Book picks similar to
Karma by Susan Dunlap


mystery
mysteries
01-words
detective

One Deadly Sister


Rod Hoisington - 2009
    She doesn't need this. She's holding an old grudge and resents having her life interrupted. The brother doesn't come looking for trouble, he simply wants to get past his Philadelphia divorce and start a new life in Florida, but woman-trouble comes looking for him. Unfortunately, he arrives in the small Florida ocean side town just as someone murders the local gubernatorial candidate. The brother doesn't have a clue about women and gets seduced and framed. The brother hasn't bothered with his estranged sister up north for years, but now as a stranger in a hostile town she's his only hope. She reluctantly decides to at least check out her brother's predicament in Florida. This small step leads the sister into an ever-increasing entanglement of deceit, double-cross, and danger, and she must somehow persuade the irresistible investigating detective to play things her way. ONE DEADLY SISTER is the first book in this popular women sleuth mystery romance series. Followed by THE PRICE OF CANDY, SUCH WICKED FRIENDS, CHASING SUSPECT THREE, ALIVE AFTER FRIDAY and INTO THE HEAT.

Burning Time


Leslie Glass - 1993
    A serial killer leaves a college coed to die in the California desert, his signature of fire seared into her flesh....A beautiful Chinese-American detective, recently transferred from Chinatown to the Upper West Side, is assigned a routine missing-persons case...A famous doctor returns home from a lecture to discover that his actress wife has been living a secret life....Now, the paths of the cop, the killer, and the psychiatrist are about to converge....A savage killer is on the loose in New York City.  His calling card is a tattoo of flames; his trail of victims leads from the scorched sands of Californa tothe blistering heart of Manhattan.Only Detective April Woo can block this vicious madman's next move.  And with the help of psychiatrist Jason Frank, this NYPD policewoman will prove that the predator she's hunting is no ordinary killer--but then, April Woo is no ordinary cop.

Taboo


Casey Hill - 2011
    A first thriller co-written by Melissa Hill and her husband Kevin.The story is set in Dublin and features forensic investigator Reilly Steel who has moved from the US to Dublin to be close to her father.But what should have been a quiet period filled with training and Irish forensics team turns sinister and violent when body after body is found of people killed in what appears to be a twisted game.

Mark of the Loon


Molly Greene - 2012
    She struggles with the inability to put down roots years after the sudden death of her beloved parents. Madison and her three wise, hilarious friends all wonder if she uses her busy, work-centric lifestyle as an excuse to avoid connection with anyone but them.When Madison checks out a probate sale outside Healdsburg, California, she falls in love with the European-style house on a private tract of land overlooking Lake Sonoma. In fact, she likes the place so much she climbs in the window for a private tour. With help from lawyer and friend Genevieve Delacourt, Madison soon learns that the estate’s corrupt attorney has manipulated the sale and is attempting to steer the purchase to an anonymous client in a deceitful plan for personal gain.Good fortune enables her to purchase the Blackburne’s property, but far more than a new home and lush gardens await discovery during this renovation. As Madison works on the remodel, she’s drawn into an old love story with dangerous consequences. In the process, she discovers herself as she unearths buried secrets. The series of events both endanger Madison and lead her to love – and a permanent home. Mark of the Loon is the skillful combination of history, mystery, and romance in a novel that explores deep friendship, choices, and how individuals cope with loss.

Elvis Has Not Left the Building


J.R. Rain - 2010
    Unfortunately, leaving fame behind also meant leaving his fortune behind, too, and now Elvis finds himself broke and living in near poverty in a small apartment in Los Angeles. Luckily for him, it turns out he's a pretty good private investigator.Now in his seventies and contemplating a return to music (discreetly, of course), Elvis is hired to solve a baffling missing person case. The King digs deeper, and soon finds himself surrounded by the seedier elements of Los Angeles, from nefarious Hollywood producers who prey upon the young, to twin brothers with a very dark secret.And as Elvis pieces the bizarre puzzle together, he slowly makes his singing comeback—and will be reunited on stage with someone even the King himself never dreamed possible.

Hollywood Station


Joseph Wambaugh - 2006
    If you're a cop in Hollywood Division, it also means dealing with the most overwrought, desperate, and deluded criminals anywhere. When you're patrolling Sunset and Hollywood Boulevards, neither a good reputation nor the lessons of scandals past will help you keep your cool, your sanity, or your life when things heat up.The robbery of a Hollywood jewelry store, complete with masks and a hand grenade, quickly connects to a Russian nightclub, an undercover operation gone bloodily wrong, and a cluelessly ambitious pair of tweakers. Putting the pieces together are the sergeant they call the Oracle and his squad of street cops. There's Budgie Polk, a twenty-something firecracker with a four-month-old at home, and Wesley Drubb, a rich boy who joined the force seeking thrills. Fausto Gamboa is the tetchy veteran, and Hollywood Nate is the one who never shuts up about movies. They spend their days in patrol cars and their nights in the underbelly of a city that never sleeps. From their headquarters at Hollywood Station, they see the glamour city for what it is: a field of land mines, where the mundane is dangerous and the dangerous is mundane.

The Gauguin Connection


Estelle Ryan - 2012
    Masterful forgeries. Art crime at its worst.A straightforward murder investigation quickly turns into a quagmire of stolen Eurocorps weapons, a money-laundering charity, forged art and high-ranking EU officials abusing their power.As an insurance investigator and world renowned expert in nonverbal communication, Dr Genevieve Lenard faces the daily challenge of living a successful, independent life. Particularly because she has to deal with her high functioning Autism. Nothing - not her studies, her high IQ or her astounding analytical skills - prepared her for the changes about to take place in her life.It started as a favour to help her boss' acerbic friend look into the murder of a young artist, but soon it proves to be far more complex. Forced out of her predictable routines, safe environment and limited social interaction, Genevieve is thrown into exploring the meaning of friendship, expanding her social definitions, and for the first time in her life be part of a team in a race to stop more artists from being murdered.

Dark Path


Melissa F. Miller - 2017
    But death keeps finding him. After solving a series of unexplained deaths and exposing a sordid political scandal, Bodhi retreated from the limelight. Permanently, he thought. But now he's called out of early retirement to help investigate a death cluster on a private island in the Florida Keys. Healthy residents of a ritzy assisted living facility are dying in the middle of the night ... their faces frozen in terror. Bodhi arrives on Golden Island to find a community gripped by fear. And beneath the surface, conflict simmers, threatening to boil over. The charismatic leader of the Golden Island Church, the dying Cuban-Americans, and the local Catholic priest all have secrets to protect.It's up to Bodhi to bring the truth to light ... before another resident dies.
Dark Path is the first book in an intriguing, engrossing new forensic thriller series by USA Today bestselling author Melissa F. Miller. Lonely Path (Book 2), Hidden Path (Book 3), and Twisted Path (Book 4) are available now!What Readers Are Saying:"[A] very enjoyable read--a forensic thriller crossed with cozy mystery, with a cast of entertaining characters confined in a remote location. ... [I]n Miller's books there are always interesting themes alongside the thrill of a fast-paced plot, and 'Dark Path' is no exception.""I fervently enjoyed the twists and turns as one by one, the clues to the puzzle are discovered.""[A]n excellent, tightly woven tale that hooked me quickly and kept me reading until the conclusion.""Melissa Miller's writing is strong, with good character development, lots of action and a mystery that keeps you guessing until the end."Other Thriller/Mystery Series by Melissa F. Miller:The Sasha McCandless Legal Thriller SeriesThe Aroostine Higgins Thriller SeriesThe We Sisters Three Mystery Series

Bundle of Trouble


Diana Orgain - 2009
    From the moment she and newborn Laurie lock eyes, Kate can't imagine returning to work after her six-week maternity leave, but in expensive San Francisco, she and her ad exec husband, Jim, need every bit of both incomes. Then a dead body is fished out of the bay and linked to Jim's estranged brother, George. Both the police and PI Albert Galigani, hired by the dead man's mother, believe that Jim and Kate know more than they're revealing. Kate is determined to find the elusive George and get some answers, but she soon gets in over her head. Galigani serves as a charming mentor as Kate navigates the twists of motherhood and an uncomplicated but engaging plot. (Aug.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Review "[AN] ENTERTAINING NEW SLEUTH." -GILLIAN ROBERTS, AUTHOR OF THE AMANDA PEPPER SERIES "A charming, gutsy, wry character who will make you laugh so hard you'll forget the labor pains." -LOUISE URE, SHAMUS AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR Book Description: A body has been dredged from the San Francisco Bay. Kate Connelly, pregnant and ready to pop, has reason to fear it may be her long lost brother-in-law. Battling sleep deprivation, diaper blowouts and breastfeeding mishaps she muddles through her own investigation, Mommy style: To do: 1. Find Killer 2. Figure out hideous breast pump. 3. Avoid cranky cop. 4. Send out Make birth announcements – need pink paper. 5. FIND KILLER

Family Honor


Robert B. Parker - 1999
     Sunny Randall is a Boston P.I. and former cop, a college graduate, an aspiring painter, a divorcée, and the owner of a miniature bull terrier named Rosie. Hired by a wealthy family to locate their teenage daughter, Sunny is tested by the parents’ preconceived notion of what a detective should be. With the help of underworld contacts she tracks down the runaway Millicent, who has turned to prostitution, rescues her from a vicious pimp, and finds herself, at thirty-four, the unlikely custodian of a difficult teenager when the girl refuses to return to her family.But Millicent’s problems are rooted in much larger crimes than running away, and Sunny, now playing the role of bodyguard, is caught in a shooting war with some very serious mobsters. She turns for help to her ex-husband, Richie, himself the son of a mob family, and to her dearest friend, Spike, a flamboyant and dangerous gay man. Heading this unlikely alliance, Sunny must solve at least one murder, resolve a criminal conspiracy that reaches to the top of state government, and bring Millicent back into functional young womanhood.

Girl Jacked


Christopher Greyson - 2013
    They were old friends. He knew only one way to deal with pain. Hunt it down and kill it." Police Officer Jack Stratton is hiding. Hiding from the world. From pain. From the memories of losing his best friend, Chandler, in Iraq. Suffering from PTSD and isolated from those he cares about, the last thing Jack expects to hear is his foster sister Michelle, Chandler’s sister, is gone. The words cut straight to his core. Although the police think she just took off, he knows Michelle would never leave those she loved behind–like he did. Now he must take action, find Michelle, and bring her home or die trying. The first novel in the Jack Stratton Collection introduces us to handsome rogue, Jack Stratton. A debt of honor to his dead foster brother drives Jack into a world of deception and lies. As Jack’s walls begin to crumble, he must navigate the quirky characters that seep into the mystery of his foster sister’s disappearance. And in the sleepy community of Darrington, like so many places in this world, nothing is as it appears. The hidden mysteries that often go unnoticed begin to emerge as Jack and his new unpredictable sidekick begin to turn over the rocks. Following a trail that has grown cold, Jack must tread carefully to protect his job, his family, and his life. This stand-alone novel features rogue hero Jack Stratton. Look for other books in the Jack Stratton Collection including Jack Knifed, Jacks are Wild, and now Jack and the Giant Killer. They can be read in any order, however, they are best experienced in sequence.

Cold in the Earth


Aline Templeton - 2005
    Death is on the ground. Death is everywhere for the people of Galloway. As a catastrophic virus devastates the Scottish countryside, killing cattle and destroying lives, Detective Inspector Marjory Fleming finds herself at the stormy heart of a troubled, trapped community. Pyres are built, infected animals are burnt, and farmland is dug up as burial ground. But the all-pervasive stench of death develops a horrifying, unfamiliar edge when human remains are dug up near the small market town of Kirkluce. Thousands of miles away in New York City, a woman called Laura resolves to unearth the dark secrets of her past. Determined to discover the truth behind her older sister's disappearance fifteen years ago, her journey takes her back to Galloway, to a world of suspicion, fear and menace. A dead body, a missing girl, and a mysterious family's dangerous obsession with bull running provide a sinister backdrop to DI Fleming's first murder investigation. And as the cold shadow of death looms ever larger over this quiet corner of rural Britain, one thing becomes clear: it won't be her last.

No Game For a Dame


M. Ruth Myers - 2011
     Moving through streets where people line up at soup kitchens, Maggie draws information from sources others overlook: The waitress at the dime store lunch counter where she has breakfast; a ragged newsboy; the other career girls at her rooming house. Her digging gets her chloroformed and left in a ditch behind the wheel of her DeSoto. She makes her way to an upscale bordello and gets tea – and information – from the madam herself. A gunman puts a bullet through Maggie’s hat. Her shutterbug pal on the evening paper warns her off. A new cop whose presence unsettles her thinks she’s crooked. Before she finds all the answers she needs, she faces a half-crazed man with a gun, and a far more lethal point-blank killer. If you like Robert B. Parker's hard boiled Spencer series and strong women sleuths, don't miss this one-of-a-kind Ohio detective from a time in United States history when dames wore hats -- but seldom a Smith & Wesson.

The Pawn


Steven James - 2007
    Until now. When he's called to North Carolina to consult on the case of an area serial killer, he finds himself in a deadly game.Cunning and lethal, the killer is always one step ahead of the law, and he's about to strike again. It will take all of Bowers's instincts and training to stop this man who calls himself the Illusionist. And just when the pieces start to come together, Bowers realizes they're not quite adding up. Can he unravel the pattern and save the next victim? Or will the Illusionist win the game by taking one of his opponent's pieces? Thrilling, chilling, and impossible to put down, The Pawn will hold suspense lovers in its iron grip until the very last page.

Find Me


Anne Frasier - 2020
    One catch: he’ll only do it if FBI profiler Reni Fisher, his estranged daughter, accompanies them. As hard as it is to exhume her traumatic childhood, Reni can’t say no. She still feels complicit in her father’s crimes.Perfect to play a lost little girl, Reni was the bait to lure unsuspecting women to their deaths. It’s time for closure. For her. For the families. And for Daniel. He shares Reni’s obsession with the past. Ever since he was a boy, he’s been convinced that his mother was one of Fisher’s victims.A five-hundred-mile road trip lies ahead. Thirty years of bad memories are flooding back. A master manipulator has gained their trust. For Reni and Daniel, this isn’t the end of a nightmare. It’s only the beginning.