Book picks similar to
Cool Heat by Richter Watkins
fiction
ebook
mystery
mystery-thriller
Three Days to Die
John Avery - 2011
but he did.HE ONLY HEARD A FEW WORDS ... but he heard too much.HE RAN ... but he was followed -- a mistake that would turn thirteen-year-old Aaron Quinn's, and his beautiful, courageous, single mother, Ashley's, worlds upside down.THE CLOCK STARTS TICKING ... when Aaron is stolen from his mother by a psychotic killer and thrust headlong into a dark underworld of armed robbery, prostitution, and death. Will Aaron lose his mind as he's forced to participate in a deadly crime spree and witness first hand the horror of cold-blooded murder?THE WALLS CLOSE IN ... on Ashley when she listens to a tape recording left on her pillow by the killer, giving her two choices:1) Call the police and risk being responsible for her only child's death ...2) Offer herself as a sacrifice in exchange for his life ...WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU WERE HER?---A CRIME THRILLERAn ACTION MOVIEA LOVE STORYIn THREE DAYS to DIE, debut author John Avery takes you on a perilous journey unlike any suspense thriller you've read before.From the opening sequence to the smashing ending, THREE DAYS to DIE moves at lightning speed, introducing the world to an exciting new hero, a beautiful and plucky heroine, and a truly frightening villain."John Avery opens Three Days to Die with a bang and then sprints toward the finish line ... taking thriller lovers of any age on a heart-pounding, pulse- tingling ride, and he does it with style. Five Stars!" – Jill Allen, Foreword Review"I truly got lost between the pages of this wonderfully told story - though I did cringe and even cry sometimes and wanted to hit someone at other times, which is totally against my nature. It just goes to show how totally absorbed I was in the world John Avery created in Three Days to Die." - N. Budden - Amazon Top Reviewer---*** Adapted from the original screenplay, THREE DAYS to DIE, by John Avery - Shortlisted for Hollywood's prestigious 2010 - PAGE International Screenwriting Awards ***Approx 225 pagesRecommended for adults 16+
Russian Roulette
Mike Faricy - 2011
OR SO DANGEROUS... PI Dev Haskell wakes up one morning in dire need of an asprin, a cup of coffee, and an hour in the sauna. It seems he's just spent a wild night with his beautiful bombshell of a client, Kerri, and she's left him a note. A smart and sly man who fancies himself just a little more savvy and debonair than reality confirms, Dev thinks he's got it made. But he has absolutely no idea what he's getting into when he agrees to track down Kerri's sister Nikki. Turns out both women are involved in an elaborate human trafficking ring with Braco the Whacko, a notorious Russian mobster, at the helm. Soon Dev finds himself at odds with local police, Homeland Security, and an FBI task force, as well as in and out of the hospital thanks to a gunshot wound and a bit of shrapnel in the rear, not to mention on the run from a neurotic underworld boss and a psychotic killer: it must be love... In a bizarre but compelling mixture of crime and offbeat comedy, Dev proceeds to messily balance both sides of the law in a wacky tale that will keep you on your toes while laughing out loud.
Privy to Murder
Carol Shenold - 2007
Not that she had much choice. Her husband, disturbed by her admission of possessing a special gift of being able to see the dead, dropped her and their two children by the side of the road. Now she was back in her home town, living with her mother, starting a new business, wanting nothing more than a fresh start.But murder gets in the way of her fresh start, making it more of a challenge then anyone deserves. Every where she turns, she’s making more enemies then friends and the trail of murder keeps following her. Until she learns to embrace her gifts and use them to find the killer, life in Love, Texas will continue to be Privy to Murder.
What We Forgot to Bury
Marin Montgomery - 2020
But she’s safe now. She lives in a gated community, protected from danger. When teenager Elle knocks at her door looking for shelter during a particularly severe storm, the woman can’t help but think how lucky Elle’s been to have found someone as friendly as her. Except Elle chose her door on purpose…She knows all about Charlotte’s secrets because they ruined her family and her life. And it is time that everyone else knew. But Charlotte’s past has left a dark void in her life, so she is concocting her own vicious plan, convinced that Elle can help fill that void.As events unfold, the truth unravels and pulls both women into a dangerous game that will leave you wondering, Who’s the villain?
True Deceit
A.J. Carella - 2015
Little does he realize that it’s just the beginning and things are about to get worse. A lot worse. But all is not as it seems and soon he is forced to face the truth of his past in order to protect his future. Intense and fast-paced, this ride will have you on the edge of your seat.
The Girl Who Never Came Back
Amy Cross - 2013
Despite a frantic search, no trace of her was found until a year later, when the little girl turned up on the doorstep with no memory of where she'd been. Today, Charlotte has put her mysterious ordeal behind her, even though she's never learned where she was during that missing year. However, when her eight-year-old niece vanishes in similar circumstances, a fully-grown Charlotte is forced to make a fresh attempt to uncover the truth.The Girl Who Never Came Back is a psychological thriller about a woman who is forced to confront her family's dark past. In the process, she begins to unravel the secret surrounding her disappearance, the horrific truth about her niece's fate, and the identity of the ghostly figure that seems to haunt the family.Total word count is approximately 60,000. Contains swearing and mild, infrequent violence. Also includes a preview of The Dead and the Dying.
Casanova Killer
Tallulah Grace - 2012
True to his name, Casanova offers the women a taste of romance and unparalleled adoration before sending them to a bloody death.The FBI Special Serial Crimes Division, SSCD, sets a trap for the killer with one of their own as bait. Agent Jerry Forbes pairs with Interpol’s Ethan Barnes to capture Casanova before another woman falls prey to his charms.Jerry and Ethan soon discover that pretending to be lovers may be more dangerous than catching a killer. Follow their story from the moment they set up house to the abrupt end that Jerry does not see coming.Is it love or certain death?
The Mystery of Jessica Benson
C.K. Laurence - 2012
Her life and death intersects the drama of a professional football team and the detectives who are on the case. The story takes place in Miami Beach, Florida. The author, C. K. Laurence, has been a student of crime activity and weaves an exciting tale of mystery and intrigue, and creates an unexpected ending to a suspenseful adventure. Ms. Laurence is a long-time rowdy Miami Dolphins football fan and uses her knowledge of the sport to develop a side-story that rings true in football culture. The book moves quickly from hot Miami Beach parties to the football field to the murder scene. Look out! The ending is a shocker!
Buried
C.J. Carmichael - 2012
Now someone with inside knowledge is feeding clues to true crime writer Dougal Lachlan, promising him the best story of his career. Pursuing the leads means returning to Twisted Cedars, where his sister Jamie, is about to marry a man he deeply dislikes.Local Twisted Cedars librarian Charlotte Hammond prefers her mysteries - and her romances - between the covers of a good book, especially since the disappearance of her older sister, Daisy, eight years ago. But then the dark and tortured soul who is Dougal Lachlan walks into the Twisted Cedars Library asking for her help.Before long Charlotte realizes there is no safe zone. Not even in libraries...and especially not in Twisted Cedars.Twisted Cedar MysteriesBuried, Book 1Forgotten, Book 2Exposed, Book 3
Okavango: Beware the Ultimate Cure
Fritz Damler - 2012
The CDC is planning a major inoculation program in Houston, L.A. and New Jersey.The wonder drug seems on the up and up, until Freelance writer Terry Johns and wildlife photographer Liza Rittenauer innocently photograph two men and their airplane in a remote section of the Okavango Swamps. The photo sets in motion a tilt-a-whirl of violence and intrigue. While Liza lingers in a life-threatening coma, Terry, Liza’s sister, Dawn, and the women’s father, Cy, discover a sinister connection between the men in Liza’s photograph, an underground lab in the Okavango, a leading pharmaceutical company in Johannesburg and a major HMO in Houston, Texas. And for Terry Johns, the truth becomes a nightmare.
Crooked Man
Tony Dunbar - 1994
His clients are all renegades from the asylum, including a transvestite entertainer with curious medical issues, a buxom deadbeat blonde, a doctor who refers his own patients to a malpractice lawyer, and the driver of a Mardi Gras float shaped like a giant crawfish pot. He also has his hands full with an ex-wife and three teenage daughters, who are experts in the art of wrapping Tubby around their little fingers. And somehow, between work and family, Tubby finds time to sample the highs and lows of idiosyncratic Crescent City cuisine, from trout meuniere amandine and French roast coffee with chicory to shrimp po-boys and homemade pecan pralines. Tubby is asked to take on a new client: Darryl Alvarez, the manager of a local nightclub, who has been caught unloading fifteen bales of marijuana from a shrimp boat. At their first meeting, Darryl entrusts Tubby with an ordinary-looking blue gym bag. But when Darryl is later found shot at the nightclub, Tubby realizes he must tighten his grasp on the gym bag - and its million-dollar contents. Tubby can't just give up the cash. But if he gets caught, he'll be in jail. And if the wrong people catch him, he'll wish he was.
The Sitter
Sharon Hawes - 2012
Stevie’s mother Jeannie is overcome with grief and her suspicion that Stevie’s death was not the accident Larry describes. Increasingly troubled, Jeannie begins to search for answers, risking everything to learn the truth about what really happened to Stevie, and the growing threat to her family that only she can see.
Eleven
Carolyn Arnold - 2011
Ten Bodies. One Empty Grave.In this international bestseller, rookie FBI Agent Brandon Fisher takes on his first case with the Behavioral Analysis Unit, but will he survive long enough to catch the killer? Eleven is a fast-paced, spine-tingling thriller that will have you gasping for breath at every twist... When Brandon Fisher joined the FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit, he knew he'd come up against psychopaths, sociopaths, pathological liars, and more. But when his first case takes him and the team to Salt Lick, Kentucky, to hunt down a ritualistic serial killer, he learns what nightmares are truly made of. Beneath a residential property, local law enforcement discovered an underground bunker with circular graves that house the remains of ten victims. But that's not all: there's an empty eleventh grave, just waiting for a corpse. The killing clearly hasn't come to an end yet, and with the property owner already behind bars, Brandon is certain there's an apprentice who roams free. As the FBI follows the evidence across the United States, Brandon starts to struggle with the deranged nature of his job description. And if the case itself isn't going to be enough to push Brandon over the edge, he's working in the shadow of Supervisory Special Agent Jack Harper, who expects nothing short of perfection from his team. To make matters even worse, it seems Brandon has become the target of a psychotic serial killer who wants to make him--or his wife--victim number eleven.
Silent
D.M. Mitchell - 2013
She is accompanied by her older brother Davey, a sullen, insular man fiercely protective of his sister. But Betsy and Davey share a dark past which they’re hoping to escape by making a new life in California. A past that will have tragic, murderous consequences.But for now Rick Mason’s life is about to change beyond his wildest imaginings. He lands a lucrative contract with Metropolitan Studios, who want to cast him as the lead in their new horror movie. And out of the blue a Hungarian lawyer lands the bombshell that Rick Mason isn’t who he thinks he is. Mason discovers he’s inherited an estate and huge fortune from his late father Baron Jozsef Dragutin and has to travel to Slavonia in Europe to sort out legalities. Here he is told the disturbing truth about his murdered mother and feared father – a corrupt and vile sadist hiding his horribly deformed face behind a white porcelain mask. A man, legend has it, who sold his soul to the devil. A man and a family line cursed by Satan for all eternity.Back in Hollywood, reviving his father’s evil character for Metropolitan Studios, Rick Mason finally gets the movie success he desires and the fame and fortune that go with it. But when elements of his on-screen monster persona begins to affect his real life, Mason begins to fear that the role he was ‘born to play’ is slowly taking over him. That the curse of Baron Dragutin lives on in him.Rick Mason is drawn inexorably into a world of corrupt desires, superstition, corporate greed, unbridled ambition and murder, where the past refuses to die. It’s a world where monsters and horror don’t only appear on the big screen.
Celilo's Shadow
Valerie Wilcox - 2017
No matter how much time has passed, it’s always there, ready to punch you in the chest when you least expect it. All it takes is something ordinary—a brief glance, a certain food, or a melody on the radio—and regret strikes hard and fast. For Odessa Feldman, the trigger is a Pacific Northwest storm. When the muddy bones of a murder victim buried over fifty years ago are discovered in the storm’s aftermath, Odessa overcomes her long struggle with guilt to finally reveal the truth. But her overdue confession comes with a difficult price—reliving her role in the tragic summer of 1956 and worse, betraying the best friend she’d ever had. Dessa and Ellie Matthews were both fourteen-years-old when they met that summer. Ellie’s father was a foreman at the dam under construction on the Columbia River. At least that’s what he said. But, like murder and the motives behind it, some things in life are rarely as they seem.