Bargain Books Under $3

Summary & Analysis of I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by ZIP Reads

***UPDATED SINCE THE CAPTURE OF THE GOLDEN STATE KILLER!***
In her chilling and exhaustive true crime memoir, Michelle McNamara traces the trail of the Golden State Killer–a man who viciously raped and murdered dozens of people in California more than 40 years ago–and who evaded police just as long.

What does this ZIP Reads Summary Include?
– Synopsis of the original book
– Detailed Chapter-by-chapter summaries
– A guide to the detectives, victims, and crimes linked to the killer
– Gripping retellings of some of the original murders
– An in-depth editorial review
– Special addendum covering the capture of the killer
– Background on the author

About the Original Book:
In I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, Michelle McNamara leaves no stone unturned in her decade-long search for the Golden State Killer. Teaming up with detectives and amateurs alike, this case seemed to affect everyone who got close to it. Her book is expertly crafted and immediately draws you in. It is part memoir, part true crime novel, and will have you checking your locks before you go to bed.

DISCLAIMER: This book is intended as a companion to, not a replacement for, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark. ZIP Reads is wholly responsible for this content and is not associated with the original author in any way.

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Escape to Osprey Cove by Luisa Marietta Gold

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Escape to Osprey Cove by Luisa Marietta Gold

The mystery begins with an unusual find in the secret compartment of Doug’s new Corvette. It will forever change his and Catherine’s life. Doug’s mysterious behavior after the find forces Catherine to seek escape at The Osprey Cove Lodge. What she finds at the lodge turns out to be far more valuable than Doug’s find. Follow the suspense, mystery, and romance of Book 1 of The Osprey Cove Lodge Series

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Buyer Beware by Colleen Charles

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Buyer Beware by Colleen Charles

I said I could do casual…and swore I’d never fall in love.

I lied.

I know all about her type.
Dirt poor. Check.
Gold digger. Check. Check.

Marcella’s hot as hell and just as intriguing. I live in a swanky Vegas penthouse on top of my equally posh boutique casino. She’s lived in a dilapidated seventies trailer far too long to have patience for billionaire playboys like me that can just snap their fingers and have women fall at their feet, begging to be dominated. She stands for everything I despise. Which is why my obsession with her makes zero sense.

She’s innocence incarnate…I’m the guy who steals it. I can have anything I want, whenever I want it.

And I want her.

Marcella Castillo needs to be taught a lesson. She thinks she’s not the kind of girl I can buy and sell. She’s wrong. But somewhere along the line, the boundaries blur. In my heart, I feel a newfound tenderness and vulnerability that I’ve never known. This woman pulls at my heart strings until my solid walls come tumbling down and I let her in. And I’m happy.

The happiest I’ve ever been since my dad took himself six feet under leaving me with four younger brothers to raise.

Until a vicious sociopath and a haunting secret from Marcella’s past threatens to destroy every single thing I’ve just sold my soul to possess.

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Monarchs and Mendicants by Dan Groat

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Monarchs and Mendicants by Dan Groat

Beware of a man who has nothing to lose.

A Navy Seal returns to St. Louis from Afghanistan suffering from PTSD and loses everything. Homeless, he wants only to find work and be left alone, but he is drawn into a group of street people who are being hunted by a serial killer and used by the local mob boss. To save himself, he must fight his way from tragedy to triumph and lead his “friends” on a journey from despair to hope.

You will be reminded why no one makes eye contact with a beggar, but you will also discover that if you do it often enough, you may eventually stare into the soul of a king, for greatness is as often concealed by the robes of monarchs as it is by the rags of mendicants.

Travel the gritty streets and alleys of an urban area trying to find food and shelter and safety without losing your identity. Search for a meaningful future. Walk with Gifford Ulrich as he finds himself and the promise of tomorrow.

What readers are saying:
•“This page-turning intense drama will keep you questioning and wondering until the very end.”
•“A story of deep and tragic truths.”
•“Profound and moving prose that you won’t forget.”
•“Gifford is an intriguing and troubled character that makes for a fantastic read.”
•“Ulrich is better than Jack Reacher.”
•”An opening to the human soul.”
•”A novel you will long remember.”
•”I could not put it down.”
•“I wish I could give it 10 stars.”
•”You won’t know how to let go once the book ends.”

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Open Season by Maryann Miller

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Open Season by Maryann Miller

From the award-winning author, Maryann Miller, comes the first book in a critically-acclaimed mystery series. Embroiled in a serial murder case, Dallas homicide detectives Sarah Kingsly and Angel Johnson come to terms with public and personal racial unrest as they track a serial killer and try to make a partnership work. Think “Lethal Weapon” set in Dallas with female leads.

“Readers will want to see more of these engaging female cops.” Publisher’s Weekly

“Try this debut mystery by a journalist for its open treatment of current urban problems, clean prose, and realistic depiction of women working together. For readers who enjoy Robin Burcell and fans of police procedurals.” Library Journal

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Raging Falcon by Stephen Perkins

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Raging Falcon by Stephen Perkins

He helped build an evil world.
He betrayed his only son.
But now in another life where nothing is what it seems and against great odds, he has a chance to make things right.
In the 21st century, wars are won in the mind rather than on battlefields. One man – sorcerer disguised as soldier – will forever alter American history with black magic! Major Stacey Truman Keogh is a specialist in psychological operations and a terrorist disguised in military uniform. Both ambitious and evil, he will do anything to further his interests whether sacrificing the operatives under his command, his family and even his only son. In the end, will he discover spiritual redemption and use his immense magical powers in the service of good? Can a grand technological miracle save the son he betrayed so long ago?

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Dead by Morning (Rituals of the Night Book #1) by Kayla Krantz

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Dead by Morning (Rituals of the Night Book #1) by Kayla Krantz

Obsession is deadly. No one learns that better than Luna Ketz, a pessimistic high school senior. She wishes more than anything to graduate but things don’t always go as planned. Luna quickly finds herself trapped in a web of lies and murders, spun by the least suspected person in her hometown. It’s not long before she realizes she’s being targeted by the person she despises most in the world. When Luna figures out who is behind the killings, things make a turn for the bizarre when she is contacted by a friend she has not heard from in years. It is then Luna realizes she is very much in danger, but although she can avoid the killer in reality, she cannot avoid him in her dreams.

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Escape to Osprey Cove by Luisa Marietta Gold

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Escape to Osprey Cove by Luisa Marietta Gold

Doug has grown up poor, envying what others have. When he meets wealthy Catherine, he thinks she is his ticket to all that he desires. He marries her for her wealth only to find that he covets one more thing — independence. Here is where the mystery begins. He finds something in the secret compartment of his new Corvette that will grant him this independence and will change his life and Catherine’s forever. Catherine finds escape at The Osprey Cove Lodge and finds an opportunity to rebuild her life. Everyone needs an Osprey Cove Lodge in their life. Follow the suspense, mystery, and romance of Book 1 of The Osprey Cove Lodge Series.

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Enchanted Ruse by Geoffrey Moehl II

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Enchanted Ruse by Geoffrey Moehl II

Four monumental hurricanes ravage the Florida coast as an equally tempestuous family drama brews. In spite of his parents’ best efforts, Carter Manning’s personal life spirals into an abyss of depression. His increasingly acerbic sense of humor seems to be wrecking a much hated career in car sales. Since the death of beloved his fiancée, Jennifer Ann, Carter’s life hardly seems worth living anymore.

Constant and unreasonable demands for money and attention from his manipulative ex-wife, Lindsey, don’t help matters. Jack, her useless but seemingly perfect boy toy, provides even more aggravation. Among the many gray clouds in Carter’s life, his headstrong daughter, Ashley, stands as his one ray of sunshine. Not even Lindsey’s dictatorial parenting style and attempts at keeping them apart, can break the powerful bond between the broken father and his rebellious child.

Carter’s ex-wife threatens everything he holds dear when her tense relationship with their daughter falls apart. He travels across states to make things right, only to face an even greater threat. Away from his ordinary suburban life in Michigan, Carter faces torrential rains, alluring women, and threats from the past and present. Will he be able to face his inner demons, and save his daughter from a looming unseen threat before it’s too late?

Dark secrets will be revealed as winds and passions rage towards a deadly climax. Geoffrey Moehl II’s thrilling supernatural follow-up to Florida Heat is a story about the power of family, and a true love that endures beyond the grave.

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Boxes For Beds by Maryann Miller

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Boxes For Beds by Maryann Miller

In 1961 the mob still ruled Hot Springs, Arkansas and had Sheriff Bates under their thumb. When babies are being kidnapped in nearby Pine Hollow, Bates has to put this case to bed before the bosses come down from Chicago. They don’t need the heat of a major investigation that could involve the feds.

Who is taking the babies? Is the current case connected to the disappearance of babies 25 years ago?

In a desperate move to solve the case before the FBI has to be called in, Bates decides to arrest Leslie Richards, the new woman in town, even though there is only thin circumstantial evidence against her. Better for it to be a stranger taking those babies and not one of their own.

Leslie has left New York with her ten-year-old daughter, Mandy, hoping to escape from the secrets of her past and the ruins of a relationship, only to discover that there is little peace for her in Pine Hollow, Arkansas.

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