Book picks similar to
Murder Upstream: A Detective Mystery by Mark Hazard
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Beginnings
Greyson Bryan - 2016
Duncan Luke is no stranger to impossible situations. A high-priced lawyer and expert in business intelligence, he knows how to extricate his clients from sticky situations while saving--or making--them millions. To be the best, he's sacrificed everything, including his family, but now he wants out. He's quitting his lucrative practice for academia and time with his autistic son, Sam. But his wife isn't on board and files for divorce, forcing him to fight for custody. With mounting legal bills, the only way to keep his son is to take on one last client. He plans to do the job, get out and get home to Sam, but his client, Ghislaine Bingham, has other ideas. Ghislaine has a crisis of her own. Her cheating husband died and left her in a turf war with her stepson over the family business, Bingham Investment Group. She stands to lose more than money. Her reputation and life's work are tied up in the company. Her self-worth is on the line and only Duncan has the expertise to see her to victory. When Duncan and Ghislaine meet, sparks fly, but neither can walk away. Ghislaine sends Duncan to Tokyo to convince his old friend, Taro Takayama, that Ghislaine is the best person to run Bingham. But Taka first needs Duncan to fix his Panama problems. Duncan races to Panama where he is kidnapped and beaten, stumbles into a sex-trafficking ring and rescues a beautiful woman. Unaware of the danger in Panama City and frustrated by Duncan's unorthodox ideas, Ghislaine threatens to pull him off the job. From L.A.'s towering palms and Tokyo's steamy noodle bars to London high-finance and Panamanian corruption, BIG:BEGINNINGS is a thrilling, non-stop ride around the globe. As Duncan flies across time zones doing battle for Ghislaine, risking his life and reputation, Sam slips further away. Duncan must finish the job to get Sam back, but time is running out.
Justification for Murder
Elin Barnes - 2013
He’s handed a hit-and-run that quickly reveals itself as a brazen attempted murder—exactly the kind of case he was trying to avoid. Why would anyone want Saffron Meadows dead? An unexpected desire to protect her forces Lynch to stick with the case. Meanwhile, seasoned Detective Erik Sorensen and his intern work a string of bizarre suicides with too much in common to be a mere coincidence. What could drive these people to carve their own flesh out? As mysterious murders and suspicious suicides stack up in Silicon Valley, Lynch and his colleagues must connect the dots between the cases before more people die and panic spreads. Could all this be part of a cover-up? Is this just a hit man crossing names off of a list, or has one Valley startup gone too far?Could there ever be a justification for murder?
The Debt Collector
Jon Mills - 2015
Four years later, Jack is free and he wants out of the game, but his boss won't let him go. Forced to take on one last job to make amends for what landed him in prison, he travels to the small town of Rockland Cove, Maine. There, he not only discovers that the target and money have disappeared; he finds himself falling for a damaged woman, and befriending an unruly son left behind. Under mounting pressure from his boss and local police--as well as the ghosts of his past--he must unravel the mystery and decide where his loyalties lie...before it's too late.
The Inside Passage
Pendelton C. Wallace - 2014
The Inside Passage could be in today’s headlines. Ted Higuera, the son of Mexican immigrants, grew up in East LA. An unlikely football scholarship was his ticket out of the barrio. Chris Hardwick was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. The two become college roommates and best friends for life. As a graduation present, Chris’ father offers the boys the use of his sailboat for a summer cruise up the Inside Passage. Chris brings his girlfriend, Meagan O’Donnell along for the cruise. Ted can’t stand Meagan; he thinks she’s just interested in Chris for his money. The three have a series of adventures until they stumble upon an al-Qaeda plot to blow up a cruise ship, then the clock starts ticking. The terrorist must eliminate the witnesses before they can report the plot to the authorities. Ted, Chris and Meagan must prevent the attack on the cruise ship with Chris’ father and his new bride aboard. But what can three unarmed kids to do prevent the terrorist assault?
Lay Death at Her Door
Elizabeth Buhmann - 2013
In 1986, while Kate was a college student at Sweet Briar in western Virginia, she was raped and witnessed a murder. Kate’s eyewitness testimony convicts a man who’s released more than 20 years later based on DNA evidence. The development isn’t a complete surprise to Kate, who has lived with the knowledge that she perjured herself. Her life since the trial has been a disappointment, and her social life is limited by her possessive and creepy father, Pop, who keeps her on a tight leash. That constraint becomes even more difficult to bear when Kate, who works as a landscaper, falls for a gardener, Tony, and hopes she has found the love of her life. Things don’t go smoothly, and more blood is shed along the way to a jaw-dropping, but logical, climax that will make veteran mystery readers eager for more of Buhmann’s work. Big Al's Books & Pals 2014 Readers' Choice Awards: Mystery Nominee Twenty years ago, Kate Cranbrook’s eyewitness testimony sent the wrong man to prison for rape and murder. When new evidence exonerates him, Kate says that in the darkness and confusion, she must have mistaken her attacker’s identity. She is lying. Kate would like nothing better than to turn her back on the past, but she is trapped in a stand-off with the real killer. When a body turns up on her doorstep, she resorts to desperate measures to free herself once and for all from a secret that is ruining her life.
Secrets & Suspense
M.R. GrahamTheresa Sederholt - 2019
Thrilling suspense. Sinister happenings. Dive into crime and corruption, adventure and avarice, with this limited edition collection of nine fast-paced whodunits. Follow hardened detectives and amateur sleuths as they chase down clues and risk it all to solve the case. Discover ruthless villains and unfortunate scapegoats who will thrust you deep into worlds of murder and mayhem. Whether you prefer fast-paced thrillers, cozy murder mysteries, or historical whodunits, this collection comes with plenty of twists to keep you on the edge of your seat… plus hours of binge-worthy reading to leave you turning the pages long after dark! Fans of James Patterson, Janet Evanovich, and Gillian Flynn will devour this collection where suspense, lies, and secrets are just the beginning. Featuring stories from… USA Today bestselling author, M.R. Graham USA Today bestselling author Sarah Biglow USA Today bestselling author Heather Marie Adkins Amy McKinley Amy Richie Emma Calin Alan Chaput Jess Reece Theresa Sederholt
Motive
Alan McDermott - 2020
When the opportunity to work for a Manchester gangland figure arises, he jumps at the chance.Retired DCI James Knight is arrested for a murder he swears he didn't commit.Scott Davison is recovering from a traumatic incident when Kelly Stone walks into his life. Is it a chance meeting, or is she part of the past Scott is trying to escape?Karen Harper has killed before, and she’s planning to kill again…and again.Their lives are entwined, and it’s up to Detective Inspector John Latimer to unravel the threads before it becomes personal.Motive is the latest thriller from million-copy bestselling author Alan McDermott, creator of the explosive Tom Gray and Eva Driscoll series.
Stillness
Eldon Farrell - 2018
Pulled from her training with the Epidemic Intelligence Service, Dr. Lynne Bosworth is tapped to head the investigation. Many questions surround the outbreak, not the least of which is how did plague find its way to the heartland of America? Determined to find the answers and her own way out of the long shadow cast by her father, Lynne embarks for Iowa. Unable to isolate an index case of bubonic plague, patient zero is traced to Nikolai Markov; an old Russian bio warfare scientist. Rumors of a bioterror attack are rampant. Under examination, the bacteria present Lynne with many anomalies but few answers. The antibiotic resistance noted in the field is absent in the lab, while a synthetic gene is found that seemingly has no purpose. For her superiors it’s enough to deem the outbreak a biological attack, a conclusion that Lynne does not share. For her, something about the whole incident remains…elusive. In search of evidence to either prove or disprove the bioterror claim, she crosses paths with FBI Special Agent Caleb Fine. Together, they come to believe that something other than a biological attack is going on in Stillness, and that the answer to what may lie in solving the fifteen year old murders of Bobby and Maggie Sullivan. As the body count rises and the pressure mounts, they delve deeper into the shadowy past of this quiet town; in the process exposing secrets long thought forgotten until finally uncovering the shocking truth behind the cause of the outbreak.
Chasing the Monkey King
D.C. Alexander - 2016
government investigator vanishes while on assignment in China. Former detective Lars Severin is hired by the investigator's family—mysterious scions of an international trade dynasty—to find out what happened to her. Was her disappearance the result of a random act of violence or something more sinister? Did she uncover something that drove a hidden enemy to make her disappear? Could she still be alive? Severin's quest casts him into a labyrinth of double-dealing and conspiracy, taking him from the misty streets and alleys of Seattle's old Chinatown neighborhood, to the corridors of power in Washington, D.C., to the dazzling city of Shanghai, to the ancient heart of rural China. The case grows more complicated with each step Severin takes, until all at once he realizes that his own life is in great danger.
Rasputin's Legacy
Lee Jackson - 2017
A must read."
Joe Galloway, NYT Bestselling Author. A backdrop to betrayal. A playground for power. A rogue Russian general stages a coup. His goal: the Russian arsenal. Nuclear annihilation menaces. To stop him, the US president sends covert operator Atcho deep inside Siberia cloaked as a Russian intelligence officer. A relentless investigative reporter threatens his mission. Worse yet, Atcho’s beautiful fiancée, a former CIA operative, goes rogue to save him. A nail biter that Carmine Zozzora, producer of Die Hard with a Vengeance calls, “Pure Gold.”
The Death Of Me
Natalie Hames - 2017
He studied. He planned. Every detail meticulously organised. Every detail perfect. The basement was ready, now all he needed was the girl. Grace Dalton was just fourteen years old when she was snatched from Greenwich Park on her way back from school. A beautiful, shy, but socially awkward girl, she would do anything to stay out of trouble and away from her bullies. Pressed for time and her tormentors blocking her usual route home, she makes a split second decision with catastrophic consequences. After facing public humiliation from a previous investigation, Detective Constable Philip Harris once again finds himself under savage media scrutiny when he's assigned to Grace's case. Determined to find her and solve the case to gain back his credibility, his frustrations mount when he repeatedly finds himself hampered at every turn. With no other suspects and the case rapidly becoming cold, the finger of blame points to Tom, Grace's father. Struggling to keep his personal resentment towards Tom away from the case and the press, DC Harris embarks on his own investigations to find who the real kidnapper is against the instructions from his superior officers. But when his digging leads him to a mysterious concealed road protected by impenetrable iron gates he soon realises his investigations have not only endangered himself, but also his family. Pitched alone against a highly organised crime syndicate and not knowing which side his colleagues are on, he's faced with some tough decisions. Either drop Grace's case, declaring it cold and allowing Tom to take the fall, or embark on a highly dangerous quest for her safe return. Time's running out, which will he choose?
Vow of Silence (The Jill Shannon Murder #2)
Chris Patchell - 2018
Five years after the brutal slaying of her husband, software executive Jill Shannon is ready to take the next step in her life. But with her wedding to prosecuting attorney Conner Manning just eight weeks away, her future father-in-law’s political ambitions for her fiancé threaten all her hopes. Jill’s past holds dark secrets. Secrets she can’t afford to have exposed under the relentless lights of a political campaign. When Phoenix Detective David Shaw turns up at Jill’s door asking questions about a reporter's murder, he has no idea what a lethal Pandora’s Box he’s just opened. Was the womanizing reporter killed by a jealous husband, or was it related to his drug use? Or did it have something to do with the secret expose the reporter was working on? Jill Shannon looks like a dead-end lead but Shaw can’t shake the feeling the beautiful widow has secrets she’s not sharing. Jill is caught between the sins of her past and the shattered hopes for her future. Shaw finds himself drawn deeper into a twisted labyrinth of lies and danger. One thing is clear: some vows are made out loud in front of witnesses. But some vows are made in silence, and witnesses can’t be left alive.
No Game For a Dame
M. Ruth Myers - 2011
Moving through streets where people line up at soup kitchens, Maggie draws information from sources others overlook: The waitress at the dime store lunch counter where she has breakfast; a ragged newsboy; the other career girls at her rooming house. Her digging gets her chloroformed and left in a ditch behind the wheel of her DeSoto. She makes her way to an upscale bordello and gets tea – and information – from the madam herself. A gunman puts a bullet through Maggie’s hat. Her shutterbug pal on the evening paper warns her off. A new cop whose presence unsettles her thinks she’s crooked. Before she finds all the answers she needs, she faces a half-crazed man with a gun, and a far more lethal point-blank killer. If you like Robert B. Parker's hard boiled Spencer series and strong women sleuths, don't miss this one-of-a-kind Ohio detective from a time in United States history when dames wore hats -- but seldom a Smith & Wesson.
The Lanvin Murders
Angela M. Sanders - 2014
But when Joanna finds a key in a 1930s Lanvin coat cast off by an ex-showgirl, everything changes. The elderly woman turns up dead, and Joanna is pulled into a long-ago drama of back room deals, blackmail, and lost love. She must find a very real—and present day—killer before she becomes his next victim. “As you dive into this intriguing mystery novel featuring vintage clothing dealer/sleuth Joanna Hayworth and a quirky cast of characters, prepare for an entertaining ride through long-buried crimes and Portland lore to solve the mystery of 'the woman in the Lanvin coat.' A truly enjoyable read!" --Christine Finlayson, author of Tip of a Bone, a Pacific Northwest mystery "Slip on a pair of pink mules and a silk robe, mix up a shaker of martinis, and relax with this delightful mystery set in a Portland vintage clothing store. Populated by a charming heroine and a flock of odd characters, this engaging tale will satisfy the sleuth in you as well as the fashionista." --Ann Littlewood, author of Endangered, a zoo-dunnit
At First Light
Barbara Nickless - 2021
Archaic clues. A visionary killer. In this heart-stopping novel by the Wall Street Journal and Amazon Charts bestselling author of the Sydney Rose Parnell series, words can kill.On the muddy banks of the Calumet River, a body has been found posed next to a series of mysterious glyphs and bearing wounds from a ritualistic slaying. Chicago detective Addie Bisset knows only one man who can decipher the message left by the killer: her friend Dr. Evan Wilding. A brilliant forensic semiotician, Evan decodes the etchings as Viking Age runes. They suggest either human sacrifice or righteous punishment. But to what god? And for what sins?Only one thing is clear from the disturbing runic riddles: there are more victims to come.As Evan races to determine the identity of the Viking Poet, he and Addie uncover the killer’s most terrifying secret yet: the motive. This startling discovery puts Evan’s life in mortal danger, and verse by ancient verse, time is running out.