Short Crime Thriller

These are 20 new crime mysteries together in one large collection, taken from a string of short stories set in the late 19th century. No fictional characters are more renowned for their powers of thought and observation than Sherlock Holmes and his faithful companion, Dr. John Watson.

Investigative reporter Nora Hesper spends her nights cloaked in shadows. As Indigo she's become an urban myth, a brutal vigilante who can forge darkness into weapons and travel across the city by slipping from one patch of shadow to another. Her primary focus both as Nora and as Indigo has become a murderous criminal cult called the Children of Phonos. Children are being murdered in New York, and Nora is determined to make it stop, even if that means Indigo must eliminate every member.

Sixteen years. That's how long Clyde Barr has been away from Colorado's thick forests, alpine deserts, and craggy peaks, running from a past filled with haunting memories. But now he's back, having roamed across three continents as a hunter, an adventurer, a soldier of fortune, and, most recently, an unjustly imprisoned convict. And once again his past is reaching out to claim him. Clyde receives a phone call for help from Jen, youngest of his three older sisters. Then the line goes dead.

Grace had never been more terrified...the pain was relentless. Nothing in her life prepared her for this. She desperately needed somewhere safe...someplace she could hide. Someone she could trust with her life. It was dark...and getting darker. Ronan Hendricks didn’t recognize her voice. Not family...not friends. Probably not an enemy. But he didn’t need the years he’d spent as a detective to recognize what he did hear... Fear. In a desperate moment of hope, a single number saved her life. Then a complete stranger opened his home offering safety yet Grace knew danger surrounded them.....

At an annual party to celebrate the success of the racing season, everything seemed to be running well to form, including the need for more champagne. Then a runaway horsebox ploughed into the marquee. A witness to the terrible death and destruction, wine merchant Tony Beach knows it is just one of those tragic accidents. But when his expert advice is called into play over sub-standard alcohol in a local night club, connections start to click, and another person dies, horribly.

The "Hot Kid" of the U.S. Marshals Service, Carl Webster maintains the law with a cool, showdown attitude. He's one of the richest creations in Elmore Leonard's half century of delivering the goods. From his appearances in the critically acclaimed novels The Hot Kid and Up in Honey's Room, Carl returns to lay down the law in a novella that originally appeared as a serial in the New York Times Sunday Magazine.

A short read cozy mystery with a twist... Dive into a twisty whodunit cozy mystery set in Cloverville on St. Patrick’s Day! Come join the town’s thrilling annual hunt for the hidden Leprechaun Emeralds, only this year, the joy turns to dread when renowned jeweler Liam O'Brien is found murdered in his shop. Step into the shoes of Detective Annie Murphy and unravel clues while interrogating quirky suspects like Liam’s mysterious brother Seamus, his struggling business partner Maggie, and rival jeweler Sean. It’s your chance to crack the case! Can you solve the St. Patrick’s Day ...

From the introduction by David L. Ulin: "For me, Cape Cod is a repository of memory: forty summers in the same house will do that to you. But it is also a landscape of hidden tensions, which rise up when we least anticipate. In part, this has to do with social aspiration, which is one of the things that brought my family, like many others, to the Cape. In part, it has to do with social division, which has been a factor since at least the end of the nineteenth century, when then summer trade began."

Award-winning author and Amazon Best Seller Richard Prosch collects eleven new crime stories featuring popular series characters, Sgt. Emma Floyd, Dan Spalding, Special Agent Tesh and Frankie Irish, along with frontier gunmen, high-school legends, and silent screen star, Lillian Gish. "I know I can rely on Rich to spin a yarn with an unusual perspective, dragging the reader into unexpected dark alleys where bad things happen." -- Paul Bishop, from his introduction

West Virginia. 1948. Clarence Graham's infant grandson is kidnapped by the Mob. He won't pay the ransom and he can't let the little boy die. There can be only one solution. Is this your kind of story? Click on the "Look Inside" feature above the book cover now to find out then buy/borrow this short story with one click.

Elijah Benjamin is a hired gun. A hitman who has used almost every killing method known to man, Elijah has grown tired of methodical assassinations. He wants his marks to see him coming. More importantly, he wants to have a conversation with those on his hit list. As the holidays approach, Elijah is called upon to take out an entire criminal organization. When he finds out the reasons their deaths have been ordered, he sets aside some time to get to know his targets. Soon, he issues final warnings. How his prey reacts to the news will determine their fates, but someone else is watching to ...

Addie I had planned to kill Kent in the clearing, but first, I needed answers. Then things don't go as planned. Eli After getting the answers I needed for Addie and my Family, I head back to the Gold Compound for a meeting with my father, Brandon Gold, Don of the Gold Family. I'm surprised when I see my brothers there. After the meeting, I try to call Addie, but she doesn't pick up. After not being able to get hold of anyone from the Kingsley Family, I track Addie's and Nate's phones... and I see red. I just hope I'm not too late. But seeing her lying there, helpless, I know it's my turn. ...

Addie To say the opening night of The Gilded Cage was a success is an understatement. I'm reeling over the success, thinking that the Kingsley Family is finally accepting me as their Don... but I was wrong. Someone is plotting against me and is hellbent on taking me down. When I awaken in the middle of the night to gunshots, it's confirmed. It's clear that someone wants me dead. Not only me, but the heads of the Sky and Gold families, as well. But all of this is taking its toll on mine and Eli's relationship, becoming more clear that we are stronger together than apart. But will our ...

A brand-new collection of short stories featuring the Queen of Crime’s legendary detective Jane Marple, penned by 12 remarkable best-selling and acclaimed authors. This collection of 12 original short stories, all featuring Jane Marple, will introduce the character to a whole new generation. Each author reimagines Agatha Christie’s Marple through their own unique perspective while staying true to the hallmarks of a traditional mystery.

"Readers of Brooklyn Noir will recall that its contents were labeled by neighborhood - Bay Ridge, Canarsie, Greenpoint, etc. We have chosen the same principle here, and the book's contents do a good job of covering the island, from C.J. Sullivan's Inwood and Charles Ardai's Upper East Side, to Justin Scott's Chelsea and Carol Lea Benjamin's Greenwich Village."

At the Tan Yards, Victor Prizeman bends everyone to his will. Then he surprises them by saying his forefathers worked there as tanners. Next the narrator tells a tale about the Prizeman clan, and how their patriarch met his end. And back in the present, history appears to be repeating itself when Victor demands that he light the annual Halloween bonfire. The Tan Yards is a story that will delight fans of horror, as well as those with a special place in their hearts for Halloween. Now with a Five Star editorial review from Readers' Favorite

Keep Your Friends Close is the third story in Granelli's hard-hitting series of Mafia tales. Using the vibrant backdrop of Palermo, old characters reappear to continue the internecine struggles of the Tomasso Cruci Family, where double-dealing, treachery, and violent retribution seem the norm. Granelli also brings in a police element for the first time in the form of Carlo 'CC' Carpanini and his memorable sidekick Leo Bracchi. It seems they are up against insurmountable odds.

COLLEGE INSTALOVE LIKE YOU'VE NEVER SEEN. ANNABELLE WINTERS STYLE. I was almost free. Just dropped out of college, about to buy my dream ride, about to hit the open road to an unknown future out west. But then I see her standing under a tree, those delicate lashes unable to hide what I see in her big brown eyes. The eyes of a prisoner . . . Someone trapped in a life she didn't want . . . Those eyes whisper, "Save me. Set me free. Please." But I'm no white-knight savior. I'm a loner dropout whose only assets are his fists. Besides, this girl just said she's engaged! That's drama like I don't...

TWELVE SHORT CRIME STORIES WITH A STING IN THE TAIL. KILLING DAD A family plagued by an abusive father finally take their revenge. THE SHIFT A detective completes a shift at work like no other. He couldn’t see the hit coming, and he couldn’t see the positive impact he’d had on so many lives. THE MISSING LINK A detective holds a retirement party. His old friend indicates he knows the truth. THE PARCEL A devoted son carries out his mother’s wishes. DEAD TO THE WORLD A detective stumbles across a murder. The problem is, he is alone with the killer and there is no way out. THE VERDICT A...

In 2021, the Panama Papers exposed a web of corruption, revealing how the global elite dodged taxes and hoarded wealth. Among the lush and secretive havens of the Cayman Islands, Eloise Deen emerges, on a relentless hunt for stolen fortunes. Known for her unyielding resolve and a knack for persuasion that borders on the lethal, Eloise is a force to be reckoned with. She's well aware that stealing the money is the easy part... getting away with it is a killer. Dive into this short tale where the stakes are as dangerous as the secrets uncovered, and where getting what you want might just cost...