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Seattle homicide prosecutor David Brunelle faces a prosecutorial nightmare in the seventh installment of this legal thriller series. A drug addict-turned-police informant is found murdered, his body dumped publicly in a location designed to send a clear warning to others who might consider cooperating with law enforcement: snitches get stitches, or worse. The prime suspect is the drug lord the dead man was snitching out, a powerful figure who’s avoided prosecution for years through intimidation and violence. And the only witnesses to the murder were also accomplices to it, creating a legal and ethical minefield. ⚖️
Decisions have to be made about who deserves immunity and who deserves prison, and deals have to be cut with people Brunelle doesn’t trust. He struggles through a maze of coconspirators and their defense attorneys to answer the questions at the core of his dilemma: Who deserves a break for cooperating? And who deserves the full punishment of the law for their role in a murder? Will a collection of scared drug addicts and loyal hangers-on be willing to testify against a man who already killed one police informant and clearly won’t hesitate to kill again? 💊
And even if they are willing to risk their lives to testify, will the jury believe anyone whose testimony was purchased with a plea bargain that lets them walk free? Brunelle encounters new friends and past opponents as he tries to hold a killer responsible, both aided and hindered by the doctrine of accomplice liability that makes everyone involved in a crime equally guilty but creates leverage for prosecutors to flip witnesses. Stephen Penner delivers legal thriller examining the moral compromises required to prosecute drug lords when the only witnesses are criminals themselves. 🔍
What makes this essential: The seventh David Brunelle legal thriller where Seattle homicide prosecutor faces a prosecutorial nightmare when a drug addict-turned-police informant is murdered publicly, with only accomplices as witnesses against the drug lord suspect—forcing Brunelle to cut deals and answer who deserves breaks versus full punishment while wondering if juries believe testimony purchased with plea bargains.
I didn’t want one fake boyfriend, but somehow I got tangled up with two! My ex cheated me out of my savings with some investment scheme that turned out to be completely fraudulent, my car took early retirement by dying on the highway at the worst possible moment, and my mother was threatening to disown me if I didn’t find a date for my sister’s high-profile wedding where apparently showing up single would be a family embarrassment. Enter handsome, wisecracking out-of-towner Max who seems to be in town for mysterious reasons he won’t explain. 💕
Alternately friendly and standoffish in ways that give me whiplash, he initially rubbed me the wrong way with his assumptions and attitude, but now he’s giving me looks that make me wish he’d rub me in all the right ways, if you know what I mean! Sure, he’s a delicious piece of eye candy with that jawline and those shoulders, but men can’t be trusted after what my ex did, and there’s something about Max that doesn’t add up—like why he’s really in town and why he keeps disappearing at odd times. 😍
Still, I’m out of options with the wedding approaching, and apparently the world will end if my mom doesn’t get a name for the place cards right this minute. So when Max offers to be my pretend-boyfriend, I agree despite my reservations. But it turns out his offer is a two-for-one deal: Max has an identical twin Miles, and wouldn’t it be hilarious, they say, if the two of them switch places throughout the multi-day wedding festivities and act like they’re the same man? Unfortunately, they’re charming enough to talk me into going along with their silly prank, and their love of secrets doesn’t stop there. Stephanie Brother launches Double the Rom-Com with fake dating, twin switching, and wedding chaos. 👯
What makes this essential: A fake dating rom-com launching Double the Rom-Com where after her ex cheats her out of savings and her car dies, she’s threatened with disownment without a wedding date—accepting handsome out-of-towner Max’s offer to be her pretend-boyfriend, only discovering it’s a two-for-one deal with identical twin Miles switching places throughout multi-day festivities in their silly prank full of secrets.
Get three brilliant and captivating stories together featuring British detectives Jack Rutherford and Amanda Lacey by master storyteller Linda Coles. “Move over Agatha Christie, there’s a new dame in town,” raves one Amazon reviewer about Coles’ ability to craft traditional detective mysteries with contemporary relevance. The collection includes *One Last Hit* and *Hey You, Pretty Face*, both showcasing the detective duo navigating complex cases that blur personal and professional boundaries. 🔍
*One Last Hit*: The greatest danger may come from inside his own home. Detective Duncan Riley has always worked hard to maintain order on the streets of Manchester, building a reputation for thoroughness and integrity. But when a series of incidents at home cause him to worry about his wife’s behaviour—unexplained absences, mood changes, defensive reactions—he finds himself pulled in too many directions at once between family crisis and professional responsibility. After a colleague at a south London station asks for his input concerning a local drug epidemic that’s spreading to Manchester, he never expected their case would infiltrate his own family through connections he never saw coming. DC Jack Rutherford and DS Amanda Lacey join the investigation as it spirals out of control. 💊
*Hey You, Pretty Face*: An abandoned infant. Three girls stolen in the night. Can one overworked detective find the connection to save them all? London, 1999. Short-staffed during a holiday week when everyone wants time off, Detective Jack Rutherford can’t afford to spend time on the couch recovering from anything. With a skeleton staff stretched impossibly thin, he’s forced to handle a deserted infant and a trio of missing girls almost single-handedly, juggling cases that seem unrelated. Despite the work overload and exhaustion, Jack has a sneaking suspicion that the baby and the abductions are somehow connected in ways that aren’t immediately obvious. Can he get them all home safely before the holiday ends? 👶
What makes this essential: A British detective mystery boxed set featuring Jack Rutherford and Amanda Lacey in three captivating stories including *One Last Hit* where Detective Duncan Riley’s concerns about his wife collide with a drug epidemic infiltrating his family, and *Hey You, Pretty Face* where short-staffed Jack handles an abandoned infant and three missing girls during holiday week, suspecting connections he must unravel to get them all home.
Escaping the bustling city of Boston where deadlines and expectations have been suffocating her creativity, free-spirited romance novelist Addison retreats to a tranquil, snow-kissed cabin in the coastal town of Rockport, brimming with dreams of crafting her next novel in peaceful isolation. Unbeknownst to her, destiny serves an intriguing twist as she stumbles upon Liam, the charming yet enigmatic bookstore owner with a shady past as riveting as the novels on his shelves and connections to Rockport’s most powerful families that he’s been hiding for years. 📚
Liam is haunted by a past that’s tightly interwoven with Rockport’s most powerful families—the Hastings and the Coopers—whose bitter rivalry has poisoned the town for generations. As the town gears up for the annual Winter Festival, their rivalry reaches a boiling point with each family striving for the honor of decorating the grand Christmas tree in the town square, a symbolic battle representing decades of grievances and competing claims to Rockport’s leadership. As Addison and Liam’s connection deepens into a whirlwind romance built on late-night conversations in his bookstore, they find themselves entangled in the feud’s icy grip. Betrayals, secrets, and long-held grudges resurface, threatening to shatter their newfound love. 🎄
All the while, Sarah, Addison’s best friend who accompanied her to Rockport, guards a secret about Liam’s past that could turn their world upside down and destroy the fragile peace Addison’s building. Torn between loyalty and truth, her decision could either ignite the old feud with devastating consequences or pave the way for reconciliation. With Christmas Eve approaching, Addison and Liam embark on a journey to unearth the truth, hoping to bring harmony back to Rockport by navigating unexpected allies, unforeseen challenges, and the power of forgiveness while discovering a hidden legacy that could end the feud once and for all. ❄️
What makes this essential: A holiday romance launching A Festive Christmas Series where romance novelist Addison escapes Boston for tranquil Rockport, stumbling upon enigmatic bookstore owner Liam whose past is tightly interwoven with the powerful Hastings and Coopers families—their whirlwind romance entangling them in the feud reaching boiling point during Winter Festival as best friend Sarah guards secrets that could either ignite old grudges or enable reconciliation through a hidden legacy.
Gorgeous, small-town women’s fiction and swoon-worthy escapist romance set in a beautiful British seaside town. If you’re looking for a happy ever after with divine characters and Polly Babbington’s signature charm, settle in and say hello to Lovely Bay. Cally de Pfeffer has spent a long, long, long time caring for just about everyone in her life—aging parents, ungrateful siblings, demanding boss, needy friends. Unfortunately, though, no one has ever done quite the same for her, leaving her exhausted and wondering when it’s her turn to be cared for. As she makes it through the other side of a sad situation that’s left her depleted, all she really wants is one nice day. Not a lot to ask for, actually, is it? 🌊
That doesn’t happen though in the way she expects, and when she finds herself more or less homeless after circumstances beyond her control upend her living situation, she can’t quite believe where she’s ended up. At a dead end everywhere she looks—no home, no prospects, no energy left to keep fighting—she takes on a job at a huge old manor house in the third smallest town in the country, Lovely Bay, and that’s when she finds herself on the ride of her life that transforms everything she thought she knew about herself and what she deserves. 🏰
Packed full of Polly’s oh-so-unique trademarks including gorgeous coastal setting, a plethora of strong female characters who support rather than compete, and just about the very best escapism you can get from a book, get ready to lose yourself in Lovely Bay. Oh, and of course, you’re going to fall head over heels and hard for our girl Cally as we go on a journey with her and are transported to a whole other utterly fabulous world where she finally gets what she deserves. Settle in Babbettes, this one is going to rock. 💕
What makes this essential: Contemporary British women’s fiction launching One Day Lovely Bay where Cally de Pfeffer spent years caring for everyone who never reciprocated, wanting just one nice day after a sad situation—finding herself more or less homeless and taking a job at a manor house in the third smallest town Lovely Bay, embarking on the ride of her life with gorgeous coastal setting, strong female characters, and the best escapism as she finally gets what she deserves.
The Ellsworth Assortment Books 1-3
She craves respectability. He’s honorable to a fault. When their hearts harmonize, can they avoid a scandal to form a perfect pairing? Florence Ellsworth reluctantly lives in the shadow of her family’s notoriety, mortified that her widower father is on the hunt for his fourth wife while the ton gossips about the Ellsworth family’s scandalous pattern of marriages. She accepts an engagement to a staid clergyman in the desperate hope for propriety, believing that marrying someone boring and respectable will finally erase the family’s reputation for drama. But she’s unprepared when her father’s newly hired attorney proves to be young, sincere, and devastatingly handsome. 💍
Robert Fairchild feels awkward in society, aware of how his modest background is perceived by those who value titles and inheritance over talent and integrity. The humble lawyer is surprised by his longings when he gains the confidence of his client’s lovely daughter Florence, finding in her a kindred spirit who values substance over status. But with her already betrothed to another man, he dares not be dishonorable by confessing his interest and losing her respect—the one thing he values most about their growing friendship. ⚖️
Disturbed by her growing feelings for the charming solicitor, Florence works all the harder to find appeal in her sober intended husband who represents everything she thought she wanted. Meanwhile Fairchild is inadvertently pulled into a lady’s schemes that compromise his position and fears any chance with the object of his affection has been forever lost. Christina Dudley delivers the first three books in the Ellsworth Assortment with Regency romance examining honor, reputation, and whether respectability is worth sacrificing happiness. 💕
What makes this essential: A Regency romance boxed set where Florence Ellsworth craves respectability from her notorious family, accepting engagement to a staid clergyman—until her father’s newly hired attorney Robert Fairchild proves young, sincere, and handsome, pulling both into schemes and tender traps as they work harder to deny growing feelings while avoiding scandal to form their perfect pairing.
A murder shrouded in secrets. A young man’s future hanging in the balance. A past that refuses to stay buried. When Ainsley Holloway stumbles upon the body of a substitute teacher beneath the high school bleachers during what should have been a routine walk across campus, it seems like an open-and-shut case to local law enforcement. All evidence points to Justice, a brilliant but troubled student with documented ties to the victim—including threatening messages and a history of conflict—and no alibi for the time of death. 🏫
But Ainsley’s gut tells her there’s more to the story than the neat narrative police are constructing around Justice’s guilt. The substitute teacher had secrets, the school has its own hidden dynamics, and Justice’s troubled reputation might be making him an easy scapegoat for a murder committed by someone with more to lose. In a race against time as pressure mounts for Justice’s arrest, Ainsley must unravel a tangled web of lies, hidden histories, and painful truths to clear Justice’s name before he’s convicted in the court of public opinion if not actual law. 🔍
But as the investigation draws her deeper into the shadows of the past, Ainsley begins to wonder: how far will someone go to keep their secrets buried, and how many lives will be destroyed to protect a reputation? Kathi Daley continues the Cottage on Gooseberry Bay series with private investigator mystery examining how assumptions about troubled youth can blind investigators to more sinister motives, and whether justice can prevail when everyone wants a convenient suspect rather than the complicated truth. ⚖️
What makes this essential: A Cottage on Gooseberry Bay private investigator mystery where Ainsley Holloway stumbles upon a substitute teacher’s body beneath high school bleachers, with all evidence pointing to brilliant but troubled student Justice who has no alibi—forcing Ainsley to unravel tangled lies, hidden histories, and painful truths in a race against time to clear his name before discovering how far someone will go to keep secrets buried.
Few historical figures are as inextricably linked as Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee, their names forever joined as the opposing generals who met at Appomattox to end the bloodiest conflict in American history. But less than two decades before they faced each other as enemies at that famous courthouse, they had been brothers—both West Point graduates, both wearing Union blue, and both fighting in the same cadre during the Mexican War that nearly doubled America’s territory. They were not alone in this ironic fraternity: Sherman, Davis, Jackson, and nearly all of the Civil War’s greatest soldiers had been forged in the heat of Vera Cruz and Monterrey. 🎖️
The Mexican War has faded from our national memory, overshadowed by the Civil War that followed, but it was a struggle of enormous significance beyond just territorial gains: the first U.S. war waged on foreign soil, the proving ground for military tactics that would be employed (and opposed) in the 1860s, and the crucible where lifelong friendships and rivalries were formed that would shape America’s deadliest conflict. At this fascinating juncture of American history, a group of young men came together to fight as friends and brothers in arms, sharing tents and dangers and victories, only years later to fight as enemies in a war that would tear the nation apart. 🇺🇸
Full of dramatic battles like the assault on Chapultepec, daring rescues under fire, secret missions behind enemy lines, soaring triumphs and tragic losses that foreshadowed greater tragedies to come, Martin Dugard delivers history at its finest. The Training Ground examines how the Mexican War wasn’t just a forgotten conflict but rather the essential rehearsal for the Civil War, where Grant learned offensive warfare, Lee perfected reconnaissance, Sherman developed his aggressive strategies, and Davis gained the military credibility that would make him Confederate president. This is the story of how America’s greatest military minds were shaped by fighting together before destiny forced them apart. ⚔️
What makes this essential: A Civil War biography examining the Mexican War 1846-1848 as the training ground where Grant, Lee, Sherman, Davis, and Jackson fought as brothers wearing Union blue—both West Point graduates in the same cadre at Vera Cruz and Monterrey—before facing each other as enemies at Appomattox, exploring the forgotten conflict’s dramatic battles and secret missions that forged America’s greatest soldiers and doubled the nation’s territory.
The scent of saltwater and rum lingered in the air as Mary realized her quiet beach walk had somehow crossed paths with the 18th century. When introverted bookstore owner Mary Snow stumbles upon a gold coin and a centuries-old map hidden within the pages of an ancient book at her shop, she thinks it’s nothing more than a quirky find, the kind of thing that happens occasionally when you deal in old volumes. That is, until Aiden Cameron, a swashbuckling pirate captain from the 18th century, quite literally washes ashore on Ocracoke Island during her evening walk along the beach where he absolutely should not exist. 🏴☠️
As Ocracoke Island gears up for Halloween and the frenzied Pirate Jamboree that brings tourists flooding to this historic location, Mary is drawn into a world of secrets, folklore, and a dash of magic that she never believed existed beyond the pages of the books she sells. With every step into the mystery of the veil separating their worlds—why it opened, how Aiden crossed through, what the map and coin mean—Mary realizes she’s not just racing against time to help Aiden return to his own era before the veil closes permanently. She’s also falling for the frustratingly handsome rogue who speaks in archaic phrases and knows nothing of modern life, challenging her beliefs about love, adventure, and destiny. 💕
Can a heart trapped in the present find its rhythm with a man from the past? Cynthia Luhrs launches the Scots Through Time series with time travel romance combining pirate adventure, Halloween magic, and bookstore charm. The Ocracoke Island setting provides both historical pirate connection (Blackbeard’s actual stomping grounds) and modern tourist festival atmosphere, while the ticking clock of the closing veil adds urgency to Mary and Aiden’s cross-century romance. ⏳
What makes this essential: A time travel romance launching Scots Through Time where introverted bookstore owner Mary Snow finds a gold coin and centuries-old map, then 18th-century pirate captain Aiden Cameron washes ashore on Ocracoke Island during Halloween’s Pirate Jamboree—drawing Mary into folklore and magic as she races to help him return before falling for the frustratingly handsome rogue and discovering if hearts trapped in different centuries can find their rhythm.
Our new general manager is the most difficult man on the planet. So why does he have to be annoyingly hot with those smoldering green eyes? The night before Drake begins working at my family’s hotel, he finds me in the bar trying to get rid of a boring date who won’t take even the not-so-subtle hints I’m dropping. But the guy won’t leave, and I’m about to get more aggressive when Drake surprises me by coming to our table—not to help, but to reprimand ME about dating in our workplace before he’s even officially started. 🏨
I swear he thinks he can get away with it only because of those smoldering green eyes and that authoritative presence. Well, they don’t affect me. Nope, not at all. He may be Mr. McDreamy with his perfect jawline and commanding voice, but he doesn’t know who he’s dealing with. I give as good as I get, and I won’t let some new general manager push me around just because he’s technically my boss now. 😤
As we scout a location for a new hotel in Aspen—forced proximity in snowy mountain luxury—things really come to a head, just not in the way I imagined. When our reservations get mixed up and we end up in the same room sharing one bed, Drake confesses that he crashed my date because he couldn’t stand seeing me with another man. He wants me all for himself, and suddenly his difficult behavior makes a whole lot more sense. Layla Hagen delivers Maxwell Brothers romantic comedy with workplace enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, and one-bed trope proving that the most difficult man might just be the right one. ❄️
What makes this essential: A Maxwell Brothers romantic comedy where the family hotel’s annoyingly hot new general manager Drake reprimands her about workplace dating the night before he starts—giving as good as she gets until their Aspen scouting trip’s mixed-up reservations force them into one bed where Drake confesses he crashed her date because he couldn’t stand seeing her with another man and wants her all for himself.
… See the rest of today ‘s Book Picks here on page 2Page 2