Book picks similar to
The Nightingale Trivet by Russell Mead


bird-title-project
mystery-and-suspense
raven-house-mysteries

Culinary Cozy Mystery Box Set


Carol Durand - 2015
     As the town gets stirred up over what looks to be their very own version of a murder mystery tv show they can’t believe what’s happening in their little town. If it wasn’t enough that they think Ben’s a suspect, now someone has been lurking around her home after dark. Could she be next? Follow Missy and Detective Beckett as they try to figure out who real the killer is. Book 2-A Pinch of Murder With $50,000 up for grabs in a cupcake competition, Missy Gladstone has to be on her A-game, if she plans on expanding her business, but that doesn't prevent her from deciding to use the competition as an excuse to unwind in Las Vegas while she's there. When she arrives, Missy quickly learns that the reason she's been invited to compete has less to do with her culinary skills and more to do with her old childhood frenemy, who is now a big time celebrity baker with TV shows, a line of bakeware, and a chain of cupcake shops across the country. Knowing that her old rival always had a few tricks up her sleeve, it's no surprise when Missy discovers that the invitation came with ulterior motives. A sticky proposal puts them at odds once again, only this time Missy's business will be on the line. Before Missy knows what's happening, her frenemy is found dead in her hotel room and all eyes are on her. Alone, far from home, Missy will have to reach out to the only ally she has, Detective Becket, and hope that he could help her out of this confectionery mess before its too late. Book 3-Half Baked Murder Missy and Detective Becket are back in Louisiana and after all the hoopla in Vegas Missy has become so popular that she's expanding all the way across town to Darryl "The Donut Man" Davis's old shop. However Missy smells something fishy and suspects foul play when one a fellow shop owner is murdered. Could it be that the same country thugs who tried to strong-arm her into using their suppliers got a little too carried away and now someone is dead? Book 4-A Mouthful of Murder Missy is up and running again - her new store in Dellville is successful and her old shop in LaChance is being rebuilt. She’s delighted when a woman her age from California buys the ice cream shop across the street, after a few slips of the tongue, the odd hours she keeps, Missy catches on that her new friend may be hiding something that may be deadly. Book 5-Cupcakes and Murder Detective Beckett and Missy didn't bank on becoming murder suspects only a few days after arriving in sunny Cozumel. Pitted against the wild accusations of the locals, the two foreigners must discover the true motive for the crime and track down the real killer before time runs out for them both! Click the “buy now with 1 click” button at the top of the page OR Read it for FREE with Kindle Unlimited.

The White Cuckoo


Annie Ireson - 2012
    Is destiny just the past, rewritten?

Forged in Rage (Violent Sands #1)


Sean Young - 2017
    Now that secret is about to be unleashed. In the right hands, the scroll could bring about Israel's freedom from Roman occupation, but used improperly, it could destroy her.Barabbas, a warrior zealot and sworn protector of the scroll, has vowed to overthrow his Roman oppressors. He has raged against an empire and lashed out at its military might. But his greatest enemy remains the pain within.His quest for vengeance and Roman blood, his love for a peace loving woman, and his commitment to the mysterious scroll pull him in vastly different directions.Death and betrayal loom around every corner as Barabbas searches for a truth that he has yet to fully understand-the force that drives him forward and ultimately requests the ultimate sacrifice to be made by a man.

The Protectors: Vigilante Justice


Bernard Lee DeLeo - 2012
    Bradwick snaps when he and James bust in on a kidnapping ring, enslaving children for pornography. He brutally executes the three kidnappers, stunning James. He sets up the scene to pass for self-defense with Ellie James cooperation. Their ruse succeeds, triggering a two cop crackdown on crime the city of Oakland’s leaders scurry to stop. Dedicated to end ‘look the other way’ crime suppression tactics, ending in destruction and death for the common people in Oakland, Bradwick and James decide it’s time to go on offense.Connor explains it this way after they rescue the kidnapped children, “The kids made me start thinking about how I want folks to look at us. I don’t care anymore to visit someone to tell them we found the people who broke into their business or house and robbed them blind. I want them to wave at us from their house or business as we go by because we prevent the gangbangers, drug dealers and thugs from terrorizing them.”The crime war takes on different meaning when they bust an MS-13 El Salvadoran gangster’s illegal alien processing center. Connor and Ellie run headlong into a corrupt politician on the gangster’s payroll, and the terrorists behind him. Soon, everyday crime fighting busts become a fond memory. (Taken from Amazon.com)

The Veiled One and An Unkindness of Ravens


Ruth Rendell - 1988
    Before he can find the answer, he’s nearly killed himself—by a politically motivated car bombing targeting his activist daughter. With the inspector in the hospital, the case falls to his partner, Mike Burden. But when a strange mother and son are suspected, Burdon’s trail leads him down a very twisted road.  An Unkindness of Ravens: When a neighbor’s husband vanishes, Chief Inspector Wexford suspects the cad most likely ran off with one of his girlfriends. However, there are a few nagging concerns, like the man’s suspicious letter of resignation and his abandoned car. And is it just a fluke that his disappearance coincides with a rash of stabbings—all straight through the heart, all with male victims? Behind the seemingly placid domesticity of Wexford’s Sussex neighbors, there’s a growing web of tangling secrets, double lives, and triple-crosses.

The Silence of Herondale


Joan Aiken - 1964
    Instead she found terror and murder...Isolated in the Gilmartin ancestral home in Herondale, Deborah and young Carreen were left to face a nameless, unseen danger lurking in the frozen village, where only the flick of a curtain at a window or some random footprints in the snow, showed that it was inhabited at all.Alone in a house that had known violence, Deborah turned to Carreen's cousin Jeremy, as attractive as he was cynical and mysterious. But was he really a friend, or was he the enemy? In spite of Jeremy - or because of him? - Deborah found herself fighting for her life in an affair so bizarre as to shatter the silence of Herondale forever.1973 printing, with the "Ace * First in Gothics" banner at the top of the front cover.

Waking the Tiger: A thrilling award-nominated historical crime novel


Mark Wightman - 2021
    Following the disappearance of his wife, his life and career have fallen apart.A distinctive tiger tattoo is the only clue to her identityOnce a rising star of Singapore CID, Betancourt has been relegated to the Marine Division, with tedious dockyard disputes and goods inspections among his new duties.Who is she? And why are the authorities turning a blind eye?But when a beautiful, unidentified Japanese woman is found murdered in the shadow of a warehouse owned by one of Singapore’s most powerful families, Betancourt defies orders and pursues those responsible. What he discovers will bring him into conflict with powerful enemies, and force him to face his personal demons.

Vultures at Twilight


Charles Atkins - 2012
    Clearly, someone is unhappy with the status quo as high-end antique dealers are being murdered in gruesome--yet fitting--ways. When a severed finger shows up at the Friday night auction, unlikely heroines Lil Campbell and Ada Strauss have to wonder--where's the rest of the body? A question that leads to festering small-town secrets, and the unraveling of a mystery that shows all is not well in a town famed for its postcard perfect New England charm. For Lil and Ada, long-time friends and neighbors, the murders take a personal turn as unspeakable accusations are raised against Lil's dead husband and she becomes the focus of the killer's rage. And to make things worse--or better--the two friends are forced to confront powerful feelings for one another that threaten their idyllic lives.

Erin Solomon Mysteries, Books 1 - 5


Jen Blood - 2015
    Each book delves more deeply into the tragedy, inextricably drawing Erin and her fellow investigators into some of the darkest chapters in American history. With wit, sharp writing, an epic love story, and a mystery that will keep you guessing till the very end, the series is sure to appeal to fans of Dennis Lehane, JD Robb, John Connolly, and Iris Johansen.

The Bird Yard


Julia Wallis Martin - 1998
    It proves to be a promise that Parker cannot keep. When another young boy is missing under similar circumstances, the evidence leads Parker to an aviary or bird yard attached to an abandoned house. While the finches imprisoned in the aviary exert a magical appeal to the young boys who surreptitiously come to watch them, its owner is a shadowy figure whose hold over his young visitors seems far more sinister. Convinced that the killer is stalking his third victim, a child Parker knows, he enlists the help of a child psychologist to unravel a dark secret.

A Little Bird


Wendy James - 2021
    While some things have changed—her relationship with her ailing, crotchety father, her new job at the community newspaper—Jo finds that her return has rekindled the grief and uncertainty she experienced during her childhood following the inexplicable disappearance of her mother and baby sister.Returning to Arthurville has its unexpected pleasures, though, as Jo happily reconnects with old friends and makes a few new ones. But she can’t let go of her search for answers to that long-ago mystery. And as she keeps investigating, the splash she’s making begins to ripple outward—far beyond the disappearance of her mother and sister.Jo is determined to dig as deep as it takes to get answers. But it’s not long before she realises that someone among the familiar faces doesn’t want her picking through the debris of the past. And they’ll go to any lengths to silence the little bird before she sings the truth.

The Abduction of Grace


Anthony Hulse - 2012
    Her parents suffer turmoil as they are suspected, although never charged with the crime. Anna Curren, an investigative journalist becomes obsessed with the case, and with the blessing of Grace's parents, who have lost confidence with CID, she employs the services of a private investigator. The trail leads the team to Majorca, Prague, and the South of France, and ultimately to links with the Russian mafia. A complex tale of obsession, greed, and passion, ultimately climaxing in a frightening and surprising scenario. This novel is a guaranteed page turner!

Deadly Holiday


Misty Evans - 2017
    While she's focused on creating a magical Christmas for their seven-month-old daughter, Via, all Cooper is asking from Santa is to finally be able to call Celina his wife. Celina wants nothing more than to become Mrs. Cooper Harris, except ties to her past keep her from making the leap. Hoping to lift her Christmas spirits, with the rest of the SCVC Taskforce lending a hand, she convinces Cooper to play Santa at a holiday fundraiser for the Aslan Children’s Hospital. The party takes a deadly turn when a cartel leader wanted by the US government crashes the guest list with his terminally ill daughter, taking everyone hostage. With the lives of so many on the line - including his own family - Cooper will have to pull a Christmas miracle from Santa's toy sack to help the sick girl, while bringing an end to her father's reign of terror.

Warrior Monk: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel


Ray Keating - 2010
    Lutheran pastor, saving lives and taking care of bad guys (who get saved)." WARRIOR MONK revolves around a former CIA assassin, Stephen Grant, who has lived a far different, relatively quiet life as a parish pastor in recent years. However, a shooting at his church, a historic papal proposal, and threats to the Pope's life mean that Grant's former and current lives collide. Grant must tap the varied skills learned as a government agent, a theologian and a pastor not only to protect the Pope, but also to feel his way through a minefield of personal challenges. Larry Kudlow, CNBC's "The Kudlow Report," said, "Ray Keating has created a fascinating and unique character in Pastor Grant. The way Keating intertwines politics, national security and faith into a compelling thriller is sheer delight." U.S. Congressman Pete King, the Ranking Member on the House Homeland Security Committee, declared, "CIA intrigue, the Vatican, international terrorism and brutal assassinations make Warrior Monk a fast-moving, riveting read right out of today's - and tomorrow's - headlines. Add challenging religious issues, which the author makes us confront, and you have a brilliant novel. Ray Keating knows what he is writing about and writes it extraordinarily well." And Paul L. Maier, best-selling author of A Skeleton in God's Closet, commented, "Holy Scripture and unholy gun play in the same novel? Exactly - and you'll love the combination! WARRIOR MONK offers a riveting mix of action, romance, and intrigue, served up by a master wordsmith. Keating's Pastor Stephen Grant manages to wield both Bible and bullets with equal expertise. Grant is clearly in control whether in or out of the pulpit."

The Amish Girl


Samantha Bayarr - 2015
    When she returns to her childhood home, strange and frightening events warn that she will soon become a victim of the same fate if she is unsuccessful in solving the crime even the authorities couldn't solve. The secret she uncovers beneath the decaying floorboards of her dilapidated home makes her wish she'd never returned... and her parents are too dead to give her an explanation. This book, like all other books by Samantha Bayarr, is a clean read. A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: While this novel is set against the backdrop of an Amish community, the characters and the names of the community are fictional. There is no intended resemblance between the characters in this book or the setting, and any real members of any Amish or Mennonite community. As with any work of fiction, I’ve taken license in some areas of research as a means of creating the necessary circumstances for my characters and setting. It is completely impossible to be accurate in details and descriptions, since every community differs, and such a setting would destroy the fictional quality of entertainment this book serves to present. Any inaccuracies in the Amish and Mennonite lifestyles portrayed in this book are completely due to fictional license. Please keep in mind that this book is meant for fictional, entertainment purposes only, and is not written as a text book on the Amish.