Book picks similar to
Buried For Good by Alex Coombs
scotland
crime
detective-thriller
crime-and-conspiracy
The Perfect Life
Valerie Keogh - 2020
It all seems so perfect but when her two children leave for university, she realises her life has become dull and empty. When her husband refuses to go away with her, Molly decides to go alone. But what should have been a relaxing break turns into a nightmare. Back at home in London, Molly tries to put it all behind her but when the police arrive at her door and tell her that a body has been found with connections to her, Molly realises that her perfect life is under threat…
No Man's Land
Neil Broadfoot - 2018
For DCI Malcolm Ford it's like nothing he's ever seen before, the savagery of the crime makes him want to catch the murderer before he strikes again. For reporter Donna Blake it's a shot at the big time, a chance to get her career back on track and prove all the doubters wrong. But for close protection specialist Connor Fraser it's merely a grisly distraction from the day job. But then another bloodied and broken corpse is found, this time in the shadow of the Wallace Monument - and with it, a message. One Connor has received before, during his time as a police officer in Belfast.With Ford facing mounting political and public pressure to make an arrest and quell fears the murders are somehow connected to heightened post-Brexit tensions, Connor is drawn into a race against time to stop another murder. But to do so, he must question old loyalties, confront his past and unravel a mystery that some would sacrifice anything - and anyone - to protect.
From Dundee International Book Prize and Bloody Scotland book of the year nominee Neil Broadfoot comes No Man's Land, the first in the white-knuckle Connor Fraser series.
Lightning Strike
William Kent Krueger - 2021
In the summer of 1963, it is the whole world to 12-year-old Cork O’Connor, its rhythms as familiar as his own heartbeat. But when Cork stumbles upon the body of a man he revered hanging from a tree in an abandoned logging camp, it is the first in a series of events that will cause him to question everything he took for granted about his hometown, his family, and himself.Cork’s father, Liam O’Connor, is Aurora’s sheriff, and it is his job to confirm that the man’s death was the result of suicide, as all the evidence suggests. In the shadow of his father’s official investigation, Cork begins to look for answers on his own. Together, father and son face the ultimate test of choosing between what their heads tell them is true and what their hearts know is right.In this masterful story of a young man and a town on the cusp of change, beloved novelist William Kent Krueger shows that some mysteries can be solved even as others surpass our understanding.
Sleep
C.L. Taylor - 2019
But crushing insomnia, terrifying night terrors and memories of that terrible night are making it impossible. If only she didn’t feel so guilty…To escape her past, Anna takes a job at a hotel on the remote Scottish island of Rum, but when seven guests join her, what started as a retreat from the world turns into a deadly nightmare.Each of the guests have a secret but one of them is lying – about who they are and why they’re on the island. There’s a murderer staying in the Bay View hotel. And they’ve set their sights on Anna.Seven strangers. Seven secrets. One deadly lie.Someone’s going to sleep and never wake up…
Mummy’s Little Secret
M.A. Hunter - 2021
Until Daisy whispers four little words that send ice seeping down Jess’s spine…She’s not my mum.Determined to save Daisy, Jess becomes obsessed with unearthing Morag’s secrets. As she digs ever deeper, her friends and family start to question her own increasingly paranoid behaviour…Four little words can end a life.But Jess knows what she heard and she’s certain the fear in Daisy’s eyes was real. Of course she isn’t imagining things… Or is she?Mummy’s Little Secret is a nerve-shredding new psychological thriller from the author of The Missing Children Case Files – perfect for fans of Karin Slaughter and C.L. Taylor.
Destroy Me
Karen Cole - 2021
It looks exactly like her, and to make matters worse, the victim is her childhood best friend, Charlie.The following day, the police arrive at her doorstep to question her. She hadn't seen or spoken to Charlie in years, but could the secrets of their past finally be coming back to haunt her?Desperate to find out who gave the police her description and to protect her five-year-old son, Cat investigates. She knows she is innocent and will stop at nothing to prove it. But some secrets are best left buried...
The Guesthouse
Abbie Frost - 2020
One Killer. A holiday to remember…A dark and addictive psychological thriller about seven strangers who find themselves cut off from civilization in a remote guesthouse in Ireland…Not all the guests will survive their stay…You use an app, called Cloud BNB, to book a room online. And on a cold and windy afternoon, you arrive at The Guesthouse, a dramatic old building on a remote stretch of hillside in Ireland. You are expecting a relaxing break, but you find something very different. Something unimaginable. Because a killer has lured you and six other guests here and now you can’t escape. One thing’s for certain: not all of you will come back from this holiday alive…
Deadly Silence
O.M.J. Ryan - 2019
But then she stepped outside the law.Now, demoted and suffering with PTSD, she finds herself facing the deadliest threat of her career -- a serial killer who is preying on vulnerable women, murdering them in a shocking and bizarre ritual.A master of deception, he selects his victims at random. Or so it seems. But as Phillips investigates, she begins to see a method in the killer's madness. Perhaps these victims aren't random at all...As the pressure mounts, can Phillips find the link between these ritual murders before the killer strikes again -- or will her dogged determination to solve the case bring his deadly silence to her door?Deadly Silence is a gripping mystery thriller that will keep you up all night as it races towards its shocking conclusion. Perfect for fans of Robert Bryndza, Angela Marsons and Peter James.
Snared
Ed James - 2015
When a dog breeder in and around Dundee disappears, DS Dodds and her team are tasked with finding out who is behind the attacks.But as the crimes escalate, and the attacker’s message becomes clearer, Vicky begins to question where her own sympathies lie. From the acclaimed author of the Scott Cullen series, Snared is an unyielding police procedural that fearlessly examines the uncomfortable grey areas between right and wrong, and between “us” and “them.”
Swan Deception
Glede Browne Kabongo - 2014
Shelby Cooper seems to have it all-- a successful career as a leading scientist in her field, two adorable kids, and a loving husband who is poised to become the next CEO of a multi-billion dollar corporation. But soon, this picture perfect family portrait is shattered by a series of disturbing events: Shelby is almost run off the road by an aggressive driver, and shortly thereafter, she receives a series of anonymous calls from a frightening stranger who claims she must pay for her sins. To make matters worse, this diabolical enemy who is always one step ahead saves his most shocking move for last--a brutal murder with Shelby's fingerprints all over the murder weapon. Who is Shelby Cooper and what secrets has she been keeping? Who desperately wants to destroy her family and why? The truth may be too horrifying to be believed.A Library Journal SELF-e Best Book of 2016 Pick
The Hunting Party
Lucy Foley - 2018
. . and murder and mayhem ensue.All of them are friends. One of them is a killer.During the languid days of the Christmas break, a group of thirtysomething friends from Oxford meet to welcome in the New Year together, a tradition they began as students ten years ago. For this vacation, they’ve chosen an idyllic and isolated estate in the Scottish Highlands—the perfect place to get away and unwind by themselves.They arrive on December 30th, just before a historic blizzard seals the lodge off from the outside world.Two days later, on New Year’s Day, one of them is dead.The trip began innocently enough: admiring the stunning if foreboding scenery, champagne in front of a crackling fire, and reminiscences about the past. But after a decade, the weight of secret resentments has grown too heavy for the group’s tenuous nostalgia to bear. Amid the boisterous revelry of New Year’s Eve, the cord holding them together snaps.Now one of them is dead . . . and another of them did it.Keep your friends close, the old adage goes. But just how close is too close?
Stranger
Karen Perry - 2021
Abi Holland considers herself lucky.She's happily married, and her oldest daughter, Eva, is all set for a place at a top university.She just can't help but worry about Beth.So when foreign exchange student Corinne comes to stay, it's a relief her lonely younger daughter finally has someone to talk to.It's only when Beth starts to misbehave, that Abi begins to wonder how much they really know about their guest.Because the Holland family have lots of secrets, and Corinne is quietly listening to them all.And once they come out, there's no going back...
The Orchid Girls
Lesley Sanderson - 2018
'I will never tell anyone, I swear. This is between you and me. Now you swear too.' They called them the Orchid Girls. Grace. Charlotte. Molly. One of them is in love. One of them is a liar. One of them is dead. One day, three became two – and no one knows the truth. What really happened that summer? The Orchid Girls is a breathless, gripping and twisty story of love, obsession and dark secrets. Fans of K.L. Slater, The Wife Between Us and Paula Hawkins’ The Girl on the Train – read this one with the lights on…
Follow Me
Angela Clarke - 2015
She cultivates contacts online, writes for free for digital publications, and earns minimum wage as a barista. She’s been taught to “seize the story,” and she takes a reckless chance when a face from her past leads to a juicy scoop. Freddie hasn’t seen her old friend Nasreen Cudmore in years. But when she learns Nasreen is a police officer after a chance encounter outside her coffee shop, Freddie makes a snap decision to follow her when Nasreen gets an urgent callout. Impersonating a forensics officer, Freddie visits Nasreen's crime scene where a man’s body lies slumped over his computer. With the police banned from, and unfamiliar with, social media, it’s Freddie who realises the victim was a troll and finds @Apollyon: a twitter account whose profile picture shows the dead body and the missing murder weapon. The “Hashtag Murderer” posts cryptic clues online, pointing to the next target—taunting the police, enthralling the press and the public. When @Apollyon follows her, Freddie’s afraid she might be next. Time is running out as she and Nasreen face a desperate struggle to catch this cunning, fame-crazed killer—and to escape their past demons in Follow Me, a chilling procedural debut from critically acclaimed, up and coming talent Angela Clarke.
Look What You Made Me Do
Nikki Smith - 2021
. . if one of them is dead.Sisters Jo and Caroline are used to hiding things from each other. They've never been close - taking it in turns to feel on the outside of their family unit, playing an endless game of favourites.Jo envies Caroline's life - things have always come so easy to her. Then a family inheritance falls entirely to Jo, and suddenly now Caroline wants what Jo has. Needs it, even.But just how far will she go to get it?