Book picks similar to
Judged by Aime Austin


mystery
fiction
contemporary
ebook

What Lies in Paradise


Leah Cupps - 2020
    One of them could be the killer. Instagram Influencer Sydney Evans carefully curates her enviable public persona. Despite being freshly widowed, she’s eager to strike a pose at her best friend’s extravagant destination nuptials. But Sydney’s feed goes dark when she blacks out on the plane, awakening to discover another guest poisoned to death. With the FBI keen to use Sydney as an insider, she takes the arm of a rookie undercover agent hoping to capture something incriminating. But a deadly run-in exposes a shocking criminal underbelly lurking beneath her own picture-perfect marriage. And if she doesn’t solve the case before her friends tie the knot, the culprit will make sure her next selfie is her last. Can Sydney catch a murderer or will the wedding become a funeral? What Lies In Paradise is a fast-paced standalone thriller. If you like real-world issues, lavish socialite parties, and electrifying twists and turns, then you’ll love Leah Cupps’ provocative mystery.

Lost And Found


Amy Shojai - 2012
    But can she team up with a service dog to save a missing child and catch a murderer?Animal behaviorist September Day protects her broken heart by keeping everyone at arm’s length. Still distraught over her husband’s death in the line of duty, she heads back to her Texas home to launch a dog-training business. But her grief takes a back seat when her autistic nephew goes missing in a freak blizzard.Partnering with the boy’s support pup Shadow, September uncovers a shocking conspiracy hiding a deadly “miracle drug.” Hounded by vengeful enemies, human and dog must learn to work together and sniff out the source of corruption before more vulnerable kids die.Can September and Shadow forge a bond and stop a ruthless conspiracy and relentless killer?Lost And Found is the first action-packed installment in the gripping September and Shadow series. If you like dark suspense, novice detectives, and courageous animals, then you’ll love Amy Shojai’s roller-coaster thrillers.

Closure


Randall Wood - 2009
    Special Agent Jack Randall of the FBI finds himself appointed to track down and stop the shooter. Not by his superiors, but by the killer himself.As more bodies fall the shooter takes his message to the press, earning the support of the public with his choice of targets and confounding the FBI at every turn. From the desert of Nevada to the urban jungle of New York City, Jack and his team follow the trail of bodies and haunting messages left behind by the killer. With the pressure to find him mounting on Jack, the assassin’s crimes grow bolder, and his message more sinister and closer to home.It becomes clear to Jack that in order to find the shooter, he may have to look inside his own past, and become the man he was years ago.

Devolution


Lars Emmerich - 2014
    Her world quickly spins out of control when a shadowy organization kidnaps her lover. Her frantic efforts to save him plunge her into a tangled web of dark secrets, double agents, and a shady US senator on the run for his life. Desperate to rescue the love of her life, Sam finds herself in the crosshairs of the world’s most formidable secret organization, and smack in the middle of an economic terror group's plot to cripple the American financial system. Can she save her lover? Can she save herself? She’s used to fighting dirty, but this time, as an army of spies prepares to deliver a crushing blow to the global economy, Sam may be in over her head. With vivid characters and nonstop intrigue, DEVOLUTION is a wild ride full of tradecraft, suspense, steamy sex, and spine-tingling action.

Beyond the Grave


R.W. Wallace - 2021
    A small bump in the ground next to her grave marks former police officer Robert’s last resting place.And in thirty years, no visitors for either of them.Confined within the cemetery borders and yearning for closure to move on, the two ghosts can’t go after the people who killed them.Until Clothilde receives her very first visitor — and along with it, the means to escape the cemetery.Beyond the Grave is the first novel in the Ghost Detective series, following Robert and Clothilde in their search for justice.

Red Tide


Peg Brantley - 2012
    It was Jamie Taylor and her dog’s job to uncover them. Trouble is, they dug up some new secrets as well. While some families would find closure, others would soon find their lives ripped apart.Assistant Special Agent in Charge Nicholas Grant becomes embroiled in the case while coming to terms with his own demons.A madman watches from the distance while officials expose his clandestine playground—his private playground—much sooner than he planned.But with any luck, not soon enough.

Too Close For Comfort


Adam Croft - 2010
     DS Wendy Knight is Mildenheath CID’s newest murder squad recruit. In trying to solve the murder of Ella Barrington, a known prostitute, Wendy comes to realise that she has a serial killer on her hands. As the murder investigation continues, Wendy begins to suspect that her new love interest, Robert Ludford, may have more than a passing interest in the murders in Mildenheath. The complete truth, however, is a little too close for comfort...

Outcomes and Perspective: The Complete Alexis Parker Prequel Series


G.K. Parks - 2014
    This compilation novel is comprised of three novellas: Assignment Zero, Agent Prerogative, and The Final Chapter, making this the complete Alexis Parker prequel series.Assignment Zero: You may know Alexis Parker as a top-notch investigator and security consultant, but before joining the private sector, she was a federal agent.At approximately 90 pages, this novella chronicles Agent Parker's beginning from her last few days at Quantico through her very first mission as an underling to S.S.A. Mark Jablonsky. As a probationary agent, Alex is learning the ins and outs of conducting a proper investigation, but all bets are off when she ends up undercover with her academy rival, Michael Carver. Suspicious shipments keep surfacing, and the Los Angeles FBI field office is forced to partner with the Office of International Operations to conduct their investigation. A restaurant employee, a wine collector, and the Russian mafia are all pieces of this daunting puzzle. Weapons are being smuggled into the country, and it's up to Alex and Michael to determine the source before things reach an unsettling end.Agent Prerogative:Alexis Parker is close to finishing her two years of training at the Office of International Operations. Having gone undercover to thwart arms dealers, working with Interpol to bring down a group of forgers, and dealing with more paperwork than anyone could ever imagine, she's ready to become a full-fledged federal agent.Returning from an extended overseas mission, she discovers her rival, Michael Carver, has permanently transferred to the OIO. Her unsteady partnership with her Quantico competitor must fall to the wayside as Alex and Michael are forced to work side by side. This time the FBI is trying to identify and track a group of ATM bandits. The only lead in the case is from an anonymous tip which no one believed to be legitimate until another ATM machine is hijacked. But is the OIO team spread too thin to stop the bandits from going on another crime spree?The Final Chapter:In the explosive conclusion to the Alexis Parker prequel series, the OIO is hot on the trail of a bomber. So far, there has only been a single detonation at an impound lot, but with a threatening phone call promising more fireworks, it is a race against time to identify the bomber and stop him before there's more destruction. Agent Parker has been on the job for over four years, chasing suspects, identifying leads, and becoming close with her federal agent brethren, but a single moment may alter the outcome of everyone's fate.This book contains a bonus excerpt from the first full-length novel in the Alexis Parker series, Likely Suspects.

Knee Deep: Florida Keys Crime Thriller Series (Cam Derringer Book 1)


Mac Fortner - 2014
    The trail is getting colder until a beautiful, powerful woman shows up and works her way into Cam's life. She lies to him about everything from her name to her game but seems to be guiding him toward his goal. Follow Cam through his worst nightmare to his eventual understanding of how sometimes things aren’t as they seem. An action-packed adventure of love and murder.

Found, Near Water


Katherine Hayton - 2014
    Her daughter is missing – lost for four days – but no one has noticed; no one has complained; no one has been searching.As the victim support officer assigned to her case, Christine Emmett puts aside her own problems as she tries to guide Rena through the maelstrom of her daughter’s disappearance.A task made harder by an ex-husband desperate for control; a paedophile on early-release in the community; and a psychic who knows more than seems possible.And intertwined throughout, the stories of six women; six daughters lost."I thought that not knowing was the worst thing I could ever endure. Not knowing if she was in trouble or needing my help or in pain. I worried that she’d been taken by someone that would hurt her, then I worried that she’d been taken by someone who would love her and care for her and in a year or two she’d have forgotten I ever existed. Not knowing was killing me.The police found her body stuffed into an old recycling bin out the back of a sleep-out. My beautiful girl had been bent to fit as though she was just a piece of rubbish, something to be disposed of.When I went to the hospital to identify my beautiful girl’s broken body - that was worse than not knowing. When I buried her in the cemetery and compared the size of the gravesite to the other freshly buried bodies - that was worse than not knowing. When I drank myself to sleep on the anniversary of her sixth birthday, and realised that I would likely be doing that until my life ended - that was worse than not knowing."

False Impressions


Sandra Nikolai - 2012
    In what a Quebec detective calls a crime of passion, startling evidence surfaces to implicate Michael Elliott, a young investigative reporter who'd rather rub elbows with scumbags than live the posh lifestyle he inherited.Clutched out of her comfort zone, Megan is flung into Michael's dark world of criminal investigation. As they make a last-ditch attempt to prove their innocence, an elusive enemy closes in and threatens their lives. Who wants them out of the way and why?

The Reacher Experiment: The Complete Series Books 1-9


Jude Hardin - 2019
    And the assassins determined to track him down... Rock Wahlman: Forty-one years old, United States Navy Master at Arms, E-8, retired. Grew up in an orphanage, recently discovered that he is the product of a human cloning experiment, an exact genetic duplicate of a former army officer named Jack Reacher. Now someone wants all evidence of the experiment to be erased, which means that someone wants Wahlman to be erased. He’s on the run, desperate to survive, desperate to learn the truth about why all this is happening… This discounted collection includes: Dead Ringer ★★★★★ “If you are a Jack Reacher fan, I suggest you try this series.” ★★★★★ “This is a great twist on the Jack Reacher series!” Moving Target ★★★★★ “Jude Hardin is a fabulously creative author…” ★★★★★ “Fast paced action book!” No Escape ★★★★★ “Really enjoyed it!” ★★★★★ “I enjoy the fact that this series of books maintains a great thread.” Kill Shot ★★★★★ “I have found that these books are very hard to put down.” ★★★★★ “Another fast-moving thriller by author Jude Hardin that enticed me to read it all in a single sitting.” 357 Sunset ★★★★★ “Same high quality as always.” ★★★★★ “Terrific read, I look forward to the next one.” Redline ★★★★★ “Another masterful usage of the Jack Reacher character.” ★★★★★ “Good read.” End Game ★★★★★ “Kept me up most of the night until I finished it.” ★★★★★ “Loved the ending.” Ricochet ★★★★★ “Good storyline, suspenseful and very funny at times.” ★★★★★ “I am looking forward to more.” Gone ★★★★★ “Absolutely love this author’s imagination and where the story went.” ★★★★★ “Great job!” Note: While the name Jack Reacher and some of the supporting characters and story situations are used with author Lee Child’s permission, the Jack Reacher character remains offstage in The Reacher Experiment thrillers. Also by Jude Hardin The Nicholas Colt series: COLT LADY 52 POCKET-47 CROSSCUT SNUFF TAG 9 RATTLED (Short story) KEY DEATH BLOOD TATTOO SYCAMORE BLUFF THE JACK REACHER FILES: FUGITIVE THE JACK REACHER FILES: VELOCITY (Short story) THE BLOOD NOTEBOOKS Note: Although published at a later date, the events in COLT and LADY 52 precede those in

Don't Speak


J.L. Brown - 2016
    Words can hurt you. Ambitious, twenty-something FBI Special Agent Jade Harrington cuts her vacation short to investigate the murder of a conservative radio personality only to discover that he may be the victim of a serial killer. Whitney Fairchild, the elegant and charismatic Democratic senator from Missouri, campaigns in a cutthroat race for president of the United States. Cole Brennan, the most popular conservative talk-show host in the nation, battles nightly to save his country and help the incumbent Republican president maintain his ‘inner conservative’ to win re-election. The lives of Jade, Whitney, Cole, and the killer—who has an agenda of his own—are on a collision course. That course will not just impact them each in ways they could never have foreseen, but also the future of the United States of America. Amidst a backdrop of contemporary power politics driven by the influence of talk radio and social media, Don't Speak thrills even as it explores many of the complex issues facing Americans today.Prescient, Don’t Speak was completed a year before the 2016 US presidential election.

Cozy Up To Death


Colin Conway - 2020
    The cute shop has a loyal customer base as well as an ornery cat.Unfortunately, Brody doesn’t know the first thing about running a legitimate business, he doesn’t want to be in the small town, and he hates cats. On top of all that, he hasn’t read a book since high school.When a cute woman walks into the store, he thinks his bad luck is about to change. But as she starts asking about the previous owner’s whereabouts, his safe new existence begins to unravel.For Brody Steele is a man with a secret he must protect at all costs. The U.S. Government has invested a lot to keep it hidden, and his enemies will stop at nothing to expose him.Does happiness or death await Brody in this charming seaside community?If you like stories with a solid male lead, wonderfully odd characters, and a troublesome cat, then this book is for you.

Tesla


Jason Walker - 2019
    They are both devoted parents, living with their daughter, Dana, on a small island off the coast of Florida. They seem to have the perfect family life, but they are hiding a dangerous secret: they both work for the Orange Corporation, an umbrella company of the CIA controlled by the shadow government. From aliens to giants, they have seen all that the Hidden Hand has kept from the world. Almost.When a routine recovery mission puts Darren face-to-face with original Tesla documents, he makes an impulsive decision which will alter the course of not only his own fate but the fates of his wife and daughter forever. What will Darren do with the Tesla notes and diagrams? Will the shadow government discover what he has done? And will Anna turn her husband over to the Hidden Hand, or will she stick with him for better or worse—until death do them part?