Southern Thrillers

Thirteen-year-old Loyal Raines is supposed to stay close to home on a hot summer day in 1934. When he slips away for a quick swim in the river and finds a dead body, he wishes he'd obeyed his mother. The ripples caused by his discovery will impact the town of Beverly, West Virginia, in ways no one could have imagined.

This is a story of the rich and the very poor. This is a story of an illegal auction with dire consequences. This is a story of murders past and present. This is a story of intertwined relationships and the silent ripples they leave behind, where love becomes a guiding force, revealing the lengths one will go to protect those they cherish.

"A top-notch mystery from a writer to watch out for." - Bookish Jottings Mourning the death of her police inspector husband, Margot Renard moves to a small seaside town in the south of France. But when the body of a young boy washes up on a beach, Margot is drawn into a dangerous world of drug smugglers and people trafficking, and forced to cross paths with two feuding gangsters. Mystery combines with thrills in the first of an exciting new crime series set in the beautiful scenery of southern France. Ideal for readers of Martin Walker, Donna Leon, M. L. Longworth and Angela Wren. Praise ...

Ruthie Flores is running out of time. Assembling a team who can discreetly breach the walls is a last-ditch effort to find out if her estranged daughter is in danger and to make up for what she’s done before it’s too late—literally. The old woman is in hospice care and she isn’t expected to live long enough to see the seasons change. Meredith Flores Montgomery keeps a safe distance from her mother. The pair hasn’t spoken in years, and Meredith has no plans for that to change. She isn't sure she can forgive Ruthie for the careless decisions that altered the trajectory of their ...

These shivery tales were collected from the oral tradition, from people all over the Southwest, and represent the rich cultural diversity of the region, from the Ozarks to the Rio Grande, California to the Big Thicket.

A demented killer believes he’s doing God’s work — and a teenage boy with dreams of getting his license becomes his next target. Elliot Cross doesn't just hate ambitious dreaming — he sees it as sin. In his twisted mind, anyone reaching for more is disobeying the First Commandment: Thou shalt have no other gods before me. When he volunteers to give Timmy, his daughter’s fatherless classmate, a driving lesson, it’s not a gift — it’s a trap. And the road ahead leads nowhere safe. The Driving Lesson is a short story of religious delusion, power, and cruelty — a standalone ...

A classic mystery in the style of Chandler & Hammett with a modern twist...and Derby hats. One month before the Kentucky Derby, a wealthy thoroughbred owner turns up dead. Can his widow solve the crime in time to save her prized racehorse? When she hires private detective Cal Tyson to investigate, they find big money holds a strong influence on the horse-racing industry. Several key players may have wanted Sterling Halcott dead, but why? And how far are they willing to go to protect their interests? Cal Tyson and the widow Harper Halcott must navigate mansions, parties, wealth, power, ...

"Ivan Ertlov's first mystery thriller is dark, bloody and unique. Especially the private detective is completely different from what you might expect and has a crude sense of humour. I rate it 5 out of 5 possible stars!" - The Librarian and her Books "Above all, it is an exciting, gripping near-future thriller with a cleverly placed supernatural touch. A brisk read even for those who have nothing to do with games, an explicit recommendation for readers of mystery, action thrillers and revenge thrillers." - Phantastic Reading "Step down, Jack Reacher, here comes Pete O'Brannon!" - VLP ...

It is 1997, and someone is slaughtering young women in Burdon County, Arkansas. But no one in the Dirty South wants to admit it. In an Arkansas jail cell sits a former NYPD detective, stricken by grief. He is mourning the death of his wife and child, and searching in vain for their killer. Obsessed with avenging his lost family, his life is about to take a shocking turn.

An upcoming election shakes up Honeysuckle. When an outspoken resident who opposes the changes to the magical small Southern town turns up dead, it's up to Charli Goodwin and her special talents to get on the case, except her valuable magic doesn't seem to be working. What starts as a simple search uncovers a darker layer of manipulation and sabotage. Will Charli be able to figure out who is pulling the strings before the foundations of the town are destroyed?

NEWLY EDITED AS OF 7/8/19!!!! An unstable beautiful woman is accused of murdering her wealthy husband. She claims she didn't do it. She is not to be trusted. Aidan Collins has his very first large case when his client, Marina Vasiliev, a drop-dead gorgeous mental patient, is accused of killing her wealthy husband. Marina insists that she didn't do it, but Aidan can't trust her. He knows Marina well, too well. After all, he met Marina in the mental hospital - he originally obtained her as a client when she was involuntarily committed, and he assisted her with getting out. Diagnosed with ...

For 30 years, a secret agency called the Southern Reach has monitored expeditions into Area X - a remote and mysterious place that's sequestered from civilization. After the twelfth expedition, the Southern Reach is in disarray, and John Rodriguez (a.k.a. "Control") is the team's newly appointed head. From a series of interrogations, a cache of hidden notes, and more than 200 hours of profoundly troubling video footage, the secrets of Area X begin to reveal themselves - and what they expose pushes Control to confront truths about both himself and the agency he's promised to serve.

They Survived The Treasure Hunt. Now The Real Fight Begins. In the heart of the low country, a deadly treasure hunt turns into a high-stakes battle for survival. Charles and Mary Gramer find themselves ensnared in a web of betrayal, mobsters, and bloodshed. When a notorious Savannah mobster known as Ron “The Hangman” Martin demands the return of a fabled parcel of Sea Pines land, the Gramers are thrust into a relentless fight against time and terror. In a pulse-pounding thriller that blends history, suspense, and nail-biting action, Robbers Row hurtles readers into a world where every ...

Southern historical fiction novel of drama and intrigue set on the Blue Ridge of the Appalachian Mountains in Western North Carolina. Excerpt from Chapter Nine: She hid in the woods all night long. Didn’t even come out to milk the goat or feed her mother’s chickens. The goat was starting to bleat to be milked by the next morning, but she was too afraid to take a chance on being out in the open long enough to milk her. By the time the sun started going down, she gathered enough determination to slip close enough to the cabin to see through the open door. There was enough light left in ...

This fascinating third volume in the Britannia's Fist series will have you pondering how easily history could have been swayed differently. What if other countries had become involved in America's Civil War? Historian Peter G. Tsouras presents the third installment in his Britannia's Fist alternate history series.

Women’s rights activist, Lynn Cummings, switches up churches like shoes. As soon as her anointing is exposed, she runs – that is, until she finds a pew at First Baptist Church, where Lynn is anchored by the wiles of the debonair Pastor Stewart. Lynn, becomes the woman on Stewart’s arm, and with that, becomes the target of women who are always up in Pastor Stewart’s face, namely, his quote-unquote friend Bianca, the skin-bleaching, man-worshipping teen choir director who’ll stop at nothing to become Stewart’s first lady. Even Nay, the wife of Stewart’s right hand man, Associate...

When out-of-work graphic designer Verity Long accidentally traps a ghost on her property, she's saddled with more than a supernatural sidekick - she gains the ability to see spirits. It leads to an offer she can't refuse from the town's bad boy, the brother of her ex and the last man she should ever partner with. Ellis Wyatt is in possession of a stunning historic property haunted by some of Sugarland, Tennessee's finest former citizens.

Meet Jane. Newly arrived to Birmingham, Alabama, Jane is a broke dog-walker in Thornfield Estates—a gated community full of McMansions, shiny SUVs, and bored housewives. The kind of place where no one will notice if Jane lifts the discarded tchotchkes and jewelry off the side tables of her well-heeled clients. Where no one will think to ask if Jane is her real name. But her luck changes when she meets Eddie Rochester. Recently widowed, Eddie is Thornfield Estates’ most mysterious resident.

When a levee collapses in Hinowah, a small town in Northern California, Colter Shaw is brought on by his sister, Dorion, a disaster response specialist, to help locate a family swept away by the raging water, with mere hours to survive. But after a surprise attack along the river obstructs Colter's urgent search, the siblings are forced to consider a new reality: Is the levee at risk of failing from natural causes, or is someone sabotaging it?

Pepper Dunn’s life couldn’t be more perfect. In a few short weeks she’s set to marry the man of her dreams, Axel Reign. All she has to do is tick a few more boxes and the wedding will be on. When her cousin Cordelia introduces Pepper to a wishing stone that can alter reality, Pepper doesn’t think much of it. But when she and her cousins each make a wish out of frustration, they are thrown quite literally into a very different Magnolia Cove. In this Magnolia Cove, Pepper’s life is completely different. Everything she knows to be true is false, and her world is upside down.