Books like 'The Heathens'
Readers who enjoyed The Heathens by Ace Atkins also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
mystery action / adventure small town thriller crime family suspense law-enforcement hard-boiled false-accusations
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A Merciful Promise by Kendra Elliot
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe Wall Street Journal bestselling series continues as Mercy Kilpatrick becomes embedded in the nightmare of a terrorist conspiracy.The job: infiltrate a militia amassing illegal firearms in an isolated forest community. FBI agent Mercy Kilpatrick is the ideal candidate. She knows Oregon. She’s near the compound... -
Catch Her Death by Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsSheriff Bree Taggert and those she loves become the target of a family’s deadly revenge in a chilling novel of suspense by #1 Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh.After Sheriff Bree Taggert’s takedown of cold-blooded murderer Travis Ekin, his family vows revenge. Travis’s mother and brothers are every bit as violent, and Bree is in their crosshairs... -
A Great Reckoning by Louise Penny
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsWhen an intricate old map is found stuffed into the walls of the bistro in Three Pines, it at first seems no more than a curiosity. But the closer the villagers look, the stranger it becomes. Given to Armand Gamache as a gift the first day of his new job, the map eventually leads him to shattering secrets. To an old friend and older adversary... -
The Longmire Defense by Craig Johnson
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWalt Longmire faces one of his most challenging crime scenes as he tries to reckon with the revelations of his last case where he confronted the ghosts of his past and questioned the very nature of justice and mercy in the hard country of the West.Deep in the heart of the Wyoming countryside, Sheriff of Absaroka County, Walt Longmire, is called to a crime scene like few others that he has seen... -
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A Merciful Fate by Kendra Elliot
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn the next book in the Wall Street Journal bestselling Mercy Kilpatrick series, there are no such things as little secrets…Raised by preppers, survivalist and FBI agent Mercy Kilpatrick has a deep-rooted need for a safe place. Her getaway in the Cascade Foothills is her secret... -
Lasting Shadows by Kathleen Brooks
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsRidge Faulkner was a renowned luxury house builder. When Ridge was selected at a charity bachelor auction, he was surprised when it wasn’t for an actual date. The woman only wanted him to help fix up her house. Savannah Ambrose was starting her life over in Shadows Landing. But she needed help with the fixer-upper she was moving into... -
The First Death by Kendra Elliot
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA Wall Street Journal bestselling series.For a search and rescue expert, the buried remains of her past are a dangerous obsession in a twisting novel of suspense by a Wall Street Journal and Amazon Charts bestselling author.Rowan Wolff was five years old when she, her brother, and their babysitter were kidnapped by a serial killer in the Pacific Northwest. The babysitter was murdered... -
Daughter of the Morning Star by Craig Johnson
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsAnother New York Times bestseller in the beloved Longmire series. When Lolo Long's niece Jaya begins receiving death threats, Tribal Police Chief Long calls on Absaroka County Sheriff Walt Longmire along with Henry Standing Bear as lethal backup... -
Bones Don't Lie by Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsShocking evidence hits close to home for attorney Morgan Dane and PI Lance Kruger as Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh’s acclaimed series continues. Private investigator Lance Kruger was just a boy when his father vanished twenty-three years ago... -
Fierce Shadows by Kathleen Brooks
Rated: 4.70 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDare Reigns is Charleston’s newest undercover ATF agent. Dare and his bosses believe a nearby resort is responsible for several deaths from tainted alcohol. As a favor to his friend, Marcy Davies, Dare agrees to a blind date with her grand-niece who lives in the area. What he didn’t tell her was having a date night at the resort would be the perfect cover for him to begin his investigation... -
Secrets Collide by Kathleen Brooks
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe mysterious Cy Davies is coming home. He’s not coming alone either. Having rescued Gemma Perry, a sassy investigative reporter for a gossip magazine, he takes her to the one place he knows he can keep her safe. Keeneston. Gemma Perry was having a bad week. Now she was in a small town where gossip was a currency... -
Jonny's Redemption by Riley Edwards
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsCan two lost souls find redemption or are some transgressions beyond forgiveness? Lieutenant Jonny Spencer’s life is spiraling out of control. With no end in sight, he withdrawals. Giving in to the darkness is his only reprieve. Roberta “Bobby” Layne knows what it means to live in the shadows. Her childhood was spent fading into obscurity—loneiless her only friend... -
Secrets Never Die by Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe #1 Amazon Charts bestselling series continues as Morgan Dane and PI Lance Kruger fight for the innocence of a young murder suspect—if only they could find him.When a retired sheriff’s deputy is shot to death in his home, his troubled teenage stepson, Evan, becomes the prime suspect. Even more incriminating, the boy disappeared from the scene of the crime... -
Wolf Pack by C.J. Box, David Chandler
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWyoming game warden Joe Pickett encounters bad behavior on his own turf--only to have the FBI and the DOJ ask him to stand down.The good news is that Joe Pickett has his job back, after his last adventure in The Disappeared... -
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A Cold Trail by Robert Dugoni
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsIn New York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni’s riveting series, Seattle homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite returns home to a brutal murder and her haunted past. The last time homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite was in Cedar Grove, it was to see her sister’s killer put behind bars... -
Edge of Nowhere by Freya Barker
Rated: 4.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsOpen roads and honor meets poke bowls and self-controlI’m a homesick nomad.A protégé, a mountain man, an ally, and a seeker.My name is Wapi.I’m a work in progress looking to belong, and though my road has been a winding one, my heart has found focus.I’m a straightlaced hellcat.A princess, a fool, a target, and a handle.My name is Lindsey... -
Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 43 ratingsPip is not a detective anymore.With the help of Ravi Singh, she released a true-crime podcast about the murder case they solved together last year. The podcast has gone viral, yet Pip insists her investigating days are behind her.But she will have to break that promise when someone she knows goes missing... -
Beneath Blackwater River by Leslie Wolfe, Gwendolyn Druyor
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsListening Length 13 hours and 4 minutesShe looked alive, her hair drifting freely in the water, her red lips gently parted, as if to let her final breath escape. A small locket floated by her face, attached to her neck with a silver chain…When Detective Kay Sharp first left Mount Chester—population 3,823—in her rear-view mirror, she promised never to look back... -
A Better Man by Louise Penny
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsCatastrophic spring flooding, blistering attacks in the media, and a mysterious disappearance greet Chief Inspector Armand Gamache as he returns to the Sûreté du Québec in the latest novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author Louise Penny.It's Gamache's first day back as head of the homicide department, a job he temporarily shares with his previous second-in-command, Jean-Guy Beauvoir... -
Rising Storm by Kathleen Brooks
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsKatelyn Jacks was used to being front and center as a model. But she never had to confront the Keeneston Grapevine! After retiring from the runway and returning to town to open a new animal clinic, Katelyn found that her life in the public eye was anything but over... -
The Wrong Bones by Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA frantic chase to catch a grave robber reveals a startling discovery in this tenth installment of the Widow’s Island novella series by Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh.Deputy Tessa Black spots a man disturbing a grave in the local cemetery and gives chase. But when Tessa catches him, she learns that the ghoulish trespasser wasn’t robbing graves; he was burying a box of bones... -
A Merciful Secret by Kendra Elliot
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsIn this Wall Street Journal bestseller, a pair of ritual murders could expose Mercy Kilpatrick to something terrifying: her own past…Raised off the grid by survivalists, Mercy Kilpatrick believed in no greater safeguard than the backwoods of Oregon. Unforgiven by her father for abandoning the fold for the FBI, Mercy still holds to her past convictions. They’re in her blood... -
Siren Unleashed by Sophie Oak, Lexi Blake
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTwin detectives Ben and Chase Dawson have been sent to investigate an unusual murder at a resort owned by Julian Lodge. Julian wants them to protect the prime suspect, a young submissive who was the last person to see the victim alive. The job seems simple until Ben and Chase discover that the beautiful submissive they both desire has a dark past... -
Echo Road by Kendra Elliot, Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWhen two cross-country cases collide, Bree Taggert and Mercy Kilpatrick join forces to catch a serial killer in an addictive novel of suspense by bestselling authors Melinda Leigh and Kendra Elliot.During a vicious heat wave, a county maintenance worker stumbles upon two suspicious suitcases abandoned by the side of the road... -
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Colorado Cold Case by Elle James
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSole survivor of a mission gone wrong, Griff left the Navy to recover from his wounds and grief. The one person he’d loved had left San Diego while he'd been on a mission and hadn't returned or reached out. She’d said she was from Colorado... -
Undercover Guardian: Brotherhood Protectors World by Regan Black
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsUSA Today bestselling author Regan Black delivers a thrilling Guardian Agency adventure that sends a protection agent undercover to save a sheriff with a target on his back...Former Navy SEAL, Theo Tannehill, moved to the rural Black Hills of South Dakota for a fresh start... -
One in Vermillion by Jennifer Crusie, Bob Mayer
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFrom the NY Times Bestselling duo that wrote Agnes and the Hitman, the third book in a new trilogy.Liz Danger is stuck in her hometown of Burney, Ohio, because her insane employer has rented a house there for the summer, which means she has three more months of trying to get a copy edit done, babysitting a seven-year-old, and figuring out what to do with three hundred and ninety-two teddy bears... -
In the Clearing by Robert Dugoni
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsListening Length 10 hours and 20 minutesDetective Tracy Crosswhite has a skill, and a soft spot, for tackling unsolved crimes. Having lost her own sister to murder at a young age, Tracy has dedicated her career to bringing justice and closure to the families and friends of victims of crime... -
Hide Away by Jason Pinter
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFrom the bestselling author of the Henry Parker series comes a page-turning thriller about a vigilante who’s desperate to protect her secrets—and bring a killer to justice.On the surface, Rachel Marin is an ordinary single mother; on the inside, she’s a fierce, brilliant vigilante...Categorized as:
crime family law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult amateur-sleuth -
Dead Heat by Kathleen Brooks
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsPaige Davies finds her world turned upside down as she becomes involved in her best friends' nightmare. The strong-willed Paige doesn't know which is worse: someone trying to kill her, or losing her dog to the man she loves to hate. FBI Agent Cole Parker can't decide whether he should strangle or kiss this infuriating woman of his dreams... -
Bone Deep by Kendra Elliot
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen two men kidnap former FBI agent Cate Wilde’s fiancé, the boldness of the crime rattles the community. Desperate to find the man she loves, Cate joins forces with the FBI and the local sheriff’s department to launch an investigation and bring Dr. Henry Powers home... -
The Slow Burn of Silence by Loreth Anne White
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFrom the crossroads of small town mystery and dark suspense comes a romance that explores the bonds of family, the power of love, and the potentially explosive collateral damage of the secrets we keep... Sometimes a contract to forget can be as powerful as a promise to remember.. -
Deadly Conditions by Jeff Carson
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe small town of Rocky Points, Colorado has just been hit with an epic snowstorm, and while skiers at the Rocky Mountain resort are enjoying deep turns and face shots, the rest of the residents are struggling to dig themselves out... -
Absolving Blue by Freya Barker, Operation Alpha
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFor long-time Durango Fire Department EMT, Ava ‘Blue’ Navarro, her teammates at Station 3 represent a family more loyal than her own. However, when patients start dying on her watch, she draws the attention of local law enforcement. In particular the smooth-talking detective she’s successfully evaded for years, fearing he might stir up her quiet existence... -
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Payback by Rebecca Deel
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA mission from his past threatens his future. A stalker has his sights set on art history teacher Ivy Monroe. Still recovering from a relationship with an abusive former boyfriend, she's determined to win this fight over fear and intimidation. No one has the right to cage her again. When Ivy is nearly killed, she takes refuge in the arms of the one man she trusts... -
Montana Ranger's Wedding Vow by Elle James
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDallas Hayes muscled her way through Army Ranger training only to be considered a curse on her all-male unit in an operation in Syria. When half the team is killed, she’s left Injured, losing the lower portion of her left leg. Back in the States, she’s fitted with a prosthetic, still jogs and works out, but she’s medically discharged. Angry and resentful, she doesn't trust anyone... -
Domestic Animals by Gregory Ashe
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSometimes, the most dangerous animals are the ones you let inside.When a man hires Emery Hazard to track down a teenager who, he claims, robbed him, Hazard isn’t convinced. The story has holes in it, and the client seems eager—too eager—to keep the authorities from getting involved. But Hazard is willing to play along; he suspects something much darker is going on, and he wants to know what it is... -
Father Complex by Gregory Ashe
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsHaving a father can be hard. Being a good one might be even harder.The call-out for the double homicide, when it comes, is a strange one: two men gunned down in a motel room, no witnesses, no real clues. Even stranger, the men were enemies, and no one seems to know why they were in that motel room together... -
Rest in Pink by Jennifer Crusie, Bob Mayer
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFrom the NY Times Bestselling duo that wrote Agnes and the Hitman, the second book in a new series.Liz Danger is a ghostwriter, trapped in her old hometown for the summer... -
The Client List by Robin James
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen Cass inherits the practice of an old legal mentor, his client list is more than she bargained for... -
Cross Her Heart by Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsA homicide detective’s violent family history repeats itself in #1 Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh’s novel of murder, secrets, and retribution... -
Murder at Haven's Rock by Kelley Armstrong
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong’s Rockton Novels had one of the most unique towns in crime fiction. Murder at Haven's Rock is a spinoff, a fresh start... with a few new dangers that threaten everything before it even begins.Haven’s Rock, Yukon. Population: 0Deep in the Yukon wilderness, a town is being built. A place for people to disappear, a fresh start from a life on the run... -
Echoes Fade: David Wolf Mystery Thriller Series, Book 17 by Jeff Carson
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA mountain lion attack. A brazen robbery of a billionaire’s restaurant. Two unrelated incidents become one with explosive revelation in this brand-new harrowing thriller from the international bestselling author of The Como Falcon... -
You Can Run by Rebecca Zanetti
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsFans of Laura Griffin and Jayne Ann Krentz won’t want to miss this brand new thriller series by New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Zanetti, as FBI Special Agent Laurel Snow, a rising star profiler, strives to stay one step ahead of the criminal mind—and discovers that her own demons may be the hardest to outrun… Laurel Snow wouldn’t call hunting a serial killer a vacation, but with a pile... -
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Tethered Bond by Emma Hart
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsDetective Drake Nash: hot, alpha, bossy, and… mine. Now, if someone could tell his ex that... I don’t care if the summer fair is coming to Holly Woods and she’s on the planning committee. What I do care about is sugar-filled food, bright lights, late nights… and danger. The type that won’t come in the form of Nonna’s new cantankerous British parrot, Gio... -
The Devil's Spare Change by Samantha A. Cole
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFBI agent Sean Malone put in a transfer to return home to North Carolina in order to be closer to his expanding family. What he didn’t expect was a pleasant surprise from his youth. Little Gracie Whitman is all grown up now and drop-dead gorgeous, and he finds himself thinking about her in ways he’d never done before... -
Smoky Mountain Judge by Ashley A. Quinn
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsDivorced, single mom, Kennedy Davidson, knew the move from Richmond to Asheville would be a rough one for her twin teenagers. What she didn’t count on was the rocky start for herself. A week into her new job as a federal magistrate, danger comes calling when a mid-level cartel boss lands on her court docket... -
Follow Me Home by D.K. Hood
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratings‘Don’t you agree Detective? That some people deserve to die? I’ve killed the first. I’ve killed the second. Now will you catch the others, or do I have to kill them too?’ The body of Amos Price lies in a pool of blood on the polished floor of an otherwise empty house. With no signs of a break in, and no clues left at the scene, Detective Jenna Alton is at a loss... -
Paradox by Catherine Coulter
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWith unparalleled suspense and her trademark explosive twists, #1 New York Times bestselling author Catherine Coulter delves into the terrifying mind of an escaped mental patient obsessed with revenge in this next installment of her riveting FBI series... -
The Silversmith by Jeff Carson
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsDeputy Sgt. David Wolf has been waiting 16 years for today's opportunity to follow in the footsteps of his late father -- to become Sheriff of Sluice County in the small ski resort town of Rocky Points, CO. What he's offered, however, isn't quite what he's expecting. But refusing turns out to be much deadlier than he could have anticipated...
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