It's hard to keep up with Acorn Media. This niche DVD distributor, based in suburban Washington, D.C., has the corner on distinctive home video releases to the North American market, with a special focus on the best of British and Canadian television. Acorn puts out so many quality titles every month that it wouldn't take you long to build an enviable library of first-rate British and Canadian TV mysteries, dramas, comedies, and documentaries bearing the Acorn logo.

This week we're announcing a new pair of boxed set mystery series. The first is the latest from one of Canada's most acclaimed and popular crime dramas. The second is a vintage series written by classic mystery authors -- the TV equivalent of a stack of comfy old paperback mystery yarns, only this time cast with familiar faces in the juicy roles.

In Da Vinci's Inquest, the crusading and charismatic coroner for the city of Vancouver, Dominic Da Vinci (Nicholas Campbell), has a mandate to determine "the manner and cause of death" in any suspicious accident or crime. To carry it out, he relies on experience and gut instinct -- as well as the cops, forensic specialists, and medical experts with whom he works. Together, these investigators probe back alleys and suburban bedrooms to cast light on the shadowy means and motives for murder.

Though Da Vinci's Inquest has drawn comparisons to CSI and Law & Order, no other series blends tough, no-nonsense detective work and sophisticated forensic science with such style. This Season 3 boxed set keeps the suspense tight and the writing smart -- and often seriously surprising if you're just used to how American TV does things. These 13 episodes on four discs find Da Vinci snubbed for promotion, bedeviled by a new bean-counting boss, and haunted by demons from his past -- but battling as relentlessly as ever.

Da Vinci's Inquest aired on Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Television for seven seasons from 1998-2005, and co-stars Donnelly Rhodes (Battlestar Galactica) and Ian Tracey (The 4400, Intelligence). The series owes its realism partly to the inspiration of Larry Campbell, former Vancouver coroner and mayor who served as a consultant to the show.

DVD features include behind-the-scenes clips, photo gallery, cast filmographies, and a bio of series creator Chris Haddock.

Released this week in the U.S., Da Vinci's Inquest - Season 3 retails for $59.99.

Also out now is Time for Murder, the classic mid-1980s series featuring tales of mystery and suspense from six of Britain's finest writers.

In original screenplays specially commissioned for this series, Antonia Fraser, Gordon Honeycombe, Fay Weldon (Upstairs, Downstairs), novelist Frances Galleymore (Widow Maker), Michael Robson (The House of Eliott), and Charles Wood (Iris, Help!) deliver six smart, sophisticated suspense tales. Each author gives the genre his or her own peculiar twist, with results ranging from the darkly humorous to the truly macabre. Viewers will visit not only conventional English drawing rooms, but also a boys' prep school, a luxury health spa, and a snowbound hotel -- all settings for murder and other surprises.

These six complete dramas also feature superlative performances by a host of legendary British actors, including Claire Bloom, Sylvia Sims, Charles Dance, Trevor Howard, Patrick Allen, Amanda Root, Judy Campbell, and Jane Asher. Combined with the screenwriters' originality, the artistry of these performers makes Time for Murder a collection to die for.

Episode 1: Bright Smiler by Fay Weldon
Episode 2: The Murders at Lynch Cross by Frances Galleymore<
Episode 3: Mr. Clay, Mr. Clay by Antonia Fraser
Episode 4: This Lightning Always Strikes Twice by Michael Robson
Episode 5: The Thirteenth Day of Christmas by Gordon Honeycombe
Episode 6: Dust to Dust by Charles Wood

With more than five hours of mystery and mayhem in a two-disc boxed set, Time for Murder retails for $39.99 -- less than $7 per murder.

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