Category: Mystery/Suspense

Title: Murder by Design

Author: Betsy Brannon Green

Publisher: Covenant

Release Date: October 1, 2010

ISBN: 978-1608610990

Size: pages, 6” X 9”, softcover

Genre: Suspense

Series: Murder by the Book

After cracking Foster Scoggins’s murder case, Kennedy Killingsworth figured life in Midway, Georgia, would settle back to normal (meaning desperately dull). But that thought goes right out the window when a black-clad man climbs in her window — the one in her bedroom, that is. As she’s startled awake by a hand clamped across her mouth, Kennedy’s heart pounds even faster when she realizes the hand belongs to Sloan, the gorgeous and somewhat terrifying construction worker who reveals a surprising alter ego. Given the fact that he once saved her life, Kennedy doesn’t protest as Sloan stows federally classified information in her not-quite antique Tiffany lamp.

But then the sun comes up and things get even more complicated. Amidst gossip about her ex-husband shopping for engagement rings, Kennedy heads to the cemetery for Midway’s annual Decoration Day, when residents beautify the graves and then picnic among the dead. Tragically, transient artist Jarrard Dupree soon joins the dead when he’s accidentally run over by a bunch of college kids. Yet when JD’s terrible paintings suddenly begin drawing dazzling offers from New York art dealers, Kennedy knows at least one of her neighbors has blood on his hands. Intrigue builds in high Southern style as Kennedy’s investigation reveals which townsfolk are foes, which are friends—and which may become more than a friend.

Title: The Abraham Enigma

Author: Jack Lyon

Publisher: Deseret Book

Release Date: September, 2010

ISBN: 978-1606411063

Size: 256 pages, 6×9, softcover

Genre: Suspense? (Borders lists it as Historical Fiction?)

Egypt was hot as a furnace, as a refiner’s fire; even the Nile breezes as they crept through Cairo made little difference. But the men were meeting anyway, in a private room in the back of a coffee house near Orabi Square.

One of the men smoothed back his thick, white hair, then looked around the circle before turning to a large man, dressed in black. “All is ready in America?”

“Yes. The attacks will be sudden—and devastating.” The big man paused. “But the FBI is investigating the embassy, so we must move slowly and carefully.”

“You are a cautious man—maybe too cautious. Some might even wonder whose side you are on.” The white haired man narrowed his eyes. He looked up as a newcomer joined the group, settling his skinny frame into a chair by the door.

“Soon it will not matter,” the man shrugged. “The embassy will be destroyed. Then the attacks in America will drive the point home, on their own soil. Perhaps then the Americans will keep to their own business.”

When FBI agent and cryptologist David Hunter is temporarily assigned to decipher coded terrorist communications in Egypt, he imagines an extended honeymoon with his new wife, April, exploring the ancient land and pyramids. He could not have been more wrong.

The symbols used in the code are nearly impossible to interpret, while other evidence points to a possible traitor inside the embassy. As David realizes that time is running out, he turns to an unlikely source for help—an authentic Egyptian document containing the pharaohs’ priestly writing code, hieroglyphics that bear a striking similarity to characters in the fascimiles in the book of Abraham.

Title: Mayan Intrigue

Author: Linda Weaver Clarke

Publisher: American Book Publishing

Release Date: August 30, 2010

ISBN: 978-1589826168

Size: 250 pages, 5×8, softcover

Genre: Suspense

Series: Anasazi Intrigue (bk 1)

Read Chapter 1 HERE

Watch book trailer HERE

The discovery of a priceless artifact puts Julia’s life in great danger! From valuable artifacts to shady businessmen, the Yucatan Peninsula becomes a dangerous vacation spot for John and Julia Evans. While on assignment for the newspaper, the Evanses try to enjoy a romantic vacation among the Mayan ruins, but when Julia accidentally comes upon a couple suspicious men exchanging an item, she quickly turns and leaves but it is too late. The men have seen her. As a reporter, Julia does not easily give up and her curiosity gets them in a mess of trouble. Before John and Julia realize what is going on, they are both in danger and find themselves running for their lives through the jungles of the Yucatan.

Title: No Place to Hide

Author: Kristoffer Neff

Publisher: Granite

Release Date: August, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-59936-061-4

Size: 244 pages, 6×9, softcover

Genre: Suspense? YA?

Orphaned!

Abandoned!

Running for their lives!

A great thud hit the front door shaking the dust loose from around the frame. Panicked, Jerry turned to the boys, Hide!

Thus begins an adventure that takes brothers, Alex and Simon, far from Phoenix but not far from trouble. Pursued by a man wanted for murder; sought by the police; hated by a Mexican mobster; the boys narrowly escape with their lives.

Left in Millcreek, Utah on a cold Saturday morning the boys find shelter in an LDS chapel. Hiding out, they are discovered by Gus Johnson, who takes a liking to them against his better judgment.

As a villain descends on the unsuspecting town Alex and Simon learn something about friendship and the meaning of family.

Title: Key Lime Pie

Author: Josi S. Kilpack

Publisher: Deseret Book

Release Date: August 24, 2010

ISBN:

Size: 320 pages, 5.5×8, paperback

Genre: Culinary Mystery

Series: Lemon Tart (v1), English Trifle (v2), Devil’s Food Cake (v3)

Read Chapter 1 here.

When Sadie Hoffmiller’s new friend, Eric Burton, receives word that his missing daughter’s body may have been found in Florida, he immediately packs his bags. Sadie is determined to stay home and prove to everyone that she is not a busybody. But when she senses Eric is hiding something, Sadie is compelled to take action. Before she knows it, she’s in the heart of Miami, trying to piece together a trail that might just give Eric the answers he’s so desperately searching for. In the process, Sadie finds herself in the company of some colorful characters and some good ol’ southern cooking. But despite the drama and intrigue, all Sadie really wants is to go home … as soon as she does just one more thing.

Includes eight new mouthwatering recipes, tested and approved by the official bakers of Sadie’s Test Kitchen

Title: Welcome to Stalk Lake City (Rhea Jensen Series, Book 2)

Author: Sheralyn Pratt

Publisher: Cedar Fort/Bonneville

Release Date: August 8, 2010

ISBN: 978-1599554228

Size: 224 pages, 5.5×8.5, paperback

Genre: Suspense

Series: City of Angels (v1)

Read Chapter 1 here.

Not eligible for Whitney Award. Originally published in 2003.

Deciding to go “off grid” for a while, Rhea Jensen can think of no better place to disappear than Utah. She settles into a quiet Mormon lifestyle — unless you count the skydiving, racecar driving, mountain climbing, and overly obsessive workouts. But when her best friend, Kay, tips her off to a stalking case, Rhea takes the job out of sheer boredom. Only then does Rhea realize two things — first, being good is hard; and second, she knows way too much to get out of the PI game.

Everyone’s favorite private investigator is back in this second installment of The Rhea Jensen Series by Sheralyn Pratt. Packed full of new mysteries, new relationships, and all of Rhea’s old habits, Stalk Lake City will hold you hostage from the very first page.

Title: Cold As Ice

Author: Stephanie Black

Publisher: Covenant

Release Date: August, 2010

ISBN: 978-1608610138

Size: 304 pages, 6×9, Paperback

Genre: Suspense

After five patient years, Abigail Wyatt’s sisterly care is finally paying off: her younger brother, Derek, is abandoning his self-destructive lifestyle and seeking his parents’ forgiveness, thus ending the painful estrangement that wounded the whole family. But just as the pieces are falling into place for the prodigal’s return, a woman named Karen Brodie is murdered in a local park—and police name Derek as the prime suspect. Rather than standing firm and cementing the positive changes in his life, Derek succumbs to his cynical fears and runs from the law, leaving Abigail with her hands tied. Literally.

Derek’s raw panic convinces everyone that he’s the killer— everyone except Abigail, who doggedly maintains her brother’s innocence. With the help of Kyle, a charismatic new friend she might be falling for, Abigail digs deep into Karen Brodie’s troubled past in hopes of clearing Derek’s name. But as she uncovers a sinister plot of greed, envy, and vengeance, this loyal sister must face the painful truth that things—and people—are not always as they seem.

Title: Not What She Seems

Author: Victorine E. Lieske

Publisher: CreateSpace

Release Date: July 6, 2010

ISBN: 978-1453648605

Size: 326 pages, 5×8, softcover

Genre: Romance

Read an excerpt

Steven Ashton, a billionaire from New York, and Emily Grant, on the run from the law… and when they meet he can’t help falling for her. What he doesn’t know is that interfering in her life will put his own life in danger.

Title: Finding Mercie

Author: Blaine M. Yorgason

Publisher: Covenant

Release Date: June 15, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-59811-959-6

Size: 464 pages, 6×9, Paperback

Genre: Suspense

As Hector Lopez runs against the frigid Chicago wind clutching the bleeding girl in his arms, he hopes his ailing heart doesn’t fail before he reaches the medical clinic. Even after safely delivering the child and continuing on his way to work, Hector cannot forget the image of the little girl curled up like a rag doll in a small pool of mostly frozen blood. And if he could possibly forget the incident, the Chicago Police Department will not let him—particularly detective Lee Tierney, whose prejudiced eye sees a killer in this Good Samaritan.

Now burdened as a murder suspect, Hector witnesses the further unraveling of his life when his teenage son, Raul, announces that his girlfriend is pregnant. Then Hector’s cancer suddenly comes out of remission, threatening his life as well as his relationship with Liliana—the one woman he’s loved since being widowed years earlier. When Raul’s itch to find the true killer spirals out of control, Hector finds himself desperately running once again to save an innocent life—and possibly his own.

Title: Blink of an Eye

Author: Gregg Luke

Publisher: Covenant

Release Date: July 1, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-60861-026-6

Size: 272 pages, 6×9, paperback

Genre: Suspense

Childhood was a happy, carefree time for Joseph Ramirez. At least that’s how he used to remember it. But since the near-fatal traffic accident that landed him in the hospital with brain trauma, he’s not so sure. Along with physical pain, Joseph now suffers recurring nightmares. Each night the heart-wrenching dreams grow increasingly vivid and graphic — to the point that Joseph’s hospital roommate reports that Joseph talks in his sleep, often crying out in anguish and remorse. To complicate matters, a ruthless lawyer is challenging Joseph’s innocence in the traffic accident.

When defense attorney Michelle Haas comes to his aid, they discover they knew each other as children, and soon another forgotten experience comes into play — one that goes deeper than simple friendship. Are Joseph’s night terrors actually repressed memories? Does he speak the truth during his unconscious midnight hours? And if so, what will that mean when Joseph’s hospital roommate claims he confessed to murder? Soon Joseph realizes there’s only one way to uncover the truth about his family and himself — involving reliving a past he has unknowingly worked all his life to forget.

Title: Deadly Secret

Author: L.C. Lang

Publisher: CreateSpace

Release Date: June 15, 2010

ISBN: 978-1452888699

Size: 332 pages, 6×9, softcover

Genre: Mystery/Suspense

Series: A Promise to Keep

Marcie Jackson is a state police detective. She goes to southern Indiana on a special assignment, where she is to help the local police department solve a murder. She partners with a local city detective, Lt. Steve Parker. The victim is a pretty twenty-year-old college student, found in a dumpster behind the hardware store, with no visible signs of how she died. She should have been at college in Evansville. The victim is one of a group of five friends. Four are in college; one still lives in their hometown.

But, when Marcie and Steve go to Evansville, they find the other three girls are also missing. One of the girls had gone to Kentucky with her boyfriend. He is also missing. At the autopsy, the Medical Examiner finds no cause of death. It is now up to the Toxicology department to find out what killed the girl. How long will it take? Now it becomes a desperate race. Find the girls and stop any further killing. But, it does not work out that way. One by one, the girls show up. Marcie and Steve are helpless to find the killer until they hear from the Toxicology department. Finally, they get a break. Now they can go after the killer, and the source. Do they have enough time to save the last girl?

Title: The Overton Window

Author: Glenn Beck

Publisher: Threshold Editions

Release Date: June 15, 2010

ISBN: 978-1439184301

Size: 366 pages, 6×9, hardback

Genre: Political Thriller

A plan to destroy America, a hundred years in the making, is about to be unleashed . . . can it be stopped?

There is a powerful technique called the Overton Window that can shape our lives, our laws, and our future. It works by manipulating public perception so that ideas previously thought of as radical begin to seem acceptable over time. Move the Window and you change the debate. Change the debate and you change the country.

For Noah Gardner, a twentysomething public relations executive, it’s safe to say that political theory is the furthest thing from his mind. Smart, single, handsome, and insulated from the world’s problems by the wealth and power of his father, Noah is far more concerned about the future of his social life than the future of his country.

But all of that changes when Noah meets Molly Ross, a woman who is consumed by the knowledge that the America we know is about to be lost forever. She and her group of patriots have vowed to remember the past and fight for the future–but Noah, convinced they’re just misguided conspiracy-theorists, isn’t interested in lending his considerable skills to their cause.

And then the world changes.

An unprecedented attack on U.S. soil shakes the country to the core and puts into motion a frightening plan, decades in the making, to transform America and demonize all those who stand in the way. Amidst the chaos, many don’t know the difference between conspiracy theory and conspiracy fact–or, more important, which side to fight for.

But for Noah, the choice is clear: Exposing the plan, and revealing the conspirators behind it, is the only way to save both the woman he loves and the individual freedoms he once took for granted.

Title: City of Angels (Rhea Jensen Series, Book 1)

Author: Sheralyn Pratt

Publisher: Cedar Fort/Bonneville

Release Date: June 8, 2010

ISBN: 978-1599554044

Size: 224 pages, 6×9, paperback

Genre: Suspense

Read Chapter 1.

Not eligible for Whitney Award. Originally published in 2003.

Rhea Jensen is your typical twenty-something single girl if by typical you mean a private investigator who studies ways to escape from handcuffs while waiting to take down another serial sleaze. But when a seemingly open-and-closed embezzlement case goes awry, her on-again-off-again boyfriend starts fooling around behind her back, and some Mormon missionaries stop her on the street during a stakeout, Rhea realizes her life is anything but typical even by her standards.

This exciting first installment of the Rhea Jensen series by Sheralyn Pratt boasts a fair bit of suspense, just enough romance, and a whole lot of heart. City of Angels is a great read for the amateur detective in all of us.

Title: A Time to Die

Author: Jeffrey S. Savage

Publisher: Covenant

Release Date: June 1, 2010

ISBN: 978-1598116236

Size: 254 pages, 6×9, hardback

Genre: Mystery

Series: Shandra Covington Mysteries—Dead on Arrival (#1), House of Secrets (#2)

When reporter Shandra Covington finds her best friend, Bobby Richter, close to death on Shandra’s apartment floor, she knows the bullet was meant for her. Making matters worse, Bobby’s fiancée is making sure Shandra gets nowhere near the hospital room where Bobby lies in a coma. With her apartment in shambles and possibly still dangerous, Shandra is forced to stay with her tough-as-nails Harley-riding private investigator friend.

In an attempt to clear her mind, Shandra agrees to do a newspaper story on the death of a prominent politician’s daughter. But what she thought was a simple overdose story soon grows into something much more sinister when she finds a common thread with the recent deaths of several young women — all thought to be overdose victims.

What do the clues mean? The only person who knows for sure is the Time Keeper — a self-proclaimed true romantic who devotedly tapes a picture of each new love to the bedside wall of his ailing sister. However, the pictures are obituaries spreading across the wall like macabre wallpaper. Time to unravel the mystery is quickly ticking away as Bobby’s life hangs by a thread — and the next “girlfriend” on the Time Keeper’s list is Shandra.

Title: Hanging by the Thread

Author: Donald B. Anderson

Publisher: Granite Publishing

Release Date: May 7, 2010

ISBN: 978-1599360560

Size: 382 pages, 6×9, paperback

Genre: Political Thriller

Read first three chapters.

For ten years, a secret society has risen to power. They have infiltrated every facet of the federal government. They are powerful. They have extraordinary access to public funds. They have incredible technologies. And freedom is their nemesis.

They have sought to destroy economic freedom, amass power to the federal government, and create mass dependency. They call themselves THE THREAD. And now, they are poised to destroy the Constitution and rise to power.

But, on the eve of their burst into power, a copy of their plan falls into the hands of a young man in the Utah State Capitol building. A small group forms and comes to understand the plan of The Thread. And now, the race is on. Time is short and the group must struggle to preserve their lives, their nation, and freedom itself.

Title: Deadline

Author: Clair M. Poulson

Publisher: Covenant

Release Date: April 14, 2010

ISBN:

Size: 304 pages, 6×9, softcover

Genre: Suspense

Life is quickly turning from bad to worse for newspaper reporter Dallas Dixon. It all begins when Dallas’s job at the El Paso Chronicle is inexplicably terminated by his formerly admiring boss, Andy Norton. However, a bad day turns into a nightmare when, while heading to San Antonio to make a fresh start, Dallas is shocked by the news of Norton’s murder—and even more shocked to hear himself named as a suspect. When an attempt to assist at a highway accident scene lands him in the middle of a drug scandal, he realizes he has powerful enemies determined to see him imprisoned—or dead.

On the run, Dallas must call on the skills he gained from his time in the military to save innocent lives, including his own. With unexpected help from his long-estranged father, and additional assistance from a rugged private investigator and a brilliant, beautiful Chronicle ally, Dallas races to untangle the murder mystery, but can he find justice before his own deadline?

Title: Anasazi Intrigue: The Adventures of John and Julia Evans

Author: Linda Weaver Clarke

Publisher: American Book Publishing

Release Date: March 2010

ISBN: 978-1589825871

Size: 250 pages, 5×8, softcover

Genre: Suspense

Read Chapter 1 HERE

Stolen artifacts, the Santa Clara/Virgin River flood, a snoopy newspaper reporter, and mysterious events begin to unfold with Anasazi Intrigue.

When a devastating flood wipes out homes in a small town, residents are shocked by the news of a possible poison spill that also kills many of the fish and neighbors’ pets. The people don’t know what to think or do, until Julia, the town’s newest reporter, jumps into action and begins her investigation.

Quickly Julia realizes the story is much bigger and more dangerous than she thought. As information unfolds, Julia and her husband find themselves on the run, trying to save their lives while finishing the story of a lifetime. She never realized that being a reporter could be so dangerous.

With artifacts, dead fish, a devastating flood, and miscreants, John and Julia have their hands full. Will they be able to get the scoop and save their lives?