Book picks similar to
The Judge by Farin Powell


would-read-it-again
abandoned
crime
first-reads

The King Tides


James Swain - 2018
    And that of strangers, too. Wherever she goes, she’s being watched. Each stalker is different from the last, except for one thing—their alarming obsession with Nicki.Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Nicki’s father is turning to someone who can protect her: retired private detective and ex–Navy SEAL Jon Lancaster. Teaming up with FBI agent and former abduction victim Beth Daniels, Lancaster can help—his way. He’s spent most of his career dispatching creeps who get off on terrorizing the vulnerable. Unlicensed, and unrestricted, he plays dirty…But this case is unusual. Why so many men? Why this one girl? Does Nicki have something to hide? Or do her parents?Trawling the darkest depths of southern Florida, Lancaster faces a growing tide of secrets and deception. And the deeper he digs, the more he realizes that finding the truth won’t be easy. Because there’s more to this case than meets the eye.

Scarecrow (Danny Sanchez, #1)


Matthew Pritchard - 2013
    You things always do. Now it’s time for us to part.’ He watched, expressionless, as the thing raised a feeble arm; then he released a handle on the winch. The thing slumped, disappeared into the foot wide gap between the walls. He turned to the pile of loose bricks, looking for his trowel... – from ScarecrowWhen Danny Sanchez, a hard-bitten journalist working in the Almeria region of Spain is sent to cover the demolition of the home of a retired expat couple, he lands a much bigger – and more grisly – story than he bargained for. As the diggers begin to tear down the house, a body, partially decomposed, its face swathed in a strange black sheath, is suddenly revealed dangling in the depths of the brickwork…From the deeply sinister opening pages, Scarecrow draws the reader down an inexorable, tortuous path of discovery and into the gruesome activities of a serial killer so depraved it almost defies comprehension. Via thuggish cowboy builders, a missing drug-addicted teenage boy, and a house with a stinking secret wall, Danny’s scoop of a lifetime becomes a personal crusade to snare the elusive murderer. Alternating between Spain and England, the story takes us into the mind of the complex, highly driven Danny. An expert at ferreting out information from even the most recalcitrant of contacts, this skilled journalist will stop at nothing, even risking his own life, to find the answers that have escaped the authorities for decades.Moving with a Chandleresque efficiency, the narrative is compelling and full of unexpected but highly credible twists; the dialogue stark and often harsh. Pritchard’s mastery lies in the psychology of his characters, his vivid descriptive abilities and his subtle pacing. An essential read for anyone who relishes burning the midnight oil with a superlatively terrifying crime novel, Scarecrow will keep the reader guessing right to the end.

A Brutal Hand: There's No Escape (SHORTZ)


Ravi Subramanian - 2020
    

Shadow Kill


David Caris - 2021
    Betrayed by his employer and left for dead, Kovac decides to lie low in Tokyo.His plan? Revenge...But when a young woman asks him to protect her from the yakuza, Kovac feels duty-bound to help. She’s a victim of abuse, and long experience tells him if he doesn’t step in tonight she’ll be a corpse before dawn.As Kovac works to uncover the truth of his last job, he finds himself drawn into a conspiracy which goes well beyond the yakuza to a new and terrifying multinational cartel. One that will stop at nothing to control the global drug trade.The kingpins are certain they’ve covered all bases. They're well-funded and utterly ruthless. But they’ve failed to account for one man – John Kovac.SHADOW KILL is the first in a fast-paced, unflinching thriller series that won't in any way shortchange you on action. Perfect for fans of Lee Child, Mark Greaney and Mark Dawson.

Deja Karma


Vish Dhamija - 2015
    But Jay Singh is a closet alcoholic; he has a dark and ominous past. His mother has been accused and convicted of killing his father..something he doesn't accept even after twenty years.Flamboyant, wicket, lethal, Jay Singh never loses a case, though his methods might not always be within the law. If the law is after you - guilty or not - there is only one man who can save you. If Jay Singh takes your case, witnesses for the prosecution disappear or turn hostile, evidence evaporates, technology and science fail to provide any cogent support. What's more - Jay Singh can even provide you with an ironclad alibi.And then he gets a case that can completely destroy him.If he loses the high-profile he can kiss his career goodbye ; if he wins the case he better keep his obituary ready.

Code for Murder


Eliot Parker - 2017
    Six months later, Stacy’s first case back from medical leave involves the murder of Cleveland Browns football player Devon Baker. With little forensic evidence connecting anyone to the crime, Stacy sets out to find the killer. As Stacy comes very close to unraveling the tangled threads of the case, the killer wants her, and those close to her, to suffer for another impulsive decision she made in the line of duty. The killer just may be more familiar to Stacy than she realizes.

Fifteen Coffins


Tony J. Forder - 2020
    Now they just want to be left alone to mourn. But Sydney has other ideas – and she is not alone. While having to work through her own personal grief, Sydney is openly intimidated and then receives anonymous threats. After discovering she is under surveillance, she begins to fear for her life. During her investigation she gains several allies, but as the days pass, Sydney doesn’t know who to trust, and which new friends might actually turn out to be foes...

Enemy in Blue


Derek Blass - 2011
    YOU KNOW WHO YOUR ENEMY IS?The streets aren't safe when your enemy wears a blue uniform and a gold badge.What if the good guys weren't good?What if a cop went rogue and killed an innocent man?What if it was all caught on video and the cop would do anything to cover it up?Chase this lawless cop through the streets and to a scintillating series of showdowns with Cruz Marquez, a young attorney trying to nail down his enemy in blue.Will justice be served?

A Ghostly Shade of Pale


Merle Temple - 2013
    History files on a bygone era are ripped open and rewritten in temporal games with eternal consequences at the intersection between heaven and hell, between the visible and the Invisible.Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics Captain Michael Parker is an unlikely player in a struggle for the soul of America. A ghostly pale embodiment of evil becomes his obsession, and his tormentor leaves a trail of bodies across the South.As snipers ambush Michael and his agents on frozen fields of regret and the woman he loves is stalked by death, he learns that he is not alone as he has to fight for his life against enemies seen and unseen.

Dark Seed


Lawrence Verigin - 2013
    Nick Barnes and Morgan Elles learn that the man behind these organizations means to intentionally harm the global population, and he eliminates all opposition without hesitation or remorse.As they uncover proof of the unscrupulous plan, Nick and Morgan quickly find themselves fighting for their lives. They have to stay one step ahead of the security force ordered to terminate all original research. And them.Grab hold for a wild ride with this exciting, high concept story that tackles one of the biggest issues of our time. Winner – 2014 Chanticleer CLUE Thriller Award for International Intrigue/World Events.Finalist – 2015 Eric Hoffer Book Award Montaigne Medal for Thought-Provoking Books that Illuminate, Progress, and Redirect Thought.

The Cover-Up


Dana Griffin - 2012
    The Captain and ten people are killed; the First Officer and fifty-eight injured.With his divorce imminent, Omega Airlines Pilot Instructor Kyle Masters is brought in to assist the NTSB’s accident investigation. He and NTSB Investigator Lori Almond discover someone had played a role in the accident.Determined to absolve the crew and the airline of full responsibility for the disaster, Kyle uses operational knowledge and Lori’s expertise in accident investigations to close in on the responsible party. This puts them, and Kyle’s family in danger.

The Body Man


Eric P. Bishop - 2021
    And he's vanished without a trace.In a town that's obsessed with dark secrets, where the currency of power is information, The White House has kept a huge one for decades. Charged with the task of protecting and defending the Office of the Presidency from threats both outside and in, the keeper of secrets-the Body Man-has been in the shadows since the 1960s.The Body Man has been a unique protector of American presidents ever since a previous well-known president used the first Body Man to usher women, diplomats, and other heads of state into the White House via a secret tunnel. The Body Man is drawn from the Secret Service, but he isn't on the classic protective detail, and he reports to no one. Once his term is over, he's given a huge payout and a one-way ticket to anywhere on Earth.With a CIA conspiracy buff named Zed and The Body Man's aged neighbor Rose, former US Army Ranger and FBI Special Agent Eli Payne and his new probationary agent Kat Stone must find the Body Man before it's too late-and the trail may lead directly to the Oval Office itself.

The Vanishing (Detective Dean Cornell, #1)


David J. Delaney - 2015
    Grab a copy now. Detective Dean Cornell is investigating the murder of a young woman when he and his partner stumble across a second brutal murder. Hunting for the killer through the streets of Sydney he discovers another young girl has vanished, leaving a distraught father holding onto whatever hope he can. Dean and the detectives of Sydney homicide desperately try to unfold the mystery of the dead and the missing. Can they find the killer before another life is lost What people have said about the Author “David J Delaney mixes suspense and emotion to put you on the edge of your seat. You’ll have a blast reading his books.” J. Thorn, author of The Portal Arcane trilogy "Good luck putting down one of David's books. He'll have you biting your nails and turning pages for hours." Zach Bohannon, Amazon Top 100 Author of the Empty Bodies series “David has the ability to grab hold of you with his voice and never let go. The sense of place he firmly puts you in is remarkable, evoking every sense, every feeling of that moment. As a fan of David's work I know when I begin to read one of his stories I'll be reading late into the night, because putting it down isn't an option. If you're interested in a great read, you cannot go wrong with anything written by this talented author. I, for one, can't wait for his next story, and the next, and the next...” Sue Coletta, Crime Writer

Only The Good Die Young : And I'm Not A Saint


Akash Verma - 2021
    She thinks that chapter of her life hasended, and starts afresh in Mumbai. But strangely, it seems her past is trying to catch up. Dhruv suddenlycomes back into her life. Even as they try to figure out their relationship, horrible things start happening to people they know. Together, Anuradha and Dhruv need to find out who it is that cannot bear to see them together. Who is carrying out these shocking crimes? Are they really soulmates cursed to stay apart, or is there some karmic debt they have to repay? Taut and thrilling, Only the Good Die Young is unputdownable.

Ancient Revenge


J.F. Lourens - 2011
    An explosion rips the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris apart during celebratory mass, killing hundreds and revealing a hidden crypt with a most gruesome find: the crucified body of a naked young woman; twelve tombstones inscribed with a single phrase -- in domina nostra salus. CIA agent John Russell, an expert in religious crime, is summoned to investigate a wave of atrocities that surges through Europe: Bodies on cathedral towers covered in baffling tattoos; the massacre of a Cistercian monastery; the relentless execution of senior Cardinal Bishops. Sorting through the bizarre crimes, Russell and his team are plunged into a web of age-old conspiracies involving the Vatican, the Ceile De, spouses of the gods, warrior priestesses and their quest to settle a primeval score. In a race against time, Russell drags his team through Europe in a desperate struggle to prevent total cataclysm. In just four days...