Southern Noir

The Akashic Noir series’ forensic study of Southern California sharpens its focus on one of Los Angeles’ most recognized neighborhoods.

The 13 chapters of The Art of War, each devoted to one aspect of warfare, were compiled by the high-ranking Chinese military general, strategist, and philosopher Sun-Tzu. In spite of its battlefield specificity, The Art of War has found new life in the modern age, with leaders in fields as wide and far-reaching as world politics, human psychology, and corporate strategy finding valuable insight in its timeworn words.

A rising star is murdered. A crusader is accused. And in a town built on secrets, the truth is the darkest thing of all. Rosie Beckett had a bright future—a political intern with charm, ambition, and a long list of admirers. But her life ends on a quiet Georgian backstreet, her body found shot and thrown into a dumpster behind a row of houses in small southern town, Brunswick. And standing at the center of it all is Jake Tully. The host of a popular anti-corruption podcast, Tully has spent years exposing the dark secrets of the powerful, earning him fans—but too many enemies to count. ...

Dane Kirby is a broken man and no stranger to tragedy. As a life-long resident and ex-arson investigator for McFalls County, Dane has lived his life in one of the most chaotic and crime-ridden regions of the south. When he gets called in to consult on a brutal murder in a Jacksonville, Florida, motel room, he and his FBI counterpart, Special Agent Roselita Velasquez, begin an investigation that leads them back to the criminal circles of his own backyard.

A body in an alleyway. Blood on the accused. Witnesses to the crime. When a sleepy Georgian town is rocked by the brutal murder of the local prosecutor’s son, all the evidence points to one man: Marcus Brantley. His only hope rests in defense counsel, Ryan Noble, drawn back to the town he tried to forget by his mother’s cancer diagnosis. But Noble’s homecoming brings a case that could cost him everything. Unwelcome, outnumbered, and with the clock ticking, Noble must navigate a dangerous game of secrets and lies before time runs out—where hostility lurks behind every corner and he ...

With this critically acclaimed debut collection, Frank Bill announces himself as an author of fiercely defined vision. In these vivid tales, Bill’s southern Indiana proves a literary destination of immense nuance, even as his mostly working-class characters cry out in voices that cannot be denied.

Family meant everything to Ayden Stratton. It always had even when he didn’t always allow it to show. Because of that, he understood the fury in Tobias Blaise’s eyes when they learned that his sister had been dragged out the backdoor of her restaurant despite every effort to stop her from being kidnapped. Fury didn’t begin to describe what he saw in his brother’s face. Cassidy Blaise might be Tobias’s sister, but she was Benjamin’s entire world. This women's romance fiction book will have you wondering what could possibly happen next. Keep some tissues on hand and tag along on a...

After his son is convicted of capital murder, Vietnam War veteran Jeremiah Fitzjurls takes over the care of his granddaughter, Joanna, raising her with as much warmth as can be found in an Ozark junkyard outfitted to be an armory. He teaches her how to shoot and fight, but there is not enough training in the world to protect her when the dreaded Ledfords, notorious meth dealers and fanatical white supremacists, come to collect on Joanna as payment for a long-overdue blood debt.

Toya Gardner, a young Black artist from Atlanta, has returned to her ancestral home in the North Carolina mountains to trace her family history and complete her graduate thesis. But when she encounters a still-standing Confederate monument in the heart of town, she sets her sights on something bigger.

In Denton, Arkansas, the fate of the high school football team rests on the shoulders of Billy Lowe, a volatile but talented running back. Billy comes from an extremely troubled home: a trailer park where he is terrorized by his unstable mother’s abusive boyfriend. Billy takes out his anger on the field, but when his savagery crosses a line, he faces suspension. Without Billy Lowe, the Denton Pirates can kiss their playoffs bid good-bye.

As Sheriff Clayton Burroughs tries to juggle fatherhood, his job, and his recovery from being shot in the confrontation that killed his two criminally inclined brothers last year, he’s doing all he can just to survive. Yet after years of carefully toeing the line between his life in law enforcement and his family, he finally has to make a choice. When a rival organization makes a first foray into Burroughs' territory, leaving a trail of bodies and a whiff of fear in its wake, Clayton is pulled back into the life he so desperately wants to leave behind.

Addison McKellar isn’t clueless—she knows she and her husband Dean don’t have the perfect marriage—but she’s still shocked when he completely vanishes from her life. At first Addison is annoyed, but as days stretch into a week and she’s repeatedly stonewalled by Dean’s friends and associates, her frustration turns into genuine alarm. When even the police seem dismissive of her concerns, Addison turns to her father’s old friend, legendary Memphis PI Porter Hayes.

Chicago may be the city of broad shoulders, but its political law is "Pay to Play." Money changes hands in the middle of the night, and by morning, buildings and parks are replaced by billion-dollar projects. Chicago PI V. I. Warshawski gets pulled into one of these clandestine deals through her impetuous goddaughter, Bernie Fouchard. Bernie tries to rescue Lydia Zamir, a famed singer-songwriter now living on the streets; Zamir’s life fell apart when her lover was murdered next to her in a mass shooting at an outdoor concert.

In the far south, a young girl goes missing, lost without trace in the wilderness beyond her remote family cottage. A year later, her father disappears in the exact same place. Then, nothing. At all. Eventually, the years grow over the grief. The decades wear away the questions and life flows past the forgotten tragedy. Until Finn moves into the abandoned home, looking for a fresh start.

Blood ties, buried truths, and the cost of silence. That's what Vern Bruce is facing on death row, framed by the Dixie Mafia for a crime he didn't commit. His shattered family and tangled legacy are just a small part of the collateral damage. But amidst the chaos, there is one voice who refuses to let the truth stay buried - his teenage nephew, Cliff. Meanwhile, Casey, Vern's own son, is grappling with the unresolved death of his mother and falling under the dangerous influence of the man who may have destroyed them all. Set against the sticky, humid backdrop of the Gulf Coast, Last Castle ...

Southern noir with a soul. In the shadows of the Florida Panhandle, family ties run deep and betrayal runs deeper. Perfidious Tides introduces readers to a haunting world where loyalty, survival, and legacy collide. Perfect for fans of S.A. Cosby, David Joy, and Wiley Cash, this debut grips with atmosphere and refuses to let go. Praise for Perfidious Tides: “An unforgettable debut — haunting, atmospheric, and impossible to put down.” “The writing has the grit of noir and the soul of Southern gothic.” “A story of family, betrayal, and survival that stays with you long after the ...

A mysterious old mining town from the old west draws the attention of a police squad while a series of murders and bank robberies take place. Sergeant Payne decides to send in Cole Parker, his top homicide investigator. Cole becomes informed of the town's wild west history, and he makes some shocking discoveries. But uncovering a secret passageway, hidden hatchways, and an underground tunnel is just the beginning. He begins to realize that the bank robbers have more of a history than he imagined, and he soon finds himself in dreadful danger.

Step beneath the Spanish moss and enter the humid, secret-laden world of Hawthorn House, rebranded as Beaufort Botanical Retreat. Saffron returns after twelve years, drawn back by the impending death of her godmother, the formidable matriarch Delaphina Duval. But the house, with its aged stucco and grand columns, is not merely a place of fading life; it echoes with the "sting of her mother's last harrowing screams" and is thick with unspoken truths. Saffron finds Delaphina frail but still commanding, surrounded by those vying for position or protecting their own interests. There's Jolie ...

Slate, a recovering lawyer who lost his family to an accident, lives on a sailboat, owns a beach bar, and occasionally helps clients recover things they have lost. Children, for example. Kris Kramer, the nineteen-year-old daughter of a Birmingham lawyer, Don Kramer, has been missing for two days when her father visits Slate in his beach bar, which isn’t very busy on a raw day in January. Kramer engages Slate to try to find Kris. But two days after Slate arrives in Birmingham, Leon Grubbs, captain of the Homicide Division of the Birmingham Police Department, calls Slate just after midnight...

When tech visionary Julian Yates is arrested for the brutal murder of his business rival, the evidence seems airtight—a damning video, financial motive, and a public feud gone too far. But defense lawyer Ryan Noble knows something’s off. The pieces don’t fit. It all seems too clean. As Noble digs deeper, he uncovers a web of deceit stretching from the heart of Georgia’s legal system to the dark corners of the internet. Behind the scenes, powerful interests are manipulating the truth—and Yates may be just another pawn in a far deadlier game. With corporate espionage, digital ...