Mystery Reads

Buyer’s Guide: RATS by Joe Klingler

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Targeted Age Group:: 25+
Category: Thriller
Book Price Ranges
Print book: 16.00-18.00
Audiobook:
eBook: 3.99

About RATS:
2015 Finalist – International Book Awards — Fiction: Thriller/Adventure
2015 Finalist – Beverly Hills Book Awards — Political Thriller

A masterfully crafted, intense, wild ride from Alaska to Washington to Vietnam with imagery and dialog that have the reader riveted to the page for the entire thrilling adventure.

Summer greets the land of the midnight sun as a lone rider races across the last American wilderness, delivering on a promise he made long ago. He has many names, but the world only knows a shadow called the Demon. Soon to be drawn into the Demon’s world, Claire Ferreti, an Army sniper, sips sake in Washington, DC with her lover, a young, ambitious General whose geosecurity specialty remains classified. When a boy finds a small machine, Claire embarks on a a black-ops mission that leads to a test of skill, a clash of ideologies, and her unconscious body lying in a typhoon-ravaged jungle. In that instant she becomes the hunted, the Demon’s tool for survival, and an unforeseen threat. As the General pursues them into a labyrinth of cyber-secrets, political necessity and financial reality collide like a fireball piercing steel.

Joe Klingler’s award winning techno-thriller is filled with fierce writing and fully fleshed out characters. It explodes from the remnants of a war long past to headlines of Washington secrets masquerading as corporate incompetence when two modern-day warriors face off. Both skilled at violence. And deception. Both accustomed to winning.

“RATS succeeds… it is a fun romp-and-motorcycle-ride through intrigue, explosions, action, betrayal, politics, and victory. The journalists’ story, especially, is an excellent, humorous counterpoint to the military action of the rest of the book. Non-military readers will thoroughly enjoy it. ” – San Francisco Book Review (4 Stars)

“A nuanced techno-thriller with both brains and brawn.” – Kirkus Reviews (Kirkus Recommended list)

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The Former World by Jessica Grace Coleman

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Targeted Age Group:: 13+
Category: Paranormal

About The Former World:
The Former World: Book One in the Little Forest paranormal mystery series.

“Little Forest is the only place I’ve ever lived, and it’s the place where I’m going to die. Tonight.” These are the words of Beth Powers, long-time resident of Little Forest. On the surface, she’s just an ordinary English girl in a typical English village, but appearances can be deceiving… extremely deceiving.

There’s something lurking beneath the picturesque façade of the English village of Little Forest, something dark and disconcerting, something which the vast majority of the residents are refusing to see…

Fed up with living in the tiny, gossip-fuelled village, twenty-one year old Beth resolves to escape to London with her best friend, Veronica Summers. That is, until something throws a spanner in the works. A rather large spanner. A dead body, to be exact. A dead body found early one morning in the spooky surroundings of the Great Specton Woods.

The apparently accidental death of Beth’s work colleague sets off the small community’s well-oiled rumour mill, and Beth soon finds herself in the middle of a bizarre village conspiracy. Potential suspects start appearing in all shapes and sizes – including the handsome new resident, mystery man Connor Maguire, who has conveniently just arrived in Little Forest – and with the police refusing to consider murder, Beth takes it upon herself to investigate. At least it’s a good distraction from the other strange and unusual things that have started happening in her generally boring life; let’s just say that Beth’s work colleague isn’t the only dead person she has to deal with these days. After all, it isn’t always something as innocent as the ghosts of past memories that come to get you…

With the help of rather unlikely ally Will Wolseley, Beth delves into the village’s sinister secrets and, in turn, uncovers a terrifying truth about herself that could change her life forever.

Unfortunately, she might not have much of ‘forever’ left, as when it comes right down to it, it’s not a question of whether or not she’ll decide to leave her childhood home. The question is whether or not Little Forest will let her go.

The Former World is reminiscent of a good old-fashioned English mystery thriller, updated to the twenty-first Century but still relying on the quaint locations of the beautiful English countryside: close-knit villages, local pubs, ancient castles, large, looming forests and magnificent Stately homes. This enchanting rural environment gives Beth the perfect setting to explore the ominous events that threaten to shake up her small village and her life.

“Jessica Grace Coleman is one of the most exciting new writers around. Her stories inspire, entertain and mesmerise. An absolute must-read.” – Adam Croft, English author.

Jessica Grace Coleman brings you the first novel in the paranormal mystery ‘Little Forest’ series, setting the stage for the follow ups: ‘Memento Mori’, ‘The Exalted’, ‘Carnival Masquerade’ and ‘The Gloaming’.

A fan of mystery books and horror writers, Coleman delves into the world of legends and paranormal activity in this supernatural series, leading her own investigation into the fictional fantasy landscape that permeates readers’ darkest fears. The Little Forest series isn’t just concerned with spirits of the dead or other ghost stories, it’s about how we would react if these terrifying spectres actually did come into our world. How would you react?

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Buyer’s Guide: On the Road to Where the Bells Toll by M. J. Williams

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Targeted Age Group:: Adults of all ages
Category: Mystery Books
Book Price Ranges
Print book: $11.49
Audiobook:
eBook: $2.99

About On the Road to Where the Bells Toll:
Emily and Stan Remington pack up the RV and head to Boston for some R & R with the grandkids and a chance to immerse themselves in colonial history. But their Fourth of July celebration comes to an abrupt halt when they stumble over a body on the Boston Esplanade and then another hanging in the steeple of the Old North Church. Now the couple must unravel a tangle of forged clues and flush out the perpetrator before their own untimely epitaphs are written onto the historical landscape. “A clever blend of history, tourism, Bean Town traffic, and murder rockets this new Emily and Stan adventure into the category of wickedly fun entertainment.” ~ Maddy Hunter, author of the Peril to Passport Mystery series.

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Gift Guide: Melody Madson – May It Please the Court? by Jodie Toohey

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Targeted Age Group:: 10-16
Category: Children and Young Adult Books

About Melody Madson – May It Please the Court?:
Weeks pass before Melody finally gets her big break when senior partner at Lazlo, Marshdon and Brown assigns her first real case. Melody’s relationship with her best friend, Jewel, becomes strained as her friendship with another associate, Maggie, advances and she develops romantic feelings for her boss’ son, Eric. Her feelings for Eric deepen, her relationship with Jewel sours, the key medical record in her case is lost, and Melody feels her life is crumbling.

After working the entire weekend before trial, Melody finds the record, but before she can celebrate, the record thief catches her. Jewel attempts to free Melody but she is caught and the friends are tied to an office chair, driven out to the middle of nowhere, and left alone. Will they be able to save the case – or themselves?

Gift Guide: Bribing Saint Anthony by Rita Moreau

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Targeted Age Group:: 30+
Category: Women Sleuths

About Bribing Saint Anthony:
Bribing Saint Anthony is an entertaining and humorous mystery.

A missing husband.
A plot to blow up a national treasure.
Fortune telling aunts.

Mary Catherine, MC for short, didn’t move as the Queen of Boca Vista, Babbs La-Fleur, placed a pile of cash, which appeared out of a purse she knew cost more than her car, smack dab in the middle of her desk.

Word at all the cocktail parties was that MC had a skill that came in handy for an aging socialite going through a divorce. She was good at finding cash in hidden bank accounts. Cash to pay for a nip and tuck and a new identity: Cougar.

Hired that day by Queen Babbs to find her bad boy husband, Charlie, MC was back on familiar ground, tracking down bad guys through clues left in the DNA of their paper life.

Asking her Aunt Sophia to read the family fortune telling cards might have helped. Instead, the paper trail Charlie left takes MC from a murder in the world of rich socialites to working with covert government agents deep in the world of counter terrorism.

Gift Guide: The Vanished Lady by Vickie Britton and Loretta Jackson

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Targeted Age Group:: General Readership
Category: Suspense

About The Vanished Lady:
WHAT HAPPENED TO AMY?
Dana Lawrence doesn’t imagine when she buys the quaint Victorian house in the remote mountains of Colorado that her life will soon be in danger. She has heard the legend of Lelia Glenn and how she vanished in the 1800’s, but no one told her about the more recent disappearance of Amy Walden two years ago.
On the night of her arrival, Dana spies someone digging on her land. The sheriff tells her that on the day Amy disappeared Glenndale’s jewelry store was robbed. Amy’s boyfriend, Donnie Thorpe, is still on the run, and his accomplice, Jed Hoyt, has just been released from prison. Bennett believes a third party masterminded the robbery–her handsome neighbor, Logan Rand.
While Dana tries to beat the thieves to the stolen goods, she uncovers a grave. Threats and attempts on her life follow in rapid succession. Dana must identify the killer before she becomes the next vanished lady.

Gift Guide: Passion is a Harsh Taskmaster by Randy C. Finch

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Targeted Age Group:: 18 and older
Category: Romantic Mystery

About Passion is a Harsh Taskmaster:
Tom Shallot III, a skeptic of all things supernatural, awakening in bed with Carla, a new employee. He has cheated on his wife; something he swore he would never do. Upon internal deliberation and a frank discussion with Carla, Tom decides he must confess to his wife, who is a Christian, and beg her forgiveness. However, a visit from an elderly man from the future makes Tom question his skeptical worldview. The elderly gentleman convinces him he is about to do the wrong thing. In a total turnabout, Tom confesses his sin to his wife but asks for a divorce rather than forgiveness. Over time, additional visits from the elderly man cause Tom to change the path he is on. When he finally discovers the nature of the visits from the elderly man, Tom realizes that the lives of people close to him may be in jeopardy unless he and Carla combine forces and share information. The two thus begin a journey together that requires the correct interpretation of cryptic clues. Lives hang in the balance.

Gift Guide: Thief Of The Heart by Rena Koontz

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Targeted Age Group:: 18-70
Category: Suspense

About Thief Of The Heart:
Koontz’s trademarks are plot twists and characters that keep readers guessing as the pages fly, and “Thief Of The Heart” shines on both counts. This book is guaranteed to capture your heart. — J.M.

From the moment he saw Jennifer Roberts, his instinct was to protect her. But she wanted nothing to do with him.

In fact, the last thing Jennifer wanted to do that Saturday afternoon was call the police. She didn’t trust them. She’d fallen hard for a cop – the exact person every child is told to run to for safety – and he betrayed her and broke her heart. She wouldn’t make that mistake again.

But she has no choice when she discovers her apartment has been broken into and five simple words turn her world upside down: “You called for the police?” When blond-haired, blue-eyed Max Domer walks in her doorway he is ready to protect and serve. It is his motto. It will be her downfall.

Max is ready to leave Center City behind, cut all ties and make a fresh start as a detective on the West Coast. There is nothing unusual about the burglary call he catches, except that the woman is stunning and, for some reason, antagonistic toward police. But she’s caught in someone’s crosshairs – her car is stolen, her father dies and murder comes to her doorstep – and, like it or not, she needs his help.

But while Max is on the trail of a master crime ring, the real thief sets about stealing his heart. And Jennifer, who innocently let’s her guard down, learns she can’t judge a man by his uniform.

They are polar opposites destined to stand together and fight for their future.

Gift Guide: A Cup of Murder by Cam Larson

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Targeted Age Group:: 16-adult
Category: Cozy

About A Cup of Murder:
It’s been a rough week for Laila Rook, the barista at Roasted Love, a community favorite indie coffeehouse that serves coffee in ceramic cups and features art from local artists on the walls.

A new upscale chain coffeehouse, Sunrise, opened across the street, and Laila’s customers are leaving. The owner of Sunrise, Michael Simms, wants to put Roasted Love out of business and enjoys letting them know with his rudeness and his mean Doberman.

Jacob Weaver, the owner of Roasted Love won’t back down, and he’s not being too quiet about it, either.

When the owner of Sunrise is found murdered by poison in his coffee, Jacob is the prime suspect, and Laila has to decide if Jacob could be guilty and figure out how to save Roasted Love from closing – not to mention balance a cute paramedic and an orphaned Doberman.

Between Jacob’s mood swings and things not adding up, the clock is ticking on the future of Roasted Love.

Book 1 of the Roasted Love Cozy Mystery Series.

Gift Guide: Apron Strings by C.S. Colerain

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Targeted Age Group:: 18+
Category: Mystery Books

About Apron Strings:
In the small backwards town of Creekwood, little is forgiven or forgotten over the span of fifty years. The damaged lives of one generation spread into the next leading to the death of a young man, reportedly an accident, but clouded in suspicion. Years later, when many secrets are threatened with exposure, those affected scramble to fiercely protect the past they had struggled so hard to conceal. When a woman, reviled by many, ends up murdered, almost everyone, including her oldest friend, is suspect. Apron Strings, dark and edgy, will grab your attention and keep you guessing until the very last page.