When her father is falsely arrested for passing counterfeit $100 bills, Elaine vows to become a Secret Service agent and track down the man responsible. After barely surviving the arduous Secret Service Training Academy in Laurel, Maryland, she is transferred to bleak and blustery Great Falls, Montana. But things do not go as planned, and Elaine soon finds herself betrayed and thrown into an adventure that takes her halfway around the world, from dark and mysterious Sofia, Bulgaria, to Moscow Russia, and finally, to Milan, Italy. In the end, will Elaine find the love and happiness she truly seeks…or will she turn to a life of obscene wealth, power and corruption? Reviews: “Revenge, determination and love fuel this thoroughly enjoyable fast paced thriller.” – Samuel’s Book Reviews. “You will be hooked! Not since Sidney Sheldon has a male author captured a woman’s perspective so well. it has it all — intrigue, love and realism.” – Kathleen Bursaw “bookster” “Good book for those who like a little mystery, a little intrigue, a little romance and an average person as a heroine. I couldn’t put this book down. The tone was light and easy going, story well written and easy to follow. Counterfeiting details seem to be well researched, without being boring and technical.” – Christine, at Goodreads “A fun filled rollercoaster Love, revenge, danger, and pride propel the reader through this excellent novel. The protagonist, Elaine, grows throughout this entire story and at each stage the reader can relate to what she experiences. Fantastic read!” – Theresa Fitzgerald, Book Reviewer

    Each book features a different classic author. ;) Happy reading!Book One: Literally DeadTo solve or not to solve?When a visiting professor is found dead, English major Pepper Brooks is caught in the middle of the investigation. Literally. While the detectives focus on crime scene forensics, Pepper can't ignore the Shakespearian clues left by the killer.With the help of a handsome library clerk, a dog named Hamburger, and the words of The Bard himself, this unlikely sleuth might just close the book on this case.Book Two: Literally MurderA Farewell to BlondesWhen a young woman shows up dead in Campus Creek, amateur sleuth Pepper Brooks is warned not to get involved. She's fine with that. It's her final quarter of college, she's immersed in Hemingway and planning her future. Plus, things are already complicated enough trying to figure out where everything stands with Alex, her maybe-boyfriend.But when two more fair-haired women show up drowned, Pepper literally can't stay away. Especially when her best friend may be the next one For Whom the Bell Tolls.Book Three: Literally GoneIt is a truth universally acknowledged that an overly inflated ego must be in want of the spotlight.When the actor set to play Mr. Darcy is found murdered in his dressing room, Pine Crest's annual AustenFest is derailed. Pepper Brooks must set her pride and prejudice aside to differentiate between rumor and truth as she searches for the killer.Between running her new bookstore and trying to decide who is a Darcy and who is a Wickham, Pepper quickly finds that her story might not end as happily as those written by Jane Austen.

    It appears random...until US Marshal Jack Dillon recognizes one of the victims. An Ace of Spades in the victims mouth? Someone's seen too many movies. At least that's the thinking until the card appears in another victim, and another, and another one after that, and... Fortunately they have a suspect... But then there's another murder he couldn't have possibly done. Somethings awfully wrong and it's up to US Marshal Jack Dillon to find out what's happening, and fast!

     GIA AND THE CITY OF THE DEAD Gia Santella is a fast-driving, hard-drinking, karate-trained free spirit, who is gorgeous, sexy, and a young heiress. She is living a life without thought for tomorrow until suddenly a letter appears in the mail and everything changes … When Gia Valentina Santella’s parents died four years ago, she fled small town Monterey to pursue the high life in the big city where she could smother her grief by playing house in a luxurious high-rise apartment with sweeping views of the Golden Gate Bridge. Armed with a hefty inheritance, it didn’t take long for Gia to carve out an empty life for herself in San Francisco, slumming at art school, racing her red Ferrari up and down the coast, and getting hammered at the city’s finest establishments. Then one day, a letter comes in the mail and everything changes. The death of Gia’s parents was no accident. They were murdered. Now, Gia must find who really killed her parents at the same time she’s frantically trying to keep one step ahead of the murderer who is now intent on making her his next victim. GIA AND THE FORGOTTEN ISLAND She also has a fierce temper and zero tolerance for people in power preying on the vulnerable ... especially when the injustice takes place in her neighborhood. Late one Autumn night, violence breaks out in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood, as a hate group and counter-protesters come face to face. Gia Santella rushes to the protest to help find her friend's granddaughter. Sasha Kennedy is a student journalist at U.C. Berkeley covering the protest for the school paper. But when Sasha mysteriously disappears at the protest, Gia learns that the young woman was on the brink of uncovering a story that would blow the whole city wide open. In her efforts to find the girl, Gia finds herself investigating more mysterious disappearances and begins to unravel a string of dark secrets that lie below the surface of her beloved neighborhood, threatening to destroy it. But then her plan goes terribly wrong. When Gia receives a terrifying message, she is caught in a race against time to find the young journalist before it's too late... If she fails, more innocent people will die ... And it will all be her fault. GIA AND THE DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL Gia Santella, the fast-driving, hard-drinking, karate-trained free spirit, has finally put her dark past behind her. Unfortunately, the past isn't done with her yet. In this suspense-filled page-turner, Gia travels from her San Francisco neighborhood to her mother's native Sicily. There, in her efforts to seek justice for a senseless slaying, she stumbles across a complex underworld that knows more about her than she ever imagined. She soon finds herself face-to-face with a tangled web of deep dark secrets that threaten to destroy everything she ever believed was true. GIA AND THE LONE RAVEN He thought he could get away with it. He was wrong. Gia Santella's hunt for her best friend leads her on a road trip to Mexico where she learns that there is no refuge from evil despite sunny skies and bucolic beaches. Many Americans flee to Baja, California to escape something--the drudgery of a 9-to-5 life. An abusive husband. A hefty tax bill. But others go there to kill.

    Thrilling suspense. Sinister happenings. Dive into crime and corruption, adventure and avarice, with this limited edition collection of nine fast-paced whodunits. Follow hardened detectives and amateur sleuths as they chase down clues and risk it all to solve the case. Discover ruthless villains and unfortunate scapegoats who will thrust you deep into worlds of murder and mayhem. Whether you prefer fast-paced thrillers, cozy murder mysteries, or historical whodunits, this collection comes with plenty of twists to keep you on the edge of your seat… plus hours of binge-worthy reading to leave you turning the pages long after dark! Fans of James Patterson, Janet Evanovich, and Gillian Flynn will devour this collection where suspense, lies, and secrets are just the beginning. Featuring stories from… USA Today bestselling author, M.R. Graham USA Today bestselling author Sarah Biglow USA Today bestselling author Heather Marie Adkins Amy McKinley Amy Richie Emma Calin Alan Chaput Jess Reece Theresa Sederholt

     Ten authors. Ten complete books. A collection of crime and mystery books from some of the most exciting writers working today. Buckle up and open The Murder Book. Books included: Blood Oath by Michael Lister Telling Lies by L.A. Dobbs The Dying Hour by Rick Mofina Backwater Bay by Steven Becker Maniacal by C.M. Sutter Room Number Three by Gavin Reese Hide and Seek by Rob Costa A Stairway to the Sea by Jeff Newberry Circling the Runway by J.L. Abramo Thread of Hope by Jeff Shelby

    She survived, but barely. Now, she lives quietly in Durango, Colorado—until a frantic pregnant woman at a gas station shoves a card into Athena’s hand.The card reads: Over forty women and girls—mostly pregnant—held prisoner! Five dead already. About an hour east of Durango. Call the FBI. Sheriff’s office corrupt. PLEASE HELP US!A looming thug with a poorly hidden pistol hustles the pregnant woman and her female friend away. Athena fights a scream and follows. Unfortunately, she can’t do much. Even with the help of a cane, she can barely walk.With panic rising in her throat, Athena takes down the license number of the thug’s Suburban. But what if the plate is fake? Athena follows in her pickup and begs for help from the US Marshal’s Office and the FBI.Both agencies turn her down. Athena keeps following the Suburban, racking her brain for a plan that could save the women's lives without getting herself killed. Unfortunately, the greedy bastards who run the secret prison already have blood on their hands. They won’t hesitate to kill Athena, too.

    Raimond Foix, her friend and mentor in the study of ancient documents. Horrified, Lisa finds clues at the crime scene left behind for her by her mentor—clues to secrets kept hidden for centuries, one of which is Lisa’s own identity, secret even from her.Since she was a child Lisa had suffered from uncontrollable fugue states. Now she discovers just in time that what she always thought was a liability may in fact be an almost paranormal ability to see things in ways others cannot.Who will like it: Fans of intrepid women sleuths will love Lisa, as well as anyone smitten with the romance of the ancient world, and action-adventure in historical fiction and thriller conspiracies, (especially those involving the Catholic church, like The DaVinci Code).A must-read for fans of Steve Berry, Dan Brown and Raymond Khoury!  Vol. 1: THE DELPHI AGENDA THE INQUISITION IS BACK! AND THIS TIME THEY HAVE TECHNOLOGY. Papyrologist Lisa Emmer’s friend and mentor, esteemed Paris historian Dr. Raimond Foix, has been savagely murdered. Now Lisa is not only a prime suspect in the murder investigation, but also smack-dab in the cross-hairs of a deadly commando group that proves to be none other than a contemporary offshoot of the Inquisition. They want an ancient document that reveals a secret so explosive it could change the world—a document they’ve been tracking for centuries. Led by a sadistic priest and a vicious but very accomplished nun with excellent military cred, their mission is to destroy the document—no matter what the cost in blood. Desperate to clear her name and to stay alive, with the help of a handsome yet mysterious banker, Lisa must solve the clues and uncover the millennia-old secret before her adversaries can find and destroy it. The trail leads everywhere from ancient cemeteries and tombs throughout France to Istanbul and Greece, as Lisa and Steve desperately stay one step ahead of their enemies, solving the clues to a dangerous treasure hunt their lives now depend upon.  Vol. 2: TABLET OF DESTINIES JOB DESCRIPTION: DELPHIC ORACLE, CURRENTLY SERVING TO-DOS: STOP APOCALYPSE. ASAP! A clay tablet turns up, containing a prophecy of demons, a snake goddess, and the birth of a “disruptive” miraculous child. A prophecy so dangerous the tablet was smashed to bits, and the shards scattered to all the cities of the ancient world to prevent reassembling, until a Jesuit scholar's vision sets the prophecy in motion in Paris, where the pieces have lain for centuries, half a world and three millennia away from their source. Yet very close to the current home of Lisa Emmer, chosen the Pythia, head of the Delphi Agenda because of her gift of sight, and trained in ancient world studies by a mentor who promised to "teach you life"; more accurately, he might have said "teach you to save the world from evil.

    At ease making life-and-death decisions between breaths, their exploits in the boudoir are as infamous as those on the dueling field. Bold, seductive and thrilling, the Masters At Arms series is swashbuckling romance at its finest by RWA Hall of Famer—and holder of RWA's Lifetime Achievement Award and Romantic Times' Career Achievement Award—Jennifer Blake. Volume One includes Books 1-3: CHALLENGE TO HONOR When Celina barters herself to Rio de Silva to keep him from dueling her brother, he accepts. But Rio harbors a secret far more perilous than the way he sets her soul aflame. DAWN ENCOUNTER When the husband she never loved is killed in a duel with Caid O’Neill, Lisette is left at the mercy of her rapacious father-in-law. Caid agrees to be the desperate woman’s protector—but how can they fight the forbidden love between an heiress and a master at arms? ROGUE'S SALUTE Juliette, called home from a convent just before taking her vows, is in dire need of a husband. Nicholas, notorious swordmaster and mentor to a houseful of street boys, is in need of a wife. Their practical arrangement soon explodes with heady desire, but someone’s trying to stop the wedding, and Juliette must fight to claim a love worth any price.

    It’s enough to make a scrapbooker see red. Determined to save the man she loves, Kiki vows to track down the real killer.BOOK #8 – GROUP, PHOTO, GRAVETHE WEDDING WAS WONDERFUL, EXCEPT FOR THE CORPSE IN THE PUNCH BOWL. Kiki has knocked herself out to make her mother-in-law’s wedding picture perfect, but a dead body is always a disaster. When the bride gets blamed, Kiki relies on her nose for clues as she sniffs out the killer.BOOK #9—KILLER, PAPER, CUTA HALLOWEEN HACK JOB CUTS DOWN ONE OF KIKI’S FRIENDS. When an event at a spooky historical mansion becomes a venue for a stabbing, Kiki refuses to let the slasher get away with carving up one of her dearest friends.BOOK #10 – HANDMADE, HOLIDAY, HOMICIDEA PREGNANT KIKI WATCHES IN HORROR AS A WOMAN DIES UNEXPECTEDLY IN A HOLIDAY CLASS. When one of Kiki’s besties is unfairly blamed, the intrepid (and very pregnant) amateur sleuth pulls up her big girl maternity panties and discovers someone has been not nice and very naughty indeed. BOOK #11 – SHOTGUN, WEDDING, BELLSKIKI’S WEDDING IS INTERRUPTED BY GUNSHOTS AND HER NEW HUSBAND GOES DOWN. Two weeks from her due date, a pregnant Kiki traces the hired hitman to a “gentleman’s club.

    No one can read just one! "Toby Neal's storytelling skills are evident in these books about a female law enforcement office in the Hawaiian Islands. The characters are always strong, interesting people with many layers to their personalities. Their actions often surprise, but not without clues laid by the author that help the reader understand. The plots are crafted with care, created so that they flow naturally and never feel forced. The stories pull in the reader and make it impossible to put down the books; I've often lost sleep when reading her latest because I end up reading late into the night. Most importantly, these books are a sort of immersion course in Hawaiian culture, food, and geography. There are many layers of details in these novels, information about native Hawaiians and those new to the islands, how the various cultures sometimes clash, how outsiders may have to alter their behaviors to be accepted fully. The food descriptions alone are enough reason to read the books.I loved every book in this series, each one adding to the story of Lei, her life, her family, her complex history, and finally, her growth into an amazing law enforcement officer." F. Pepoon, Reviewer

    

    Then in a terrible irony her own son, Simon, is arrested and charged with a series of brutal rapes and murders. The evidence against him appears so strong that his QC advises a guilty plea, but Simon swears he is innocent and begs his mother take on his defence. There is no law against a mother representing her son, so Sarah agrees. The only other obvious suspect for the murders, however, is a man who has already been acquitted once - with Sarah acting as his defence lawyer ...Has Sarah, in her single-minded determination to create a career for herself, neglected her son so much that she no longer knows him? Since he has often lied to her in the past, how can she trust him when he says he is innocent this time? And what should she do when she herself uncovers evidence that seems to suggest his guilt?It seems that telling the whole truth must be weighed in the balance against keeping certain information well hidden ...

     5 ★ "This is a charming series of the adventures of 5 sisters. Merle the middle sister is the predominant focus of the books and one falls in love with her! Then we meet the rest of the clan. It is impossible to put the books down (my kind of books)! Merle's adventures alone and with her sisters are simply wonderful. There is just enough intrigue to keep one interested and to move on to the next book. I hope you find the books to be as grand as I did." "Enjoyed getting to know the Bennet sisters and their relationships. It was nice reading about some women who have a variety of life experiences. These characters are beyond the age of 30. I think any woman would enjoy reading this but the narrator is in her 50's and I enjoyed her perspective." A sprawling, exuberant, generous-spirited cozy mystery series with a yummy side of international adventure. A little bit chick lit, a touch of cozy mystery, a whole lot of humor, romance, suspense—all in one box set! BLACKBIRD FLY – Book One A dead husband might be sadder except that once Harry dies, his widow, Merle Bennett realizes almost immediately it was no wonder she didn't know anything about him. They’d pretty much been leading separate lives—several of them, as it turns out. Still, the will’s quite a shock. And so is an intriguing surprise—Harry left her a family home in a tiny French village. Or maybe a family home. Because who was Harry’s family? Finding out is half the fun. Merle sets out to claim her inheritance, adolescent son in tow, and thus begins a sojourn reminiscent of A Year in Provence mixed up with something by Carolyn Hart, maybe, or M.C. Beaton. Because Malcouziac, Merle’s tiny Dordogne town, is the quintessential village—just perfect for a murder. And a rollicking good time. THE GIRL IN THE EMPTY DRESS – Book Two Law practice is in the Bennett sisters' blood—along with designer suits and stilettos. But they've decided to ditch the more predictable Caribbean cruise or spa weekend at a five star hotel to celebrate Merle Bennett's 50th birthday hiking the French countryside of Dordogne. There’s just one catch: Merle’s little sister Francie has decided to bring along a sixth wheel: a work colleague named Gillian Sargent, whose utter aloofness wouldn’t be so bad. Except she seems to be hiding something…