Book picks similar to
Dark Heart by Catherine Lee
mystery
thriller
fiction
crime
Dirty Little Secrets
Liliana Hart - 2011
Graves has seen a lot of dead bodies in her line of work...She's not only in the mortuary business, but she's also the coroner for King George County, Virginia. When a grisly murder is discovered in the small town of Bloody Mary, it's up to J.J. and her best friend, Detective Jack Lawson, to bring the victim justice.The murders are piling up...The residents of Bloody Mary are dropping like flies, and when a popular mystery writer shows up on J.J.'s doorstep with plans of writing his new book about the Bloody Mary Serial Killer, J.J. has to decide if he might be going above and beyond the call of duty to create the spine tinglers he's so well known for. It only clouds the issue and puts her reputation on the line when the attraction between them spirals out of control.And passions are rising...J.J and Jack are in a race against time. They discover each victim had a shocking secret, and the very foundation of J.J.'s life is in danger of crumbling when it turns out she’s harboring secrets of her own—secrets that make her the perfect victim in a deadly game.
From the Ashes
Sabrina Flynn - 2014
Three years later, Riot returns to San Francisco to put his ghosts to rest, but the abduction of an heiress snags his attention. Two ransom demands are delivered, and the husband of the abducted Isobel Kingston is hiding the truth.The clock is ticking. Can Riot find Mrs Kingston in time, or will she become one more regret among many?A thrilling historical mystery for fans of Laurie R. King, Louise Penny, and Jacqueline Windspear.
Fresh Doubt
Eva Hudson - 2014
The haunting memories of that night shaped Ingrid’s life, driving her to become one of the toughest agents ever to join the FBI. Supremely fit, doggedly tenacious and virtually indestructible, Ingrid now works out of the US embassy in London. Madison Faber, a brilliant psychology student at a prestigious London college, has discovered her friend’s body in a pool of blood. Now she’s in police custody being questioned for murder. Protesting her innocence, Faber fears the killer will target her next and persuades Ingrid to hunt him down. But the deeper Ingrid digs, the deadlier the case gets. And when she uncovers a sinister group operating within the psychology department, Ingrid is in far more danger than she realizes.Up against the clock, and disobeying strict FBI protocols, Ingrid’s obsession to bring the killer to justice takes her far beyond the law. So far she may never get back.Unlock the thrills and twists of this up-all-night crime thriller series, perfect for fans of gripping mysteries, strong female detectives and any reader who has ever wondered if there’s a female version of Jack Reacher. There is, and her name is Ingrid Skyberg.PRAISE FOR EVA HUDSON"I was immediately struck by the plotting savvy and grip-factor of Eva Hudson's writing – she is a natural storyteller" - Sophie Hannah"In the tradition of all good thrillers, the plot rattles along at a fine pace. An intriguing mystery with many unexpected twists – not least of all the ending" - James Oswald"Gripped me from the first page. Ingrid Skyberg is a brilliant character" - DS ButlerABOUT EVA HUDSONAfter years of enjoying thrillers and police procedurals by authors like Lee Child and Michael Connelly, Eva was inspired to write thrillers herself. In 2011 she won the inaugural Lucy Cavendish fiction prize for her first novel, The Loyal Servant, and never looked back.
Quinn Checks In
L.H. Thomson - 2012
A missing Dutch master. A thrilling whodunit...Liam Quinn has a second chance. Released after four years in prison for art forgery, a connection helps him get a job as an expert insurance investigator. But a gallery robbery is about to throw his new plans for a loop...Quinn is a good man who has made mistakes. His large Irish American family are leery of his past, and having two police officers in the family doesn't help. The entire department mistrusts him, and half the town wants his head.His chance for retribution rests on recovering a multi-million-dollar missing painting... if the local mob doesn't kill him first.Wit, action and backstory... what more could you want?" -- J. Michael Orenduff, author of "The Pot Thief" mysteries.More than 500,000 readers have already discovered the entire series of Liam Quinn mysteries!
Hades
Candice Fox - 2014
Very unusual cops . . .Homicide detective Frank Bennett has an intriguing new partner. Dark, beautiful, coldly efficient, Eden Archer is one of the most enigmatic colleagues Frank has ever worked with—that includes her brother Eric, who’s also on the Sydney Metro police force. All of them are tested to the core when a local man discovers a graveyard of large steel toolboxes lying at the bottom of the harbor. Each box contains a grisly trove of human body parts.For Frank, the madman’s clues are a tantalizing puzzle. For Eden and Eric, the case holds chilling links to a scarred childhood—and a murderous mentor named Hades. But the true evil goes beyond the bloody handiwork of a serial killer…
Dawn Girl
Leslie Wolfe - 2016
A few specks of sand clung to her long, dark lashes. Her beautiful face, immobile, covered in sparkling flecks of sand. Her lips slightly parted as if to let a last breath escape.Who is the beautiful girl found at dawn, on a deserted stretch of white sand beach? What is her secret?FBI Special Agent Tess Winnett searches for answers relentlessly. With each step, each new finding, she uncovers unsettling facts leading to a single possible conclusion: Dawn Girl is not the only victim. Her killer has killed before.Hiding a terrible secret of her own, Special Agent Tess Winnett faces her inmost fears, in a heart-stopping race to catch a killer who’s getting ready to end yet another life. Will she find the killer in time? Will she be able to stop him? At what cost? The rules of the game have changed. So has the textbook definition of a serial killer.Special Agent Tess Winnett is the bold, direct, and short-fused heroine of Dawn Girl. Putting her life on the line, she doesn’t pull any punches, searching only for the truth, and for the man who takes lives on her watch. Intelligent, resourceful, and uncompromising, Tess will take readers on a memorable, white-knuckled journey in this suspenseful, gripping serial killer thriller.
A Perfect Evil
Alex Kava - 2000
. .The brutal murders of three young boys paralyze the citizens of Platte City, Nebraska. What's worse is the grim realization that the man recently executed for the crimes was a copycat. When Sheriff Nick Morrelli is called to the scene of another grisly murder, it becomes clear that the real predator is still at large, waiting to kill again.Morreli understands the urgency of the case terrorizing his community, but it's the experienced eye of FBI criminal profiler Maggie O'Dell that pinpoints the true nature of the evil behind the killings -- a revelation made all the more horrific when Morrelli's own nephew goes missing.Maggie understands something else: the killer is enjoying himself, relishing his ability to stay one step ahead of her, making this case more personal by the hour. Because out there, watching, is a killer with a heart of pure and perfect evil.
Against The Odds
Mara Jacobs - 2012
And I'm good. Very good.But, I also have a little bit of a problem with placing bets on a sporting events. Not so good.Sometimes my little problem becomes a whole lot of trouble and I need to resort to some, shall we say, less than stellar actions to get out of debt. So, I become my alter ego, JoJo, and fix college basketball games. Hey, a victimless crime, no one's the wiser, and it's better than the alternative, which is a drive into the desert with my loan shark and a shovel in the trunk. Although, it has to be said, my loan shark is pretty good looking.I love Vegas, and I love the life I've built, but when one of my friends is murdered, and another one shot at, I know I need to take a serious look at myself. And I need to call in the big guns. Even if that means teaming up with detective Jack Schiller, a man who's dealing with his own problems. But dang, he sure is sexy.I'm just trying to juggle protecting my friends, helping sexy detective Jack while not letting him get to close, and finding a murderer. And, oh yeah, no one can learn about JoJo.Because if they do, there's no way I'll be able to bluff my way out.
Frosted Shadow
Nancy Warren - 2011
She’s also got a nose for trouble and a passion for solving mysteries. Imagine Columbo in a lavender suit. She never met a woman who wouldn’t look better with a little help from the Lady Bianca line of cosmetics. But don’t be fooled by appearances. Underneath the fake diamonds and the big hair is a sharp brain and a keen eye that sees the details as well as the funny side of life. When a Lady Bianca sales rep is murdered at the annual convention in Dallas, Toni is the one who notices things that some people, like sexy Detective Luke Marciano, might easily miss. Only someone who understands as much about how to make appearances deceiving could see into the mind of this killer -- a murderer who wants to give Toni a permanent makeover. Into a dead woman.
The Dragon Man
Garry Disher - 1999
Detective Inspector Hal Challis and his team must apprehend him before he strikes again. But first, Challis has to contend with the editor of a local newspaper who undermines his investigation at every turn, and with his wife, who attempts to resurrect their marriage through long-distance phone calls from a sanitarium, where she has been committed for the past eight years for attempted murder—his.
Fire and Ice
Dana Stabenow - 1998
But that was before his life unraveled. Transferred in disgrace to this rough-and-tumble fishing town on the shores of Bristol Bay, Liam knows Newenham is the end of the line. It's also his last shot at getting his life back.. He's about to come in for a very rough landing. Stepping onto the airstrip at Newenham, Liam walks into a crime scene: a body torn apart by the propeller of a Piper Super Cub. As if that isn't enough of a welcome, the woman bending over the corpse is Wyanet Chouinard, the only woman Liam ever truly loved - and soon to be his prime suspect. Next, a man is held hostage in the town's only decent burger joint--held for shooting out a jukebox that was playing Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville. And Liam still doesn't have his uniform on.
Next to Disappear
Malcolm Richards - 2015
Until disgraced ex-teacher Emily Swanson moves into the couple’s former home.Emily’s life is in ruins and she’s meant to be making a fresh start. But when she learns about the missing nurse, she sees a chance for redemption. Because finding Alina could help right the wrongs of Emily’s past. It could even mark the start of a new career in private investigation.But what Emily doesn’t know is that Alina had a horrifying secret. One about the care foundation where she worked. And the closer Emily gets to uncovering the truth, the closer she gets to terrible danger.Inspired by a shocking true crime, Next To Disappear introduces a thrilling, twist-filled series and a refreshingly different take on the private investigator genre.Revised edition: Previously published as Lost Lives.
Murder on the Mind
L.L. Bartlett - 2005
But after suffering a fractured skull in a vicious mugging, he reluctantly accepts the fact that he has a long and brutal recovery to face—and his closest of kin can provide him with the time and place to do it. Now, Jeff is haunted by unexplained visions of a heinous crime—a banker, stalked, killed, and eviscerated like a ten-point buck. When Matt Sumner’s murder is discovered, a still-recovering Jeff realizes this was what he had seen. Jeff must not only convince himself of his new-found psychic ability, but also his skeptical brother Richard Alpert. Since Sumner was Richard’s banker, both brothers have a stake in finding out what happened. With Richard’s reluctant help, Jeff’s investigation leads him to Sumner’s belligerent family and hard-nosed business associates, none of whom want him snooping around. When Jeff discovers a second victim, he knows he must relentlessly chase his quarry even if it means risking his brother’s life.
Small Town Nightmare
Anna Willett - 2018
Lucy’s younger brother has gone missing. When she sets out to find him, the trail takes her to Night Town. It’s a rural backwater deep in the forests of south western Australia. Lucy tries to enlist the help of the local police, but she is met with hostility. She befriends a man who might help her cause. Yet he is not quite who he says he is. As the locals begin to resent her presence in the town, danger quickly mounts. The town has secrets and they seem to centre on the enigmatic Samuel Nightmesser, its wealthy benefactor. What connects her missing brother to this grim boondock? And why do the townsfolk want rid of Lucy? As the story unfolds we are immersed in a creepy, claustrophobic drama in which everything is at stake. If you like books with a strong female lead that keep you on the edge of your seat, you’ve found your next favourite read. Anna Willett is the author of several suspense thrillers that focus on women trying to overcome difficult and dangerous situations. The full list of her books, in order of publication, is as follows: BACKWOODS RIPPER RETRIBUTION RIDGE UNWELCOME GUESTS FORGOTTEN CRIMES CRUELTY’S DAUGHTER SMALL TOWN NIGHTMARE All of these books are FREE with Kindle Unlimited and, as this one shall soon be, available in paperback.