Book picks similar to
Escape Out of Darkness by Anne Stuart


romance
romantic-suspense
ebook
contemporary-romance

Chasing Bullets


Suzanne Cass - 2022
    Then she ran away from him in the ultimate act of betrayal. Two years later, Tara Hunter’s easy life in Byron Bay is turned upside down when David Cooper, her ex-police partner, appears and their chequered past comes back to haunt her. Coop is in town on an undercover mission to prevent a possible terrorist plot. While he’s recovered physically from the bullet wound, mentally he’s still scarred by her act of deceit. Reluctantly, Tara is drawn into Coop’s operation to track down a group of extremists hiding in the jungle wilderness, where she soon finds the illicit desire they shared two years ago is back, stronger than ever. But will she be able to find the courage to tell him she loves him and save him from the brutal terrorist gang? Suzanne Cass writes a thrilling romantic suspense in this game of hide and seek, full of passionate romance and heart stopping choices. Pick up a copy of Chasing Bullets today and get lost in this world of romance and deception.

A Beautiful Lie


T.E. Sivec - 2013
    They shared in each other's joy during graduations, promotions, and engagements. They consoled one another through heartache and loss.When one of the friend's life is tragically cut short, it's up to the two left behind to pick up the pieces and find out the truth - no matter the cost. As they slowly start to uncover the nature of his deception, and the very powerful people behind it, they begin to question everyone and everything, even themselves.Everyone has secrets - some do it for love while others do it for power. Those secrets can change perceptions, alter reality and sometimes destroy lives.What do you do when you find out your whole life has been a lie?

Dirty Lies


Tamara Lush - 2015
    A reporter determined to get to the bottom of the story. A scorching romance where dangerous days bleed into hot nights.Luca Rossi is a wanted man waiting for justice. On the run from the mafia and hiding out in Florida, the celebrated Italian writer has turned into a recluse, fearful that the next person he sees may also be the last. Waiting in isolation, he counts the days until freedom.Skylar Shaw is an ambitious young reporter determined to make her name with a scoop. Beautiful, curvaceous, and fiery, her outward confidence masks hidden insecurities that push her to investigate - no matter what.When a plane spirals out of control and plows into the beach opposite Luca's hideout, he rushes to help a victim. Gone before the authorities can get his name, Skylar soon tracks him down. Her intense curiosity about the mysterious rescuer may lead her down a path from which there is no return.Sparks fly as Skylar falls for Luca's exotic accent and chiseled, tattooed body - and Luca finds his natural caution and reserves disarmed by the beautiful reporter. The two soon find themselves entangled in each other's arms. And while Luca tries to keep his secret covered up, Skylar's instincts lead her to dig deeper. What she uncovers could kill them both. * This book was previously published under the title HOT SHADE. This edition is a significant rewrite of that novel.

Partners


Mimi Barbour - 2012
    In this novel, Aurora is forced to accept one very difficult fact—she's lonesome for her partner Debbie. An attack by a maniac put paid to their working together and Aurora is pissed. She's out to get the madman who hurt her friend and God help anyone who gets in her way. Therefore when a new partner is forced on her, a bloody hotshot no less, the kind of dude she always stays as far away from as possible, she's even more pissed. This action–packed short is humorous and will sweep you into the lives of these Las Vegas Detectives

Frozen Past


Richard C. Hale - 2012
    Eliana is his whole world and for someone his age, the burden is immense. You see, Eliana is being stalked. Stalked by a madman who wants nothing more than to see her dead. The madman knows things that no one should know and sees things that no one should see. He tells them if they say a word to anyone, they will both die. And Luke can’t let that happen. Eliana’s past is catching up with her and Luke must do anything to save her. Anything.

Dangerous Passage


Lisa Harris - 2013
    Suspecting a serial killer, Avery joins forces with medical examiner Jackson Bryant to solve the crimes and prevent another murder. But it doesn't take long for them to realize that there is much more to the case than meets the eye. As they venture deep into a sinister world of human trafficking, Avery and Jackson are taken to the very edge of their abilities--and their hearts.Dangerous Passage exposes a fully-realized and frightening world where every layer peeled back reveals more challenges ahead. Romantic suspense fans will be hooked from the start by Lisa Harris's first installment of the new Southern Crimes series.

Hell or High Water


Julie Ann Walker - 2015
    One sunken Spanish galleon. Millions in gold and silver coins lying on the ocean floor. And a past that refuses to let the guys of Deep Six Salvage forget the Navy SEAL motto: the only easy day was yesterday...There's more than one kind of treasure...The nation's security has always been CIA agent Olivia Mortier's top priority. But a mission-gone-wrong has begun to make her wonder if there's more to life than risking hers.And more than one secret at the bottom of the sea...Only two things could make Leo Anderson abandon his hunt for the legendary lost ship, La Santa Christina, and return to the world of weapons and warfare he swore to leave behind: a capsule of enriched uranium, lost on the ocean floor, and a plea for assistance from the one woman he can't seem to forget...

Falling Fast


Kaylea Cross - 2017
     Having grown up in a household of elite, overprotective male Marines, Charlie Colebrook is savoring her hard won independence and avoiding a serious relationship that could tie her down. As a computer forensics expert for the DEA she might be a civilian rather than an agent, but she’s far from helpless, and she’s hungry to prove herself. So when her boss asks her to take on a dangerous undercover assignment that could expose the key money launderer for the biggest, and most lethal drug cartel in the Western hemisphere, Charlie seizes her chance. There’s just one catch: the man assigned as her partner is the only man she wants…and he won’t settle for less than everything she has to give. Now he’s the only one who stands between her and a ruthless cartel. DEA Special Agent Jamie Rodriguez has tried like hell to ignore the explosive chemistry he has with Charlie. Not simply because she’s his best friend’s sister—but because with her, he wants all or nothing. As a member of the agency’s elite FAST Bravo unit, he’s got the skill and experience to keep her safe. Now that he’s assigned to protect her on this op, he’ll do it at all costs, even if she tempts him as no other woman ever has. But the final op tests them both to the breaking point, and when things go to hell, it will take everything they’ve got to survive the deadly trap set for them.

An Affair to Dismember


Elise Sax - 2013
    That’s why Gladie is more than a little skeptical when her Grandma Zelda — who is more than a little psychic — recruits her into the family’s matchmaking business in the quaint small town of Cannes, California. What’s more, Gladie is also highly unqualified, having a terrible track record with romance. Still, Zelda is convinced that her granddaughter has her clairvoyant “gift.” But when the going gets tough, Gladie wonders if this gift has a return policy. When Zelda’s neighbor drops dead in his kitchen, Gladie is swept into his bizarre family’s drama. Despite warnings from the (distractingly gorgeous) chief of police to steer clear of his investigation, Gladie is out to prove that her neighbor’s death was murder. It’s not too long before she’s in way over her head — with the hunky police chief, a dysfunctional family full of possible killers, and yet another mysterious and handsome man, whose attentions she’s unable to ignore. Gladie is clearly being pursued — either by true love or by a murderer. Who will catch her first?

The Bane Affair


Alison Kent - 2004
    Unimaginably skilled, they’re the spies you want on your side…of the bed.Christian Bane is a man of few words who battles demons rooted in a woman’s betrayal, and being left to die in a Thai prison. All these years later, he still isn’t free of the past.Now Spectra IT, the crime syndicate responsible for his imprisonment, has recruited a computer scientist facing his own death sentence to hack critical government encryption technology. Christian, a member of the elite Smithson Group, SG-5, has been tasked with stopping him.Posing as a womanizing Spectra boss, Christian gets up close and personal with the scientist’s goddaughter, Natasha Gaudet, who handles his business affairs, and is the most obvious way in.But the closer Christian gets to Natasha, the harder it is to deceive her. The fact that she knows nothing about her godfather’s dealings has Christian wondering who fed him the faulty intel.Because if she isn’t the criminal he’s been led to believe, they’re both being taken for a very dangerous ride. And if he doesn’t face his demons and trust her, neither one of them will survive.

Forged in Fire


Trish McCallan - 2011
    When events in her dream start coming true, she heads to the flight’s departure gate. To her shock, she recognizes the man she’d watched die the night before. Lieutenant Commander Zane Winters comes from a bloodline of elite warriors with psychic abilities. When Zane and two of his platoon buddies arrive at Sea-Tac Airport, he has a vision of his teammates’ corpses. Then she arrives—a leggy blonde who sets off a different kind of alarm. As Beth teams up with Zane, they discover the hijacking is the first step in a secret cartel’s deadly global agenda and that key personnel within the FBI are compromised. To survive the forces mobilizing against them, Beth will need to open herself to a psychic connection with the sexy SEAL who claims to be her soul mate.

When the Smoke Clears


Lynette Eason - 2012
    She makes a last-minute decision to recuperate at her mother's home and attend her high school reunion. Yet trouble seems to be following her, and within hours of arriving home she's involved with murder, arson--and a handsome detective. But the conflicts ahead are nothing compared to the ghosts of her past. As she struggles to accept and forgive her family's past, she must also decide if the secret she's been guarding for the last ten years must finally come to light. Chock-full of the suspense and romantic tension readers have come to expect from Lynette Eason, When the Smoke Clears is the explosive first book in the Deadly Reunions series.

Adventures in Funeral Crashing


Milda Harris - 2011
    At one of these, Kait is outted by the most popular guy in school, Ethan Ripley. Yet, instead of humiliating her for all the world to see, he asks for her help, and Kait finds herself entangled in a murder mystery. Not only is the thrill of the mystery exciting, but more importantly Ethan knows her name! A little sleuthing is well worth that!

Twisted Bond


Emma Hart - 2015
    I’m passionate and shoot before I think. You only f*ck with me if you’re stupid.Photograph cheating spouses. Hand over the evidence. Cash my check.That was my plan when I returned home to Holly Woods, Texas, and became a private investigator.Finding the dead body in my dumpster? Yeah… Given the choice, I think I would have opted out of that little discovery, especially since all three of my brothers are cops. And my Italian grandmother is sure the reason I’m single is because of my job.Of course, my connection to the victim is entirely coincidental. Until I’m hired by her husband to investigate her murder and shoved bang-smack into the path of Detective Drake Nash. My nemesis, a persistent pain in my ass, and one hell of a sexy son of a bitch.Shame he still holds a grudge from that time I shot him in the foot twelve years ago, or we could have something. In another life.So now all I have to do is avoid my nonna’s blind dates, try not to blackmail my brothers into giving me confidential police files, and absolutely do not point my gun at Drake Nash. Or kiss him. Or jump his bones.All while I hunt down the killer.Sounds totally simple—until a second body proves that sometimes things that start as coincidences don’t always end up that way…(Twisted Bond is book one of the Holly Woods Files series and while it does not end in a cliffhanger, it is not a standalone.)

Stealing Justice


Misty Evans - 2014
    Now the FBI wants him to use his renegade skills to take down a serial killer who’s above the law. To trap the Lion, Grey will need to send the perfect woman undercover.Sydney Banfield runs a women’s shelter and bends the law daily to help victims of abuse escape their painful lives. Three of the women she’s recruited for government jobs have become victims of the Lion. If Syd has her way, the vicious killer will never touch another woman again.Grey and Sydney set a trap — with Sydney as the sexy bait — but the Lion adds a complex twist to his homicidal agenda. With Sydney’s life on the line, Grey must race against the clock to catch a killer who’s as unstoppable as he is evil.