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Inspector Ian Rutledge of Scotland Yard travels to England's windswept coastline to investigate a murder in a place where, several years after the end of WWI, the memory of the war still runs strong . . .July, 1921: England is suffering a heatwave and the coast of Northumberland, just across the border from Scotland, is filled with holiday-makers bird watching and enjoying the beaches. Pilgrims also come to visit the home of Saints Cuthbert and Aidenthe founders of Christianity in Englandlocated on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, accessible by a causeway at low tide. When the murdered body of a local man washes ashore just south of Lindisfarne, the government and the Church of England are concerned about protecting both the reputation of the Church and the sacred sites that are a destination for hundreds of pilgrims at this time of year. With his ability to move in the highest social and political circles, Rutledge is sent by Scotland Yard to solve this crime and dispel any association with the Church. Upon arrival, Rutledge finds himself pulled between two coastal fishing villages, scarred by home front battles and coastal bombardment from the German Navy, where animosity towards Germany still runs high even years after the war. This, combined with a constabulary in the process of being consolidated to form a countywide police force, with local militias still wielding a great deal of power, means Rutledge must tread with care. Facing a puzzling case and a cast of locals that dont take kindly to outsiders, the newly promoted Rutledge meets one of the most challenging cases of his career. To solve it, hell also have to confront his own demons left over from his time in the war.

A true crime podcaster unwraps a bookseller's dark past in this chilling holiday mystery from "a master" (Booklist).Madeline Martin has built a life for herself as the young owner of a thriving business, The Next Chapter Bookshop, despite her tragic childhood and now needing to care for her infirm father. When Harley Granger, a failed novelist turned true crime podcaster, drifts into her shop in the days before Christmas, he seems intent on digging up events that Madeline would much rather forget. She's the only surviving victim of Evan Handy, the man who was convicted of murdering her best friend Steph, and is suspected in the disappearance of two sisters, also good friends of Madeline's, who have been missing for nearly a decade. It's an investigation that has obsessed her father Sheriff James Martin right up until his stroke took his faculties. Harley Granger has a gift for seeing things that others miss. He wasn't much of a novelist, but his work as a true crime author and podcaster has earned him fame and wealthand some serious criticism for his various unethical practices. Still, visiting Little Valley to be closer to his dying father has caused him to look into a case that many people think is closedand some want reopened. And he has a lot of questions about the night Stephanie Cramer was killed, Ainsley and Sam Wallace disappeared, and Madeline Martin was left for dead, bleeding out on a riverbank. Since Evan Handy went to jail, three other young women have gone missing, most recently a young college dropout named Lolly. Five young women missing in the same area in a decade. Are they connected? Was Evan Handy innocent after all? Or was there some else there that night? Someone who is still satisfying his dark appetites?As Christmas approaches and a blizzard bears down, Madeline and her childhood friend Badger return to a past they both hoped was deadto find the missing Lolly and to answer questions that have haunted them both, discovering that the truth is more terrible and much closer to home than they think.Coupling a picturesque, cozy setting with a deeply unsettling suspenseful plot, Christmas Presents is a chilling seasonal novella that can be enjoyed all year long.

Jane Whitefield is used to protecting vulnerable people, but after she gives birth, the fugitives she must rescue are her own family.A violent car crash brings on the premature birth of the baby that Jane Whitefield and her husband have hoped for, but it also shatters the period of calm in their lives like an earthquake triggering a tectonic shift. Within weeks, Janes peaceful time as a new mother in a safe, harmonious home starts to revert to her harrowing previous life. She had spent over a decade rescuing and sheltering people from dangerous foes, taking them to new locations, and teaching them to live under new identities. It was something that shed hoped to never have to do again. Nearly simultaneously, as though the events were connected, people who are thousands of miles apart in vastly different circumstances start to move. Some of them are in terrible need of help finding a route to safety. Some are dedicated to serving justice. Others are determined to capture the woman who makes people disappear so they can force her to reveal where their potential victims are now. All of these travelers are soon on their way to the old house in western New York. Suddenly the people requiring Janes special skills include not only multiple fugitives, but also Jane herself, her husband, and their newborn, as the danger she faces comes from people who know how to find her. Shell need to use everything shes ever learned in order to survive.

One of Parade's Most Anticipated Books of 2022!A secret agent comes of ageand reckons with the legacy of his first missionin this thriller by New York Times-bestseller Charles Cumming, "the best of the new generation of British spy writers" (The Observer)Lachlan Kite is a member of BOX 88, an elite transatlantic black ops outfit so covert that not even MI6 and the CIA are certain of its existence but even the best spy can't anticipate every potential threat in a world where dangerous actors lurk around every corner. At the funeral of his childhood best friend, Lachlan falls into a trap that drops him into the hands of a potentially deadly interrogation, with his pregnant wife, also abducted, being held as collateral for the information he's sworn on his own life to protect.Thirty years earlier Lachlan, then just out of the upper class boarding school where he was reared, was BOX 88's newest recruit. In the haze of a gap year summer, in which the study of spycraft was intertwined with a journey of self-discovery, he cut his teeth on a special assignment on the coast of France, where a friendship allowed him special access to one of Iran's most dangerous men. Today, Lachlan's nostalgia for the trip is corrupted by recollection of the deceit that accompanied it but, in order to save his family, he'll be forced to revisit those painful memories one last time.A pulse-pounding narrative that straddles two eras 1989 and 2020 BOX 88 is a "wonderfully taut, exciting and up-to-date spy thriller" that introduces a compelling new character and a captivating international storyline (Spectator, Books of the Year).

The world's greatest thriller writers prove they're up to a unique challenge in this action-packed collection.It all started with a simple, yet sneakily difficult challenge from global best-selling author Harlan Coben: Pick a bird of prey, then use it as the inspiration for a brand-new story. The response from some of the best writers on the planet: Game on! The result: Eleven stories that are twisty, scary, surprising, and bursting with imagination. An egg worth more than its weight in gold. A mysterious operative known only as Owl. An eagle-watcher who sees more than she should. Even a story that somehow places the Maltese Falcon in a nursing home. Contributors include: Tess Gerritsen C.J. Box Kathy Reichs Ace Atkins Heather Graham S.A. Cosby Hank Phillippi Ryan Robert Dugoni Allison Brennan Gregg Hurwitz Kelley Armstrong Commissioned by International Thriller Writers, Birds of Prey is a highly bingeable anthology that's a treat for thriller fans.

A deadly and mysterious case pushes a Swedish detective squad to its limit in this novel from a very exciting new voice from the north (Ragnar Jonasson).Dawn, Stockholm's Hammarby neighborhood. A naked young woman is spotted by the side of the road. Later, she shows up outside piano technician John Gideon's apartment, unable to tell anyone who she is or what has happened to her. The neighbors tell stories of girlsdozens of themthat have walked in and out of his place for several years. And John Gideon is not opening his door. An already-puzzling case for Hammarby detective Conny Sjberg and his team soon becomes even more intricate with a fatal assault and the discovery of a dead infant. And as the tension mounts, the cracks within the force begin to show. With his colleagues' long-festering conflicts and long-buried secrets rising to the fore, Conny Sjberg struggles to stay neutral and close the case before it destroys the department. A dark, complex tale told from multiple perspectives, Gideon's Ring blends gripping psychological suspense with a tense procedural plot. It is the fifth novel in the acclaimed internationally bestselling Hammarby series, which can be read in any order.

A thief finds she cannot outrun her past in this standalone thriller from one of Australias most esteemed crime authors.Grace is a thiefa good one. She was taught by experts and shes been practising since she was a kid, specializing in small, high-value items like stamps and watches. But its a solitary life, always watchful, always moving. Its not the life she wants. Then a run-in with an old associate forces her to lie low in a small rural town, where she happens across an antiques shop. The owner Erin is timid but friendly, and has a room to rent. And Grace glimpses a different life, and perhaps a home. But there are dangerous men watching her, and Grace should know better than to let her guard slip. Because no matter how far she runs, her past is always just a few steps behind. . .

In this thrilling espionage fiction debut, an American journalist in Ghana is pulled into a dangerous struggle for control of the world's fiber optic cables.Journalist Danielle Dani Moreau has spent a lifetime trying to outrun the privilege she was born into. Fresh off a personal tragedy, she lands in Ghana to uncover corruption in the local oil industry. But when she crosses paths with James Aidoo, an idealistic young Ghanaian whose father is a local populist politician, Dani remembers what drew her to journalism in the first place: you go looking for a story, but when the real story appears, its never the one you expected. Dani soon finds herself chasing a scoop that involves an American operative with a violent past, a Ghanaian double agent, and a fight between the United States and China over one of the worlds most dangerous and least-known technologies: fiber optic cables. Underwater tubes as thick as a garden hose, the cables snake along the seafloor carrying the worlds information at the speed of light from one continent to another, and the fight to control them is increasingly visible on the worlds front pages. Amidst this world-changing struggle, Dani and her new associates will be forced to make deadly choices that impact each other and their own lives in ways nobody expects. A twisty double-cross narrative, The Silver Fish opens with a spy operation going horrifically off course and takes the reader sprinting through crowded markets, darkened bars, bustling ports, and steaming jungle on the way to a startling conclusion. It will leave the reader shocked, moved, better-informedand eagerly awaiting the next chapter in the story.

A grieving archivist uncovers a strange connection between recent disappearances and a small New York town's history of witch trials in this new thriller from the author of The Bequest.Reeling from the dual deaths of her estranged father and ex-fianc, Genevieve Tompkins has dropped out of her PhD program in New York City and is looking for a chance to start over in Wilton Springs, a faded Victorian spa town in upstate New York. Utilizing her background as an archivist, she is hired to catalogue the papers of the prominent Wilton family, who trace their lineage back to the founders of the town. But as she digs into their records, Genevieve discovers that the familys pharmaceutical business and their personal lives have been fraught with a history of tragedy. She also uncovers a series of disturbing disappearances and suspicious deaths among the women of the town. Three centuries earlier, Wilton Springs was the site of a brutal witch triala fact which someone has gone to extreme lengths to erase from historical record. As Genevieve explores the connections between the modern disappearances and the towns ugly past, she becomes entangled in a web of conspiracy, where the line between superstition and reality begins to blur, and she fears she may become the next woman to go missing from Wilton Springs. . . Blending elements of Gothic fiction and folk horror, The Daughters is a literary thriller that will keep readers guessing how the mysteries of the distant past may reverberate and resurface in the sinister and atmospheric present.

Freelance courier Mercury Carter races against time and across New England to rescue a trafficking victim in this new thriller from the author of The Mailman.Merc Carter is not your typical deliveryman. A former postal inspector, he specializes in moving sensitive or dangerous packagesof all sortsfrom point A to B. And sometimes he needs his gun to do so. Carter's current mission leads him to Providence, Rhode Island, but his delivery is interrupted when he comes across a woman badly injured in a car wreck in the pouring rain. Then a man with a gun appears warning Carter away from the scene and Carter leaps into action, disarming the attacker and rescuing the crash victim.Just as Carter thinks the danger has passed, he discovers a deeper mystery stemming from the crash, a deadly puzzle involving a memorable pair of grifters, a crooked ex-cop, stolen identities, human trafficking, and murder. And it appears that Carter's next assignment will put him right in this conspiracy's perilous center . . . The follow-up to last year's acclaimed hit, The Mailman, which launched the Mercury Carter series, The Delivery is a fast-paced, unpredictable thriller following a memorable protagonist whose resourcefulness is matched only by his quick wit and determination to never miss a delivery.

In the newest entry in Charles Cumming's bestselling BOX 88 series, master spy Lachlan Kite heads to Athens, Greece, after an old flame asks for help locating her missing son.Max Radinsky thought he was living the perfect life in Athens. But when his girlfriend, Yasmine, is forced to flee the city, Max joins her on a desperate journey across Greece. What begins as an escape becomes a fight for survival as the young couple are targeted by an international manhunt. Untrained and living off their wits, they know their luck wont last forever. Lachlan Kite, head of covert intelligence service BOX 88, hadnt seen his former lover, Martha Raine, for more than twenty years. But when Martha reaches out to beg for his help in finding her missing son, Kite has no choice but to act. What they uncover is worse than either could have imagined. Yasmine is carrying a secret which could destabilize the Middle East for a generationand a team of merciless Israeli intelligence agents have been given orders to kill her on sight. To save Maxand stop a global crisisKite and Martha must reach the young couple before their pursuers close in. A thrilling, complex tale, the depth of which is matched by its page-turning suspense, Icarus 17 once again proves Charles Cumming to be one of the greatest writers of the modern day spy novel.

Stewart Hoag and his new bride dive into married life with the discovery of a murdered millionaire in this mystery from early in the crime-solving career of the author-sleuth.January 1983: Stewart ';Hoagy' Hoag is getting married to the love of his life Merilee at New York City Hall. Hoagy's college chum, Ezra Spooner, stands up for him. Merilee's lovely cousin, Phoebe, stands up for her. And their young basset hound Lulu stands up for both of them. After they say ';I do' and pop open the Dom Perignon, Phoebe somberly announces that she and her husband, the legendary adventurer and old money multi-millionaire Junior Singleton, are now officially divorced. Junior leads what most men would consider a dream life. He has climbed Mount Everest twice, captained his yacht to an America's Cup victory, raced Formula One Ferraris in Europe, surfed the most dangerous Maui waves, and slept with as many women as he chose to despite being married to sweet and gentle Phoebe, who works as a music teacher and plays violin in a chamber music quartet. The pair could not be more different, and most of their friends predicted the marriage wouldn't last. They were right. Phoebe is done putting up with Junior's constant absence and compulsive philandering. She's not even asking for much of his fortune in the divorcejust $1 million and their gorgeous townhouse in the East Sixties, which she intends to sell. In fact, she'd love to sell it to Hoagy and Merilee. The newlyweds agree to tour the home and find that it's almost exactly what they're looking for: There's a fabulous gourmet kitchen, a paneled office where Hoagy can write, a garden where Lulu can romp, a luxurious master suite with his and hers dressing rooms. The only drawbackand it's a mighty big oneis that they find Junior dead on the floor of his dressing room with a rosewood handled Claude Dozorme steak knife plunged into his left eyeball. Who would want to kill Junior Singleton? Plenty of people, as it turns out. Junior's autopsy reveals that he was HIV-positive, which means any of the women with whom he had unprotected sex have been exposed to the deadly AIDS virusincluding the hot-shot realtor Siena Bing who was supposed to be helping them sell the house. And that's just the start of the suspect list. As the NYPD's top Homicide Lieutenant, Meyer Golden, pursues the case he finds it unfolding in several different directions, and Hoagy, who possesses not only amazing insights into the criminal mind but also a gifted short-legged partner, gets drawn deeper and deeper into the fascinating and utterly bizarre world of New York City's elite.

A tenacious attorney grapples with a dangerous group of thieves in this new thriller from the author of The Old Man.Charles Warren, Los Angeles attorney, has dedicated his career to aiding people in financial straits. He is particularly skilled at the art of recovering assets that have been embezzled or hidden. In his newest case, helping a beautiful young widow find the money missing from her late husband's investment accounts, Charlie recognizes a familiar schemeone that echoes the con job that targeted his own widowed mother many years before, and that led him, as a teenager, to commit a crime of retribution that still weighs on his conscience. Charlie can't get the present case out of his mind, but within hours of starting his investigation, he is followed, shot at, and has his briefcase stolen. It's clear that someone doesn't want him following the trail of the missing money but, as Charlie continues to pursue answers, he quickly becomes too entangled in the web of fraud, betrayal, and career criminals surrounding the theft to escape its deadly snare. A nail-biting tale of conspiracy and pursuit from Thomas Perry, ';a dominating force in the world of contemporary suspense thrillers' (Publishers Weekly), Pro Bono will have readers looking over their shoulders as constantly as they keep turning pages.

Library Journal Mystery Pick of the MonthIn a new thriller from the author of The End of the Road, a former postal inspection agent tracks a violent crew through the Midwest to rescue a kidnapped woman.Mercury Carter is a delivery man and he takes his job very seriously. When a parcel is under his care, he will stop at nothing to deliver it directly to its intended recipient. Not even, as in the current case, when he finds a crew of violent men at the indicated address that threaten his life and take the woman who lives there hostage. Thats because Carter has special skills from his former life as a federal agent with the postal inspection service, skills that make him particularly useful for delivering items in circumstances as dangerous as these. After Carter dispatches the goons sent to kill him, he enters a home besieged by criminalsbut the leader of the gang escapes with attorney Rachel Stanfield before the mailman can complete his assignment. With Rachels husband Glenn in tow, Carter takes off in pursuit of the kidnapper and his quarry, hunting them across Indiana, up to Chicago, and into small-town Illinois. Along the way, he slowly picks off members of the crew and uncovers a far-reaching conspiracy and a powerful crime syndicate, all in service of his main objective: to hand the package over to Rachel. Carter has never missed a delivery and isnt about to start now. Introducing a new lone-wolf protagonist to rival Lee Childs Jack Reacher, Steve Hamiltons Nick Mason, and Gregg Hurwitzs Evan Smoak, The Mailman is a pulse-pounding series opener with captivating action and enough thrills to leave readers anxiously awaiting the next installment.

A secretive vigilante group called Edge cleanses Galway of its worst criminals. But when someone starts picking off Edge members, private detective Jack Taylor steps in to investigate.Edge, a shadow organization made up of the most powerful figures in Galway society, exists to rid the city of criminals and abusers who have evaded the law. Long wary of the organization, the Vatican is not pleased when rumors start swirling that one of the Catholic Churchs own priests has joined its ranks. And who better to ask to intercede than the whiskey-swigging ex-cop who always seems to have one foot in the pub and another among Irelands clergy? Lately, Jack has been spending his days sitting at the bedside of a man he put into a coma and taking care of a little dog named Trip, bequeathed to him by a dead nun. Then an envoy to the Archdiocese shows up at his door, asking Jack to go speak to a priest named Kevin Whelan and dissuade him from any involvement with Edge. Jack accepts the mission, but the next day Father Whelan is found dead, hanging from a rope in his own backyard. Would Edge really kill one of their own? And if not, who else would be bold enough to take on the most powerful organization in the city? As more Edge members are murdered, the Vatican grows alarmed that someone even worse will take their place. Its up to Jack Taylor to nail the culprit before Edge is dissolved completely and Galway is thrown into chaos.

After a traumatic brain injury alters a curmudgeonly psychiatrist's mindleaving him agitated and confused but obsessively observanthe enlists his reluctant son to help investigate a colleague's mysterious suicide . . .Twenty-three-year-old Lukas Moore has returned to his hometown of Faith, New York, and left his burgeoning acting career behind to care for his father. Dr. Richard Moore is a psychiatrist known for being nearly as misanthropic as he is brilliant, but a recent traumatic brain injury has left him dependent on his begrudgingly attentive son and has changed his worldview in unexpected ways. Attuned to the slightest detail, Dr. Moore now sees mysteries where other people see settled factsnowhere more so than in the disappearance of his former colleague and neighbor Dr. Jason Grant. One year ago, Jason's shoes, watch, and car were found beside a nearby lake and no trace of him has been found since. The obvious conclusion was suicide, despite Jason's youth, wealth, and successful career as a child psychiatrist. Only two people question his fate: Richard, obsessed with fragments of memory, and Misty, Jason's younger sister and Lukas's high school girlfriend. When Misty asks for the Moores' help in finding out what really happened to her brother, Lukas takes the chance to resolve his father's obsession and to reconnect with someone he may still have feelings for. As Lukas, Richard, and Misty are drawn into the puzzle, however, they are forced to confront the secrets behind both Jason's disappearance and Richard's injury. Sometimes the deepest mysteries are found in the people we think we know best.

An Oprah Daily Best Book of Summer 2026 A failed professor solves a murder on campus in this new whodunit from bestselling author Amy Bloom.The case of the bludgeoned lecturer has all of Cromwell University reeling, even though the elderly Professor Bullfinch wasnt particularly well-liked. His ornery nature and Old World approach to campus politics ruffled more than a few feathers over the years, and present tensions within his department mean there are more suspects than mourners in the wake of his death. And the murder weapona bronze bust of Nathaniel Hawthornedoes seem to indicate that the attack may have been academically motivated Enter Dell Chandler, the failed English professor turned self-taught private detective whom Dr. Cutty calls in to investigate the crime. She has the background to tease out the motives among the staff and just enough experience to conduct a thorough inquiry. If she solves the case before the cops do, the university could keep the whole thing quiet, avoiding sensational media about the dark side of campus life. But to do so, shell have to dodge her own demons from her past life as a disgraced academic. Written with the same depth of character and insight that readers have come to expect from author Amy Blooms novels and memoirs, Blunt Instrument is an engaging and entertaining mystery with a clever, complex protagonist at its core.

With five days to clear her partner's name after a horrific crime, private detective Ginny Dugan infiltrates a cultish secret society on Long Island's Gold Coast in this champagne-soaked followup to Glitter in the Dark.New York City, 1925. A night of high-stakes gambling at the Empire Club ends in gunfire and Jack Crawford is found at the center of the carnagecovered in blood, gun in hand. The club's ruthless owner offers Jack an ultimatum: find the real shooters within five days, or die for their crimes. Ginny Dugan hasn't known Jack long, but as his partner in their detective agency, she needs to believe she's trusted the right man this time. Their only lead is Lila, the sole survivor of the massacre. They follow her to a queer dance hall in Glen Cove, a Long Island Gold Coast town whose glittering summer estates now stand empty in the November chill. Among those who knew Lila, one name keeps surfacing: Echelon, a seductive society where fortune is promised to those who surrender everything. Convinced the answers they seek lie within, Ginny and Jack infiltrate its ranks, where they encounter silent masked attendants, serpents sliding over bare skin, and members who seem to know more than they shouldespecially about Jack. As the body count climbs and Jack's past resurfaces in unsettling ways, Ginny begins to doubt everything: her instincts, her partner, even her own reality. Maybe she was never in control. Maybe she was brought here to play someone else's game.

An elderly woman targets online scammers in this charmingly cozy caper from a ';riotously funny' author (Publishers Weekly).Eighty-year-old Poppy Montgomery has always taken a negative view of her life. Her father? A bully. Her husbands? Losers. Her daughter and grandson? Well, they're probably her fault. And now the police have taken away her license, her daughter wants to put her in a retirement home, and the bossy new fitter-than-thou attendee at water aerobics is taking over her favorite class. But enough is enough, and when her new friend, Ginny, is scammed on a dating site for seniors, Poppy decides it's time to finally get even. With the help of Jeremy, her tech-savvy grandson, Poppy launches a vindictive little caper, scamming the scammers that prey on the elderly online. But when two women at Ginny's retirement home seemingly meet unnatural ends and her newest target is implicated in the murder, suddenly Poppy's fun online con job becomes a matter of life or death. It's going to take the whole gangPoppy's two new best friends, her in-recovery daughter, and her basement-dwelling grandsonto pull off one last job, before one of them becomes the next victim. A charmingly cozy crime story brimming with laughs and heart, Poppy Montgomery Gets Even shows that it's never too late to turn over a new leaf, make new friends, and scam an international crime ring while solving some murders along the way.

A pathologist, haunted by his service during WWI, investigates two murders in post-war London in this Bloody Scotland Debut Prize winner.Death is a lonely business . . . No one who meets Dr. Jack Cuthbert forgets him. Tall, urbane, and brilliant, the Scottish pathologist is the best that Scotland Yard's new detective chief inspector has seen. But Cuthbert is also a damaged mana man who lives with secrets, and who still battles demons brought back from the trenches even ten years after the end of the Great War. When not one but two corpses are discovered in a London park in the winter of 1929, Cuthbert must use every tool at his disposal, including cutting-edge forensics of the period, to solve the mystery of their deaths. In the end, the horrifying truth is more shocking than even he could have imagined. Gripping and gritty, The Silent House of Sleep is a highly original debut historical mystery that introduces one of the most intriguing new protagonists in recent memory. It's sure to leave readers hotly anticipating the next case for Dr. Jack Cuthbert.

Federal prosecutor Nora Carleton is drawn into international intrigue as she investigates the assassination of a weapons manufacturer in this latest thriller from the former director of the FBI.Nora Carleton is hitting her stride as Deputy US Attorney for the Southern District of New York when a high-stakes counterintelligence case pulls her into a deadly game with global implications. A Russian-style hit on an executive at an American drone manufacturer sends a chilling messagebut what exactly is it? Was the victim a Russian mole or just a convenient target? Teaming up with her longtime friend, Special Agent Benny Dugan, Nora launches a criminal investigation that takes them from New York to Las Vegas with the hopes of prosecuting a traitor who has put their country at risk. But as they dig deeper into the tangled web of Russian intelligence and those who profit from its reach, Nora finds herself in the crosshairs of powerful forces determined to keep their secrets buried.

The world's greatest thriller writers prove they're up to a unique challenge in this action-packed collection.It all started with a simple, yet sneakily difficult challenge from global best-selling author Harlan Coben: Pick a bird of prey, then use it as the inspiration for a brand-new story. The response from some of the best writers on the planet: Game on! The result: Eleven stories that are twisty, scary, surprising, and bursting with imagination. An egg worth more than its weight in gold. A mysterious operative known only as Owl. An eagle-watcher who sees more than she should. Even a story that somehow places the Maltese Falcon in a nursing home. Contributors include: Tess Gerritsen C.J. Box Kathy Reichs Ace Atkins Heather Graham S.A. Cosby Hank Phillippi Ryan Robert Dugoni Allison Brennan Gregg Hurwitz Kelley Armstrong Commissioned by International Thriller Writers, Birds of Prey is a highly bingeable anthology that's a treat for thriller fans.

In this gripping debut thriller, struggling divorcee Jeanette King becomes embroiled in a criminal ring when she discovers her ex-husband's cache of baby eels.Caterpillar Island is off the central coast of Mainebeloved vacationland of lobster bakes and quaint fried clam shacks, kayaking and country houses. At night, though, by the light of a headlamp, the island is alive with cash, guns, and poachers. Oxy addicts, struggling retirees, and unemployable deadbeats dip their nets in the creeks to catch elverstwo-inch-long baby eels that fetch $2000 a pound on the international black market. Into this dark and dangerous world falls Jeanette King, who has, up to this moment, been earning her meager living mainly by picking and packaging peekytoe crab meat for shipment to New York and Boston. As Jeanette gets drawn into a fast-moving story of risk and violent consequences, she enlists the aid of a local policeman and an Indigenous activist. Together they try to set things right for the people and the planet. But the deeper they dig, the more dangerous things get. An ensuing procession of colorful locals, corrupt state politicians, and treacherous outsiders weaves a tale that reveals the underbelly of a deadly business.

In this locked room mystery from the author of Cabaret Macabre, amateur sleuth Joseph Spector pits his knowledge of stage magic against the seemingly supernatural when a seance at an isolated old hospital turns deadly.An apparent suicide in a London townhouse uncannily mirrors a similar incident from twenty-five years ago, prompting Scotland Yard's George Flint to delve deep into the past in search of the solution to a long-forgotten mystery. Meanwhile, Joseph Spector travels with a coach party through the rainy English countryside to visit an allegedly haunted house on a lonely island called Devil's Neck. The house, first built by a notorious alchemist and occultist, was later used as a field hospital in the First World War before falling into disrepair. The visitors hold a seance to conjure the spirit of a long-dead soldier. But when a storm floods the narrow causeway connecting Devil's Neck to the mainland, they find themselves stranded in the haunted house. Before long, the guests begin to die one by one, and it seems that the only possible culprit is the phantom soldier. Flint's and Spector's investigations are in fact closely linked, but it is only when the duo are reunited at the storm-lashed Devil's Neck that the truth is finally revealed. Tom Mead once again creates a brilliant homage to John Dickson Carr and the Golden Age of mysteries with this intricately plotted puzzle.

In this comical noir tale from the acclaimed author of the Joe the Bouncer series, a struggling writer follows a mystery into one of Los Angeles' darkest corners: the intersection of the porn industry and New Age wellness.For generations, Hollywood has attracted all sorts of dreamersand then has slowly crushed their aspirations. Elliott Gross is one such case; fresh out of college, he moved west from New York with hopes of writing for the silver screen and living a life of fame and fortune. A couple of years later, he's writing for an adult magazine and living in a garage. The year is 1994 and, with the rise of the internet, the era of print pornography is in its twilight, but Raunchy's owner has enough ';catch-and-kill' secrets in the vault to ensure that his power will persist as long as his silence remains valuable. When Gross is sent to write a profile on the company's newest starlet, he discovers that she has vanished seemingly without a trace. To find her, he embarks on a twisted journey through a business both seedy and carnivalesque. Rumors of a sensitive VHS tape held in the vault, which may hold the secret to Crystal's whereabouts, stir around Elliott and he stumbles into a corpse. Before his search can be concluded, a shadow of suspicion falls on Gross and his position is terminated. Then he washes up at a celebrity-anchored New Age wellness brand and discovers a world far darker and more cruel than the porn industry. Combining David Gordon's trademark humor with a stylish, unflinching, and unpredictable plot, Behind Sunset is a comic and noir-tinged tour through Tinseltown that uncovers darkness and lightness, in equal measure, from the most unexpected of sources.

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson delve into the world of art forgery in this new historical mystery from the author of Sherlock Holmes and the Telegram from Hell.London, 189: The great city is brought to a standstill by a series of blizzards and Sherlock Holmes is bored to distraction. It would take a miracle to bring a case to the detective's door. . . What arrives is not promising: a landlady who complains her artist tenant is behind on rent. Not exactly the miracle for which Holmes was hoping. But, next thing you know, there are several corpses and Sherlock Holmes and his biographer, John H. Watson, MD, find themselves drawn into one of the most bizarre cases of the great detective's career. And into the cutthroat big business of Art, where chicanery and mendacity (and cut throats) proliferate. What makes a work of art worth killing for? Is it the artist, his mistress, his dealer, or his blackmailer? The cast of characters is large. But are they perpetrators, accomplices, or victims? And just who is Juliet Packwood, with whom Watson has become infatuated? Oh, and there's one other problem: Is this a genuine Holmes case or a clever forgery? Is this the real thing? If you can't tell the difference, what is the difference?

Eighteen puzzling Christmas tales set in New York Citys beloved mystery bookstoreIn 1993, The Mysterious Bookshopthe oldest mystery specialty bookstore in the worldbegan an annual tradition by inviting bestselling author Donald E. Westlake to write an original short story set in the bookshop during the holiday season. Each year since then, The Mysterious Bookshop commissions a new short story from a leading author to give out as a holiday gift for its customers. The prompt for the story requires three elements: that it be set at Christmastime, that it involve a crime of some kind, or the suspicion of one, and that it be set at least partially in the bookstore. Beyond these guidelines, authors had free rein to take the story in whatever direction they chose. This volume collects the first eighteen stories commissioned by the bookshop from 1993 to 2010. Included are tales by Megan Abbott, Rupert Holmes, Mary Higgins Clark, Andrew Klavan, and Ed McBain, plus an updated introduction by Mysterious Bookshop proprietor Otto Penzler. Some of the stories are humorous, others thrilling, and still others are tales of pure detection. But all are guaranteed to put you in the holiday spirit. Originally published as Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop.

In a new legal thriller by the former director of the FBI, federal prosecutor Nora Carleton and legendary investigator Benny Dugan confront a deadly sect of political extremists.After a stint in the private sector, working at the largest hedge fund in the world, Nora Carleton has returned to her former role as a New York City federal prosecutor. And she's arrived just in time to face one of the most dangerous domestic terror attacks in the history of the city. A threat is building in the city, with far right extremism powered by internet demagogues and funded by shadowy organizations. Together with legendary investigator Benny Dugan and aided by colleagues at the FBI, Nora builds a case against one of the key players in this burgeoning movement, arguing before a jury that some speech is actually a deadly crime. But the menace taking root is far bigger than any courtroom, and as the militants target an upcoming United Nations rally, Nora and her team must race to disrupt the plans and minimize casualties. At once a fast-paced legal thriller and a close look at the very real perils of political extremism, FDR Drive harnesses former FBI director James Comey's life experience to tell an authentic and compelling narrative that readers won't soon forget.

Internationally bestselling author Tess Gerritsen selects and introduces the best short mystery fiction of the past year.This anthology contains the best crime stories published last year, selected from a pool of over 3,000 by bestselling author of the Rizzoli & Isles series, Tess Gerritsen, under the auspices of New York City's legendary crime fiction specialty store The Mysterious Bookshop. Included herein, readers will find tales by giants of the genre Lee Child, Andrew Klavan, Joyce Carol Oates, and Lisa Unger, alongside lesser-known writers equally as deserving of attention. The stories have been pulled from a wide variety of sources, including The Strand Magazine, Black Cat Weekly, Dark Yonder, and Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. The collection is rounded off by a bonus story from the last century by Agatha Christie, sourced from the Mysterious Bookshop's rare book room.