Family Suspense

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 ...

Sabrina Adams thought her luck had finally turned around when she was hired as a librarian for the wealthy Dorsey family. But as soon as she arrives at their elegant estate, she senses something is off. They have cameras everywhere. She’s banned from the third floor, and she spotted someone watching the house from the nearby woods. And why does the housekeeper, Mrs Manning, insist on so many rules?

In the picturesque town of Flaxton, the Radcliffe family presents a picture of flawless unity. "The Perfect Family," a spellbinding novel by Jacquie Underdown, invites readers into a labyrinth of shadowy secrets that could shatter this family's polished veneer. Matt and Nikki, the embodiment of marital tranquillity, weave through their days, blissfully ignorant of the menacing undercurrents threatening their harmony. Little do they know that danger hides in plain sight, casting ominous ripples through their placid lives. High-fliers Anthony and Belinda, graced with success and affluence, ...

Meri's family has been producing doctors for so many generations that no one remembers why, so when she flunks out of medical school, she runs as far from her parents as she can get. In the small mountain town of Canyon Mines, Colorado, she takes a job at the Inn at Hidden Run B&B. And waits. It's only a matter of time. What she doesn't count on is genealogist Jillian Parisi-Duffy and her father, Nolan, having her back when it takes everything she has not to bolt again but to stay and face the truth that only unfolding her family's history will reveal....

After my Yaya passed away, I didn't have anyone that cared for me. I mean, not even a month after Yaya was in the ground, he sat me down in the living room and sold me to a thirty-year-old man. I was sixteen, and my big brother, the man who was supposed to protect me, sold me off like cattle on a farm. My entire life has been to please Zayne. I'm his fourth wife and the youngest wife. Nobody has ever protected or cared for me. I was tossed the cards that life handed me and had to make do with them. That is until Cappadonna Delgato and I cross paths—again.

Jack, his genius siblings Ava and Matt, and inventor Dr. Hank Witherspoon travel to the Hawaiian island home of Ashley Hawking, a technology billionaire. Hawking and engineer Rosa Morris have built a revolutionary electricity plant that harvests energy from the deep ocean, but someone has been sabotaging the project. In their search for the culprit, Jack and crew navigate an unusual world of characters and suspects, including Hawking and her obnoxiously intelligent son.

In his three novellas, In Short Measures, Strong Conspirators, and Sally Forth, Michael Ruhlman delves deeply into the nuanced complexity of romantic and sexual love - and the inevitable evolution of the heart over the span of years and decades. Each novella asks questions about the nature of love in terms of loyalty and fidelity - what are one's obligations toward one's spouse, one's family, and one's heart?

The world's population is soaring, creating overcrowded cities and an economic crisis. And in the UK, the breaking point has arrived. A growing number of people can no longer afford to start families, let alone raise them. But for those desperate to experience parenthood, there is an alternative. For a monthly subscription fee, clients can create a virtual child from scratch who they can access via the metaverse and a VR headset. To launch this new initiative, the company behind Virtual Children has created a reality TV show called The Substitute.

Dru Anderson is a very special girl - even if she doesn't always feel it. Gifted with "the touch", Dru travels about with her dad, hunting all manner of things that go bump in the night. But then her dad turns up dead - or, er, undead - and everything changes.

He spent three years behind bars; now he's going to make me pay for sending him there. Five years ago, I stood before a judge and told him what I'd witnessed. My fiancé, Mateo Valenti, killing someone in cold blood. After they locked him up, I thought I'd never see Mateo again. But I was wrong. When Mateo gets out, he calls me in the middle of the night. "Oh, Bambi, you think three years on the inside are hard?" "Wait until I get my hands on you." I don't know how he got my number, but he says he's coming for me. He says we're going to be together forever, just like we promised. Deviant ...

During their thirty years of marriage, Rose Redfern has confided everything (well, nearly everything) to Michael, and is certain that he would never hide anything from her. That's why it's such a shock when, shortly before Rose and Michael are set to take a romantic trip to Venice, she receives strong evidence that he's having an affair with a woman their daughters' age. Rose feels emotionally unmoored, and her sense of betrayal swiftly turns vengeful. She stumbles across a stash of powerful barbiturates, previously used to medicate an epileptic dog, and wonders if she might not find a new use for them…

At age fifty, Margaret Spencer's empty nest and empty marriage prompt her to answer an ad for part-time office work at the office of private investigator Nat Southby. Suddenly, she is deep in the most unlikely of adventures for a woman in 1950s Vancouver, helping him with a case of missing young women involved in a shady business ring. Maggie finds unexpected freedom as a developing detective and along the way she uncovers evil in the quaintly urban setting.

The Shadow Club doesn't exist anymore. The group of second-best kids used to play anonymous practical jokes on their rivals, until things spiraled out of control. Now Jared and the ex-Shadow Club members are having a hard time shaking their reputation. And when the new golden boy at school is the victim of a series of nasty pranks, everyone's convinced Jared is to blame. Determined to prove his innocence, Jared soon becomes wrapped up in a nightmare worse than anything the Shadow Club ever caused.

Much to their surprise, the Peaches had a great summer running their food truck business selling their pies across the Mid-West, but they're happy to be back home in Duluth, Minnesota, where they can settle back into a routine just in time for the new school year. That is until Great Aunt Lucinda wants to gift them her historic mansion. But there are conditions: they're to turn it into a cozy bed-and-breakfast, something the Peach kids' mom always dreamed of before she passed away. And they only have until Thanksgiving to do the renovations and prove they can make the business work.

I don’t want a wife. But in the mafia, marriage isn’t about love—it’s about power. When the Family demands I marry Giovanni Lucatello’s sheltered daughter, I drown my frustration in whiskey and meet a woman who’s everything I shouldn’t want: bold, sharp-tongued, and tempting as sin. One night with her is unforgettable. But by the next morning, she’s gone. Or so I thought. When I walk into my engagement meeting, I see her sitting there, looking like innocence itself. Gianna Lucatello. The woman I’m bound to marry. I’ll make her regret what her father did to me. I’ll ...

Gemma Ballantine is getting ready for work one morning when her eldest child comes running down the stairs saying the words every mother dreads. The front door is open. And her six-year-old daughter has disappeared. Frantic with fear, Gemma starts a nail-biting search for her little girl. After what feels like forever, her mother-in-law, Diane, finds Katie wandering lost a few streets away. Relieved to have her youngest child back in her arms, breathing in the sweet scent of her hair, Gemma thinks the nightmare is over. But then her perfect family starts to fall apart....

My family was taken away from me. I was too young to know what went on, but now that I know, it's time to get it back in blood. Protecting my sister and my niece or nephew is more important than basketball. Making sure the man who was behind trying to end me is ended is more important. With mentors like Capone and Cappadonna behind me, I can't lose. My head is in the game. I'm focused, and I want revenge. I refuse to sit down until someone's blood is on my hands for taking Joie and our child away from me. I refuse to lose, and I'm making sure my family is protected by any means necessary.

In "A New Dawn," readers are plunged into a riveting thriller that explores the depths of human resilience and the powerful bonds of family. When Ariel's sister Ivy disappears at a mysterious mountain retreat, she uncovers chilling secrets hidden beneath its peaceful facade. This suspenseful thriller plunges readers into a world of sinister secrets and shocking evils, testing the resilience of sisterhood and survival. Ariel, our narrator, regrets her drifting relationship with her younger sister Ivy and tries her best to make amends. As Ivy faces heartbreak and searches for healing, she is ...

In the remote town of Consequence, nestled deep in the southeast side of Washington State, an ominous presence has cast its shadow over the community. Residents whisper of mysterious disappearances, strange sightings, and unexplained terror lurking within the dense woods surrounding the town. Chief of Police Darin Lane, a seasoned and peaceful law enforcement officer, is determined to uncover the truth behind the mounting fear that is gripping his town. As the town’s Chief of Police, he finds himself thrust into a chilling investigation that defies rational explanation. With each passing ...

Charlie Madison was living the dream. Her career was taking off. She just accepted a prestigious new job as a trauma surgeon in LA. Endless sunny days and the opportunity to work with some of the best trauma surgeons in the world. Of course, there were a few little worries occasionally keeping her up at night…at least the nights she wasn’t called into the hospital. She still owed a mountain of student debt from her long years of schooling. But her less than stellar financial balance sheet wasn’t the most pressing of her concerns at the moment. The Dirty Little Family Secret was ...