Book picks similar to
Deception by Barbara Warren


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christian-fiction
mystery
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Vow of Silence (The Jill Shannon Murder #2)


Chris Patchell - 2018
     Five years after the brutal slaying of her husband, software executive Jill Shannon is ready to take the next step in her life. But with her wedding to prosecuting attorney Conner Manning just eight weeks away, her future father-in-law’s political ambitions for her fiancé threaten all her hopes. Jill’s past holds dark secrets. Secrets she can’t afford to have exposed under the relentless lights of a political campaign. When Phoenix Detective David Shaw turns up at Jill’s door asking questions about a reporter's murder, he has no idea what a lethal Pandora’s Box he’s just opened. Was the womanizing reporter killed by a jealous husband, or was it related to his drug use? Or did it have something to do with the secret expose the reporter was working on? Jill Shannon looks like a dead-end lead but Shaw can’t shake the feeling the beautiful widow has secrets she’s not sharing. Jill is caught between the sins of her past and the shattered hopes for her future. Shaw finds himself drawn deeper into a twisted labyrinth of lies and danger. One thing is clear: some vows are made out loud in front of witnesses. But some vows are made in silence, and witnesses can’t be left alive.

Death By Honeymoon


Jaden Skye - 2011
    Cindy finds her newly beloved taken away from her, drowned in a freak accident in the ocean. The local police are quick to declare it an accident, to insist that he was caught in a sudden riptide. But Cindy, left all alone, is not convinced.Cindy must return to her and Clint’s now-empty home in New York and face her in-laws, who never wanted Clint to marry her, and who did everything to make her engagement and wedding hell. She must deal with all of these women’s backbiting, gossiping and unspoken accusations, while she tries to get a handle on her own grief and to get clear on what really happened to Clint.Cindy is mailed an anonymous photo of a woman she had never met, addressed to Clint. As she tries to unravel the mysterious package, as she begins to dig deeper into Clint’s emails and files, she realizes how many secrets Clint had been hiding from his past. She realizes that she didn’t really know the man she loved. And she also realizes that Clint was murdered.She digs deeper, into the depths of Clint’s massive corporation, DGB oil, and as she starts to unearth information she shouldn’t, she goes too far. Soon her own life is in peril. On the run, she realizes that the only way to get answers, and to save her own life, is to return to where it all began: Barbados. As she heads into the dark underside of the island, into the heart of the local villages, she is shocked to discover what really happened to her husband on their honeymoon.But by then, it may already be too late.Books #2--#7 in the Caribbean Murder series (DEATH BY DIVORCE) are now also available!

Nobody (A Stand-Alone Thriller)


Creston Mapes - 2021
     His world is blown off its axis when he discovers a murdered homeless man with a bankbook in his pocket showing a balance of almost one million dollars. Should he wait for the police, knowing the case will get lost in reams of red tape, or swipe the bankbook and take the investigation—and perhaps a chunk of the money—into his own hands? With sirens bearing down on the scene, Hudson makes an impulse decision that whisks him on a frantic search for answers, not only about the mysterious dead man, but about the lost soul lurking within himself. Uncovering bizarre links between a plane crash, a Las Vegas pit boss, a dirty cop, and a widowed Atlanta business mogul, Hudson is forced to find out: who was Chester Holte, what was he doing on the streets, and why are his homeless friends convinced he was an angel in disguise? With tension on every page, Amazon #1 Best-Selling author Creston Mapes demonstrates why he is a "Top Pick" among mystery, fiction and thriller lovers. PRIASE FOR NOBODY “Creston Mapes has given us a wonderful gift with Nobody. The story compels, the pages fly, the city of Las Vegas pulsates with life, and the twists keep coming. We can all benefit from the message of this book, and once you start it, you won't be able to put it down. Nobody rocks.” — Jud Wilhite, author of Stripped and pastor of Central Christian Church in Las Vegas “Nobody was absolutely riveting from the opening scene to the final page... This book goes straight to the top of my highly recommended list.” — Deborah Raney, author of Remember to Forget and Within This Circle “A wild ride...a captivating mystery.” - Christian Retailing “A taut, entertaining novel of mystery, intrigue and spiritual truth. Creston Mapes deals a winning hand in Nobody.” - Best-Selling Author James Scott Bell “Tantalizing storytelling and unique plot twists abound. A winner.” - Romantic Times “A savory tale sizzling with deceit, greed, and selfish ambition, seasoned with just the right measure of grace. Highly recommended!” - Best-Selling Author Kathy Herman “An excellent murder mystery.” - Christian Fiction Review “Nobody had me fascinated from the first paragraph and kept the surprises coming to the very end. From now on I'll read anything by Creston Mapes the instant it hits the shelves.” - Best-Selling Author Athol Dickson “A great thriller. Don't miss this one.” - Best-Selling Author Linda Hall “Read this book where you can make a little noise. From the time Hudson Ambrose dips his hand into a dead man's pocket until the moment this novel ends, you're going to find yourself talking back at the pages.” - Best-Selling Author Tom Morrisey “When it comes to thrilling, fast-paced and provocative, I didn't think Creston could ever top Dark Star, but he has! And it's Nobody!” - Best-Selling Author Wanda Dyson “Mapes sculpts a story of suspense and beauty while guiding the reader to the ultimate ending, redemption…A page-turning thriller.” - Best-Selling Author Patti Callahan Henry “Mapes has a way with words. And a way with characters. And a way with dialogue. And a way with story. Read this one.

Home Grown


Ninie Hammon - 2010
    In 1989, federal authorities busted what they called the Cornbread Mafia, the largest domestic marijuana growing operationin American history. They confiscated 182 tons of pot with a street value-- in 1989!--of $400 million. Federal marshals arrested 56 men in 5 states...but they all came from one small town in Kentucky. FICTION... Somebody murdered Jim Bingham, shot him dead in front of his own newspaper office in the small town of Brewster, and now his heartbroken daughter must abandon the world of academic journalism for the real world of running the newspaper he left behind. But Sarabeth Bingham soon discovers that marijuana-growing has corrupted the idyllic small town where she grew up. The sheriff can't get a marijuana conviction because the county's jury pool is tainted. Her cousin grows weed and has lost his wife and daughter to the world of drugs. Sarabeth finds herself falling for a handsome bourbon distillery owner she's convinced is financing his business with dope money. And a ruthless farmer named Bubba Jamison will do anything--absolutely anything--to protect his empire. After 3 children find dope money in an abandoned building and the dopers kidnap them to get it back, Sarabeth heeds the words on the plaque that has hung above her father's desk for as long as she can remember: "Don't mess with a man who buys ink by the barrel!" In a blazing front-page editorial in the next issue of the Tribune, Sarabeth declares war on the marijuana-growing industry! Now, the growers have to shut her up and she soon learns a terrifying lesson: dopers fight dirty. * * * Home Grown isn't the true story of the rise and fall of the Cornbread Mafia, not from a historical perspective; thrillers like this are too intricately woven to stick to the facts. But the novel is as real as what actually did happen, a mystery thrillers and suspense story with a female protagonist who grabs the reader and drags him into the action to live it with her. Sarabeth Bingham isn't the stereotypical heroine of sappy contemporary women's fiction. She is flawed, human and real. She has multiple sclerosis and a past filled with the kind of pain that's the mortar for building walls. Home Grown gives crime fiction a heart--and the face of a red-haired woman who didn't set out to be a hero.

Love Me If You Must


Nicole Young - 2007
    For a start she discovers something unsettling in the basement that interests the police officer next door.

52 Steps To Murder


Steve Demaree - 2006
    An elderly woman is found poisoned in the upstairs bedroom of her home whose front door stands 52 steps above the street in an old-fashioned whodunit that blends clues, red herrings, suspects, and humor.

Closure


Randall Wood - 2009
    Special Agent Jack Randall of the FBI finds himself appointed to track down and stop the shooter. Not by his superiors, but by the killer himself.As more bodies fall the shooter takes his message to the press, earning the support of the public with his choice of targets and confounding the FBI at every turn. From the desert of Nevada to the urban jungle of New York City, Jack and his team follow the trail of bodies and haunting messages left behind by the killer. With the pressure to find him mounting on Jack, the assassin’s crimes grow bolder, and his message more sinister and closer to home.It becomes clear to Jack that in order to find the shooter, he may have to look inside his own past, and become the man he was years ago.

Damaged


Pamela Callow - 2010
    But then the teen is brutally murdered. And it isn't only Kate who wonders if her legal advice led to the girl's death.How far are you willing to go to redeem yourself?Put on notice by Randall Barrett, the firm's charismatic managing partner, Kate must fight for her career, for her reputation - and for redemption.Unwilling to live with the damage she may have caused, Kate pursues the case on her own and unearths some chilling facts.Facts that lead straight to the heart of a legal conspiracy.Facts that lead Kate directly into the surgically skilled hands of the Body Butcher. The first book in the Kate Lange legal thriller series. A Levy "Need to Read" pick with Top Ten Bestseller display. Now under option for television development.

Little Voices


Vanessa Lillie - 2019
    She knows he’s innocent.Devon Burges is in the throes of a high-risk birth when she learns of her dear friend’s murder. The police quickly name another friend as the chief suspect, but Devon doesn’t buy it—and despite her difficult recovery, she decides to investigate.Haunted by postpartum problems that manifest as a cruel voice in her head, Devon is barely getting by. Yet her instincts are still sharp, and she’s bent on proving her friend’s innocence.But as Devon digs into the evidence, the voice in her head grows more insistent, the danger more intense. Each layer is darker, more disturbing, and she’s not sure she—or her baby—can survive what lies at the truth.

Hit the Road Jack


Willow Rose - 2015
    It's Monday morning but his parents are still asleep after a night of heavy drinking. Ben Waits patiently, even though he knows he is missing out on today's field trip to the zoo. But, when his black Labrador suddenly runs upstairs and comes down with a finger in his mouth, Ben knows he's not making it to school today at all. Detective Jack Ryder is chaperoning his kids' field trip when he gets the call from the head of the Cocoa Beach Police Department. A body has been found and they need his help. Soon, Jack finds himself up against a killer, a predator who ruthlessly chases women and kills them so they can never leave him. The case soon causes serious consequences for him and his family once the truth is revealed. With her new hero, Jack Ryder, as a loving father and committed detective, a new location in tropical Florida, and a story that moves at an incredible pace, Hit the Road Jack is Willow Rose at the top of her game.

Open House


Katie Sise - 2020
    A town still held in the grip of an unsolved mystery. A breathtaking novel of psychological suspense by the bestselling author of We Were Mothers.A decade ago in upstate New York, art student Emma McCullough walked into the woods and was never seen again. It’s a mystery that still haunts her bucolic university town and her broken family, especially her sister Haley, whose need for closure has become an obsession. But now, finally, the first piece of evidence in the vanishing has been found: Emma’s bracelet, lodged in a frozen piece of earth at the bottom of a gorge. For Emma’s three best college friends, for a beloved former teacher, and for Haley, the chilling trinket is more than a clue in a resurrected cold case. It’s a trigger.Then a woman is attacked during an open house, and the connections between the two crimes, ten winters apart, begin to surface. So do the secrets that run as deep and dark as the currents in this quiet river town.

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.

Invisible


Lorena McCourtney - 2004
    So when vandals romp through the local cemetery, she takes advantage of her newfound anonymity and its unforeseen advantages as she launches her own unofficial investigation.Despite her oddball humor and unconventional snooping, Ivy soon becomes discouraged by her failure to turn up any solid clues. And after Ivy witnesses something ominous and unexplained, she can't resist putting her investigative powers to work again. Even the authorities' attempts to keep Ivy out of danger and her nosy neighbor's match-making schemes can't slow her down. But will the determination that fuels this persistent, quirky sleuth threaten her very safety?

Trance


Adam Southward - 2019
    He is in control. This is his revenge—and he’s only just begun.Three university scientists are found dead in a gruesome murder-suicide, and the only suspect in the case, Victor Lazar, is quickly captured. When the spate of violent suicides follows him to prison he is moved to solitary confinement, reserved for the highest-risk inmates. And then his assigned psychologist inexplicably takes his own life.Alex Madison, a former forensic psychologist turned private therapist, is brought in to interview Victor. He suspects that Victor is controlling his victims, somehow coaxing them into a suggestive trance. It seems like science fiction, but as Alex digs deeper he uncovers a frightening reality of secret research and cruel experimentation—and the perpetrators are closer to home than he could ever have imagined.Too late, Alex learns the true extent of what Victor is capable of—and who he’s after. With everything he holds dear at risk, can Alex take control of a dangerous mind—before it takes control of him?

She's Not Coming Home


Philip Cox - 2012
    If she doesn’t work there, where has she been going?Matthew Gibbons thought he had it all – a house in a leafy Boston suburb, his wife Ruth and a beautiful son. But when one evening, after texting him ‘leaving now’, she doesn’t arrive home, and the staff at her office say they have no Ruth Gibbons working there, he sees his whole life collapse around him.What could have made Ruth walk away from her home and her family? When Matt tries to piece together his wife’s life, he finds he never really knew the woman he married, the woman who apparently died in a car crash three years earlier…