Book picks similar to
Tortoise Stew by P.C. Zick


mystery
florida-fiction
y-b06june
zick-p-c

Bean Counter


T.A. Clark - 2016
     When the head of Nick Rohmer’s Miami accounting firm is found dead after a suspicious accident, Nick finds his quiet, comfortable, boring life slipping out of his control. With most of the firm’s management either on vacation, sick, or dead, Nick is thrust into the unfamiliar position of actually having some responsibility. The weight does not sit easily on his shoulders. He’s relieved when the instructions from the Chicago head office are – don’t do anything until we get there. This he can do. He tries to stick to his ‘do nothing’ instructions even as the firm’s largest client threatens to jump ship. But Nick’s plan of inaction is short-lived when he is convinced to try to save the business. He secures an invitation to dinner on the private island of the mega-wealthy, and highly dysfunctional, Keene family. Things quickly go from bad to disastrous when another dead body shows up, and Nick finds he's the prime suspect. As he gets sucked into the mystery, Nick’s focus quickly changes from trying to save the business to trying to save his skin.

Twisted: A Tracy Turner Murder Mystery Novel


Keyla Hunter - 2014
    Tracy Turner is out to prove herself, but a pro golfer’s murder is not the kind of event that she’s prepared for. Just a day into Tracy’s promotion, Frank Walters is dead and her best friend Ryan Evans has been framed. The case against Ryan seems iron-clad—no one believes he’s innocent but her. The more she digs into the murder, the further from the truth she gets. And the closer she gets to the real killer, the closer she gets to dying. Tracy has to save Regency’s reputation, but first she has to clear Ryan’s name and stay alive. Twisted is a stand-alone murder mystery thriller novel and the first book in The Tracy Turner Mystery Series. Love juicy mysteries? Then get your copy of this murder mystery exclusive to the Amazon store NOW!

Hired Gun


Christopher Kenworthy - 2013
     But when Jemina resists, he brings in some muscle to finish the job. But Luke Horn isn't just a gun for hire. He doesn't like what he hears about Fetterman. So he sides with Jemima and her foreman, Fed Sauermann, to get the rustlers off her land and bring Fetterman’s plans tumbling down. When the three are driven off the ranch, they find a hideout in the hills to hatch a plan to reclaim the ranch. It’s not long before Luke Horn find himself fighting for his life - and the land of the woman he loves. Hired Gun is a thrilling saga of gunplay and romance, perfect for fans of classic Western adventure. Praise for Christopher Kenworthy 'A thrilling read.' - Robert Foster, acclaimed author of The Lunar Code. ‘Kenworthy is a craftsman and entertainer.’ - Richard Foreman, bestselling author of The Sword of Rome series Christopher Kenworthy was a journalist and novelist. His other Westerns include Apache Country and Badlands, and he has also written two naval fiction series - the John Paul Jones adventures and the In the Dark of the Moon saga. Pioneering Press is an imprint of Endeavour Press, the UK’s leading independent digital publisher. We publish new and classic westerns by authors from the US and the UK.

Catching the Light: Four women, four compelling short stories


Mary Grand - 2016
    The New Arrival Rachel has moved to the Isle of Wight determined to become invisible. Hiding a shameful secret she cultivates a ‘cold polite smile as effective as an electric fence.’ However, unexpectedly, into her life comes a loving, crazy, individual: Lottie the cocker spaniel. Everything is about to change. Catching the Light Erin thinks she has found her fairytale prince. However, the honeymoon in a remote cottage in Wales shatters the dream. For the first time in her life Erin discovers the mystical world of fairies. Belonging Megan works in a Theatre for the Deaf. She is Deaf. Her language is British Sign Language. One evening she meets John, who is hearing, and two worlds collide. This is the story of the struggles, joys and tears of their remarkable relationship. The Outing This was to be the most important day of Kay’s life. However her mission to be free from years of guilt reveals so much more than she could possibly imagine.

The Quiet Village


T.J. Walter - 2017
    He discovers a quiet village deep in the countryside and settles there. He makes new friends and finds a new love, but there are undercurrents; events that threaten his newfound peace. Then a murder occurs and he finds himself drawn into the investigation, unsure of who among his new friends he can trust. How will he overcome this without losing all he has gained?

In the Shadow of El Paso


Frank Zafiro - 2012
    Isabella is a beautiful Mexican woman that everyone in town loves, including the hapless Pete and the wealthy, powerful Jack...but most of all, Carl.Part romance, part police procedural, IN THE SHADOW OF EL PASO contains two short stories by Frank Zafiro. Both stories explore love, race, class and the ambiguity that exists on the southern border.

Against The Rules


Mara Jacobs - 2016
    Jack Schiller and I are back together. Raymond James is settling in to life in Vegas. Life is good.Of course it couldn't last.A golfing legend dies after playing poker with me and once again I become embroiled in one of Jack's cases. And it's one too many for him. He's done--and not just with me.I try to protect Raymond's identity from being made public during the spectacle of the sports hero's death by offering up myself as a scapegoat. Life is getting pretty complicated... And then JoJo shows up. What are the odds I make it out of this one alive? *NOTE: The case is solved, the perpetrator caught, but there are a few threads that are continuing on through the next book and the series.Books in the Anna Dawson series thus far:1 - Against The Odds2 - Against The Spread3 - Against the Rules

The Lost Island - Free Preview (first 11 chapters): A Gideon Crew Novel


Douglas Preston - 2014
    When his mysterious employer, Eli Glinn, gives him an eyebrow-raising mission, he has no reason to refuse. Gideon's task: steal a page from the priceless Book of Kells, now on display in New York City and protected by unbreakable security. Accomplishing the impossible, Gideon steals the parchment--only to learn that hidden beneath the gorgeously illuminated image is a treasure map dating back to the time of the ancient Greeks. As they ponder the strange map, they realize that the treasure it leads to is no ordinary fortune. It is something far more precious: an amazing discovery that could perhaps even save Gideon's life.Together with his new partner, Amy, Gideon follows a trail of cryptic clues to an unknown island in a remote corner of the Caribbean Sea. There, off the hostile and desolate Mosquito Coast, the pair realize the extraordinary treasure they are hunting conceals an even greater shock-a revelation so profound that it may benefit the entire human race . . . if Gideon and Amy can survive.

Don't Turn on The Light: Crossing The Line


Max China - 2016
    They quickly discover why the house was so cheap and that the past isn't so easy to ignore.

The House on the Shore: A Short Paranormal Mystery


A.L. Jambor - 2015
    Circumstances kept her from getting her college degree out of high school, and now, at twenty-eight, she is finally getting her life on track. She and her mother, Janet, share a house, and they get along well. Nothing has prepared Mariah for the news heading her way via a letter from the law offices of Hardy, Hardy, and Hardy. From the letter, Mariah learns that she was born to a teenage girl named Kathleen Warren, the granddaughter of a wealthy woman named Cora. Cora’s legacy is one of pain and loss. Her daughter died tragically, and her granddaughter withered away behind the walls of the old Victorian house on the shore. Their pain was so great that it has lingered, and when Mariah is told she has inherited the house from her hitherto unknown great-grandmother, she must contend with the spirits dwelling there when she takes possession of the charming white house by the sea. Since she was a child, Mariah was a loner whose imaginary friends were her constant companions. Now, as an adult, when she is confronted by visions while packing up her dead relatives belongings, she isn’t afraid. She is, however, intrigued, and with the help of a mysterious man named Jerry and an investigator named Sam, Mariah seeks to discover what the “ghosts” are trying to tell her.

The Steele Collection Books 1-3: Sarah Steele Legal Thrillers


Aaron M. Patterson - 2014
    BREAKING STEELEWho is Sarah Steele? The successful, happy ADA or the wild, angry vigilante?Sarah Steele has a lot to prove. Foster care brat turned successful Assistant District Attorney, she's enjoying her magical pumpkin carriage ride but knows she is only one mistake away from landing on the curb. When she's given an open-and-shut case regarding multi-millionaire Hank Williams and his murder of young Tracy Mulligan, Sarah's determined to win. But when everything goes wrong, and there's a killer on the loose, she isn't prepared for who the real battle is against: herself. Is she really willing to do anything to take Hank Williams down? TWISTING STEELESarah Steele needs a vacation from her high-profile job as an ADA, so she goes with her best friend on a trip they've always dreamed of to Rio De Janeiro. The vacation is off to a great start; surfing, swimming, reading, and dancing, but then their little piece of heaven takes a hellish turn. Sarah witnesses The Blondes, a mysterious group of female criminals who specialize in micro-kidnapping, capture a State Representative's wife. It was supposed to be simple, the police say the victims are always released within a few hours. But when the woman's found dead in a dumpster, Sarah swears The Blondes will receive justice. And she'll be the one to give it. But as things get more twisted than she ever imagined, does she have what it takes to bring them down?MELTING STEELESarah Steele is back in Boise but after a fight with her boss and the DA, Dan Butler she gets put on administrative leave. Sarah decides to take on a new case on the side, and see how it works out--maybe this is her ticket out of the DA's office. Pushed into a murder on a nearby Indian reservation, Sarah tried to help out an NPR reporter who is wrongfully imprisoned. Before she knows what she got herself into Sarah finds herself fighting for her life, and her dark side comes to the light and she has to choose between doing what is right and what feels right. Will she fight her urges or embrace who she really is?Top #10 Amazon Bestseller#1 Bestseller in Thriller#1 Bestseller in Mystery/Thriller#1 Bestseller in Hard-Boiled Thriller#1 Barnes & Noble BestsellerTop #10 Bestseller on iTunes, and KoboSarah Steele legal thrillers are for readers who enjoy mystery thriller & suspense international mystery & crime, mystery thriller & suspense thrillers pulp, mystery thriller & suspense private investigators women sleuths women detectives, crime fiction, organized crime kidnapping, action-packed, vengeful, female protagonists, urban, internationalNew York Times and USA Today Bestselling thrillers by Aaron Patterson:Sweet DreamsDream OnIn Your DreamsBreaking SteeleTwisting SteeleMelting Steele "I would recommend this book to anyone who likes James Patterson or books like his. I can't wait for the next book to come out."--Sandra Labella, Amazon reviewer"...I think if Tom Clancy crossed genres it would look something like this. Well done."--Roy Bartle

Grave Games


James Hunt - 2016
    Millions of citizens have been thrust into the unknown, breeding fear into the minds and souls of those seeking to survive. Wren Burton, an architect from Chicago, has been engulfed by the chaotic aftermath of an EMP blast. Her family is injured. The enemy is unknown. And help is nowhere to be found. Exiled How far will a mother go to protect her family? Limited water. Limited resources. No help. Brooke Fontanne has to find a way to cross the massive sea of sand that is the Mojave Desert. And with the Southwestern United States now exiled from the Union in wake of the water crisis the entire area is in chaos. Brooke is forced to battle not just the desert elements, but gangs and marauders looking to take whatever they want. Agent Hill  Two years have passed since the GSF nearly collapsed. The mole responsible may have escaped, but he was never forgotten, especially by Agent Sarah Hill. Now, the mole has resurfaced as a mercenary for the world's most dangerous terrorist groups. And when Hill discovers what his next job is, it's a race against time to stop him before a nuclear weapon falls into the wrong hands. But if she has to choose between stopping the bomb, or stopping him, will she be able to keep her finger off the trigger? Terror Rising Texas Border Patrol Agent Angela Gannon discovers a terrorist plot by an ISIS sleeper to unleash a devastating attack. After her partner goes missing, the FBI shows up wanting answers, and Angela must convince her superiors that everything is connected. The clock is ticking, and the terrorists are on the move. Will Angela be able to stop them, or will ISIS succeed in delivering massive carnage to America? In "Terror Rising," everything is at stake.

Cradle of the Gods


Thomas Quinn Miller - 2013
    A thousand years later, the remaining humans eke out an existence on the fringes of a vast dwarven empire. In a human settlement known as the Cradle of the Gods, a young man named Ghile is preparing for a Rite of Attrition, used by the dwarves to seek out potential vessels for their god’s return. Meanwhile, Almoriz the Sorcerer and his apprentice Riff arrive in Ghile’s village for one of their annual visits, beginning a series of events that will change Ghile’s life forever. He is marked as the Stonechosen, and wields powers of the gods themselves. But Ghile is not alone. Others chosen to fulfill the prophecy are also traveling to the Cradle to seek out and destroy him. The time of the Stonechosen has come. First novel in The Soulstone Prophecy series, Cradle of the Gods is a well-crafted, gripping journey of fantasy, magic, discovery and peril.

Beach Town Boogie


Bart Hopkins Jr. - 2015
    But things have gotten a bit more complex lately. This week she's been stalked, attacked, and embroiled in a murder investigation. And it's only Thursday.

Fallen Series: A Jesse McDermitt Bundle


Tim Ebaugh - 2015
    These books will take the reader from Jesse's last day in the Marine Corps, to the Florida Keys, taking on sex slavers deep into the Everglades, fighting terrorists on the coast of Cuba, scuba diving in Cozumel, Mexico and back again, with a shootout in Key West and plenty of action and adventure on the high seas, along the way. Fallen Out, Volume 1: When Jesse McDermitt retires from the Marine Corps at age 37, he has no idea what he will do for the rest of his life. He only knows he doesn't want to spend the coming winter anywhere cold. His greatest skill is killing people from up to a mile away and he knows there aren't many job opportunities in the civilian world for that. However, he also knows his way around boats and has an old friend living free and easy in the Florida Keys. Being an experienced diver and angler, he immediately heads south toward Key West and the end of the road. With a single comment, a waitress in a waterfront restaurant in north Key Largo shakes loose a long dormant dream and Jesse runs with it. With the help of friends, new and old, he buys just the right boat to live on and soon starts a part time charter business. Danger lurks in the sleepy little town of Marathon, in the middle of the Florida Keys, as well as in the swamps of the Everglades. But danger doesn't expect to run into a man like Jesse. A man who will not only respond swiftly in facing it, but with a vengeance unexpected. Fallen Palm, Volume 2 Jesse McDermitt lives alone on an isolated island in the Florida Keys where he runs a charter fishing business. Retired from the Marine Corps for six years, he wanted nothing more than to relax, fish, dive and enjoy the laid back lifestyle of the islands. Russ, his former Platoon Sergeant and old friend, dies unexpectedly in a mysterious scuba diving accident and Jesse becomes suspicious. When his friend's son comes to south Florida to ask Jesse if he would take him to a remote reef to spread his father's ashes, the two men discover that Russ was murdered and agree to hunt down the psychotic killer together, unaware that their manhunt will lead them to a Caribbean terrorist cell. Meanwhile, a beautiful woman has returned to the Keys on a manhunt of her own, distracting Jesse with the idea that he could finally leave his warrior past behind. The prospect of finding lost Confederate gold, several high speed boat chases and dodging demented killers, won't stop Jesse from revenge. Surviving a powerful hurricane puts everything on hold as a top secret government agency tries to recruit him into their fold. When the sun comes back out, will Jesse be ready? Fallen Hunter Jesse's back in this exciting sequel to Fallen Palm. Grieving over the loss of a loved one to terrorists, Jesse's been holed up on his island home for months, numbing his mind and body with endless, mundane tasks. A friend comes to him asking Jesse to help her dad who's been pressured into running drugs for a Cuban smuggler. Jesse finds out the smuggler is also an arms merchant for Hezbollah, the terrorist organization responsible for the death of someone close. Once again, Jesse looks to settle the score. Fast boats, beautiful underwater scenery, and blazing guns abound in this fast paced romp through the Caribbean, with stops in Cuba, Key West, and Cozumel, Mexico.