Book picks similar to
Gone Ballistic (A Robin Starling Courtroom Mystery Book 6) by Michael Monhollon
mystery
not-reading
first-reads
Tregunna
Carla Vermaat - 2015
DI Andy Tregunna is faced with the task of leading the investigation, but soon personal matters force him to step back.On compassionate leave and with little else to do than fight his own demons the unsolved case becomes more and more an obsession to him. As he is drawn deeper into a dark world of secrets, lies and revenge, his private investigation collides with his personal life.The truth is even more sinister than can be imagined...
The Great Diamond Caper
Maggie March - 2020
Her rescue dog Paco is a ghost whisperer. Together, they solve crime in this laugh-out-loud cozy mystery series!When a loyal customer asks Lucy to hide an engagement ring inside one of her famous apple walnut cream cheese muffins, Lucy is charmed. A public proposal at her café? What could be more romantic? But then the engagement ring goes missing and the walnuts hit the fan. Feeling that she’s to blame, Lucy vows to find the ring.But things aren’t always as they seem. It turns out that the ring has an illustrious past. Rumored to have once belonged to Russian nobility, it could be worth a small fortune. Not to mention that it might also be cursed.Now, Lucy and her little rescue dog Paco, must face a mysterious tealeaf reader, a haunted house, and the disapproval of her police chief boyfriend in order to keep her promise. Add a new dog into the mix, and life in Whispering Bay is as chaotic as ever.NOTE: This book was previously published under the name Maria Geraci
Crab Bait
Carrie Enge - 2015
No matter how you look at it, fishing in Alaska is a deadly way to make a living.
Echoes From The Water
David Banner - 2018
Available Now! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079Y5WZYN Brandon Waters had no interest in following in his parents’ footsteps. Son of two of the greatest detectives Florida had even seen, Brandon Waters wanted no part of the dangerous and transient lifestyle he grew up around. That feeling only intensified when his parents disappeared suddenly, leaving him to care for his little brother on the mean sun-soaked streets of Miami. Now ten years later, Brandon’s little brother is fingered for a murder he knows he couldn’t have committed. To save Micah from the death penalty, Brandon will be forced to dive into the case that stole his parents from him, face down the dangers they couldn’t, and unravel the sort of mystery that could only thrive in the swamps of Florida. Along the way, he’ll meet a woman with a startling connection to his past, an enemy in a place he never expected, and a puzzle of a crime so complex that even his parents couldn’t solve it. ECHOES FROM THE WATER is the first book in the DANGEROUS WATERS Thriller series.
Awesome Jokes That Every 9 Year Old Should Know!: Hundreds of rib ticklers, tongue twisters and side splitters (Awesome Jokes for Kids Book 5)
Mat Waugh - 2018
It's designed to be easy to read with illustrations throughout for extra guffaws, making this a book that kids will love from the very first page. Give that nine year old the chance to be top dog with the smartest gags around!Also available in the Awesome Jokes series: Books for children 5 and up.PS An early edition of this book included a joke that one or two parents considered too rude (see the review if you're curious - photo only visible on Amazon US). You may or may not agree. But since it caused offence, it's now been replaced with a couple of squeaky clean humdingers!
The Detective Deans Mystery Collection
James D. Mortain - 2019
Written by an ex-CID detective, these books are so realistic; you'll feel like one of the team. THREE CHILLING MURDER MYSTERIES ARE WAITING FOR YOU TO UNLEASH THIS BOX…
BOOK 1: STORM LOG-0505
This detective's best lead could be a voice from beyond the grave...
Bath, England. Detective Andrew Deans always embraces his work. As he struggles to be present for his wife's challenging fertility treatments, the case of a missing college student hits a dead end. Under pressure from his job and his marriage, Deans' inquiry takes a turn when he receives impossible-to-deny evidence from a psychic...Despite his lack of belief in the paranormal, following the ghostly thread escalates his missing persons case into a murder investigation. Unable to focus on his responsibilities at home, Deans works with the medium to build evidence from a new source: the voice of the victim herself...To put the killer behind bars, just how much will Deans have to sacrifice in the name of justice?
BOOK 2: DEAD BY DESIGN
Can a detective solve a case that’s taken over his mind… and cost him everything?
A young couple in their prime is found dead in the marital bed. As they lie naked, staring at each other with eyes wide open – filled with fear, his colleagues assume a double suicide, but Detective Andrew Deans senses darker forces are at work.Deans is facing an awakening – a spiritual birth, but he is stuck in a living nightmare. Those around him are watching … judging … expecting him to break.As he waits to hear the news he dreads most, Deans receives an unmarked DVD and the true meaning of horror is revealed.Playing by the rules is getting him nowhere. Now, it’s time to do things his way. But death and tragedy haven’t finished with him … yet.
BOOK 3: THE BONE HILL
A killer at large. A gift obscured by tragedy. One last chance for justice…
As Detective Andrew Deans pieces together the fragments of his shattered life, the North Devon tide washes up another decapitated corpse. Consumed by torment and rage, it is clear that Deans still hunts a methodical and cold-blooded killer…Determined to end the horror and avenge his own devastating loss, Deans exposes an ancient cult with a thirst for blood and a lust for human sacrifice. As he peels back the layers to the core of the deadly secret society, there can be only one guarantee – unless he acts quickly, more people will die.Deans is staring down a terrifying evil, the like of which he’s never confronted. Time is against him, but the biggest question remains… who will be next?
FREE BONUS MATERIAL: Click the link to The Real Story behind the Detective Deans Mysteries in the back of this book, and also find a link to the short story prequel – The Night Shift.
Finding Kaden (The Finding Trilogy Book 1)
Jean Reinhardt - 2013
He finds himself caught up in a world of abduction, conspiracy, exploitation and murder. Detective Jake Matthews must convince the young man's family that their son is dead in order to keep him alive. Meanwhile, six missing teenagers cause problems for a sinister organization led by a man who considers himself to be above the law. The story is set in 2038, when certain medical procedures have been developed, but not yet approved. Strange things occurring at a homeless boys shelter in Chicago change the lives of the Seager family forever. When so called friends become enemies and assailants turn into allies, it is difficult to know who to trust. This is the first book in the Finding Trilogy, a young adult fiction series.
Christmas at The Ginger Cat Cafe: A Charnley Acre Novella
Zara Thorne - 2018
Left standing in the church porch with three redundant bridesmaids dressed in black and no groom in sight, it’s no wonder she isn’t feeling festive. Asked to run The Ginger Cat café in the Sussex village of Charnley Acre while the owners are away, Isla seizes the chance to escape from Nottingham with its constant reminders of what might have been. But running a busy café isn’t as easy it sounds, especially when one staff member is out of action with a broken ankle, and the rest of the team consists of eighty-something Horace, as grumpy as they come, and dreamy, lovesick teenager, Molly. When Harry Anderton pitches up in a campervan, Isla finds the perfect solution to her staff problem. Harry isn’t ‘doing Christmas’ either. Fresh from a traumatic break-up, he’d rather sit this one out, thank you very much. Then Isla discovers that as proprietor of The Ginger Cat, there are certain traditions she’s expected to uphold, and her carefully orchestrated non-Christmas looks like becoming, well… Christmas. With Harry by her side, can she hold back her own feelings and give the people around her the celebrations they deserve? And what happens afterwards? Harry’s moving on with his life; can Isla do the same, or is she destined to remain forever looking backwards?
Clint Wolf Boxed Set: Books 10 - 12
B.J. Bourg - 2019
BUT NOT FORBORNE Clint Wolf is in a race against time--leaving little time for sleep--as he tries to find a missing teenager. Rose Murdock was supposed to board Bus 23 for school early one winter morning in Mechant Loup. However, when her mother returns home from work that evening and checks the answering machine, she realizes Rose never made it to school. While a frantic call to the police department finally sets things in motion, the sixteen-year-old student has already been missing for nearly twelve hours and Clint is acutely aware that the victim could be halfway across the country or even dead at that point. Wasting no time, the Mechant Loup Police Department--with assistance from members of the community and deputies with the Chateau Parish Sheriff’s Office--launches a full-scale search for the girl while Clint begins gathering evidence and interviewing potential witnesses. It isn’t long before Clint begins developing potential suspects, but finding enough evidence to make an arrest is another matter. As the hours turn into days and searchers find no trace of the student, Clint begins to wonder if he’ll ever find a bread crumb that will lead to Rose Murdock. Or--like Abigail--will this be yet another young girl he couldn’t save? BUT NOT FOREWARNED It’s Mardi Gras in Mechant Loup and a dog complaint pulls Clint Wolf away from the town’s yearly parade. Happy to be away from the bustling crowds, noise, and lights, he responds to the complaint and arrives just in time to stop a man from shooting a friendly German shepherd that posed no threat to anyone. After addressing the man heatedly, he attempts to return the dog to its home, but instead finds a seemingly empty house, an abandoned detective car, a set of keys on the ground, and a single drop of blood in the driveway. It’s unclear if anyone is home, as nearly all of the townspeople are attending the parade and no one will answer his persistent knocking, but Clint is determined to find the source of the blood. Finally, his attention is drawn to the neighboring property, where he locates an off-duty officer bound and gagged and barely clinging to life. As though things weren’t bad enough, Clint soon stumbles upon a ghastly murder scene that will shock even him to his core, and it will inject sheer terror into the hearts of the rest of the town’s citizens. The one person who might hold the key to the case is in a coma, leaving Clint to delve deep into the lives of the victims in hopes of finding the killer--or killers. Clint’s biggest fear is not solving the case--it’s wondering what he might do once he comes face to face with the killer. BUT NOT FOREBODING When four college students set out into the swamps in search of the elusive Louisiana black bear, they find more than they bargained for. Now, one of them is missing and the others are stranded without a boat in the alligator-invested wilderness. When one of the concerned parents calls the Mechant Loup Police Department, Clint and Melvin begin searching for the overdue group. Their search takes them deep into the swamps and late into the night, and it isn’t long before Clint develops a foreboding feeling of déjà vu. This dreaded feeling only grows more intense as the investigation progresses, and Clint is left wondering if this incident is connected to a case he worked nearly two decades ago. If Clint is not careful, he might find out...the hard way.
A Not So Purrfect Spell (A Cotswold Cat Familiar Cozy Mystery Book 4)
D. Watts - 2021
Desperate
Patti Battison - 2019
A SICK KILLER WHO THE POLICE CAN’T PUT AWAY Please note this book was originally published as “Desperate Measures.” They arrived at the landfill site to find uniformed officers conducting a rigorous fingertip search amongst the mouldering mounds. One area was cordoned off with yellow police tape. DS Mia Harvey cut a determined path towards it and found herself staring at the body of a young female crammed into a heavy-duty green-plastic refuse sack, chin touching knees, heels kissing buttocks. DCI Paul Wells is certain that Chris Lennox is the killer. With Lennox safely in the cells Wells' team prepares its case. But they can’t get enough evidence to charge him. Time runs out and they have to release him. Wells is desperate and his career is on the line. How can he and DS Mia Harvey prove that Lennox is their man? MEET DETECTIVE MIA HARVEY A DEDICATED POLICEWOMAN TRYING TO WIN PROMOTION IN A TOUGH WORLD Then, a second murder causes even more problems. Is there any chance that the DCI can finally get the result he wants before anyone else dies? A RACE AGAINST TIME TO BRING A KILLER TO JUSTICE DETECTIVE SERGEANT MIA HARVEY Works at Larchborough Police Station. She is in her late 20s, single and unattached. She would, however, relish a romantic relationship but always puts work first. She is the only child of the late Robin Harvey, former chief superintendent at the Larchborough Division. After his death, Mia swore to follow in his footsteps and make him proud. She tolerates her mother at best. She is professional, conscientious, and has great respect for her boss, DCI Paul Wells, but is not above going against his wishes should the need arise. She is close to her colleague, DC Jack Turnbull, but barely tolerates DI Nick Ford, with whom she clashes regularly. DETECTIVE CHIEF INSPECTOR PAUL WELLS 6’ 5" and gangly, Wells is a brash Cockney with a well-hidden soft centre. A family man who is besotted with his daughters, he dresses well but lacks the finesse to appear anything other than dishevelled. Wells doesn't care about saying the right thing, but he is a fair man, and a great leader for his team. DS MIA HARVEY THRILLERS Book 1: Desperate Book 2: Obsessed Book 3: Silent Grave Join the Joffe Books mailing list to hear about the next in the series
A Pasty In A Pear Tree (Pentrillick Cornish Mystery Series, #2)
Daphne Neville - 2017
A week after its opening, Hetty and Lottie arrive in the village to take up residence in Primrose Cottage. The young-at-heart twin sisters have much to look forward to: carol singing, festive baking, and the knees-up in the Crown and Anchor on New Year’s Eve. With decorations up everywhere it seems that everything in the village is ready for the jollifications to begin. But then, just fifteen days before Christmas, someone is found dead in the grounds of Pentrillick House and the locals and Wonderland’s visiting tradespeople are faced with the possibility of there being a murderer in their midst. ‘A Pasty in a Pear Tree’ is the second in the light-hearted Pentrillick Mystery series located on the south coast of Cornwall.
A Lesson in Murder: A DC Oliver Cole Mystery (Book 4)
Alan Fisher - 2018
Under pressure from Superintendent Fox, Oliver agrees to stage a week-long puzzle solving course for final year Hendon College graduates, showing them how he looks at the types of clues he’s had to deal with and setting some puzzle solving problems for the class. But minutes before the first session is held, the body of a young woman is fished out of the River Tyne. Torn between the responsibility of running the training course and helping with the case, Oliver struggles to focus on either. As a second body is found, fears of another serial killer on the loose force DCI Jack Collier to enlist Oliver’s help. But when a 3rd body is found in a familiar graveyard, Oliver begins to wonder if the killer is toying with him
Holmes Picks a Winner
Charles Veley - 2021
A fiendish plot. A spectacular do-or-die climax.The five-day Ascot opening is the most fashionable event in England and, some say, around the world. But it's now 1900, and Royal Ascot is different. Even the newspapers will report that opening day is not quite the gala occasion to which the British Public has become accustomed.Yet none of them knows that among the glamorous crowds are powerful men who have come, not to watch the grand spectacle, but to create a ghastly event that will shock the world.Unless someone stops them.Enter Sherlock, Lucy, and the Baker Street team.A fast-paced and thrilling take on a classic Sherlock who-done-it, with unexpected twists and turns, two strong, feisty heroines, and a touch of romance. Holmes Picks a Winner stays faithful to the spirit of the beloved original series, while introducing more intriguing relationship dynamics.The third installment in a three-part 'season finale.
THE SEAGULL AND LECORSAIR (COURTENAY)
Brian Withecombe - 2012
The Navy maintains a blockade of French ports but one day events change the life of Lieutenant Giles Courtenay, First-Lieutenant of the SEAGULL, a sloop of 22 guns. As a result he is promoted to command her and takes her to Antigua, there to assist with the enternal fight against the French, pirates, privateers and LE CORSAIR a particularly vicious pirate terrorising the Islands. Much close action, hand to hand combat and broadsides a-plenty as Courtenay tracks down his quarry for one last bloody embrace.