Book picks similar to
The Popcorn Girl by Michael J. Vaughn
mystery
fiction
abandoned
contemporary
The First Shot
E.H. Reinhard - 2016
If a single award existed for sinking himself into his work, he’d have two.But the latest crime scene he’s called to, an old abandoned factory, leaves him with more bodies than leads. Three drug dealers are found shot to death—not an uncommon sight in the least. The problem lies with the pair of middle-aged women—bound, gagged, and executed—found at the same location.Before he can sink his teeth into the initial investigation, Kane is called out to another multiple homicide. He comes up with only more questions when the second group of murders appears connected to the first. As the lieutenant tracks down the few leads, he begins to get a clearer picture of those he seeks. That picture quickly turns crystal clear when Kane finds himself face-to-face with someone that “armed and dangerous” doesn’t even begin to describe.
Celilo's Shadow
Valerie Wilcox - 2017
No matter how much time has passed, it’s always there, ready to punch you in the chest when you least expect it. All it takes is something ordinary—a brief glance, a certain food, or a melody on the radio—and regret strikes hard and fast. For Odessa Feldman, the trigger is a Pacific Northwest storm. When the muddy bones of a murder victim buried over fifty years ago are discovered in the storm’s aftermath, Odessa overcomes her long struggle with guilt to finally reveal the truth. But her overdue confession comes with a difficult price—reliving her role in the tragic summer of 1956 and worse, betraying the best friend she’d ever had. Dessa and Ellie Matthews were both fourteen-years-old when they met that summer. Ellie’s father was a foreman at the dam under construction on the Columbia River. At least that’s what he said. But, like murder and the motives behind it, some things in life are rarely as they seem.
Bangkok Rules
Harlan Wolff - 2013
A sadistic serial killer has been abducting young innocents for his ritual horror and the authorities are clueless. Carl Engel is an enigma. The blunt Londoner has forged a thirty-year career as a private investigator amid the chaos of Thailand's political history. Struggling with advancing years and a decreasing workload he is approached by an elderly American with a lucrative missing persons case.The case descends into the sordid world of the elusive serial killer and a menacing web of political intrigue dating back to the Vietnam War. Carl must use his guile and experience to stay alive, find the killer and negotiate the dangerous military interests that lurk behind the scenes. Based on a real character Carl Engel lives in a world rarely seen by outsiders and hauls the reader on a pulsating ride to the explosive conclusion.
Like Souls Series (Books 1-4): Blood of Like Souls, Tears of Like Souls, Promises of Like Souls, Secrets of Like Souls
Val Conrad - 2017
Blood of Like Souls Julie Madigan's career with the New Mexico State Police ended in the puddle of blood on the floor when she survived having her throat cut. But a year of recovery left her desperate to hide the scars and to escape her past. She moved to Michigan, away from friends and coworkers who knew her secrets. Now a Medical Examiner Investigator, Julie Madigan plays by the rules, but the rules change when a killer sends her clues and evidence about two victims, taunting her with his unusual methods of murder, pulling her into his twisted game, targeting those she cares about. His goal - to prove Julie will kill like he does. While trying to identify him, Julie discovers the monster has been closer to her than she imagined, leaving her in a race to save the victims he's selected, forcing her to choose who lives and who dies. Tears of Like Souls Medical Examiner Investigator Julie Madigan might have survived her half-brother's brutal crime spree, but the emotional wounds left by Anthony Bock's evil run deep. She begins a walk down the path to healing with the one man who's always loved her - Zach Samualson, who works for the Drug Enforcement Agency. They begin to establish a new life together in Washington - until he reveals a secret of his own. Julie's torn between trusting him and running from her inner demons and the one question that's haunted her since she was sixteen -did Bock make her kill her father? Promises of Like Souls After a small wedding to Zach in Albuquerque, Julie Madigan, now Julie Samualson, goes back to Michigan to pack and say goodbye to her friends and coworkers before moving to the log cabin Zach had built for them prior to Julie's yes to marriage. But her arrival in paradise was without her groom, who had stayed behind in New Mexico to finish an assignment with his DEA unit while awaiting a transfer. Zach, however, faces a startling surprise that will change both their lives completely - that he is the father of a teenage daughter, whose mother was kidnapped by one of Zach's ex-partners who had turned against the agency and his partners. By a man with a single goal - to destroy Zach and all he holds precious. Secrets of Like Souls On her way down the stairs, Julie Samualson falls and injures her ankle, disrupting more than her family. She limps on to a Portland hospital to begin an investigation into the burns suffered by the sister of one of the sheriff's dispatchers - burns that don't appear to have been sustained in a fall. Then the wife of a fellow deputy goes missing, and the van found near the Columbia River. On crutches, Julie can only help process evidence. Meanwhile, Amber, her stepdaughter, asks if they can continue searching for clues about the bag they found on a trail ride - the contents include an old library card and piece of tattooed human skin made into leather. But when the three different cases begin to connect and threats get closer to her loved ones, Julie's world begins to unravel.
Divinity Complex
P.H. Figur
Drake and his brother Dominic chase the serial killer across the country. When the case goes cold, Drake breaks down and succumbs to the unbearable grief. He escapes reality and enters a secretive drug study run by the largest pharmaceutical company in the world. What Drake doesn’t know, is the small town in Wyoming is a front for a dangerous experiment – and all the residents, including himself, are pawns in a deadly game. When Drake comes face-to-face with his fiancé’s killer, only one will make it out alive. The Divinity Complex is a psychological thriller about a vicious serial killer, a grieving widow’s quest for revenge, and a CEO with a god-complex who brings them together in a fatal conflict. If you like flawed heroes, brutal crime scenes, vigilante justice and shocking twists you won’t see coming, start reading this gripping crime novel today.
Secrets in the Sky
Pauline Wiles - 2015
From caving trips to rooftop pranks, it appeared nothing could hold her back, especially once she landed a dream job promising travel all over the world.But Sophie’s jet-setting lifestyle is not what it seems and she’s been spending more time in the quiet English village of Saffron Sweeting than she cares to admit. When her beloved Great Aunt Wol dies suddenly, Sophie loses one of the few people who truly know her. As friends, family and an old flame gather for the funeral, questions soon follow. Worse, Sophie finds herself increasingly attracted to the man most likely to expose her secrets. Can she manage to guard her past, yet finally follow her long-held dream?Featuring both new and familiar characters, this stand-alone romantic comedy is set two years before Saving Saffron Sweeting. With side helpings of British tea, cake and wit, Secrets in the Sky explores how finding the courage to be yourself can be the toughest challenge of all.
Wrong One
Varun Vashist - 2015
However, he started sensing something wrong with everyone in the wedding party. Kiara shrugged it off as Jake being paranoid, but Jake persisted. Is Jake going to find out anything or is it a mere hunch? Or Kiara's fear of Jake creating a trouble in the marriage will come true?
Nightsong: A Neanderthal mystery
M.J. Rhodes - 2016
When Bronwyn learns later that she was the only witness to the abduction of a young boy, she takes it upon herself to find the boy. Her obsessive search for the boy triggers deep memories of her own—Neanderthal—ancestor. Can these memories from 40,000 years ago help her to find the boy, and also help her to understand who she really is?
Lost And Found
Amy Shojai - 2012
But can she team up with a service dog to save a missing child and catch a murderer?Animal behaviorist September Day protects her broken heart by keeping everyone at arm’s length. Still distraught over her husband’s death in the line of duty, she heads back to her Texas home to launch a dog-training business. But her grief takes a back seat when her autistic nephew goes missing in a freak blizzard.Partnering with the boy’s support pup Shadow, September uncovers a shocking conspiracy hiding a deadly “miracle drug.” Hounded by vengeful enemies, human and dog must learn to work together and sniff out the source of corruption before more vulnerable kids die.Can September and Shadow forge a bond and stop a ruthless conspiracy and relentless killer?Lost And Found is the first action-packed installment in the gripping September and Shadow series. If you like dark suspense, novice detectives, and courageous animals, then you’ll love Amy Shojai’s roller-coaster thrillers.
Murder By Design: ...a young girl dreams of topping haute couture!
Mary Jane Forbes - 2011
Lack of money is a high hurdle. Living with her grandfather, and working as a casino barmaid, she saves her tips to take classes in Seattle. With her eye to one day having her own clothing label, the redhead, keeps her eye on the prize, leaving men smitten with her beauty in her wake—a preacher, an American Indian law student, and a NY fashion designer. It isn’t until a newspaper reporter appears on her door step that she pauses to take a second look. But reporter Skip Hunter has no time for women. He is driven to become a N.Y. Times best-selling mystery writer using his reporting of crime on the streets of Seattle as fodder. Will the New York designer who borrows Gillianne’s sketches end her dream? Will a heist of a billion dollars worth of gold bullion give the reporter his big break? Will the intersection of their lives drive the pair into each other’s arms? Or, will their life plans, force them apart?
Chancing Hope
Lisa Slater - 2018
If only Kerwyn could apply those same qualities to his relationship with the vibrant Mable Conner, who just happens to be his long-time childhood best friend. Haunted by the pain his father endures at the loss of his mother, Kerwyn feels determined to not make the same mistakes. He decided to set her free a long time ago, but can he? Should he? Mable Conner has big dreams, but growing up is hard, and life is demanding big changes. Desperately in love with her best friend, Kerwyn, how does she get him to sees her as the woman she is becoming, and not the little girl he grew up with? Also, wants to be a singer more than anything, and she’s got the voice and spirit to make it happen. With the right opportunity, anything could happen. But would leaving to sing mean leaving Kerwyn? Does he even care if she stays or goes? When mysterious, loner Devin Hill, begins interfering, the changes quickly become an eerily, unstoppable force. To Kerwyn, Devin could be a dangerous threat. To Mable, Devin could be an opportunity. The changes they encounter may not be what either of them had expected. They both may just be left to Chancing Hope. Max Van Zile, editor with Editing for Authors, writes about Chancing Hope, “Chancing Hope is one of my favorite books I’ve done working for this company.” Regarding a miscreant character, Mr. Van Zile writes, “He ends up becoming the single best and most memorable villain in any Editing for Authors book I’ve worked on.” Chancing Hope is a very coming of age, heart felt novel with emotional twists.
A Hair Raising Blowout
Constance Barker - 2016
Owner of the Teasen & Pleasen Hair Salon in the heart of Louisiana, she’s used to big hair, Southern style, and tall tales of the latest town scandal. But her quiet life is turned on its head when Savannah finds an upstanding member of the community murdered outside her salon in cold blood. Savannah investigates, only to find that her pleasant, cute town is just a façade, and that there’s more deception than truth in the lives of its residents. As the case intensifies, Savannah finds herself dealing with a bad blowout, a man who might lose a limb, and a woman scorned, leading to a firefight the village of Knockemstiff will never forget. Desperate Housewives marries GCB in this exciting murder mystery full of humor, suspense, and moonshine. Readers will be laughing aloud and gasping in shock while enjoying A Hair Raising Blowout, the first book in a stunning new thriller series by Constance Barker.
Influence
Chris Parker - 2014
Influence equals power, the power to affect people and events. The most powerful people alive have the greatest influence. And they can use it for good or bad. Marcus Kline is the world's leading authority on communication and influence. He can tell what you are thinking. He can see inside you. He can step inside your mind. Yet when a series of murder victims bear the horrific hallmarks of an intelligent and remorseless serial killer, Detective Inspector Peter Jones turns to Marcus for help - and everything changes. As the killer sets a deadly pace, the invisible, irresistible and terrifying power of influence threatens friendships, reputations, and lives. When events appear to implicate the great Marcus Kline himself, everyone learns that the worst pain isn't physical...
An End to a Silence: A mystery novel (The Ward Trilogy Book 1)
W.H. Clark - 2015
Montana, 1985. When seven-year-old Ryan Novak suddenly disappears from his home in a small rural town, Detective Newton picks up the case. Convinced that the boy’s grandfather - school janitor and former woodsman Bill O’Donnell - knows what happened to the boy, Newton’s growing obsession with his only suspect begins to take its toll. Winter. Montana, 2010. Twenty-five years later and, in the final days of Newton’s tarnished career, Bill O’Donnell is found murdered. Newton’s successor, a city-toughened young Texan detective named Ward, is the lead investigator. As Newton readies himself for retirement, Ward draws him back into the mystery he couldn’t solve. Can they find the old man’s killer and finally uncover the truth about what really happened to Ryan? The silence is about to be shattered. An End to a Silence is book 1 in a 3 part US crime novel series. Watch out for books 2 and 3 in the series.
Saving Babe Ruth
Tom Swyers - 2014
Captivating characters lead double lives and keep secrets in this award-winning page-turner based on a true story.A cast of shady adults and the high school baseball coaches hate David for trying to save it. They'll do anything to wreck the league so that their elite travel teams can take over its beautiful ball field, even if it means going after David and his family.The harder David battles to save the league, the worse things get. He's in way over his head and he's also stuck in a family catch-22. If he surrenders, he might lose his son's love along with his own self-respect to say nothing of losing baseball for the sandlot kids in town. Yet if he doesn't back down, he'll lose his marriage and his son will lose any chance to play on the high school team.To make things right, underdog David Thompson needs to know when to fold and when to fight. He's being pushed and shoved to his breaking point and only one thing is for sure: If he snaps, he's not planning on taking prisoners.David is on an emotional roller coaster and he can't get off. He's fighting his own civil war as he struggles to make a difference in the town he cherishes without bringing harm to the family he loves.·An Amazon multiple category bestseller.·Gold Winner, Benjamin Franklin Award, 2015 "Best First Book: Fiction."·Silver Winner, Benjamin Franklin Award, 2015 "Best Popular Fiction."·Readers Views, "Best Regional Fiction 2014/2015: Northeast."·Finalist, "Best New Fiction," 2014 USA Best Book Awards.