Old Crime

Tales of the West: A Western Anthology is a collection of six western short storied filled with action and adventure, including Little Dodge, The Bounty Hunter, The Driver, The Stable Boy, The Orphan and The Road to Laramie.

In his decades as an insurance investigator, Dave Brandstetter has never shied away from violence, and he’s had more than his share of close calls. Time's catching up with him, his body's slowing down, and his wit isn't as sharp as it used to be. But he will forgo retirement once more for the sake of a puzzle no detective could resist. Walking on the beach, a friend finds a bedraggled child who claims he's witnessed a murder. The victim is a drug-addicted pop star, and the obvious suspect is the dead man’s ex-girlfriend - a junkie whom the child saw standing over the body.

Private Investigator Charlie Cameron is searching for a man who disappeared after his son’s suicide. When an unidentified body turns up at the morgue, Cameron is sure it’s another case closed. But the body laid out on the slab isn’t the man he’s looking for. And it isn’t a stranger. Suddenly, a routine investigation becomes a desperate fight for survival.

Disappearing wasn’t going to be enough…they needed a plan…some answers…and a safe place where they couldn’t be found…and time to figure out what to do next….and why their pursuers are interested in Harper’s father…and are willing to do anything to draw her out. Now it appears that they have an unknown and unlikely ally…maybe two. But what does it mean when one of their allies becomes the new target… An attack on the Mulholland’s wasn’t expected…and though much could be tied to Mick Johnson this wasn’t his style…or his target.It’s the middle of the twenty-...

Thrift shop til someone drops... Welcome to Pine Grove, where Minnesota nice is just a suggestion, and the sheriff is a real dog. Turning her garage into a thrift store was a lakeside picnic compared to having her mother come to visit. And when the scandalously young boyfriend she brought with her disappears, Jessica Braun has her work cut out for her. With the help of the canine sheriff and her new friends in town, Jess will have to think fast to keep her mother from taking the blame for the body that turns up. And as if a mother and a murder aren’t enough, her shop faces competition ...

Ghent, the bizarre, gothic City of Witches, of lore, and evidently, of murder! A man is dead and a missing antique manuscript of scientific and philosophical merit is missing. Poisoned chocolates, creepy dolls, thievery, treachery, and yes, waffles. I’m Honorio, a cat, and with my extraordinary detective skills, my three traveling lady companions and I are out to solve the latest case. I try not to fall in love. I try not to be run over by bicycles. I try not to be paralyzed. And I try my best to be brilliant. At that I am successful. Come with us as we continue our European tour. Visit ...

Suicide? Or Murder? is a gripping murder mystery set in the picturesque but deceptive tranquility of rural England during the early 20th century. Freddie Paxton, a man crafted for the serene niche of a golf club nestled within the decaying grandeur of a once-magnificent estate, is thrust into a whirlwind of intrigue and suspicion. When the mangled body of S. Brotherhood is discovered on the golf course, it initially seems like a tragic accident. However, former military intelligence officer Mordaunt Carroll and his astute friend Alexander Greene suspect foul play. As they dig deeper into ...

A ghostly place with a tragic history: the isolated Chalet Hermitage in the deep shadow of the Matterhorn. A snowstorm hits. A clock strikes. A man dies. An opera diva disappears. A cat yawns . . . Wait, what? The cat, Honorio, and his companions Emma, Hilde, and Vivien—tired of the summer heat on their tour of Europe—have taken Emma’s cousin Cedric’s advice and made their way to the cooler climes of Italy’s Aosta Valley. Here they’ve found exceptional vistas and amazing accommodations, but not everything is as it seems. Shadows play. People lie. And strange sounds and visions ...

Thrift shop til someone drops... It’s time for Halloween, and that means costume sales at the Pine Grove Thrift Store. After Jessica Braun finds her aunt’s odd stash of disguises, she will have more than enough inventory for this holiday. But where did the costumes come from? And why did Aunt Daphne collect them? When Jess and her friends reheat a cold case, they stir up dangers, old and new. And when her suspicions about the killer lead her down roads she never expected to travel, another life will be lost in Pine Grove. Which will Jess be more frightened of this Halloween—a murderer...

Disappearing wasn’t going to be enough…they needed a plan. It’s the middle of the twenty-third century and while there have been staggering technological and environmental advances, human nature is still very much the same as it has always been. One woman unexpectedly finds herself thrust into the middle of a long simmering struggle between power, greed, and an overwhelming effort to keep long hidden secrets buried.Luckily she isn’t on her own. A childhood friend that she hasn’t seen in years is proving once again that he can be trusted even as they just barely avoid one near miss...

Tanner and Romeo team up to protect an old friend from England whose husband has become a target. When the threat escalates, Tanner faces off against the London mob.

Lieutenant Ethan Hendricks’ greatest nightmare just also happened to be his grandfather’s newest business venture. Logan Hendricks is thrilled about his brand new detective agency’s first case, but things weren’t turning out the way they were supposed to, including the attempted murder of one of his brand new employees. But he figures their next case, which involves finding a missing sister, should go a lot smoother. How dangerous could it really be? Ethan Hendricks wasn’t quite as confident about his grandfather’s new hobby, or that the supposedly straight-forward case of a ...

What could be better than reading a one-of-a-kind mystery novel on a cold winter night? How about finding out it’s actually evidence of a murder? The manuscript for Murder in Walnut Cove is even more entertaining than Jessica Braun expected it would be when she rescued it from storage. But it isn’t just a thrilling tale of intrigue and criminal behavior. Some of the characters bear an unlikely resemblance to real people, and the town in the book sounds awfully familiar… Sharing news of the story stirs up a hornet’s nest of trouble with Jessica right in the middle, leaving her to ...

During a vigil calling for police reform, students from Spelman College, a historically black women's institution, are assaulted by rifle fire from a passing vehicle. On her way to interview witnesses, Detective Sarah "Salt" Alt confronts the fleeing vehicle of the suspects, but they get away. While other detectives take the lead on the Spelman murders, Salt is tasked to investigate the case of a recently discovered decomposed body. When she combs through the missing-persons reports, it becomes clear the victim is a girl Salt took into custody two years before.

Embarrassed to realize that he has become a boring old pest, retired Canadian attorney Donald Dillenbeck decides to discard his cheapskate ways, leave his home town and squander his millions in the USA by indulging in a lavish upscale life. The old boy will soon learn that life-long habits of thrift are tough to break. Don will also discover first-hand that America has become a very dangerous place to travel. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Durward Garbage is a pen name used by Canadian author and retired lawyer Donald W. Desaulniers to publish some of his shorter novels. Always a proponent of quantity ...

In 1576, a fleet of fifteen vessels appeared on the south side of the island. Most belonged to the Spanish Empire and five others to the English corsair, Barker. The two sides engaged in a naval battle. By the Egyptian goddess! My excited little claws appeared. The battle raged for ten hours, one of the five pirate ships was burned and abandoned. The gold, pearls, and other lustrous items of unparalleled beauty were swallowed by the sea. Honorio, the detective cat, is at it again, sleuthing with his three lady travelling pals. This time on the lovely island where Cousin Cedric has invited ...

Charlie has old girlfriend problems. The cops think retired blogger Charlie North murdered his three old girlfriends. They want to see him fry. Charlie needs to catch the killers before the cops, or the killers, catch him. Desperate, Charlie investigates the murders. He hires a stunning—and brilliant—private detective. Good first move. As they dig up clues, Charlie dutifully reports their findings in his blog, naming names, naming everything. The blogs go wildly viral. It’s like putting the investigations of all three murders on a sizzling griddle.

Lieutenant Ethan Hendricks’ greatest nightmare just also happened to be his grandfather’s newest business venture. Logan Hendricks is thrilled about his brand new detective agency’s first case, but things weren’t turning out the way they were supposed to, including the attempted murder of one of his brand new employees. But he figures their next case, which involves finding a missing sister, should go a lot smoother. How dangerous could it be? Ethan Hendricks wasn’t quite as confident about his grandfather’s new hobby, or that the supposedly straight-forward case of a missing ...

Thrift shop til someone drops... Taking in donations at a thrift store could only bring good fortune, right? That is, unless there’s more than secondhand treasures in those boxes… Jessica Braun’s thrift shop is thriving, her first donations are coming in to resell, and the new neighborhood watch is a success. Add a date with an unexpected gentleman, and Jess’s first summer back in Minnesota is sweet as maple syrup. But when donated collectibles are stolen, a local woman lands in deep water. The deputy is ready to let Jess help investigate when the quiet town is turned upside down ...

She played with fire to save her legacy. He walked through flames to protect her. With her father's terminal illness draining their funds, Peach has resorted to desperate measures, including secretly dancing for strangers online to maintain the family ranch. But when she discovers hidden cameras in her bathroom and starts receiving threatening messages from an obsessed fan, she realizes that she's not the only one with secrets to hide. When mysterious CC Investments offers to buy the property, the small town's mistrust of outsiders threatens to destroy Peach's last chance at salvation. ...