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Our very weekly email--Special Holiday Gift Guide edition

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Dear %%First Name%%,

Holiday Gift Guide ready for download

We don't normally like to overwhelm your inbox with email but we did want to let everyone know that our Holiday Gift Guide is availble on the website for download. Just like the regular MLB News, the Holiday Gift Guide is available in a PDF format which you can download and, if you like, print.

Just a note: any hardcover book you find in the Gift Guide can be used as your Halloween Special 20% off hardcover (see article below) so long as it otherwise qualifies--not a future publication or a British import.

Please take a look at our Holiday Gift Guide to see the wonderful assortment of puzzles, games, mugs and other gift ideas (even books) that we've got for you. As always, we urge you to shop early to avoid the disappointment of out of stock items.

We are twenty

On Sunday, October 31 Mystery Lovers Bookshop will turn 20 years old. Founded on Halloween 1990 we've enjoyed two decades of wonderful customers, splendid authors, top-notch staff and an abundance of joy. Not to mention a Raven Award.

Thanks to the many people who have made it possible to arrive at this milestone.

Halloween Birthday Bash- Sunday, October 31

Sunday is Halloween so we'll be celebrating our 20th birthday.

At 2 pm Michael Ayoob will celebrate publication of his debut mystery, In Search of Mercy. This Pittsurgh-set novel won the St. Martin's Press/Private Eye Writers of America prize and would make a great gift for any current or former Pittsburgher on your list.

At 3:30 we'll begin the Ten Cent Book Sale with proceeds going to the Oakmont Carnegie Library.

At 4:30 Alison K. Babusci will tell ghost stories for children and adults

All day we'll have free cappuccino. We'll be open from Noon to 5 pm. Come join us for the 20th Anniversary Halloween Bash.

We hope to see you there. Costumes optional.

Halloween Special--save 20% on (almost) any hardcover book

In celebration of our anniversary we invite you to take 20% of any one hardcover book purchased on Sunday, October 31. Purchases can be made in the store, on the phone, by fax or email or through the website.

Be sure to mention the Halloween Special to get your discount.

If you order through the web your discount will not show up on the order but we'll take it when we process your order.

The 20% offer applies to any currently available book. Future publications are not eligible for this offer. British import hardcovers, similarly, do not qualify. You can get your 20% by purchasing your book in the store or on the phone on Sunday, Oct. 31 or by placing a web order on Sunday. If you place a web order, put Halloween in the special instructions when you check out. If you place your order by phone or in person, just ask for the Halloween special.

Our Weekly Special: a legal thriller

Our Weekly Special, with savings of 20% and free shipping. is a legal thriller from a popular, best-selling author. You could pick up this week's Special for yourself or get a jump on holiday shopping and save 20% too.

Our Weekly Special for Kids: A perfect going-to-bed book

Our Weekly Special for Kids is a charming picture book about a moose who is too big--too big to fit in his own book. A clever story winds up with a surpirsing ending on the last page. Save 20% on This Week's Special for Kids.

Anniversary mugs are back

Our beautiful MLB 20th Anniversary/Raven Award mug is back in stock. This 8 oz. beauty is spectacular in resplendent red with black and white imprinting on both sides. Side one features our regular logo and notice of our 20th Anniversary in October of 2010. On the other side, a special Raven version of our logo to mark our receiving the Raven Award from the Mystery Writers of America.

Important Note: We cannot offer free shipping on orders that include mugs. We must send these Priority Mail and will have to charge you $4.50 shipping regardless of these amount of your order.

The 39 Steps at City Theater

Last Saturday we were guests of the City Theater for a production of The 39 Steps, a play based on the movie and book of the same name. A thoroughly enjoyable evening was our reward. Clever staging, excellent physical comedy, fast-paced costume changes--the whole thing was a delight from start to finish.

You can catch the show through November 7. See City Theater or call 412-431-2489.

Incidentally, the book on which this production is (loosely) based is available in a very nice edition for $11.

Construction Alert: Allegheny River Boulevard

We've just been informed that construction on several blocks of Allegheny River Boulevard will commence at the end of October and continue through the end of November.

The Boulevard will remain open during almost all of that period but there may be restrictions on on-street parking during this time.

If you cannot park on our block you may want to try the following alternatives:

If you're coming to the store during this time please give us a call at 412-828-4877 and we'll give you the update as of that day.

Weekend of awards: Shamus and Anthony winners

With the Bouchercon convention just wrapped up we've got news about the winners of the Shamus and Anthony awards.

The Shamus is given by the Private Eye Writers of America for, no surpise, private eye novels. Brad Parks, a visitor at our last Festival of Mystery, won Best First Novel for Faces of the Gone. We're very pleased that Marica Muller won Best Novel for Locked In, a particulary good Sharon McCone novel. Paperback Original went to Sinner's Ball by Ira Berkowitz, the third in his Jackson Steeg series.

Sharon McCone, Marcia Muller's fictional PI, was named Best P.I. Character. Sharon was one of the earliest pioneers in the female PI genre.

The Anthony Awards are voted upon by the attendees at Bouchercon. Best Novel went to Louise Penny for The Brutal Telling, part of her series with Quebec's police inspector Gamache. Best First Novel winner was Sophie Littlefield for A Bad Day for Sorry. Paperback Original went to Bryan Gruley for his novel set in a small town in Michigan, Starvation Lake.

Best Critical Nonfiction went to P.D. James for Talking About Detective Fiction.

Our friend Hank Phillippi Ryan won Best Short Story for "On the House."

See the website for complete list of winners and nominees for the Anthony Awards 2010 and the Shamus Awards 2010.

New Arrivals

New Arrivals for November are starting to arrive and we expect next week to be busy with even more. This week we've got new books by Tasha Alexander, Peter Tremayne, Margaret Maron, Anne Perry, Reginald Hill, Carolyn Hart, Katherine Hall Page and many others.

New books arrive every day. Check our New Arrivals page often for everything new at MLB.

Signed first editions

What's on the website now

Here's what you can find at www.mysterylovers.com:

Come meet us on Facebook

Come visit us at facebook.com/mysterylovers where you can join the 860 folks who are already our fans.

Upcoming Events

Oct. 31 - Halloween Birthday Bash
Oct. 31 - Michael Ayoob publication party
Nov. 20 - Oakmont Light Up Night (so sue me, Pittsburgh)

More events...

Fall evenings are coming--get your TBR pile ready
Richard, Mary Alice and the MLB Staff

Did we mention that we won a Raven Award?

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