Indie Crime Fiction of the Month for August 2024
Welcome to the latest edition of “Indie Crime Fiction of the Month”.
So what is “Indie Crime Fiction of the Month”? It’s a round-up of crime fiction by indie authors newly published this month, though some July books I missed the last time around snuck in as well. The books are arranged in alphabetical order by author. So far, most links only go to Amazon.com, though I may add other retailers for future editions.
Our new releases cover the broad spectrum of crime fiction. We have cozy mysteries, small town mysteries, historical mysteries, Jazz Age mysteries, paranormal mysteries, crime thrillers, psychological thrillers, technothrillers, police officers, FBI agents, private investigators, amateur sleuths, arson, missing brides, AI girlfriends, crime-busting witches, crime-busting socialites, crime-busting sisters, murder and mayhem in New Orleans, Virginia, Texas, Derry, Paris and much more.
As always, I know the authors at least vaguely, but I haven’t read all of the books, so Caveat emptor.
And now on to the books without further ado:
A honeymoon in Paris. Idyllic days and nights. It couldn’t be more perfect. Until somebody dies.
October 1924. After their magical wedding, Kitty Worthington and her husband, Inspector Robert Crawford Sinclair, head to Paris for their honeymoon. Art museums, haute couture, French cuisine. Wondrous nights. It’s everything Kitty has always dreamed of and more. But then a body drops putting a damper on things.
At least this time, it’s a matter for the French police. There’s no need for Kitty and Robert to get involved. Things change, however, when a dear friend becomes the chief suspect, and she begs Kitty for help. Unable to walk away, she and Robert agree to investigate.
As they desperately search for clues, they discover a tortuous trail that leads from the Eiffel Tower to the Sacré-Cœur Basilica, and the Moulin Rouge. With time running out, the solution eludes them, until they realize the answer is to be found in the most macabre place of all, the Paris Catacombs.
NO ONE EVER LEAVES MIRANDA TWICE.
Anika Raven faces the challenge of a lifetime. She must rescue her little sister from a neglectful family as the hurricane of a century barrels toward her hometown of Miranda, Texas. Time is of the essence, but the deadly storm is not her biggest problem.
Once Miranda High School's beloved homecoming queen, Anika now possesses a dark secret that must remain hidden. Unable to outrun the shadows of her past, and terrified to confront the demons of her future, she finds herself running from the law.
Concealing a dark secret of its own, the town of Miranda's corruption permeates every aspect of society. Each time Anika catches a break, a scheming mayor and powerful political forces deliver her another life-threatening setback.
Regina Brannon's unexpected return from prison—wheelchair-bound and seemingly helpless—flips her family's world upside down.
Struggling to protect her pregnant self and adopted niece, Kenzi suspects her mother's paralysis is a ruse. As eerie events unfold in their old mansion, the arrival of Ryker, a man claiming to be a long-lost Brannon, further complicates matters. Caught between her husband's suspicions and her brother's sympathy, Kenzi finds herself entangled in a web of family secrets and divided loyalties.
As the line between truth and deception blurs, Kenzi must unravel the mystery before it's too late. Is Regina truly helpless, or is she orchestrating a sinister plan that could shatter their fragile family forever?
Deceit is the oldest sin as Doug Carter will discover
Doug Carter's brilliant mind and sheltered upbringing have led him to a life of isolation. But when asked to beta test an AI pen pal site, he sees it as the perfect solution - an AI construct that can't cheat on him and fulfills his desire for a loyal lifetime partner. Creating a pen pal in the image of his ex-girlfriend, Doug's reality becomes blurred as the trial takes a dangerous turn. And when those with a connection to him start dying in mysterious circumstances, all signs point to Doug as the culprit.
As he races against time to uncover the truth, Doug realizes that his isolation may have been his worst mistake yet. With childhood enemies resurfacing and his own past coming back to haunt him, he must confront the deceit that has been lurking in the shadows all along.
There are 5 hostages being kept in the small town of St. Michael’s. FBI agent Olivia Knight and her partner Brock must now race against the ticking clock to save the hostages and each other from the Gamemaster’s fatal plans.
After surviving a plane crash and an island full of deadly traps, it seems there is nothing that Olivia and Brock can’t overcome. But once the Gamemaster’s grand finale is revealed, Olivia and Brock are sent to a town on the outskirts of the U.S. Capital. There they must decipher cryptic clues to find the captive before time runs out. And the Gamemaster has many plans in place to ensure there are no survivors.
It appears they are just narrowly missing a landmine to collide into a missile.
Come one and come all, the final showdown has just begun…
PI Bridget “Birdie” Hartley is not your ordinary girl next door. She’s brave, bold, witty, and a force to be reckoned with. Known as Serenity Springs’ town sleuth, she has solved her fair share of mysteries. Besides solving crime, Birdie lived a seemingly normal life. Until the unfathomable landed on her doorstep...
Life in the little town of Serenity Springs had a certain cadence of predictability. Until the sudden disappearance of Birdie’s pregnant sister.
With desperation, despair, and a sense of doom hitting Birdie in waves, she opts to fill her troubled mind with every potential lead. When the maid of honor from her sister’s wedding goes missing as well, Birdie believes the two cases are connected.
DI Liam McLaughlin and DS Nancy D'Arcy are seasoned pros, but even their skills are stretched when a battered body turns up in an alley across from the hair salon. Declan Hoagett was a seemingly harmless wino who spent his days hanging out on the street corner where the bank used to be. He rarely asked for handouts, though occasionally burst into song. Nobody would kill him for that, would they?
More baffling, why does Hoagett seem to have been killed three different ways? Are they looking for three perps? One? Two? It's up to McLaughlin, D'Arcy and those from the Major Investigation Team to solve their most heartless homicide yet.
The third in the NUMBER ONE bestselling Derry Murder Mysteries, Three Times A Killer is another gripping, gritty mystery thriller with jaw-dropping twists and a touch of Gerald Hansen’s signature dark humor.
Life in the French Quarter is quiet…which is exactly how Ofeila Archer likes it. She’s making plans for Christmas, trying not to fixate on the fact that her mother is picking up trash as part of her community service, and otherwise just lazing about.
Then life takes a turn, as it so often does in New Orleans, and her mother calls with a problem. It seems she’s found a body.
Ofelia and her fiancé Zach Sully race to Bywater and are shocked to find that Ofelia knew the victim. She went to school with him, and at one time, he was close friends with her brother Felix.
When Ofelia and Sully start digging, they find that the victim was into some shady stuff, including aligning himself with the sort of voodoo queens who don’t have the city’s best interests at heart.
That’s bad enough, but when the victim rises of his own volition in the morgue and lets himself out of the refrigerator, things get downright crazy.
Somebody is keeping a secret…and it’s a big one. Ofelia’s biggest problem is that she doesn’t know who it is. She’s determined to find out, though.
Christmas is close and Ofelia wants a happy holiday. She’s going to have to fight like spell to get it.
Even then, it might not be enough.
In the sleepy town of Raven’s Point, the annual ball at the opulent Park Mansion is the highlight of the year—a night of pure fantasy. This year, the Regency masquerade theme adds an extra layer of allure, and sisters Helen and Maybelle can hardly contain their excitement. Dressed in exquisite period costumes, they enter the grand estate, eager to glimpse the luxurious lives of the Park family, the town’s wealthiest residents.
But the glittering evening takes a dark turn when Jeffrey Park, the man controlling the family fortune, is brutally murdered during a sudden power outage. The once-celebratory atmosphere turns sinister, and every guest becomes a suspect. The town's secrets begin to unravel, revealing motives buried beneath the surface.
Drawn into the investigation by the determined and appealing Detective Peter Nelson, Maybelle finds herself in a perilous game of cat and mouse. As they delve deeper, they realize the murder weapon is the key to solving the mystery, but it remains frustratingly elusive.
At a beloved local theme park, all has not been well. After an inexplicable fire ravaged the park, the community united to rebuild the attractions. The grand re-opening ceremony was filled with excitement and hope. But the laughter soon turned into screams.
PI Dean Steele has solved countless cases. Endured life's many tragedies, including the murder of his first love. Just as he begins to piece his life back together and reconnect with his hidden son, he is called into a new, bewildering case.
The town is baffled by a series of unexpected fires and an unidentifiable burnt victim. As Dean searches for clues, he discovers that the town is teeming with suspects, each with their own motives.
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