Books like 'A Very Bad Thing'
Readers who enjoyed A Very Bad Thing by J.T. Ellison also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary mystery action / adventure psychological suspense crime thriller law-enforcement drama female-mc
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The Infirmary by L.J. Ross, Jonathan Keeble
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIntroducing the new, unabridged version of The Infirmary by LJ Ross, the author of the international number one best-selling series, the DCI Ryan Mysteries.There's a serial killer targeting the streets of Newcastle, seemingly picking his victims at random but subjecting them all to the same torturous end... -
![The Trapped Girl by Robert Dugoni]()
The Trapped Girl by Robert Dugoni
Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsWhen a woman’s body is discovered submerged in a crab pot in the chilly waters of Puget Sound, Detective Tracy Crosswhite finds herself with a tough case to untangle. Before they can identify the killer, Tracy and her colleagues on the Seattle PD’s Violent Crimes Section must figure out who the victim is. Her autopsy, however, reveals she may have gone to great lengths to conceal her identity... -
![Wicked by Jana Deleon]()
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... -
![Targeted by Kendra Elliot]()
Targeted by Kendra Elliot
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA Wall Street Journal bestseller All Detective Mason Callahan wanted was a quiet fishing trip with the guys—a chance to get away and unwind before Halloween.Until he finds the body of his boss, Denny Schefte, near their remote Oregon cabin. Now all he wants is to catch the sadist who slit Denny’s throat and covered his face with a mask... -
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![In the Darkness by Mike Omer]()
In the Darkness by Mike Omer
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA forensic psychologist fights a mental war against two serial killers in this disturbing thriller from Mike Omer, Washington Post and Amazon Charts bestselling author of A Killer’s Mind.An online video of a girl clawing at the ceiling of her own grave could be the worst thing FBI forensic psychologist Zoe Bentley has ever seen... -
![A Steep Price by Robert Dugoni]()
A Steep Price by Robert Dugoni
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni’s thrilling series continues as Seattle homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite is plunged into a case of family secrets and murder… “Another outstanding novel from one of the best crime writers in the business... -
![Mercy by David Baldacci]()
Mercy by David Baldacci
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsFBI Agent Atlee Pine’s harrowing search for her long-lost sister Mercy reaches a boiling point in this breakneck thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci. For her entire life, FBI agent Atlee Pine has been searching for her twin sister, Mercy, who was abducted at the age of six and never seen again... -
![Hidden Creed by Alex Kava]()
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... -
![Our Stolen Pieces by James Hunt]()
Our Stolen Pieces by James Hunt
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWhen the morning after a slumber party reveals two missing girls, a newly minted Detective and a young veteran are assigned the case. Recently partnered, the pair of detectives must set aside their troubled pasts to recover the pair of girls who may have been coerced by a stranger who had kidnapped before... -
![Her Final Breath by Robert Dugoni]()
Her Final Breath by Robert Dugoni
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsHomicide detective Tracy Crosswhite has returned to the police force after the sensational retrial of her sister’s killer. Still scarred from that ordeal, Tracy is pulled into an investigation that threatens to end her career, if not her life.A serial killer known as the Cowboy is killing young women in cheap motels in North Seattle... -
![Murder Never Misses by Faith Martin]()
Murder Never Misses by Faith Martin
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThree missing young women. One evil stalker. But Hillary doesn’t think it all adds up. Hillary is recovering from the vicious attack by her stalker. It appears that he is also behind the disappearance and murder of three women. Her bosses want these unsolved cases closed, but Hillary has a theory that will shock everyone... -
![Close to Home by Robert Dugoni]()
Close to Home by Robert Dugoni
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni’s acclaimed series continues as Tracy Crosswhite is thrown headlong into the path of a killer conspiracy.While investigating the hit-and-run death of a young boy, Seattle homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite makes a startling discovery: the suspect is an active-duty serviceman at a local naval base... -
![A Killer's Wife by Victor Methos]()
A Killer's Wife by Victor Methos
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsFrom the bestselling author of The Neon Lawyer comes a gripping thriller about a prosecutor confronted with the darkest part of her past and the worst fears for her future…Fourteen years ago, prosecutor Jessica Yardley’s husband went to prison for a series of brutal murders. She’s finally created a life with her daughter and is a well-respected attorney. She’s moving on... -
![Martin Swans Diary: Black Water Crossing by Kyle Keyes]()
Martin Swans Diary: Black Water Crossing by Kyle Keyes
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsMartin Swan was not a terrorist, nor a truck driver. He only replied to the want-ad because the wording linked Florida with Washington DC and wanted someone who could speak Arabic. The year was 2008. Jobs were scarce, gas prices high. The back page ad called for a big rig driver with a clean record, who could be at Black Water Crossing the day before Halloween... -
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![Little Broken Things by Cheryl Bradshaw]()
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... -
![Fear No Evil by James Patterson]()
Fear No Evil by James Patterson
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsAlex Cross enters the final showdown with the relentless killer who has stalked him and his family for years.Dr. Alex Cross and Detective John Sampson venture into the rugged Montana wilderness—where they will be the prey. They’re not on the job, but on a personal mission... -
![Murder Never Retires by Faith Martin]()
Murder Never Retires by Faith Martin
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsHillary Greene returns to Thames Valley Police HQ, acting as a consultant for the Crime Review Team, looking into murders which the police have never been able to solve. She wasn’t sure she wanted to go back. But solving crimes is irresistible for Hillary Greene. And it doesn’t hurt that her new boss is devastatingly handsome... -
![With a Narrow Blade by Faith Martin]()
With a Narrow Blade by Faith Martin
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn elderly lady is stabbed to death in her own home; the house doesn't appear to have been robbed and Flo Jenkins was well liked. Also, she only had weeks to live. Why kill a dying woman? This is going to be a difficult one for DI Hillary Greene to solve... -
![The Patient Man by Joy Ellis]()
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 Work of a Narrow Mind by Faith Martin]()
The Work of a Narrow Mind by Faith Martin
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen ex-DI Hillary Greene, now working for the cold case squad, is handed the case of the murder of a harmless old woman, who'd been brutally battered to death in her own home, she is determined to track down the killer... -
![The Maid's Diary by Loreth Anne White]()
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... -
![Impostor by L.J. Ross]()
Impostor by L.J. Ross
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFROM THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE DCI RYAN MYSTERIES There’s a killer inside all of us… After an elite criminal profiling unit is shut down amidst a storm of scandal and mismanagement, only one person emerges unscathed... -
![Their Lost Daughters by Joy Ellis]()
Their Lost Daughters by Joy Ellis
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsTWO GIRLS GO TO A PARTY, ONLY ONE RETURNS ALIVEToni, the surviving teenager, is found delirious, wandering the muddy fields. She has been drugged and it’s uncertain whether she’ll survive. She says she saw her friend Emily being dragged away from the party. But no one knows who Emily is or even if she’s still alive. . .Meanwhile the drowned body of another girl has been found on an isolated beach... -
![Shattered by Allison Brennan]()
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... -
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![The Whispering Room by Dean Koontz, Elisabeth Rodgers]()
The Whispering Room by Dean Koontz, Elisabeth Rodgers
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratings16 hrs 52 minsJane Hawk—fiction's most relentless, resourceful, stunning new heroine—continues her battle against a murderous conspiracy in the riveting sequel to The Silent Corner. "No time to delay. Do what you were born to do. Fame will be yours when you do this... -
![The Guilty Ones by Joy Ellis]()
The Guilty Ones by Joy Ellis
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsTHE MOST DIFFICULT CASE OF DETECTIVE JACKMAN’S LIFE. WHO ARE THE GUILTY ONES AND IS ANYONE REALLY INNOCENT? THIS TIME IT’S VERY PERSONAL FOR JACKMAN. Jackman’s sister-in-law Sarah disappears to London and throws herself into the river. What drove her to this? She was a woman with a seemingly happy home life and two beloved sons. DI Jackman and DI Evans dig into Sarah’s life... -
![The Killing Hour by Lisa Gardner]()
The Killing Hour by Lisa Gardner
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsEach time he struck, he took two victims. Day after day, he waited for the first body to be discovered--a body containing all the clues the investigators needed to find the second victim, who waited...prey to a slow but certain death. The clock ticked--salvation was possible.The police were never in time.Years have passed; but for this killer, time has stood still... -
![Missed Connections by Alexandria Clarke]()
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... -
![YOU DID THIS by Jamie Millen]()
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... -
![Hide by Lisa Gardner]()
Hide by Lisa Gardner
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsYou have good reason to be afraid. . . . It was a case that haunts Bobby Dodge to this day—the case that nearly killed him and changed his life forever. Now, in an underground chamber on the grounds of an abandoned Massachusetts mental hospital, the gruesome discovery of six mummified corpses resurrects his worst nightmare: the return of a killer he thought dead and buried... -
![A Killer's Mind by Mike Omer]()
A Killer's Mind by Mike Omer
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsA chilling thriller of serial murder and dark secrets that will leave you wondering, is the past really in the past?Three Chicago women have been found strangled, embalmed, and posed as if still alive. Doubting the findings of the local PD’s profiler, The FBI calls on forensic psychologist Zoe Bentley to investigate... -
![The Promise by Katerina Diamond]()
The Promise by Katerina Diamond
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratings‘All hail the new Queen of Crime!’ HeatWhen troubled teen Connor moves to Exeter from the US after a horrific school shooting, he finds himself embroiled in a world of popular kids and easy girls. Everyone wants to be his friend, but they don’t know about what he did…and they don’t know about his father... -
![Dead & Buried by Helen H. Durrant]()
Dead & Buried by Helen H. Durrant
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA GRIPPING CRIME MYSTERY FULL OF TWISTS AND TURNS 40 years ago something terrible happened in Annie's new house . . . Annie Naden and her husband buy a remote country cottage at auction. It’s the home of their own that they always wanted, but as they begin renovations, Annie discovers a satchel in a dusty old hidden cupboard... -
![Dead Bad by Helen H. Durrant]()
Dead Bad by Helen H. Durrant
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLooking for a brilliant best-selling crime mystery with great detectives?Detective Calladine and Bayliss face a vicious serial killer in a mystery with a shocking ending.A woman’s body is found in a disused church, a homemade stuffed toy by her side. The victim had been dumped there months ago. The crime has the hallmarks of twenty-year-old case whose alleged perpetrator is in prison... -
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![Murder in the Family by Faith Martin, Gemma Dawson]()
Murder in the Family by Faith Martin, Gemma Dawson
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 19 ratings15–year-old Billy Davies is found dead in his father’s shed. A pair of gardening shears thrust brutally into his chest. DI Hillary Greene tries to get to the bottom of this brutal and baffling crime. How had Billy come into contact with such a vicious killer? Who wanted him dead and why? It turns out that the teenager was not such an innocent young man.Hillary’s having a tough time at work... -
![Gated Prey by Lee Goldberg]()
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 Third Victim by Lisa Gardner]()
The Third Victim by Lisa Gardner
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsThe past isn't over....An unspeakable act has ripped apart the idyllic town of Bakersville, Oregon, and its once-peaceful residents are demanding quick justice. But though a boy has confessed to the horrific crime, evidence shows he may not be guilty. Officer Rainie Conner, leading her first homicide investigation, stands at the center of the controversy... -
![The Secrets of the Shadows by Helen Phifer]()
The Secrets of the Shadows by Helen Phifer
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSophie was afraid of the man in the shadows. He terrified her, but he would always disappear when someone else came. But one day in June 1984, she didn't escape. He took her. When a young woman is found draped over a gravestone in a chilling murder, police officer Annie Graham experiences a familiar sense of dread... -
![Keep Her Quiet by Emma Curtis]()
Keep Her Quiet by Emma Curtis
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratings'This is grip-lit at its best' Fanny BlakeJenny has just given birth to the baby she’s always wanted. She’s never been this happy.Her husband, Leo, knows this baby girl can’t be his. He’s never felt so betrayed.The same night, a vulnerable young woman, Hannah, wakes to find her newborn lifeless beside her. She’s crazed with grief... -
![Love You To Death by Caroline Mitchell]()
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]()
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]()
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... -
![Dead List by Helen H. Durrant, Jonathan Keeble]()
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... -
![What Hurts the Most by Willow Rose]()
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 female-mc law-enforcement suspense thriller action-adventure adult amateur-sleuth -
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![Cross and Burn by Val McDermid]()
Cross and Burn by Val McDermid
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsGuilt and grief have driven a wedge between long time crime-fighting partners psychologist Tony Hill and ex-DCI Carol Jordan. But just because they’re not talking doesn’t mean the killing stops.Someone is killing women. Women who bear an unsettling resemblance to Carol Jordan. And when the evidence begins to point in a disturbing direction, thinking the unthinkable seems the only possible answer... -
![The Dark Corners of the Night by Meg Gardiner, Hillary Huber]()
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... -
![Gone for Good by Harlan Coben]()
Gone for Good by Harlan Coben
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsAs a boy, Will Klein had a hero: his older brother, Ken. Then, on a warm suburban night in the Kleins' affluent New Jersey neighborhood, a young woman--a girl Will had once loved--was found brutally murdered in her family's basement. The prime suspect: Ken Klein. With the evidence against him overwhelming, Ken simply vanished... -
![The Torment of Others by Val McDermid]()
The Torment of Others by Val McDermid
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsDr. Tony Hill and Detective Chief Inspector Carol Jordan return in the award-winning series that is the basis for the BBC television show.In a small grim room, the body of a woman is discovered, panic and pain etched in her face...Categorized as:
crime drama female-mc law-enforcement suspense thriller 21st-century action-adventure -
![The Swimmer by Loreth Anne White]()
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... -
![Malevolent by Jana Deleon]()
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...
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