Liz Sinclair’s What She Left Behind is a short, solid read. I originally thought it was the prequel to the series she’s currently writing, but Amazon lists it under Two-Hour Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Short Reads. So, I’m assuming this is Book 1, and the upcoming books will be a similar length. 

Before her death, Millbrook residents claimed Margaret Whitlow’s obsession with a decades-old accident, one she believed was murder, had grown into paranoia. When Claire Whitlow finds her mother’s research, she becomes convinced the town is hiding secrets they’re determined to keep buried.

The story is well written and intriguing. Don’t expect a lot of red herrings… a short read doesn’t have the word count to achieve that. But it does set you up for a small-town conspiracy series. I’m curious to see where Sinclair takes it and will watch for the next book. You’ll find What She Left Behind in this week’s free book promotion.

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My author friend, Tom Watts, just released the first book he wrote in our coaching class with John Truby. Devils Never Die is a Wild West Samurai epic.

Katsuchiyo’s mission of revenge leads him from Japan to the U.S.—and to survive he must forge alliances with an unruly gunslinger and a formidable Native tracker.

Oh, how I wish I’d come up with this plot!

I won’t say anymore and give away spoilers. You can get the book on AMAZON.

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, it did. Each time Chase Steele and his partner Kai had seemed to gain the upper hand, another twist hit. Phantom Wake is an action thriller you don’t want to miss.

The Navy denied the rumors that the USS Eldridge had vanished years ago during a trial run of a device designed to make the ship invisible to radar. Myth becomes reality when Chase and Kai discover the ship underground in a cavern deep in the Belize jungle.

A Tesla Oscillator capable of folding space powers the ship—but they aren’t the first to find it. Konrad Vane, a private military contractor, has beaten them to it… and he’ll do anything to seize the device that can manipulate time.

Nonstop action from page one, this Chase Steele thriller is one you don’t want to miss. You can get Axel Bishop’s Phantom Wake free when you sign up to his NEWSLETTER.

My author friend Sarah Crowne and I have both been working away in John Truby’s coaching group, trying to get our plots and prose into the best shape possible. I’m excited to share her YA thriller All These Threads of Time with you this week.

Set in the late 80s, All These Threads of Time is a YA cinematic thriller with a fantastic hook. 

Sylvie Mitchell’s world is shattered when tragedy strikes her family. Then she discovers she can time travel — and becomes determined to change the past. But that means stopping a serial killer before she becomes his next victim. 

It’s the kind of story that pulls you in fast…  emotional, suspenseful, and packed with twists. If you enjoy thrillers with danger, heart, and that just one more chapter feeling late at night, add this one to your list. 

You can find All These Threads of Time on AMAZON.

One of the few women to drive competitively, my author friend Ruth Gowan has competed in international rallying, and she brings that real-life experience straight onto the page her romantanuic suspense novels.

In Tailspin, Samantha Jones final gets a chance to compete as a co-driver in an international competition when her editor agrees to her covering the event. The dream goes sideways fast when she’s paired with a royal jerk, Sheik Omar Manzur, a driver with a rocky past and a fierce need to prove himself by competing in the Monte Carlo Rally.

Expect fast cars, high tension high, and a sizzling enemies-to-lovers relationship. You can find Tailspin on  AMAZON. If you join Ruth's NEWSLETTER, she’ll send you a free book to get you started.

The Celebrity by Kenneth A. Scudder is a private investigative story with a twist. 

Attorney Frank Galanski is falsely convicted of a crime and sent to prison. While most would view the outcome a tragedy, not Frank. He’s been thinking about a change and sees this as an opportunity. He partners with Laura Ingle, his office manager for over twenty years, and they set up Galanski Ingles Private Investigators. Their first case coincides with an FBI investigation. When an FBI agent offers Frank a risky deal, he takes it and finds himself caught between federal agents, prison officials, ruthless criminals, and a master manipulator to uncover the truth. 

The Celebrity was not at all what I expected. While one partner working from prison and one doing the legwork in the real world seems an impossible plotline, Scudder makes it work beautifully. 

Don’t expect fast-paced action, but expect a really solid investigative story that will keep you turning the pages. You can find The Celebrity in the week's free promo and on  AMAZON.

I'm excited to share a new release by my author friend Christopher Greyson. He is truly a master of mystery and suspense.

Christopher masterfully builds suspense by layering lies and secrets with fast-paced action in Murder at Kindle Creek. 

The protagonist, former Boston homicide detective Charlie Westbrook, is flawed, relatable, and running from her past. Determined to discover the truth hidden behind the murder of a teenage girl, Charlie must unravel the long-held secrets and web of interconnected pasts that fuel the simmering tensions in the seemingly idyllic town of Magnolia. 

Well-developed characters add an intriguing layer of depth to a brilliantly crafted story. Be warned. Once you start reading, you won’t want to put the book down. I stayed up way too late trying to piece together the clues, and I don’t regret it one bit! This book definitely goes on my TBRAgain pile. 

Murder at Kindle Creek AND Prey, the second book in the series, can be preordered at a reduced price. Both books will be released on December 26, 2025. Christopher will send you two free books when you sign up for his NEWSLETTER

Something a little different… Ellis K. Popa’s young adult novel, Awaken the Dawn, which has won several well-deserved awards.

Kay Barrett’s father dies during a business trip to Romania. When Kay receives a package from her father, containing one of his scavenger hunts, she believes it holds the key to his death. The clues lead her to Bucharest, where Kay meets Maksim. The local with a dark past offers to help her, only Maksim and his crew aren’t what they seem. 

Well-written and filled with twists, turns, dark secrets, and a slow-burn romance, you can find Awaken the Dawn on AMAZON.

In The Lost Arc, J.R. Rain combines an underdog hero who feels like he belongs in a hard-boiled detective novel with a plot worthy of Indiana Jones. The result? A gripping adventure thriller you won’t want to put down. 

When Faye Roberts hires local mountain guide Sam Ward to help find her father, a renowned biblical scholar who vanished on Mount Ararat while searching for Noah’s Ark, Sam finds out they have a lot more to worry about than a deadly climb as they race to uncover a treasure hidden for thousands of years. 

You can find Rain’s novel on AMAZON

The Unrecovered is the first book in Len M. Ruth’s apocalyptic horror series, The Smiling Flu. 

When I started reading, I expected your typic pandemic novel. I was wrong. Think less gore, more edge-of-your-seat suspense. This is a solid story about a global pandemic that weaves the destinies of four seemingly unrelated characters together from the initial spread of the virus to society’s breakdown. 

The writing is good and the world building is realistic, but what kept me turning the pages were the well-developed characters. I became invested in finding out how the main characters’ journeys ended. 

I hope you enjoy The Unrecovered as much as I did. You can find Ruth's novel on AMAZON. He offers a free book on his WEBSITE.

Smoke Screen is the introduction to JL Kwak’s new series featuring FBI Agent Danica Burns. 

The discovery of a teenager’s body sends shockwaves through the community. When a dead teen is found posed in a chilling resemblance to a brutal murder from twenty years ago, all eyes turn to the troubled daughter of the woman who committed the original crime. But FBI Agent Danica Burns isn’t willing to jump to conclusions and condemn the teen. As the stakes rise, she uncovers layers of deception that someone will kill to keep hidden. 

You’ll want to add Kwak’s well-written, twisty thriller to your e-book library. I couldn’t put the book down, and Kwak kept me guessing with every turn of the page. I enjoyed her Danica Burns character, and I’m looking forward to reading more.

You can get Smoke Screen free when you sign up for her NEWSLETTER.

Even if you’re not a military thriller fan, I’m certain you’ll enjoy The Instructor by JT Porter. 

While this is his prequel novella introducing James Ryder, the protagonist of his James Ryder Thriller assassin series, the story centers on Ryder’s elite Army Delta Force leader, Sergeant Dominic Caruso. 

Their mission to track down sniper Vasily Petrov in the rugged landscape of Afghanistan turns into Caruso’s personal vendetta to honor his fallen comrades. 

Porter places unforgettable characters into unexpected, explosive situations. I love the unconventional way Porter introduces us to the hero of his James Ryder thriller series and shows us a defining moment in Ryder’s life, integral to the series. You can find him onAMAZON.

I’m an Andrew Warren fan. His books are well written, the plots are tight, and the action is non-stop. Betrayed is the prequel novella to his Thomas Caine series that reveals Caine’s backstory. He includes the first two chapters of Tokyo Black, the first book in the Thomas Caine Thriller Series, so you get a taste of what’s in store. Betrayed is a short read, but it’s long on intrigue and definitely a page-turner. When you sign up for Warren's NEWSLETTER, he'll send you the e-book.

The trilogy is set in the future on Earth Two, a dystopian society. 

When Dr. Paige Hanson awakens after a car accident she and her small child have survived, she is told her husband is missing. Only able to remember disjointed fragments of what happened and hounded by government agents, Paige believes she’s caught up in something dangerous. 

Told in the first person, this well-written series kept me engaged, and the twists kept me guessing. Paige’s introspection in the second and third books became a bit repetitive, but I found that didn’t detract from the story. 

It’s a great read. You can find the trilogy on AMAZON..

The Senate Deception, Michael Fedor’s award-winning prequel to his Bull Moose series, is a political thriller you don’t want to miss. 

An intricate web of deception, intriguing characters, and a realistic high-stakes plot will keep you turning the page. 

Meticulous research and Michael's real-life experiences in the political trenches help him craft a thriller that is shockingly plausible. You’ll receive The Senate Deception free when you sign up for his NEWSLETTER .

Lost and Found caught me by surprise. 

When I got half-way through Chapter 3, I had to stop and research the author. Amy Shojai is a nationally known authority on pet care and behavior with over 35 nonfiction books. Lost and Found is her first fiction book. 

That explained the chapters written from puppy Shadow’s point of view. Shojai’s animal expertise comes through in these chapters. 

September Day, the heroine of the story, is flung into a between the devil and the deep blue sea situation. I kept asking myself each time she faced a new challenge what I would do when there is no perfect solution. 

The story is interesting and the plot fast-paced, although I found the chapters from Shadow’s point of view slow at times. It was an enjoyable read. You can find Lost and Found on AMAZON.

Bone Light by Annelie Wendeberg is not the typical action thriller I review, but I couldn’t put down this short novella until I reached the last page. The Victorian dark thriller set in Boston will have you asking yourself what you would do if you found yourself in the same position as Dr. Arlington. The story is a great introduction to Wendeberg’s heroine of her Arlington & McCurley Mysteries and the award-winning Kronberg & Holmes Mysteries. Bone Light is a haunting must-read. Bone Light is free for her NEWSLETTER subscribers.

El Diablo is Book 2 in Kathryn Dodson’s Jessica Watts Southwest Suspense series. 

When Jessica Watts, an ex-adrenaline junkie turned paralegal, hears a teen’s confession about her youth pastor’s disturbing behavior, Jessica turns up much more than she expected. 

El Diablo was a satisfying read with likeable characters. 

We learn early in the story that Jessica believes in helping people in trouble. Her problem–she acts first and thinks later, which landed her in serious trouble in Book 1 of the series. Dodson does a great job of filling the reader in on the trouble Jessica encountered in the last book, but the repetition of her internal struggle to curb her impulsiveness slowed down the read for me. Mentioning it at the beginning was all I felt I needed to get caught up. However, that didn’t stop me from enjoying the book. 

You can find it on AMAZON.

I love Andrew Allan’s Walt Asher series. 

TV infomercial writer and born pitchman Walt Asher is at it again. The “can sell anything” salesman wants no part of selling illegal Honduran guns. But how can you say no to the ruthless outlaw biker who once saved his life? 

This is one of Allan’s short thrillers, but it’s definitely not short on action, twists, and mayhem. This is one book you don’t want to miss!!! You can get it on AMAZON.

Tincu Peno’s novel is a solid police procedural. 

When a school bus disappears during its morning route, former Marine and newbie Detective Paige McDonald get her first stab at a high-stakes case. What on the surface appears to be a kidnapping is an intricate plot with twelve elementary school children’s lives at stake. 

The dynamics between Paige and the experienced detective who gets stuck with her adds to the story’s tension. 

While I found Paige’s reactions at points too inexperienced for a former Marine, the plot moved quickly enough to keep me turning the pages. Twin Motives is on AMAZON.

Die by the Sword by award-winning author Rachel Ford is a good solid read that had me second-guessing myself. 

Owen Day, former Army intelligence analyst, receives a cryptic telephone call from an army buddy. He drops everything and heads to the remote Montana wilderness to help his friend Caleb, only to find Caleb has disappeared. Owen becomes entangled in a web of lies as he investigates Caleb’s disappearance. With a brutal winter storm on the horizon, Owen needs to find Caleb fast, but one wrong step and Owen may disappear, too. 

You can find Ford’s novel on AMAZON.

While I’m not a fan of the title, I’m definitely a fan of this book! S.M. Reeve’s novel, Avenger of Blood, is a great read. Anna Croix’s life is a checklist of perfects. Until she returns home for a visit and is greeted with her family’s bloody corpses instead of the scent of freshly baked apple pie. She’s lost and left with a gaping hole that turns into a burning drive for revenge, Anna style. She sets out to find out who killed her family and why. And when she does… Warning: Lots of violence. You’ll find Avenger of Blood on AMAZON.

Donna Huston Murray’s novel, What Doesn’t Kill You, is Book 1 in the Lauren Beck Crime trilogy. 

As Lauren Beck mourns the loss of her friend Corinne, the last thing she expects is Corinne’s daughter to accuse her of murdering her mother. The former police officer quickly becomes the prime suspect. Lauren has plenty of people out to get her and no tangible proof to put one of them behind bars. But the killer has planted plenty of false evidence to land her in jail for the rest of her life. 

What Doesn’t Kill You is a great attention to your reading list and is available on AMAZON.

Jodi Burnett’s prequel novellas for Marshals series introduces you to Deputy U.S. Marshal Dirk Sterling. I enjoy flawed characters and Sterling has his demons to fight. He’s a great character. I’m sure you’ll love Chapter 3 as much as I did. The novella is predictable in spots, but you can’t get the twists and turns in a short book. Forged is an easy and enjoyable read. When you sign up for Jodi Burnett’s NEWSLETTER, she’ll also send you Forged and Baxter K-9 Hero (e-book and audiobook).

Jodi Burnett’s prequel novellas for her Marshals series introduces you to Deputy U.S. Marshal Dirk Sterling. 

I enjoy flawed characters and Sterling has his demons to fight. He’s a great character. I’m sure you’ll love Chapter 3 as much as I did. 

The novella is predictable in spots, but you can’t get the twists and turns in a short book. Forged is an easy and enjoyable read. 

When you sign up for Jodi Burnett’s NEWSLETTER, she’ll also send you Forged and Baxter K-9 Hero (e-book and audiobook).

What can I say? The book begins with an action scene… exactly how I like them. 

I was excited when I saw Ethan Jones’s book in this week’s free promos. I met Ethan many years ago when he was just starting out. He spoke to a group of writers at our local library about his self-publishing experience. I was impressed with his passion and work ethic. I’ve been following him ever since. And yes, at one point he lived in my neck of the woods. 

His books run approximately 240 pages and he has several series to choose from. He writes clean thrillers. You can The Extractor on AMAZON.

I enjoyed reading At Bay by John W Mefford. This is Book 1 in the Alex Troutt Thriller series. 

There are a couple of blips that took me out of the story, but they didn’t stop me from reading the book. 

The second chapter brings us into FBI Alex Troutt’s world. She wakes up in the hospital, suffering amnesia. The beginning mirrors the start of the first chapter which I found a bit confusing at first. But keep reading… the rest of the story moves smoothly as she tracks a serial killer while trying to piece together her past. 

At Bay is available on AMAZON.

This is the prequel novella in Tom Fowler’s John Tyler series. As you know, I love a good underdog story, especially if the underdog can kick butt. Tyler most definitely does. 

This is a solid enjoyable read that introduces Tyler, a fifty-year-old former Green Beret who works for Patriot Security. 

When a simple routine job takes an unexpected turn, Tyler has to deal with his jerk of a boss, his worried teenage daughter, and a house full of ruthless drug dealers who want him dead. 

You can get Midnight Drive when you sign up to Tim Fowler’s NEWSLETTER, plus Hong Kong Dangerous, the prequel to his C.T. Ferguson mysteries.

I’m officially an Andrew Allan fan. 

Killers, Bikers, & Freaks is the second Andrew Allan book I’ve read. I’m in love with his action-packed plots, characters, and flawless writing. 

TV infomercial writer and born pitchman Walt Asher is a normal guy caught in a far from normal situation. Fortunately, he can pitch anything. A great skill to have when you’re running for your life. 

You have to read this book! You can find Killers, Bikers, & Freaks on AMAZON.

If you’re like me and enjoy an underdog protagonist, you’re going to love the Unpopular Sheriff. 

Step into fast-paced action. And just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse… it does. 

The title says it all. Who else would you expect to be the only one stubborn enough to save the town? 

A must-read!!! You can grab Allan’s book on AMAZON.

This is Book 1 in Chris Lowry’s Jake Burbank Mystery series. 

If you like stories where the main character is the underdog, you’re going to love Jake Burbank, a has-been alcoholic lawyer who takes things in stride, one drink at a time. 

The books in this series are novella length, so don’t expect an intricate plot. The page count isn’t there for that. But expect a solid story and a character who, despite all his flaws, is downright likeable. 

You can find A Pint of Problems on AMAZON.

This is the prequel backstory to Kane’s Margot Harris series. We’re introduced to Margot, a patrol officer aiming for detective with the local police force. 

The novella is a short mystery (40 pages) worth reading. Don’t expect a lot of character development and a twisty plot–40 pages isn’t long enough to accomplish that. But the novella will introduce you to Kane’s writing style and what to expect in the series. 

It’s free on her website when you join her NEWSLETTER.