Category: Suspense

Anywhere But Here by Madeleine Jaimes

Posted July 22, 2026 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Mystery, Owned, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense, Women's Fiction, Women's Romance Fiction / 2 Comments

When women become too powerful, sometimes the past comes looking for revenge.

Willow Harper built an empire on women’s choice. Her sister, Wren, made certain no one could take it from them.

For years, the twin sisters operated in the shadows of power—among the secrets, scandals, and indiscretions of influential men—quietly controlling the narrative from behind the scenes.

Then the past came looking for retribution.

And the sisters are forced to run.

Wren and Willow disappear without warning, fleeing in opposite directions. From the Badlands of South Dakota to the secluded shores of Bermuda, the sisters must uncover the truth behind a decades-old act of revenge, a buried family secret, and the mother who abandoned them years earlier.

Titles in the Tuckaway Bay series include: Beach Therapy ~ The Space Inbetween ~ The Christmas Storm ~ The Me I Left Behind ~ I Wish You Love ~ Anywhere But Here ~ Before I Fell (For You) ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

The Lake House by Lori Foster

Posted July 15, 2026 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Kensington Books, NetGalley, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense, Women's Romance Fiction / 0 Comments

When Pixie Nolan first came to Bramble, Kentucky, the abandoned and desperate young single mother found hope, healing, and a fresh start. With the loving support of her best friends—Marlow Heddings and her handsome Marine husband, Cort—Pixie is now happily raising her toddler son in a cozy cottage, managing Marlow’s thriving boutique, and designing firefly logo T-shirts that are selling like hotcakes. The past is behind her, and life is good.

She never expected to make an electrifying connection with a summer renter, a retired Navy SEAL with his own complicated past…

A rugged warrior with scars both seen and unseen, Brogan Rafferty arrives with an adorable baby girl in tow and settles into the lake house next door. And while he’s a stunning addition to the gorgeous scenery, it’s his caring devotion that captures Pixie’s heart—the way he gently snuggles away the precious infant’s cries, or swoops Pixie’s delighted little boy high in the air with his tattooed, muscular arms.

But it’s no coincidence that Brogan has found Pixie, and his startling revelations make it clear she’s the key to healing old regrets and building new dreams. And when a hostile stranger turns up with shocking accusations against Bramble’s new hometown hero, Pixie must put her own fears and heartbreak away for good—and learn what it truly means to trust.

Titles in the Firefly Summer series include:  The Guest Cottage ~ The Lake House ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

The Guest Cottage by Lori Foster

Posted July 5, 2026 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Kensington Books, Kindle Unlimited, NetGalley, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense / 0 Comments

Marlow Heddings is starting over. She’s carried the outrage of her husband Dylan’s affair with a younger woman—and the expectations of his family’s powerful Chicago holdings company—long enough. Now, after another devastating twist of fate, she’s unapologetically moving on.

Arriving in tiny Bramble, Kentucky, Marlow revels in her freedom, swapping her executive suits for sundresses . . . and scouting places to open her dream boutique. Best of all is her new residence, an adorable cottage with gorgeous lake views—and a breathtaking landlord, former Marine Cort Easton. Soon they’re sharing dockside morning coffee and nighttime firefly gazing. Marlow’s new life feels like a dream.

Then Pixie Nolan arrives on her doorstep. With a shocking secret.

To Marlow’s astonishment, Dylan’s “other woman” is a desperate girl of nineteen, destitute, exhausted, and disowned by her family. Defying her manipulative in-laws’ demands and surprising even herself, Marlow vows to lay down roots in Bramble and help Pixie get on her feet. Then they’ll part ways. But empathy has a way of forging bonds. As Marlow grows close to the hard-working, devoted young woman, she becomes something of a big sister to Pixie.

Now, with each sunrise, Marlow awakens to the life she was truly meant to live, one filled with deepening connections, supportive friendship… and even a second chance at love.

Titles in the Firefly Summer series include:  The Guest Cottage ~ The Lake House ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

The Husband’s Secret by Debra Webb

Posted June 18, 2026 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Harlequin, Harlequin Intrigue, Mystery, NetGalley, Series, Suspense / 0 Comments

Her ex’s mysterious death …is now theirs to solve.

When Brenda Devers sees her estranged—and recently deceased—husband, Scott, at the airport, she reels in shock. She’d buried him three weeks ago—hadn’t she?

Only now his business troubles have thrust Brenda and her young daughter into sudden do-or-die jeopardy.

Luckily, the single mom’s new neighbor, Ben Clark, is smart, attractive, and seemingly trustworthy, whereas the police and the FBI are not. A top Colby private investigator, Ben’s been hired to protect Brenda.

But as he helps her uncover the truth about Scott, the danger factor amps up—and her worst nightmare might be coming true.

Titles in the Colby Agency: The Next Generation series include: A Colby Christmas Rescue ~ Alibi for Murder Memory of Murder ~ Witness to Murder ~ The Husband’s Secret ~ The Bride’s Betrayal ~ The Missing Couple ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Undercover Sabotage by Kacy Cross

Posted June 12, 2026 by Marsha in Harlequin, Harlequin Romantic Suspense, NetGalley, Romantic Suspense, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense / 0 Comments

They’re a fake couple… To solve a real mystery.

As heir to her Aunt Greta’s vineyard, Samantha Wagner, a take-charge executive, is sure she has the smarts to run Wagner Wines. She just hadn’t counted on former Texas Ranger Dean Carter investigating her aunt’s death as suspicious.

Though both prefer to operate solo, the designer-clad business pro and the sexy loner cowboy pose as a couple to probe a possible murder.

But as sabotage mounts and secrets emerge, Carter and Samantha try to resist emotional entanglement.

Will the former ranger abandon his mission to protect Samantha from the killer’s sight?

Titles in The Shadow Rangers series include:  Undercover Sabotage ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

The Final Target by Nora Roberts

Posted June 10, 2026 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Mystery, NetGalley, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, St. Martin's Press, Suspense, Thriller / 0 Comments

He showed up at Arden Bowie’s debut author appearance with a copy of her novel and an eager smile. He showered her with compliments and got her autograph. Then he came to her next event. And the one after that.

Dustin was just an aspiring writer who wanted advice, Arden reassured herself. But after giving in to one of his incessant invitations and chatting with him over coffee, she discovered that ignoring her inner alarm bell had been a terrible mistake…

An introvert at heart, Arden had long craved solitude—but now, after a harrowing assault, she finds herself hiding behind locked doors and startling at every sound. And her relief at his imprisonment is tempered by anxiety when Dustin’s wealthy mother helps to get him a paltry five-year sentence at a psychiatric facility.

Arden decides to write a new story for herself, moving to a tiny Oregon town and befriending Gideon, an ex-LAPD detective. But while she learns to thrive, Dustin remains his delusional, twisted self, as fixated as ever and now seething with anger. He still believes Arden’s purpose on earth is to serve and please him. And his job is to protect her. But who will protect her from him?

~Standalone~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Cheap Omens by Mara Webb

Posted June 5, 2026 by Marsha in Booksprout ARC, Cozy Mystery, Kindle Unlimited, Paranormal Cozy Mystery, Series, Suspense / 0 Comments

A quiet room in the hills. A spirit that imitates people. Lights in the woods that have no business being there.

Welcome to Brackenlake.

After sixty years chasing the things that aren’t supposed to exist, Maris Rose has decided to retire… more or less. She’s signed away most of her savings for a room at Five Eldar, a nursing home above town, and she’s been promised a soft bed and a quiet few years. Brackenlake, everyone agrees, is due for a calm spell.

Brackenlake has other ideas.

Her first night, Maris learns there’s a curious spirit haunting the home. By morning, she’s taken on a client, a fifty-year-old murder, and a spirit that wears the faces of the people you trust most. And that’s before her old friend Hackerty calls about the trees out in the forest: six of them, half turned to glass overnight.

With a government man who answers nothing, a tinfoil-hatted conspiracy theorist who’s right far more often than he should be, and something moving through the dark that isn’t from anywhere near here, Maris finds herself with two cases, a bad pair of hips, and a gift that’s getting harder to carry every year.

She’s already seen how her own story ends. She made her peace with that a long time ago.

She’d just like to finish the work first.

Titles in the Cordelia Rose Paranormal Mysteries series include:  Cheap Omens (prelude) ~ Strange Tidings ~ Weird Visions ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Lethal Betrayal by Kimberly Van Meter

Posted June 3, 2026 by Marsha in Booksprout ARC, Contemporary Romance, Harlequin, Harlequin Romantic Suspense, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense / 0 Comments

She vows to stay impersonal… But for him, the case is anything but.

When a body with the name of a cold-case victim written on it is discovered, FBI Agent Sophia Bennett teams up with Agent Noah Thunderhawk, Bureau of Indian Affairs, to investigate the crime.

The evidence—and Sophia—challenge Noah’s faith in the reservation elders. How could one of his own be complicit?

But as tension and undeniable attraction rise, dangerous patterns emerge. Missing girls…a trafficking network…the wall of silence they keep hitting… Someone high up is murdering to keep their secrets. And Noah and Sophia are in their crosshairs.

Titles in the Big Sky Justice series include: Danger in Big Sky Country ~ Her K-9 Protector ~ Cold Case Secrets ~ Cold Case Kidnapping ~ Cold Case Reckoning ~ Sacred Secrets ~ Lethal Betrayal ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Vanishing Point by Nicole Helm

Posted May 6, 2026 by Marsha in Challenges, Harlequin, Harlequin Intrigue, Modern Western Romance, Mystery, Owned, Romantic Suspense, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense / 0 Comments

She’s in desperate need of protection… And trusts only one man.

Vi Reynolds is on the run.

Terrified that her abusive ex-husband will find her and discover she’s had his baby, she’s hiding out in her hometown.

But when she’s reunited with Thomas Hart, her high school sweetheart, Vi’s conflicted. Because, despite the powerful longing they still feel for each other, Thomas is a cop like her ex, and she’s learned she can’t trust the police.

But when the threats her ex has been sending her escalate, Vi must decide whether to run…or trust Thomas to protect her.

Titles in the Bent County Protectors series include:  Vanishing Point* ~ Killer on the Homestead* ~ Fatal Deception* ~ Eyewitness in Danger** ~

(connection to the Carsons & Delaneys world)

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Nearly a Bride by Sabrina Jeffries

Posted May 5, 2026 by Marsha in Historical Romance, Kensington Books, NetGalley, Regency Romance, Series, Sexual Content, Suspense / 0 Comments

After more than a decade separated from his home and family, the Earl of Heathbrook returns to his London townhouse to face a new test: reclaiming guardianship of his younger brothers. His reputation as a rakehell, it seems, has followed him from detention inside Napoleon’s France and caused his own father to block Heathbrook’s rightful custody in his will. However, the clever rogue concocts a plan to restore respectability and rescue his siblings . . . by finding a “fiancée” with no strings attached.

Giselle Bernard is not looking to wed an earl with a wild past. All she seeks is a connected nobleman who can legally secure her new life in England and head off a mysterious stranger’s threats. Posing as Heathbrook’s bride-to-be would surely benefit them both. But as revelations come to light—the ill-fated young affair that left Heathbrook embittered, and the mademoiselle’s own guarded secrets—their engagement charade may unexpectedly blossom into a promise to love, honor, and cherish . . .

Titles in the Lords of Hazard series include:  Hazardous to a Duke’s Heart ~ Nearly A Bride

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

A Case of Sour Grapes by Mara Webb

Posted May 1, 2026 by Marsha in Booksprout ARC, Cozy Mystery, Series, Suspense / 0 Comments

Version 1.0.0

After twenty years making a billionaire’s chaotic life run like clockwork, Penelope Bridges is finally doing something for herself – house-sitting her way around the world, one property at a time.

Her first assignment? A stunning smart-home winery in California’s Sonoma Valley, complete with a forty-seven-page household manual (she read it twice) and one very dramatic dog named Bacchus who is always the first to sense danger and the last to calm down.

It should have been straightforward. It really should have.

But when the winery’s celebrated (and deeply unpopular) head winemaker turns up dead in the cellar during a storm, Penny finds herself doing what she’s always done best: noticing things, documenting everything, and refusing to let a problem go unsolved.

The local deputy is skeptical. The sheriff is obstructive. And the list of people who wanted Julian Croft dead is growing faster than Penny can color-code it.

Good thing she’s very good at her job.

Titles in the House Sitter Mysteries series include:  A Case of Sour Grapes** ~ A Case of Bad Blood ~ A Case of Treachery in the Trees ~ 

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

The Accidental Christmas by Lori Foster

Posted May 1, 2026 by Marsha in Christmas Romance, Contemporary Romance, Kindle Unlimited, Mystery, Paranormal Romance, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense / 0 Comments

In December, retired police officer Hendrix Becker shuts down his quiet RV park on the Oregon coast to disappear from the world. Haunted by a tragic Christmas past, he has made solitude his only refuge.

But this year, someone stays behind.

Josephine Collins, with her young son, has nowhere else to go when danger from her past resurfaces.

Against his instincts, Hendrix lets them stay. What begins as a tense arrangement slowly softens as Josephine’s courage and her son’s laughter begin to penetrate the ice around his heart. As trust builds, so does something deeper—something neither of them expected.

But Josephine’s past isn’t done with her yet. And when the threat gets too close, Hendrix must confront his own ghosts if he wants to protect the woman and child who’ve become his reason to believe again.

Titles in the multi-author Wild Rose Point series include:  Charming the Cowboy by Maisey Yates ~ Still a Cowboy by Delores Fossen ~ Caught Looking by Nicole Helm ~ The Accidental Christmas by Lori Foster ~ Her Christmas Fix by Michelle Major ~ Fake Date with the Runaway Bride by Elle Douglass (2026) ~ The Tortured Marine’s Sunshine Girl by Caitlin Crews (2026) ~

This story may contain language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Eyewitness in Danger by Nicole Helm

Posted April 17, 2026 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Harlequin, Harlequin Intrigue, NetGalley, Romantic Suspense, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense / 0 Comments

She has a target on her back… And a protector who won’t leave her side

Sheriff’s deputy Royal Campbell knows he’s been assigned to quiet little Hope Town because he’s the rookie.

Things get interesting when Franny Perkins witnesses a kidnapping, and the FBI takes over Royal’s investigation.

The sheriff wants Royal to stay close to Franny for her safety and because of Royal’s experience with the feds—even though that experience was on the other side of the law.

Staying close to Franny gets more complicated once it’s clear that she’s in danger. And after she and Royal share one reckless kiss…

Titles in the Bent County Protectors series include:  Vanishing Point* ~ Killer on the Homestead* ~ Fatal Deception* ~ Eyewitness in Danger** ~

(connection to the Carsons & Delaneys world)

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Framed by Anna J. Stewart

Posted April 15, 2026 by Marsha in Booksprout ARC, Contemporary Romance, Mystery, Romantic Suspense, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense, Thriller, Tule Publishing / 0 Comments

When photographer Riley Temple develops a roll of film and uncovers an image of a murdered woman, she becomes the target of a deadly Hollywood conspiracy. The deeper she digs, the clearer it becomes that someone powerful wants her silenced.

Her only ally is LAPD Detective Quinn Burton, a man whose loyalty to his family and the force is as unshakable as his attraction to Riley. Their partnership sparks an undeniable chemistry, but their investigation threatens to expose his father—the city’s police commissioner—as part of a secret society thriller that rules Los Angeles’s elite.

As Riley and Quinn race to uncover the truth, danger closes in. Caught between duty and desire, they’ll have to trust each other to survive. But in this world of love, lies, and corruption, trust could be the most dangerous choice of all.

A Hollywood conspiracy. A forbidden attraction. A truth worth dying for.

Titles in the Circle of the Red Lily series include:  Framed ~ Vanished ~ Unearthed ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider

Still a Cowboy by Delores Fossen

Posted April 14, 2026 by Marsha in Modern Western Romance, Paranormal Romance, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, Suspense / 0 Comments

When Texas bull rider Cal Bennett rolls into Wild Rose Point, Oregon, he’s just looking to recover from an injury and maybe reconnect with his high school sweetheart. Instead, he roped into a quirky small-town soulmate legend, caught in a scorching viral video with the local saloon owner, and dropped right in the middle of a social media storm.

Willa Hartley isn’t looking for love, especially not with a cowboy the whole town is convinced is her perfect match. But Cal isn’t just her supposed soulmate. He’s still a cowboy, no matter how far he’s wandered from Texas. And when a scandal threatens everything, walking away from Willa might be the one ride he refuses to take.

Titles in the multi-author Wild Rose Point series include:  Charming the Cowboy by Maisey Yates ~ Still a Cowboy by Delores Fossen ~ Caught Looking by Nicole Helm ~ The Accidental Christmas by Lori Foster ~ Her Christmas Fix by Michelle Major ~ Fake Date with the Runaway Bride by Elle Douglass (2026) ~ The Tortured Marine’s Sunshine Girl by Caitlin Crews (2026) ~

This story may contain language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult 18+ audience.

Read More

Divider