Love Me If You Must


Nicole Young - 2007
    For a start she discovers something unsettling in the basement that interests the police officer next door.

Cliff Diver


Carmen Amato - 2013
    But she's living in a pressure cooker. Other detectives are scheming to push her out and the police department is riddled with corruption and drug cartel influence.When the lieutenant is murdered, Emilia is assigned to lead the investigation. Soon the man’s sordid sex life, money laundering, and involvement in a kidnapping double-cross combine to create an ugly mess no one wants exposed. The high profile murder case could wreck Emilia’s career. When another detective--Emilia's worst enemy in the squadroom--emerges as the prime suspect, keeping her job might be the least of her worries.Readers who love international mystery series crime fighters including Armand Gamache, Harry Hole, Guido Brunetti, and the Department Q series will also love Detective Emilia Cruz’s complex plots, pulse-pounding suspense, and exotic location. Perfect for lovers of detective fiction by Ian Rankin, Jo Nesbo, and Peter May, as well as Don Winslow’s Mexican cartel and border thrillers.

Sleeping Dogs (Chronicles of Miller's Crossing #1)


Linda L. Chontos - 2016
    If the message it contains is true, the man convicted of a local murder thirty-six years ago is innocent, and the real murderer is walking free. Matty must decide if she is willing to uncover the truth, whatever the cost to herself and those around her. If that wasn’t enough, there’s trouble afoot in their little country church where Matty’s friend, Willa-Mae, is leading the charge to get things back to the way they were before the new pastor arrived with his new ideas.

Night of the Assassin


Russell Blake - 2011
    A no-holds-barred, breakneck-paced thriller, Night charts the early years of El Rey - known as the King of Swords - a super-assassin responsible for some of the world's most spectacular and daring executions.Framed against the backdrop of present-day Mexico's brutal narco-trafficking violence, Night of the Assassin chronicles the making of a monster - a cold-blooded, ruthless killing machine. Raw, disturbing, edgy and unflinching, this epic saga defies convention to create a roller-coaster of intrigue, suspense and thrills that will leave even the most jaded thriller aficionados gasping for breath.Best if read after King of Swords, Night was written to provide background on El Rey, with the assumption that the reader is already familiar with the events in King of Swords.

Hushabye


Celina Grace - 2013
    A murdered girl. A case where everyone has something to hide...Hushabye (A Kate Redman mystery) is the new novel from crime writer Celina Grace, author of Lost Girls and The House on Fever Street.On the first day of her new job in the West Country, Detective Sergeant Kate Redman finds herself investigating the kidnapping of Charlie Fullman, the newborn son of a wealthy entrepreneur and his trophy wife. It seems a straightforward case... but as Kate and her fellow officer Mark Olbeck delve deeper, they uncover murky secrets and multiple motives for the crime.Kate finds the case bringing up painful memories of her own past secrets. As she confronts the truth about herself, her increasing emotional instability threatens both her hard-won career success and the possibility that they will ever find Charlie Fullman alive...

Murder Passes the Buck


Deb Baker - 2006
    Her son Blaze, the sheriff in a backwoods community of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, is petitioning to become her legal guardian, but Gertie, a sassy sixty-six-year-old widow with a taste for detective work, has got bigger fish to fry: solving the murder of Chester Lampi who was shot dead in his deer blind. Blaze-who's more interested in retiring than investigating-rules Chester's death as a hunting accident. So, Gertie takes on the case with help from her friends, man-hungry Cora Mae and pin-curled Kitty. Interrogating neighbors, spying, impersonating the FBI . . . the stubborn, spunky grandmother won't give up the chase even when the killer takes aim at her.

Murder on the Hill


Kennedy Chase - 2014
    Until now she’s been know as many things: Thief, Bandit, The girl dressed like a ninja… When she’s offered an investigative position at the Silvers Finders Agency, she decides it’s time to go straight. But when a jewelry store break-in she’s investigating turns into a murder case, Harley will need all her skills to find the killer and avoid the attentions of a Russian crime boss. With the help of her new friends, and some from her underworld past, Harley faces a race against the clock. She’ll need to uncover the secret behind the artifact left at the jewelry store if she’s to catch the murderer. If she fails, it won’t just be the job she loses — but her life.

White Jade


Alex Lukeman - 2011
    WHITE JADE is a fast-paced thriller that spins a web of deceit and murder across the globe, featuring characters caught up in a deadly international power game. Former Recon Marine Nick Carter works for the Project, a covert black ops unit reporting to the President. He's taciturn and tough, with a dark history of emotional and physical scars. Selena Connor is a beautiful, strong and skilled linguist. When her wealthy uncle is murdered by someone looking for an ancient book about the elixir of immortality, she's thrown into Nick's dangerous world. Nick is assigned to protect Selena and help her recover the missing text. The search escalates into a life and death adventure reaching from the gold country of California to the high country of Tibet, from Washington to Beijing. Along the way Nick and Selena begin a relationship forged by danger, combat and betrayal. Someone is out to take over China and attack America--and Nick and Selena are right in the line of fire. International intrigue, terrorist acts, romance, patriotism and the threat of nuclear war form the core of the book, the first volume in a series featuring Nick, Selena, the Project and the ongoing, complex relationship between the main protagonists.

Damaged


Pamela Callow - 2010
    But then the teen is brutally murdered. And it isn't only Kate who wonders if her legal advice led to the girl's death.How far are you willing to go to redeem yourself?Put on notice by Randall Barrett, the firm's charismatic managing partner, Kate must fight for her career, for her reputation - and for redemption.Unwilling to live with the damage she may have caused, Kate pursues the case on her own and unearths some chilling facts.Facts that lead straight to the heart of a legal conspiracy.Facts that lead Kate directly into the surgically skilled hands of the Body Butcher. The first book in the Kate Lange legal thriller series. A Levy "Need to Read" pick with Top Ten Bestseller display. Now under option for television development.

When I Was You


Minka Kent - 2020
    Suffering from debilitating headaches and memory loss, she can rely only on her compassionate new tenant, Dr. Niall Emberlin, a welcome distraction from the discomfiting bubble that has become her existence.But Brienne’s growing confidence in her new routine is shaken when she stumbles across unsettling evidence that someone else is living as…her. Same name. Same car. Same hair. Same clothes. She’s even friended her family on social media. To find out why, Brienne must leave the safety of her home to hunt a familiar stranger.What she discovers is more disturbing than she could have ever imagined. With her fragile mind close to shattering, Brienne is prepared to do anything to reclaim her life. If it’s even hers to reclaim.

Blackbird Fly


Lise McClendon - 2009
    That’s the delicious underpinning of this sprawling, exuberant, generous-spirited cozy mystery with a yummy side of international adventure.It might be sadder except that once Harry dies, his widow, Merle Bennett realizes almost immediately it was no wonder she didn't know anything about him. They’d pretty much been leading separate lives. Still, the will’s a shock. And so is an intriguing surprise—Harry left her a family home in a tiny French village. But who was Harry’s family? Finding out is half the fun.Merle sets out to claim her inheritance, adolescent son in tow, and thus begins a sojourn reminiscent of A Year in Provence, or perhaps Under The Tuscan Sun all mixed up with something by Carolyn Hart, maybe, or M.C. Beaton. Because Malcouziac, Merle’s tiny Dordogne town, is the quintessential village—just perfect for a murder. And a rollicking good time.Once Merle gets there, she finds…well, France! An unexpected romance! Mystery galore! Murder! And not just murder, but the unnerving experience of being a suspect. Once her passport is confiscated, what can she do but stay and restore her ancient battered house? While enjoying the tender attention of the unusually well-educated, handsome and…yes, quite mysterious roofer she’s hired.

Dog Collar Crime


Adrienne Giordano - 2013
    A move that brings her back into the tempting arms of Frankie Falcone, the ex that never fails to make her heart sit up and beg.When Lucie parlays her temporary dog-walking gig into a career making fancy dog accessories, Frankie becomes her number one supporter. Life starts to look like a walk in the park…until three of her bling-wearing clients are dogjacked. Despite help from the on-again, off-again Mr. Fix-It in her life, Lucie is thrown into an investigation that’s more Goodfellas than good doggie. One that could shatter her new life and her second chance at love.

Diner Deeds Done Dirt Cheap: An Aspie Girl in Massachusetts


Lisa Shea - 2016
    She edits books from her small apartment. She occasionally goes out to the local diner for a tuna melt. She enjoys living in Worcester. It's where the Worcester Lunch Car Company made diners from 1906 to 1957. And now she gets to enjoy one in all its vintage glory. But her quiet, predictable evening at the diner is disturbed when four restaurant workers come in complaining about a theft. And her inquisitive mind soon notices something ... * * * Diner Deeds Done Dirt Cheap is the first book in the Diner Short Story Mysteries series. These short stories are about 15-20 pages each and feature authentic diners around Massachusetts. Author Lisa Shea goes to each diner personally to write up its sights, sounds, and aromas. That way you, the reader, can take a virtual vacation to these historic locations! Visit Lisa's webpages to see photos and write-ups of the diners. All of the Diner Mystery series contain no violence, no swearing, and no intimacy, so they are suitable for teens and up. You can read the books one-by-one as they are released, or you can wait for the boxed sets to be published once the series gets enough books in it. It's your choice! I try to write them right after I visit, so that's why there are sometimes gaps in the release schedule. It's not always easy to get to a diner when they're open! A portion of all proceeds benefits battered women's shelters.

Too Quiet In Brooklyn


Susan Russo Anderson - 2013
    It's too quiet, at least for Brooklyn, so twenty-two-year-old Fina Fitzgibbons is not surprised when she stumbles upon a throttled woman in the heart of Brooklyn Heights and discovers that the dead woman's four-year-old grandson is also missing. She begins a wild hunt for the strangler-kidnapper, Ralph. During the chase, she resists falling in love with her boyfriend, Denny, an NYPD patrol officer, steps on the toes of Detective First Grade Jane Templeton, and uncovers secrets about her own past. In the end, Ralph has a deadly surprise for Fina.

Macyn's Letter


S.L. Stacker - 2013
    Falling into the lap of a sexy stranger may persuade her to change her mind, but before Macyn realizes what's happening, a second potential love interest is vying for her affections. When a threatening letter turns up in her mailbox, Macyn realizes choosing between two guys is the least of her worries. Abduction, violence, and rescue by an elite squad change the course of her life forever. When she seeks revenge on those who hurt her, she has to decide if she can trust the ones who vow they love her. Will Macyn be able to overcome her past and use their aid in her vendetta, or will she take matters into her own hands?