Book picks similar to
Badly Served by Ripley Hayes


crossing-cultures
mysteries
nah-man
suspense-thrillers-mystery

Catching the Ice Queen


Katie Simpson-Shaw - 2019
    Despite trying to stay under the radar Robin finds herself working closely with the new senior officer, who is by turns tantalising, remote, compassionate, and icy. Just to make matters worse, Robin has also attracted the unwelcome attention of the dazzling suspect in a murder investigation, the local crime boss, Sylvie Dean, who won't accept that Robin is off limits. Caught between the two ice queens, can Robin work out the electric attraction she shares with Lara Black before Sylvie’s wave of corruption and murder claims them all? This fast-paced and sexy lesbian detective thriller will appeal to fans of Lee Winter and Eliza Lentzski.

The Mercy Seat


Martyn Waites - 2006
    . . with his bruised characters, raw-edged dialogue, and extraordinary night vision."-"The New York Times Book Review" "London's dark heart has seldom been exposed with such surgical precision. Brutal, mesmerizing stuff."-Ian Rankin"A huge talent."-"TimeOut London""One of the brightest stars in the British crime writing firmament."-John ConnollyA research scientist has gone missing. An ace newspaper reporter has disappeared; so has a minidisc, along with its incriminating evidence. And a teenage hustler is on the run. In his pursuer, the Hammer, a skin-headed professional killer with a blue sapphire tooth and a taste for death metal, "the principle of evil" has indeed been "made flesh."From its staggering opening to an electrifying finish, its prose pumping adrenaline all the way, Martyn Waites' new novel wrests former investigative journalist Joe Donovan out of his reclusion in Newcastle. His heart broken by the disappearance of his six-year-old son two years earlier-a case that remains unsolved-he now finds his destiny entwined with that of the streetwise but vulnerable and frightened teenager Jamal. For on the minidisc, lifted by an unwitting Jamal, lies a crucial, increasingly perilous link to Donovan's past.Unsettling and unpredictable, this taut, compelling page-turner of a novel delivers point-blank every unexpected narrative hit, twist, and turn as it leads Donovan finally to the terror of the mercy seat.Martyn Waites is emerging as one of the leading writers of British noir fiction. "The Mercy Seat" is his first American release. He lives in Newcastle.

Sohlberg and the Missing Schoolboy: an Inspector Sohlberg mystery


Jens Amundsen - 2011
    New translation with added material by the author. Chief Inspector Harald Sohlberg returns to the Oslo police district where his career started and almost ended in disgrace and scandal. Although he is experienced with hardened and heartless criminals, C.I. Harald Sohlberg has never met as devious and brilliant a criminal mind as when he is called to investigate an unsolved case in Holmenkollen, one of Oslo’s sleepy and boring suburbs. C.I. Sohlberg meets his match amid the beautiful homes and gardens of Oslo’s well-to-do professional class. An elementary school—Grindbakken Skole, Pilot Hill School—becomes Ground Zero for the most shocking and unforgettable of crimes. Confronted with his own difficult and controversial past, Sohlberg must now find a missing 7-year-old boy who vanished while he was inside his school, surrounded by classmates, teachers, and parents at a science fair. The case brings back memories of Norway’s worst serial predator, Lommemannen The Pocket Man, and his predecessor, The Smiley Face Killer. Chief Inspector Sohlberg has spent decades investigating Norway’s most devious criminals as a Police Chief Inspector in Oslo. Sohlberg has also hunted some of world’s most violent and ruthless criminals as an adviser to Interpol. Years of working abroad for Interpol have made him a stranger to his own country and people. Rumors of his wife joining a religious cult in America certainly don’t help. The Harold Sohlberg crime novel series by Jens Amundsen joins Norway’s best crime detective series, including the Inspector Konrad Sejer series by Karin Fossum, the Inspector Gunnarstranda series by K. O. Dahl, and the Detective Harry Hole series by Jo Nesbø. Dark undercurrents of Norwegian and modern society pull this classic of Nordic noir into new and uncharted waters that are as terrifying as they are thrilling. It’s time to enjoy Sohlberg and the Missing Schoolboy, the debut novel of Jens Amundsen. His novels on Chief Inspector Harald Sohlberg masterfully blend the psychological novel into the crime, suspense, thriller, and detective genre. Sohlberg and the Missing Schoolboy introduces the characters and situations that explode in White Death in Tromsø, the sequel to Sohlberg and the Missing Schoolboy. This book includes the first chapter of White Death in Tromsø.

Rotten Apple


Kate Allenton - 2019
     Gwen Bennett As an operative with a hidden talent, I know how to keep my clients safe. It’s ingrained in my unusual DNA, and I’m damn good at my job. So, when a thief swindles my grandmother out of a fortune and flees to a private island that’s by invite only, I’m determined to find access, even if that means taking a job I don’t want for a family I’d rather avoid. Maxwell Pierce She needs me. There’s desperation in her eyes. I have something she wants. And I know it. When my brother sends me to recruit Gwen Bennett for a job after she’s turned him down, I thought it would be more difficult to make a deal. Offering to share my island suite and my bed was more than enough to get her to agree. Now I just need to get her to realize that my sister's life is on line and that's worth more than any money she can hope to recoup. They’ll have to get creative to keep from losing it all when lives, a family fortune, and their hearts hang in the balance.

Three Trumps: A Nero Wolfe Omnibus


Rex Stout - 1955
    The Black Mountain/ If Death Ever Slept/ Before Midnight

Unabomber: How the FBI Broke Its Own Rules to Capture the Terrorist Ted Kaczynski


Jim Freeman - 2014
    When a new team of hand- picked, investigators, devised a different strategy to crack the genetic code that protected the Unabomber’s anonymity, the first task was to begin blasting away the layers of bureaucratic constraints that had plagued the earlier efforts to retrace the trail of crimes. As the rules broke and the bureaucratic restraints crumbled, the puzzle pieces of earlier bombings that the terrorist left behind were found and the puzzle collapsed around the Unabomber like a deck of cards. This is the story, told in the narrative, by the three FBI Agents who led the chase, of how, they broke the Bureau’s own rules and finally captured the notorious Unabomber who had led the Federal Bureau of Investigation on the longest chase in its century- old history.

Bury in Haste


Jean Rowden - 2007
    

Sleeping Dogs


William Paul - 1995
    His present lifestyle is complicated enough before past indiscretions come back to haunt him. Once a gung-ho investigator of murderous criminals and violent crime, Fyfe has been taken off the frontlines and reassigned to the low-profile Fraud Squad — mistakes from years earlier conspired to condemn him to dull work that he doesn’t much enjoy. His enforced distance from solving murders bothers him particularly at the moment, as a series of seemingly drug dealing–related murders in the city is all anyone can talk about. When Chief Constable Sir Duncan Morrison asks him to look into the several hundred thousand dollars missing from the Catholic Church’s accounts, Fyfe expects the job to be little more than soothing the Archbishop’s worries — only to discover that things are considerably more complicated than they first appear. As he begins his investigation into the licentious Father Byrne and the accused embezzler Father Quinn (Byrne’s superior), Fyfe begins to find evidence that link the corrupt priests to racketeering kingpin Gus Barrie…and an armed robbery that occurred nearly a decade previously. For Fyfe himself, the spectre of the past rises with not only the reappearance of his ex-lover Sylvia, whose impending marriage throws him for a loop, but the return to British soil of the beautiful Angela — a sexy widow whose acquaintance he first made in the aftermath of the robbery ten years earlier. But this time Angela has blood on her hands and a million pounds in unmarked notes stuffed into her luggage. Any ordinary policeman would make the arrest and wrap up the inquiry. But David Fyfe is no ordinary policeman… Sleeping Dogs is a fast-moving, wryly humorous, expertly plotted crime novel with an outrageous finale. Praise for William Paul ‘Fyfe's engrossing ruminations on the human condition [means] readers will find themselves absorbed from beginning to end’Booklist Sleeping Dogs is the first of three books featuring DCI David Fyfe. William Paul has also authored a number of other books, including Seasons of Revenge and The Lion Rampant.

Murder On Account


Adele Abbott - 2019
    agency. Kick-ass tough, Kat is nobody's fool, but does she have what it takes to find Roy’s murderer and keep the agency afloat? She is about to find out.

The Sarah Roberts Series Vol. 7-9


Jonas Saul - 2014
    7-9 - Three novels in OneThe Vigilante (Sarah Roberts Book Seven)*Starring Sarah Roberts and guest starring Aaron Stevens from The SpecterDuring a five-month break in Toronto, Sarah has fallen for Aaron Stevens. When the police seek her help to find a serial killer who has operated in the Toronto area for more than twelve years, Sarah receives a series of messages from her dead sister, Vivian.As she closes in the on The Leap Year Killer, Sarah runs into a street gang bent on revenge for her shooting one of their members. Aaron won't accept that she willingly puts herself at risk doing her sister's bidding. Sarah wonders whether the messages are truly from Vivian, or if she possesses a unique psychic ability.With all that she has seen of man's darkest nature, it makes her question why she hasn't given up on humanity yet.The Rogue (Sarah Roberts Book Eight)*Starring Aaron Stevens and guest starring Darwin and Rosina Kostas from The Mafia TrilogySarah Roberts travels to Rome to assist the FBI with their hunt for an Italian-American drug lord with a penchant for violence, despite the warning that she will die within twenty-four hours.Shortly after arrival, Special Agent Penn Kierian is murdered in his hotel room, and Sarah's fingerprints are on the murder weapon. The Italian authorities want to talk to her, but she can't risk exposure to an unseen enemy. She flees to a city she had visited years ago, Umbertide, where she runs into hit men and the ruthless man who wants her out of his way.Parkman, her colleague, an ex-cop turned private investigator, is summoned to Italy to identify Sarah's remains after a massive explosion.Sarah's parents, and the people she loves, must face reality and prepare for her funeral, but Sarah has one more trick up her sleeve.Killing Sarah (Sarah Roberts Book Nine)Sarah Roberts receives a phone call from her colleague Parkman. It's important they meet right away as it's a matter of life and death. Because Parkman is a close friend, Sarah ignores a warning from her dead sister Vivian to stay away. When Sarah is shot, Parkman fires on the retreating four-door sedan, but is not successful in stopping the shooter. He attempts to revive Sarah until the paramedics arrive to take over. When Parkman gets to the hospital, the police question him about who really shot Sarah. After emergency surgery to remove the bullet and reduce the swelling on Sarah's brain, preliminary results show the bullet came from Parkman's gun.He asks to visit Sarah in the ICU, but now no one can find her. He is informed that Sarah Roberts was never admitted to their hospital and the doctor Parkman was talking to earlier about her condition has mysteriously disappeared.Sarah is gone.When Sarah wakes in a modified ambulance, far from the hospital in Toronto, she has retrograde amnesia, leaving her with temporary short-term memory loss. All she can remember of the night she was shot is the image of a man named Parkman. He is standing in front of her with a gun in his hand as a bullet enters her head.The people who shot Sarah are still after her. She needs to work with Parkman in order to stay alive, but all Sarah can think about is revenge for the head wound and Parkman is in her sights.The pain of betrayal goes deeper than the physical wound as Sarah hunts for her former friend while sorting the memories that return in pieces.Killing Sarah is an explosive ride into the depths of a strong woman who makes mistakes and learns the consequences the hard way.

The Eames-Erskine Case: A Chief Inspector Pointer Mystery


Dorothy Fielding - 1924
    But Chief Inspector Pointer has his doubts. Why, for instance, would the dead man choose to expire in the rather inconvenient confines of a piece of furniture? And who was the dead man, anyway? Soon these and other questions lead Pointer onto the trail of a completely different crime. Written by an author whose identity is as great a mystery as his/her novels. The Eames-Erskine Case is the first of nearly two dozen mysteries from the 1920’s and 1930’s to feature Chief Inspector Pointer.

A Walk Into Darkness


Jade Winters - 2013
    But when a renowned psychic has visions of a murder the police reopen the case, placing the puzzle of the ‘woodlands killer’ in Ashley McCoy’s capable hands. Firmly set in the harsh reality of a world where the young and beautiful are not safe from dangerous hands, A Walk Into Darkness navigates the ups and downs of Ashley’s life; desperate to solve the cold case without letting the trials and intrigues of life get in the way. When the delectable Tasha comes onto the scene, both women struggle to find a balance between their responsibilities and the undeniable chemistry behind their growing friendship. A story of murder, intrigue and the twisting path of life and love.

Aoife's Chariot: Mirrored Murder


Katherine Pathak - 2013
    Her brothers have given her the task of deciding what to do with their parents’ farm, which is slowly falling into disrepair. Imogen will not be rushed into passing judgement on the place. When she starts to carry out some research into the history of Kilduggan Farm, she inadvertently sets off a chain of events that ends in tragedy. Suddenly, Imogen and her psychologist husband, Hugh, find themselves faced with a seemingly insoluble puzzle. How can it be possible that an unexplained death in the present day can match, in every detail, an unsolved case from 40 years ago?As the past begins to catch up with Imogen, she realises that she must strive to discover the truth about her family, even if it means that nothing will ever be the same again…This is an intricately plotted novel, cleverly interwoven with subtle clues and the occasional red-herring. It will keep you guessing and the pages turning, right up until its final, shocking conclusion.Aoife's Chariot is the first novel in the Imogen and Hugh Croft Mysteries Series. It is an absorbing family saga, full of mystery and suspense. Husband and wife sleuths Imogen and Hugh Croft are first introduced to readers in this tense genealogical mystery with deathly consequences.

Iced


Felix Francis - 2021
    Now he gets his adrenaline rush from riding down the Cresta Run, a three-quarter-mile Swiss ice chute, head first, reaching speeds of up to eighty miles per hour. Finding himself in St Moritz during the same weekend as White Turf, when high-class horseracing takes place on the frozen lake, he gets talked into helping out with the horses. It is against his better judgement. Seven years before, Miles left horseracing behind and swore he would never return. When he discovers something suspicious is going on in the races, something that may have a profound impact on his future life, Miles begins a search for answers. But someone is adamant to stop him - and they'll go to any lengths to do it . . .

Missing or Murdered


Robin Forsythe - 1929
    But the following morning he had seemingly vanished into thin air. Now Scotland Yard are struggling to find evidence of foul play in the absence of tangible clues. A national newspaper is offering a reward for information about the Minister’s disappearance - whether Bygrave be dead or alive. Anthony “Algernon” Vereker, Lord Bygrave’s friend and executor, joins Scotland Yard in their investigation of the mystery. So begins the first of five ingenious and effervescent detective novels featuring Vereker, an amiable and eccentric artist with a razor-sharp mind. Missing or Murdered (1929), is republished here for the first time in over 70 years. It includes a new introduction by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.‘This is not only a detective story of considerable ingenuity, but it is also a well-written tale with good characterisation."Times Literary Supplement