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The Finch Trilogy by D.F. Bailey
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The DI Skelgill Series Books 5-7: compelling British crime mysteries
Bruce Beckham - 2020
Sanctioned
R.A. McGee - 2020
But there’s a bullet out there with his name on it…Covert operative Czerny Clark has had his fill of black-ops and bloodshed. After an assassination mission ends in chaos, he vows to hang up his holster. But when his former partner disappears while tailing a Russian explosives expert, Clark picks up his guns and dives back into the life he thought he left behind.Following a trail of bodies to Central America, Clark will stop at nothing to free his colleague. But while he’s busy squeezing the trigger on his rescue mission, a plan for a devastating act of terrorism brews in the wings.Can Clark neutralize a madman before thousands of innocents die?Sanctioned is the heart-stopping first book in the Blackthorn spy thriller series. If you like gritty heroes, pulse-pounding plots, and top-secret twists, then you’ll love R.A. McGee’s blood-soaked tale.
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.
The Subway
Dustin Stevens - 2017
Placed there by the Witness Protection Program, he has assimilated into the existence set up for him, trying to gain some level of enjoyment from the life he never asked for and even less wanted. An existence that is completely destroyed by a single phone call, nothing more than a message telling him that his last remaining tether to his old life has been severed in a most tragic and unexpected way. Having no choice but to abandon his adopted life and return to his roots, Scarberry finds himself dropped into a situation far more harrowing than he ever could have imagined. Allied with a single sheriff’s deputy – a young woman he knew only briefly in his youth that is fighting battles of her own – the two face a network of illegal gun runners, apathetic bureaucracy, and federal agency, ultimately squaring off with the very thing Scarberry’s been trying to avoid for so long…
London Carter Boxed Set: Books 4 - 6
B.J. Bourg - 2017
It was apparent to London that the murderer wanted to make sure the kid was dead, but the motive for the killing was far from obvious. Summoning the assistance of Detective Rachael Bowler, the two are finally able to locate the actual crime scene and that leads them to the identity of their young victim. But instead of providing answers, the identification leads to more questions. Could a secret involving the young man lead them to the killer, or will it only muddy the waters and interfere with their investigation? Whatever the case, this is one killer no one should take for granted--not even a cop as skilled and gritty as London Carter. ELEVATION Vice President Courtney Browning is adored by the majority of all Americans and is heiress apparent to the White House, but someone wants her dead. When she holds a rally in Magnolia Parish early one morning in May, London Carter and his snipers team up with the Secret Service to assist them in providing over-watch protection for the event. What begins as a routine rally turns into a bloodbath that leaves three people dead and a dozen others wounded. However, thanks to London’s quick thinking and decisive action, the body count is much lower than it could have been. As London tries to avoid the ensuing publicity surrounding the national event and get back to his normal duties, he’s called upon to investigate a strange break-in at a residence in Seasville. There aren’t many clues to decipher, but as he digs deeper into the case, it begins to appear someone might be after the woman he loves. Can he find and stop the forces that are moving against Dawn Luke, or will he end up with another hole in his heart that’s too big to fill? BLOOD RISE In the final book in this series, London Carter has planned the perfect surprise vacation for Dawn Luke. They’re heading to the Smoky Mountains National Park, where he’ll drop down to one knee in front of Abrams Falls and propose to her. However, when a grisly discovery is made in a small community within Magnolia Parish, they’re forced to return home to investigate. They soon learn that the victim, Kathleen Bertrand, has been killed in the most heinous manner imaginable, and they delve into her past looking for anything that might help explain what happened. They locate some skeletons in her closet and, while one of them might be motive enough for murder, the brutal nature of the crime doesn't seem to fit. As Dawn and London drive to the Gulf Coast town of Dark Sands, Mississippi to follow-up on a piece of evidence they discovered in Kathleen’s car, Deputy Abraham Wilson is called to investigate the disappearance of another Plymouth East woman. Fearing the cases are connected and the second victim might suffer the same fate as the first, they work nearly nonstop to bring the killer to justice. No one knows if they’ll locate the victim in time to save her, but it’s clear London won’t be dropping down to one knee anytime soon--unless it’s to take a shot.
Travel by Night
Sophie Morton-Thomas - 2020
Caught in a dangerous trap. A life-changing discovery. When Yalina wakes in hospital following surgery, she doesn’t recognise her own parents. Following her release, she makes the decision to meet her estranged brother, Ali, in Sheffield, but the man who picks her up is not her brother. He takes Yalina to a house where girls are held against their will and forced into sex slavery. Too late, she realises she has fallen into a trap.Over time, Yalina discovers a love of playing the old piano that lives in the house. It keeps her sane. As friendships blossom between the women, Yalina finds herself taking a young girl, Rebecca, under her wing, which makes it harder for her to try to escape.Using a stolen laptop, Yalina searches for her brother online, but soon discovers that all is not as it seems. As the women are threatened with violence, Yalina reluctantly accepts help from a stranger she met in the house. But he carries a secret that could impact on her whole life. But will it be enough for Yalina to escape her captors? And how will she cope with the unexpected revelation?
The Whicher Series: Books 1 & 2 (The Whicher Series Book Bundle)
John Stonehouse - 2016
CASE, AMAZON TOP 500 REVIEWS, CA. AN AMERICAN OUTLAWGilman James comes home from Iraq--the last of three childhood friends to return. His brothers-in-arms are mere shadows of their former selves--Gil, unmarked, determines to take care of them. But how far should a man go for the people he loves?Stepping across the line between right and wrong, Gil finds himself stranded in the Texan desert--as a bank heist he's planned goes horribly wrong. Pursued into the badlands by US Marshal John Whicher, a moment of violent reckoning is set in train.What makes an outlaw? Marshal John Whicher, veteran of the First Gulf War thinks he knows. But can natural justice ever outrank the law?AN AMERICAN KILL 'A classic series in the making... I found the first book in this series compulsive reading. This one is even more compulsive.' AMAZON REVIEWS 'Exceptional...' ROD REYNOLDS, author, 'THE DARK INSIDE''Loved the first one, this one's even better. Best newcomer in ages, class...' Y.GUILLEMOT, AMAZON REVIEWSJohn Whicher is a US Marshal, not long out of training - barely twelve months back from serving in the Persian Gulf war. In south Texas, he's working his first case when a multiple shooting on the US / Mexico border leaves five non-documented aliens and one American dead.The county decides to limit any inquest - money's tight, deaths among illegals are notoriously hard to crack. But Whicher, new to law enforcement, is not about to let his first case slide.
Blue Hollow: A thrilling mystery with a wicked twist
Cheryl Rees-Price - 2021
Paparazzi (Becky White Thriller #2)
Jo Fenton - 2021
A popstar’s family murdered. A terrified photographer.It’s thirty years since Becky White joined the police. Now, six months after leaving the force, she is suffering from PTSD, when an old friend turns up with a tempting offer. Following the creation of The White Knight Detective Agency, their first client is a press photographer – a member of the Paparazzi – a young woman with a mysterious and troublesome stalker.But as the case develops, Becky and Joanna find themselves embroiled in murder. When they are unable to prevent further deaths, their investigation takes them down an unexpected path.But can they trust their instinct? And will they identify the killer in time to save a child’s life?Paparazzi, the second instalment in the bestselling Becky White Thriller series. takes you on a journey into the deceptive world of superstars – and those who follow them!
Nichelle Clarke Crime Thriller Series, Books 1-3: Box Set: Front Page Fatality / Buried Leads / Small Town Spin
LynDee Walker - 2018
She assumes it will be routine, a scene like many other accidents she's covered. She's wrong.The accident gives Nichelle a chance glimpse of an ongoing conspiracy. But proveable facts are fleeting. And as Nichelle digs deeper into the case, people and evidence begin to disappear. Someone is one step ahead of her, desperate to cover their tracks. A master criminal with a deadly secret, who will stop at nothing to keep the truth hidden...But as she draws closer to unraveling the mystery of two dead cops, Nichelle realizes she's become the next target. Can she survive this murderous game of cat and mouse long enough to solve the mystery? Or will Nichelle fall prey to a killer?_________________________Book 2: Buried LeadsWhen an Armani-clad body turns up in a shallow forest grave, Nichelle Clarke is the first reporter on the scene. She soon discovers the victim is a tobacco lobbyist with powerful connections.Local politicians are pushing for a quick arrest. Nichelle thinks they seem nervous. Even more so after a second victim is found dead. Nichelle's search for the killer soon uncovers a jaw-dropping trail of malfeasance and debauchery that stretches all the way to Washington, D.C. It's the kind of story that can make a crime reporter's career.But the power players at the center of this conspiracy have everything to lose, and as Nichelle's quest for the truth nears its end, she lands squarely in the crosshairs of the killer. Can her wits alone can get her out alive, or will these secrets stay buried for good?_________________________Book 3: Small Town SpinT.J. had the world in the palm of his hand. He was handsome. Popular in school. Smart. A stellar athlete. The son of superstar pro quarterback Tony Okerson, he seemed destined to follow in his father's footsteps to a career of gridiron glory.That bright, shining dream ends when T.J.'s lifeless body is found on a rocky shoreline near his family's Chesapeake Bay home.But as Nichelle begins to explore the facts surrounding the death, she discovers some shocking details. Something doesn't fit. And while the local sheriff wants to stamp the case a drug overdose and move on, Nichelle becomes convinced that foul play may have been involved.To the townsfolk, Nichelle is an outsider, putting her nose where it doesn't belong. But in her experience, that's exactly where the most damning secrets are kept. And the further she follows the evidence trail, the more Nichelle realizes that this sleepy coastal village is anything but innocent...
Parallax View
Allan Leverone - 2013
President Ronald Reagan.After smuggling the document out of East Germany, Tracie believes she is in the clear. She's wrong. There are shadowy forces at work, influential people who will stop at nothing to prevent the explosive information contained in the letter from reaching the White House.Soon, Tanner is knee-deep in airplane crashes and murder, paired up with a young Maine air traffic controller and on the run for their lives, unsure who she can trust at CIA, but committed to completing her mission, no matter the cost...
Jet Sweep (Burnside Series # 12)
David Chill - 2021
Burnside is lured into a scheme involving a star football player he had once recruited out of high school, he tries to turn the tables on the perpetrator. But when shots are fired on a darkened L.A. street, he is plunged into a mystifying case where nothing is as it seems – where even murder could be an illusion. The story leads Burnside into the world of startup companies, and the money-hungry people who run them. By pushing his way through a riveting set of clues, he finds a twisted trail of age-old grievances and shocking betrayals. And it wouldn’t be a Burnside mystery if he didn’t manage to also upstage the police, as his investigation is always a step ahead of theirs, creating yet another thorny path for him to navigate.As Burnside races to tie the details together before any more carnage is done, he also gains further insight into his own sketchy history and begins to grasp how his checkered past has led him to where he is now – for better and for worse. His remarkable journey parallels the story and creates depth and texture to one of modern crime fiction’s most irreverent heroes.Jet Sweep is the latest installment of this classic Southern California noir mystery series. With razor-sharp dialogue and sardonic humor, this well-honed thriller is set against a backdrop of an increasingly hot Los Angeles summer. It is a story that comes loaded with high drama, as well as some unexpected surprises!
Irons in the Fire
Bowen Greenwood - 2020
The prime suspect got out of prison way too easily; reporter Sherman Iron needs to know why. But he breaks the law in his quest for answers, and Iron stumbles on the dead body of a corrupt judge with a million in cash in a briefcase in front of him.Then the cops show up.Framed for a murder he didn’t commit, Sherman Iron must clear his name and find the killer who ordered the shooting. But everyone in Hunter has a secret, and learning them might take Iron from the frying pan to the fire.
Tubbypalooza: Nine Hard-Boiled Tubby Dubonnet Mysteries
Tony Dunbar - 2018
Passing a good time, of course, includes running from the mob, solving gritty crime lab murder mysteries, thwarting hurricane season bank heists, and a good deal of rubbing elbows with corrupt politicians—all this while answering to a family of beloved women that he just can’t seem to slip anything past… And with each action-packed adventure, you can trust—because this is a Tubby Dubonnet mystery—that these disparate events are intricately intertwined.A veritable best-of, this murder mystery anthology includes nine of Tubby Dubonnet’s Anthony and Edgar-nominated hard-boiled legal thrillers. (Editor’s Note: Why not all ten? Sorry to say the rights to TUBBY MEETS KATRINA are licensed to another publisher. But these stories need not be read in order.)CROOKED MANMeet lawyer Tubby Dubonnet. His clients are all renegades from the asylum (aka Orleans Parish), including Darryl Alvarez, the manager of a local nightclub who's been caught unloading marijuana from a shrimp boat. At their first meeting, Darryl entrusts Tubby with an ordinary-looking blue gym... of money. What could possibly go wrong?CITY OF BEADSTubby Dubonnet is bored. Sure, researching licensing law for the new casino will keep trout meunière on the table, but what could be more tedious? (Unless, of course, the client’s dealings are steeped in conspiracy).TRICK QUESTIONMedical lab janitor Cletus Busters is caught red-handed in a restricted area with the frozen head of Dr. Whitney Valentine. Busters won't say much, except that he's innocent. Calling Tubby Dubonnet!SHELTER FROM THE STORMTo out-of-town kingpin Willie LaRue, Mardi Gras seems the perfect time for a New Orleans heist. Parties, parades, chaos, alcohol – who could be concerned about a little thing like a bank job? Indeed, all might have gone well except for an out-of-season frog-flogger that threatens to flood the French Quarter. CRIME CZARTubby can't forget the last words that escaped an old friend's lips, and he can't get out of the way of a political campaign that's turning rough. Obsessed with the idea that a shadowy crime boss may be pulling the strings that have cost good people their lives, Tubby is entering into a test of courage with the most violent men in New Orleans.LUCKY MANIt's a city of sin. And murder is only one of them. So what if Judge Hughes shared a few special moments with Sultana Patel—why is this a matter of public interest? Until the D.A. hatches a plot to ensnare them—and their lawyer Tubby. And what a web they’re ensnared in!NIGHT WATCHMANWhen in the 1970s a young war protester is killed in broad daylight on Canal Street, it appears that his murder will be forgotten. But a youthful Tubby chanced to see it happen, and the tragic event's haunted him throughout his life. Decades later, Tubby decides to conduct his own investigation. And stirs up a hornets’ nest.FAT MAN BLUESEx-con Angelo Spooner is trying to start a legit business, but he just can’t catch a break. Just as his healing Holy Water, “Angelo’s Elixir” is about to go upscale, the sticky strands of the Big Sleazy’s tangled web of crime and corruption come running.FLAG BOYThe set-up alone's enough to make you believe in the butterfly effect. Two acrobats burglarize a house; a sultan moves into a French Quarter mansion; a Mardi Gras Indian, in the wrong place at the wrong time, is wrongfully arrested; and our hero Tubby Dubonnet comes upon a double murder while paying a social call on the bayou.