A UFO cult tries to steal the Shroud of Turin in a preposterous scheme to gain eternal life.

Amari Johnston is a feisty private investigator fresh out of college. In 1988, she made the national news after debunking the carbon dating performed on the Shroud of Turin. Her boyfriend, Dr. Kevin Brenner, is a brilliant young physicist with his own theories as to why the carbon dating is wrong. One year later, they find themselves in a dangerous situation, one that could land them in the headlines again—and the obituary section as well.

A devout Christian named Ernesto Galliano shares Amari and Kevin’s passion for proving the Shroud is the authentic burial cloth of Christ. As sole heir to his father’s vast fortune, Ernesto is determined to use his inheritance for good. He hires Amari and Kevin to join his own personal A-Team, an organization he formed to right the world’s wrongs, one mission at a time. At first reluctant to join this team, Amari’s father, veteran homicide detective, Pete Johnston, finally agrees to take the job so he can protect his daughter from harm.

Amari’s bizarre first mission comes after a UFO cult attempts to steal not only the Shroud of Turin but also the Sudarium of Oviedo. However, in a surprising twist of fate, she and Kevin find themselves captured by the very cult they pursue. Desperate to save Kevin and his daughter, Pete unravels clues previously discovered by Amari in a frantic attempt to rescue them before they fall victim to the cult leader’s suicidal vision.

Although this novel is Volume 2 in the Amari Johnston series, it can easily be read as a standalone title.

A STORM, AN ILLICIT LOVE AFFAIR, AND MOONSHINE… (actually, two illicit love affairs)“Miss Marple meets Eudora Welty (with a trace of Erskine Caldwell)” -Kirkus

“With the kind of realism that stems from William Faulkner, the author skillfully portrays her inbred, suspicious, nasty people ... Hurricane Season ends up an orthodox murder mystery, but it is more than that. [Thompson] has attempted a microcosm of America, carefully dissecting out a single cell under a very strong lens." -The New York Times

The 1950s fairly leap off the page in this classic cozy mystery set in northern Florida in the Eisenhower era, complete with Johnny Ray on the jukebox and a Womanless Wedding—this one interrupted by an explosion at a moonshine still. Lily Trulock, owner of Trulock’s Grocery & Marine Supply, leads a pretty quiet life until a stranger comes to town. The new guy’s not what he appears, but then, some of St. Elmo’s residents aren’t either.

Before she can say, “down the hatch,” Lily’s at the center of a vicious murder and a no-holds-barred bootlegging war—and a nasty storm’s on the way. This is a vibrant, atmospheric, powerful novel—as filled with energy, mystery, and motion as a hurricane.

Hurricane Season is as much a richly-detailed, spot-on historical as a mystery, widely praised by masters of the genre and reviewers alike for its pitch-perfect period feel and fine, spare writing. 

"A remarkable, compelling first novel ... a storm of a story." -The Washington Post

"This is a remarkable book which deserves readers from far beyond the ranks of mystery fans." -The San Francisco Chronicle/Examiner

P.D. JAMES said: “(Michaela Thompson) knows how to create that sense of place, which is so important to any novel but particularly to crime fiction; her characters are believable men and women in a real world, her mystery is credible, and in Lily Trulock she has created a middle-aged heroine who is both original and sympathetic.”

JOHN D. MACDONALD said: “I enjoyed the book. It has real people in a real place, factors which seem to be ever more rare these days—even though it is the only way to create a real suspension of disbelief.”

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Lieutenant Eve Dallas must hunt down the deadly snipers terrorizing Manhattan in this fast-paced In Death thriller from J. D. Robb.
 
The shots came quickly, silently, and with deadly accuracy. Within seconds, three people were dead at Central Park’s ice-skating rink. The victims: a talented young skater, a doctor, and a teacher. As random as random can be.

Eve Dallas has seen a lot of killers during her time with the NYPSD but never one like this. A review of the security videos reveals that the victims were killed with a tactical laser rifle fired by a sniper, who could have been miles away when the trigger was pulled. And though the list of locations where the shooter could have set up seems endless, the number of people with that particular skill set is finite: police, military, professional killer.

Eve’s husband, Roarke, has unlimited resources—and genius—at his disposal. And when his computer program leads Eve to the location of the sniper, she learns a shocking fact: There were two—one older, one younger. Someone is being trained by an expert in the science of killing, and they have an agenda. Central Park was just a warm-up. And as another sniper attack shakes the city to its core, Eve realizes that though we’re all shaped by the people around us, there are those who are just born evil...

New York Times bestselling romance author Jude Deveraux makes her debut in the world of mystery with a story of old secrets, deadly grudges and an improbable group of friends who are determined to uncover the truth regardless of the consequences…

Sara Medlar is a household name in romance, with millions of books sold. But lately, retirement has been boring her and she’s found herself back in her hometown of Lachlan, Florida, remodeling the grand old mansion she’d admired as a child. It’s much too big for her alone, but she’d die before letting anyone in town know that.

Then Sara’s niece Kate is offered a job in Lachlan—a start in what could be a very successful career in real estate. She accepts immediately, but with so little saved up, she’ll have to approach her estranged yet incredibly famous aunt for a place to stay while she gets herself settled. But when she arrives at Sara’s home, she finds she’s not the only long-term houseguest. Jackson Wyatt already has his own room, and though it’s impossible to deny his good looks and charm—he’s clearly got her aunt wrapped around his finger—she’s also never met anyone who irritates her quite like Jack does.

However, when two skeletons are accidentally uncovered in the quiet town, this unlikely trio is suddenly thrust together by a common goal: to solve a mystery everyone else seems eager to keep under wraps. United by a sense of justice and the desire to right old wrongs, Sara, Kate and Jack will have to dig into Lachlan’s murky past to unravel the small town’s dark secrets and work to bring the awful truth to light.

"One of Deaver's most diabolical villains." - New York Times Book Review

"Deaver is the most creative, skilled, and intriguing thriller writer in the world." - Daily Telegraph

The first time somebody tried to kill him was an accident. 

The second time was deliberate. 

Now Paul Mulchrone finds himself on the run with nobody to turn to except a nurse who has read one-too-many crime novels and a renegade copper with a penchant for violence. Together they must solve one of the most notorious crimes in Irish history . . . 

. . . or else they’ll be history. 

A Man With One of Those Faces is the first book in Caimh McDonnell's Dublin Trilogy, which melds fast-paced action with a distinctly Irish acerbic wit. 

Praise for A Man With One of Those Faces: 

"One of the funniest crime books you could read." The Express

"A brilliant comedic thriller." The Irish Post 

"It's just crying out to be made into a movie. The writing is whip-smart and funny." Books Ireland Magazine 

"I was hooked by the end of the first page. Clever writing. Funny plot. Good characters." The Sun-Gazette

"Humorous crime at its finest. Droll, witty and highly entertaining. The writing is skilled and captivating." ***** Audiothing 

"A masterclass... The prose and narrative is spot on. The characters inhabiting this hilarious, yet gripping story are just wonderful." ***** Strange Alliances 

"A riotous read. Flipping easily between humour and terror so that I spent most of the book sat on the edge of my seat while chuckling." **** Cleopatra Loves Books 

"Original, innovative, intelligent and laugh out loud funny." Maureen Carter, author of the Bev Morriss books 

"If you like stories by Colin Bateman, Carl Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey and Janet Evanovich then you'll enjoy A Man With One of Those Faces." **** The View from the Blue House

Medical lab janitor Cletus Busters is caught red-handed in a restricted area with the frozen head of Dr. Whitney Valentine, one of the lab's most prestigious researchers. Busters won't say much, except that he's innocent. But given his conspicuous record and past as a voodoo guru, all signs point to life in prison.

Calling Tubby Dubonnet!

With the trial less than a week away, Busters' lawyer has made exactly two motions - heading to the bar for several rounds of Wild Turkey and begging Tubby for help. Meanwhile, Tubby's taken on a new client - a female boxer with an abusive boyfriend - and also has to referee the romantic entanglements of his ex-wife and three teenage daughters.

But as Buster's trial proceeds, and the jury savors the startling evidence (alongside Dunbar's succulent descriptions of Crescent City cuisine), the danger mounts. Revealing the murderer could prove to be Tubby's biggest triumph – or his last case ever.

'A great book, truly hard to put down. Fast paced, brilliantly plotted and desperately sad at times - all hallmarks of a bestseller' Lesley Pearse on The Girl in the Letter

'I was gripped by The Girl in the Letter. The story is compelling, twisty, heart-wrenching and thought-provoking. A novel that stays with you' Sophie Kinsella

Perfect for fans of Kate Morton and Kathryn Hughes, this gripping novel of long-buried secrets will stay with you for ever.

A heartbreaking letter. A girl locked away. A mystery to be solved.

1956. When Ivy Jenkins falls pregnant she is sent in disgrace to St Margaret's, a dark, brooding house for unmarried mothers. Her baby is adopted against her will. Ivy will never leave.

Present day. Samantha Harper is a journalist desperate for a break. When she stumbles on a letter from the past, the contents shock and move her. The letter is from a young mother, begging to be rescued from St Margaret's. Before it is too late.
Sam is pulled into the tragic story and discovers a spate of unexplained deaths surrounding the woman and her child. With St Margaret's set for demolition, Sam has only hours to piece together a sixty-year-old mystery before the truth, which lies disturbingly close to home, is lost for ever...

Read her letter. Remember her story...

'What a heartfelt emotional story, made even more so because it's based on a shocking truth. I raced through it, involved, moved and gripped' Fanny Blake

"Dawson's suspenseful story builds momentum like an ocean wave. Readers are advised to dive right in."
-- Publishers Weekly

WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN ON A PI'S VACATION?

A dead body on the beach, most likely.

In this riveting fourth mystery in the Jeri Howard Private Investigator Series, Janet Dawson takes readers on a road trip down the California coast to Monterey,where Jeri is looking to catch a respite from the PI life to relax and visit family. Easier said than done. From the first moment of her arrival in the quiet seaside town, nothing is as it seems.

First, some maniac is mutilating brown pelicans on Monterey Bay. Jeri's cousin, Donna, who works for the Department of Fish and Game, wants Jeri all over the case. And another one too--something even more sinister that went down only miles from Monterey. And Jeri's other cousin, Bobby, is the prime suspect.

A local fisherman and erratic alcoholic, Bobby is getting into deep water. His girlfriend went missing after the couple had an altercation at a bar up the coast. When a woman's body washes ashore, it seems to the local cops that Bobby’s involved in both cases.

Suddenly Monterey Bay's picturesque waters have become a dark and overpowering force for the vacationing detective and her family. The whole town’s awash in secrets, but answers are in as short supply as healthy pelicans. The only thing Jeri knows for sure? Don't ever turn your back on the ocean.

“Mother/daughter feuds, family solidarity, an ecological mystery: Dawson blends these familiar ingredients with a chef’s élan.” --Kirkus Reviews

Fans of hard-boiled women sleuths like Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone, Robert Dugoni's Tracy Crosswhite, and T.R. Ragan’s Jessie Cole will fall in love with the Jeri Howard series.

A millionaire dies...

'One can see by his face that he was stabbed in the back' said Poirot.

But the strangest feature of the case was where they found the body - in an open grave!

Hercule Poirot had answered an appeal for help - but he was too late!

MURDER - bizarre and baffling - had come to the Villa Genevieve...

"A shot in the dark, right in the gut, that’s what Carstens is good at. The Key to Justice is full of twists and turns as the Twin Cities live in terror of a violent stalker. Carstens aims to be realistic about the law and its enforcers, and he hits it right ... The plot is as full of surprises as a Minneapolis Jucy Lucy and ultimately just as satisfying." -Tony Dunbar, Anthony- and Edgar-nominated author of the Tubby Dubonnet legal thriller series.

THE CASE OF A LIFETIME WALKS IN THE DOOR...

Financially embarrassed, getting a divorce, living in a shabby apartment, and distinctly short of clients, Marc Kadella’s beginning to question why he ever went into the law when a friend brings him the case all Minneapolis is watching—defending an accused serial killer. If he wins, it could turn his life around—if he blows it, he better go into sales.

Dennis Carstens weaves a gritty, street-wise narrative in this action-packed legal thriller, sure to please fans of courtroom drama and classic noir. You can almost see the guys in this one sporting fedoras, and the babes would stop traffic even without the cleavage Carstens makes their standard attire. But there’s a contemporary angle sure to please fans of both sexes--the toughest guy in the story is gorgeous investigator Maddy Rivers.

Carstens seems to relish getting her into increasingly brutal fights, some with laughs—like the time she roughs up a couple of rogue cops and takes away their guns. And when this author gets into an action scene, the prose flexes its muscles like a prison weightlifter.

Kadella and Rivers’ job is to find the evidence that will exonerate Kadella’s client Carl Fornich, a convicted sex offender recently out of prison. But the prosecution's evidence is stacked a mile high—the murder weapon found at his house, an eyewitness, a semen sample, and blood from two victims. To top it off, the cops really want to nail this guy—one cop in particular.

Carstens realistic take on the law as a nuts-and-bolts, often rickety way to make a living blends nicely with his worldly-wise portrayal of backroom deals, crooked cops, and judges and politicians who connive and collude right on up to the governor’s mansion.

It's a classic David-and Goliath setup, and the author’s got some pretty fancy twists in store as Kadella unravels a complicated plot to set his client up, and Maddy battles demons that just keep coming at her. Fans of John Grisham, Richard North Patterson, and of course the most beloved lawyer sleuth of all time, Erle Stanley Gardner’s Perry Mason, will gobble up this one and go back for the rest of the series.

A sinewy anthology containing one each from FOUR top-rated cop series by best-selling authors Julie Smith, Rob Swigart, Shelley Singer, and Adrienne Barbeau.

Volume 1 is AXEMAN’S JAZZ, the SECOND book in the Edgar Award-winning Skip Langdon mystery series.

"Smashing . . . New Orleans Mourning was a tough act to follow. The Axeman’s Jazz is a wonderful, completely satisfying encore." -The Denver Post

WHAT’S THE PERFECT KILLING FIELD FOR A MURDERER?

A place where he (or maybe she) can learn your secrets from your own mouth and then make friends over coffee. A supposedly "safe" place where anonymity is the norm. The horror who calls himself The Axeman has figured it out and claimed his territory—he's cherry-picking his murder victims in the 12-Step programs of New Orleans.

Tall, funny, social misfit Skip Langdon, now a homicide detective on the Axeman team, dives into the 12-Step groups to meet the suspects, giving the author a chance for gentle satire. (And it’s New Aw’lins, dawlin’ – half the town is either alcoholic or co-dependent!)

Volume 2 is VECTOR, the FIRST book in Rob Swigart's Thrillers In Paradise series.

"An intriguing blend of jungle action... and cliffhanger suspense." -San Francisco Chronicle

A TERRIFYING CONSPIRACY: A PSYCHOPATHIC KILLER, A RUTHLESS CABAL, AND A WEAPON POTENTIALLY MORE LETHAL THAN NUCLEAR WAR...

Only a tough scientist and a clever island cop can stop them from setting it loose on an unsuspecting world! Not often do you see a hard-boiled police procedural that’s also part action-adventure technothriller, but this one’s a knockout--a great mystery with plenty of local Hawaii color.

Volume 3 is SAMSON’S DEAL, the FIRST book in the hard-boiled but “wonderfully wry” adventures of ex-cop Jake Samson by award-winning author Shelley Singer.

MURDER, POLITICS, AND STRANGE BEDFELLOWS...

Ex-Chicago-cop Jake Samson’s likely to lead with his easy-going Columbo style, but he’s earned a reputation for being a tough guy who occasionally “handles discreet matters.” Samson is drawn into Berkeley’s political hotbed when an old friend—a progressive political science professor—calls with an enticing offer. Seems the professor's wife was found dead in the backyard of their Berkeley home, and he wants to pay Jake ten thousand dollars (plus expenses) to figure out whodunit.

With his good friend Rosie and her justice-dispensing two-by-four, Samson follows a twisted trail that leads through the Bay Area's bizarre cultural labyrinth, from pop meditation ashrams to neo-Nazi rallies, to the startling but all too human truth.

Volume 4 is LOVE BITES is “An engaging, sinister romp,” says Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, creator of the Saint-Germain vampire series.

NOT YOUR MAMA’S POLICE PROCEDURAL—A COP STORY WITH BITE…AND ROMANCE

Beverly Hills detective Peter King and movie star Ovsanna Moore are the sexiest tongue-in-cheek crime-solving duo since MOONLIGHTING hit the air waves in the ‘80s. But they may remind you more of TRUE BLOOD’s Sookie and Eric than Maddie and David—because one of them’s a vampyre.

Ovsanna’s the successful owner of her own Hollywood film studio and the star of 17 blockbuster horror films, plus three, sadly, that went straight to video. She looks pretty great for a 450-year-old, and though Ovsanna’s had flings with everyone from Genghis Khan to Errol Flynn, Peter’s got what it takes to catch her eye and hold her interest. Here they take on a terrifying killer with super-powers.

USA Today bestselling author Dean Wesley Smith takes you into the world of his acclaimed novel Dead Money with a new series about a group of retired Las Vegas Police detectives playing poker and solving cold cases.

Retired Detective Bayard Lott hosts the weekly poker games at his home. The group calls themselves the Cold Poker Gang. And they succeed at closing old cases.

Lott’s very first homicide case as a brand-new detective had gone cold more than twenty years earlier. But retired Reno detective Julia Rogers, new to the Cold Poker Gang, suggests they look at that case again for personal reasons.
From that simple suggestion spins one of the strangest and most complicated murder mystery puzzles the gang has ever seen.

Read the whole riveting series!
Cold Call
Calling Dead 
Bad Beat
Dead Hand 
Freezeout
Ace High
Burn Card

“Dean Wesley Smith does for poker what James Patterson does for serial killers.”
—Sheldon McArthur, former owner of Mysterious Books in Los Angeles

“[An] exhilarating political poker thriller.”
—Genre Go Round Reviews on Dead Money

When her ex goes missing, Zoe is swept into an international mystery that takes her from glitzy Las Vegas to the old-world charm of Italy.

Zoe Hunter loves living on the edge. Free-spirited and spontaneous, she’s built a life stringing together various freelance gigs that keep her bank account barely in the black. But when her ex, Jack, goes missing along with several million dollars from his business and the FBI zeros in on her as a person of interest, Zoe’s life goes from delightfully unpredictable to downright frightening.

Plunged into a world of fake identities, deception, and murder, she’s afraid to trust anyone. Zoe impulsively skips town in a search for answers that takes her from Las Vegas to Italy, but instead of tracking down answers, she only uncovers more questions.

If you like globetrotting adventure, European destinations, and a dash of romance, you'll enjoy Elusive, the first book in the On the Run International Mysteries, from USA Today and Audible bestselling author Sara Rosett.

Something borrowed, something blue, something not so charmed. The wedding day has arrived for Halloween LaVeau. Will this be happily ever after for Hallie? Or will her leadership status of the Underworld jeopardize her relationship and produce deadly consequences?

A young boy is left for dead by the assassin who has just bludgeoned his parents.

Matt Walker witnesses the murder of his parents but is able to escape and remains alive. He loses his ability to hear but finds out he has a unique power called Psychometry. This power is an ability to “trace” or know an object’s history, just by touching it.

A few years later, a top-secret government armament is stolen during a deadly hijacking at sea and someone intends to sell the powerful weapon to fulfill their own twisted ambitions.

At the same time, a ruthless mob boss has a gruesome secret that he must protect no matter the cost.

All it takes is something as unassuming as a foul ball hit at a Major League baseball game, to send all of these characters and events spiraling on a collision course aboard the most unique cruise ship ever built and send Matt on the quest to find his parents’ killer.

Florence, Italy, and a wedding. Sardinia, Italy, and a murder. Is there a choice?

For Kat and Blaine, there wasn't. A romantic trip to Florence to take part in a wedding becomes a search for the groom's best friend's murderer in Sardinia.

If you like a mystery with intrigue in foreign places, dogs, and good food, don't miss the latest in the Midwest Cozy Mystery Series by a two-time USA Today Bestselling Author.

Sometimes the past endures—and sometimes it never lets go.

This best-selling debut by an award-winning writer is both an eerie contemporary ghost story and a dread-inducing psychological thriller. Maggie is a successful young artist who has had bad luck with men. Her last put her in the hospital and, after she’s healed physically, left her needing to get out of London to heal mentally and find a place of quiet that will restore her creative spirit. On the rugged west coast of Ireland, perched on a wild cliff side, she spies the shell of a cottage that dates back to Great Famine and decides to buy it. When work on the house is done, she invites her dealer to come for the weekend to celebrate along with a couple of women friends, one of whom will become his wife. On the boozy last night, the other friend pulls out an Ouija board. What sinister thing they summon, once invited, will never go.

Ireland is a country haunted by its past. In Billy O'Callaghan's hands, its terrible beauty becomes a force of inescapable horror that reaches far back in time, before the Famine, before Christianity, to a pagan place where nature and superstition are bound in an endless knot.

A prison guard. A postmaster. A Forest Service employee. A U.S. Department of Agriculture employee. All murdered. They worked for the federal government, but so do a lot of other people. What else did they share?

Seems like a serial killer is on the loose. And it looks like he’s targeting the sleepy community of Red Cedar. When one of the Red Cedar Spa’s guests is murdered, Liz has no choice but to team up with an FBI agent to help solve the murders.

And with a chief of police who is far more interested in catching speeders than he is in catching murderers, someone has to do his job. Maybe Liz should run for chief of police!

A page-turning murder mystery with plenty of dogs, food and recipes along with a couple of quirky characters. The latest in the Liz Lucas Cozy Mystery Series by a two-time USA Today Bestselling Author.

DEUCE MORA DOESN’T SHY AWAY FROM FIGHTS – SHE PICKS THEM. THE BIGGER THE BETTER.

Although, to be fair, this one is brought to her by a dog with a bone in his teeth. In Jean Heller’s first Deuce Mora mystery, the scrappy female sleuth tangled with the mob; this time out she’s on the wrong side of the NSA, the FBI and the CIA. At a minimum. Fans of hard-boiled female protagonists should hang onto their fedoras-- this one’s an action-packed extravaganza!

The grisly discovery of a human bone while Deuce is out for a hike with handsome arson investigator Mark Hearst, leads to the unearthing of a vast burial field, a human trafficking ring, and international intrigue. The pulls-no-punches columnist-- and meticulous detective-- keeps turning up information, bit by bit, only to find some Fed in her face, at her door, emerging from the shadows, always guarding the edges of the story, insisting it will not be told. Yes, the Feds are aware of the trafficking ring; yes, they have a plan to move on it; no, Deuce can’t be told about the plan; and under no circumstances can she write about its existence.

This is the story of a lifetime-- bigger than the Vinnie Colangelo story, which earned Deuce and the Journal a Pulitzer, and, for once, she has the support of her editor, but the Journal’s lawyer appears daily bringing warnings about “national security.” What, Deuce seethes, could be a greater matter of national security than the safety of the city’s children who are being kidnapped and murdered?

And this story has become very personal for Deuce, as she herself admits, lamenting her loss of objectivity. The hard-hitting journalist has fallen hard for a new guy: a savvy and charming eight-year-old boy named Charles with the face of an angel and the possibility of a bright future, but at great risk due to a life in foster care. Already the street-smart kid has revealed a depth of knowledge about the failures of DCFS and the machinery meant to protect him. For Deuce, every child reported missing and every new body discovered in the hunting ground has Charles’s face. But while she’s racing to break the case wide open, her life and her career are threatened on all sides; she has to wonder where-- or if-- the Feds will stop to contain the horrific truth.

But break wide open it does, racing to an outrageous surprise ending that seems shockingly … plausible, and Deuce learns first-hand the lesson that sometimes the only way to accomplish a great good is to commit unthinkable evil, and then learn to live with the consequences. Author Heller does a masterful job of expanding the story-- and her canvas-- from a simple murder mystery to an ever-widening crime thriller, and finally to an international conspiracy.

“Good reporters do not always good novelists make, but Jean Heller is both.” -- The Boston Sunday Globe

WHO WILL LIKE IT: Fans of Chicago private investigators VI Warshawski and Libby Fischer Hellman’s Georgia Davis, get-the-story-or-die reporters like Hank Philippi Ryan’s Jane Ryland and Kelly Lange’s Maxi Poole, hard-boiled female protagonists like Marcia Muller’s Sharon McCone and Laura Lippman’s Tess Monaghan; and anyone who admires tough-minded women sleuths who’re good in a fight.