Book picks similar to
Warped Ambition by Debbie S. TenBrink
mystery
netgalley
thriller
red-adept
Silence the Dead
Jack Fredrickson - 2015
It took two days to find her body. She was found, fully dressed apart from her slacks, beneath a gnarled, stunted tree, shot in the back of the head. No one was ever charged with her murder.Now, following an appeal from one of his constituents, Mayor Mac Bassett has called for the case to be re-opened. But when the body is exhumed, it is revealed that the skull, found loose in the coffin, does not belong to Betty Jo.If Mac could discover why Betty Jo's head was taken, he would be one step closer to finding out who killed her. But no one in the small town of Grand Point is talking. Sheriffs, doctors, medical examiners: everyone seems to be warning Mac off. And then people start dying ...
Last Goodbye
Arlene Hunt - 2018
You’re in love. You’re in terrible danger…A completely unputdownable thriller from Amazon chart bestseller Arlene Hunt.‘The woman’s body lay on the bed, hair fanned out in a golden halo, blue eyes open. On the table stood an unmistakable sign: a bouquet of bright yellow roses...’On a freezing January morning, a young couple is found dead in their cottage in the quiet Dublin suburbs. When Detective Eli Quinn arrives at the scene his stomach drops. It’s the second double homicide in as many months where the killer has left a bunch of yellow roses.Tucked between the thorns is a little card, with an image of a broken heart. There’s no doubt the killer is trying to send a message, but what do the flowers mean? And can Eli figure out the killer’s motive, before they strike again?Utterly gripping, fast-paced and nail-bitingly tense, this serial killer thriller will keep you up reading all night. If you love Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott and Patricia Gibney, you won’t be able to put this down.
Knock Knock
Chris Merritt - 2020
And she has no idea that the face staring back at her is the last one she’ll ever see…As Detective Dan Lockhart is called to a wealthy London street to investigate Natasha’s death, he’s startled by the similarity to a previous case. Noticing the cable-tie restraints and the tiny scratches on Natasha’s wedding finger, Dan already knows what he will find if he looks in her mouth – the metal ball which choked her to death. He knows Natasha isn’t the killer’s first victim and is certain that he will strike again.Months earlier, Kim Hardy was found in the same position in a run-down hotel across the city – an identical silver ball in her throat. But Kim’s murderer was caught and sent to prison – did they arrest the wrong man? And what connects the two victims? Fearing that he’s dealing with a psychopathic serial killer, Dan calls in psychologist Dr Lexi Green to help him to get into the perpetrator’s mind. Tough and smart, Lexi will stop at nothing to hunt down the man responsible for the deaths.Then, another body is discovered, just as Lexi finds a clue online leading to the killer. Dan’s team aren’t convinced, but in pushing Lexi away from the investigation, they force her to dig further into the case on her own. Convinced that she’s on to something, she puts herself in unthinkable danger… but can Dan piece together the clues and identify the killer before it’s too late?Fans of Angela Marsons, Robert Dugoni and Cara Hunter will love this thrilling new series from Chris Merritt. From an explosive start to a heart-stopping finale, you will not want to put this book down!
Back Hander: An electrifying racing thriller
John Francome - 2004
Ex-National Hunt Champion Jockey John Francome presents Back Hander, an electrifying racing thriller. The perfect read for fans of Felix Francis and Lyndon Stacey.
'Back Hander is a tightly plotted and well-schooled story... that delivers everything it promises' - Tangled WebNot much is going right for jockey Alan Morrell. He can't get the rides he needs and when he sets up a bloodstock partnership a tragic accident robs him of the business and his best friend Lee. Now Alan owes £100,000 and his only asset is a racehorse who has yet to be put to the test. But all that fades into insignificance next to the suspicion that Lee's fatal fall was more than an accident... Things aren't looking so hot for fellow-jockey Max Ashwood either. There's the backlash from his affair with a trainer's wife and the little matter of his gambling. There's also the convenient death of another man to whom Max owed money. But surely no one is ever going to find out the truth about his part in that... Two riders, two unexplained deaths - but overshadowing both is a conflict that dwarfs the cosy world of racetrack winners and losers. As the noose closes round the neck of one man's criminal empire, just how many others will swing?
What readers are saying about Back Hander:
'A gripping story from start to finish''Highly recommended if you like horse-racing thrillers''Brilliant plotline which hinges on two doomed love affairs'
Scar Tissue
M.C. Domovitch - 2016
According to the police she was a victim of the Cutter, a serial killer who has already murdered three women. For her protection the police and her doctors give a press conference, announcing that because her amnesia is organically caused, her memory loss is permanent. But, whether her memory returns or not is anybody’s guess. Overnight, Ciara’s glamorous life is gone. Her scars have killed both her modelling career and her relationship with her rich boyfriend. With nothing to keep her in New York, she returns to her home town of Seattle, moves in with her sister and goes about building a new life. But when her sister lets it slip that Ciara’s memory is returning, the killer comes after her again. If Ciara is to stay alive, she must keep one step ahead of the Cutter.
Hack
Kieran Crowley - 2013
Shepherd accidentally finds himself on the trail of The Hacker, a serial killer targeting unpleasant celebrities in inventive—and sometimes decorative—ways. And it’s only his second day on the job. Luckily Shepherd has hidden talents, not to mention a hidden agenda. But as bodies and suspects accumulate, he finds himself running afoul of cutthroat office politics, the NYPD, and Ginny Mac, an attractive but ruthless reporter for a competing newspaper. And when Shepherd himself is contacted by The Hacker, he realizes he may be next on the killer’s list...
The Honorable Traitors
John Lutz - 2018
His real employer, known as the Gray Outfit, is not listed—anywhere. When a Washington, D.C., insider is killed in a bomb explosion, Laker teams up with cryptographer Ava North on a desperate search for clues. The only thing certain is that another act of terrorism is imminent. Delving into the dangerous past when America was drawn into global conflict, they discover one of history’s greatest—and deadliest—secrets. In the wrong hands it can unleash unimaginable destruction. Now, to keep his homeland from plunging into its darkest hour, Laker will have to defend everything he believes in…
Forty Thieves
Thomas Perry - 2016
Sid and Ronnie Abel are a first-rate husband-and-wife detective team, both retirees of the LAPD. Ed and Nicole Hoyt are married assassins-for-hire living in the San Fernando Valley. Except for deadly aim with a handgun, the two couples have little in common—until they are both hired to do damage control on the same murder case. The previous spring, after days of torrential rain, a body was recovered from one of the city’s overwhelmed storm sewers. The victim was identified as James Ballantine, a middle-aged African-American who worked as a research scientist for a prestigious company and was well liked by his colleagues. But two bullets to the back of the head looked like nothing if not foul play. Now, with the case turning cold, Ballantine’s former employers bring in the Abels to succeed where the police have failed, while the Hoyts’ mysterious contractors want to make sure that the facts about Ballantine’s death stay hidden. As the book races toward a high-octane climax, the Abels must fend for their own lives as they circle ever closer to the truth.
Murder in the One Percent
Saralyn Richard - 2018
Set on a gentleman’s farm in Pennsylvania and in the tony areas of New York, the book shows what happens when someone comes to a party with murder in his heart and poison in his pocket.
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.
Cold is the Caller
Emmy Ellis - 2019
The victim, a male, has been left in a terrifying mess. Why? What do the clues left behind mean? They’re not obviously pointing to anything, and working it out is nigh on impossible. Then a second body is found, a woman this time, and the connection between the dead isn’t apparent—apart from the same clues being present. With a third body, things make sense. Someone has a serious issue and intends to let the players in the game know it—but who the hell is it? A fourth body links them all in a chilling way. What does a skull image have to do with it? Why red contact lenses? And why is a vacuum cleaner one of the tools of the killer’s trade?
No Going Back
Casey Kelleher - 2021
A family is out for revenge.Riley Cooke is just one day old when he is stolen from the hospital. His young mother, Shelby, is beside herself. DC Lucy Murphy and her team face a race against time to find the vulnerable baby and bring him home – before the child’s grandfather, fearsome gangster Pete Baker, takes matters into his own hands.Pete is sure he knows who’s behind baby Riley’s abduction, and he thinks they ought to pray Lucy finds them before he does. Because someone is going to pay dearly for causing this much pain to his family.They say never stand between a gangster and his target. But that’s exactly what Lucy must do – because if Pete is wrong, innocent blood could flow.A shocking and addictive read that will keep you turning the pages. Fans of Martina Cole, Kimberley Chambers and Emma Tallon will love this.
The Bergamese Sect
Alastair Gunn - 2014
A web of deceit that grips you on page one and doesn't let up until its cataclysmic-bang-of-an-end." - Steve Berry, international bestselling author of The Templar Legacy."Gripped me from the first page. An intelligent, visceral conspiracy thriller involving a mediaeval sect pervading the upper echelons of 21st century society.” - Bill Napier, international bestselling author of Nemesis and Revelation."An intriguing and compelling mystery-thriller. Death and deception at every turn." - James Becker, bestselling author of The Lost Testament and The First Apostle.
Kill Jill
John Locke - 2012
Her clothes are filthy, her appearance disheveled. She has no purse, no wallet, no luggage, but her back pocket is stuffed with hundred dollar bills. She's also carrying a credit card belonging to Jack Russell, the town's most eligible bachelor, who hasn't been seen for a month.Claiming to be Jack's fiance', Emma immediately moves into his expensive lake house. The local sheriff gets a bad feeling that only turns worse when he discovers Emma's ID belongs to a dead woman.