New Releases: Seth Grahame-Smith, Michael Bowers, Jane Austen, Steve Hockensmith, and Andre Norton

New Releases

From the co-author of Pride And Prejudice And Zombies

HACHETTE AUDIO - Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-SmithAbraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
By Seth Grahame-Smith; Read by Scott Holst
9 CDs – Approx. 11 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Hachette Audio
Published: March 2010
ISBN: 160788173X
Indiana, 1818. Moonlight falls through the dense woods that surround a one-room cabin, where a nine-year-old Abraham Lincoln kneels at his suffering mother’s bedside. She’s been stricken with something the old-timers call “Milk Sickness.” “My baby boy…” she whispers before dying. Only later will the grieving Abe learn that his mother’s fatal affliction was actually the work of a vampire. When the truth becomes known to young Lincoln, he writes in his journal, “henceforth my life shall be one of rigorous study and devotion. I shall become a master of mind and body. And this mastery shall have but one purpose…” Gifted with his legendary height, strength, and skill with an ax, Abe sets out on a path of vengeance that will lead him all the way to the White House. While Abraham Lincoln is widely lauded for saving a Union and freeing millions of slaves, his valiant fight against the forces of the undead has remained in the shadows for hundreds of years. That is, until Seth Grahame-Smith stumbled upon The Secret Journal of Abraham Lincoln, and became the first living person to lay eyes on it in more than 140 years. Using the journal as his guide and writing in the grand biographical style of Doris Kearns Goodwin and David McCullough, Seth has reconstructed the true life story of our greatest president for the first time-all while revealing the hidden history behind the Civil War and uncovering the role vampires played in the birth, growth, and near-death of our nation.

Audible Frontiers - Prison Ship by Michael BowersPrison Ship
By Michael Bowers; Read by Jack Garrett
Audible Download – Approx. 13 Hours 57 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: December 2009
Framed for attempted murder against his superior, Commander-now convict-Jacob Steiner receives one last chance at redemption. As the captain of a Penitentiary Assault Vessel, he’ll lead a desperate crew of thieves and murderers behind enemy lines in exchange for their freedom.

BRILLIANCE AUDIO - Pride And Prejudice And Zombies: Dawn Of The Dreadfuls by Jane Austen and Steve HockensmithPride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls
By Jane Austen and Steve Hockensmith; Read by Katherine Kellgren
8 CDs or MP3-CD – Approx. 9 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Published: March 24, 2010
ISBN: 9781441850430 (cd), 1441850457 (mp3-cd)
Witness the birth of a heroine in Dawn of the Dreadfuls — a thrilling prequel set four years before the horrific events of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. As our story opens, the Bennet sisters are enjoying a peaceful life in the English countryside. They idle away the days reading, gardening, and daydreaming about future husbands — until a funeral at the local parish goes strangely and horribly awry. Suddenly corpses are springing from the soft earth — and only one family can stop them. As the bodies pile up, we watch Elizabeth Bennet evolve from a naive young teenager into a savage slayer of the undead. Along the way, two men vie for her affections: Master Hawksworth is the powerful warrior who trains her to kill, while thoughtful Dr. Keckilpenny seeks to conquer the walking dead using science instead of strength. Will either man win the prize of Elizabeth’s heart? Or will their hearts be feasted upon by hordes of marauding zombies? Complete with romance, action, comedy, and an army of shambling corpses, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls will have Jane Austen rolling in her grave — and just might inspire her to crawl out of it!

Have a listen to a sample |MP3|

BRILLIANCE AUDIO - Witch World by Andre NortonWitch World (book 1 in the Witch World series)
By Andre Norton; Read by Nick Podehl
CDs or MP3-CD – Approx. [Unabridged]
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Published: February 15, 2010
ISBN: 1441814078 (cd), 1441814094 (mp3-cd)
Simon Tregarth, a man from our own world, escapes his doom through the gates to the Witch World. There he aids the witch Jaelithe’s escape from the hounds of Alizon, only to find himself embroiled in a deeper war against an even deadlier foe: the Kolder.

BRILLIANCE AUDIO - Web Of The Witch World by Andre NortonWeb Of The Witch World (book 2 in the Witch World series)
By Andre Norton; Read by Nick Podehl
CDs or MP3-CD – Approx. [Unabridged]
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Published: March 31, 2010
ISBN: 1441814132 (cd), 1441814159 (mp3-cd)
The Kolder linger on, a constant threat to Simon and the witches he’s sworn to protect. To save their world from this threat from another dimension, Simon and Jaelithe must venture to the heart of the poisonous Kolder realm and vanquish them for good, or witness the enslavement of their world.

BRILLIANCE AUDIO - Year Of The Unicorn by Andre NortonYear Of The Unicorn (book 3 in the Witch World series)
By Andre Norton; Read by Kate Rudd
CDs or MP3-CD – [Unabridged]
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Published: April 15, 2010
ISBN: 1441814191 (cd), 1441814213 (mp3-cd)
Far from the besieged home of Simon and Jaelithe, in peaceful Norsdale, we meet Gillan, who longs to leave her dull life in a secluded country abbey. But when her wish comes true, she finds more than a little adventure. As she ventures out, not only is her life in danger, but also the power that lies within her, waiting to be discovered.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast

Aural Noir: Online Audio

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine PodcastHere is a terrific find for fans of mystery and crime tales! Hosted by Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine‘s editor, Janet Hutchings, comes a new podcast the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast! It features:

“Monthly readings and dramatizations of stories by the world’s leading writers of suspense chosen from the magazine’s archives. The full range of the genre is represented in these riveting audio renditions, from the drawing-room mystery to urban noir—including police procedurals, private-eye tales, psychological suspense, and locked-room and impossible-crime stories.”

I’ve been listening to these for hours today. The audio dramatizations are actually pretty good. The short stories tend to be very solid too (and are mostly read by their authors). Sound quality varies though and sometimes the recording level volume is set far too low. Additionally, the proof-listening is occasionally very shoddy (with repeated lines remaining unedited). The latest episode (#7) has three stories all based on the same newspaper article. The results are mixed, but I really like the idea of stories based around a story seed like that. In fact, it reminds me of something John Joseph Adams and David Barr Kirtley were talking about in a recent Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy podcast. They mentioned the John W. Cambpell story seed that lead to the writing of Isaac Asimov’s Nightfall and Robert A. Heinlein’s Orphans Of The Sky. Two SF stories that are both very different and very terrific.

My favourite Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast episode so far is #5, Dear Doctor Watson, a Steve Hockensmith short story. Its a kind of Sherlockian pastiche set in the Victorian West. It’s protagonist a kind of amateur Sherlock Watson team that’s only half-hampered by being illiterate and in Montana. Dear Doctor Watson is both fun and well read by two narrators.

I truly hope to see the “Ganelon” stories by James Powell and the “Black Widowers” tales by Isaac Asimov showing up in future episodes. They’re the absolute tops!

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine - September 1956Episode 1: Cut! Cut! Cut!
Based on a story by Ellery Queen; Adapted by Ed Bogas; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 12 Minutes [AUDIO DRAMA]
Podcast: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast
Podcast: August 2009
Ellery Queen receives a phone call from a murder victim in this clever play involving a witness of another species. First published in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine September 1956 issue.

Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine - November 2001Episode 2: Groundwork
Based on the story by Neil Schofield; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 25 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcast: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast
Podcast: September 2009
A nosy neighbor alerts police to suspicious digging in the garden next-door—and she isn’t the only one to get an unexpected comeuppance. First published in EQMM in November 2001.

Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine - June 2003Episode 3: The Talking Dead
By Melodie Johnson Howe; Read by Melodie Johnson Howe
1 |MP3| – Approx. 27 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcast: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast
Podcast: October 2009
A TV writer goes missing, leaving her show’s star without a script and opening up a perfect scenario for murder. In this fourth installment in her series of Diana Poole mysteries, former Hollywood actress Melodie Johnson Howe takes a penetrating look at the off-stage life of a TV idol. First published in EQMM June 2003.

Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine - February 1953Episode 4: A Lump Of Sugar
Adapted from a story by Ellery Queen; Adapted by Ed Bogas; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 9 Minutes [AUDIO DRAMA]
Podcast: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast
Podcast: December 2009
Ellery Queen returns in a case involving a cryptic dying message. First published in EQMM in February, 1953. The story later appeared under the titles Murder In The Park and The Mystery Of The 3 Dawn Riders.

Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine - February 2007Episode 5: Dear Doctor Watson
By Steve Hockensmith; Read by Steve Hockensmith and Mike Willtrout
1 |MP3| – Approx. 36 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcast: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast
Podcast: December 2009
A pair of Old West cowboys try to prove they’re worthy of joining a detective agency by retrieving an incriminating letter. But things are not all they appear to be in Missoula, Montana, circa 1890… First published in the February 2007 issue of EQMM.

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine - May 1976Episode 6: The Problem Of The Locked Caboose
Based on the story by by Edward D. Hoch; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 27 Minutes [AUDIO DRAMA]
Podcast: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast
Podcast: January 2010
The solving of so-called “impossible crimes” is the hallmark of Edward D. Hoch’s series character Dr. Sam Hawthorne. In this episode, the New England country doctor is on board a night train when a body is discovered in its locked caboose. First published in EQMM in May, 1976.

Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine - March/April 2007Episode 7: Say That Again, The Old Story and Wheeze
By Peter Lovesey, Liza Cody, Michael Z. Lewin; Read by Peter Lovesey, Liza Cody, Michael Z. Lewin
1 |MP3| – Approx. 73 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcast: Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine podcast
Podcast: February 2010
Three stories (Say That Again by Peter Lovesey, The Old Story by Liza Cody, and Wheeze by Michael Z. Lewin) that take their lead from a single newspaper article provide an entertaining look at how a common creative impetus can take the imaginations of different writers in wonderfully different directions. Includes a short interview with the authors, all leading writers of suspense, recorded at the 2009 Bouchercon World Mystery Convention.

Podcast feed:

http://eqmm.podomatic.com/rss2.xml

iTunes 1-Click |SUBSCRIBE|

Posted by Jesse Willis