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One For The Road by Robert Dietrich


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Midnight Haul


Max Allan Collins - 1986
    The tiny New Jersey town she lived in has seen a rash of suicides lately, with the unlikely coincidence that everyone who has died worked for Kemco, the chemical factory company that fuels the town’s economy.As Crane digs deeper, he encounters Boone, a local woman writing a book about the environmental destruction that has come at the hands of the local chemical giant. The two team up to unravel the conspiracies surrounding the factory—which soon makes them the next targets for those aiming to keep Kemco’s shady dealings under wraps.The pair races to expose the illegal operations poisoning the town and bring Kemco to justice—before either of them becomes the latest in the growing list of “suicides.”

Of Tender Sin


David Goodis - 1952
    And I'll belong to Charlie... The three of us, we'll have a wonderful time.Alvin Darby is a 29 year old insurance clerk, with a comfortable apartment, a beautiful wife and enough money in the bank not to have to worry. So why does he wake up in the middle of the night tortured by the image of a woman with platinum blonde hair? And why is he suddenly convinced that his wife is having an affair?Consumed by jealousy and determined to track down the woman with the platinum blonde hair, Alvin leaves his comfortable life to walk the streets of Skid Row intent on murder. Caught up in an underworld of drugs and crime, Alvin is soon out of his depth, and back with his old girlfriend Geraldine, whose seductive silver yellow hair and orange lips seem to hold the key to unlock the dark and terrible sin of his past.Long unavailable, Of Tender Sin is a brilliant tale of paranoia and jealousy, femmes fatales and dark secrets. With its seering portrayal of the mean streets of Philadelphia and its underworld of drugs and crime, Of Tender Sin is as hard-hitting today as it was when it was first published in 1952.Introduction by Adrian Wootton.Goodis captures the bleak desperation of the urban jungle like no other writer before or since. - NeonA lethally potent cocktail of surreal description, brilliant language, cracker barrel philosophy and gripping obsession. - Adrian WoottonNo-one does existential loners better - The Herald

The Big Ugly


Jake Hinkson - 2014
    She’s only been out for a day when she accepts a strange job offer from the head of a Christian political advocacy group. He wants her to track down a missing ex-con named Alexis. Although no one knows where Alexis has gone, it seems like everyone in Arkansas is looking for her—from a rich televangelist running for Congress to the governor’s dirty tricks man. When Bennett finds the troubled young woman, she has to decide whether to hand her over to the highest bidder or help her escape from the most powerful men in the state.

Whispers Beneath the Pines


Carla Kovach - 2014
    The group plan to have one last adventure before they have to finally succumb to adulthood. What they think will be a week of sun, parties and romance soon becomes more sinister when they take a trip to the mountainous province of Mügla for the day. Eve soon realises that things are not what they seem. She sees that something isn’t right but her friends are oblivious. Can she convince them all before it’s too late? Suitable for adults only.

The DCI Isaac Cook Thriller Series: Books 1 - 6: The Complete Series


Phillip Strang - 2017
    Six Edge of Your Seat Thrillers. Six Books at a Discounted Price. Over One Hundred Five Star Reviews. Murder is a Tricky Business (Book 1) -There’s a secret, that much is certain, but who knows? The missing actress? The executive producer, his eavesdropping assistant? Or the actor who portrayed her fictional brother on the Soap Opera? Why has DCI Cook been taken away from more important crimes to search for the woman? It’s not the first time she’s gone missing, and why does everyone assume she’s been murdered? Murder House (Book 2) - A corpse in the fireplace of an old house. It's been there for thirty years, but who is it? It's clearly murder, and what connection does the body have to the previous owners of the house? It was bound to be discovered eventually but was that what the murderer wanted? The main suspects are all old and dying, or already dead. There's a motive, but what is it? Those who know are not talking out of an old-fashioned belief in that a family's dirty laundry is not to be aired in public, and certainly not to a policeman - even if that means the murderer is never brought to justice! Murder is Only a Number (Book 3) - Before she left she carved a number in blood on his chest. But why the number 2, if this was her first murder? And why is she keeping count? The woman prowls London. She kills at will. Her targets are men who have wronged her, or have they? DCI Cook knows who she is, at least after she has killed the first four, but the woman disappears in plain sight. The pressure’s on to stop her, but she’s always one step ahead. Murder in Little Venice (Book 4) - A dismembered corpse floats in a canal in London. Isaac Cook is baffled as to why it’s there. Is it gang-related, or is it something more? Whatever the reason, it’s clearly a warning, and Isaac and his team are sure it’s not the last body that they’ll have to deal with. Murder is the Only Option (Book 5) - A man, thought to be long dead, returns to exact revenge against those who had blighted his life. His only concern is to protect his wife and daughter. He will stop at nothing to achieve his aim. ‘Big Greg, I never expected to see you around here at this time of night.’ ‘I’ve told you enough times.’ ‘I’ve no idea what you’re talking about,’ Robertson replied. He looked up at the man, only to see a metal pole coming down at him. Robertson fell down, cracking his head against a concrete kerb. The two vagrants, no more than twenty feet away, did not stir and did not even look in the direction of the noise. If they had, they would have seen a dead body, another man walking away. Murder Without Reason (Book 6) - Before she left she carved a number in blood on his chest.

The Rope


Stephen Leather - 2015
    The short story also appears in the collection Spider Shepherd: SAS Volume 2.

A Winter Hope


Sheila Newberry - 2019
    Number five Kitchener Avenue heralds the start of a new life for the Hope family. For pregnant Miriam it is a warm, safe environment to bring up her child. For her sister, fourteen-year-old Barbara, it means independence . . . and boys. And for Fred it provides the security he craves for his young family. In the lead up to Christmas, the Hopes settle in, and start to make happy memories in their new home. But World War II is round the corner, and this carefree life can't last. Soon the family are split up. Bar, wanting to do her bit for the war effort, joins the ATS, while Miriam and her children are evacuated to the countryside and away from her husband. As the country is thrown into turmoil, can the Hope family come back together and find the happiness they crave? 'A Winter Hope is a heartwarming novel following two sisters from pre-war to post-war, their parallel stories filled with love and loss. I found myself completely wrapped up with their experiences and shed a tear at the twists and turns of their lives.' Mollie Walton, author of The Daughters of Ironbridge 'I have long been a fan of Sheila Newberry's novels. I love their wonderful warmth and charm.' Maureen Lee, bestselling author of The Seven Streets of Liverpool 'Reading a Sheila Newberry book is like having dinner with your mother in her warm and cosy kitchen. You can feel the love and care put into every juicy morsel' - Diane Allen, bestselling author of For the Sake of Her Family Previously published as The Family at Number Five.

How my Gay Uncle F'ed up Christmas: The Legend of Sodomy Cat


Nicholas Black - 2008
    And now that his parents are gone the only one he can turn to is his uncle Gary—the legendary fetish-porn producer. Surrounded by new friends, a new school, and an environment that he could never have imagined, Trevor finds that the past he thought he knew was a well constructed lie. Little by little, the disturbing truth is brought to the surface and he finds that guidance and understanding can come from the most unlikely of people. Just when he thinks he is getting his life back together, tragedy strikes again. And then he is given the Diary. Be warned—this story is not for the faint of heart. It is an incredible mix of mystery and comedy, turmoil and suspense. Sodomy Cat has a way of getting under your skin. It'll knock on your door at 3 in the morning, sneak into your bedroom, and pull your panties down.

Skinner's Elves: A Bob Skinner Christmas Story


Quintin Jardine - 2017
    Two pillars made them and supported them through their lives; now one is gone and the other is near to collapse. Can he be renewed, or has he been conquered at last? Major James Andrew Skinner, AKA Jazz Morgan, takes up the story. Quintin Jardine's 6,000 word short story is a glance into the future that was born from a joke, when he used its title as a throwaway line to a friend. 'A great title for a children's book,' she observed. This isn't a children's book, but in a real sense it's a take about children and the power they have to help us overcome, and emerge from, the deepest despair.

Loss of the Decade


Brandon Enns - 2018
    Private investigator Tom Bennett's daughter was kidnapped ten years ago. As he attempts to find solace, a series of unexpected phone calls lead him down a dark and desperate path. Against the better judgment of his partner, therapist, and ex-wife, he digs into past suspects that he had previously given up on. Vengeful parents? Ruthless drug syndicate he had stripped apart and put behind bars? Or an entirely new suspect he’d missed? One new question, one new answer. Pull the thread and follow Tom on his journey of heartache as he stops at nothing to get his daughter back.

Dearest Billionaires: The Complete Romance Series Box Set


Mia Brown - 2019
     It includes the following books: Dearest Billionaire's Secret Baby Dearest Billionaire’s Bet Dearest Billionaire’s Virgin These have never been released and all have a happily ever after.

Jealousy Junction


Cathryn Grant - 2021
    My organic grocery store was thriving; I had a charming and tender new guy in my life who was looking like he might be the real deal. And then my estranged sister reappeared in my life. I couldn’t have been happier.Until I wasn’t. Someone was stalking me. My sister was flirting with my boyfriend, and I was pretty sure he was flirting back.Someone was dead, and everyone might be lying.Welcome to Liar’s Island… a stand-alone series of interconnected, novella-length domestic thrillers set in the picture-perfect community of Liars Island. Here, nothing is quite as it seems.On this island, families and friendships are more than meets the eye … secrets, deceptions, and jealousies threaten to ruin everything these influential people have built. But it isn’t only the rich that live here … and power comes in all shapes and sizes.Everyone here is a liar … just how far would you go to get what you want?

Blue Blood Runs Cold


M.A Wallace - 2015
     When the blizzard passes that collapsed the roof of Ravney Hall and claimed the life of a student, a storm of even greater danger is only just beginning to brew. Students rebel. A cop is killed. Detective Michael Ross of the Shippensburg Borough Police Department and his partner, William “Billy” McGee, are called to the scene. It appears as an open-and-shut case, but soon it becomes a discovery beyond what anyone ever imagined possible at this small university in Pennsylvania. It seems whoever steps foot on “The Ship” has a chance of never making it back out alive… including Michael Ross.

Baby Moll


Steve Brackeen - 1958
    Stalked by a vicious killer and losing his hold on power, Mallorys old boss needs helpthe kind of help only a man like Mallory can provide. But behind the walls of the fenced-in island compound he once called home, Mallory is about to find himself surrounded by beautiful women, by temptation, and by dangerand one wrong step could trigger a bloodbath

Man Found Dead in Park


Margaret Coel - 2017
    I love Margaret Coel’s writing because there’s never a misplaced step. She balances two opposing cultures with little room for compromise, which is good because this chick works without a safety net. It’s human nature, or certainly the nature of writers, to analyze another’s work when reading it, in an attempt to take the story apart like an acrobatic trick—kick off your shoes and try it out. Every once in a while you second guess them and follow them out onto that tightrope just to find where they might’ve slipped up, but Margaret never does and just when you think she has she’ll turn and wink, so keep reading. Like Catherine McLeod, the reporter protagonist of Man Found Dead in Park, Margaret embraces both the mainstream and native cultures, all the while maintaining the aspect of her writing that transcends the genre with a deep understanding of human nature. When a man is found dead in an Indian section of Denver where no one is talking, McLeod finds herself in conflict with Mexican drug cartels and an investigation that leads north into Wyoming's Wind River Reservation and what turns out to be her roots. Transformative for both McLeod and the reader, the width and breath of the story is easy to miss, because Coel’s writing has a heady narrative that holds a sense of wonder and romance—a place that a lot of other writers fear to tread. I sometimes wonder if she knows how good she is, but I think probably not. The humility of a few artists is what keeps them grounded, and even when she’s out there flying high, I’m pretty sure she has her head up but is feeling every twitch of the story through the soles of her feet. Navigating with the finesse of a Flying Wallenda, Coel never misses a thing, because the devil is in the details, and like her character, Detective Nick Bustamante, Margaret knows that these indiscernible little slights of hand are the thing that makes for great drama under the Big Top. So join Margaret Coel out onto that high wire where she works without a safety net. Just when you think you’ve got it all figured out there will be moments of insecurity, thoughts that will disconcert, and you might be tempted to look down, but don’t. If things get too hairy just reach out and take this daredevil performer’s hand, and she’ll grin that signature smile and make sure you make it back to safety. --Craig Johnson