Book picks similar to
30 DAYS IN JUNE by Chris Westlake


thriller
crime-thriller
crimes
publisher-review

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.

The Phoenix Series: Books 1-3


Ted Tayler - 2019
     He succeeds. He gets caught in the process. He dies. Or he meets like-minded people who believe they must make criminals pay for their crimes The Phoenix Series begins The Olympus Project Rescued by strangers from a watery grave and given a new identity. The Phoenix is a stone-cold killer. An ideal fit for the Olympus Project, a secret organisation fighting injustice. Gold, Silver, and Bombs The eyes of the world are on London 2012. British security services anticipate an organised terror attack. Safety is paramount. What if the real danger comes from a lone wolf? Nothing Is Ever Forever The action never slows. The tension never slackens. The Phoenix stares death in the face once more. Detectives Hounsell and Wheeler return. The past threatens to catch up with Phoenix. With hard, fast action and a cast of characters you can reach out and touch, this is the thriller series for which you’ve been searching.

In the Barren Ground


Loreth Anne White - 2016
    Humans are scarce; ferocious predators roam freely. Locals say spirits do, too.Rookie cop Tana Larsson doesn’t mind the dark and quiet. Five months pregnant and hoping to escape the mistakes of her past, she takes a post in Twin Rivers, population 320. Maybe here she can find peace and community for her child.But with her superior out of commission, Tana becomes the sole police officer in 17,500 square miles. One bitter night, she gets a call about the fatal wolf mauling of two students, and the only way to reach the remote scene is to enlist the help of the arrogant, irritatingly handsome Cameron “Crash” O’Halloran, a local bush pilot with a shady reputation for smuggling and a past cloaked in shadow.When the macabre scene they uncover suggests violence much more sinister than animal, Tana must trust Crash if she wants to protect the town—and herself—from the evil that lurks in the frozen dark.IN THE BARREN GROUND, a dark, atmospheric romance and police procedural with gothic/horror overtones set in a remote fly-in community just south of the arctic circle ...

The Pain of Strangers (CSI Eddie Collins, #1)


Andrew Barrett - 2022
    In 1987, Norton Bailey became known as the Madman of Mabgate. A damaged person in a position of power, he built a machine to take care of his problems and used money as bait. CSI Eddie Collins is feeling alone and adrift. Even work is unreliable and tense, and brings conflict with bad people. One damaged person in particular seeks to choose how Eddie, and the victims he tries to protect, will die. Is there still no hope for the innocent? Forensic evidence has always lit up the way, but now the light shines dimly. It’s just bright enough to illuminate the fight of Eddie’s life.

Out of Tupelo


Mark Gilleo - 2018
    . . until his wife goes missing and his peaceful life flies off the rails. As his world collapses around him, Edward’s frantic search for his missing spouse hits a dead end when he is thwarted by the local sheriff’s unwillingness to confront the prime suspect. Cut off at every turn by corruption and inaction, Edward is forced to seek help from a shadowy source buried deep in his past. As law enforcement names him a person of interest in his wife’s disappearance, Edward uncovers a connection between his missing spouse and a secret that the city’s power elite will do anything to keep hidden. Revenge, murder, and betrayal surround Edward as he seeks to find his wife, clear his name, and get Out of Tupelo alive.

Mother Be The Judge


Sally O'Brien - 2014
     Elsewhere Jocasta Brown suspects it could be her very own son who has committed the terrible crimes. When faced with the decision of how to deal with her situation Jocasta faces one of her biggest challenges as a mother. Mother Be the Judge is a psychological thriller with a truly chilling protagonist. As chilling as it is thought provoking, you don't want to miss this read. Warning - this book contains scenes of a graphic nature covering the topic of rape and murder. Not suitable for children or people of a sensitive nature

The Cage


Scott Mariani - 2021
    Some want the 'paedo killer' locked up forever. Others think he's a hero. Either way, now it's DI Tom McAllister's job to catch the elusive murderer.Not your ordinary police detective, Tom's a maverick outsider who always gets his man. But with the case spiralling out of control and the killer seemingly always one step ahead, he finds himself drawn into a deadly game of deception that threatens to destroy more than just his career. But the worst is yet to come, as the horrifying truth begins to emerge about the significance of THE CAGE . . .If you're a fan of smart, fast-paced detective thrillers with a twist, the first of Scott Mariani's sensational new DI Tom McAllister series will have you on the edge of your seat and yearning for more!

Cold Cold Heart


Tami Hoag - 2014
    #1 New York Times bestselling author Tami Hoag delivers a shocking new thrillerDana Nolan was a promising young TV reporter until a notorious serial killer tried to add her to his list of victims.  Nearly a year has passed since surviving her ordeal, but the physical, emotional, and psychological scars run deep.  Struggling with the torment of post-traumatic stress syndrome, plagued by flashbacks and nightmares as dark as the heart of a killer, Dana returns to her hometown in an attempt to begin to put her life back together.  But home doesn’t provide the comfort she expects. Dana’s harrowing story and her return to small town life have rekindled police and media interest in the unsolved case of her childhood best friend, Casey Grant, who disappeared without a trace the summer after their graduation from high school.  Terrified of truths long-buried, Dana reluctantly begins to look back at her past.  Viewed through the dark filter of PTSD, old friends and loved ones become suspects and enemies.  Questioning everything she knows, refusing to be defined by the traumas of her past and struggling against excruciating odds, Dana seeks out a truth that may prove too terrible to be believed…

A Game for Assassins


James Quinn - 2015
    In desperation British Intelligence sends in their best agent to protect the network and hunt down the killers.Jack "Gorilla" Grant isn't your typical Cold War secret agent. Short, tough, uncompromising, rough edged. He doesn't fit in with the elitist spies and debonair intelligence agents. He prefers working at the rough end of British covert operations.But "Gorilla" is one of the best "Redactors" in the business. He's an expert at close quarter shooting: quick to the draw and deadly accurate when it comes to the elimination of traitors and extremists on behalf of the British Secret Service (SIS). He is soon drawn into a game of cross and double cross where nothing is as it seems and even the most perfect spy can die in a wilderness of mirrors."A Game for Assassins" is an action packed edge of your seat thrill ride played out across the global stage of the Cold War.

The Complete Detective Mike Croft Box Set


Jane A. Adams - 2020
    She and her twelve-year-old cousin Suzie take a shortcut through the Greenway, an ancient pathway steeped in Norfolk legend. Somewhere along this path Suzie simply vanishes . . . Twenty years later: Cassie is still tormented by nightmares, parts of her memory completely erased. With her husband Fergus and friends Anna and Simon, she returns to Norfolk, determined to confront her fears and solve a mystery that won’t let her rest.BOOK 2: THE SECRETSThreatening phone calls, smashed windows, physical intimidation. Eric Pearson and his family have only just moved into a new home in a sleepy cul-de-sac, but they already have dangerous enemies. How could a respectable family become the focus of such hatred? Detective Inspector Mike Croft knows the Pearson family well. Eric Pearson claims to own a journal which gives evidence of a horrifying ring of abusers. If true, it would be a high stakes case for DI Croft, and expose awful secrets that the town has buried deep.BOOK 3: THEIR FINAL MOMENTSHe wants to capture their final moments on film so he can watch them again and again. DECEMBER: Detective Mike Croft is in pursuit of a serial attacker, whose victims are all young blonde women. But forensics on the victims, reveals an even more horrific scenario. Many miles away, in Wiltshire, a young woman dies in a burning car. In Norwich, an actress is found dead in her own home and a teenage boy runs away from a past he doesn’t know how to face.BOOK 4: THE LIARMartha Toolin is found stabbed to death on a Norfolk beach. She was a stranger to the area and had been seen arguing with a teenage boy. BUT SHE IS A LIAR. Detective Mike Croft is called into investigate and quickly finds out that the victim was not who she says she was. She is a con artist who exploited the vulnerable and elderly.

Her Deepest Fear


Kelly Utt - 2019
    Until a knock on her front door brought news that her beloved husband had been in a terrible accident. He was pronounced dead on the scene.Reeling from the shock and suspecting she's being followed, Cate must question everything she thinks she knows.Is she in danger? Will she find the answers she reluctantly seeks? And what will it all mean for her future?Her Deepest Fear is the first book in the Rosemary Run Series of domestic thrillers. About the Rosemary Run Series: In the charming Northern California town of Rosemary Run, there's trouble brewing below the picture-perfect surface.Don't let the manicured lawns and stylish place settings fool you. Nothing is exactly as it seems. Secrets and lies threaten to upend the status quo and destroy lives when— not if— they're revealed.With surprising twists and turns that will keep you guessing to the end, each Rosemary Run novel features a different woman's nail-biting story. Books in the series can be read in any order.

A Mother's Lie


Jo Crow - 2017
    When the two-year-old is diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer, only an experimental treatment can save his life. She desperately needs money to pay for the surgery, but she’ll have to travel back to the site of her darkest memories to get it.
 Clara has escaped the demons of her youth—or so she thinks. It’s been ten years since the mysterious disappearance of her parents. Widely suspected of murdering her mother and father, Clara fled west to start a new life. Now, a documentary film crew is offering cold, hard cash—enough to pay for James’s treatment—in exchange for the sordid secrets of her past.
 With no other choice but to delve into a long-ago tragedy, Clara must unravel the lies surrounding that terrible night. Facing hostile gossip, Clara is fighting to clear her name and learn the truth about what really happened. But how far will she go into the dark to save her son—and herself?

Dead End Girl


L.T. Vargus - 2017
    Wrapped in plastic. Dumped on the side of the road. She is the first. There will be more.The serial killer thriller that "refuses to let go until you've read the last sentence."The most recent body was discovered in the grease dumpster behind a Burger King. Dismembered. Shoved into two garbage bags and lowered into the murky oil.Now rookie agent Violet Darger gets the most important assignment of her career. She travels to the Midwest to face a killer unlike anything she's seen. Aggressive. Territorial. Deranged and driven.Another mutilated corpse was found next to a roller rink. A third in the gutter in a residential neighborhood.These bold displays of violence shock the rural community and rattle local law enforcement. Who could carry out such brutality? And why?Unfortunately for Agent Darger, there's little physical evidence to work with, and the only witnesses prove to be unreliable. The case seems hopeless.If she fails, more will die. He will kill again and again.The victims harbor dark secrets. The clues twist and writhe and refuse to keep still. And the killer watches the investigation on the nightly news, gleeful to relive the violence, knowing that he can't be stopped.A page-turning thriller packed with heart-stopping suspense. Fans of John Sandford, Jeffery Deaver, Karin Slaughter, and Lisa Gardner should get to know Violet Darger.

The Alex Troutt Thriller Series: Books 1-3


John W. Mefford - 2016
     AT Bay (Book 1) Alexandra Giordano never knew she had it so good. Until it was all gone in an instant. As she begins her daunting quest to uncover the black spots on her memory, what she finds isn’t sweet or charming or even pleasant. And that’s when she begins to question everything, including herself. Her work as a Special Agent for the FBI is only a distraction, serving as a mental metronome…anything to crank the gears of her feeble mind. And then it happens—a bizarre, ritualistic murder. She loses herself in her work, fully immersed in the investigation. Unable to recall even her own kids, she’s somehow able to formulate coherent theories on what type of person could pull off such a sickening act. As her mind slowly plugs a few memory gaps, her emotions are scrambled by the reality of her worlds colliding. And the resulting explosion tears her in two. Can she pick up all the incendiary fragments to solve the twisted crime while she clings to some semblance of sanity? One woman can only keep so much…AT Bay. AT Large (Book 2) The pursuit of the truth. The hunt for a life. For the first time in months, FBI Special Agent Alex Troutt feels almost normal, hanging out at a local bar with friends after work. Not long into the evening she stumbles over one of the most disturbing images she has ever seen. And that’s only the beginning. A body is found in Lowell, the human damage, once again, inconceivable. Hours later, another strike. Pushing heartache aside, Alex immerses herself in the investigation. But with every new clue comes a new twist. With the killing spree drawing the attention of every intelligence and law enforcement agency in a five-state radius, Alex is forced to partner with an egomaniac from the CIA. Yet, even with limitless resources, every step forward proves to be a step too late, the kill list seemingly endless. Once the killer makes it personal, Alex is left with no other option—she must confront the person who destroyed her life to try to cease the vicious murders. And when she finally learns the killer’s end game, every second counts if she has any hope of stopping the brutal killings. The hunt will end. Will Alex? AT Once (Book 3) “If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything.” FBI Agent Alex Troutt has no intentions of falling for anything. Apparently, neither do the bad guys, as the Boston area is once again targeted by extremists. Boston Strong of just a few years ago is now Boston on Edge. And this time, the targets are men of the cloth—priests. At least that’s how it looks at first. As investigators struggle to make sense of the bombings, Alex is thrown for a loop when the FBI assistant director asks her to investigate one of their own—a colleague and friend who is suspected of having ties to a known terrorist. Torn between her values of friendship and the oath she gave when she accepted her FBI credentials, Alex must now lead two investigations simultaneously.

Sean Freeman


Kerry J. Donovan - 2015
    “Diamonds are nothing more than compressed carbon.” Veteran cop, DCI David Jones, is tough and uncompromising. His Serious Crime Unit has the best arrest record the Midlands Police Service has ever seen and Jones wants to keep it that way. Locksmith turned jewel thief, Sean Freeman, is the best in the UK. He's never been caught—the police have never even come close. When Freeman's boss forces him to break into the Stafford Museum, the UK’s most secure premises outside of the Bank of England, he's in trouble—the Stafford is in the heart of Jones' jurisdiction. Someone's record is going to suffer. In the third instalment of the DCI Jones Casebook series, veteran detective, David Jones tackles a series of cases and faces a clever and engaging criminal he respects and would probably like--under different circumstances. But Jones has a job to do and Freeman is going down. . This book can be read as a stand-alone novel.