Book picks similar to
Sleep and Ecstasy by Tomas Boudreau


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Born or Bred? Martin Bryant: the making of a mass murderer


Robert Wainwright - 2009
    On a sunny Sunday 29 years later, Carleen and Maurice Bryant's beloved first-born loaded the boot of his yellow Volvo with guns and ammunition and returned to Tasmania's historic Port Arthur settlement, scene of many idyllic childhood summers. There, the young man with the striking surfie hair and mesmeric eyes, calmly shot 35 people dead and injured another 21. His crime, the world's worst killing spree by a lone gunman, horrified the nation and changed Australia forever.Thirteen years on, Robert Wainwright and Paola Totaro, both senior news writers, delve backwards over five generations and across two hemispheres to unravel the complete story of Bryant's life and reveal why he committed this heinous crime. They have uncovered Bryant's family history, spoken to his mother, his psychiatrists, lawyer and others who knew him, to piece together the story of eccentric and disparate characters whose lives intersected – with catastrophic results. From Bryant's shocking behind-the-scenes confessions to his own 11th-hour attempt to turn back, this book asks if the Port Arthur massacre could have been prevented. And explains why it could happen again.

The Bone Factory (Leisure Fiction)


47North - 2009
    But the owners of the mysterious plant are hiding a deadly secret, and David’s little girl has begun to have terrifying premonitions of blood and death.

The Concept


Kevin Wignall - 2012
    Everyone thinks he's a laughing stock now, including his ex-wife and even his agent. When it seems things couldn't get any worse, a chance encounter results in Robinson moonlighting as a hitman. But that's when things take a surprising turn, because the more people he kills, the more the art world seems to fall back in love with him. This blackly comic short story was first published in "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine" in August, 2005.

A Gangsta and His Queen


E. Shanie - 2019
    Since he was young and getting it, the reckless life seemed like the right life to live. Until one night everything changed, and he became responsible for not one four year old, but two. Lost in the world of parenting he meets the beautiful Puma. Trying to bounce back from the tragedy that struck her back in Jersey, Puma moves to a new state with hopes of rebuilding her life. With the help of her sister, Jag, Puma gets a job offer at a daycare. Being able to work in her profession is a dream come true for Puma, but her boss isn’t someone she’s too fond of. Jag, on the other hand, is ready to take the job with no questions asked. She’s always lived her life doing what was best for her, and this was no different. Moving to the beat of her own drum she leaves men from all over wanting more when commitment isn’t really her thing. When she meets Tex, she tries to run her normal game, but he’s not having that. They find themselves in the heat of passion until they both realize that so much more could come out of their union. When a princess kisses a frog, the frog turns into a prince, and they live happily ever after. However, when a queen kisses a gangsta, something magical happens. Dive into this standalone & experience the magic that comes from A Gangsta & His Queen.

Detective Nikki Galena #7-9


Joy Ellis - 2020
    FROM A GLOBALLY BEST-SELLING AUTHOR WHO HAS SOLD OVER 2 MILLION BOOKS. YOU GET THREE ENTHRALLING MYSTERIES IN THIS BOX SET These are books 7-9 of the Nikki Galena series. All of them are #1 best sellers. BURIED ON THE FENS A skeleton is found in a shallow grave in the churchyard. But this was not an official burial. The victim was murdered decades ago. At the same time, Detective Nikki Galena and her team are investigating the brutal slaying of local businesswoman Madeline Prospero. She was a member of an exclusive and secretive drinking club called The Briar Patch. But they’ve got no suspects and no one is telling them the truth. THIEVES ON THE FENS DI Nikki Galena gets a series of anonymous calls. She is told the place, time, and who will die. But the messages are in a secret language used only by villains. Nikki and her team must decode the riddles and work out where the threats are coming from. Meanwhile, the fens have been hit by a series of “designer burglaries.” It appears that a new gang of thieves are stealing to order. And things get very close to home when a friend of Nikki’s mother dies suddenly and perhaps suspiciously. CAPTIVE ON THE FENS The fens are burning and Detective Nikki Galena faces a cat-and-mouse battle with a killer arsonist. Someone is lighting fires. First they target homes and businesses, but then a body is found at one of the crime scenes. More fires are lit. And at each one a single person dies. But the victims have led spotless lives and apparently there’s no connection between them. Meanwhile, the town is facing a very peculiar threat from a group of sinister Satanists led by a charismatic businessman. Perfect for fans of Rachel Abbott, Robert Bryndza, Mel Sherratt, Angela Marsons, Colin Dexter, or Ruth Rendell. DISCOVER ONE OF THE WORLD’S FAVOURITE DETECTIVES THE DETECTIVE DI Nikki Galena: A police detective with nothing left to lose, she’s seen a girl die in her arms, and her daughter will never leave the hospital again. She’s got tough on the criminals she believes did this to her. THE SETTING The Lincolnshire Fens: great open skies brood over marshes, farmland, and nature reserves. It is not easy terrain for the Fenland Constabulary to police, due to the distances between some of the remote Fen villages, the dangerous and often misty lanes, and the poor telephone coverage. There are still villages where the oldest residents have never set foot outside their own farmland and a visit to the nearest town is a major event. But it has a strange airy beauty to it, and above it all are the biggest skies you’ve ever seen. What readers are saying about Joy’s books “As is usual with Joy's books, it is impossible to put them down, so if you have an appointment or you have work to do, don't pick one up!” Jo “They just keep getting better every time.” Scotia Woman “An excellent unstoppable rollercoaster of a read.” Roscoe “It is fast paced, completely believable, the characters have private lives and problems as well as their public and official duties.

True Crime: 12 Most Notorious Murder Stories


Scott Black - 2014
    Brilliantly written, well organised gripping page turner. A must add Mystery/thriller true crime book.

The Visitors: A True Haunting (True Hauntings Book 5)


Rebecca Patrick-Howard - 2016
    They didn’t believe in ghosts…but they would.Named for the row of weeping willows that lined the driveway,Willow Terrace was the most well-known house in the county. With its sweeping views, wraparound porches, and fourteen rooms it was the kind of place that was coveted. Built in the mid-nineteenth century, it was also one of the old houses in town. Stained windows, intricate wood carvings, and a winding staircase straight out of the movies– So why had it been empty for so long? The Sanders family had been watching the house for most of their lives. As a teenager, Piper had sworn she would own the house one day. When their small business began taking off, they finally had the chance to buy Willow Terrace and begin fixing up the sad, neglected place.They’d brushed off those rumors and stories they’d heard, tales of ghostly figures that appeared in windows, cries in the middle of the night, objects that flew across rooms... Ghosts weren’t real, right?Piper and Larry were about to take a journey into the world of the supernatural–a journey they’d never forget. They’d soon learn they weren’t the only ones living in their new house.And that their unearthly visitors might not be happy for the intrusion. Secret passageways, underground tunnels, an invisible child, demonic rituals, and a town’s haunting mystery…had they bitten off more than they could chew? Now the Sanders' family faced a difficult choice: make a run for it or stay and fight for the house they'd invested everything in. Based on a true story.

The Eric Ward Mysteries #1-7


Roy Lewis - 2020
    

FAM: Rolling in a London Girl Gang


Chyna Chyna - 2011
    When I was thirteen years old I became part of a girl gang. This is my story. Chyna was born in the middle of gangland UK. From a young age she saw people all around her in gangs. They had the status, the ghetto-fabulous look and the money. So when girls from a rival school started picking on Chyna and her friends, they decided to take control of their lives and form their own gang. They called it Nothing 2 Lose. Soon Chyna was caught up in a world of tiefing phones, shoplifting and shanks. She rolled tight with her fam. The risk of arrest and beatings was always present, but so were the rewards: fast p's, bare liquor and draw, and the thrill of being above the law. Then boys came into their lives, and Chyna and her friends were attracted to some of gangland's most notorious boys. Now Chyna and found herself in a very glamorous world with VIP tables at the most exclusive clubs, big p's lavished on bling and champagne. She was living the highlife as the girlfriend of one of London's most feared gangstas. The deeper she got into this world, the more she discovered the dark side. The guns, the vicious drug dealers, the constant threat of prison: Chyna knew she had to find a way out. But it would take a devastating tragedy - one that ripped apart her world- before Chyna found the courage to leave gangland behind once and for all.

Slow Light (Eddie Flynn Book 4)


Michael Donovan - 2018
    EDDIE FLYNN NOVEL FROM MICHAEL DONOVAN Cheating husbands. P.I. Eddie Flynn doesn't judge. He just brings back the evidence for a fee and lets the client do the judging. Not that the present fee is much. Young mother Lisa Elland can barely afford the bargain basement charge for a quick check on her husband. But pay she will: even bad news is better than not knowing whether she still has a marriage. And for Flynn the job is a nice filler before he shuts up shop for Christmas. But there's a problem. You can't catch a guy cheating until you find him. And Ray Elland isn't findable. He's disappeared completely with just an overnight bag and a sleazy excuse. He's nowhere to be found. No-one has seen him or heard from him. It's like he doesn't exist. And Flynn's quick investigation has hit the rocks. Then complications arise. Flynn is being followed. He's being threatened. And Lisa has stopped answering her phone. The quick investigation has just turned into a nightmare... The fourth P.I. Eddie Flynn novel from award-winning crime author Michael Donovan. WHAT BOOK REVIEWERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE EDDIE FLYNN SERIES... "Masterful... If you haven't been introduced to Eddie Flynn yet, be prepared." RED CITY REVIEW "A chilling thriller crafted with a fluid narrative style ... wild nightmarish scenes..." BOOKPLEASURES "A wonderful debut novel in a hugely competitive market" CUCKOO REVIEWS" Good old fashioned detective work. A slick, dynamic mystery. "KIRKUS REVIEWS" [With] more competition than ever in the crime-writing genre, Donovan's novel is a real winner..." LYTHAM ST ANNES EXPRESS "Brilliantly absorbing. Escapism at its best." POSTCARD REVIEWS "Humour ... violent confrontations ... well recommended. "EUROCRIME" Short chapters ... a brilliant use of format ... the [book] will haunt your days and nights" CUCKOO REVIEWS "Great concise writing style... fast paced action ... Donovan makes you feel as though you are uncovering the truth." NEWBOOKSMAG

A Lesson in Murder: A DC Oliver Cole Mystery (Book 4)


Alan Fisher - 2018
    Under pressure from Superintendent Fox, Oliver agrees to stage a week-long puzzle solving course for final year Hendon College graduates, showing them how he looks at the types of clues he’s had to deal with and setting some puzzle solving problems for the class. But minutes before the first session is held, the body of a young woman is fished out of the River Tyne. Torn between the responsibility of running the training course and helping with the case, Oliver struggles to focus on either. As a second body is found, fears of another serial killer on the loose force DCI Jack Collier to enlist Oliver’s help. But when a 3rd body is found in a familiar graveyard, Oliver begins to wonder if the killer is toying with him

Beneath the Deep


J.T. Cross - 2014
    Cross, acclaimed author of the LOST VALLEY, returns with BENEATH THE DEEP, an epic underwater science thriller. When Megan O’Brien, an archaeologist on a quest for a lost underwater civilization, and her treasure hunting partner, Matt Turner, rescue a disgraced physics professor, they stumble upon a man with a stunning scientific discovery—a location under the ocean where quantum physics fails. Joining forces with Sam DeCourcy, a wealthy undersea salvage expert, they form a crack exploration team to dive and drill beneath the ocean floor in the Bermuda Triangle. Danger arises when a rival team aims to get there first and they’re armed with explosives and a plan that could kill them all. Now, racing against their competition, the explorers discover remnants of a mysterious lost civilization, and then, the game changer unfurls: evidence of an ancient intelligent species—and they are not happy to have company. J.T. Cross weaves science fact with science fiction to create a believable, riveting epic adventure that will appeal to readers of Michael Crichton and fans of James Cameron's THE ABYSS. **Acclaim for J.T. Cross** “Pulse-pounding action, brilliant speculation, and the introduction of a lost world filled with horrors and wonders. J.T. Cross is a lot of writer.” ―J.R. Rain, #1 bestselling author of MOON DANCE and THE LOST ARK.

The Buzzing (A Narrowdale Novella)


Michael Omer - 2015
    But this is Narrowdale, and nothing’s ever quite normal. When two of the kids she is looking after disappear, things quickly spiral out of control. Now Roxanne's crawling around in old maintenance tunnels, catching glimpses of creepy happenings in the building's many apartments. In one of them lives a man with a dark, terrible secret, and Roxanne's path is on a collision course with his. And all around the man, there is a strange sound of buzzing…

True Colours (The Beatrice Stubbs Series Book 13)


JJ Marsh - 2021
    

The Haunting of Galsbury Inn: Haunted House


Caroline Clark - 2019
    He was a man who believed what he could see, but even he knew that something was very wrong. FREE with Kindle Unlimited. The Galsbury Inn is a magnificent structure, nestled in the idyllic English countryside. The place is rundown and spooky from being abandoned over the years. Then there were the rumors about deaths and disappearances. Some say the first owner tortured and killed people, including his own wife, but that happened a hundred years ago, or more, and besides, there’s no such things as ghosts. Only Charles may have to change his mind. Based on the Inn’s history, Harriet has a hunch that something more sinister—and paranormal—is at play. She’s a paranormal investigator, an amateur sure, and eagerly jumps on the chance to investigate the Galsbury. But soon, she quickly realizes what she’s playing with is far out of her league, and she’s a bit in over her head. But she’s persistent and won’t let a poltergeist intimidate her into heading back home with her tail between her legs. With the help of an unwitting policeman, Harriet takes on the Galsbury and its secrets. Is she strong enough to face the Inn’s horrible past and find the truth? Or will the spirit that resides within scare her away, or kill her in the process? Also by Caroline Clark: Don’t Close Your Eyes The Spirit Guide Series: The Haunting of Seafield House The Haunting on the Hillside The Haunting of Oldfield Drive The Ghosts of RedRise House 4 book box set Single Books: The Haunting of Brynlee House Daddy Won’t Kill You The Spirit Behind You The Haunting of Shadow Hill House