Synopsis/blurb.... When Charley Varrick and his gang hit the Tres Cruces bank, they make two serious mistakes. They got trigger-happy and they didn't realise whose money they were taking. And when Damon Murray of the FBI arrived to take charge of the investigation, he began to wonder why a smalltown bank should be carrying so much money. Then the Mafia stepped in  - to cover up their insidious connections with the bank. And to get their money back. Loved it. I really enjoy reading late 60s/early 70s crime fiction paperbacks. Love the (often politically incorrect) covers, the smell and t ..read more

Synopsis/blurb .... Car thieves and the chop shop that buys from them combine to create high-octane stories of hot cars, hot crimes, and hot times in Dallas, Texas. In “The Cadillac Job,” loyalty beyond the battlefield sends Carly and Knuckles on one last mission to save a dying teammate. When Carly isn’t slinging drinks at the local VFW, she boosts cars—a job much like the one she had on a vehicle recovery team in Afghanistan. Except her team isn’t the same. Sweets is dying. And the last time Knuckles scouted for a Mustang, he ended up at a dude ranch off highway 175. Her commanding officer ..read more

  Translator, Quentin Bates ruminates on the mystery of this Icelandic author's identity.... The 25-year mystery of Stella Blómkvist  How do you keep a secret like this for twenty-five years in a country where one of the national pastimes is making sure that closely-guarded secrets are blown wide open in record time? But the writer (or writers) behind the mysterious Stella Blómkvist have managed to keep themselves out of the limelight since the first in the series appeared way back in the nineties. It’s a hell of an achievement. Even Stella’s editor claims to not know the identity ..read more

  Synopsis/blurb .... A gritty, fast-paced neo-noir that explores the consumptive nature of fame, celebrity, and motherhood through the lens of a driver lost in the gig economy. A struggling songwriter and Lyft driver, Adam Zantz’s life changes when he accepts a ride request in Malibu and 1970s music icon Annie Linden enters his dented VW Jetta. Bonding during that initial ride, the two quickly go off app— over the next three years, Adam becomes her exclusive driver and Annie listens to his music, encouraging Adam even as he finds himself driving more often than songwriting. Then, Annie ..read more

Synopsis/blurb ... DEATH STALKS THE RES Who – or what – is killing members of the Navajo tribe? RESERVATIONS, the first book of the Jack Del Rio political mystery/thriller series, is set near Gallup, New Mexico, where the Navajo, Hopi and Zuni reservations lie adjacent. Three tribal leaders have been murdered - murdered in a fashion that suggests the deeds were carried out by COYOTE, a legendary supernatural evil trickster feared by many Native Americans. The tribal president contacts an old friend in the FBI for assistance in solving the crimes and preventing more murders. Star agent, Jack ..read more

  Synopsis/blurb ... Meet Sam Applewhite, security consultant for DefCon4’s east coast office. . She’s clever, inventive and adaptable. In her job she has to be. Now, she’s facing an impossible mystery. A client has gone missing and no one else seems to care. Who would want to kill an old and lonely woman whose only sins are having a sharp tongue and a belief in ghosts? Could her death be linked to the new building project out on the dunes? Can Sam find out the truth, even if it puts her friends’ and family’s lives at risk? A bit of quirky comedy crime fiction which there was more to en ..read more

Synopsis/blurb ... At the heart of the book is George Gattling of Gainesville, Florida, fighting the boredom, the excruciating unimportance, of his existence. He has a successful custom-seatcover business, a family of sorts – his sister Precious, who lies in bed reading aloud the “Ask Them Yourselves” questions in Family Weekly; her son Fred, who every now and then utters one word like “cork” or “toe” and is definitely either retarded or a genius; and Betty, a psychology major whose actual study is copulation. And he has his hawk. The hawk is the mirror for all of George’s held-in passions. I ..read more

Synopsis/blurb ... In this first Inspector Banks novel, a peeping tom is frightening the women of Eastvale; two young thugs are breaking into homes; and an old woman may or may not have been murdered. Inspector Banks investigates these cases, which weave together as the story reaches a tense climax. Judging by the fact that I could find books numbered 2 to 18 from this series in my collection, it's probably a safe bet to assume I've read this one before. Long enough ago that I couldn't remember anything about it. Enjoyable, interesting, multiple cases going on, hence quite a busy book. I qui ..read more

  Synopsis/blurb ... City Hall is on Lewis-and-Clark Street, so it was the 14th Precinct that got the call, and very soon the 14th Precinct, in the persons of Detective Sergeants Moto and Pincus, was on the spot, bending down and looking into the car at the condom-shrouded figure of Ratty Scarlatti but not touching anything because the m.o. and the scene-of-crime crew hadn't gotten here yet, being stuck in the traffic jam on Eighth thanks to the burst sewer there... It might seem like just another case for the gallant boys of the 14th but, as the days progress and Moto (look, just don ..read more

Synopsis/blurb ... MI6 agent Will Cochrane is living in Washington, D.C. when a dangerous terrorist, codenamed Trapper, escapes from a top secret CIA military base.  Trapper comes after Will—saying he is the one who killed his leader—but Will knows there has to be more to this story. Will gets close enough to shut the man down, but when he does, that act opens the door to yet another, much more dangerous surprise . . . A 50-50 book. Half of it is a novella which introduces the reader to Will Cochrane (though it's not the first Cochrane story Dunn has penned) and gives his history and ba ..read more