Book picks similar to
Cracked by Barbra Leslie
mystery
first-reads
giveaways
maine
Under Water
Casey Barrett - 2017
Once a competitive swimmer destined for Olympic gold, he drank away his gilded youth and followed his fraudster father's footsteps into prison. Barely scraping by as an unlicensed private investigator, Duck now chases down cheating spouses for the same Manhattan elite who once viewed him as equal, and drowning bitter memories with whatever fills his glass. Duck's lost glory days resurface when he's tasked with finding the teenaged sister of a former teammate turned Olympic champion. Privileged Madeline McKay vanished over Labor Day weekend, leaving behind a too-perfect West Village apartment and a promising athletic career of her own. Duck thinks he's hunting for a self-destructive runaway--until Madeline's film student ex is savagely murdered, and the media spins her as the psycho who killed him. As Duck searches for Madeline, he's plunged back into the dark underbelly of Olympic swimming--a world rife with wild lies and terrible violence. And he soon learns that no matter how hard he tries to escape his past, demons still lurk beneath every surface . . .
The Water Rat of Wanchai
Ian Hamilton - 2011
At 115 lbs., she hardly seems a threat. But her razorsharp intellect and resourcefulness allows her to succeed where traditional methods have failed.In The Water Rat of Wanchai, Ava travels across continents to track $5 million owed by a seafood company. But it’s in Guyana where she meets her match: Captain Robbins, a huge hulk of a man and godfather-like figure who controls the police, politicians, and criminals alike. In exchange for his help, he decides he wants a piece of Ava’s $5 million action and will do whatever it takes to get his fair share . . .
The Arrangement
Robyn Harding - 2019
All that’s required is to look pretty and hang on his every word. Sexual favours are optional.Though more than thirty years her senior, Gabe, a handsome corporate finance attorney, seems like the perfect candidate, and within a month, they are madly in love. At least, Nat is…Gabe already has a family, whom he has no intention of leaving.So when he abruptly ends things, Nat can’t let go. She begins drinking heavily and stalking him: watching him at work, spying on his wife, even befriending his daughter, who is not much younger than she is. But Gabe’s not about to let his sugar baby destroy his perfect life. What was supposed to be a mutually beneficial arrangement devolves into a nightmare of deception, obsession, and, when a body is found near Gabe’s posh Upper East Side apartment, murder.
Primary Obsessions
Charles Demers - 2020
Annick Boudreau regularly confronts a myriad of mental health issues in her psychology practice at the West Coast Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Clinic in Vancouver, British Columbia. But even Annick is stunned when Sanjay, a young patient who suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, is arrested for the brutal murder of his roommate. While Sanjay is tortured by repeated violent thoughts, everything Annick knows about her patient and his illness has her convinced that he’s innocent. But the police and prosecution are convinced that they have caught the perpetrator and aren’t interested in looking for other suspects. Unable to talk to the authorities because of doctor-patient confidentiality, Annick feels compelled to investigate on her own, finding herself drawn into the darker side of her postcard-perfect city in the process.
Walk Into Silence
Susan McBride - 2016
Did she simply run off, or is something darker at play?When Patrick Dielman shows up at Detective Jo Larsen’s desk insisting that his wife, Jenny, is missing, Jo wonders if it’s a case of a bored housewife running away.But as she digs deeper into Jenny’s life, Jo learns that Dielman keeps a stranglehold on the family finances, down to the last nickel, and that Jenny’s first marriage dissolved following the death of her young son. By all accounts—including her doctor’s—she never recovered from the loss. Between a controlling husband, a tragic past, and a callous ex-husband, Jo can’t be sure if she should suspect foul play or accept that the woman may have wanted to disappear.For Jo, whose own demons are shadowing her every step, finding Jenny becomes more than the typical protect-and-serve.
Chasing Shadows (Drew Patrick)
Jason Richards - 2018
When Tina Ross and her friends witness a brutal murder they make a pact to keep what they saw to themselves. The teens think silence equals safety. But the killers have another idea. Concerned mother Bonnie Ross hires private investigator Drew Patrick to find out where her daughter is sneaking off to at night. What appears to be a simple case of a rebellious teen leads to some of Boston's darkest corners. Drew quickly finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation and needing to protect Tina. But when she and her friends go missing, it is a race against the clock to save them from murderous thugs. Chasing Shadows is a prequel novella to the Private Detective Drew Patrick series of suspenseful crime thriller novels. Includes a preview of Shattered, the first novel in the series. Read Chasing Shadows today and begin the pulse-pounding adventure. If you enjoy books by Robert B. Parker, Robert Crais, and James Patterson, then you will enjoy this new detective crime thriller series by Jason Richards.
Exit Strategy
Colleen Cross - 2011
Now that’s she’s out of work and running out of money, Kat needs to get more clients, or she’ll be forced to go crawling back to a cubicle at her previous firm. And to Kat that’s a fate worse than debt.So when Liberty Diamond Mines CEO Susan Sullivan hires Kat to find Liberty’s missing CFO and a large sum of embezzled money, she’s a little too eager to accept the job. Abject poverty is a great motivator for taking hard cases, but her excitement soon turns to terror when two employees of the company are brutally murdered. Kat realizes that this investigation might be more dangerous than she expected.As if things weren’t complicated enough, she uncovers a sinister connection between blood diamonds and organized crime. All she has to do now is get proof--and keep from getting killed before she exposes the real criminals. With the help of her friends and an eccentric uncle, Kat had better tread carefully or her first case might also end up being her last. . .
The Girl Who Knew Too Much
Amanda Quick - 2017
It’s where reporter Irene Glasson finds herself staring down at a beautiful actress at the bottom of a pool… The dead woman had a red-hot secret about up-and-coming leading man Nick Tremayne, a scoop that Irene couldn’t resist—especially since she’s just a rookie at a third-rate gossip rag. But now Irene’s investigation into the drowning threatens to tear down the wall of illusion that is so deftly built around the famous actor, and there are powerful men willing to do anything to protect their investment. Seeking the truth, Irene finds herself drawn to a master of deception. Oliver Ward was once a world-famous magician—until he was mysteriously injured during his last performance. Now the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, he can’t let scandal threaten his livelihood, even if it means trusting Irene, a woman who seems to have appeared in Los Angeles out of nowhere four months ago… With Oliver’s help, Irene soon learns that the glamorous paradise of Burning Cove hides dark and dangerous secrets. And that the past—always just out of sight—could drag them both under…
The Church Builder
A.L. Shields - 2013
L. Shields, the pseudonym of New York Times bestselling author Stephen L. Carter. Each story is fast-paced and intricate, with the clock ticking as the protagonist battles malevolent forces. Harry Stean is an architect who designs traditional church buildings and cathedrals around the world. A former believer but now an agnostic, he is also an expert on the historical use of symbols in Christianity; that special knowledge is the key to each of the stories. Each of the novels revolves around a centuries-old struggle between believers and a shadowy organization known simply as The Garden, which has devoted itself, working entirely in secret, to the destruction of the faith. Manipulating events from behind the scenes, the Garden has devoted itself patiently over the centuries to what it calls 'snakebites'---causing tiny scandals here and there, enough to shake people's faith just a little, hoping, as time passes, that the cumulative effect of its work will bring an end to belief.
Elmore Leonard Classic 3-Book Collection: Get Shorty, Tishomingo Blues, Killshot
Elmore Leonard - 2012
Marshal Raylan Givens, the captivating hero of the hit FX series Justified. Now three of Leonard’s best novels—Get Shorty, Tishomingo Blues, and Killshot—are together in one classic ebook collection.
Illegal
Paul Levine - 2009
lawyer with nothing to lose...A beautiful Mexican woman and her son who disappear crossing the border...And the corrupt rancher who schemes to destroy them all.
Set in the world of human trafficking and sex slavery, this a "masterful tale from one of the most skillful practitioners of the modern thriller.""Chilling and rings with authenticity. Levine invests his characters with believable humanity. Compulsively readable thriller." -- Booklist
We Begin at the End
Chris Whitaker - 2020
He may have become the chief of police, but he’s still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison decades before. Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released.Duchess is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Her mother, Star, grew up with Walk and Vincent. Walk is in overdrive trying to protect them, but Vincent and Star seem bent on sliding deeper into self-destruction. Star always burned bright, but recently that light has dimmed, leaving Duchess to parent not only her mother but her five-year-old brother. At school the other kids make fun of Duchess―her clothes are torn, her hair a mess. But let them throw their sticks, because she’ll throw stones. Rules are for other people. She’s just trying to survive and keep her family together.A fortysomething-year-old sheriff and a thirteen-year-old girl may not seem to have a lot in common. But they both have come to expect that people will disappoint you, loved ones will leave you, and if you open your heart it will be broken. So when trouble arrives with Vincent King, Walk and Duchess find they will be unable to do anything but usher it in, arms wide closed.Chris Whitaker has written an extraordinary novel about people who deserve so much more than life serves them. At times devastating, with flashes of humor and hope throughout, it is ultimately an inspiring tale of how the human spirit prevails and how, in the end, love―in all its different guises―wins.
Wonder Valley
Ivy Pochoda - 2017
The strange sight makes the local news and captures the imaginations of a stunning cast of misfits and lost souls.There's Ren, just out of juvie, who travels to LA in search of his mother. There's Owen and James, teenage twins who live in a desert commune, where their father, a self-proclaimed healer, holds a powerful sway over his disciples. There's Britt, who shows up at the commune harboring a dark secret. There's Tony, a bored and unhappy lawyer who is inspired by the runner. And there's Blake, a drifter hiding in the desert, doing his best to fight off his most violent instincts. Their lives will all intertwine and come crashing together in a shocking way, one that could only happen in this enchanting, dangerous city.Wonder Valley is a swirling mix of angst, violence, heartache, and yearning—a masterpiece by a writer on the rise.
Family Money
Chad Zunker - 2022
They have two daughters and a beautiful home, and Alex’s startup business is about to explode thanks to massive private funding from his compassionate and supportive father-in-law, Joe. With millions more to come, all is perfect—until Joe is abducted and murdered during a family trip in Mexico.Alex’s world is about to be turned upside down. He can’t bear to tell his grieving wife why. The man they’ve both idolized has been keeping secrets. The pledged millions are nowhere to be found. The source of the original investment is a mystery, even to Joe’s financial adviser. No one, it seems, has any idea who the man they knew, loved, and trusted really was.As Alex digs deeper into Joe’s shadowy life, the most shocking surprises are yet to come. Deadly ones, too, because every lie that Alex uncovers in Joe’s dark past puts his family in more danger.
Keeping Counsel
Rebecca Forster - 1996
After reluctantly agreeing to represent him, Tara discovers the shocking crime he has committed. Bound by the attorney-client privilege, caught in a web of escalating circumstances that threaten not only her professional reputation but her life, Tara soon finds herself at the mercy of her unstable client...a man who is growing more dangerous every day.