGAIN — Mystery, Suspense & Thrillers

[sufue]

Death in the Floating City is the 7th in the Lady Emily series by Tasha Alexander. It has dropped to $2.99 at Kindle and Kobo US.

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Death-Floatin...dp/B007RMYAW8/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dea...-floating-city

Spoiler:

The Huffington Post calls Tears of Pearl author Tasha Alexander "one to watch—and read" and her new Lady Emily mystery set in Venice proves it!

Years ago, Emily's childhood nemesis, Emma Callum, scandalized polite society when she eloped to Venice with an Italian count. But now her father-in-law lies murdered, and her husband has vanished. There's no one Emma can turn to for help but Emily, who leaves at once with her husband, the dashing Colin Hargreaves, for Venice. There, her investigations take her from opulent palazzi to slums, libraries, and bordellos. Emily soon realizes that to solve the present day crime, she must first unravel a centuries old puzzle. But the past does not give up its secrets easily, especially when these revelations might threaten the interests of some very powerful people.

[sufue]

The Janissary Tree, which won the 2007 Edgar Award for Best Mystery Novel, is the first in the Investigator Yashim series by Jason Goodwin. It has dropped to $3.99 at Kindle and Kobo US. I've read and quite enjoyed this one, and the second in the series, The Snake Stone, which was also nominated for a couple of awards.

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Janissary-Tre...dp/B004S2HZVS/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-janissary-tree-1

Spoiler:

WINNER OF THE EDGAR AWARD FOR BEST NOVEL

This first book in the Investigator Yashim series is a richly entertaining tale, full of exotic history and intrigue, introduces Investigator Yashim: In 1830s Istanbul, an extra-ordinary hero tackles an extraordinary plot that threatens to topple the Ottoman Empire

It is 1836. Europe is modernizing, and the Ottoman Empire must follow suit. But just before the Sultan announces sweeping changes, a wave of murders threatens the fragile balance of power in his court. Who is behind them? Only one intelligence agent can be trusted to find out: Yashim Lastname, a man both brilliant and near-invisible in this world. You see, Yashim is a eunuch.

He leads us into the palace's luxurious seraglios and Istanbul's teeming streets, and leans on the wisdom of a dyspeptic Polish ambassador, a transsexual dancer, and a Creole-born queen mother. And he introduces us to the Janissaries. For 400 years, they were the empire's elite soldiers, but they grew too powerful, and ten years ago, the Sultan had them crushed. Are the Janissaries staging a brutal comeback?

[sufue]

The Bridge of Sighs, by Olen Steinhauer, is the first in a series featuring Emil Brod and other detectives in eastern Europe starting just after the end of WWII. Per SYKM it was nominated for just about every award you can think of. It has dropped to $2.99 at Kindle and Kobo US.

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Bridge-Sighs-...dp/B000FA668A/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-bridge-of-sighs

Spoiler:

It's August, 1948, three years after the Russians "liberated" the nation from German Occupation. But the Red Army still patrols the capital's rubble-strewn streets, and the ideals of the Revolution are but memories. Twenty-two-year-old Detective Emil Brod finally gets his chance to serve his country, investigating murder for the People's Militia.

The first victim is a state songwriter, but the facts point to a political motive. Emil would like to investigate further, but his colleagues in Homicide are suspicious or silent: He is on his own in this new, dangerous world.
The Bridge of Sighs launches a unique series of crime novels featuring a cast of characters in an ever-evolving landscape, the politically volatile terrain of Eastern Europe in the second half of the 20th century.

The Bridge of Sighs is a 2004 Edgar Award Nominee for Best First Novel.

[sufue]

Bright Orange for the Shroud is the fifth in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. Love them all... It has dropped to $1.99 at Kindle and Kobo US.

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Bright-Orange...dp/B008WONVN4/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/bri...for-the-shroud

Spoiler:

"McGee has become part of our national fabric."

SEATTLE POST INTELLIGENCER

Usually women came to take refuge aboard The Busted Flush. But this time a man stumbled on board, a walking zombie who fell into bed. Turned out poor Arthur Wilkinson was the latest victim of a fragile-looking blonde sexpot who used the blackest arts of love to lure unsuspecting suckers into a web of sordid schemes. Travis had thought he'd have a quiet summer. Instead he took on the most cunning, heartless, vicious con artists he'd ever met....

[sufue]

The Defector is the ninth in the Gabriel Allon series by Daniel Silva. It has dropped to $1.99 at Kindle US and Kobo US.

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Defector-Gabr...dp/B002DGKVQW/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-defector-1

Spoiler:

In Moscow Rules Gabriel Allon went up against the sadisitc Ivan Kharkov. Now he must outsmart him once and for all in this #1 New York Times bestseller from Daniel Silva.

Grigori Bulganov once saved Gabriel Allon's life in Moscow—and Allon always repays his debts. So when the former Russian intelligence officer vanishes, Allon gathers his team of operatives to go after those responsible. But, in a running battle that rages across the globe, Allon soon realizes that his enemy may already hold the key to victory. And that if he continues, it will cost him more than he can bear...

[sufue]

The "30th Anniversary Edition" of Indemnity Only, which is the first title in Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski series has dropped to $2.99 at Kindle US and Kobo US. SYKM says Indemnity Only came out in 1982, not quite sure what a "30th Anniversary Edition" means in e-book anyway, but WTH... Maybe it's the afterword by the author???

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Indemnity-Onl...dp/B003EJDGRS/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/indemnity-only-1

Spoiler:

The 30th anniversary edition of the first V. I. Warshawski novel, Indemnity Only, featuring a new afterword from Sara Paretsky

Meeting an anonymous client late on a sizzling summer night is asking for trouble. But trouble is Chicago private eye V. I. Warshawski’s specialty. Her client says he’s the prominent banker John Thayer. Turns out he’s not. He says his son’s girlfriend, Anita Hill, is missing. Turns out that’s not her real name.

V. I.’s search turns up someone soon enough—the real John Thayer’s son, and he’s dead. Who’s V. I.’s client? Why has she been set up and sent out on a wild-goose chase? By the time she’s got it figured, things are hotter—and deadlier—than Chicago in July. V. I.’s in a desperate race against time. At stake: a young woman’s life.

[sufue]

The Strangler Vine is the first in the short, so far, three-book Blake and Avery series by M.J. Carter. I've not run into this historical series before and it looks sort of interesting. A couple of the titles, including this one, have been finalists for various awards. Strangler has dropped to $1.99 at Kindle and Kobo US.

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Strangler-Vin...dp/B00KWG66IM/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-strangler-vine-1

Spoiler:

Set in the untamed wilds of nineteenth-century colonial India, this dazzling historical thriller introduces Blake and Avery—an unforgettable investigative pair.

India, 1837: William Avery is a young soldier with few prospects except rotting away in campaigns in India; Jeremiah Blake is a secret political agent gone native, a genius at languages and disguises, disenchanted with the whole ethos of British rule, but who cannot resist the challenge of an unresolved mystery. What starts as a wild goose chase for this unlikely pair—trying to track down a missing writer who lifts the lid on Calcutta society—becomes very much more sinister as Blake and Avery get sucked into the mysterious Thuggee cult and its even more ominous suppression.

There are shades of Heart of Darkness, sly references to Conan Doyle, that bring brilliantly to life the India of the 1830s with its urban squalor, glamorous princely courts and bazaars, and the ambiguous presence of the British overlords—the officers of the East India Company—who have their own predatory ambitions beyond London's oversight.

A FINALIST FOR THE EDGAR AWARD FOR BEST NOVEL
A WASHINGTON POST NOTABLE BOOK
LONGLISTED FOR THE BAILEYS WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION

[MickeyC]

Originally Posted by sufue

The Janissary Tree, which won the 2007 Edgar Award for Best Mystery Novel, is the first in the Investigator Yashim series by Jason Goodwin. It has dropped to $3.99 at Kindle and Kobo US. I've read and quite enjoyed this one, and the second in the series, The Snake Stone, which was also nominated for a couple of awards.

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/Janissary-Tre...dp/B004S2HZVS/
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-janissary-tree-1

Just checked and it's back to $9.99 at both Kobo and Amazon. Shoot

[rbruce1314]

Another free Molly Thynne:
The Draycott Murder Mystery
https://www.amazon.com/Draycott-Murd...Murder+Mystery
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01KQ0ZIEQ

The Crime at Noah's Ark
https://www.amazon.com/Crime-Noahs-A...s+Ark%E2%80%99
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01KQ3TKDS

[sufue]

Six titles in the Gideon Oliver/Skeleton Detective series by Aaron Elkins are $1.99 today at Kindle and Kobo US. I love this series, both for the forensics, the personalities, and the locations. (Guess there's not much else left ) Since these are Open Road, this is almost certainly for today only. All are repeats-on-sale, but given how quickly most Open Road sales come and go, some folks may still want/need some of these...

Titles are:

• Twenty Blue Devils
• Icy Clutches
• The Dark Place
• Skeleton Dance
• Make No Bones
• Dead Men's Hearts

Links for all six:

Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?Qu...cmaxprice=2.00

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/search/?se...price-asc-rank

[ATDrake]

Bargain @ $2.99-$4.99 through the rest of today (September 11th) as part of Kobo's lingering weekend sale, and also the Kindle Monthly deals from Pan Macmillan's Mantle imprint (Canada & US):

3 novels in Norwegian author Hans Olav Lahlum's (SYKM, Wikipedia) K2 and Patricia series of mysteries set in Oslo during the 1960s, starring an Inspector and his wheelchair-bound assistant. These are apparently done in a retro style described as an homage to Agatha Christie, and are popular enough in Norway to have gotten to 7 books (5 translated so far).

#1, The Human Flies, and #2, Satellite People, are just $2.99 each as part of the Kindle Monthly deals for September and also temporarily discounted as part of Kobo's current weekend sale to $2.99 and $3.99 (couponable/VIP discount eligible), for which you can ask a price-match either now or later at your leisure: linkage for the author's listings @ Amazon & Kobo

#3, The Catalyst Killing, is only on sale at Kobo for $4.99 through the rest of today ($9.99 at Amazon which seems to be the regular price for these)

So if you've ever been curious about trying this series and your local library doesn't have, now seems like a good time to pick up the 3rd while it's cheap.

[sufue]

A couple more Margery Allingham price drops to $1.99 at Kindle US. Not at Kobo US, at least as of now.

Cargo of Eagles
link: https://www.amazon.com/Cargo-Eagles-...dp/B074FJLMXX/

Spoiler:

A lively British mystery from “one of the greatest mid-20th-century practitioners of the detective novel” (Alexander McCall Smith).

Strange things are happening in Saltey. The little village on the Essex coast is invaded by bikers and a parade of peculiar visitors, a newly released prisoner is rumored to be in the area, Mr. Lugg has bought a bungalow there, the Saltey Demon is on the loose again . . . and Albert Campion is looking for the disappearance of thousands of pounds of gold coinage.

This is Margery Allingham’s final novel featuring her famous gentleman sleuth, overflowing with evil arch-villains and classic thuggery against the atmospheric backdrop of postwar England.

“Allingham has that rare gift in a novelist, the creation of characters so rich and so real that they stay with the reader forever.” —Sara Paretsky

“Margery Allingham stands out like a shining light.” —Agatha Christie

The Case of the Late Pig
link: https://www.amazon.com/Case-Late-Alb...dp/B074FKT7DD/

Spoiler:

A man is killed five months after his funeral, in a tale by “one of the greatest mid-20th-century practitioners of the detective novel” (Alexander McCall Smith).

Private detective Albert Campion is summoned to the village of Kepesake to investigate a particularly distasteful death. The body turns out to be that of Pig Peters, freshly killed five months after his own funeral. Soon other corpses start to turn up, just as Peters’s body goes missing. It takes all Campion’s coolly incisive powers of detection to unravel the crime.

The Case of the Late Pig is, uniquely, narrated by Campion himself. In Allingham’s inimitable style, high drama sits neatly beside pitch-perfect black comedy. A heady mix of murder, romance, and the urbane detective's own unglamorous past make this an Allingham mystery not to be missed.

“My very favourite of the four Queens of Crime is Allingham.”—J. K. Rowling

“Margery Allingham deserves to be rediscovered.”—P.D. James

And, same warning as a few days ago, Ipso books seem to have gotten multiple versions up, so check carefully - your prior purchase may not show up on the webpage. (I hate it when they do that...)

[sufue]

Today's (almost certainly just for today) batch of Open Road titles at $1.99 at Kindle US, not at Kobo US, as of now. Some repeats on sale, some new to me...

Wolf, No Wolf, Gabriel Du Pré series, #3, by Peter Bowen
link: https://www.amazon.com/Wolf-Montana-...dp/B007AUXRQC/

The Man Who Walked Like a Bear, Inspector Porfiry Rostnikov series, #6, by Stuart M. Kaminsky
link: https://www.amazon.com/Walked-Inspec...dp/B009H7052U/

Madness in Maggody, Arly Hanks series, #5, by Joan Hess
link: https://www.amazon.com/Madness-Maggo...dp/B01ENRHK5I/

Client Privilege, Brady Coyne series, #9, by William G. Tapply
link: https://www.amazon.com/Client-Privil...dp/B00DZ4GTAS/

The Plain Old Man, Sarah Kelling & Max Bittersohn series, #6, by Charlotte MacLeod
link: https://www.amazon.com/Plain-Sarah-K...dp/B0099HZH2Q/

[sufue]

All nine titles in the Oz Blackstone series by Quintine Jardine have dropped to between $0.99 and $2.99. Titles are:

• Blackstone’s Pursuits (apa Dangerous Pursuits), $0.99
• A Coffin for Two, $2.99
• Wearing Purple, $1.99
• Screen Savers, $2.99
• On Honeymoon with Death, $0.99
• Poisoned Cherries, $2.99
• Unnatural Justice, $1.99
• Alarm Call, $1.99
• For the Death of Me, $0.99

Kindle link includes a couple of stray short stories and a non-series title...

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/search/?se...price-asc-rank
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?Qu...cmaxprice=2.99

[Mort1997]

Free on Amazon UK today- Gibraltar Road (Commander Shaw Thriller Book 1) by Philip McCutchan

Spoiler:

A phone rings in a London flat. A little later an Admiralty physicist disappears from Gibraltar, and a body is found washed up against its shores…

Deep below Gibraltar’s Rock, a secret, auto-powered nuclear fuel-production unit throbs and hums as its builds up a store of AGL SIX, a dangerous new motivating-agent for the British atomic submarines to be based there.

This fuel unit has developed a fault. Allowed to overrun beyond a certain point, it will produce the biggest atomic blast since Hiroshima.

Only Ackroyd, the persecution-complexed inventor of the unit, can stop it. And Ackroyd has disappeared.

Commander Esmonde Shaw, R.N, of the Naval Intelligence Division wants to get out and settle down with a house in the suburbs.

Unfortunately for Naval Intelligence’s finest secret agent, these peaceful plans will have to wait.

Shaw establishes that the physicist has fallen into the hands of foreign agents operating from Spanish territory.

Shaw's job is to get Ackroyd back to Gibraltar before the Rock blows up — and before Ackroyd is smuggled out of Spain.

As Shaw wanders rounds the Spanish streets, he catches the heavy odour of a well-remembered perfume. Karina Czercov, the most dangerous, beautiful woman behind the Iron Curtain, is caught up in this intrigue.

Something in the air tells them that this encounter was going to be a fight to the finish.

UK
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gibraltar-R...ess+free+books

US
https://www.amazon.com/Gibraltar-Roa...ess+free+books

Au
https://www.amazon.com.au/Gibraltar-...ess+free+books

Can
https://www.amazon.ca/Gibraltar-Road...ess+free+books