Book picks similar to
Cold Flame by Natalie Hames
mystery
present-day-british-mystery
detective
crime
Bound by Lies
Gretta Mulrooney - 2017
The chief character is so well defined and so likeable. The story was intriguing and had plenty of twists and turns. ” Julia Corbett “Swift is a good character, suitable for people who like PD James, the story is believable and comes together well.” “Absolutely loved this book! Extremely well written with believable characters and lots of twists!” E. Boisvert “Excellent mystery, well drawn characters, and a great storyline.” Suki Anne Perfect for fans of Robert Galbraith, Paula Hawkins, P.D. James, or Ruth Rendell. IN THIS THREE-BOOK BOXSET: BOOK 1: THE LADY VANISHED A missing woman holds the key to a valuable inheritance Florence Davenport hires Swift to find her missing stepmother. There are no leads and no suspects, but if the body is found, Florence will inherit half of a very valuable house. BOOK 2: BLOOD SECRETS Fifteen years ago a teenage boy, Teddy Bartlett, went to a woods on the outskirts of London and was beaten to a pulp and left damaged for life. The police never found who did it or why he was targeted. Now, the boy’s father, recently returned from Australia, wants to find out what really happened to his son. He hires private detective Tyrone Swift to investigate the tragic crime. BOOK 3: TWO LOVERS, SIX DEATHS A man stabs his girlfriend to death. Then hangs himself, leaving a note confessing to the murder. Open and shut case? Not for detective Tyrone Swift Dominic Merrell’s estranged wife Georgie doesn’t believe that he could have done it. Detective Swift discovers that Dominic was a reliable, devoted husband and father for eighteen years until he met the beautiful, charismatic Lisa, who he left his wife for. No one can believe that Dominic was capable of murder. But if it wasn’t him, then who killed the seductive but chaotic Lisa? THE DETECTIVE Tyrone Swift is an ex-police detective who now works privately. He’s survived a stabbing and his fiancée running off with another man. Swift's personal life is complicated. He is still involved with his ex-wife Ruth. THE SETTING The streets of London with their vibrant mix of nationalities, cultures, and rich and poor are beautifully evoked. From the quiet suburbs with their veneer of happy family life, to the bustling centre with refugees struggling to survive, to exclusive penthouses where the rich can have anything they want delivered. THE AUTHOR Gretta is a critically acclaimed author of best-selling detective and literary fiction. 'Mulrooney has a real gift for dialogue, the words and phrases ring true and make her characters wonderfully real . . .
Starvation Lake
John Carson - 2020
Every year on the anniversary of her incarceration, she taunts him with a phone call, giving him one message; when I get out, I'll kill you.Now, Bracken has transferred back to Edinburgh from Fife and is thrown into the deep end on his first day back on duty.There's a killer who is emulating Ailsa, threatening to surpass her body count.Bracken knows he needs her on board to help him track the killer down, but she's reluctant to get involved.Then the case takes an unexpected twist, and she agrees to help. But this new killer is taking them down a dark, twisted path, where nobody sees the outcome.Until it's too late.
Huntress Moon
Alexandra Sokoloff - 2012
Book 1 in award-winning author Alexandra Sokoloff's riveting new Huntress FBI series about a driven FBI agent on the hunt for that most rare of all killers: a female serial. FBI Special Agent Matthew Roarke is closing in on a bust of a major criminal organization in San Francisco when he witnesses an undercover member of his team killed right in front of him on a busy street, an accident Roarke can’t believe is coincidental. His suspicions put him on the trail of a mysterious young woman who appears to have been present at each scene of a years-long string of “accidents” and murders, and who may well be that most rare of killers: a female serial.Roarke’s hunt for her takes him across three states...while in a small coastal town, a young father and his five-year old son, both wounded from a recent divorce, encounter a lost and compelling young woman on the beach and strike up an unlikely friendship without realizing how deadly she may be.As Roarke uncovers the shocking truth of her background, he realizes she is on a mission of her own, and must race to capture her before more blood is shed.
This is a new release of a previously published edition.
Silent Cry
Jenny O'Brien - 2019
Don’t try to find us.
Five years ago, Izzy Grant’s boyfriend Charlie took their newborn daughter Alys out for a drive.They never came back.After years of waiting, Izzy has almost given up hoping that they’re still alive – until a note is pushed through her door telling her they’re fine, not to look for them. Suddenly the case is top priority again, and Izzy is swarmed with faces from the past: the detective who was first on the scene to help; an old friend who vanished not long after Alys and Charlie.Izzy doesn’t know who she can trust, who is sending her notes, where Charlie and Alys might be. Her only ally is DC Gabriella Darin, recently transferred from Cardiff and fleeing a painful past of her own.Gaby knows something doesn’t fit with the case, and she knows Izzy won’t rest until she finds out what really happened to her daughter. Could someone she knew and trusted really have taken Alys from her?Wherever Alys and Charlie are, Gaby is determined to find them, no matter what it takes. Somewhere in Izzy’s past is a clue, if Gaby can only find it…
A gripping and unputdownable thriller for fans of Patricia Gibney, LJ Ross and Angela Marsons.
Previously published as Missing in Wales. This edition contains editorial revisions. Readers LOVE Jenny O’Brien! ‘Wow – this book had me on the edge of my seat!… I loved every minute of it.’ Goodreads reviewer‘LOVED IT.’ Goodreads reviewer‘I loved this book… A couple of times I thought I had it all solved, but I was SO wrong!!’ Goodreads reviewer‘I devoured it and wanted to read the next in the series immediately!!’ Goodreads reviewer‘Kept me reading into the small hours… An unexpected twist at the end.’ Goodreads reviewer‘Thrilling… Amazing book, I couldn’t put it down.’ Goodreads reviewer‘I absolutely loved this book… Jenny O’Brien is quickly becoming one of my favourites!’ Goodreads reviewer
Not Like Us
Ava Strong - 2021
to become a renowned psychologist specializing in PTSD, and the world’s leading expert in the unique trauma of serial-killer survivors. By studying the psychology of their survivors, Ilse has a unique and unparalleled expertise in the true psychology of serial killers. She had no idea, though, that she would become an FBI agent herself.Nothing, though, can prepare Ilse for her new patient, a survivor from a roadside brush with a serial killer. The patient, paranoid, believes she is still being watched by the killer. And when the killer claims a new victim, the FBI needs Ilse’s help to solve it.This case and this killer, though, strike too close to home for Ilse’s comfort. When she realizes that she herself is being targeted, the trauma of her own past comes full circle.Can Ilse use her brilliant instincts to enter the mind of this killer and stop him before he strikes again?And will she save herself?A dark and suspenseful crime thriller, the ILSE BECK series is a breathtaking page-turner, unputdownable from the first word. A compelling and perplexing mystery, rife with twists and jaw-dropping secrets, it will make you fall in love with a brilliant new character, while it keeps you shocked late into the night.
A Dangerous Man
Mike Ryan - 2017
He got married, had two kids, even started his own business. But a deep, dark secret he's been hiding is about to shatter his world. Casey thought he was done with his past-but his past wasn't done with him. Everyone is about to find out, though--he's still a very dangerous man.
The Missing Ones
Patricia Gibney - 2017
A white flour bag encased the little body. Three small faces watched from the window, eyes black with terror. The child in the middle spoke without turning his head. I wonder which one of us will be next?When a woman’s body is discovered in a cathedral and hours later a young man is found hanging from a tree outside his home, Detective Lottie Parker is called in to lead the investigation. Both bodies have the same distinctive tattoo clumsily inscribed on their legs. It’s clear the pair are connected, but how? The trail leads Lottie to St. Angela’s, a former children’s home, with a dark connection to her own family history. Suddenly the case just got personal. As Lottie begins to link the current victims to unsolved murders decades old, two teenage boys go missing. She must close in on the killer before they strike again, but in doing so is she putting her own children in terrifying danger? Lottie is about to come face to face with a twisted soul who has a very warped idea of justice. Fans of Rachel Abbott, Karin Slaughter and Robert Dugoni will be gripped by this page-turning serial killer thriller, guaranteed to keep you reading late into the night.
First Case: Murder Alley
Roger Stelljes - 2012
First Case provides an introduction and backstory to the lead character, "Mac" McRyan and his fellow detectives. Stelljes' knack for GRITTY and REAL DIALOGUE (slang/jargon/behind the scenes dialog), as well as his uncanny sense of place and time, will put you in the middle of the action allowing you to feel the desperation of Mac McRyan and his fellow detectives.
Teesside Steal
John Nicholson - 2013
His dad has just died, he’s being made bankrupt, he’s getting evicted, his girlfriend has left him and Middlesbrough are 2-0 down in the UEFA Cup. But there’s a way out. His father has bequeathed him a huge inheritance, if only he can find out where it is. As he tries to repair his relationship with Julie and deal with the ghosts of his dysfunctional upbringing, he discovers his dad isn’t the man he thought he was. Soon it becomes obvious something very strange has happened and Nick begins to doubt that his dad is even dead at all. As he searches for the truth, he is plunged into a world of theft, greed and brutal murder. Soon, as the Boro play a huge European game, he will have to fight for his and Julie’s life on the windswept sand dunes of Saltburn. Teesside Steal is set in Teesside and North Yorkshire and is the first in the Nick Guymer series of mysteries. It is a story of upbringing, inheritance and UEFA Cup football.