Books like 'The Guards'
Readers who enjoyed The Guards by Ken Bruen also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary mystery psychological action / adventure thriller crime noir law-enforcement suspense investigator
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Wicked by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe fourth book in the Shaye Archer series by New York Times bestselling author Jana DeLeon.College student Tara Chatry is certain something bad has happened to her best friend Ethan Campbell. The smart, geeky student has disappeared, and when Tara tries to get the police involved, they dismiss her concerns, convinced Ethan is just another college student off on a bender... -
Reasonable Fear by Scott Pratt
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThree young women are found floating in a lake. The suspect is one of the richest and most powerful men in Tennessee. "Reasonable Fear" is the fourth of the bestselling Joe Dillard series offered by Scott Pratt. In this novel, Dillard has become the district attorney in Northeast Tennessee... -
Hidden Creed by Alex Kava
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSecrets are exposed and Ryder Creed's life hangs in the balance in the riveting sixth installment of the award-winning Alex Kava Ryder Creed K-9 mysteries.NOTHING STAYS HIDDEN FOREVER...During a training exercise, Creed’s scent dog, Grace, is drawn off course and discovers a shallow grave... -
The Knight by Steven James
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn The Knight, the third installment in the bestselling series of thrillers featuring FBI criminologist Patrick Bowers, the stakes have never been higher.Agent Bowers is used to tracking the country's most dangerous killers, but now it looks like a killer is tracking him... -
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The Fifth To Die by J.D. Barker
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsAlternate cover art can be found hereIn the thrilling sequel to The Fourth Monkey, a new serial killer stalks the streets of Chicago, while Detective Porter delves deeper into the dark past of the Four Monkey Killer.Detective Porter and the team have been pulled from the hunt for Anson Bishop, the Four Monkey Killer, by the feds... -
Little Broken Things by Cheryl Bradshaw
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsDetective Georgiana Germaine is back on the trail of a cold-blooded killer, and once again, the case hits close to home.Twenty-year-old Olivia Spencer sits at her desk in her mother's bookshop, dreaming about her upcoming wedding. The shop may be closed, but Olivia's not alone, and her dream is about to become her worst nightmare... -
The Bishop by Steven James
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsF.B.I. Special Agent Patrick Bowers's cutting edge 21st century geospatial investigative techniques and impeccable logic have helped him track some of the country's most grisly killers. But those skills are pushed to the limit in this new installment of the highly acclaimed, award winning The Bowers Files series... -
The Ladykiller by Martina Cole
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsGeorge Markham has a nasty little hobby, one that erupts into an orgy of vicious sexual depravity.Patrick Kelly is a hard man. His one soft spot is his daughter, and when she falls victim to the Grantley Ripper, Kelly wants revenge.The DI in charge of the case is Kate Burrows. She feels for Kelly but her growing involvement with a known villain is putting her career at risk . .Categorized as:
crime hard-boiled law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult audiobook -
The Patient Man by Joy Ellis
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFrom #1 best-selling author Joy Ellis, a totally absorbing mystery full of stunning twists and turns. Discover the author who’s sold over two million books globally... -
The Maid's Diary by Loreth Anne White
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsKit Darling is a maid with a snooping problem. She’s the “invisible girl,” compelled to poke into her wealthy clients’ closely guarded lives. It’s a harmless hobby until Kit sees something she can’t unsee in the home of her brand-new clients: a secret so dark it could destroy the privileged couple expecting their first child. This makes Kit dangerous to the couple... -
To Die For by David Baldacci
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsFrom #1 New York Times bestselling author, David Baldacci, the 6:20 Man returns, this time sent to the Pacific Northwest to aid the FBI in a case that gets more complicated with the more questions Devine asks—and he’s about to come face-to-face with his nemesis, the girl on the train. Travis Devine has become a pro at adapting to any situation to accomplish the mission set in front of him... -
Where The Dead Fall by M.J. Lee
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsOne chance encounter, one street side murder, will change everything… The extraordinary new Ridpath crime thrillerManchester has been at peace for twenty years. Not any more.DI Ridpath is in the process of getting his life back together when everything goes wrong... -
Unbound Ties: When the past unravels, all that’s left is death ... by Liz Mistry
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen the past unravels, all that’s left is death.Lavender’s blue, dilly dilly,When DI Gus McGuire is called out to the murder of a pregnant woman, the crime scene tells him that this killer is not only taunting them … he’s also just getting started.Lavender’s green,With ritualistic precision, the killer has placed a series of clues beneath the victim’s feet...Categorized as:
suspense crime law-enforcement hard-boiled thriller mystery police-procedural domestic-drama -
The Viaduct Killings by Wes Markin
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsStill grieving from the tragic death of her colleague, DCI Emma Gardner continues to blames herself and is struggling to focus. So, when she is seconded to the wilds of Yorkshire, Emma hopes she’ll be able to get her mind back on the job, doing what she does best - putting killers behind bars.But when she is immediately thrown into another violent murder, Emma has no time to rest... -
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Cross Justice by James Patterson
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsFor Alex Cross, the toughest cases hit close to home-and in this deadly thrill ride, he's trying to solve the most personal mystery of his life.When his cousin is accused of a heinous crime, Alex Cross returns to his North Carolina hometown for the first time in over three decades... -
Shattered by Allison Brennan
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsOver a span of twenty years, four boys have been kidnapped from their bedrooms, suffocated, and buried nearby in a shallow grave. Serial killer or coincidence?That’s the question investigative reporter Maxine Revere sets out to answer when an old friend begs her to help exonerate his wife, who has been charged with their son’s recent murder. But Max can do little to help because the police and D... -
Police by Jo Nesbø
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsWhen a police officer is found murdered at the scene of an old unsolved murder case that he was involved in investigating, it can hardly be a coincidence. When the same thing happens to two other officers in a matter of months the pattern is as clear as it is terrifying. None of the old cases were ever solved. The killings are extremely brutal and the police have no leads... -
The Rook by Steven James
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn arsonist has struck a top-secret research facility at a key US naval base. But it's not just a random terrorist attack. These people were after something specific. When Special Agent Patrick Bowers is called in to investigate, he is drawn into a deadly web of intrigue and deception... -
Where The Truth Lies by M.J. Lee
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA killer in total control. A detective on the edge. A mystery that HAS to be solved. DI Thomas Ridpath was on the up in the Manchester CID: a promising young detective whose first case involved capturing a notorious serial killer. But ten years later he’s recovering from a serious illness and on the brink of being forced out of the police... -
The Hard Way by Lee Child
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsJack Reacher is alone, the way he likes it.He watches a man cross a New York street and drive away in a Mercedes. The car contains $1 million of ransom money. Reacher's job is to make sure it all turns out right - money paid, family safely returned. But Reacher is in the middle of a nasty little war where nothing is simple...Categorized as:
crime hard-boiled investigator law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult -
A Very Bad Thing by J.T. Ellison
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFrom New York Times bestselling author J.T. Ellison comes a taut thriller about one author at the pinnacle of her career, whose past threatens to destroy everything she has—and everyone she knows.A great writer knows when to deliver a juicy plot twist. But for one author, the biggest twist of all is her own murder... -
Missed Connections by Alexandria Clarke
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsHow far would you go for revenge? Veronica Bauer isn’t above homicide. Twelve years after a ruthless attack killed her mother and put her father in prison, she embarks on a mission to bring the real culprits to justice. As bodies start to drop, Detective Sheila Arden is assigned to the gruesome case, but she soon discovers that the truth is more complicated than she thought...Categorized as:
suspense crime law-enforcement thriller mystery fiction police-procedural contemporary -
YOU DID THIS by Jamie Millen
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsA sister’s worst nightmare. A homicide detective’s destiny.Everybody loves Claire’s little sister, Tina. But only Claire sees the twisted psychopath hiding behind her sister’s angelic face. When Tina is brutally murdered on her fourteenth birthday, the day Claire failed to walk her home from school, Claire never forgives herself. And neither does their mother... -
The Thirst by Jo Nesbø
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsHarry Hole returns in the eleventh installment of the author's best-selling, electrifying crime fiction series—published in 48 languages, more than 30 million copies sold worldwide. In Police—the last novel featuring Jo Nesbø's hard-bitten, maverick Oslo detective—a killer wreaking revenge on the police had Harry Hole fighting for the safety of the people closest to him... -
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Gated Prey by Lee Goldberg
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA simple sting operation takes a violent and unexpected turn for Detective Eve Ronin in a gripping thriller by #1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Goldberg.Los Angeles County Sheriff’s detective Eve Ronin and her soon-to-retire partner, Duncan Pavone, are running a 24-7 sting in a guard-gated enclave of palatial homes in Calabasas... -
The People vs. Alex Cross by James Patterson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsINSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERThis time it's Alex Cross on trial.Alex Cross is on the wrong side of the law. Serving a suspension from the force while he awaits trial for murder, Cross has been branded as a trigger-happy cop, another bad apple walking the streets with a gun, an accusation that Cross will do anything to refute... -
The Next Accident by Lisa Gardner
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFBI Agent Pierce Quincy is haunted by his daughter's death in a drunk-driving accident. Pierce knew about his daughter's problem with alcohol, and about her loneliness. And so, he is sure, did the man who killed her. Rainie Conner is an ex-cop with a past overshadowed by violence. She was once involved with Pierce in a harrowing case that brought them together personally and professionally...Categorized as:
crime investigator law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult audiobook -
Masked Prey by John Sandford
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsLucas Davenport investigates a vitriolic blog that seems to be targeting the children of U.S. politicians in the latest thriller by #1 New York Times-bestselling author John Sandford.The daughter of a U.S. Senator is monitoring her social media presence when she finds a picture of herself on a strange blog. And there are other pictures . . -
Fixed in Blood by T.E. Woods
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsPerfect for fans of Jeff Lindsay’s Dexter thrillers and the novels of Lisa Gardner and Karin Slaughter, the gritty, action-packed Justice series continues as a depraved mind taunts those who seek retribution on both sides of the law. I become whatever they want. Whatever they need. Seattle Chief of Detectives Mort Grant is still reeling from losing his daughter—again...Categorized as:
crime investigator law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult assassins -
Remnants by Carolyn Arnold
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsSavannah, Georgia used to be a tranquil tourist destination—until human body parts started floating down the river.FBI Agent Brandon Fisher trusts his team with his life—or at least he did. It’s only been six months since Brandon’s boss almost died at the hands of a serial killer when the team is called to Savannah, Georgia... -
A Caller's Game by J.D. Barker
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsDIE HARD meets TALK RADIO in this heart-pounding, relentlessly fast-paced thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of The Fourth Monkey—master of suspense, J.D. Barker. "I'm going to offer you a choice." Controversial satellite radio talk show host, Jordan Briggs, has clawed her way to the top of the broadcast world... -
Love You To Death by Caroline Mitchell
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAn alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here.‘I’m not your mother. You’re a monster. I don’t want you’Women who gave a child up for adoption are being killed. A knock at their front door begins a nightmare from which they will never wake up.For Detective Ruby Preston and her team, it is a race against time to connect the dots before the killer can strike again... -
The Face Changers by Thomas Perry
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsCan a woman who's rescued countless victims now save herself from an unknown enemy? After over a decade as a guide who helped people in trouble disappear, Jane Whitefield has promised her new husband that she will never work again. But she is asked to perform her magic just one last time... -
Dead Jealous by Helen H. Durrant
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsDEAD JEALOUS by Helen H. DurrantA teenage girl’s body is found in the back of a car on the notorious Hobfield housing estate. No one had reported her missing, but she’s been dead for a week.Meanwhile, an old jar is brought into the station. It was found carefully wrapped in a blanket, with a child’s pink hairclip. The jar contains ashes and bone fragments... -
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Dead List by Helen H. Durrant, Jonathan Keeble
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAn unlikely serial killer with a bucket list of victims....Police partners, D.I. Calladine and D.S. Ruth Bayliss battle a murderer who is working their way through a list of victims. Each murder is meticulously planned and unique, and a tarot card is left at the scene of the crime... -
Stranger in the Woods by Anni Taylor
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsPhotographer Isla Wilson is thrilled she’s landed her dream job, but the clients who hired her are getting stranger by the day. It sounded so perfect - a month‘s assignment at the misty, sprawling Scottish Highlands property of brilliant architect Alban McGregor, and his wife, Jessica. But deep in the woods, there is a chilling playhouse... -
What Hurts the Most by Willow Rose
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsASIN B018A097LO moved to the most recent edition hereYou will never guess the ending!Am I pretty? Imagine being asked that question standing face to face with a killer. What would you answer? While her life is going from bad to worse, journalist Mary Mills receives a phone call from her father telling her that her brother has been arrested for murder...Categorized as:
crime hard-boiled law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult amateur-sleuth -
Shatter The Bones by Stuart MacBride
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA bestseller from the award-winning Stuart MacBride. The seventh DS Logan McRae thriller is a gripping page-turner in which fame and fortune crash head-on with crime and punishment.No suspects. No clues. No rest for the wicked.'You will raise money for the safe return of Alison and Jenny McGregor. If you raise enough money within fourteen days they will be released. If not, Jenny will be killed... -
From Cradle to Grave by Patricia MacDonald
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA nail-biting novel of domestic suspense from a best-selling author - When Morgan Adair arrives at the small seaside town of West Briar on the Long Island shore, she is looking forward to attending the baptism of her new godson, Drew. Morgan and Drew's mother, Claire, have been friends since childhood, and Morgan was delighted when Claire married the handsome Guy Bolton... -
The Dark Corners of the Night by Meg Gardiner, Hillary Huber
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsListening Length: 11 hours and 45 minutesI am the legion of the night …He appears in the darkness like a ghost, made of shadows and fear—the Midnight Man. He comes for the parents but leaves the children alive, tiny witnesses to unspeakable horror. The bedroom communities of Los Angeles are gripped with dread, and the attacks are escalating...Categorized as:
crime hard-boiled law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult audiobook -
Het witte pad by John Connolly
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsHailed as "one of the best" (Toronto Sun) writers of contemporary suspense fiction, international bestselling author John Connolly returns with an electrifying novel featuring his acclaimed private detective, Charlie Parker. In South Carolina, a young black man faces the death penalty for the rape and murder of Marianne Larousse, daughter of one of the wealthiest men in the state...Categorized as:
crime investigator law-enforcement noir suspense thriller action-adventure audiobook -
Broken Skin by Stuart MacBride
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsNearly bouncing back from a transfer, Detective Sergeant Logan McRae is still looking at nothing but dead ends. His only chance of escaping his current post is to get noticed. Not that any of the cases he’s working on are the type that you want to get noticed for. For starters, someone dumped a dying man outside the hospital. McRae’s boss D.I... -
The Vanished Ones by Donato Carrisi
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWe call them the sleepers...At the elite Missing Persons bureau of the Federal Police, Mila Vasquez is tasked with finding the hundreds of lost people who have vanished from their former lives. However, the longer they are gone, they more they are forgotten by the world. Now they are returning... -
The Swimmer by Loreth Anne White
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA deviously twisty novel of psychological suspense about secrets, neighbors, a need to belong, and murder by the award-winning author of The Maid’s Diary. Socially awkward Chloe Cooper divides her time between dog walking, bartending, caring for her ailing mother, and at a safe distance, watching people and inventing the stories of their lives... -
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Malevolent by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFrom New York Times bestselling author Jana DeLeon, the first in a new thriller series. Everyone wondered about Shaye Archer’s past. Including Shaye. Shaye Archer’s life effectively began the night police found her in an alley, beaten and abused and with no memory of the previous fifteen years, not even her name...Categorized as:
crime investigator law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult audiobook -
Looking Good Dead by Peter James
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsTom Bryce did what any decent person would do. But within hours of picking up the CD that had been left behind on the train seat next to him, and attempting to return it to its owner, he is the sole witness to a vicious murder. Then his young family are threatened with their lives if he goes to the police... -
The Whisperer by Donato Carrisi
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA gripping literary thriller and smash bestseller that has taken Italy, France, Germany and the UK by storm.Six severed arms are discovered, arranged in a mysterious circle and buried in a clearing in the woods. Five of them appear to belong to missing girls between the ages of eight and eighteen. The sixth is yet to be identified... -
The Fourth Friend by Joy Ellis
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsLooking for your next unputdownable mystery? Then try this book by #1 best-selling author Joy Ellis, a mystery full of stunning twists and turns. FOUR LOST FRIENDS. FOUR TASKS TO COMPLETE. ONE BIG MYSTERY LEFT. Police detective Carter McLean is the only survivor of a plane crash that kills his four best friends. He returns to work but he is left full of guilt and terrible flashbacks... -
NYPD Red 5 by James Patterson
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWhen it's a bad night for New York City's rich and famous, they call NYPD Red.A renowned documentary filmmaker is found dead after a sex game goes horribly wrong. Across town, a homemade bomb explodes at a charity benefit... -
Free Fall by Robert Crais
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 37 ratingsJennifer Sheridan's fiance, Mark Thurman, is a decorated LA cop with an elite plainclothes unit, but Jennifer is sure he's in trouble - the kind of serious trouble that only Elvis Cole can get him out of...Categorized as:
crime hard-boiled investigator law-enforcement noir suspense thriller action-adventure
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