From Susan Wittig Albert, the New York Times best-selling author of Queen Anne's Lace, comes an intriguing new addition to her widely-acclaimed China Bayles Mysteries. China and Ruby Wilcox are presenting their annual ''Not Just Plain Vanilla Workshop,'' always a huge hit with customers at Thyme & Seasons Herb Shop. But someone involved with the workshop is driven by a deadly motive, and China soon finds herself teaming up with the very pregnant Pecan Springs police chief Sheila Dawson to solve a vanilla-flavored murder. Sheila, happy to get out from behind the chief's desk, is investigating the death of a botany professor, a prominent researcher specializing in vanilla orchids. China is trying to help a longtime friend: the dead professor's ex-wife and a prime suspect in his murder. However, there's no shortage of other suspects: a betrayed lover, a disgruntled graduate student, jealous colleagues, and a gang of orchid smugglers. But the lethal roots of this mystery reach back into the dark tropical jungles of Mexico, where the vanilla vine was first cultivated. At stake: a lucrative plant patent, an orchid that is extinct in the wild, and the life of an innocent little girl. A Plain Vanilla Murder is a flavorful blend of mystery and herb lore, present sins and past secrets, and characters who are as real as your next-door neighbors - stirred together in an absorbing novel that only Susan Wittig Albert could create.
Persevero Press
|
9780998233208
|
Hardcover
Old Bones
By Preston, Douglas
The #1 NYT bestselling authors Preston & Child bring the true story of the ill-fated Donner Party to new life in this thrilling novel of archaeology, history, murder, and suspense. Nora Kelly, a young curator at the Santa Fe Institute of Archaeology, is approached by historian Clive Benton with a once-in-a-lifetime proposal: to lead a team in search of the so-called "Lost Camp" of the tragic Donner Party. This was a group of pioneers who earned a terrible place in American history when they became snow-bound in the California mountains in 1847, their fate unknown until the first skeletonized survivors stumbled out of the wilderness, raving about starvation, murder-and cannibalism.Benton tells Kelly he has stumbled upon an amazing find: the long-sought diary of one of the victims, which has an enigmatic description of the Lost Camp. Nora agrees to lead an expedition to locate and excavate it-to reveal its long-buried secrets.Once in the mountains, however, they learn that discovering the camp is only the first step in a mounting journey of fear. For as they uncover old bones, they expose the real truth of what happened, one that is far more shocking and bizarre than mere cannibalism. And when those ancient horrors lead to present-day violence on a grand scale, rookie FBI agent Corrie Swanson is assigned the case...only to find that her first investigation might very well be her last. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: #454545} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: #454545; min-height: 14.0px}
Grand Central Publishing
|
9781538747223
|
Hardcover
Island of Thieves
By Hamilton, Glen Erik
When a new security gig turns into a setup, expert thief Van Shaw finds himself the prey in a cross-country pursuit - in this electrifying sixth novel in Glen Erik Hamilton's pulse-pounding and emotionally resonant thriller series. Van Shaw is hired to evaluate the safeguards for the art collection of eccentric business magnate, Sebastian Rohner. Then Rohner reveals to Van the real reason he's been recruited: to prevent another professional burglar from stealing the art. Rohner wants to set a thief to catch a thief. Van, while questioning the bizarre nature of the job, takes it seriously and surveils the highly secure gallery wing of Rohner's expansive island estate, only to stumble across a murdered body on the rocky shore beyond: one of Rohner's honored guests for an international corporate deal.
William Morrow
|
9780062978547
|
Hardcover
The Long Call
By Cleeves, Ann
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!From Ann Cleeves -- bestselling and award-winning author of the Vera and Shetland series, both of which are hit TV shows -- comes the first in a gripping new series. "Ann Cleeves is one of my favorite mystery writers." -- Louise PennyA PEOPLE MAGAZINE BEST BOOK OF FALL 2019In North Devon, where two rivers converge and run into the sea, Detective Matthew Venn stands outside the church as his estranged father's funeral takes place. On the day Matthew left the strict evangelical community he grew up in, he lost his family too.Now, as he turns and walks away again, he receives a call from one of his team. A body has been found on the beach nearby: a man with a tattoo of an albatross on his neck, stabbed to death.The case calls Matthew back to the people and places of his past, as deadly secrets hidden at their hearts are revealed, and his new life is forced into a collision course with the world he thought he'd left behind.From Ann Cleeves, bestselling author of Vera and Shetland, beloved by readers and TV viewers alike, comes a spectacular new series, told with deep compassion and searing insight.
Minotaur Books
|
9781250204448
|
Hardcover
Magic for Liars
By Gailey, Sarah
Sharp, mainstream fantasy meets compelling thrills of investigative noir in Magic for Liars, a fantasy debut by rising star Sarah Gailey. Ivy Gamble was born without magic and never wanted it.Ivy Gamble is perfectly happy with her life - or at least, she's perfectly fine.She doesn't in any way wish she was like Tabitha, her estranged, gifted twin sister.Ivy Gamble is a liar.When a gruesome murder is discovered at The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages, where her estranged twin sister teaches Theoretical Magic, reluctant detective Ivy Gamble is pulled into the world of untold power and dangerous secrets. She will have to find a murderer and reclaim her sister -- without losing herself. "An unmissable debut." -- Adrienne Celt, author of Invitation to a Bonfire
Tor Books
|
9781250174611
|
Hardcover
Piece of My Heart
By Clark, Mary Higgins
In the latest thrilling collaboration from #1 New York Times bestselling author and "Queen of Suspense" Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke, television producer Laurie Moran must solve the kidnapping of her fiance's nephew - just days before her wedding. Television producer Laurie Moran and her fiance, Alex Buckley, the former host of her investigative television show, are just days away from their mid-August wedding, when things take a dark turn. Alex's seven-year-old nephew, Johnny, vanishes from the beach. A search party begins and witnesses recall Johnny playing in the water and collecting shells behind the beach shack, but no one remembers seeing him after the morning. As the sun sets, Johnny's skim board washes up to shore, and everyone realizes that he could be anywhere, even under water.
Simon & Schuster
|
9781982132545
|
Hardcover
All Is Not Forgiven
By Kenda, Joe
When murder is your business, solving the case is personal ... The Homicide Hunter's riveting debut novel proves that fiction really can be stranger than truth ... All Is Not Forgiven is the debut crime novel by Investigation Discovery star Joe Kenda, a former homicide detective, whose hit series Homicide Hunter and American Detective have been watched by as many as 3.8 million viewers in 186 countries.In this first novel, the rookie Det. Kenda investigates a 1975 case that begins with the murder of a beloved Colorado philanthropist and society figure whose husband, a gambler and womanizer, appears to have an air-tight alibi.Mentored by his veteran partner Det. Lee Wilson, a former Nashville singer turned skilled investigator, Kenda's case quickly attracts attention from the FBI, CIA, and Interpol, for its similarity to a string of killings involving wealthy married women.
Blackstone Publishing
|
9798200924356
|
Audiobook
Murder in Her Stocking
By Mckevett, G A
As the Moonlight Magnolia Agency revisits old memories on Christmas Eve, Granny Reid takes the reins back thirty years to the 1980s - back when she went by Stella, everyone's hair was bigger, and sweaters were colorful disasters. But murder never went out of style . . . Christmas has arrived in sleepy McGill, Georgia, but holiday cheer can't keep temperamental Stella Reid from swinging a rolling pin at anyone who crosses her bad side - and this season, there are plenty. First an anonymous grinch vandalizes a celebrated nativity display. Far worse, the scandalous Prissy Carr is found dead in an alley behind a tavern. With police puzzled over the murder, Stella decides to stir the local gossip pot for clues on the culprit's identity . . . Turns out Prissy held a prominent spot on the naughty list, and suspects pile up like presents on Christmas morning. Unfortunately, the more progress Stella makes, the more fears she must confront. With a neighbor in peril and the futures of her beloved grandchildren at risk, Stella must somehow set everything straight and bring a cunning criminal to justice before December 25th . . .
Kensington
|
9781496716262
|
Hardcover
Every Day Above Ground
By Hamilton, Glen Erik
A favor for a dying ex-con turns into a violent battle against a mysterious enemy for Van Shaw in this emotionally powerful and gritty thriller from the award-winning author of Past Crimes and Hard Cold Winter. It sounds like a thief's dream to Van Shaw: A terminally ill ex-con tells him of an easy fortune in gold, abandoned and nearly forgotten after its original owner died in prison. For the dying man, the money is a legacy to ensure his preteen daughter's future. For Van, the gold is cash he desperately needs to rebuild his destroyed family home. The grandson of a career criminal who taught him all the tricks of his trade, Van suspects that nothing is ever that easy. Sure enough, the safe holding the fortune is a trap--set by a mysterious player armed with tremendous resources and a lifetime of hatred. Now, Shaw's partner is in the clutches of the hunters, and the former army ranger may be their next prey. But when the ex-con's innocent daughter is threatened too, Van's own hard childhood means he can't let her come to harm. To discover who has them in the cross hairs, Shaw must seek out the hunters' real prey. His quest leads him from an underground bare-knuckle fighting ring, which may be fronting a darker purpose, to a massive pop-culture convention, where Van and his allies, Hollis and Corcoran, play a dangerous game with foes on every side. It also introduces Van to a brash and beautiful aspiring journalist who poses a whole different kind of personal risk. For years, Van Shaw has tried to live every day above ground, on the right side of the law, even though crime is his gift . . . and in his blood. If he survives the coming storm, he'll have to decide what he wants--and whether he can live as an outlaw without sacrificing his honor.
WILLIAM MORROW
|
9780062567383
|
Hardcover
Marrow Island
By Smith, Alexis M
What would you give to save the thing you love the most? It has been twenty years since Lucie Bowen left the islands. Twenty years ago, the May Day Quake set loose catastrophic waves along the west coast, from Alaska to California, shattering thousands of lives. Twenty years ago, Lucie's father disappeared in an explosion at the Marrow Island oil refinery, a tragedy that destroyed the island's ecosystem and sent Lucie and her mother to the mainland to start anew. Twenty years ago, Lucie and her best friend, Katie, were just Puget Sound children, tucked up under their desks, hovering under mylar sheets, hoping to survive. Now, Katie writes with strange and miraculous news. Marrow Island is no longer uninhabitable, no longer abandoned. She is part of a community, a mysterious Colony, that has, somehow, conjured life again from Marrow's soil. Lucie returns. Her journalist instincts tell her there's more to the Colony and their charismatic leader - a former nun with an all-consuming plan - than its members want her to know. The island's astonishing rebirth seems to have come at great cost - perhaps to the colonists themselves. As she uncovers their secrets, will Lucie endanger more than their mission? What price will she pay for the truth? I was always a part of you, and you were always a part of me, Katie writes. And in this marvelously spun story Alexis Smith reaches into the depths of our connections to our pasts, our loved ones, our devotions. Our choices may bring us to the brink, but within our promises to each other and our hopes for the future, at the intersection of science and faith and grace, there may well be miracles in the making.
A Plain Vanilla Murder
By Albert, Susan Wittig
From Susan Wittig Albert, the New York Times best-selling author of Queen Anne's Lace, comes an intriguing new addition to her widely-acclaimed China Bayles Mysteries. China and Ruby Wilcox are presenting their annual ''Not Just Plain Vanilla Workshop,'' always a huge hit with customers at Thyme & Seasons Herb Shop. But someone involved with the workshop is driven by a deadly motive, and China soon finds herself teaming up with the very pregnant Pecan Springs police chief Sheila Dawson to solve a vanilla-flavored murder. Sheila, happy to get out from behind the chief's desk, is investigating the death of a botany professor, a prominent researcher specializing in vanilla orchids. China is trying to help a longtime friend: the dead professor's ex-wife and a prime suspect in his murder. However, there's no shortage of other suspects: a betrayed lover, a disgruntled graduate student, jealous colleagues, and a gang of orchid smugglers. But the lethal roots of this mystery reach back into the dark tropical jungles of Mexico, where the vanilla vine was first cultivated. At stake: a lucrative plant patent, an orchid that is extinct in the wild, and the life of an innocent little girl. A Plain Vanilla Murder is a flavorful blend of mystery and herb lore, present sins and past secrets, and characters who are as real as your next-door neighbors - stirred together in an absorbing novel that only Susan Wittig Albert could create.
Old Bones
By Preston, Douglas
The #1 NYT bestselling authors Preston & Child bring the true story of the ill-fated Donner Party to new life in this thrilling novel of archaeology, history, murder, and suspense. Nora Kelly, a young curator at the Santa Fe Institute of Archaeology, is approached by historian Clive Benton with a once-in-a-lifetime proposal: to lead a team in search of the so-called "Lost Camp" of the tragic Donner Party. This was a group of pioneers who earned a terrible place in American history when they became snow-bound in the California mountains in 1847, their fate unknown until the first skeletonized survivors stumbled out of the wilderness, raving about starvation, murder-and cannibalism.Benton tells Kelly he has stumbled upon an amazing find: the long-sought diary of one of the victims, which has an enigmatic description of the Lost Camp. Nora agrees to lead an expedition to locate and excavate it-to reveal its long-buried secrets.Once in the mountains, however, they learn that discovering the camp is only the first step in a mounting journey of fear. For as they uncover old bones, they expose the real truth of what happened, one that is far more shocking and bizarre than mere cannibalism. And when those ancient horrors lead to present-day violence on a grand scale, rookie FBI agent Corrie Swanson is assigned the case...only to find that her first investigation might very well be her last. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: #454545} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: #454545; min-height: 14.0px}
Island of Thieves
By Hamilton, Glen Erik
When a new security gig turns into a setup, expert thief Van Shaw finds himself the prey in a cross-country pursuit - in this electrifying sixth novel in Glen Erik Hamilton's pulse-pounding and emotionally resonant thriller series. Van Shaw is hired to evaluate the safeguards for the art collection of eccentric business magnate, Sebastian Rohner. Then Rohner reveals to Van the real reason he's been recruited: to prevent another professional burglar from stealing the art. Rohner wants to set a thief to catch a thief. Van, while questioning the bizarre nature of the job, takes it seriously and surveils the highly secure gallery wing of Rohner's expansive island estate, only to stumble across a murdered body on the rocky shore beyond: one of Rohner's honored guests for an international corporate deal.
The Long Call
By Cleeves, Ann
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!From Ann Cleeves -- bestselling and award-winning author of the Vera and Shetland series, both of which are hit TV shows -- comes the first in a gripping new series. "Ann Cleeves is one of my favorite mystery writers." -- Louise PennyA PEOPLE MAGAZINE BEST BOOK OF FALL 2019In North Devon, where two rivers converge and run into the sea, Detective Matthew Venn stands outside the church as his estranged father's funeral takes place. On the day Matthew left the strict evangelical community he grew up in, he lost his family too.Now, as he turns and walks away again, he receives a call from one of his team. A body has been found on the beach nearby: a man with a tattoo of an albatross on his neck, stabbed to death.The case calls Matthew back to the people and places of his past, as deadly secrets hidden at their hearts are revealed, and his new life is forced into a collision course with the world he thought he'd left behind.From Ann Cleeves, bestselling author of Vera and Shetland, beloved by readers and TV viewers alike, comes a spectacular new series, told with deep compassion and searing insight.
Magic for Liars
By Gailey, Sarah
Sharp, mainstream fantasy meets compelling thrills of investigative noir in Magic for Liars, a fantasy debut by rising star Sarah Gailey. Ivy Gamble was born without magic and never wanted it.Ivy Gamble is perfectly happy with her life - or at least, she's perfectly fine.She doesn't in any way wish she was like Tabitha, her estranged, gifted twin sister.Ivy Gamble is a liar.When a gruesome murder is discovered at The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages, where her estranged twin sister teaches Theoretical Magic, reluctant detective Ivy Gamble is pulled into the world of untold power and dangerous secrets. She will have to find a murderer and reclaim her sister -- without losing herself. "An unmissable debut." -- Adrienne Celt, author of Invitation to a Bonfire
Piece of My Heart
By Clark, Mary Higgins
In the latest thrilling collaboration from #1 New York Times bestselling author and "Queen of Suspense" Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke, television producer Laurie Moran must solve the kidnapping of her fiance's nephew - just days before her wedding. Television producer Laurie Moran and her fiance, Alex Buckley, the former host of her investigative television show, are just days away from their mid-August wedding, when things take a dark turn. Alex's seven-year-old nephew, Johnny, vanishes from the beach. A search party begins and witnesses recall Johnny playing in the water and collecting shells behind the beach shack, but no one remembers seeing him after the morning. As the sun sets, Johnny's skim board washes up to shore, and everyone realizes that he could be anywhere, even under water.
All Is Not Forgiven
By Kenda, Joe
When murder is your business, solving the case is personal ... The Homicide Hunter's riveting debut novel proves that fiction really can be stranger than truth ... All Is Not Forgiven is the debut crime novel by Investigation Discovery star Joe Kenda, a former homicide detective, whose hit series Homicide Hunter and American Detective have been watched by as many as 3.8 million viewers in 186 countries.In this first novel, the rookie Det. Kenda investigates a 1975 case that begins with the murder of a beloved Colorado philanthropist and society figure whose husband, a gambler and womanizer, appears to have an air-tight alibi.Mentored by his veteran partner Det. Lee Wilson, a former Nashville singer turned skilled investigator, Kenda's case quickly attracts attention from the FBI, CIA, and Interpol, for its similarity to a string of killings involving wealthy married women.
Murder in Her Stocking
By Mckevett, G A
As the Moonlight Magnolia Agency revisits old memories on Christmas Eve, Granny Reid takes the reins back thirty years to the 1980s - back when she went by Stella, everyone's hair was bigger, and sweaters were colorful disasters. But murder never went out of style . . . Christmas has arrived in sleepy McGill, Georgia, but holiday cheer can't keep temperamental Stella Reid from swinging a rolling pin at anyone who crosses her bad side - and this season, there are plenty. First an anonymous grinch vandalizes a celebrated nativity display. Far worse, the scandalous Prissy Carr is found dead in an alley behind a tavern. With police puzzled over the murder, Stella decides to stir the local gossip pot for clues on the culprit's identity . . . Turns out Prissy held a prominent spot on the naughty list, and suspects pile up like presents on Christmas morning. Unfortunately, the more progress Stella makes, the more fears she must confront. With a neighbor in peril and the futures of her beloved grandchildren at risk, Stella must somehow set everything straight and bring a cunning criminal to justice before December 25th . . .
Every Day Above Ground
By Hamilton, Glen Erik
A favor for a dying ex-con turns into a violent battle against a mysterious enemy for Van Shaw in this emotionally powerful and gritty thriller from the award-winning author of Past Crimes and Hard Cold Winter. It sounds like a thief's dream to Van Shaw: A terminally ill ex-con tells him of an easy fortune in gold, abandoned and nearly forgotten after its original owner died in prison. For the dying man, the money is a legacy to ensure his preteen daughter's future. For Van, the gold is cash he desperately needs to rebuild his destroyed family home. The grandson of a career criminal who taught him all the tricks of his trade, Van suspects that nothing is ever that easy. Sure enough, the safe holding the fortune is a trap--set by a mysterious player armed with tremendous resources and a lifetime of hatred. Now, Shaw's partner is in the clutches of the hunters, and the former army ranger may be their next prey. But when the ex-con's innocent daughter is threatened too, Van's own hard childhood means he can't let her come to harm. To discover who has them in the cross hairs, Shaw must seek out the hunters' real prey. His quest leads him from an underground bare-knuckle fighting ring, which may be fronting a darker purpose, to a massive pop-culture convention, where Van and his allies, Hollis and Corcoran, play a dangerous game with foes on every side. It also introduces Van to a brash and beautiful aspiring journalist who poses a whole different kind of personal risk. For years, Van Shaw has tried to live every day above ground, on the right side of the law, even though crime is his gift . . . and in his blood. If he survives the coming storm, he'll have to decide what he wants--and whether he can live as an outlaw without sacrificing his honor.
Marrow Island
By Smith, Alexis M
What would you give to save the thing you love the most? It has been twenty years since Lucie Bowen left the islands. Twenty years ago, the May Day Quake set loose catastrophic waves along the west coast, from Alaska to California, shattering thousands of lives. Twenty years ago, Lucie's father disappeared in an explosion at the Marrow Island oil refinery, a tragedy that destroyed the island's ecosystem and sent Lucie and her mother to the mainland to start anew. Twenty years ago, Lucie and her best friend, Katie, were just Puget Sound children, tucked up under their desks, hovering under mylar sheets, hoping to survive. Now, Katie writes with strange and miraculous news. Marrow Island is no longer uninhabitable, no longer abandoned. She is part of a community, a mysterious Colony, that has, somehow, conjured life again from Marrow's soil. Lucie returns. Her journalist instincts tell her there's more to the Colony and their charismatic leader - a former nun with an all-consuming plan - than its members want her to know. The island's astonishing rebirth seems to have come at great cost - perhaps to the colonists themselves. As she uncovers their secrets, will Lucie endanger more than their mission? What price will she pay for the truth? I was always a part of you, and you were always a part of me, Katie writes. And in this marvelously spun story Alexis Smith reaches into the depths of our connections to our pasts, our loved ones, our devotions. Our choices may bring us to the brink, but within our promises to each other and our hopes for the future, at the intersection of science and faith and grace, there may well be miracles in the making.