Book picks similar to
Taking the Fall by A.P. McCoy
first-reads
crime
reviewed
fiction
South of Good (Hardin Steel #1)
Randall Reneau - 2014
Twice divorced, with a bit of a drinking problem, he’s now dating Rory Roughton, a fiery sixth-generation Texan who’s as rich as she is beautiful—and hell-bent on keeping Steel on the straight and narrow. But then his best friend, Wes Stoddard, is nearly shot down flying in a load of pot, Rory is kidnapped by a Russian mercenary working for the most dangerous cartel in Mexico, and the Cuban Mafia decides they’d like the former DEA agent—dead. Steel is forced to take unsanctioned, unconventional—and mostly illegal—action in order to save himself and those closest to him . . .
Blaze Returns
Bill Runner - 2021
Ten years in the special forces and five years in the US Marshals have made Blaze a trained investigator and expert in combat.Blaze does not fight his opponents; he puts them down. He strikes first. And hard. Takes them out. Fast.Deputy Marshal Carter has gone missing in Little Butte, Nevada. The Dawsons own the town. The Mexican cartel is moving in on their meth business. A gang war is coming to town. Director Flynn asks Blaze to return for one last assignment.It is up to Blaze to find Carter before all hell breaks loose.
Dirtbags
Eryk Pruitt - 2014
But Calvin Cantrell doesn’t care for those jobs anyway. Instead, he dreams of becoming a famous serial killer. When sleazy restauranteur Tom London hires Calvin to kill his ex-wife, Calvin’s dreams begin. And so do Lake Castor’s nightmares.
Dark Side: The Haunting
J.M. Barlog - 1999
Because only a miracle could have brought her through after a terrible car crash.Do you believe in ghosts?Jenny didn't either, until...A tenacious and talented surgeon made Jenny almost as good as new. Almost.Accidents happen--sometimes. But sometimes accidents are planned. Somebody wanted Jenny Garrett dead, and now Detective Rick Walker has to find out who and why. But Jenny can't help with the investigation. Jenny's memory of the accident, and the weeks preceding it, are gone. Yet somehow Rick has to get to the truth before the killer tries again.But the real horror in Jenny's life transcends far beyond the stalking of an earthly killer. Jenny is being terrorized by a Doppelganger--a ghostly image of herself. Dwight Mackenzie believes in ghosts. So much so, that he is willing to help Jenny uncover the truth behind her torment.But the real truth is: there is only one way to escape the vicious torment of a Doppelganger.
Money Tree
Gordon Ferris - 2014
At its heart is the story of Anila Jhabvala, a destitute woman in a dying village in central India, and her struggle against the daily embrace of usury. Into her fraught existence blunder two westerners: Ted Saddler, a has-been American reporter living off the faded glory of a Pulitzer Prize, and Erin Wishart, a hard-bitten Scottish banker with a late-developing conscience. As the tension mounts, their three storylines interweave and fuse in a thundering and moving climax. In pointing up the gulf between rich and poor, and the misguided efforts of western institutions to meddle in developing countries, Gordon pays homage to Professor Yunus, winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize for Peace and founder of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh.
Mayhem, Murder and the PTA
Dave Cravens - 2019
When a key source vanishes on a politically toxic story, this single mother of three finds herself at the center of a media storm and out of a job. Ready to reset, Parker moves her family back to the rural town where she grew up. But a gossip-filled PTA, a tyrannical school principal and a gruesome murder make adjusting to the "simple life" anything but. Parker Monroe is about to chase the story of her lifetime...
In Love and War
Lesley Lokko - 2014
Lexi is never happier than when she's dodging bullets, chasing down the leads that other reporters only dream of getting, or swapping stories with her rivals at the bar. She thrives on risk, danger and the thrill of the chase, while keeping everyone else at arm's length - colleagues, friends and lovers. TV executive Jane Marshall needs a Big Idea. With her career nose-diving and her colleagues circling for her job, she needs to pull something major out of the hat. And Lexi might just be what she needs. When a young British woman is kidnapped in Egypt, both Lexi and Jane are thrown together on a journey which will change their lives entirely. It will take them into a world where no one is quite what they seem and menace lurks in every corner. Sometimes, when your back's against the wall, the only thing to do is trust in the person closest to you...An enthralling story of two women brought together in extraordinary circumstances from the bestselling author of LITTLE WHITE LIES.
Beautiful Liar
Louise Mullins - 2016
But appearances can be deceptive. Erica describes her successful, lawyer husband as handsome and charismatic when she recounts their whirlwind marriage. But nothing is what it seems. What is Erica hiding?Was Joel’s death really an accident?
Sometimes the truth can be ugly.
Red is the Colour
Mark L. Fowler - 2017
Corruption. Murder.
It is the summer of 2002. The corpse of a 15 year old boy, who has been missing for thirty years, is discovered in Stoke-on-Trent. The city is on the cusp of change and Chief Superintendent Berkins wants the case solved quickly. DCI Jim Tyler has arrived from London under a cloud, moving to Staffordshire to escape his past. He is teamed up with DS Danny Mills to investigate the case, but there is tension between the detectives.When the dead boy’s sister comes forward, describing a bright, solitary child, she points a finger at the school bullies, which puts important careers at stake.Then one of the bullies is found brutally murdered and when Tyler and Mills dig deeper they start to suspect a cover-up.What is the connection between the death of a schoolboy in 1972 and this latest killing?
With the pressure building, and the past catching up with DCI Tyler, will he and DS Mills be able to put aside their differences in order to catch a cold-blooded killer?
Faceless (A Suburban Noir Novel)
Cathryn Grant - 2015
Allie loves social media because it makes her feel close to her friends. It never occurs to her that some are jealous of the seemingly perfect lives they see displayed online. The embers of jealousy ignite when one of her friends flaunts his new-found wealth with a party to unveil his lavish home. A tragedy at the party seems to bring all of them closer together. But when one of Allie’s friends goes missing, their lives are suspended. No one knows whether they’re looking for an abductor or a killer. Will social media help them discover the truth? As the cords in Allie’s lifelong friendships start to fray, and her marriage is threatened by her addiction to social media, she discovers secrets she wishes she’d never known. You’ll love this gripping novel of envy and lust because you’ll recognize some of the characters from your own social media circle. Get a copy of this page-turning novel today.
Seal of Confession
Michele Pace - 2021
A young priest on the other side of the screen is shaken by what he learns. A former college athlete with an MBA from a prestigious university, Father Joe Russo is not your typical man of God. Nine years earlier, his own life took a tragic turn and he gave everything up, committing his life to the church. Now his peaceful existence is being tested, and he finds himself questioning the God he serves, the vows he made, and someone he left behind.In this gripping thriller, a priest and an FBI agent work to uncover secrets and expose hidden crimes, but when it seems they have it all figured out, everything they think they know will be questioned.
The Forgotten Girl
David Bell - 2014
Now she’s clean and sober but in need of a desperate favor—she asks Jason and his wife to take care of her teenage daughter for forty-eight hours while she handles some business in town.But Hayden never returns.And her disappearance brings up more unresolved problems from Jason’s past, including the abrupt departure of his best friend on their high school graduation night twenty-seven years earlier. When a body is discovered in the woods, the mysteries of his sister’s life—and possible death—deepen. And one by one these events will shatter every expectation Jason has ever had about families, about the awful truths that bind them and the secrets that should be taken to the grave.
Hollow World
Nick Pobursky - 2013
In order to rescue his wife and daughters, he must enter a dark, dangerous world of vicious trials and sadistic mind games concocted by a brilliant but psychotic nemesis.
A Parent Apart
Gary Wright - 2021
A momentary lapse in supervision. A parent's worst fears realised.--------------------------------------------------------------------Andrew Wicks would do anything for his family. When tragedy strikes, he is forced to make a split-second decision, one that is layered with deception, desperation and self-preservation. As a tenacious police officer unravels his web of lies and exposes the truth, worlds collide.There is no greater pain than losing a child. There is no greater torment than knowing it was avoidable.Gripping, haunting and totally compelling, this is a novel that will make you question how far you would go to preserve the sanctity of family life.
The Barry Island Murders
Andrew Peters - 2013
Will Williams' budding detective skills be equal to the task of catching any of the murderers? Will his current gin intake permit him to remember any of the details?Transcribed from the original interviews, the only changes made have been to names, places, dates and facts. Oh, and cutting out all the heavy swearing.