John Rector

Trust becomes a fatal mistake in this shocking thriller by the bestselling author of The Ridge. Welcome to Beaumont Cove, a slowly decaying tourist town at the edge of the world, and the place where Maggie James's worst fears for her estranged twin sister, Lilly, have come true. Lilly is dead, and Maggie has arrived to identify her body. Lilly's husband, Mike, is in custody for her murder. With his long history of abuse, no one in town is surprised at the inevitable end to their stormy marriage, least of all Maggie. All she wants is to clean up her sister's affairs, see Mike punished, and get out of Beaumont Cove. With the help of the local sheriff, a retired private investigator, and a strange but friendly carnival psychic, Maggie begins to uncover the truth about what really happened to her sister. But the truth comes at a price, and soon Maggie finds herself walking a dark path toward the same deadly trap that killed Lilly. The more Maggie discovers about her sister's final days, the more she realizes that nothing is as it appears in this strange boardwalk town.

Broken

Dexter McCray is a farmer with a dark past that continues to haunt him. As a man struggling with alcoholism, he's used to being looked at with pity and suspicion in his community. So, after waking from a blackout to discover the body of a teenage girl in the nearby cottonwood grove, he can't be entirely sure he's innocent. With no memory of the previous night, he sees no choice but to investigate the crime himself. Fortunately he's not alone. He has some help…in the shape of the dead girl herself. In The Grove, readers are treated to more than a warped and imaginative mystery. With plot twists on every page, Rector breathes life into a story that pits reality against hallucination, truth against improbability. Is Dexter motivated by guilt or insanity, reason or folly? And how will the young victim provide the help he desperately needs? This is a novel about one man haunted by the reality of his failed life.

The Grove

With its manicured lawns, pastel houses, and quiet, tree-lined streets, Willow Ridge seems to be the perfect place for Megan and Tyler Stokes to start a new chapter in their lives together. But soon after settling in, Megan begins to notice cracks in the neighborhood s bright suburban facade cracks that reveal a darker secret hidden just beneath the surface. After an angry encounter with a neighbor takes a horrifying turn, Megan s waking nightmare truly begins growing ever more chilling and bizarre with each shocking twist. Suddenly forced to question everything around her, Megan finds herself trapped between the specter of madness and the shadow of something far worse. Her only hope is to expose the community s pretty lies and discover the truth about what is really going on in Willow Ridge a truth so devastating that her life will never be the same. "

The Ridge

Giving a ride to a snowbound stranger who offers them a lucrative sum in exchange, a recently engaged couple is thrown into a nightmarish situation when the stranger dies in their back seat with more than two million dollars in his possession. Reprint.

The Cold Kiss

Jake's distant past was a life on the streets, inflicting damage and suffering on more people than he can count. And now someone from his past, it seems, has come looking for him. When two men attack Jake in a parking lot and cut off his finger, he tries to dismiss it as an unlucky case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But when events take a more sinister turn and his wife goes missing, Jake knows he can no longer hide from the truth.

A Novel

Already Gone

Counseling Psychologist John Rector

Nick White is the only person who can save Abigail Pierce. After uncovering a plot to have her killed, he attempts to warn her but instead puts himself squarely in the crosshairs. They know who he is, they know where he lives, they know how to get at his family. Drawn into the conspiracy surrounding Abigail, Nick soon discovers the danger is bigger than he ever believed. Now he must uncover the truth to save her and himself. Gripping and intense, this novel is a twisted thrill ride from bestselling author John Rector.

Ruthless

Nate and Sara are broke -- and on the run from the past. When a shady hitchhiker offers them cold hard cash for a lift, they can't afford to say no. But very soon they'll be wishing they had. Because picking him up is about to become the biggest mistake they ever made -- and the price they'll have to pay will be greater than they could ever have imagined...

Cold Kiss

Il bosco degli orrori

**Previously published as Cold Kiss** The most gripping thriller you'll read this year, perfect for fans of The Hunting Party and An Unwanted Guest 'A well-crafted, tightly plotted thriller which steadily cranks up the sense of menace page by page. You know something bad's going to happen and just have to keep reading…' Simon Kernick, Sunday Times bestselling author of Die Alone Seven strangers. One body. A decision that will change everything. Nate and Sara are broke – and on the run from the past. When a shady hitchhiker offers them cold hard cash for a lift, they can't afford to say no. But when the man dies in the back seat, with more than two million dollars in his possession, Nate and Sara are forced to make a difficult decision. And, with a blizzard closing in, trapping them for who knows how long in a motel with five strangers, it’s a decision they won’t be able to run from… Perfect for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware, The Couple in Room 13 is a tense, twisty thriller that will not leave your hands until you've finished and will force you to ask the question, 'What would I have done?' Praise for The Couple in Room 13: 'Portents of disaster accumulate like wind-driven snow... A sly and very accomplished first novel' Booklist 'Highly rewarding... I just couldn't stop reading... There's no better place to spend a few imaginative hours these days than Rector's snowbound motel' National Review 'Highly suspenseful, highly provocative... has elements of the teen horror film I Know What You Did Last Summer and the classic, groundbreaking Psycho... highly recommended' Gumshoe Review 'One of the most violent, frightening and gripping books I have ever read. The phrase "I could not put it down" fits here -- and the ending stopped me COLD. An outstanding read -- don't miss this one!' Beyond her Book, Publisher's Weekly 'A novel that compels you to read on - even though there are times you are too scared to. Brilliant' Sun 'Rector is the best find I've made all year' Tony Black 'Wonderfully compelling. Could almost see the film racing across my eyes' Maxim Jakubowski 'Tense, taut, throat-grabbing. John Rector is far more accomplished than his years. Reads like a cross between No Country for Old Men and Deliverance. Terrific' Eric Van Lustbader 'One of the best debuts I've read in a very long time' Scott Phillips

The most gripping thriller you'll read this year!

The Couple in Room 13

Lost Things

Nate en Sara hebben na een moeilijke jeugd het geluk gevonden. In een wegrestaurant onderweg naar Reno, waar ze in het geheim willen trouwen, biedt een zieke man hun vijfhonderd dollar voor een lift. Ze stemmen toe, maar na uren in een steeds heviger sneeuwstorm wordt verder rijden onverantwoord. Ze stoppen bij een verlaten motel, waar ze tot hun afgrijzen ontdekken dat hun passagier is overleden.De verwarring is compleet wanneer blijkt dat de dode een koffertje met twee miljoen dollar bij zich draagt. Wat te doen? Nate en Sara willen best oprecht en eerlijk zijn, maar de verleiding om het geld te houden is gewoon te groot. Door die beslissing belanden ze al snel in een rampzalige draaikolk van geweld, hebzucht en verraad.

De koudste kus

All Nate and Sara want is a new life in a new town, away from the crime and poverty of their past. So, after being approached at a roadside diner by a man offering $500 for a ride to Omaha, they wonder if their luck might be changing. At first it seems like easy money, but within a few hours the man is dead. Now, forced off the road by a blizzard and trapped in a run-down motel on the side of a deserted highway, Nate and Sara begin to uncover the man's secrets. Who he was, how he died, and most importantly, why he was carrying two million dollars in his suitcase. Before they know it, Nate and Sara are fighting for their lives, and in the end, each has to decide just how far they are willing to go to survive. The Cold Kiss is an everyman psychological thriller that pits a young couple against moral corruption, greed, betrayal, and love. More simply, for two characters who may have used up all their chances, it's the classic final trip down the dark tunnel that might lead to heaven, but drags them through hell. This is A Simple Plan meets The Getaway, with a pulse-pounding plot and a twist ending. John Rector is name that all thriller fans will come to know and love for years to come. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Jay Stringer

Steve Cavanagh

Lori Rader-Day

Laura McHugh

Alex Segura

Michael Kardos

Lili Wright

Andrew Case

Jon McGoran

Dana King

James R. Tuck

Nick Kolakowski

David James Keaton

Chris Holm

Josh Stallings

James W. Ziskin

Terry Shames

Bill Crider

E.A. Aymar

Kris Calvin

Scott Loring Sanders

Dave White

The Anthony-nominated collection of crime stories without guns—the collection we didn't want to be necessary—is back for Volume 2. Two dozen more crime writers have come together to raise their voices and take pen in hand to call for a sensible and reasoned debate about guns in America. As the mass shootings continue, the avoidable accidents, the suicides, the gun violence that consumes our country rolls on unabated and unaddressed by our leadership other than to say, “Now is not the time to discuss it,” these crime writers have chosen to start the dialogue. In stories of crime, mystery and suspense these authors have left the guns out to show for a short while that we can do without them and the plot doesn’t fall apart. Maybe, in a small way, we can show that the American way of life doesn’t cease to be, either. Not anti-gun, Unloaded Vol. 2 is pro-reason. These authors comprise gun owners and non-owners, voters on both sides of the political aisle. The cause that unites us all is the desire to see the senseless killing stop and to be able to have the discussion without the divisive language, vitriol and name calling that too often accompanies this debate. The top priority in these stories is to entertain with thrilling action and suspense that readers know and love about a crime story. To do so without guns leads to some creative leaps from writers who spin tales of simians on the loose, androids with buried secrets, punk rock shows and tattoo shops. Bestselling authors like Chris Holm, Lori Rader-Day, Bill Crider, Laura McHugh, James Ziskin and John Rector along with many more join together to call for an end to the needless violence and a start to a reasoned debate. With a forward by legendary Sara Paretsky, Unloaded Vol. 2 is a book we wish wasn’t needed. But staying silent is no longer an option. Proceeds go to the non-profit States United To Prevent Gun Violence. Praise for UNLOADED VOLUME 2: “[A collection of] entertaining and often thought-provoking stories.” —Publishers Weekly

John Rector

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