Book picks similar to
Twice Burned by Jan Coffey


mystery
romantic-suspense
romance
contemporary-romance

The Night Before


Lisa Jackson - 2003
    . .In the dark shadows of a sultry southern town, a serial killer strikes. It's an act of sinister precision that has happened many times before. . .every victim an offering to a hunger that can never be sated. . .Night After Night. . .The next morning, Caitlyn Montgomery Bandeaux wakes covered in blood. But Caitlyn has no memory of the night before, when her estranged husband was brutally murdered like so many others she has known. . . After Night. . .Wanted by the police and haunted by horrifying, fragmented memories, Caitlyn turns to Adam Hunt, the town's new psychologist. But how far can she really trust him? For as a twisted killer strikes again and again, Caitlyn's about to discover that those who appear the most innocent are usually the most evil. . .

Close to Home


Suzanne Ferrell - 2012
    I’m Lorna Doone. Yep, spelled just like the cookie and I own the Peaches ‘N Cream Café here in Weston. You might think nothing much happens in a small mid-western town, but as my friend Harriett says, things aren’t always what they appear. Take our girl Emma for example…”Emma Lewis has a lot on her plate. The single mother of two precocious twin boys and an aging mother who is having trouble getting through each day, the last thing Emma needs is a man in her life, especially a doctor. So when the town’s doctor goes on vacation and his handsome nephew takes over, Emma is shocked to not only find him standing in her bedroom, but accusing her of being a neglectful parent.Clint Preston came to Westen for the year to fill in as the town doc while his uncle took a long needed vacation. Clint also needed a sense of peace and calm to try to find his passion for medicine burned out by long shifts in an urban hospital’s ER. Angered to find two boys in his clinic with broken wrists and no accompanying parent, he is determined to confront their mother. The feisty redhead he meets quickly dispels his belief that she’s a neglectful mother, but he can see her situation is more critical than she wishes to face and finds himself volunteering to help care for her sons and the remodeling of her home.As Emma and Clint forge a relationship among the slightly off-beat characters that inhabit Weston a menace from Emma’s past threatens her and her sons. Clint and Emma join forces to prevent the loss of either boy and the love they’ve discovered in each other’s’ arms.

Undertow


Cherry Adair - 2010
    Teal must help him dredge up a shipwrecked vessel containing an abundance of gold, silver, and emeralds—and she'll claim part of the prize.HE'S BLOWN OFF COURSE.Zane needs a mechanic—not a lover—and Teal, who can also dive, is perfect for the job. So it suits him just fine that Teal is completely immune to his charms…or so he tells himself. But with a deadly enemy in their midst—one who's silently edging closer—Zane and Teal sink into troubled waters. Trapped in the middle of a perilous sea, they have no one to turn to but each other as they face down a danger that runs unfathomably deep—and a passion that runs even deeper…

Secrets in the Shadows


T.L. Haddix - 2010
    So what if she gets lonely from time to time? With a healthy, beautiful daughter, and a successful coffee shop-cafe, the divorced single mother convinces herself she doesn’t have time for love. When she gets her first glimpse at her parents’ handsome new neighbor, though, she starts reconsidering her stance. Once Charlie Clark begins breaking through her defensive walls, Lauren finds him hard to resist. Just as Lauren is learning to let go of the past and embrace the future, her personal demons rear their ugly heads in the guise of a vandal hell-bent on destroying Lauren’s happiness. When another local businesswoman is brutally murdered, the investigation into the crime reveals an unexpected connection to Lauren’s past. The message is clear--the past has come calling, and it’s out for blood. Note for Readers: This book does deal with the issues of incest and sexual abuse, more with the effects on the victims than the abuse itself. Reader Discretion Advised. “Secrets in the Shadows” is the first book in the Shadows Collection, a series of novels set in small-town Indiana. Other titles include “Under the Moon's Shadow,” “Shadows from the Grave,” “Hidden in the Shadows,” "In the Heart's Shadow," and "Deception in the Shadows."

Dead by Midnight


Beverly Barton - 2010
    And his death is just the first. One by one, victims are stalked and shot at close range. Only the killer knows their sins, and who will be the next to die at midnight ...AND IN LIFE ...In the ten years since her Hollywood career imploded, Lorie Hammonds has built a good life in her Alabama hometown. When the first death threat arrives, she assumes it's a joke. Then she gets a second note. Sheriff Mike Birkett, her high-school sweetheart, has avoided Lorie since she returned to Dunmore, but when investigators uncover her connection to a string of recent murders, he's drawn into a case that's terrifyingly personal.TIMING IS EVERYTHING ...With every murder, the killer edges closer. Soon Lorie's will be the last name left on his list. Her only hope is to unearth a deadly secret --- before the clock runs out for good ...

Concrete Evidence


Rachel Grant - 2013
    Now she wants revenge…Accused of stealing artifacts from a five hundred year-old shipwreck, underwater archaeologist Erica Kesling is determined to clear her name. She’s concealed her past and taken a job certain to give her access to the buyer of the missing antiquities. She's finally closing in on her goal, when she's distracted by a sexy, charismatic intern who makes her want something other than revenge.But Lee Scott is no intern. He's looking for the lead conspirator in an international artifact smuggling scheme, and Erica is his prime suspect. He’ll do whatever it takes to win her trust and get her to reveal her secrets, even seduce her.As Erica and Lee struggle to conceal their real agendas, the one thing they can’t hide is the attraction that burns hot between them. When Erica’s quest puts her life in jeopardy, Lee must choose between old loyalties and a woman he never expected to fall for.

Thread of Fear


Laura Griffin - 2008
    Her skill at mining victims' memories to re-create the faces of sadistic criminals has left her haunted and wary, and only Jack Bowman's dogged persistence convinces her to help him. The rugged police chief is hunting a serial killer who's targeting teenage girls. But what seems like a simple assignment is fraught with complications, including a searing attraction to Jack that's tempting Fiona to let her guard down in potentially dangerous ways. Jack never intended for Fiona to become so deeply involved in the case -- or in his life. But every instinct tells him she's his best hope for finding a psychopath who's lurking in plain sight, growing more ruthless with each passing day. And now that Fiona is right in the killer's crosshairs, the only way to keep her safe is to unravel a small town's darkest secrets, one terrifying thread at a time....

All She Ever Wanted


Barbara Freethy - 2000
    and why she died ...Ten years ago, during a party gone out of control, beautiful, vibrant Emily plummeted to her death, leaving her three best friends and sorority sisters— Natalie, Laura and Madison—devastated. None of them has ever forgotten that night, or the role each may have played in Emily's death, the guilt that has pursued them, and the loss they still suffer.Now an unknown writer has rocketed onto bestseller lists with a novel that eerily mirrors their own story. Who is he? How does he know the intimate details of their lives? And why is he accusing one of them of murder? As they begin to unravel the startling truth about their friend, each will rediscover a love she lost long ago and uncover secrets that will forever change her life...From #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Barbara Freethy comes a romantic and suspenseful story of three best friends and a terrible, life-changing secret.

Fade to Black


Leslie Parrish - 2009
    Not easy to do when he's been thrust into the darkest, most violent investigation of his career. A psychopath calling himself the Reaper is auctioning off murder at a deviant cyber club called Satan's Playground, and Dean and his team are forced to helplessly witness the killer's brutal crimes online. Stacey Rhodes is happy in her quiet, sleepy little town of Hope Valley, Virginia, where she has taken over as Sheriff because of her father's ill health. Nothing much seems to happen here, except for the mysterious disappearance of the town bad girl a year ago. So she is shocked when a sexy, brooding FBI agent intrudes on her world, bringing evidence that the missing local girl was the victim of a serial killer. Even more shocking, that serial killer might be someone she knows. Maybe even someone she loves....'

Captured Innocence


Kennedy Layne - 2013
    A submissive has been murdered in a particularly vicious manner and to bring her killer to justice, he must go undercover. Not hard to do considering he's already part of the BDSM lifestyle.Lauren Bailey, a local vendor of bejeweled erotic implements, lives vicariously through her clients due to her fear of bondage. When Connor's dominant side can't resist trying to ease her anxieties, she accepts his proposal and agrees to one stipulation...keep things casual.When the killer sets his sights on Lauren, Connor is forced to rethink their relationship. He has the training it takes to catch a murdered, but does he have the courage to escape his inner demons and capture Lauren's heart?

Prey


Linda Howard - 2011
    After all, why give Dare the satisfaction of knowing he can push her buttons and push her to the edge?Three years ago, Dare returned home to rural western Montana and opened a hunting business to rival Angie’s. Complicating matters is the fact that Dare has asked Angie out (not once but twice) and has given her a gift of butterflies in the process. Angie has no patience for butterflies. They only lead to foolish decisions. And now the infuriatingly handsome Iraq war vet has siphoned away Angie’s livelihood, forcing her to close up shop. Before Angie is to leave town, she organizes one last trip into the wilderness with a client and his guest, who wants to bag a black bear. But the adrenaline-fueled adventure turns deadly when Angie witnesses a cold-blooded murder and finds herself on the wrong side of a loaded gun. Before the killer can tie up this attractive loose end, a bear comes crashing through the woods—changing the dark game completely.Luckily, Dare is camping nearby and hears the shots. Forced together for their very survival, Angie and Dare must confront hard feelings, a blinding storm, and a growing attraction—while being stalked by a desperate killer and a ferocious five-hundred-pound beast. And neither will stop until they reach their prey.From the Hardcover edition.

A Beautiful Mess


T.K. Leigh - 2013
    Having lost her parents in a tragic car accident when she was a little girl, she’s struggled to get close to anyone. Instead, she prefers to avoid all relationships, keeping them superficial at best.Until retired Navy SEAL Alexander Burnham walks into her life and sparks something inside her she thought was dead.But he has demons of his own, ones that could turn her world upside-down.Ones that could reveal the truth that’s been kept from her for years.Ones that could cost her everything…Including her life.A Beautiful Mess is the first book in the Beautiful Mess Series, a gripping, suspenseful story about two souls destined to be together and the forces threatening to keep them apart. Pick up your copy of the first book in this USA Today Bestselling series today!

Black Hills


Nora Roberts - 2009
    But things are a bit more bearable now that he's discovered the neighbor girl, Lil Chance, and her homemade batting cage. Even horseback riding isn't as awful as Coop thought it would be. Each year, with Coop's annual summer visit, their friendship deepens from innocent games to stolen kisses, but there is one shared experience that will forever haunt them: the terrifying discovery of a hiker's body.As the seasons change and the years roll, Lil stays steadfast to her aspiration of becoming a wildlife biologist and protecting her family land, while Coop struggles with his father's demand that he attend law school and join the family firm. Twelve years after they last walked together hand in hand, fate has brought them back to the Black Hills when the people and things they hold most dear need them most.Coop recently left his fast-paced life as an investigator in New York to take care for his aging grandparents and the ranch he has come to call home. Though the memory of his touch still haunts her, Lil has let nothing stop her dream of opening the Chance Wildlife Refuge, but something ... or someone ... has been keeping a close watch. When small pranks and acts of destruction escalate into the heartless killing of Lil's beloved cougar, recollections of an unsolved murder in these very hills have Coop springing to action to keep Lil safe.Lil and Coop both know the natural dangers that lurk in the wild landscape of the Black Hills. Now they must work together to unearth a killer of twisted and unnatural instincts who has singled them out as prey.

Crazy Hot


Tara Janzen - 2005
    But her grandfather has mysteriously vanished, and Quinn Younger could be the missing link. What the bad-boy-turned-American-hero is doing in the deserted tumbleweed town of Cisco, Utah, is an even bigger mystery…until danger trails Regan right to his front door and the sexy ex–air force pilot becomes her sole hope of survival.…Quinn figures things can’t get worse than being stuck in tiny Cisco on an impossible special-ops mission. Then the dinosaur doc’s granddaughter roars into town with bad guys on her tail. Once, Quinn was on the fast track to a life of crime…until Regan’s grandfather rescued him. Now Quinn owes it to them both to find the old guy. But throw in a deadly terrorist and some hot dinosaur bones, and a man could get himself killed. Because facing down danger with this revved-up lady is one endless adrenaline-rush of pleasure—especially when they’re falling crazy in love… and hanging on for dear life.…

No Ordinary Man


Suzanne Brockmann - 1996
    That and the fact that he liked her daughter - and was the sexiest guy she'd ever met. But as Jess found out, no one got to know the elusive Mr. Carpenter. He was a master at dodging questions...and igniting her desires. With just one of his searing kisses, Jess was hotter than the Florida sun.But then the murders started - all women who looked like, her. And the profile of the killer matched Rob... Was Rob an innocent victim - or had his burning kisses only been a smoke screen? One thing was certain: Rob Carpenter was no ordinary man.