Book picks similar to
Out of Reach by Elizabeth McGregor
fiction
mystery
thriller
mystery-thriller-adult
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
Apocalypse Island
Mark Edward Hall - 2012
Is it a serial killer, someone with a penchant for the macabre and a need to destroy? Or is it a darker force, an ancient legend from a mysterious Island come ashore to wreak havoc upon the unsuspecting?Amid the backdrop of Portland's burgeoning night scene, Police Lieutenant Rick Jennings discovers that no one is safe, and that evil has many faces. Danny Wolf, a gifted musician with alcohol problems is witnessing brutal murder in his dreams. Someone is carving a cross on each of the young female victims before crucifying them. Newly released from prison for a crime he did not commit, Wolf is having trouble adjusting to civilian life. He believes the dreams are a symptom of his adjustment until he discovers that they are real and that the victims are his own groupies. He soon begins to doubt his sanity. Could he be a homicidal madman? Wolf has no memory of his early childhood but discovers that he spent his first eight years in a Catholic orphanage on a mysterious island off the coast of Maine. Is it possible that his early life and the murders are somehow connected? Soon the killings become more bold and gruesome, as members of the church begin to die. Enter Police Lieutenant Rick Jennings and his young assistant Laura Higgins. They discover a government conspiracy involving the Catholic Church, and a cold war CIA mind control program known as MK-Ultra where children were used as test subjects. Danny Wolf becomes the number one suspect in the murders, but no one, not even Wolf, is prepared for what they discover on Apocalypse Island, a mind blowing secret that was supposed to stay hidden forever.
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."
As The Crow Flies
Damien Boyd - 2013
Killed in a fall whilst practising a new route on High Rock, Cheddar Gorge. Convinced that Jake would not have made such a simple mistake, Nick Dixon starts digging and uncovers a web of intrigue and criminal activity that will rock the sleepy seaside town of Burnham-on-Sea to its core.As the body count rises, Dixon is forced to break every rule in the book and put his own life on the line to bring the killer out into the open.A fast paced crime thriller that will leave you gasping for breath, As The Crow Flies is a spine tingling introduction for DI Nick Dixon and a spectacular debut novel from crime fiction writer, Damien Boyd.
Due Justice
Diane Capri - 2011
Fiercely independent Carly is the number one suspect. When Carly asks Willa for due justice, Willa has everything to lose. But she risks it all to uncover the conspiracy and keep Carly alive. Can Willa possibly win?<**formerly titled Carly's Conspiracy
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.
Dangerous Race
Dee J. Adams - 2011
Now scarred inside and out, she's making a comeback, but her team is plagued by a series of "accidents".When the team leader dies under mysterious circumstances, former driver Mac Reynolds takes charge. The pair clash as Trace resents his high-handed attempts to control her, while Mac fears Trace's recklessness will get her killed. Neither can throttle back the desire that spins out of control whenever they touch. Trace lets herself be seduced when Mac convinces her he finds her beautiful despite her scars, and she begins to hope for more. But Mac knows he's not nearly good enough for Trace…
Mother Be The Judge
Sally O'Brien - 2014
Elsewhere Jocasta Brown suspects it could be her very own son who has committed the terrible crimes. When faced with the decision of how to deal with her situation Jocasta faces one of her biggest challenges as a mother. Mother Be the Judge is a psychological thriller with a truly chilling protagonist. As chilling as it is thought provoking, you don't want to miss this read. Warning - this book contains scenes of a graphic nature covering the topic of rape and murder. Not suitable for children or people of a sensitive nature
Don't Make a Sound
T.R. Ragan - 2020
Now, after finally getting promoted at work, she is forced to return home and face her past.River Rock is where she’d been abandoned by her two older sisters to suffer alone, and in silence, the unspeakable abuses of her family. It’s also where Sawyer’s best friend disappeared and two teenage girls were murdered. Three cold cases dead and buried with the rest of the town’s secrets.When another girl is slain in a familiar grisly fashion, Sawyer is determined to put an end to the crimes. Pulled back into the horrors of her family history, Sawyer must reconcile with her estranged sisters, who both have shattering memories of their own. As Sawyer’s investigation leads to River Rock’s darkest corners, what will prove more dangerous—what she knows of the past or what she has yet to discover?
Killing Hope
Keith Houghton - 2011
"Celebrity Cop" Gabe Quinn is back working Robbery-Homicide after a personal tragedy has left him emotionally bare. He's raw, but resolved to catch a serial killer stalking the streets of two major cities.With cryptic clues left at each crime scene, Gabe is faced with the seemingly impossible task of piecing together the bizarre puzzle - following signs that point toward a killer whose motive questions everything he believes in ... 'If you could save a million lives by taking one ... would you?'
Losing Leah
Sue Welfare - 2017
While Leah heads inside,Chris locks the car and goes in to order their drinks.She shouldn’t be long, after all they’ve only stoppedto stretch their legs.Minutes pass. Chris waits and waits, but Leah doesn’tcome back.When Sergeant Mel Daley and her boss, DetectiveInspector Harry Baker, arrive to begin a search for themissing woman, their investigation calls everything intoquestion. Is she alive? Did she leave the service stationwith someone else? Did Leah ever even leave Norfolk?While her husband becomes more frantic, the pairbegin to unravel a tangle of dark secrets from the past.
Kill the Competition
Stephanie Bond - 2003
Escaping to Atlanta to forget her short-lived and disastrous marriage, Belinda Hennessey is rebuilding her life with a new job and new friends, until her life is transformed forever by a traffic mishap with a gorgeous cop and the murder of a co-worker.
One Small Sacrifice
Hilary Davidson - 2019
A mysterious disappearance. Did one man get away with murder—twice?NYPD detective Sheryn Sterling has had her eye on Alex Traynor ever since his friend Cori fell to her death under suspicious circumstances a year ago. Cori’s death was ruled a suicide, but Sheryn thinks Alex—a wartime photojournalist suffering from PTSD—got away with murder.When Alex’s fiancée, Emily, a talented and beloved local doctor, suddenly goes missing, Sheryn suspects that Alex is again at the center of a sticky case. Sheryn dislikes loose ends, and Cori’s death had way too many of them.But as Sheryn starts pulling at the threads in this web, her whole theory unravels. Everyone involved remembers the night Cori died differently—and the truth about her death could be the key to solving Emily’s disappearance.
Founders' Keeper
Ed Markham - 2015
senator. The methods of execution are varied and horrific, and the messages left behind point to a serial killer obsessed with the United States Constitution and the nation's Founding Fathers. The FBI assigns its best man to the investigation. But while Special Agent David Yerxa chases those responsible for the murders, his own demons are chasing him. With the help of his father - semi-retired FBI legend Martin Yerxa - David must wrestle with ghosts, both past and present, in order to untangle the murderer's motives, solve a mystery, and prevent a national catastrophe. Stretching from the Deep South to New England and featuring a dose of true American history, Founders' Keeper is a tense psychological thriller that pulses from start to finish.