Book picks similar to
Claudia Must Die by T.B. Markinson
thriller
mystery
ebooks
crime
Came a Shadow
Patrick Dakin - 2011
Although the act brings with it a sense of tremendous relief, Reuben takes no pleasure in it. The subsequent murder of his sister, though, is an entirely different matter. When done, in fact, his only regret is that he can't kill her all over again.Sixty-four years later, when four year old Sophie Crandall is abducted from her grandfather's home in rural Maine, the ensuing investigation brings answers no one, least of all the police, are prepared to hear.A roller coaster ride of a book that will thrill you, shock you, and, ultimately leave you with a sense of dread.
All Is Not Forgotten
Wendy Walker - 2016
In the hours immediately after, she is given a controversial drug to medically erase her memory of the violent assault. But, in the weeks and months that follow, as she heals from her physical wounds, and with no factual recall of the attack, Jenny struggles with her raging emotional memory. Her father, Tom, becomes obsessed with his inability to find her attacker and seek justice while her mother, Charlotte, prefers to pretend this horrific event did not touch her perfect country club world. As they seek help for their daughter, the fault lines within their marriage and their close-knit community emerge from the shadows where they have been hidden for years, and the relentless quest to find the monster who invaded their town - or perhaps lives among them - drive this psychological thriller to a shocking and unexpected conclusion.
Mad Money
Linda L. Richards - 2004
But life has a way of interrupting the best laid plans and it isn’t long before Madeline’s quiet new life of day trading in the Malibu hills is interrupted by kidnapping, murder and a run-in with a corporate psychopath.“Mad Money does what many have tried and few have managed — to turn stock swindles and corporate crime into a fun, roller-coaster read. The key is Richards’ strong, witty, and likable heroine, recovering stock broker Madeline Carter.” — bestselling author Alafair Burke“… filled with enough corruption to keep the reader turning pages. Anyone who dabbles in the stock market will be enthralled with the development of this plot, as well as frightened. Interesting and smart, and easily worth the price of admission, this is a recommended read.” — Donna Padilla, New Mystery Reader“A likable heroine, a strong supporting cast, knowledgeable insight into the world of stocks without going overboard, and murder and mayhem in LA add up to a hugely enjoyable read.” — Sarah Weinman, mystery critic“...Mad Money is no lightweight airplane read; instead, we have the fiendishly complex tale of corporate swindles, surreal glimpses into the world of the stock-trader .... For a debut novel — bravo! If you need a fast-paced and fun read Mad Money is for you as it is a light in the noir and far, far from light-weight.” — Ali Karim, Crime Spree Magazine
Snake Skin
C.J. Lyons - 2010
A woman of many identities. Lucille to her doting mother, Lulu to her devoted husband, Mom to her pre-teen daughter, Lucy to her friends, LT to her co-workers, and Supervisory Special Agent Guardino to the criminals she captures for the FBI's Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement squad.A loving mom and wife, dutiful daughter, consummate professional, and kick-ass federal agent, Lucy is living the perfect life.Until the day she comes up against a predator more vicious and cunning than any she's ever tackled before, one who forces Lucy to choose between the life of the young victim she is fighting to save and her own daughter's....and Lucy's dream life is shattered.
Rush To Justice Book
D.K. McIntosh - 2015
Discover the conclusion to the story in Book Two. When seventy year-old Martha Powers is bludgeoned to death, the police are quick to point a finger at the young girl who cleans her home. The crime is horrendous and many valuables are stolen. And according to all evidence, only fifteen year-old Mattie Baker had opportunity and motive. Renowned defense attorney Brady Flynn is retained by the girl’s father, and, at first, the case appeared to be a slam dunk win. But when lies are exposed and cover-ups revealed, nothing is as it first appeared. As the court room battle draws near, Brady’s world is further complicated by the reawakening of an old love affair. With the pressure reaching the boiling point, Brady realizes he is fighting the battle of his career.
Gone the Next
Ben Rehder - 2012
He's working a routine case, complete with hours of tedious surveillance, when he sees something that shakes him to the core. There, with the subject, is a little blond girl wearing a pink top and denim shorts—the same outfit worn by Tracy Turner, a six-year-old abducted the day before. When the police are skeptical of Ballard's report—and with his history, who can blame them?—it's the beginning of the most important case of his life.
Never Buried
Edie Claire - 1999
Too bad his body didn't!Advertising copywriter Leigh Koslow doesn't pack heat--just a few extra pounds. And she doesn't go looking for trouble. When she moved into her cousin Cara's refurbished Victorian house, she wasn't planning on discovering a corpse--certainly not one that had been embalmed ten years before. But as anyone in the small Pittsburgh borough of Avalon could tell her, her cousin's house has a history attached. A history dating back to two mysterious deaths in the summer of 1949.Someone wants Leigh and Cara out of the house--someone who has something to hide. But that someone doesn't know Leigh's impetuous cousin, and when Cara digs her heels in, Leigh looks to her old college chum, local policewoman Maura Polanski, for help. But the answers the trio find only point to more questions. Were the scandalous deaths of fifty years ago really an accident and a suicide? Or were they murder?The nearer the women get to the truth, the more desperate someone becomes. Because some secrets are better off kept. Especially when they hit close to home!
Around the Bend
Britney King - 2014
I'm that normal. I'm just like you, only wealthier. I have it all. The kids, the family, the dog, a house on the hill. Hell -- I'm so cliché, I even have a white picket fence. I guess you could say that I've dotted my I's and crossed my T's. But what I also have -- what no one sees in yoga, or at Neiman Marcus, or during the dreadful Ladies Who Lunch charity events I attend (because only God knows why), and perhaps most importantly, in the school pick up line--are secrets.Deep, dark, deadly secrets.We all keep secrets, don't we? We all have thoughts in our heads, things we do, things about us that if people knew, they'd be shocked...right? Well, what if one day we just decided to let the cat out of the bag, so to speak.What if we decided to let the whole world in on our dirty little secrets? And what if along the way, as we were spilling those secrets, we realized that things aren't always what they seem and with that knowledge, it changed the whole story?In this book, I'm laying it all out there. The unraveling of my life. My coming undone. What one might've seen had they been paying attention.What I've found in life is people often believe lies before they'll believe the truth. Well, here it is, in a nutshell. I'll let you decide which is which.
The One That Got Away
Simon Wood - 2015
But something goes terribly wrong on their way home, and the last time Zoë sees her, Holli is in the clutches of a sadistic killer. Zoë flees with her life, changed forever.A year later and still tortured with guilt, Zoë latches on to a police investigation where the crime eerily resembles her abduction. Along with a zealous detective, she retraces the steps of that fateful night in the desert, hoping that her memory will return and help them find justice for Holli. Her abductor—labeled the “Tally Man” by a fascinated media—lies in wait for Zoë. For him, she is not a survivor but simply the one that got away.With an unforgettable heroine, a chillingly disturbed psychopath, and a story that moves at breakneck speed, The One That Got Away is thriller writer Simon Wood at his finest.
Deadly Lies
Chris Patchell - 2013
Now as an adult, Jill's made it - she has a successful career and a solid, if not static, marriage to Detective Alex Shannon. Together they live out what seems to be a perfect life in Seattle. The vow she made as a teenager to never again be a victim lies dormant - until one day a reporter lures her to his hotel room under the pretense of an interview - and suddenly all of it comes rushing back. Jill seeks revenge on the reporter, triggering a series of events that leads Jill down a wormhole of retribution, forcing her to spin an ever-widening web of lies. Meanwhile, Alex is pulled into a case of a series of murders that began as cyber relationships. There seems to be a familiar fingerprint on these crimes, but Alex refuses to believe the murderer could be so close to him. For those who couldn't put down The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo comes a thrilling ride a la Mr. and Mrs. Smith, where husband and wife stand on opposite sides of a divide created by lies and rooted in a dark and deadly past.
The Ghostwriter
A.R. Torre - 2017
I stood in front of the police, my friends and family, and made up a story, my best one yet. And all of them believed me. I wasn't surprised. Telling stories is what made me famous. Fifteen bestsellers. Millions of fans. Fame and fortune.Now, I have one last story to write. It'll be my best one yet, with a jaw-dropping twist that will leave them stunned and gasping for breath.They say that sticks and stones will break your bones, but this story? It will be the one that kills me. This book is not a romance. It is contemporary fiction, but very suspenseful in nature. It is about a famous romance author and a dark secret she keeps.
Coral Sea Affair
Drew Lindsay - 2011
He joins a VIP protection company and is sent to exotic Port Douglas in Far North Queensland to watch over a breath taking, upcoming starlet, Brenda Grant and her American film crew as they make a movie on the Great Barrier Reef. He never expected to get within a million miles of this amazing woman in his wildest dreams….let alone kiss her; touch her. Initially their hilarious encounter is just great fun. It’s Ben Hood’s mid life crisis dream come true. Then it goes bad. EXTREMELY bad.1163 KB
The Innocent Wife
Amy Lloyd - 2018
You Trust Him. So Why Are You So Scared?Twenty years ago, Dennis Danson was arrested and imprisoned for the brutal murder of a young girl. Now he’s the subject of a true-crime documentary that’s whipping up a frenzy online to uncover the truth and free a man who has been wrongly convicted.A thousand miles away in England, Samantha is obsessed with Dennis’s case. She exchanges letters with him, and is quickly won over by his apparent charm and kindness to her. Soon she has left her old life behind to marry him and campaign for his release.When the campaign is successful and Dennis is freed, however, Sam begins to discover new details that suggest he may not be quite so innocent after all. But how do you confront your husband when you don’t want to know the truth?
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.
The Gray and Guilty Sea
Scott William Carter - 2010
An iconoclast. A loner. That's how people describe Garrison Gage, and that's when they're being charitable. After his wife's brutal murder in New York, and Gage himself is beaten nearly to death, the crippled private investigator retreats three thousand miles to the quaint coastal town of Barnacle Bluffs, Oregon. He spends the next five years in a convalescent stupor, content to bide his time filling out crossword puzzles and trying to forget that his wife's death is his fault. But all that changes when he discovers the body of a young woman washed up on the beach, and his conscience draws him back into his old occupation – forcing him to confront the demons of his own guilt before he can hope to solve the girl's murder.