Charlotte police officer Jordan Monroe is used to being in control. Ever since his father died, he has provided for his mother and sisters and even hired his two brothers-in-law to help run his successful construction company. On a chance business trip, however, he meets the one person who throws his life into a whirlwind--Jaynee.Jaynee has lived a tragic life and has sworn off all men. That is until a rugged southern gentleman lands in her seating area, refusing to take no for an answer. From the moment they meet, Jordan sweeps her off her feet, assuring her that happiness exists. But can she really escape her past?Five years later, Jordan finds Jaynee on their back porch with a gunshot wound to the head. While Jaynee lies in a coma, Jordan has to go back to their beginning and figure out what went wrong. Did he push his wife to the edge, or has her past come back to haunt them? ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "You'll be swept off your feet along with Jaynee as she discovers the man of her dreams. You'll be drawn into the drama. And you'll flip the pages fast as Jordan must desperately figure out the truth in time. I was and did!" -- New York Times bestselling author Jaime Rush⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "SHE BELONGS TO ME is definitely a good suspenseful read. Ms. DeSousa is a talented author and I had no problem in connecting with the characters. The story displayed a realistic relationship between Jordan and Jaynee." -- The Romance Reviews

    They wanted her dead". Since her first day on the Miami Herald, rookie reporter Deborah Jones has been agitating for a shot at one particular story. William Craig is on Death Row, convicted of killing Senator Jack O'Neill's only son. There is no question of his guilt. Craig murdered the young man who was acquitted of raping his granddaughter. There are only five weeks and one day until his execution. And Craig has not given a single interview. Deborah Jones has assembled a whole dossier on the case, including court transcripts and every newspaper clipping. She wants to know what prompted Craig to exact revenge. And she has her own, very personal reasons for wishing to uncover the truth. Managing editor of the Herald Sam Goldberg is well aware that Senator O'Neill has powerful friends. The two men have crossed swords on a number of occasions. But against his better judgement, he decides to give Deborah a chance to prove herself. Only with one warning - 'Be careful. Florida may be the Sunshine State to most people. But it's not. It's a swamp. Don't ever forget that.'

    The police blame reckless driving, but insurance investigator Alex Fogarty suspects a celebrated CEO staged the accident and murdered his own employees for insurance money. Unfortunately, Alex’s boss cares more about a quick legal settlement than following the facts, and Alex can’t afford to lose his job—not while he’s underwater on five houses he bought before the real estate crash. But unless Alex can prove the crash was no accident, the young family of one of the drivers who died in the crash will face financial ruin. Against his better judgment, Alex plots a way to challenge the CEO, but he knows he can’t do it alone. Especially when the body count starts rising.With help from the CEO’s jilted wife and her star-crossed divorce lawyer, Alex pursues the case from L.A.’s seamy underside to the mansions of Bel Air. If he can keep ahead of the CEO’s chilling enforcer, Alex may just discover the dark truth.

    So when a body is found face-down in the city’s farmlands, head crushed, split in two, Jake jumps at the opportunity. The victim is soon identified as Zeke Harrison. A successful businessman and philanthropist. A man who had it all. But, as the investigation into his death develops, it becomes clear that Zeke had more secrets than success. And he had his debts - debts that got him killed.But now they've been passed on to someone else. And Jake must find out to whom before history repeats itself.

    But her well-connected husband, Griffin—who is running for governor—is her prime suspect.Just before the attack, Claire was preparing for an exhibit of her shadow boxes, one of which clearly accuses Griffin of a violent crime committed twenty-five years ago. If the public were to find out who her husband is, his political career would be over. Claire’s certain her husband and his powerful supporters would kill her to stop the truth from getting out.When one of Claire’s acquaintances is murdered, the authorities suspect the homicide is linked to the attack on Claire. As the dual investigations unfold, Claire must decide how much she’s willing to lose to take down her husband and the corrupt group of elites who will do anything to protect Griffin’s interests and their own.

    Instead, the victim turns out to be a woman he'd had an affair with before breaking it off to save his marriage. But there's a bigger problem: Liam has no memory of where he was or what he did on the night of the murder.Panicked, Liam turns to his brother, Sean, a homicide detective. Sean has his back, but incriminating evidence keeps piling up. From fingerprints to DNA, everything points to Liam, who must race against time and his department to uncover the truth - even if that truth is his own guilt. Yet as he digs deeper, dark secrets come to light, and Liam begins to suspect the killer might actually be Sean ...When the smoke clears in this harrowing family drama, who will be left standing?

    Colorado Book awards in the Suspense/Thriller category and Colorado Authors' League in the Adult Fiction category.*** Former lawman Mex Anderson is trying to cope with the horrific murders of his family as best he can. Moving from his small, Mexican town to the snowy mountains of Colorado has helped, however it seems nothing can ever take away the gut-wrenching pain of his loss. When the head of the drug cartel responsible for the killings approaches him with an offer that would reveal the individuals behind the murders, it might lead to the one thing that would allow Mex to heal: revenge. The Sacrifice: a novel of guilt and redemption that proves there is always hope for tomorrow even in the midst of unconscionable evil. “Peg Brantley’s latest, THE SACRIFICE, accomplishes that rare feat of being both heartfelt and suspenseful. A gripping tale of murder and revenge, it ultimately becomes something much, much more. — Dennis Palumbo, author of the Daniel Rinaldi mystery series “Peg Brantley has done it again. Her third book (after THE MISSINGS and RED TIDE) is another thrill ride, a hyperventilation-inducing thriller about evil and power and endangered innocence. And MAYBE a new (and very interesting) sustaining female character. Mex Anderson may have companionship in the next book or two.” —Timothy Hallinan, Edgar-nominated author of the Poke Rafferty and Junior Bender series

    But what he doesn't know is that these young girls belong to the secret Valentine Society, an elite group of Boston socialites that have corrupted the city's top officials, unashamedly operating above the law.With the help of his boss, the highly intelligent Inspector Belloc, and his lovely assistant, the boisterous and spirited Miss Posy Chapman, Silas embarks on a journey that takes him inside a secret world of rules and privileges, of oppressive parents and mischievous alliances.Weighed down by the sickness of memory loss, Silas struggles to maintain his sanity as he begins to discover the darkness plaguing his own sordid past, a darkness that ultimately brings him to the brink of becoming that which he hunts, a serial killer who was raised and trained by an insidious organization known only as The Factory.

    But when Brookside turns out to be a setting for art theft, dodgy dealings, and naked poker it becomes vastly more interesting. Josephine investigates the unusual goings on with friend and handwriting expert, Lill Fitzel. And the two befriend a young woman Josephine tries to prevent from making the same mistakes she has made.

     A chance to turn the tide in their favor is all legendary Captain Nicholas Driscoll needs to hear to lead an expedition behind enemy lines to the Chimera Nebula - a region of space so unstable it remains largely uncharted. Lieutenant Michael Summers sees an opportunity to matter, a chance to let future generations exist in a universe without constant war. He and other brave young cadets join the Manhattan for its first dangerous mission - to penetrate the Chimera Nebula and discover what it is the Draxx are doing in there. But first the ship and her crew will be tested by enemies both outside and within...

    When a former client bequeaths Drayco a rundown Opera House in a Virginia seaside town, he figures he'll arrange for a quick sale of the place while nursing his battered soul in a peaceful setting near the shore. What he doesn't count on is finding a dead body on the Opera House stage with a mysterious "G" carved into the man's chest. With hopes for a quick sale dashed and himself a suspect in the murder, Drayco digs into very old and very dangerous secrets to solve the crime and clear his name. Along the way, Drayco must dodge a wary sheriff, hostility over coastal development, and the seductive wife of a town councilman - before the tensions explode into more violence and he becomes the next victim. Want to read a Scott Drayco novella for FREE? Sign up for BV’s Mysteries in Crimetime newsletter at bvlawson.com and receive a FREE copy of "The Maltese Moon Rock"! Scott Drayco Thrillers in order: PLAYED TO DEATH (A Shamus Award Finalist and Best Mystery, Next Generation Book Awards) REQUIEM FOR INNOCENCE DIES IRAE ELEGY IN SCARLET

    And that of strangers, too. Wherever she goes, she’s being watched. Each stalker is different from the last, except for one thing—their alarming obsession with Nicki.Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Nicki’s father is turning to someone who can protect her: retired private detective and ex–Navy SEAL Jon Lancaster. Teaming up with FBI agent and former abduction victim Beth Daniels, Lancaster can help—his way. He’s spent most of his career dispatching creeps who get off on terrorizing the vulnerable. Unlicensed, and unrestricted, he plays dirty…But this case is unusual. Why so many men? Why this one girl? Does Nicki have something to hide? Or do her parents?Trawling the darkest depths of southern Florida, Lancaster faces a growing tide of secrets and deception. And the deeper he digs, the more he realizes that finding the truth won’t be easy. Because there’s more to this case than meets the eye.

    content rating: some mild language

    His next victim is only feet away. Within hours a backwater south Georgia county will be rocked by two seemingly unrelated murders that signal the arrival of a serial killer in the rural southland.Hunting the killer and preventing the next brutal murder falls to a plainspoken country deputy and two agents of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI). The chase leads north from the swamps along the Florida line to the foothills of the Appalachians.GBI agents Bob Shaklee and Sharon Price know that Deputy George Mackey is a natural hunter and if anyone can find the sadistic killer, Mackey can. But Mackey, haunted by his own demons can only wonder if he will be late again. It is his greatest fear.

    A Patterson-style thriller with a dash of Hannibal...A city paralyzed by a serial killer stalking the night, taking a most gruesome trophy.The only standing in the murderer's way is an FBI profiler...recently released from a mental institution.Plain Jane combines the swift action of Patterson with the macabre of Harris.Just remember to keep the lights on when reading this one!