Cabal --Senior Roman police investigator Aurelio Zen is ordered by his superiors to rule a jumper's death a suicide. But when the dead man is revealed to be the playboy son of one of Italy's most eminent families, one with very shady connections, Zen suspects foul play and a cover-up. When an eyewitness to the fall is also found dead, Zen must search alone into ancient family ties, secret political organizations and intrigue at the Vatican, in order to find the truth and stop a cold-blooded killer. $4.99
Case of the Missing Bront --Scotland Yard Superintendent Perry Trethowan is vacationing in Yorkshire when he stumbles upon an extraordinary literary discovery. It is up to the superintendent to learn whether the manuscript he has found is a clever forgery or truly an original, unpublished Bront novel. He must work quickly, because a vicious criminal has already tortured and murdered for the very work that Trethowan now has in his possession. A terrific new mystery by Robert Barnard. $5.95
The Cheetah Chase --Karen McQuillan, author of Deadly Safari , has done it again. When investigative journalist Nick Hunter dies of a deadly scorpion sting on his cheetah preserve in Kenya, Jazz Jasper, safari leader and wildlife preservationist, suspects foul play. From Nairobi and Mount Kenya to the remote desert, her search for the truth pits her against poachers, corrupt government officials and ruthless diplomats in this atmospheric and fast-paced mystery. $5.99
The Cherry Blossom Corpse --When Scotland Yard's Peter Trethowen allows his newly-published sister to talk him into accompanying her to a romance writer's conference in Norway, he expects to be bored out of his mind. Instead he finds himself in the midst of bitter rivalries, international intrigue and murder. The hilarious cast of characters and the atmospheric setting make this latest by Robert Bernard a real delight. $5.95
The Christie Caper --When Annie Darling, proprieter of Death on Demand Mystery Bookstore on one of South Carolina's idyllic coastal islands, organizes a centennial celebration of Agatha Christie's birthday, she is prepared for every eventuality-- or so she thinks. But the murder of a much-hated critic throws Annie's plans into chaos and threatens her very life. This lively offering by Caroline Hart is a treat for bibliophiles and mystery buffs alike. $4.99
Cold in the Earth --Consular officer Meredith Mitchell accepts an offer to visit her friend Chief Inspector Alan Markby in his small village in the Cotswolds. But her hopes of a quiet vacation in the country end when she arrives just in time to get embroiled in a murder investigation. Even Banford is feeling the encroachment of malls and fast food chains, but that turns out to be the least of the village's problems when a bulldozer uncovers the corpse of a man buried alive. Enjoy the English countryside with this charmer by Ann Granger. $5.50
A Deadly Pate --Private detective Fran Kirk accompanies her former mother-in-law to France to help clear an ex-relative accused of murdering her French husband. The seemingly cut and dried case becomes anything but, and Fran must cut through red tape, French mistrust and a host of suspicious characters to reach the truth in time. $5.50
Death on a Cold, Wild River --Peter McGarr's ex-lover, Nellie Millar, has drowned in the flood-swollen Owenea River in South Donegal. The suspended Chief Superintendent of the Irish Police's elite Serious Crimes Unit is distraught by her death, but even more puzzled by it, as Nellie was a prize fisherwoman, well-known for her skill and knowledge of the river. McGarr is drawn back to her sleepy fishing village, and to the riverbank where she died. Soon he finds himself hip-deep in a dangerous search for the truth in this very atmospheric mystery by Bartholemew Gill. $4.99
NEW The Devil in Music--Amateur sleuth Julian Kestrel takes on 1820’s Italy in Kate Ross’ Agatha-winning historical mystery. The murder of one opera star and the disappearance of another in Milan sparks the interest of Kestrel, who happens to be travelling in Italy. As he encounters suspect after suspect, he is drawn into the world of opera, with its operatic-sized egos and tempestuous love affairs, and the world of politics where he could become the next victim. Ross spins a page-turning web, and, with the aid of a chart to help you keep all the characters straight, keeps you guessing ‘til the end. $6.99
NEW Different Women Dancing--Jonathan Gash introduces a new protagonist in his latest mystery and does it so well that you won’t even miss Lovejoy. Dr. Clare Burtonall, a London cardiologist, happens upon a traffic accident on her way home one day and finds that the victim was a business associate of her husband. When her husband refuses to talk about the coincidence, Clare becomes uneasy and looks for answers herself with the help of another witness to the accident, a shady character named Bonn. Gash’s trademark cynical wit and master web-weaving is on great display here, making for steady suspense and great reading. $5.99
Elephants' Graveyard --Not only are Karen McQuillan's mysteries fast-paced and involving, she also writes with great knowledge and compassion about her real subject--conservation. Expatriate safari operator and animal protector Jazz Jasper is asked to help track down the killer of a fellow preservationist in Kenya. Everyone assumes the killer will be one of the many poachers or politicians who opposes saving the elephants, but the more Jazz learns, the more it looks like the true culprit may be a friend. $4.99
Finding Moon --Tony Hillerman leaves his native Southwest behind in this new, fascinating novel. When Moon Mathias finds out in 1975 that his dead brother has a baby daughter in Vietnam, he wants little to do with it. However, events soon overtake him and he must journey to war-torn Vietnam and Cambodia to locate her and bring her home. Finding himself surrounded by his brother's friends and enemies, Moon must figure out whom to trust and in the process learn the truth about his brother and about himself. $6.99
NEW Inspector Imanishi Investigates--This fine Japanese crime novel by Seicho Matsumoto provides a compelling narrative of a murder investigation while at the same time elegantly capturing the tempo and morays of life in Japan. Imanishi Eitaro, family man, haiku poet and amateur bonsai horticulturist is a detective with the Tokyo police. When a body is found in a train yard, Imanishi and his team must identify the victim, the killer, and a most unusual murder weapon with only the faintest of clues. A treasure for mystery lovers, this book will be appreciated by anyone seeing insight into postwar Japan. $12.00
NEW Los Alamos--It is 1945 and Michael Connolly has been sent to the most secret place on earth to catch a killer--the Manhattan Project at Los Alamos. This exciting novel by Joseph Kanon is not a spy thriller, but a murder mystery that just happens to be set amidst the real people and events surrounding the birth of the atom bomb. Kanon brings this historic time to life, as he does the stark but beautiful northern New Mexican landscape, and weaves an intriguing tales of love, murder and isolation. $7.50
The Midas Murders --When two of our favorite sleuths, Penny Spring and Sir Toby Glendower, are invited to join an old friend on a cruise through the Greek Islands, they find themselves in the midst of an old family feud. Soon both the patriarch and his heir are found dead, and the yacht becomes a magnet for danger. Margot Arnold has fun with the Mediterranean setting and the colorful characters in her latest, and so do we. $7.95
Trouble in Transylvania --In Hungary to take the Trans-Mongolian Express to China, globe-trotting feminist Cassandra O'Reilly decides to stop at an old health spa in the Carpathian Mountains. Thus, when a murderer strikes, Cassandra finds herself right in the thick of it. Is the culprit one of the guests desperate for a cure or is it a member of the staff, perhaps the sinister director himself? A host of interesting characters and the unsual Eastern European setting make this mystery by Barbara Wilson completely engrossing. $10.95
The Seacoast of Bohemia --Geography buffs will note that there is no seacoast in Bohemia: the title is a reference to a line in Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale. It also underscores the fact that nothing is as it seems in this classic by Nicholas Freeling. Henri Castang, famed former policeman turned bureaucrat in Brussels, has been hired to solve a four year old kidnapping. The plot thickens when Castang follows the trail to the former Czechoslovakia and discovers connections with a former SS officer. Family secrets and skeletons in his own closet complicate the case. $5.99
Season of the Monsoon --Paul Mann's detective, George Sansi, quickly realizes that the mutilated corpse found floating in the lake in India's Movieland district represents more than simply a murder. Too many people, including his supervisor, caution him to be careful about how and whom he investigates. But will Sansi listen? A riveting and evocative mystery, whose final scene would make a great movie finale. $5.99
A Stiff Risotto --Lou Jane Temple has written a culinary mystery that centers on a prestigious Best Chef of the Year competition in trendy Aspen. When the top contenders start to drop like flies, restauranteur Heaven Lee (we're serious) finds herself right in the thick of it. Temple skewers the world of egotistical chefs and food critics, and the excesses of Aspen, in this thoroughly enjoyable new mystery. $5.99
The Trouble With Going Home --Camilla T. (Trella) Crespi has set her most recent mystery in Rome, with a colorful set of characters and true Italian flavor. Simona Griffo, visiting from the States, has only been in her hometown for an hour when a murder occurs right before her eyes. Suddenly it seems that nearly every member of her eccentric family may be involved, and the search is on for suspects, clues and a lost Leonardo. $4.99
Twenty Blue Devils --Forensic anthropologist and bone expert Gideon Oliver finds himself in an unlikely part of the world in this latest mystery by Aaron Elkins. Oliver has been called to Tahiti to help the FBI determine whether the manager of the exclusive Paradise Coffee Plantation has been murdered as they suspect, or accidentally killed as the locals claim. Unfortunately the local authorities won't allow Oliver to exhume the hastily buried remains, so his sleuthing skills are really put to the test. Elkins takes us on a terrific ride, as always. $5.99
The Venus Throw --Steven Saylor, a classics professor, has written a series of highly literate, historically accurate mysteries centered around a Roman detective named Gordianus the Finder. The Venus Throw takes place in 56 BC, and presents what appears to be the political murder of the Egyptian ambassador to Rome but is actually much, much more. It kept us guessing until the very end. $5.99
Wet Graves --A serial killer is on the loose in Sydney, Australia, and all P.I. Cliff Hardy has to go on is that the victims are all older men found dead in the water beneath the Sydney Harbor Bridge. It is up to him to figure out the link between the victims, and thus the killer's motive, before the killer strikes again. Enjoy the Down Under setting in this new mystery by Peter Corris, author of Matrimonial Causes . $4.99
Where Old Bones Lie --Merideth Mitchell is participating in an archaeological dig in the Cotswolds when she makes a startling discovery: the body of the archaelogist's wife is buried at the site! As more bodies start piling up, she enlists the help of her friend Chief Inspector Alan Markby to dig for clues. Ann Granger provides local color and a surprising twist in her newest mystery. $4.99
A Wolf In Death's Clothing --In Elizabeth Quinn's latest, Dr. Lauren Maxwell, the Anchorage-based investigator for the Wild America Society, journeys with her son to the Nowitna Wildlife Refuge in the Yukon to investigate the nearly fatal shooting of a close friend. A preservationist like Lauren, Belle has had run-ins with archaeologists on a nearby dig, fellow Athabascan tribe members and corporate honchos, but it is up to Lauren to discover which of her enemies had a reason to kill. $5.50