The May Edition of The Big Thrill

Read the stories that were featured in the May edition of The Big Thrill.


28 new thrillers this month from ITW members, including 5 from first-time authors H.W. “Buzz” Bernard, Nancy Naigle, Lynn Sheene, Virna DePaul, and Fred Lichtenberg, plus news from South Africa.

Print the Big Thrill list and head on down to your favorite bookstore, or download your selections to your electronic e-reader, and enjoy a month’s worth of great reading from your friends at the International Thriller Writers.

Hot off the press:

Click on a book title to read the feature story

• News from South Africa by Mike Nicol
• The Jefferson Key by Steve Berry
• The Last Time I Saw Paris by Lynn Sheene
• Eyewall by H.W. “Buzz” Bernard
• Forced to Kill by Andrew Peterson
• Sweet Tea and Secrets by Nancy Naigle
• Burn Down the Sky by James Jaros
• Chosen By Blood by Virna DePaul
• The Informant by Thomas Perry
• Flowerbed of State by Dorothy St. James
• The Burning Lake by Brent Ghelfi
• Lost and Fondue by Avery Aames
• Damaged by Debra Webb
• Fangtooth by Shaun Jeffrey
• The Serial Killer’s Daughter by Heywood Gould
• Devil Wind by Deborah Shlian and Linda Reid
• Blood Trust by Eric Van Lustbader
• Hunter’s World by Fred Lichtenberg
• Secret Legacy by Anna DeStefano
• Camwolf by JL Merrow
• Rogue Patriot by Gerald Meunier
• Haunted by Douglas Misquita
• Dance of  the Dead by Ines Eberl
• According to Luke by Rosanne Dingli
• Defenders of the Faith by Chet Williamson
• The Devil She Knows by Bill Loehfelm
• Zero Day by Mark Russinovich
• Striking Back by Mark Nykanen
• Concrete Pearl by Vincent Zandri

Coming Next Month

Coming next month: the latest thrillers from Lynn Sholes & Joe Moore, D. P. Lyle, Bill Cameron, Lee Goldberg, William Dietrich, Katie Alender, Jon Land, Steven Pressfield, Debra Webb, Joseph Finder, James Rollins, Julie Hyzy, Autumn Jordon, Ken Mercer, Jeannie Holmes, RJ Ellory, April Smith, Gary Braver, DJ McIntosh and more. It’s gonna be a thriller!

Two New Features on The Big Thrill Website!

The Neverending Book Giveaway

If you’re a thriller fan who likes to win free books, be sure to check out the Neverending Book Giveaway on The Big Thrill website. Sign up for as many of the contests as you like! Just post a reply, and you’re entered!

ITW Members’ News

Check out all the latest thrilling Book News from International Thriller Writers members. Award nominations, book deals, new e-book releases, and more!

Thriller Roundtable

Whether you’re a fan or an author, you’ll want to join the Thriller Roundtable discussions at the Big Thrill website, where each week, a new group of authors discuss what inspires them, who their favorite hero characters are, what advice they’d offer the next generation of thriller authors, and more. Here’s April’s schedule:

May is “Agents Month” at the Thriller Roundtable!

Week of May 2 – 8: “Is there a common myth you’d like to debunk about being an agent?” with Janet Reid, Josh Getzler, Victoria Skurnick, Sandy Lu

Week of May 9 – 15: “What’s the one thing you love most about working with your authors?” with Janet Reid, Jeff Kleinman, Molly Lewis, Victoria Sanders, Sandy Lu, Jill Grosjean, Kristin Lindstrom, Donna Bagdasarian

Week of May 16 – 22: “Imagine you’re invited to give a two-minute ‘state of industry’ speech to ITW members. What would you say?” with Janet Reid, Nicholas Croce, Kristin Lindstrom

Week of May 23 – 29: “What is the one thing authors can do to help make you, and ultimately themselves, more successful?” with Debbie Carter, Janet Reid, and more!

Available in Paperback May 24!

FIRST THRILLS: High-Octane Stories from the Hottest Thriller Authors

FIRST THRILLS includes never-before-published stories by New York Times bestselling authors Lee Child, Stephen Coonts, Jeffrey Deaver, Heather Graham, Gregg Hurwitz, John Lescroart, John Lutz (with Lise E. Baker), Alex Kava (with Deb Carlin), Michael Palmer (with Daniel James Palmer), Karin Slaughter, and Wendi Corsi Staub.

The collection also serves as an introduction to a new generation of thriller authors, including Sean Michael Bailey, Ken Bruen, Ryan Brown, Bill Cameron, Rebecca Cantrell, Karen Dionne, JT Ellison, Theo Gangi, Rip Gerber, CJ Lyons, Grant McKenzie, Marc Paoletti, Cynthia Robinson, and Kelli Stanley.

“Hands down one of the best short story collections you’re ever likely to read.”—Booklist, starred review

All proceeds from the sales of FIRST THRILLS have been donated by the authors to support ITW’s efforts to promote and elevate the thriller genre.

Monthly Giveaway

Congratulations to Kathy Holmes, the winner of this month’s BIG THRILL giveaway. Cathy will receive an assortment of signed thrillers including Blood and Ashes by Matt Hilton, Lessons in Trust by Charlie Cochrane, Rebuild My World by Cheryl Norman, Winged Obsession by Jessica Speart, Killer Routine by Alan Orloff, Diagnosis Death by Richard L. Mabry, M.D., Exacerbyte by Cat Connor, Haunted by Douglas Misquita, Come and Find Me by Hallie Ephron, Rogue Patriot by Gerald Meunier, The Profession by Steven Pressfield, Ashes of the Red Heifer by Shannon Baker, Cat Sitter Among the Pigeons by Blaize Clement, The Shadow Guard by Diane Whiteside, Missing by Debra Webb, Bulletproof Hearts by Kay Thomas, and Hitched and Hunted by Paula Graves.

All subscribers to THE BIG THRILL webzine are automatically eligible for the monthly drawing. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the BIG THRILL email.

ThrillerFest Newsflash!

• Ken Follett to teach at CraftFest.
• Karin Slaughter to be awarded the 2011 Silver Bullet Award for her “Save the Libraries” program.
• Joe McGinniss to receive the ITW True Thriller Award.
• AgentFest to be the largest event of its kind in the world! Over 55 agents will join us this year!

ThrillerFest VI is less than 4 months away!

Joining us are 2011 ThrillerMaster R. L. Stine, 2010 ThrillerMaster Ken Follett, and Spotlight Authors Diana Gabaldon, John Lescroart, and Robert Crais.

We’re back at the Grand Hyatt in New York City from July 6-9th, 2011.

We’ve got a terrific room rate at the Grand Hyatt of only $209.00 per night!! This room block is selling out, so make your reservations right away to ensure that you get this fabulous room rate. (You must be registered with the conference to receive this hotel room rate.)

Just call: 1-888-421-1442 to make a room reservation, or click on the link at www.ThrillerFest.com

Time is running out. Register now: www.ThrillerFest.com