Books like 'The Recipient'
Readers who enjoyed The Recipient by Audrey J. Cole also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
mystery serial killer crime suspense law-enforcement police-procedural medical noir
-
Six Graves by Angela Marsons
Rated: 4.75 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIt’s a typical teenage bedroom with posters covering the walls and clothes littering the floor. But the girl lying on her bed, wearing a delicate chain around her neck, is lifeless. A circle of red stains her white vest top and Kim feels a sharp stab of sadness... -
Twisted Lies by Angela Marsons
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsHer stomach lurches as she sits in the windowless room. He throws her phone to the ground, grinds it against the floor with the heel of his shoe and brings his face closer to hers. There was no turning back now, her life as she knew it was gone... -
Hidden on the Fens by Joy Ellis
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA derelict cottage hidden in a copse of trees.A missing girl whose body was never found.Has her killer returned?Detective Joseph Easter’s daughter discovers a cottage hidden in some trees on a large fenland farm. Someone has been living there.The farm-owner’s wife has been receiving sinister pagan artefacts, including a witch’s knife...Categorized as:
crime law-enforcement noir police-procedural suspense action-adventure adult audiobook -
The Innocent Wife by Lisa Regan
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsCandles are lit and their rich vanilla scent twists its way through the cabin. The table is set for a romantic anniversary dinner with fresh roses dropping crimson petals on crisp white linen... -
-
Deadly Fate by Angela Marsons
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe woman’s bright blonde hair floats in the breeze. She almost looks like she could be resting on the soft green grass. But her brown eyes stare unblinking up at the sky, and the final cut across her mouth is dark with blood... -
Stolen Angels by Rita Herron
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTwisting her hands together, she bites back a sob. She only turned her back for a second, and then her daughter was gone. Every mother in town would be hugging their children tighter tonight.Lara is baking cupcakes when her daughter Ava runs to catch the school bus just one block away. Chasing after her, Lara sees the bus tumbling past, and waves. But Ava never turns up at school... -
Bad Blood by Angela Marsons
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe victim is lying under the trees, arms lifted above his head, unnaturally still. His muscles are slack. His eyes are empty. There are no signs of life. But he is not quite dead…When Detective Kim Stone races to the crime scene, there is no body waiting for the paramedics are desperately trying to save the victim’s life... -
The Executioner by Chris Carter
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsFROM THE AUTHOR OF THE SUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER THE CALLER. Inside a Los Angeles church, on the altar steps, lies the blood-soaked body of a priest. Later, the forensic team discover that, on the victim's chest, the figure 3 has been scrawled in blood. At first, Detective Robert Hunter believes that this is a ritualistic killing. But as more bodies surface, he is forced to reassess... -
The Killing Code by J.D. Kirk
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsWhat would you do if there weren't any consequences?After twenty years on the force, Detective Chief Inspector Jack Logan thinks he has seen it all.He is wrong.When a nurse is murdered on her way home from nightshift, Jack and his team go on the hunt for her killer... -
Stone Cold Dead by Alex Smith
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsGetting blood from these stones will be all too easy.In the middle of one of Norfolk’s most brutal winters a frozen body is discovered on the legendary Stone of Ling. With Robert Kett out of action the case falls to DC Kate Savage and DI Pete Porter, and it quickly becomes clear to them that the young man wasn’t just killed, he was sacrificed.And he isn’t alone... -
Lucas Davenport Novels 1-5 by John Sandford
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsSuspense fans will love this "sterling quintet"* of novels featuring Minneapolis homicide investigator Lucas Davenport from "one of the most consistently entertaining crime writers working today" (Booklist). The first five in the # 1 New York Times bestselling series, with introductions by John Sandford included... -
Dead Memories by Angela Marsons
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsShe ruined their lives. Now they’re going to destroy hers. ‘Someone is recreating every traumatic point in your life. They are doing this to make you suffer, to make you hurt and the only possible end game can be death. Your death.’ On the fourth floor of Chaucer House, two teenagers are found chained to a radiator. The boy is dead but the girl is alive... -
Child's Play by Angela Marsons
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFinally we’re playing a game. A game that I have chosen. I give one last push of the roundabout and stand back. 'You really should have played with me,’ I tell her again although I know she can no longer hear... -
Three Little Pigs by Alex Smith
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsHe will find the truth. Even if it kills him. Five months ago, DCI Robert Kett’s wife Billie was snatched from a London street. Five months of no leads, no evidence, and no suspects. Until now... -
-
Corpse Road by David J. Gatward, Aubrey Parsons
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratings* Duration: 7 hours and 9 minutes *To catch the hunter, become the prey.When the body of a female backpacker is found on the Yorkshire moors, the killer seems obvious, the motive clear.If only.Because Grimm and his team are up against not just a murderer, but a predator, and when the key suspect disappears, it's only a matter of time before another body is found... -
Whip Crack by Alex Smith
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsEvery time you hear his voice, another child will die.DCI Robert Kett’s family may be whole again, but he is a broken man.Suspended from duty, he takes his girls out of the city for a much-needed holiday on the Norfolk Coast.Instead of the peace he desperately needs, however, Kett finds a community in chaos. Four teenagers are missing, and time is running out before they meet a horrific fate... -
Frozen Souls by Rita Herron
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsShe looked like an angel. She lay perfectly still, silky blonde hair falling to her pale shoulders. Icicles clung to her eyelashes as snowflakes fluttered to the frozen ground, burying her body.As a snowstorm wreaks havoc in the mountain town of Crooked Creek, a woman is found buried in ice. Detective Ellie Reeves is first on the scene... -
Lost Angels by Stacy Green
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Special Agent Nikki Hunt is called to the Boundary Waters near Stillwater, Minnesota, it’s not just the cold that shocks her to her core: the body of a young woman has been found frozen beside a remote lake... -
Cold Comfort by Trevor Douglas
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsHow do you catch a killer who never leaves a clue? Bridgette Casseldhorf is a rookie detective working her first murder case. The circumstances surrounding the murder of a young woman lead Bridgette to believe it’s the work of a serial killer, but nobody is listening... -
Dead Sorry by Helen H. Durrant
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLooking for a brilliant best-selling crime mystery with great detectives?THE PAST COMES BACK TO HAUNT THEMTwenty-five years ago a schoolgirl was attacked by three bullies in her home where she lived with her grandmother.Now, the mother of one of those bullies is found murdered on the Hobfield housing estate. Written on the wall in the victim’s blood is the word, “sorry... -
Won't You Save Me by Wendy Dranfield
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDetective Dean Matheson has returned to his hometown to begin his new job and put the traumatic events of his past behind him – but his fresh start won’t last long when the local area is hit by a series of strange disappearances and twisted killings …A nameless girl badly beaten and dumped in front of the mysterious new church. A shocking murder scene discovered in the apartment over the diner...Categorized as:
suspense crime law-enforcement police-procedural mystery small-town audiobook thriller -
Guilty Mothers by Angela Marsons
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsShe lies on the floor, her blue eyes wide and unseeing, arms outstretched as if begging for help. Kneeling next to her, wearing a purple sequinned ballgown and holding a knife in shaking hands, is her daughter… In a quiet kitchen, where two mugs wait by the kettle to be filled, Sheryl Hawne lies in a pool of blood... -
Left For Dead by Caroline Mitchell
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA victim on display. A detective on the rails.Shopping with her sister, DI Amy Winter is admiring a Valentine’s Day window display of a perfect bride encrusted in diamonds and resplendent in lace—until she notices blood oozing from the mannequin’s mouth.This is no stunt. A post-mortem reveals the victim was left to die on her macabre throne for all to see... -
The Bones She Buried by Lisa Regan
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsJosie works until her arms ache, until the paramedics arrive and pull her gently away from the woman’s cold, fragile body. Noah’s voice cracks beside her as he calls the time of death for his own, beloved mother... -
-
Cold Heart Creek by Lisa Regan
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAs the sun rises, the last glow of the campfire is just visible through the mist and the trees... -
The Voice Inside by Brian Freeman
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsOne cop’s lie has set a killer free.Four years after serial killer Rudy Cutter was sent away for life, San Francisco homicide inspector Frost Easton uncovers a terrible lie: his closest friend planted false evidence to put Cutter behind bars. When he’s forced to reveal the truth, his sister’s killer is back on the streets... -
Shallow Ground by Andy Maslen, Steve West
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratings10 hours, 20 minutes Detective Ford has a cold-blooded killer to catch. But can he escape his own dark secrets?Barely a month since his promotion to Inspector, DI Ford is called in to investigate the murder of a young nurse and her son in a small flat in Salisbury. There are few clues, and no apparent motive, but Ford can sense that there’s a serial killer at work... -
Her Dying Secret by Lisa Regan
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsShe gently opens the woman’s tightly clenched fist, uncurling each finger to reveal a square of folded paper hidden in her palm... -
Her Broken Wings by D.K. Hood
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe sound that wakes her from sleep is unmistakable—someone is in their house... -
Shadow's Siege by Mary Stone
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsShadow Island is under siege.Just a few short months ago, Sheriff Rebecca West thought her toughest battles were behind her. But nothing could have prepared her for the turmoil she’s faced since coming to Shadow Island. Attempts on her life. Heartbreak. Betrayal. And that’s just the beginning.The worst is yet to come...Categorized as:
law-enforcement police-procedural crime mystery female-mc murder serial-killers fiction -
What You Did by Willow Rose
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFormer FBI-profiler Eva Rae Thomas faces the most personal case in her career, as bestselling author Willow Rose’s new hit-series continues. Three girls disappear on prom night at the local high school. One of them is the prom queen...Categorized as:
crime law-enforcement noir police-procedural suspense adult amateur-sleuth anthologies -
Five Days Post Mortem by L.T. Vargus, Tim McBain
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsHer body floats. A bloated thing half atop the river. Naked. Pale. Mouth and eyes open wide. When two fishermen discover a corpse floating in the Clackamas river, profiler Violet Darger heads to rural Oregon to hunt another serial killer. What she discovers in the woods might change the course of her life... -
Bad Dog by Alex Smith
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsSome legends can kill you. When a young woman is brutally murdered in the Norfolk countryside, the locals blame Black Shuck—a legendary wild dog. There’s only one problem: the wounds weren’t made by an animal. DCI Robert Kett is battling a black dog of his own... -
Shadow Falls by Wendy Dranfield
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsYou thought your little girl was safe at summer camp. You were wrong…The little girl drags her eyes open, realizing she’s starting to fade. She tries calling out—“Daddy?”—using all her remaining strength... -
-
The Talisker Dead by J.M. Dalgliesh
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsPulling on the threads of your past... is enough to kill you...When a teenage islander goes missing on Burns Night, D.I. Duncan McAdam takes a strong interest despite the apparent lack of concern shown by the boy's father. When a woman's body is soon discovered in Talisker Bay, with a single stab wound to the chest, Duncan and his team realise they have a killer on the island... -
Only the Lonely by L.M. Krier
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratings'Blind dates end in bleeding hearts'Ted Darling is back and his boss has news for him. He'll be taking on more responsibility over an expanded area, with a bigger team. Before he even has chance to take stock, he's facing his first body in what could be the most cynical murder he's ever encountered... -
The Final Vow by M.W. Craven
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe next unmissable novel* in the Sunday Times bestselling, multi-award-winning Washington Poe series. Poe and Tilly be prepared for the most twisted thrill-ride so far . . .An invisible killer with a 100% success rate. No one is safe. Not even those closest to Washington Poe . . .A shooting at Gretna Green. A bride is murdered on her wedding day, seconds after she slips on her new ring...Categorized as:
crime suspense law-enforcement police-procedural mystery fiction audiobook serial-killers -
Unquiet Souls by Liz Mistry
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhat is the link between the abduction of a little girl and a dead prostitute? When the body of a prostitute is found, followed by the discovery of children locked in an attic, DI Gus McGuire, newly returned to work, is given the case. But what at first appears to be a simple murder soon turns into an international manhunt for the members of a twisted child trafficking ring... -
Her Final Word by Willow Rose
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsRather be the hunter than the prey. Inspired by a true story. Ella Maria Chauncey walks home after a night out with her friends, hurrying to get back before her parents realize she's been out with the boy they don't want her to date. Living in the gated community of Lyford Cay, in one of the world's wealthiest neighborhoods, she believes it is safe. Ella Maria never makes it home... -
Dark Water by Caro Ramsay
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA bitterly cold February in Glasgow. In the attic of a deserted tenement, the body of a man is found hanging, his face disfigured beyond recognition.Around his neck is a sign that reads: I Am Stephen Whyte.Investigating officers DI Anderson and DS Costello believe the dead man was the prime suspect in a decade-old unsolved case.Ten years ago, a young woman was brutally attacked and left for dead... -
Kill Me Again by Rachel Abbott
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWhen your life is a lie, who can you trust? When Maggie Taylor accepts a new job in Manchester, she is sure it is the right move for her family. The children have settled well although her husband, Duncan, doesn’t appear to be so convinced. But nothing prepares her for the shock of coming home from work one night to find that Duncan has disappeared, leaving their young children alone... -
Mad Jack by Stacy M. Jones
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSomething sinister lurks behind the perfect homes and well-manicured lawns of Mulberry Grove. Wealthy tech investor Jack Harlow, known to the FBI as Mad Jack, has been running a personal development program for the past ten years. Locals call it a cult. Few leave, and those who try, end up dead under mysterious circumstances. Six couples in all over the last five years... -
One For the Ages by J.D. Kirk
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen a blood-soaked old man is spotted wandering through a sleepy fishing village in the far north of Scotland, his neighbours think he’s been in an accident.Until he leads them to his home, and to the mutilated remains of his late wife.It is the first murder that the remote Highland village has ever seen. It will not be the last. Someone is targeting the elderly and vulnerable in their homes... -
The Sleepover by Carol Wyer
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsRoxy had a secret. Now she’s gone. When fourteen-year-old Roxy says she’s going for a sleepover at her best friend Ellie’s house, Cathy sees no reason to check her daughter’s story. The two families are neighbours, and the girls are in and out of each other’s homes every day. It is a decision she will regret... -
-
Winter Prey by John Sandford
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 31 ratings"Winter Prey" is a John Sandford suspense masterpiece! Following the international success of "Shadow Prey" and "Silent Prey," he creates another heart-pounding chapter in the career of Lucas Davenport, the brilliant, hard-bitten detective from the Twin Cities.The Iceman is Lucas Davenport's most determined foe - a serial killer driven to cover his brutal tracks with blood...Categorized as:
crime law-enforcement noir police-procedural suspense action-adventure adult audiobook -
A Dark Sin by J.M. Dalgliesh
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsOur darkest secrets are best left buried...When a local journalist is found dead in an isolated spot on Roydon Common, lying beneath a hangman's noose on the anniversary of a teenager's suicide, DI Tom Janssen is asked to take on the investigation as a favour to local colleagues and must unpick the deceased man's life to discover how he came to be there... -
The Hunter of the Dark by Donato Carrisi
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA brutal killer is on the streets of Rome. He leaves no trace. And shows no mercy.A series of gruesome murders leaves the police force in Rome reeling, with no real clues or hard evidence to follow. Assigned to the case is Sandra Vega, a brilliant forensic analyst, struggling to come to terms with the crimes and her own past... -
Love You Dead by Peter James
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsAn ugly duckling as a child, Jodie Bentley had two dreams in life—to be beautiful and rich. She's achieved the first, with a little help from a plastic surgeon, and now she's working hard on the second. Her philosophy about money is simple. You can either earn it or marry it. Marrying is easy, it's getting rid of the husband afterwards that's harder, that takes real skill... -
You Are Dead by Peter James, Daniel Weyman
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsYou are Dead is the eleventh thrilling crime novel in Peter James' Roy Grace series, read aloud by Daniel Weyman.They were marked for deathThe last words Jamie Ball hears from his fiancée, Logan Somerville, are in a terrified mobile phone call. She has just driven into the underground car park beneath the block of flats where they live in Brighton. Then she screams and the phone goes dead... -
Fatal Lies by Mary Stone
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSex, lies, and murder.Two months after the murder of her fashion-model cousin and her own near kidnapping, Sky Stryker is more determined than ever to expose the dark side of the fashion industry and memorialize her cousin’s life. Even if it means dredging up her own long-suppressed but never forgotten horrific nightmares.Then another model is attacked, beaten within an inch of her life...Categorized as:
crime law-enforcement police-procedural kidnapping mystery murder serial-killers fiction
Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.