Short Thrillers

If you hear the whistle… it’s already too late. Park ranger Caleb Mercer has spent a decade watching over Bitterroot Ridge — a remote national park known more for its silence than danger. But now, hikers are vanishing without a trace, and only Caleb hears the strange high-pitched whistle that seems to follow him deeper into the trees. When wildlife biologist Dr. Naomi Voss joins him to investigate, the pattern becomes disturbingly clear: the whistle isn’t random. It’s a call — and it’s been echoing through these woods for decades. As the disappearances mount and the whistle ...

From its launch in 1920 until its demise in 1951, the magazine Black Mask published pulp crime fiction. The first hard-boiled detective stories appeared on its pages. Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, Erle Stanley Gardner and John D. MacDonald got their start in Black Mask. The urban crime stories that appeared in Black Mask helped to shape American culture.

The expected never happens... a man calls unexpectedly on his mistress and sees another man leaving her flat. Accusing her of being unfaithful, he quarrels with her, strikes her. She dies. Leaving unseen, he tips off the police so that the other man is arrested and charged... Has he achieved "The Perfect Murder"? A tantalising opening to "A Twist in the Tale", a fantastic collection of short stories from bestselling author Jeffrey Archer.

Nikki and the grannies have learned there’s no such thing as quiet golden years. Who’d want that anyway? When things are quiet at the retirement home, they go looking for danger, and find it everywhere. Even at the bowling alley. They will have to uncover devious plots, decipher codes, and take a road trip to one of America’s favorite vacation destinations to make sure the criminals get their just desserts. Stories Included: Living on a Spare, Crack the Code, and Road Trip.

The house always wins. Unless it falls down… When Bubbles acts as a witness in a high-profile murder case she’s warned to stay low. Taking on a gambling gangster and his henchmen wasn’t in the cards. But then he went and made it personal… HoloCity Hard Boys is the second stand alone mystery novella in the HoloCity Case Files series, a companion collection to the Bubbles in Space series. Blade Runner meets The Fifth Element in this eccentric cyber-noir thriller series about a bleak world ravaged by corrupt leaders, mega-corporations, and crime lords… and the washed-up detective who...

Gripping flash fiction. Polly’s wait for the mortgage advisor drags on. When she investigates the delay, danger finds her again.

The events of the story occupy a single June day in post-World War I Central London, as wealthy and fashionable society hostess Clarissa Dalloway is preparing for a party she is to give that evening. Through her thoughts and memories, the voices of others who have touched on her life and will attend her party, Virginia Woolf shows her genius as a writer who is both accessible and popular.

Nothing is as it seems. A man wakes in a dilapidated apartment, hooked to a strange machine, with a dead body in the next room—and no memory of who he is or how he got there. As he unravels the mystery of his identity over the next forty-eight hours, he discovers he may be one of the most influential figures of the twenty-first century. But the deeper he digs, the more he realizes that some truths are better left untouched.

When a divorced writer is tailed by a Mexican gang member, he and his twelve-year-old daughter are forced to defend themselves. But when it’s discovered that the young lady is capable of some professional grade bad-assness, Dad realizes he not only has a special child on his hands, but that she’s an absolute killing machine. Twists and turns, surprises and thrills from New York Times bestselling, Thriller and Shamus Award winning mystery author, Vincent Zandri.

PUMPKIN 31 TALES OF TERROR From the twisted mind that brought you The Hole in the Wall and A Second Skin comes a chilling celebration of horror's darkest holiday. PUMPKIN – a unique collection of 31 tales designed to unsettle, disturb, and haunt you long after the final page. One terrifying story for each night of October, culminating in a Halloween you'll never forget. Journey through landscapes of psychological terror, supernatural dread, and unflinching horror as Steven Blackmore weaves nightmares featuring haunted trick-or-treat sacks, bloodthirsty vampires, fracturing realities, and ...

A struggling young Persian artist sends Flynn, one of Sherlock Holmes’ Baker Street Irregulars, out to buy provisions for a celebratory dinner. But when he brings the requested groceries to the artist’s wife, her joy quickly turns to fear. Then Flynn returns to the artist’s studio, only to find that disaster has struck. Meanwhile, the National Portrait Gallery enlists the help of Sherlock Homes to investigate the mysterious theft of The Pink Lady. As Holmes sets out to recover the precious painting, he uncovers a dark web of deceit far more complex than he imagined.

The costume Valentine's party is the hot ticket in the Mississippi Delta. But Tinkie's title of Queen Bee of Delta Society becomes jeopardized when her Valentine's guests are all robbed. There's nothing for it but that Tinkie and Sarah Booth Delaney find out what happened to the very handsome Cupid (who failed to appear at the party) and where the short, hairy, Pan-like Cupid (who crashed the party) came from. Certainly not Central Casting.

In this incredible follow-up to the New York Times and USA Today best seller FaceOff, 22 of the world's most popular thriller writers come together for an unforgettable anthology. MatchUp takes the never-before-seen best seller pairings of FaceOff and adds a delicious new twist: gender. Eleven of the world's best female thriller writers, from Diana Gabaldon to Charlaine Harris, are paired with 11 of the world's best male thriller writers.

Get the first three books in one collection by USA Today best-selling author Mike Ryan. Includes: The Extractor, Past Dead, and Pressure Point.

Commander Kurt Kins loves a challenge. But this might be the one he and his crew can’t beat. By 2039, the United States is a year and a half into World War III. Submarine meets submarine beneath the waves, and one out of every three American subs deployed isn’t coming home. Commander Kurt Kins and USS Darter, however, seem to have a magic touch—they’ve been among the best of the best from the start. Kins loves action and he’s never backed down from a challenge. Faced with clever Russian enemies who are out to make their nation a superpower once more, he knows he has his work cut out for him.

Clues, Chaos, and Catastrophe Under the Big Top! London, 1899: The circus is in town, but danger is in the spotlight. When a clown is found dangling lifeless from the high wire at the Olympia Amphitheater, Sherlock Holmes and Lucy James are called in to investigate. With rivalries, roaring egos, and deadly secrets lurking behind the curtain, the Baker Street team must act fast to stop the next act from ending in tragedy. To infiltrate the tight-knit world of acrobats, fire-eaters, and animal tamers, Lucy and Jack go undercover as magicians, with the ever-curious Becky as their pint-sized ...

Available only on audio, this exciting collection features original stories by Adam-Troy Castro, some never before published. The stories collected here include "The Assassin's Secret"; "Narrow Escape of Zipper-Girl"; "A Place Without Portals"; "The Hour in Between; "Greetings, Humanity! Welcome to Your Choice of Species"; "The Refrigerator in the Girlfriend"; "My Wife Hates Time Travel"; and many others.

Cleveland Noir joins Columbus Noir as the Akashic Noir series continues its tour of Ohio and navigates the dregs of the North Shore.

The Premium Collection of Agatha Christie brings together over 60 novels and short stories, featuring some of the most iconic detectives in mystery literature. This comprehensive anthology offers readers a chance to explore the brilliant cases solved by beloved characters such as Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, Mr. Quin & Satterthwaite, Colonel Race, Superintendent Battle, and the dynamic duo Tommy and Tuppence.

When a man is shot in the head, Bree Taggert and her new partner, veteran detective Dana Romano, respond to the call. They break the news to the victim’s ex-wife and learn the estranged couple’s five-year-old daughter was supposed to have been with him. What starts as a murder investigation quickly morphs into a desperate search for a missing child. The case stirs memories of Bree’s own traumatizing childhood. To find the little girl, Bree will have to relive her own terrifying past.