Rural Thriller

As Seen in Scream Magazine Milton, Illinois is a small Midwestern town that sports an incredibly low crime rate. Violent crime is almost unheard of; only two murders in nearly forty years. A mysterious suicide brings one family back together in Milton. While asking around about their sister’s suicide, TH and Richie Brown find that both of the murder cases handled by their father, Chief of Police Teddy Brown, may have been fixed. A convicted killer lies dying of cancer in a nursing home. His release from prison has people talking about The Murder of Fatty Fuller and his conviction. Old ...

Sierra Ravenswood is the new part-time employee of the Flower House, a flower shop in Aerieville, Tennessee. Things take a decidedly negative turn when a customer drops dead in the middle of her new bouquet-arranging workshop at the store. The town is on edge, and Sierra knows that murder is something that an upbeat attitude and a bouquet of sweet-smelling roses can't fix. She's determined to figure out whodunit, before anyone else in town meets an untimely reason for needing funeral flowers.

A collection of stories capturing what it means to be a cowboy.

“Sharks are as timid as rabbits,” says a superintendent of the Coast Guard, dismissing the possibility that a shark could be the culprit in an unprecedented fatal attack at the Jersey Shore. It’s July, and swimming in the sea is a popular new pastime, but people up and down the East Coast are shocked and mystified by the swimmer’s death. A prominent surgeon at the shore, Dr. Edwin Halsey is the one who examines the victim, and the only one who believes the perpetrator was a shark—and that it will strike again.

You are cordially invited to a murder… Judith Spears was looking forward to a quiet retirement in her picture-perfect English village. Unfortunately, peace and quiet were never really her thing. When a loud-mouthed local media celebrity is accused of murder on his country estate, Judith finds herself dragged back into the business of uncovering the truth. He insists he’s been framed — and for reasons she’d rather not explain, Judith is uniquely qualified to help. As lies unravel and secrets surface, Judith’s sharp instincts prove invaluable… though she’s far less keen on the ...

CHLOE MORRAND HAD TURNED HER LIFE AROUND She’d been taking her meds. She’d kicked her drug abuse. And she loved her new job at Yellowstone National Park Life was looking up. Her father, Rick Morrand—local attorney—is hopeful that Chloe is finally on the right track. But on the morning she fails to show up at his house to pick up her nine-year-old daughter, Abby, alarms ring in his head. His greatest fear becomes reality when Chloe’s body is found at the base of the Sawtooth in Montana’s rugged backcountry. Authorities assume suicide— for good reason. But Rick doesn’t buy it....

In the days of the frontier West, it was not unusual for desperadoes and fugitives from justice to seemingly disappear from the face of the earth. Shadow on the Trail by Zane Grey, one of the best-selling authors of all time, is the story of one such man who returned to reestablish himself in a law-abiding society. In Texas, young bank robber Wade Holden, once the toughest, fastest trigger man in the notorious Simm Bell gang, makes a promise to his dying mentor that he will go straight. But with the Rangers on his tail, he struggles to find sanctuary.

As if baking holiday cookies, knitting a sweater for her husband, and making her daughter’s angel costume for the church pageant weren’t enough things for Lucy Stone’s busy Christmas schedule, she’s also working nights at the famous mail-order company Country Cousins. But when she discovers Sam Miller, its very wealthy founder, dead in his car from an apparent suicide, the sleuth in her knows something just doesn’t smell right.

Southern historical fiction novel of drama and intrigue set on the Blue Ridge of the Appalachian Mountains in Western North Carolina. Excerpt from Chapter Nine: She hid in the woods all night long. Didn’t even come out to milk the goat or feed her mother’s chickens. The goat was starting to bleat to be milked by the next morning, but she was too afraid to take a chance on being out in the open long enough to milk her. By the time the sun started going down, she gathered enough determination to slip close enough to the cabin to see through the open door. There was enough light left in ...

There will never be another Western writer like Louis L’Amour. A legendary author and indisputably the greatest storyteller in his genre of all time, L’Amour captivated millions of readers and has sold well over three hundred million copies of his works, which includes nearly ninety novels and countless short stories. Mistakes Can Kill You highlights an essential selection featuring nine of L’Amour’s earlier short stories, sometimes written under the pen name Jim Mayo, that exemplify the rugged morality of the best Western writing.

Some inherit wealth. Callie Mercer inherited a cage. When Edith Mercer dies, she leaves behind an isolated cabin deep in the mountains, a locked chest of journals, and a family legacy that her niece Callie never wanted. Returning to the remote, off-the-grid property to settle the estate, Callie expects a quick sale and a permanent escape. Instead, she finds a land steeped in isolation and a growing, suffocating dread. There is no cell service. The silence of the ancient trees feels like a physical weight. And something massive is moving in the timberline, scratching at the heavy wooden ...

In this New York Times bestselling installment of the "outrageously entertaining" Strike series (Financial Times), detective duo Cormoran and Robin must rescue a man ensnared in the trap of a dangerous cult.​ Private Detective Cormoran Strike is contacted by a worried father whose son, Will...

Grace Evans, an overworked New Yorker looking for a total escape from her busy life, books an Airbnb on a ranch in the middle of Wyoming. When she arrives at the idyllic getaway, she’s pleased to find that the owner is a handsome man by the name of Calvin Wells—and he’s eager to introduce her to his easygoing way of life. But there are things Grace discovers that she’s not too pleased about: A lack of cell phone service. A missing woman. And a feeling that something isn’t right with the ranch.

Big secrets run deep. Former FBI agent Jack McBride took the job as chief of police for Stillwater, Texas, to start a new life with his teenage son, Ethan, away from the suspicions that surrounded his wife's disappearance a year earlier. With a low crime rate and a five-man police force, he expected it to be a nice, easy gig; hot checks, traffic violations, some drugs, occasional domestic disturbances, and petty theft. Instead, within a week he is investigating a staged murder-suicide.

Cormac McCarthy, best-selling author of National Book Award winner All the Pretty Horses, delivers his first new novel in seven years. Written in muscular prose, No Country for Old Men is a powerful tale of the West that moves at a blistering pace.

Winner of the 2024 Audie Award for Thriller/Suspense! "Lazarre-White masterfully portrays people of multiple races, old and young. He also delivers Cosby's reflections on family, grief, and faith with genuine introspection and without distracting from the tense plotlines...This is a gripping...

In 1919, Delano, Georgia, appoints its first chief of police. Honest and hardworking, the new chief is puzzled when young men start to disappear. But his investigation is ended by the fatal blast from a shotgun. Delano's second chief-of-police is no hero, yet he is also disturbed by what he sees in the missing-persons bulletins. In 1969, when Delano's third chief takes over, the unsolved disappearances still haunt the police files.

Minnesota, 1977. For the teens of one close-knit community, summer means late-night swimming parties at the quarry, the county fair, and venturing into the tunnels beneath the city. But for two best friends, it’s not all fun and games. Heather and Brenda have a secret. Something they saw in the dark. Something they can’t forget. They’ve decided to never tell a soul. But their vow is tested when their friend disappears—the second girl to vanish in a week. And yet the authorities are reluctant to investigate.

I never believed I’d see my daughter again. Until a mysterious girl arrives at my door in the middle of a snowstorm. My five-year-old daughter Riley disappeared from a playground ten years ago, moments after I opened a cryptic letter from what the police believed was a deranged fan. In the aftermath of Riley’s disappearance, I tried to create a safe place for myself. I live alone in a secluded cabin in Montana, writing horror novels and hiking with my dog. Until Miranda knocks on my door, half frozen, telling me an unbelievable story. There is no reason for a young girl to be out in a ...

The basis for the hit series "Shetland" now airing on PBS. Winner of Britain's coveted Duncan Lawrie Dagger Award, Ann Cleeves's Raven Black introduces a dazzling suspense series to U.S. mystery readers. It is a cold January morning and Shetland lies beneath a deep layer of snow. Trudging home...