Sidekick to Deadline by John Sandford


Dave Eagle - 2014
    If you have not yet bought Virgil Flowers Deadline, make sure to purchase it before buying this unofficial Sidekick. Welcome to Trippton, Minnesota, where life moves at a leisurely pace ... until your dog gets stolen, someone decides to start cooking meth next door, or the school board votes on a motion to murder you. Sandford’s beloved sleuth takes on three intertwining mysteries in Deadline, a fun and intriguing addition to the Virgil Flowers series. With this Sidekick, you’ll: • Discover some fascinating hidden gems and trivia about the novel • Spend some more time with the characters you’ve come to know and love • Learn what you might have missed on your first read • Explore possible alternate endings and imagine ideas for sequels • Get a chance to discuss the book with other readers on our Facebook forum Sidekicks are entertaining and insightful reading companions, filled with delightful commentary and thought-provoking questions. Readers have raved that Dave Eagle’s Sidekicks "really put you in touch with the many layers of the novel," "keep you entertained," and are "perfect if you want a vivid understanding of the story." Designed to be read side by side with the novels they complement, they’ll give you even more reasons to love some of today’s best books.

Reputations: A Madeleine Porter mystery


John Nixon - 2019
    Inevitably, the conversation turns to family history and Margaret says that she knows very little about her late husband's background. Madeleine offers to help but Margaret is determined to do it for herself, but says she will keep Madeleine informed. A few weeks after they return from the holiday, Madeleine and Ian are shocked to hear of the murder of their new friend in her own home. Struggling to come to terms with this, the following day they receive a package from Margaret, which includes an old newspaper cutting giving details of the murder of an elderly couple in 1966. Margaret has scrawled on the cutting 'Peter didn't do this'. What is the connection between the two events, or isn't there one? Why was Margaret so sure about her husband and was she right? Madeleine and Ian are asked by Bernard Livesey, a friend of Margaret's, to continue her work into Margaret's husband's background, but in doing so, will her own reputation be compromised? Her friend, Peter Duffy, now promoted to Chief Inspector, is striving unsuccessfully to solve his first case since his promotion, but he realises he needs Madeleine's skills to untangle the web of complex family relationships, which is the key to the case.

The Lost and the Damned (The Banlieues Trilogy)


Olivier Norek - 2020
    Anonymous letters addressed to him personally have begun to arrive, highlighting the fates of two women, invisible victims whose deaths were never explained. Just two more blurred faces among the ranks of the lost and the damned.Olivier Norek's first novel draws on all his experience as a police officer in one of France's toughest suburbs - the same experience he drew on as a writer for the hit TV series Spiral.Translated from the French by Nick Caistor

The Boy in the Well


Dan Clark - 2021
    A gruesome find. A race for the truth.After her husband and son are killed in a tragic car accident, Carolyn goes to stay with her mother in a quiet, rural town. She hopes the break will help her cope with her loss.Soon, Carolyn discovers that the small town holds unforgivable secrets. One she stumbles upon when she discovers the body of a young boy down a well – only to find he has disappeared when she returns with the police.The local residents, including Carolyn’s mother, doubt her discovery and blame it on her current state of mind. Rumours begin to spread.With somebody determined to stop Carolyn uncovering the truth, she knows she needs to prove what she saw. Not just for the boy and his family but also for herself.Will Carolyn be able to find the proof she needs? Or will her life be in danger if she continues her search?

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...

Moorlands Murders


Oliver Davies - 2020
    The York police call it a suicide, so it's up to Mitchell to clear his dead friend's name. Little does he realize that, in this sleepy town, lies a web of deceit, blackmail, and murder, one that now endangers him and everyone he cares about.

Scavenger Hunt


Charles Welch - 2021
    She is to solve the clue in the envelope to find the next clue. Each clue will lead to another until she finds her husband and her anniversary surprise. Excited to celebrate their day, she solves the first riddle and finds the next clue. As one clue leads to another, the tasks become harder and the clues hint at a more devious plan. A terrible reality dawns on her as she realizes she must complete the game to its end to save her marriage and possibly her life. Rachel’s adventure is not the celebration she imagined, and the creator of the game has a different prize in mind. At the end of the game, he waits for her to complete his revenge. But who created the game? Why does he seek revenge? And who will be waiting for her at the end of her Scavenger Hunt?

The Blue Washing Bag


Mary Clancy - 2020
    Constantly reminded of their mother’s unforgivable fall from grace, they suffer the consequences of her shameful act. Separated without warning at the age of eight, the bond they shared is broken.1960Molly Payton arrives in town. Shiny red suitcase in her hand – looking forward to a clean slate – hopeful of a bright future. She is forced to leave again less than a year later, traumatized … having left her baby behind.1985Years later, Daisy discovers the distressing truth of her past. Abandoned at birth, left at the side of the street in a washing bag. She has encountered many hardships on her journey which only serve to strengthen her resolve, to prepare her as she sets out to find those who are responsible … and make them pay.

Army of One: Introducing Joe Beck


Alastair Brown - 2020
    He's unlicensed. His office is his cell phone. The gun he carries is unregistered, its serial number is filed off, and his methods are out with the law. At a huge 6'5" tall with a hulking 275lb frame packed with rock-solid muscle, he's big, he's bad and he's about as hard as they come - and he's never been one to shy away from a fight. A model cop sent down for a crime he didn't commit, he's out of jail and he's gone renegade. He's become America's Unlicensed Private Detective - a man who drifts around, roaming the length and breadth of America righting wrongs and reaping riches whilst serving up his own hard brand of vigilante justice. In Army of One, he's in McAllen, Texas, - a city not too far from the US-Mexico border - for the funeral of an old friend who, he heard, took his own life. While in town, he soon bumps into a beautiful escort named Sapphire, who mistakes him for somebody else. They make plans to spend the night together, holed up in a cheap nearby motel. But things don't go as planned. They’re soon abducted at gun point and bundled into the back of a black SUV by a sinister group of men they've never seen before. Under orders of a man known only as 'the chairman,' the men drive them out to a desolate stretch of land in the dark Texan desert where a gut-wrenching discovery, a hand-dug grave and a harrowing demise awaits. How will Joe Beck react? What do the men want with them? And what horrors will come to light in the dark of the Texan night? Buy Army of One: Introducing Joe Beck today or find it on the Amazon Kindle Unlimited subscription service for free and start reading to find out. ------- Revised edition: This edition of Army of One: Introducing Joe Beck contains editorial revisions. ------- Reviews “A bit like a Jack Reacher except the main character is more sophisticated. Well worth reading.” JCH, posting on Goodreads.com “A classic thriller. Bit of a modern day western with a hero coming to town to expose a bunch of bad guys. Great read.” Scotty M, posting on Goodreads.com “What a story from start to finish good believable characters and really evil bad guys looking forward to more in future.” Belter, posting on Goodreads.com “Absolutely great. Characters are mysterious and the settings are vivid. In some chapters, I felt like I was actually there! Would highly recommend this book. Looking forward to more Joe Becks!” John, posting on Goodreads.com “What a read! Absolutely loved it.” Jayden, posting on Goodreads.com Books it's similar to If you like Lee Child's Jack Reacher, Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp, J.B. Turner’s Jon Reznick, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, L.T.

Last Man Standing


Eric Meyer - 2018
    He thought he’d been to hell and back in Iraq, but when he arrives back in his home town of Copperville, his war is not over. Everything has changed, and nothing is as he remembered. What happened? Is this the end? When society breaks down, who will keep order? People are running scared, abandoning their homes, fleeing for their lives. Where is his wife, and is she alive or dead? There are no answers, only questions. The local cops have fled, and lawlessness is the new power in the land. Yet some men and women will fight to survive. It is time for Americans to defend what is theirs. To fight and keep fighting. To remain forever free. Last Man Standing is the first in an ongoing Forever Free series of short novels that chronicle the vicious aftermath of the breakdown of society.

The Two Towns


J.J. Salkeld - 2014
     It is DC Jane Dixon's first week on Kendal's CID team. Her new boss, DI Andy Hall, gives her an open file to review, and it's a far from straightforward case. A woman has died in suspicious circumstances in a Windermere caravan park, and although her husband is suspected there's not a shred of solid evidence against him. Can Jane move the case forward, or will a cold-blooded killer really get away with murder? The rest of the team is busy too, because a vulnerable teenager from a troubled family has gone missing from home. There's nothing to suggest that the boy has been abducted, so what could have caused him to run away from home? DS Ian Mann, a tough ex-military man, and DC Ray Dixon are both heavily involved in the investigation. This story introduces key members of the investigative team, as well as many of the themes that are developed in the full-length Lakeland Murders novels: including a strong sense of place, and an understanding that while justice usually prevails it is rarely complete, or completely fair. Reader reviews for the full-length novels in the Lakeland Murders series include: 'Well developed, realistic, relatable characters, great plot, believable detailed scenes, good action sequences. Recommend to those that appreciate British detective novels. Always devour Lakeland murder mysteries.' 'Love J J Salkeld's books, his understanding of police procedure, his ability to draw his characters out into real people is, I believe, up there with the best of them and it is good to find crime stories set in Cumbria for a change.' 'Salkeld is good. Not just as a writer of gripping detective stories; but even more for his feisty exposure of the lunacies of institutions, hierarchies, and power. A refreshing and enlightening anarchist - much needed in these jaded, compliant and consumptive times.'

The Beatrix Rose Box Set


Mark Dawson - 2014
    A decade later, she emerges from the Hong Kong underworld with payback on her mind. They gunned down her husband and kidnapped her daughter, and now the debt needs to be repaid. It's a blood feud she didn't start but she is going to finish.Beatrix has already crossed one name off her Kill List. Her second target is a mercenary being held hostage by Somali terrorists. Can she infiltrate the most dangerous failed state on the planet and scrub him off the List, too?BLOOD MOON RISING"Murder's out of tune, and sweet revenge grows harsh."Ten years ago, Beatrix Rose headed an off-the-books hit squad that did the dirty work of the British Government. When she discovered that the commander of the squad was corrupt, he sent five of his assassins to rub her out.But they failed. Bad mistake.There were six names on Beatrix's Death List and now there are four. She's going to account for the others, one by one, even if it kills her. Beatrix has returned from Somalia with a fresh target in her sights. Bryan Duffy is in Iraq, surrounded by mercenaries, with no easy way to get to him and no easy way to get out.Will Duffy prove to be a challenge too far?BLOOD & ROSES"Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves."Beatrix Rose has worked her way through her Kill List. Four are dead and just two remain. But now her enemies know she has them in her sights. The hunter becomes the hunted.In a thrilling conclusion to the breakneck trilogy, Beatrix and her daughter must fight them in North Africa, New York and finally in the swamps of North Carolina. It's a lightning-paced roller-coaster of action that pits a deadly assassin against the might of the most powerful private army on the planet.It's long odds for Beatrix. And that's just how she likes it.

Murderer's Fete


Roger Keevil - 2011
    Throw into the mix a celebrated author, a dodgy solicitor, and a sponging relative, and Constable and Copper really have their work cut out!'MURDERER'S FETE' WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN 2012 UNDER THE TITLE 'FETED TO DIE'

It Was You


Jade Lee Wright - 2018
    Everything I did, I did for her..."When Regan Pen discovers that her long-term boyfriend has been cheating on her with over eight women, she packs her bags and leaves the sunny island in Spain that she had called home for a year. She returns to South Africa where she is given the chance to start over in life. Reassemble herself. Now is her time to be selfish. Find a new career, get a home of her own. Become whoever she wants to be... but when her best friend, Peyton, is brutally murdered, Regan is forced to put her life on hold to take responsibility for her friends thirteen year old daughter, Harley. As the police battle to solve the murder of Peyton and her unborn child, Regan becomes convinced that her Godchild is not the sweet, innocent little girl everyone seems to think she is. Could Harley have been so consumed by her jealousy and fear of not being the epicenter of her mothers universe that it lead to murder? If so, is Regan safe in her own home?

Til Death We Do Part, Too


Bruno Beaches - 2021
    She seems wonderful, and it is love at first sight, and they marry quickly. However, not all is rosy in the garden, and a lifetime’s baggage rears its ugly head. Pablo’s ex-wife re-establishes contact with him, and he desperately seeks to exorcise the demons of that betrayal and divorce, but he gets drawn into a double life. Then, one shocking day, Hellion goes to work, and inexplicably, and without warning, fails to return home. Now he has to try to understand another devastating, bewildering calamity.Til Death We Do Part, Too is a story that scrutinises the impact of unfinished business, baggage, emotional damage, and lingering love. It balances heart-breaking loss with resilience, disorientation with hope, and desperation and bitterness with true enduring love and understanding. There is much insight into the reality of relationships and the frailty of the human psyche. It is told with immense depth of feeling, humour, and faith.