Book picks similar to
The Bet by David R. Brown


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The Volunteer


Barbara Taylor Sissel - 2011
    Haunted by secrets from her past, she avoids the media spotlight as much as possible, but soon, other prisoners’ families come seeking her assistance. One family in particular, the wife, children, and brother of Jarrett Capshaw, is especially insistent. Forty-one days ago Jarrett’s request to die was granted by the State of Texas, and he became a dead man walking, a man they call a volunteer. Jarrett’s crimes were unusual, involving the theft of precious Mayan antiquities. Murder was never part of the plan, but murder is what happened. He pulled the trigger, and as little as he feels prepared for it, as much as he struggles with matters of the soul, he’s ready to die. It is the only way his family and the families of his victims will be free to move on. While Jarrett labors to find the words to say good-bye to those he has loved, Sophia finds herself drawn into a relationship with his wife and oldest son. It is Jarrett’s family she can’t resist and there will be a price to pay. But not even Sophia could have foreseen the outcome when the brutal truth is exposed, the unalloyed facts that, incredibly, will deliver Jarrett’s fate straight into her hands. The Volunteer is a story about families, how they are made, and how in one single, horrifying instant, they can be broken. It is a story about mothers and the lies they tell to protect their children, to keep them from being hurt. But what happens when the truth comes out anyway and nothing and no one is spared? Sometimes the truth has the power to break your heart, and in Sophia’s case it will also endanger her freedom and threaten everything she has ever believed about her life.

Sin


J.M. LeDuc - 2004
    The bureau’s only chance is a rogue agent who flies by her own wings and will stop at nothing to make sure justice is achieved.It is said, “Fight fire with fire.” The bureau knows, “Fight sin with SIN.”Her name says it all: Tempting―Dangerous―Deadly.

Killing Me Softly


Bianca Sloane - 2012
    Her body was discovered days later, her beautiful face bashed in with a rock. Police determine her brutal death to be a mugging gone wrong and drop the matter into their cold case files.Over a year later, Tracy’s sister, Sondra, still can’t come to grips with what happened. She throws herself into her work as a documentary filmmaker to try and forget the cruelty of her sister’s death. However, a chance encounter with a man from Tracy’s past rips the wound open and sends Sondra on a desperate search for answers about the secrets from her sister’s life that may have led to her death.As Sondra struggles to uncover what happened to Tracy, she’s launched into a tangled web of deceit and danger that put her on a collision course with life and death…

The Bialy Pimps


Johnny B. Truant - 2012
    The loathed customers are dealt the poor treatment they seem to deserve, bad rap music is played loudly, and The Rat is killed often enough to stem his immortality. And the insane homeless regulars -- like drunken Little Johnny Redbeard -- keep life interesting.But when a rival tricks the crew into thinking that the deli's closure is imminent, they do the only logical thing: instead of giving up, they decide to go out in a blaze of glory, handing their customers the humiliation and abuse that the pesky social contract had previously forbidden. But as insults turn to assaults and snide remarks turn to harassment and pro wrestling moves, a strange thing happens. Business goes up -- way up -- as people come back in droves, begging for more.But the flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long, and as pop-culture welcomes the parody musical group "The Bialy Pimps" and its frivolous merchandising machine -- and as the crew pushes to see how much bad behavior society will accept -- the violent road to fame begins to feel like a runaway train, out of control and headed for destruction…The Bialy Pimps is a tale that could only be spun by the twisted, vaguely profane mind of outspoken blogger Johnny B. Truant. Combining hilarity with questions about conformity and whether the tail or the dog is the one doing the wagging, this story can't help but raise a question for the reader: If the rest of your friends decided to submit to the Face-Kicking Machine, would you do it too?

The Dream Jumper's Promise


Kim Hornsby - 2012
    Months after signing the death certificate, she pulls herself from the emotional wreckage and trades mourning for saving her Maui dive shop from bankruptcy. When war hero, Jamey Dunn, walks back into Tina's life, things take a strange turn. Lifelike dreams have the dive instructor questioning her sanity and leaning heavily on Hank's best friend, Noble. Jamey and Noble clash at every turn, both desperate to help Tina. When the dreams uncover clues to Hank's disappearance, Jamey must reveal his strange ability to enter dreams. But for Tina, trusting the man who betrayed her years before, doesn't come easily, and the decision to let Jamey enter her subconscious has a price she isn't sure she can pay. As Noble, Tina and Jamey get closer to solving the mystery of Hank's disappearance, grave danger sets in to reveal that one person is flirting with insanity, one is a traitor, and one is an impostor.

The One You Love


Paul Pilkington - 2011
    Her fiancé vanishes, leaving the battered and bloodied body of his brother in their London apartment. Someone is stalking her, watching her every move. And her family are hiding a horrifying secret; a secret that threatens all those she loves. In a desperate race against time, Emma must uncover the truth if she ever wants to see her fiancé alive again. The One You Love is a fast-paced suspense mystery, full of twists and turns, following in the tradition of writers such as Nicci French and Sophie Hannah.

Fearless


Brynley Bush - 2014
    Secretly afraid that her ex-husband’s assertions that she’s too uptight are right, Emma nonetheless keeps her life, and her emotions, firmly under control, fearful of getting hurt again. However, when she meets the dangerously attractive Beckett Black on a job assignment, the way his casual touch sends her pulse racing forces her to acknowledge her growing need to move beyond her fear. When Beckett offers her a job writing the memoir of his father, a renowned cancer researcher, Emma jumps at the career opportunity and the chance to get to know Beckett better.Emma spends her days with the renowned doctor, who has spent his career studying a plant in the Amazon that has the potential to cure cancer, and her nights with Beckett, who slowly pushes past her fears and breaks down her barriers, introducing her to a passionate and forbidden love that surpasses her wildest fantasies. As the doctor’s story of secrets and cover-ups unravels, so does Emmaline’s view on everything she thought she knew about herself and the power of surrender.

Bluegrass State of Mind


Kathleen Brooks - 2011
    She is now a witness to a horrific crime involving some of America’s most influential men. She knows she must get away and can think of only one outsider that might help her—Will Ashton. The flame of their brief romance during their teenage years never completely died out, and now it is about to explode.Trouble at every turn, a feisty horse that refuses to race without a good luck kiss, and three old ladies hell-bent on playing match-maker turn this newly rekindled romance into a wild race to the finish. Can Will and McKenna cross the finish line together, and more importantly, alive?An Alternate Cover Edition can be found here.

The Last Call


George Wier - 2011
    She has taken a North Texas quarter horse racer and liquor baron named Archie Carpin--the last of a dynasty of criminals from the 1920's--for a ride and cleaned him out of a neat two million bucks. And thus begins the adventure of Bill’s life.Ensues a chase north across Texas to recover the money and shake the pursuit of a couple of rednecks with a penchant for rifles and rigged explosives. Yet, through all this action the compelling tale of yet another mystery—an 80-year old missing person’s case—begins to unravel.

Kill Switch


Gordon Bonnet - 2015
     When high school teacher Chris Franzia comes home on the last day of school, he finds two FBI agents waiting for him. A string of seemingly unrelated murders has left them baffled, and they can find only one commonality. All five victims shared a college class with Chris thirty years earlier... and now he may be next. Struggling with the sheer impossibility of the situation, Chris’s skepticism fades after a series of failed attempts on his life makes things deadly clear. Thus begins a harrowing cross-country race, forcing Chris to put together the pieces of his past while staying one step ahead of his mysterious assailants. Can he make the connection in time? And will the deadly picture of reconstructed memory be worth the price of knowing?

Three Days to Die


John Avery - 2011
    but he did.HE ONLY HEARD A FEW WORDS ... but he heard too much.HE RAN ... but he was followed -- a mistake that would turn thirteen-year-old Aaron Quinn's, and his beautiful, courageous, single mother, Ashley's, worlds upside down.THE CLOCK STARTS TICKING ... when Aaron is stolen from his mother by a psychotic killer and thrust headlong into a dark underworld of armed robbery, prostitution, and death. Will Aaron lose his mind as he's forced to participate in a deadly crime spree and witness first hand the horror of cold-blooded murder?THE WALLS CLOSE IN ... on Ashley when she listens to a tape recording left on her pillow by the killer, giving her two choices:1) Call the police and risk being responsible for her only child's death ...2) Offer herself as a sacrifice in exchange for his life ...WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU WERE HER?---A CRIME THRILLERAn ACTION MOVIEA LOVE STORYIn THREE DAYS to DIE, debut author John Avery takes you on a perilous journey unlike any suspense thriller you've read before.From the opening sequence to the smashing ending, THREE DAYS to DIE moves at lightning speed, introducing the world to an exciting new hero, a beautiful and plucky heroine, and a truly frightening villain."John Avery opens Three Days to Die with a bang and then sprints toward the finish line ... taking thriller lovers of any age on a heart-pounding, pulse- tingling ride, and he does it with style. Five Stars!" – Jill Allen, Foreword Review"I truly got lost between the pages of this wonderfully told story - though I did cringe and even cry sometimes and wanted to hit someone at other times, which is totally against my nature. It just goes to show how totally absorbed I was in the world John Avery created in Three Days to Die." - N. Budden - Amazon Top Reviewer---*** Adapted from the original screenplay, THREE DAYS to DIE, by John Avery - Shortlisted for Hollywood's prestigious 2010 - PAGE International Screenwriting Awards ***Approx 225 pagesRecommended for adults 16+

Vigilante


Claude Bouchard - 2009
    . . the long, hot summer of 1996. . .. . . and in the dark of night, moving like a shadowy wraith, a vigilante prowls the city's streets.The targets of his bloody rampage: the worst of the worst.Murderers. Gangbangers. Rapists.Six months. Sixteen murders. The harried police are still without a clue . . .. . . until the day they receive an email from the assassin himself.Lieutenant Dave McCall, head of Montreal's Special Homicide Task Force, needs help to crack the secrets of the killer's taunting message. He calls on an expert--Chris Barry, who runs a security firm specializing in computer communications.Together, McCall and Barry launch a grim quest to track down a man who preys on predators--an urgent quest to bring this remorseless killer to justice.But whose justice will prevail: theirs--or the vigilante's?

Wall of Silence


Tracy Buchanan - 2020
    Can she uncover it before the police do? Melissa Byatt’s life in Forest Grove seems as perfect as can be: a doting husband, three loving children and a beautiful house in a close-knit community. But appearances can be deceiving.One evening, Melissa arrives home to the unimaginable: her husband lies stabbed on the kitchen floor, their children standing calmly around him…With horror, she realises that one of them is to blame. But which one? And why would they attack their own father?Her loyalties torn, in a split second she decides to protect her children at all costs—even if that means lying to the police. But when someone in the neighbourhood claims to know more than they should, Melissa discovers that some secrets are beyond her control…Can she find out the truth of what happened before the rumours spread? And can the family unite to escape the spotlight of scandal—or are none of them as innocent as Melissa insists?

Baggage Claim


Amanda Tru - 2011
    But, when her luggage is lost and she is accosted by an infuriating Homeland Security agent named Dawson Tate, events take a dangerous turn. Now, can she and Dawson elude their enemies and prevent a terrorist attack before the bomb in their possession is detonated in the center of Manhattan--all while keeping their obvious attraction to one another in check? Find out in this Romantic Thriller.

Younger


Suzanne Munshower - 2015
    Desperate to prove she is still relevant, the fiftysomething accepts a shady job offer from Pierre Barton, secretive billionaire owner of Barton Pharmaceuticals. Isolated in a facility outside London, she agrees to test a new top-secret product guaranteed to make her look thirty years younger. Anna is starting to look on the outside the way she feels on the inside: ageless. But she soon discovers that her predecessor died under mysterious circumstances, leading her to research just who stands to gain—and lose—with this miraculous product. When Pierre drops dead in front of her, she takes off on a dangerous journey across Europe hoping to stay alive long enough to uncover the truth.With the hard-won knowledge that younger isn’t always better, Anna is determined to escape and reclaim her life before it’s too late.