A serial killer lures a beautiful FBI agent into high stakes game of life and death in this romantic thriller by the New York Times bestselling author.
The game is simple: he is the Hunter; they are the Prey. He gives them a chance to escape. To run. To hide. To outsmart him. But eventually, he catches them. And that's when the game gets really terrifying . . .
Private investigator Griffin Powell and FBI agent Nicole Baxter know a lot about serial killers-they took one down together. But this new killer likes playing games with Nic and Griff. Every unsolvable clue, every posed victim, every taunting phone call-it's all part of his plan. But now the Hunter is changing the rules . . .
The brutal psychopath needs a worthy adversary. To him, Nicole is the most precious prey of all. And he won't stop until he gets his chance to hunt her down. Now, with his partner in a killer's sights, Griff is playing for the biggest stakes of his life.
Contains mature themes.
Play To Win . . .
It's the ultimate game-the adrenaline surge of the hunt, the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat. For in this game, the rules are simple: To win, you only have to kill. To lose, you will have to die . . .
Play To Scream . . .
The victims are former beauty queens found with a single rose beside their bodies. Lindsay McAllister has seen this signature before, when she was a rookie detective with the Chattanooga PD investigating the death of Judd Walker's wife, a murder that sent the handsome lawyer off the deep end. Now, Lindsay has the brutal task of telling Judd that his wife's killer has struck again, and she's going to need his help to outplay their opponent-because the killer is getting bolder, faster, and more ruthless. The game is escalating, and no one is safe.
Play To Die . . .
Now as the body count rises, the rules are changing. A killer will do anything to win. And the only way for Lindsay to stop a madman's twisted game is to play it herself . . .
Contains mature themes.
A minister's young widow is targeted by a small-town serial killer in the New York Times bestselling author's Southern romantic thriller.
To most people, respected clergymen like Mark Cantrell are pillars of the community, and completely beyond reproach. But their killer knows better. They are sinners of the worst kind, and they must burn on earth before they burn in hell . . .
Eighteen months after her husband's unsolved murder, Cathy Cantrell has returned to her Alabama home, eager to build a new life for herself and her son. But reminders of her past, like Deputy Sheriff Jackson Perdue, are everywhere. And a spate of recent deaths-each victim burned in the same horrifying manner as her husband-leave Jack and Cathy in no doubt that a serial killer is at work . . .
Now as a twisted killer moves in for a final, brutal act of vengeance, buried crimes are coming to light once more. And this time, justice will be swift, merciless, and as silent as the grave . . .
Contains mature themes.
When A Shocking Scandal Exposes Southern Secrets ...
As the blazing heat of summer gives way to sultry September, a shroud of suspicion settles over Noble's Crossing, a sleepy Alabama town. Nothing is as it seems-and never will be again. Lane Noble Graham stands accused of murdering her ex-husband. And the one man who can help, Johnny Mack Cahill, vowed never to return to the town that scorned him-or the woman whose love he knew he didn't deserve.
... No One Is Safe from Cold-Blooded Murder
From the rusted-out trailers on the wrong side of the river to the stately pillared mansions along Magnolia Avenue, everybody has something to hide-but one secret could make Lane and Johnny Mack the next targets of a twisted killer, who's struck once and is bent on striking again ...
What she doesn't know ...
The victims are all found face-down in the murky waters of the creek that runs through Cherokee Pointe, Tennessee. They are naked, except for the black satin ribbon tied around their necks. And each murdered woman shares a single characteristic ... they are all redheads ...
Just might ...
Socialite Reve Sorrell has come to Cherokee Pointe seeking answers about her family history and her shocking connection to wrong-side-of-the-tracks Jazzy Talbot. With their stunning good looks and shining red hair, the two are mirror images of each other-twins abandoned at birth and raised in very different worlds. And whoever left them for dead on a cold night thirty years ago isn't about to let them uncover the truth now ...
Kill her
As a serial killer leaves another chilling calling card in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, Reve turns to Sheriff Jacob Butler to help her unravel the potentially deadly secrets of her past. But someone will do anything to stop her ... someone who won't make the same mistake twice ... someone more cunning than she knows ... and closer than she ever could imagine ...
Be careful who you love ...
Cherokee Pointe, Tennessee, has seen murder before, but nothing like what has claimed the life of Jamie Upton, heir to the Upton fortune. The crime is so vicious, so personal, and filled with hatred, the authorities are certain it had to be someone he knew ... someone hiding an unimaginable sadistic streak behind a friendly facade.
Be careful who you trust ...
The number one suspect is Jamie's former lover Jazzy Talbot. The girl from the wrong side of the tracks has always been Cherokee Point's favorite target for gossip and worse. Jazzy knows she didn't kill Jamie ... just as she knows she's being watched, stalked like prey ...
Be careful what you know ...
And then the killer strikes again ... and again ... with the same chilling signature. With no one to believe her innocence except enigmatic drifter Caleb McCord, Jazzy plunges into a small town's long-buried secrets and shocking family sins ... each startling truth bringing her dangerously close to a killer determined to make Jazzy the last to die ...
Some things shouldn't be seen ...
Cherokee Pointe, Tennessee. Deep in the Smoky Mountains, the victim lies, sacrificed on a makeshift altar-the gruesome work of a killer who has evaded the authorities in state after state. FBI agent Dallas Sloan knows the scene all too well-just as he knows the killings won't stop until there are four more bodies.
Some warnings won't be heeded ...
Genny Madoc's 'sixth sense' has brought many of Cherokee Pointe's residents to her isolated log cabin, looking for help. But now it's Genny who needs help from the disturbing visions she sees-images that are getting stronger and more violent day by day.
Some fears can't be stopped ...
Thrown together by necessity, drawn to each other by desire, Dallas and Genny must band together, searching the darkest heart of a town's hidden secrets before a twisted killer can complete a sinister plan that will make one of them the fifth victim.
A KILLER WHO GETS AWAY WITH MURDER ONCE...
It's been twenty years since the night Jake Marcott was brutally murdered at St. Elizabeth High School. It's a night that shattered the lives of Lindsay Farrell, Kirsten Daniels, and Rachel Alsace. It's a night they'll never forget. A killer will make sure of that....
FINDS IT EASIER TO KILL AGAIN...
A 20-year reunion has been scheduled for St. Elizabeth's. For some alumni, very special invitations have been sent: their smiling senior pictures slashed by an angry red line....
AND AGAIN...AND AGAIN...
Three women have been marked for death. Tonight, as the music plays, and the doors of St. Elizabeth are sealed, a killer will finish what was started long ago, and the sins of the past will be paid for in blood....
Mary Beth Caine has always been the good girl in her small Mississippi town. But when a big, protective, shamelessly sexy stranger offers to console her on the night of her disastrous engagement party, Mary Beth lets him—only to discover that Parr Weston also happens to be the older brother of her fiancé, Bobby Joe.
Parr left Mississippi after spending years holding his family together. Now that he's back, he can't steal Bobby Joe's woman, and he sure can't offer Mary Beth the tidy happily-ever-after she deserves. But everything about the petite beauty—from her flame-gold hair to her artless sensuality—makes him crave her more. Love or lust, right or wrong, all he knows is that nothing has ever felt like this before, and walking away will be the hardest thing he's ever had to do.
'Not for the faint of heart! Shocking and terrifying, it will chill you to the bone.' Tess Gerritsen
Perfect for fans of Karen Rose and Karin Slaughter, this is an atmospheric and nerve-jangling crime thriller. Lovers of CSI, this one is for you.
Ella, sweet Ella, I dream of you at night and wake in a cold sweat. You were meant to be mine. You can't even begin to imagine all the things I want to do to you. When the time is right, I will come for you. And that is only the beginning of my revenge...
When Ella Porter opens the mysterious letter, a mix of fear and desire spreads through her. She's always been the quiet, ladylike good girl, not the sort to inspire a stalker. The letters are a reminder of another time and a shocking secret.
Someone is watching Ella. Wanting her. Promising to do things to her: tempting things...terrifying things. Desperate to protect her family Ella will do anything to discover the truth. Even if it means joining forces with the one man who could be her greatest threat - a twisted killer watching every move she makes....
The fear…
Malcolm York is a sadistic monster, guilty of unspeakable crimes. And with his endless wealth, he's funded a series of depraved hunts. The few who survived can never forget. They can only be thankful the terror is over—until rumors start swirling.
Only stops…
Griffin Powell knows the twisted depths of York's madness. He's also sure that York is dead. But then Griff's wife Nicole disappears, and the phone calls begin—that familiar voice taunting him, promising to destroy everything Griff loves.
When you die.
Using all the resources of the Powell Agency, Griff searches for Nic, aware that every step propels him further into a madman's web—because the only way to keep Nic safe is to join one last perverse game in which the winner kills all and the loser is dead by nightfall.
Praise for the works of Beverly Barton: "Masterful!"—Linda Howard, New York Times bestselling author, on Cold Hearted
The darkest sins…
He begins his work just before dawn, wielding a knife with the precision of a surgeon. Cunning and meticulous, he's always in control. Mercy is not an option.
Will always…
Maleah Perdue is tough, outspoken, and completely dedicated to her work at the Powell Security Agency. But her fearless exterior shatters when a madman begins killing her colleagues one by one, mimicking a notorious serial killer already behind bars. Working alongside top profiler Derek Lawrence, Maleah will do anything to find the murderer, even if it means playing a psychopath's twisted mind games.
Come to light.
No one connected to the agency is safe. No one is beyond suspicion. For as Maleah and Derek piece together the clues, they uncover a chilling legacy of lies and brutal vengeance—and a killer who has been hiding in plain sight all along.
"The second 'Dead' thriller is a great romantic suspense that grips the audience from the moment the protagonists begin to learn of the assault on Powell and never lets go as the climax diabolically leads to the next unpublished tale. The lead pair is a terrific coupling…However, what makes Dead by Morning super is the serial killer, who will be considered one of the vilest of the year."—Mystery Gazette
