Collection: Mystery, Thrillers, & Crime

"Spellbinding. Another outstanding novel by Kimberly Belle, masterfully written to lure you in and never let go." -- Samantha Downing, USA Today bestselling author of My Lovely Wife

When Charlotte married the wealthy widower Paul, it caused a ripple of gossip in their small lakeside town. They have a charmed life together, despite the cruel whispers about her humble past and his first marriage. But everything starts to unravel when she discovers a young woman's body floating in the exact same spot where Paul's first wife tragically drowned.

At first, it seems like a horrific coincidence, but the stranger in the lake is no stranger. Charlotte saw Paul talking to her the day before, even though Paul tells the police he's never met the woman. His lie exposes cracks in their fragile new marriage, cracks Charlotte is determined to keep from breaking them in two.

As Charlotte uncovers dark mysteries about the man she married, she doesn't know what to trust--her heart, which knows Paul to be a good man, or her growing suspicion that there's something he's hiding in the water.

Don't miss bestselling author Kimberly Belle's next deeply addictive thriller, The Personal Assistant--where she explores the dark side of the digital world when a mommy-blogger's assistant goes missing!

Look for these other pulse-pounding thrillers by Kimberly Belle:

• The Marriage Lie
• The Last Breath
• My Darling Husband
• Three Days Missing
• Dear Wife
• The Ones We Trust

It's Mardi Gras in 1958 New Orleans, and Alex Moreau wants revenge. He doesn't want it. He needs it. He needs it for the death of his mother at his gangster father's hands. He needs it for the half-imprisoned life to which his father's condemned him. He needs it... because that's who he is.So Alex invites Texas gambler Deke Watley to a high stakes Mardi Gras poker game. Deke thinks he's hit the jackpot when his chance to win big collides with a woman he once knew-a woman he wronged-a wrong he's regretted ever since.But it's Alex's game, and he weaves the worst of his troubled past to create an orgy of vengeance, only to find that the other players have scores to settle, too. Amid the noise and the frenzy of the drunken crowds, streamers flying like electric currents, bejeweled costumes glittering, Deke stumbles through this foreign, lurid town, seeking a return to the innocence he turned his back on long ago. However, the time is running out and old debts must be paid before Alex lets Deke-or any other hustler-leave Bourbon Street alive.
From Bourbon Street: "Sometimes the world whispers to you, like too-young flesh too willing. You can almost feel the heat and wet of its tongue on your ear. Some believe it's God himself singling them out. But no god would so debase himself. No god would swivel his hips and moan and gyrate just for you. It's the world. It's the night. The unconscious yowl of a billion souls tramping toward their shocked, pain-wracked ends. Every now and then they swarm. The atmospheric conditions being just right, they join and momentarily rejoice in numbers. Like a demon's hallelujah chorus, imps on an adrenaline rush; like a dust devil dancing on a dry Texas plain. Sometimes it comes your way.
"It's called bad luck."

Dick Adler of Chicago Tribune says: "...New Orleans has long been a streetcar straight to a mystery lover's heart. Now comes a debut book by Leonce Gaiter that deserves a place on that map."
John Broussard of I Love a Mystery says: "Gaiter manages to keep the reader guessing up to the last... a riveting tale of inter-racial hatred and its effects on both blacks and whites."
Kirkus Reviews says: "The ensuing cycle of Mardi Gras violence is set forth in prose by turns as grandiloquent as Faulkner and clipped and stylized to a fare-thee-well."

A priest learns that to serve both his God and mankind, he must betray his faith. In 1995, the gruesome death of Father Alex Shipman, a young Catholic priest who was also the scion of a wealthy, internationally (in)famous political family, leads an investigator to truths the priest uncovered that could shatter-or redeem-the faith of millions. Father Alex Shipman's fall to his gruesome death in a grand, old LA cathedral creates an instant sensation--the talk of every morning news shows coast-to-coast. To fight the suspiciously immediate rumors of suicide from Church officials, Amanda, the Shipman family matriarch, hires a high-profile investigator to find the truth. Sam Youngblood is a Harvard educated black lawyer facing his own crisis of faith as he recovers from the death of his partner. Sam soon discovers that Father Alex Shipman was an uncommon priest. Gay and not celibate, he was devoted to the Faith, while his views on Church doctrine skirted the what many considered the blasphemous. Shipman immersed himself in the discovery and study of ancient biblical texts. Across decades and continents, he had tracked a trove that astounded him. They purported to be the original text of the Book of Mark, to tell the true life of Christ--a blasphemer who played the role of Messiah, though just a man, in a desperate attempt herald the Kingdom on earth as foretold in scripture. It was a Kingdom in which he fervently believed, and one that, having damned his soul to impersonate a God and so do God's will, he would never enter. Alex Shipman believed this new Christ could lead men to a deeper faith, despite smashing to dust all that most Christians held dear. The Church is equally determined that the facts of Shipman's death, and knowledge he searched from Cairo to the Netherlands to uncover, stay buried forever. Sam must discover if they went to ungodly lengths to make that happen.

(*****) "About a quarter of the way in, Leonce Gaiter's novel 'In the Company of Educated Men' takes a significant turn that not only changes the story's trajectory but also turns a fairly standard coming-of-age story into a more interesting tale. The result is a fast-paced read with a nice narrative twist that creates big drama from a series of small coincidences." - Jeff Fleischer, Foreword Reviews

"I can't talk too much about the plot...don't want to give anything away. I can talk about the writing and the voice. Gaiter has a gift. The action ebbs and flows right on cue and explodes when the reader expects it. Put this on your MUST read list!" - Julie Failla Earhart

Ten years after a cross country road trip changed his life unalterably, Lennie Ashland finally tries to understand how everything, from so innocent a motive, went so horribly wrong. Soon after graduating from Harvard at the dawn of the Reagan 80s, Lennie's father died, leaving him wealthy, and lost. Deciding to see the country he called home but knew mainly through his own and others' picture-book visions, he coaxes, cajoles, and bribes his two best college friends, Paul and Louisa, to join him in a cross-country trip-of course in a 70s vintage land yacht car. Through sheer bad luck they interrupt an attempted gas station robbery gone sideways and find themselves with a gun-toting teen in the back of their car, a youth Lennie finds fascinating for many of the wrong reasons, a youth with a gun who wears guileless innocence like clothes. As if the gods themselves were taunting them, they attract a 10-year old stowaway who imagines them a respite from her own domestic hell, and thus a strange family begins to bond, even as fissures mount between the recent graduates about the gravity of, and how to deal with their extraordinary situation. And then it explodes. With the speed residual mess of a bullet, the goal becomes to stay alive. Lennie's life stopped with that trip. Now, revisiting the people and places, he honestly tries to get it back.

In the first full-length novel of the Boystown series, it's late summer 1982 and private detective Nick Nowak is asked to find a retired gentleman's long lost lover. Instead, he finds himself embroiled in a decades old murder connected to the man who wants tobe Chicago's next mayor. Meanwhile, an ambitious young reporter develops a friendship with Nick's lover Bert, making Nick wonder exactly where their relationship may be heading.

The eighth book of the best-selling Boystown Mysteries series begins with a phone call in the middle of the night. Private investigator Nick Nowak is pulled into the troubled world of freelance journalist, and all around pain-in-the-ass, Christian Baylor. When Christian can't stop lying about the corpse in his bathroom things slip slowly out of control. Meanwhile, Nick's relationship with former priest Joseph Biernecki takes an unexpected turn and the Federal case against Jimmy English proceeds toward trial.

It's winter 1984, Private Investigator Nick Nowak has allowed his life to fall to pieces: he's stopped taking cases, given up his apartment and taken a job as a bartender at a sleazy joint tucked under the El. All he wants to do is stay hidden and lick his wounds after the death of his lover, Detective Bert Harker. But, when the least likely person in the world shows up at the bar and asks him to take a new case he finds himself investigating the very un-suspicious heart attack death of a priest. Nick is convinced he's wasting his time until the clues begin to add up to something entirely unsuspected. Finalist for the Lambda Award - Gay Mystery.

Jackie's still adjusting to having a steady boyfriend--not to mention getting used to the fact that Lucas is a death broker/vampire. With the help of his ex-lover Cathryn--whom Jackie doesn't quite trust--they're trying to figure out why Lucas was turned--and by whom.

Jackie's biggest challenge at the moment, though, is creating a winning entry to the annual Perfect Pecan Pie Festival, the premiere food contest in Palm Dunes, Florida. Testing recipes and running her new restaurant are keeping her busy.

But no one's too busy for murder.

When people around local up-and-coming folk singer Crissy Darwin begin turning up dead, Lucas is pulled into the investigation. He and Jackie suspect that Crissy herself is the target. But can they solve the mystery before the killer strikes again--and without ruining the Festival?

Pour yourself a nice glass of Lambrusco, cut a slice of pie and settle in to see what happens.

Best served hot with a side of wicked humor and a glass of Pinot Noir.

Grab a cup of coffee and a diner breakfast. It's time to return to Palm Dunes.

An epic showdown with a tremendous force of evil is looming on the horizon. Jackie and Lucas, along with their small band of friends and fellow Carruthers Institute agents, are on edge as they all await the opening blows in this battle to keep the dreaded Hive from making their terrifying plans for world domination a reality.

But meanwhile, life goes on in Palm Dunes, the Florida retirement community where Jackie and Lucas are the youngest honorary residents. Jackie, who's still getting used to her new life as both a restaurant-owner and secret agent, is also now dealing with a prickly young sous-chef who needs her guidance and help. Lucas is confronted with a series of mysterious deaths, where the victims seem to have nothing in common. Even his role of Death Broker can't help him find the killer.

And their friend and neighbor Mrs. Mac, busy competing in the Ms. Florida Senior Living pageant, just may be the next victim.

End of the world? Who has time?

Kay Corbett is a newly minted vice president at Logan, one of the largest airlines in the world, and she's fallen smack-dab in the middle of a massive plot to swindle the airline's passengers and defraud its investors. There is only one way out. Earn the trust of the ringleader while simultaneously working to bring him down and put an end to his elaborate scheme.

Things get a lot more interesting and a lot more complicated when she becomes entangled with Riley Bauer, the brilliant beauty in Finance. They form an imposing team both in love and in the fight for justice. As they race against the clock, each woman must decide how much they are willing to risk in order to expose the truth.

Lydia Swann is floating on cloud nine. She's secured the highly coveted role of advice columnist at the Washington Post. Landing her dream job not only propels her career but also brings her a step closer to buying a house with her girlfriend.

However, the euphoria is short-lived. Her girlfriend dumps her, and to compound matters, Lydia finds herself grappling with a series of cryptic and ominous letters from a disgruntled reader.

Suddenly single, Lydia embarks on a quest to answer a pressing question: How can she elevate herself to prime girlfriend material? But just as she delves into matters of the heart, a more sinister challenge arises. Could the mysterious letters she receives at the Post hold the key to unmasking the serial killer haunting Washington, DC?

In a race against time, Lydia must decipher the messages before she becomes the target of the murderer's wrath.

In a gripping tale of love, mystery, and danger, Lydia Swann must navigate the complexities of her personal life and unveil the truth that could save her from the clutches of a relentless killer.

Wen Apollo dreams of seeing the world beyond the small riverside town where she grew up. But operating the local mailboat keeps her tethered to Coopersville. Islands dot the river, and their residents rely on her to deliver everything from food and medicine to pet food and plumbing supplies.

On a raw spring day, Wen goes to Owl Island--the summer home of the illustrious Gage family--to deliver a package. It's addressed to the family's oldest daughter, Estelle, a woman Wen has long admired from afar.

Estelle Gage fled to the islands seeking solitude and an escape. With the deadline for her latest novel fast approaching, her sole focus is to write. But when the handsome mailboat captain shows up on her doorstep, writing is no longer the only thing on her mind.

A steady stream of packages continues to bring Wen back to Owl Island--and to Estelle. But as summer looms, so does the impending arrival of Estelle's family. The return of the Gages will most certainly spell the end to Estelle and Wen's idyllic time cloistered together on the island. What will that mean for their budding relationship?

After a Mercedes rear-ends Wallace Mahar, her annoyance evaporates the moment the offending driver steps out of the car. Much to her dismay, the stunning woman hands her $10,000. Then disappears.

Ellen Church hoped throwing money at the woman she rear-ended would make her go away, but when she sees her at a bar, she realizes Wallace may be a bigger complication than she first thought. Ellen doesn't have time for relationships, even if she is attracted to the cute swim coach. She has her eyes on a bigger prize--a Warhol painting with something very special hidden in the frame.

Reformed art thief Mattie Pearson is trying to live on the straight and narrow. After their failed heist at the Schuyler House, she married Alex Holland and the two women couldn't be happier. But when Mattie's old friend Ellen shows up with a big-payday proposal, the lure of her old life proves too strong to resist.

The Warhol job draws Wallace deep into the world of female art thieves, and even deeper into the dangers of romance with a woman who steals art--and hearts--for a living.