Becky Masterman – författare

" A gripping premise, brilliantly executed—you won’t be able to put this one down!" — Shari Lapena, New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next DoorIn 1959, a family of four were brutally murdered in Holcomb, Kansas. Perry Smith and Dick Hickok were convicted and executed for the crime, and the murders and their investigation and solution became the subject of Truman Capote''s masterpiece, In Cold Blood. But what if there was a third killer, who remained unknown? What if there was another family, also murdered, who crossed paths with this band of killers, though their murder remains unsolved? And what if Dick Hickok left a written confession, explaining everything?Retired FBI agent Brigid Quinn and her husband Carlo, a former priest and university professor, are trying to enjoy each other in this new stage in their lives. But a memento from Carlo''s days as a prison chaplain--a handwritten document hidden away undetected in a box of Carlo''s old things--has become a target for a man on the run from his past. Jerry Beaufort has just been released from prison after decades behind bars, and though he''d like to get on with living the rest of his life, he knows that somewhere there is a written record of the time he spent with two killers in 1959. Following the path of this letter will bring Jerry into contact with the last person he''ll see as a threat: Brigid Quinn.Becky Masterman''s unpausable thrillers featuring unique heroine Brigid Quinn continue with this fascinating alternative look at one of America''s most famous crimes.

Old Case. New Rules... An utterly compelling crime debut, shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger and longlisted for the CWA John Creasey Dagger 2013After a long and murky career with the FBI, Brigid Quinn is trying to move on. She''s got a nice house. Dogs. A husband who knows nothing of her past. But the abduction and murder of a young female colleague still haunts her.So when the girl''s body is finally found, and a man confesses to the murder, Brigid is desperate for answers. Yet the more she learns, the more convinced she is that they have the wrong man. Following leads that the Bureau ignored, she''s propelled straight into the path of a ruthless serial killer. One who has evaded the law for decades, and will stop at nothing to keep her quiet...But Brigid Quinn is a woman to be reckoned with.

Brigid Quinn has been shot at, stabbed in the spleen with a nail file and used as serial-killer bait. But she''s always been able to trust her instincts and her FBI-training to help her out of danger.Now, retired from the Bureau and investigating the tragic death of a neighbour''s teenage son, Brigid starts to suffer unexplained bouts of paranoia, hallucination and memory loss. And for the first time in her life, she feels vulnerable.But with a mass poisoning at the church, a dead man found in town and a grieving family convinced their son''s death wasn''t an accident, Brigid needs to put the pieces together - fast. Because evil has entered her life once more, and it''s much closer than she thinks . . .

''Wow! Chilling, smart, funny, and what a voice she has'' Gillian Flynn''A twisting, high-stakes story . . . Brilliant'' Shari Lapena, author of The Couple Next DoorFormer FBI agent Brigid Quinn has seen it all, and survived. But nothing can cut her closer to the bone than family... When her father falls ill, Brigid returns to Florida. There, she meets up with former colleague Laura Coleman. Laura once saved Brigid''s life, but now is working on an ''innocence project'', investigating cold cases, and one in particular has caught her attention. Marcus Creighton was convicted of murdering his family fifteen years before, and has been sentenced to death. Worried that her friend is getting in too deep, and that there is more to this case than meets the eye, Brigid promises to help. But what if her instincts are betraying her?

In 1959, The Walker family murders shook Florida. As many as 587 people were considered suspects - but 60 years on the investigation remains unsolved. Former FBI agent Brigid Quinn has been obsessed with the Walker case since she was a child. She believes it holds striking similarities to another high profile investigation of the time: the Clutter family murders, made infamous by Truman Capote''s In Cold Blood. What if Perry Smith and Dick Hickock - executed for those murders - had killed again?And what if there was a third killer, who remained unknown? Jerry Beaufort has just been released from prison after decades behind bars, and though he''d like to get on with living the rest of his life, he knows that somewhere there is a written record of the time he spent with two killers in 1959. But following the path of this letter will bring Jerry into contact with the last person he''ll see as a threat: Brigid Quinn.

You have never met an (ex) FBI agent like Brigid Quinn "Keeping secrets, telling lies, they require the same skill. Both become a habit, almost an addiction, that''s hard to break even with the people closest to you, out of the business. For example, they say never trust a woman who tells you her age; if she can''t keep that secret, she can''t keep yours. I''m fifty-nine."Brigid Quinn''s experiences in hunting sexual predators for the FBI have left her with memories she wishes she didn''t have and lethal skills she hopes never to need again. Having been pushed into early retirement by events she thinks she''s put firmly behind her, Brigid keeps telling herself she is settling down nicely in Tucson with a wonderful new husband, Carlo, and their dogs. But the past intervenes when a man named Floyd Lynch confesses to the worst unsolved case of Brigid''s career—the disappearance and presumed murder of her young protégée, Jessica. Floyd knows things about that terrible night that were never made public, and offers to lead the cops to Jessica''s body in return for a plea bargain. It should finally be the end of a dark chapter in Brigid''s life. Except…the new FBI agent on the case, Laura Coleman, thinks the confession is fake, and Brigid finds she cannot walk away from violence and retribution after all, no matter what the cost.With a fiercely original and compelling voice, Becky Masterman''s Rage Against the Dying marks the heart-stopping debut of a brilliant new thriller writer.

It''s hard to recognize the devil when his hand is on your shoulder. That''s because a psychopath is just a person before he becomes a headline….Psychopaths have preferences for Starbucks or Dunkin'' Donuts coffee, denim or linen, Dickens or…well, you get the point.Ex-FBI agent Brigid Quinn has seen more than her share of psychopaths. She is ready to put all that behind her, building a new life in Tucson with a husband, friends, and some nice quiet work as a private investigator. Sure, she could still kill a man half her age, but she now gets her martial arts practice by teaching self-defense at a women''s shelter.But sometimes it isn''t that simple. When her sister-in-law dies, Brigid take in her seventeen-year-old niece, Gemma Kate. There has always been something unsettling about Gemma-Kate, but family is family. Which is fine, until Gemma-Kate starts taking an unhealthy interest in dissecting the local wildlife. Meanwhile, Brigid agrees to help a local couple by investigating the death of their son—which also turns out not to be that simple. Her house isn''t the sanctuary it used to be, and new dangers—including murder—seem to lurk everywhere. Brigid starts to wonder if there is anyone she can trust, or if the devil has simply moved closer to home. Becky Masterman''s Fear the Darkness is the masterful follow-up to the Edgar Award and CWA Gold Dagger finalist Rage Against the Dying.

"A crime novel that transcends the genre—a twisting, high-stakes story with characters so real and so recognizably human, that it breaks your heart a little. Brilliant."-Shari Lapena, author of the New York Times bestseller The Couple Next DoorEx-FBI agent Brigid Quinn, now happily settled in Tucson, doesn’t visit her family in Florida much. But her former partner on the force, Laura Coleman—a woman whose life she has saved and who has saved her life in turn—is living there now. So when Laura calls about a case that is not going well, Brigid doesn’t hesitate to get on a plane.On leave from the Bureau, Laura has been volunteering for a legal group trying to prove the innocence of a man who is on death row for killing his family. Laura is firmly convinced that he didn’t do it, while Brigid isn’t so sure—but the date for his execution is coming up so quickly that they’ll have to act fast to find any evidence that may absolve him before it’s too late…Edgar Award and CWA Gold Dagger finalist Becky Masterman’s third Brigid Quinn audiobook is the masterful follow-up to Fear the Darkness and Rage Against the Dying.

Think moving in with your mother-in-law is your worst nightmare? You have no idea . . . A jaw-dropping novel of domestic suspense from the author of the critically acclaimed Brigid Quinn series"Chilling, smart . . . and what a voice" Gillian Flynn on Rage Against the Dying"A thriller that must be read" Lisa Gardner on Rage Against the DyingDon't let them know what you're thinking, Althea Deming tells herself. It's your best defense. Althea didn't want her good natured but thoughtless step-son Hal and manipulative daughter-in-law Grace to move in with her, relegating her to a corner of the house that was once just hers, but she doesn't have much choice. She's been powerless since her beloved husband Robert's death. According to the will, everything that was hers now belongs to Hal - and to Grace. Grace Deming didn't want to uproot her family to care for her difficult mother-in-law, but she's determined to make the best of it for the sake of her daughter Shyla's future. Their new home is enormous, the neighborhood prestigious. If the worst of it is that Althea dislikes her, she can cope.After all, Althea Deming is a sweetheart. Everyone says so. Her husband. The neighbors. And soon, so does Shyla, the once vibrant and happy child now a shadow of her former self. What's wrong with Grace that she can't trust her? But all her instincts are screaming at her that Althea is dangerous, and if she doesn't fight to protect her family from her malign influence, she'll live to regret it . . .

From the award-winning author of the internationally-bestselling Brigid Quinn thrillers, which have been translated into twenty languages, comes this gripping series spin-off: an upmarket novel of domestic suspense about a pair of sisters nicknamed Malice and Lethal, and a husband who vanishes into thin air, only to reappear and throw a bomb into both their livesAlice Einstein - known as "Malice" to her former schoolfriends - likes to tell herself stories. There's a good one she's workshopping about how, despite once being a critically acclaimed literary novelist, she's ended up blocked and uninspired, living in her timid, conflict-averse sister Liesl's spare room.

But then Liesl sends her an SOS worthy of a thriller novel. The horror! The horror! Sam is back.

Sam, Liesl's wealthy ex-husband, vanished ten years ago, leaving her a chunk of money but no explanation. Sam is handsome, charming, manipulative . . . and now he claims he's sick. But Alice, with her experience of spinning tales, knows a liar when she sees one.

Haunted by a childhood tragedy that gave birth to the cruel nickname "Lethal", Liesl now specialises in saving things: dogs, children, sisters. Telling herself it's time she returned the favor, Alice engages the services of Brigid Quinn, a hardboiled local private investigator with a shady past, to help her get rid of Sam for good.

But as the plot thickens, Alice begins to wonder if she knows anyone involved - most of all herself - quite as well as she thinks . . .Packed with quirky, colorful characters, and with a nail-biting, slowburn plot, Her Prodigal Husband is a nail-biting novel of domestic suspense that raises thought-provoking questions about self-deception, the power of stories, and what it means to be a family, and marks the long-awaited return of Brigid Quinn, "one of the most memorable FBI agents since Clarice Starling" (Publishers Weekly).

Think moving in with your mother-in-law is your worst nightmare? You have no idea . . . A jaw-dropping novel of domestic suspense from the author of the critically acclaimed Brigid Quinn series"Chilling, smart . . . and what a voice" Gillian Flynn on Rage Against the Dying"A thriller that must be read" Lisa Gardner on Rage Against the DyingDon't let them know what you're thinking, Althea Deming tells herself. It's your best defense. Althea didn't want her good natured but thoughtless step-son Hal and manipulative daughter-in-law Grace to move in with her, relegating her to a corner of the house that was once just hers, but she doesn't have much choice. She's been powerless since her beloved husband Robert's death. According to the will, everything that was hers now belongs to Hal - and to Grace. Grace Deming didn't want to uproot her family to care for her difficult mother-in-law, but she's determined to make the best of it for the sake of her daughter Shyla's future. Their new home is enormous, the neighborhood prestigious. If the worst of it is that Althea dislikes her, she can cope.After all, Althea Deming is a sweetheart. Everyone says so. Her husband. The neighbors. And soon, so does Shyla, the once vibrant and happy child now a shadow of her former self. What's wrong with Grace that she can't trust her? But all her instincts are screaming at her that Althea is dangerous, and if she doesn't fight to protect her family from her malign influence, she'll live to regret it . . .

Think moving in with your mother-in-law is your worst nightmare? You have no idea . . . A jaw-dropping novel of domestic suspense from the author of the critically acclaimed Brigid Quinn series"Chilling, smart . . . and what a voice" Gillian Flynn on Rage Against the Dying"A thriller that must be read" Lisa Gardner on Rage Against the DyingDon't let them know what you're thinking, Althea Deming tells herself. It's your best defense. Althea didn't want her good natured but thoughtless step-son Hal and manipulative daughter-in-law Grace to move in with her, relegating her to a corner of the house that was once just hers, but she doesn't have much choice. She's been powerless since her beloved husband Robert's death. According to the will, everything that was hers now belongs to Hal - and to Grace. Grace Deming didn't want to uproot her family to care for her difficult mother-in-law, but she's determined to make the best of it for the sake of her daughter Shyla's future. Their new home is enormous, the neighborhood prestigious. If the worst of it is that Althea dislikes her, she can cope.After all, Althea Deming is a sweetheart. Everyone says so. Her husband. The neighbors. And soon, so does Shyla, the once vibrant and happy child now a shadow of her former self. What's wrong with Grace that she can't trust her? But all her instincts are screaming at her that Althea is dangerous, and if she doesn't fight to protect her family from her malign influence, she'll live to regret it . . .

"Chilling, smart . . . and what a voice"-Gillian Flynn The hunt for a neighbor's killer . . . reveals chilling secrets close to home. Former FBI agent Brigid Quinn hasn't forgiven herself for the testimony that led to young mother Nicole Gleason being convicted for the manslaughter of her abusive husband.Now out of jail early on parole, Nicole is living in a group home for felons in Brigid's Arizona neighborhood. But while Brigid hopes to make amends with Nicole, not everyone in the community is happy to have criminals on their doorstep.When outspoken local resident Dorita Gordino is grotesquely murdered, suspicion soon falls on Nicole. Brigid is determined to catch Dorita's killer and prove Nicole's innocence-even if it means one of her own darkest secrets comes to light . . .This addictively dark thriller featuring Brigid Quinn, "one of the most memorable FBI agents since Clarice Starling" (Publishers Weekly), is perfect for fans of Gillian Flynn, Lisa Gardner, Lisa Jewell, and Tess Gerritsen.

"Chilling, smart . . . and what a voice"-Gillian Flynn The hunt for a neighbor’s killer . . . reveals chilling secrets close to home. Former FBI agent Brigid Quinn hasn’t forgiven herself for the testimony that led to young mother Nicole Gleason being convicted of the manslaughter of her abusive husband.Now out of jail early on parole, Nicole is living in a group home for felons in Brigid’s Arizona neighborhood. But while Brigid hopes to make amends with Nicole, not everyone in the community is happy to have criminals on their doorstep.When outspoken local resident Dorita Gordino is grotesquely murdered, suspicion soon falls on Nicole. Brigid is determined to catch Dorita’s killer and prove Nicole’s innocence—even if it means one of her own darkest secrets comes to light . . .This addictively dark thriller featuring Brigid Quinn, “one of the most memorable FBI agents since Clarice Starling” (Publishers Weekly), is perfect for fans of Gillian Flynn, Lisa Gardner, Lisa Jewell, and Tess Gerritsen.