Tag: thriller

a look at the Leine Basso #Thrillers by DV Berkom #series @dvberkom @SDSXXTours

On By Casey's CornerIn Authors & Books, Book Tours1 Comment
A Killing Truth
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 1
by DV Berkom
Genre: Thriller
Now available: the chilling start to the high-octane, can’t-put-it-down Leine Basso thriller series.
A deadly assassin. A perpetual target. A double-cross she never saw coming…
They say the truth will set you free, but what if it kills you first?
Leine eliminates terrorists for a living. After a routine assassination almost gets her killed, she chalks it up to a fluke. Her lover and fellow assassin, Carlos, has another idea altogether. He thinks their boss is setting them up for a fall.
When Carlos goes missing and a bombing thwarts another mission, Leine suspects the stakes are far higher than she could ever imagine, and wonders if the man in charge might have it in for her after all.
If you like no-nonsense heroines, page-turning plots, and twists you won’t see coming, then you’ll love D.V. Berkom’s tension-filled series.
Download A Killing Truth to find out how the story began…
“[Leine Basso] is a sassy, kick-arse, no-nonsense, I’ll-eat-your-balls-for-breakfast type of woman. She simply rocks. Berkom’s books are ones when you almost forget to breathe. They’re fast-paced, taut with tension and sheer joy from start to finish.” ~ Cath’n’Kindle Book Reviews
“[A Killing Truth] introduces one of modern fiction’s deadliest heroes…” ~ Reviewer Charles A. Ray
“This is my third Leine Basso, and like the others, the action never lets up. Leine is the female Jack Reacher only she does it all without being 6’5″ and weighing 265 pounds, so that makes her more incredible. If you like page-turners, you’ll love this book.” ~ Polly Iyer, bestselling suspense author
“A Killing Truth would make an excellent introduction to D.V. Berkom’s writing…she’s one of my favorites… love how she just puts you right in the pages and you just don’t want to end.” ~ Hornfan2
“The Leine Basso series by DV Berkom is jam-packed with action and adventure and Leine Basso is one bad*** protagonist…” ~ Fundinmental Book Reviews
“As someone who has read all of the other current Leine Basso books first, I can say that A Killing Truth had me in suspense the entire time.” ~ Maranda, Amazon Reviewer
“Non-stop twists and turns. An excellent thriller that pits Leine against not only international criminals but her own boss.” ~ USMC-Mike
“What the world needs now is more female characters like bad ass Leine Basso. Bought the trio of books that follow this one because of how much I enjoyed the plot and twists along the way.” ~ shzann
Serial Date
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 2
A former assassin is drawn into the twisted game of a serial killer who may be a grisly remnant from her past.
What happens when a reality show turns deadly?
Determined to leave her old life behind, retired assassin Leine Basso accepts a job working security at one of television’s most popular reality shows, Serial Date. When a contestant is found dead in the prop closet, it appears the killer is one of the ‘bachelors’ on the show-
an ex-con billed as a serial killer- but the detective in charge of the case isn’t so sure.
When Leine’s estranged daughter is abducted by a man claiming to be the real killer, she’s forced to rely on old skills to find her. She soon realizes the murderer may be a grisly remnant from her past and she’ll need to use all of her cunning to stop him…
…and rescue her daughter.
If you like black humor, no-nonsense heroines, and heart-stopping action, you’ll love Serial Date. Download it today!
“If you like fast-paced action, great lead characters, and don’t mind a few F-bombs and the occasional gore, DV Berkom is the author for you.” ~ BloodWrites
“Serial Date has everything a mystery/thriller needs to be successful, fast-paced and action packed, strong and memorable characters and a story that will grab you from beginning to end…” ~ Confessions of a Reader
“Why should you read it? In a nutshell it’s a fast-paced, non-linear story with some creepy elements mashed together with a splash of romance and dark humour. What’s not to like?” ~ Indie eBooks
Bad Traffick
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 3
Dangerous obsessions take center stage when a former assassin and a homicide detective race against the clock to find a missing girl before she’s sold to the highest bidder.
Identified as a person of interest in three cold case murders she didn’t commit, and required to stay in L.A., retired assassin Leine Basso accepts a temporary position as a security specialist for A-list actor Miles Fournier. Soon, a woman contacts Miles, claiming to be his long-lost sister. Her twelve-year-old daughter, Mara, has been abducted and she’s desperate to get her back.
Leine learns from a contact that Mara escaped, but the traffickers are determined to track her down and deliver her to their powerful client. Running out of time, Leine must find Mara before they do, or she will be lost forever.
Praise for BAD TRAFFICK:
“Utterly gripping, compelling, edge-of-your seat writing.” ~ Cath ‘n’ Kindle Book Reviews
“…I was thrilled with this book. I did not want it to end. I was on the edge of my seat at the end! Seriously a nail-bitter!” ~ April Holgate, Amazon Top 50 Reviewer
“Tight dialogue and nonstop action marks a novel that establishes new benchmarks for action thrillers. This is a solid five-star novel that you won’t want to miss.” ~ Ray’s Ramblings
“An intelligent thriller worthy of the Big Screen…” ~ BloodWrites
The Body Market
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 4
***Bonus short story, Privilege included***
A retired assassin is called in when a celebration south of the border turns into a nightmare.
Everything’s for sale…
Former assassin Leine Basso is hired by a wealthy Beverly Hills power couple to find their missing daughter, Elise, last seen partying with her boyfriend at a club in Tijuana. At first, police believe the two teenagers are the victims of a carjacking. But when Leine finds their missing vehicle with a mutilated body inside, and the local cartel warns her away, she knows if Elise isn’t already dead, she will be soon, or worse.
In the lethal world of organized crime, there’s always a worse.
As Leine races to uncover the reason behind Elise Bennett’s disappearance, she must also battle the powerful interests fighting to keep her from the truth.
Praise for the Leine Basso Thriller series:
“Now this, this is what thrillers are made of: grit, spunk, and no-nonsense unputdownability…Quite simply: Brilliant ” ~ Cath ‘n Kindle Book Reviews
“…Ms. Berkom gives us a badass heroine that’s fun to root for. Once Leine discovers what is happening, there is no stopping her…an edge of your seat thriller that delivers!” ~ Night Owl Reviews
“Without a doubt one of the most engaging, complex and enthralling mysteries that had me totally in its grip…” ~
Confessions of a Reader
“Taken fans will be overjoyed with this gritty thriller…following Basso as she works her tradecraft is a pleasure…” ~ BestThrillers.com
“A really exciting heroine for action thriller fans everywhere, but a long overdue tough and plausible literary role-model for women.” ~
Ajoobacats Book Reviews
Cargo
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 5
An adventurous young backpacker, captured and sold. A black market merchant who will stop at nothing to amass the power he craves. The one woman who can stop him before he destroys everything…
Haunted by memories of an op gone bad, former assassin Leine Basso travels to Bangkok in search of a missing backpacker. With help from an old contact, she discovers the man responsible for the girl’s disappearance is connected to a violent Hong Kong triad and is the linchpin of an extensive trafficking network—both animal and human.
Making enemies isn’t new for Leine, but making one in the triad is—she soon finds herself a prisoner on board a cargo ship headed for sub-Saharan Africa. To ensure her survival and to continue her hunt for the missing girl, she must join forces with Derek, an ivory poacher who promises to help her.
For a price.
The Last Deception
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 6
Ready to stay up all night? Everybody’s favorite assassin is back with a vengeance in this high-octane, can’t-put-it-down espionage thriller.
Espionage. Deception. A nation on the brink of war…
Just when former assassin Leine Basso thinks she’s free from the business of death, a desperate call from a friend drags her back into the dark world of espionage and arms dealers.
“Sucks you in on page one and doesn’t set you free until the end. Another sure-fire winner in a spectacular series.” ~ Tim Tigner, International Bestselling Author of the Kyle Achilles series
“D.V. Berkom has created one kick-ass heroine in Leine Basso–a woman who can do it all in the dog-kill-dog world of international espionage.” ~ J. Carson Black, New York Times Bestselling Author
“Warning: once started, The Last Deception is difficult to put down…[T]he globe-trotting Leine uncovers acts of international espionage that lead her on a desperate hunt for an elusive spy that could bring down the world.” ~ Midwest Book Review
Dark Return
Leine Basso Thrillers book 7
A former assassin, battling her demons. A sinister enemy, determined to destroy her. A wily street kid caught in the middle.
Former assassin Leine Basso is fresh off an assignment rescuing an American teenager from a terrorist group in Libya when she thwarts the murder of a street kid in Tripoli. Leine agrees to help the girl, but must first visit a refugee camp to uncover the reason behind a rash of mysterious abductions.
Leaving the camp, Leine comes under a surprise attack–but only a handful of people knew her true mission. The more she discovers about the abductions, the more of a target she becomes, forcing her to revisit a dark and violent past she thought she’d left behind. But it’s easy–too easy to fall back into her old ways.
And that could get her killed.
Will Leine be able to survive a dark return?
If you like gritty, fast-paced, can’t-put-it-down thrillers with an action-packed story ripped from the headlines, then you’ll love Dark Return. Download your copy today!
Praise for Dark Return:
“I couldn’t put it down. My entire Saturday has been spent reading Dark Return.” ~ Sharon Simms
“One of the best reads to come out in this genre in quite awhile. You won’t want to put this book down.” ~ Yvonne Reddy
“Excellent. There is no other way to describe it. I read it in one go it was that good. Leine is one hell of a badass.” ~ Silver Surfer
“Dark Return was a thrill-a-minute, page-turning suspense that never lets up with action and intrigue. The author, DV Berkom, is a master when it comes to character development and the story line.” ~ Paula Lopez
“DV Berkom has honed her skills as writer to such a fine art that it is indeed very difficult to tear yourself away from any of her books.” ~ Manie Killian
“Fast paced and full of action, this book will keep you both entertained and intrigued from start to finish. Highly recommended!!” ~ Derek Williams
“This book will captivate you from the first paragraph to the last. It is full of action and non-stop adventure…” ~ txdoc
“Best book in the series, they just keep getting better and better!! Read them from the first in the series or just jump in here. Brilliant read.” ~ Sally Sanders
“Berkom has matured as a solid writer with similarities to Mark Greaney, Mark Dawson (John Milton series), and a whisper of Barry Eisler.” ~ Library Champion
Absolution
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 8
There’s only one sure way to stop a terrorist…
Former assassin Leine Basso has severed ties with everyone she loves to keep them safe while she hunts for the ruthless terrorist, Salome. There are rumblings that the French-born assassin is planning another attack and Leine’s determined to stop her before it’s too late.
Can Leine thwart her plans, or will Salome’s own twisted vengeance mean the end for Leine and everyone she loves?
From London to Edinburgh to the City of Angels, Salome’s making a comeback—and that comeback includes killing Leine.
Dakota Burn
Leine Basso Thrillers Book 9
A kidnapped girl. A ruthless criminal who preys on the innocent. Two killers who will stop at nothing to bring him down.
Former assassin Leine Basso was supposed to be in sunny LA, watching the first class of operatives graduate from the new anti-trafficking academy. Instead, she’s in North Dakota in the middle of a brutal winter, helping old friend Derek van der Haar track down and eliminate a deadly group of criminals hell-bent on providing young girls to the highest bidder.
The closer Leine and Derek get to the organization, the more dangerous the mission becomes. Soon, it’s evident that the traffickers are playing for keeps—and don’t care who they kill.
In a story ripped from the headlines, Dakota Burn reveals the dark underbelly of the Bakken oil fields, where human life is a commodity and outlaws still rule.
If you enjoy books by Mark Dawson, Barry Eisler, and Mark Greaney, you’ll love D.V. Berkom. Download this gritty, action-packed thriller today!
And you thought the Wild West was dead…
DV Berkom is the USA Today bestselling author of two action-packed thriller series featuring strong female leads (Leine Basso and Kate Jones). Her love of creating resilient, kick-ass women characters stems from a lifelong addiction to reading spy novels, mysteries, and thrillers, and longing to find the female equivalent within those pages.
Raised in the Midwest, she earned a BA in political science and promptly moved to Mexico to live on a sailboat. Several years and many adventures later, she wrote her first novel and was hooked. The Kate Jones adventure thriller, Bad Spirits, was first published in 2010 as an online serial, and was immediately popular with Kindle and Nook fans. Dead of Winter, Death Rites, and Touring for Death soon followed before she began the far grittier Leine Basso thriller series in early 2012 with Serial Date.
DV currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, Mark, and several imaginary characters who like to tell her what to do.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

a look at The McAllister #Series by L.V. Gaudet #Psychological #Crime #Thriller @lvgaudet @SDSXXTours

On By Casey's CornerIn Authors & Books, Book Tours1 Comment
Where the Bodies Are
The McAllister Series Book 1
by L.V. Gaudet
Genre: Psychological Crime Thriller
Step into the twisted mind of a serial killer in this disturbing psychological thriller.
Dead bodies are being left where they are sure to be found. But, the killer made a mistake; one victim left for dead survived.
Kept in a medically induced coma while she recovers, they can only watch her and wait for the killer to come back for her.
While Detective Michael Underwood protects their only living witness, Detective Jim McNelly and his reporter friend Lawrence Hawkworth are determined to find the killer and bring his killing spree to an end. Instead, they discover a bigger mystery.
The killer’s reality blurs between past and present with a compulsion driven by a dark secret locked in a fractured mind. Overcome by a blind rage that leaves him wallowing in remorse with the bodies of victim after victim, he is desperate to stop killing.
After learning of his victim’s survival, the killer sees it as a sign they are meant to be together. Threatening her tenuous grip on life, he is determined to take back his prize while he continues kidnapping and murdering young women.
Accustomed to a life of abuse, one victim’s experience becomes her refuge in a desperate bid for survival.
Instead of killing her, he keeps Katherine Kingslow imprisoned in the dark while he continues plotting to take back the Jane Doe in the hospital. How long can Kathy survive and will she lose her own mind?
The search for the killer will lead to his dark secret buried in the past, something much larger than a man compelled to kill again and again.
The McAllister Farm
The McAllister Series Book 2
Step back in time to learn the secret behind the bodies in Where the Bodies Are in this disturbing look at the boy who will grow up to create the killer.
1981
Meet David McAllister, the boy who will grow up to create the killer.
In 1981 there was a man who lived on a farm. William McAllister was a private and reclusive man who, above all else, did not like to have attention drawn on his family.
He wanted only to be left to mind his own business and family and for the world to do the same. But that very reclusiveness fosters contempt and suspicion in the people of the small farming community his family has called home for generations.
William McAllister has a son, Jason McAllister. Jason is a troubled boy. Growing up under his father’s strict rules and isolated from the normal childhood relationships, he is left to explore his darker inclinations. Seeing the darker side of Jason, William tries to rein his son in by bringing him into the family business.
Just then a serial killer starts preying on local young women. The McAllisters quickly find themselves drawn into the spotlight when the town decides William McAllister is the killer. As the town’s search for the killer focuses on the McAllister farm and the woods behind it, the threat to the McAllister secret grows.
The McAllister family history is as dark as the secret hiding in the woods. The attention is a threat to both William McAllister’s profession and his family. He has no choice but to find the killer himself. He might not like what he learns.
Hunting Michael Underwood
The McAllister Series Book 3
Step deeper into the twisted mind of a serial killer as he slips further into madness in this disturbing psychological thriller.
Hunting Michael Underwood follows on the heels of book one, Where the Bodies Are, bringing the first two stories and their characters together as the search for the killer continues.
Michael Underwood has vanished and everyone is searching for him. Detective Jim McNelly is determined to not stop until he finds him. Working with the detective, Lawrence Hawkworth is still chasing the bigger story he knows is behind the bodies. Jason McAllister knows he must stop the killer he created before he goes too far. He may be the only one who can stop him.
Unable to let go of his barely remembered past and the search for his sister, the killer goes looking for Jason McAllister’s past and his family.
*****
Detective Jim McNelly is furious. Detective Michael Underwood disappeared without a trace with the only living witness to the McAllister murders. Worse, Michael is not who he pretended to be. And then the other shoe fell.
Jason T. McAllister, tried and convicted of the kidnapping and murders of multiple women and the prime suspect behind the bodies discovered in the woods behind the McAllister farm, is being inexplicably set free. He will not spend the rest of his life in prison.
Jim is determined to find Michael Underwood, bring him down, and discover the truth about who he really is and what his connection to Jason McAllister is.
Working with his long time friend, the notoriously unscrupulous investigative reporter Lawrence Hawkworth, Jim will not stop until he finds Michael and the answers to the bodies found in the mass graveyard in the woods behind the McAllister Farm.
Jason McAllister knows he must stop the real killer behind the murders he was convicted for. As the killer spirals further into madness, Jason is the only one who can stop him. But, he needs help. He is going to have to talk to his father, William McAllister, the man who taught him how to hide the bodies.
Michael Underwood and Katherine Kingslow are on the run. A victim of domestic abuse and only known survivor of the McAllister Farm killer, Kathy has lapsed into Stockholm syndrome. Now she is torn between her need to be with her captor and fear of his escalating psychotic episodes.
Everyone is hunting for Michael Underwood.
Killing David McAllister
The McAllister Series Book 4
Everyone wants to kill David McAllister in this explosive conclusion.
David McAllister must die.
Crazy comes to a head in this disturbing psychological thriller.
When an unbalanced serial killer sets his sights on a little girl, there is only one way it can end. Someone will die.
Sometimes the only way to stop a monster is to kill it. He has gone by many names, but he was raised as David McAllister, and finding what he is looking for is not enough to quiet the darkness inside him.
The organization ordered the cleanup of the entire McAllister family.
The job was given to Sophie McAllister.
While Detective Jim McNelly and his reporter friend Lawrence Hawkworth continue to hunt them down, the McAllisters move into hiding.
David McAllster’s psychosis continues, but now Sophie’s daughter is in danger. He believes she is his tiny sister Cassie.
The presence of his now adult sister Cassie does not stop his dead little Cassie from tormenting him.
***
Sometimes the only way to stop a monster is to kill it. He has gone by many names, but he was raised as David McAllister, and finding what he is looking for is not enough to quiet the darkness inside him.
David McAllister must die.
While the McAllisters move into hiding, Detective Jim McNelly and his reporter friend, Lawrence Hawkworth, continue to pursue them. Jim and Lawrence split up to follow their own leads, routes that will take them each on their own path to discover secrets behind the McAllisters.
Anderson and William are trying to keep the group together and ahead of the detective hunting them while trying to resolve the issue of what to do with David, Kathy, Rose Bheals, and the boy Jason brought, Billy.
Kathy is becoming increasingly fearful both for and of David and wants out, but feels trapped. She is certain death is the only way out.
Cassie swore to kill David for what he did to Connie and the others. Torn by memories she does not have and the knowledge of the dark hole this life will bury her in, she needs to escape.
Sophie has been ordered to kill David and Kathy. She may have to kill her own brother, Jason, too. When the time comes, she’s not sure if she can do it.
With Marjory’s lapses into the foggy confusion of Alzheimer’s, nobody believes her when she really needs them to, when Sophie’s little girl’s life is at stake.
David is slipping further into madness and, convinced she is the little sister he lost so many years ago, he is going to take little Lauren with him. Having his now adult real sister, Cassie, there is no help.
Will someone reach David and Lauren in time as the blackness closes in and rage takes over?
L. V. Gaudet is a subjugated cubicle dweller by day and a Canadian author of dark fiction by night, a member of the Manitoba Writers’ Guild, the Horror Writers Association, and Authors of Manitoba.
L. V. grew up with a love of the darker side; sneaking down to the basement at night to watch the old horror B movies, Vincent Price being a favourite, devouring horror books, and has had a passion for books and the idea of creating stories and worlds a person can get lost in since reading that first novel.
This love of storytelling has L. V. working writing and editing into a busy life that includes a full time job, family, and doing the little things to help the writing community including offering encouragement to others in the online writing community and volunteering time editing the Manitoba Writers’ Guild newsletter and helping with their Facebook presence, proofreading for the HWA newsletter, and visiting schools for I Love to Read month.
L.V. Gaudet currently lives in Winnipeg with two rescue dogs, spouse, and kids.
L.V. Gaudet’s books are available in ebook and print format at online bookstores.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

a look at #Psychological #Thriller When a Stranger Comes… @karensuebell @SDSXXTours

On By Casey's CornerIn Authors & Books, Book ToursLeave a comment
When a Stranger Comes…
by Karen S. Bell
Genre: Psychological Thriller
2018 Readers’ Favorite Bronze Medal Winner!
A GRIPPING PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER FOR FANS OF KING AND KOONTZ!
“RIVETING”–Kirkus Reviews
What price would you pay for success?
A lightning bolt out-of the blue, on an otherwise sunny afternoon, transports author Alexa Wainwright to an alternate universe where the characters from her novels are given the breadth of life. Having just made a vow that she would do whatever it took to once again achieve the international acclaim of her debut novel, Alexa doesn’t realize how ominously that vow would be tested. In this altered reality, she’s introduced to media mogul King Blakemore who offers her an extremely lucrative book contract with guarantees that her work will become a best-selling blockbuster. Given his appearance, odd mannerisms, and aura of evil Alexa wonders if King Blakemore might be the Devil himself.
At first, she shrugs off her doubts about this peculiar publisher and very lucrative book deal offer because the temptation of riches and refound fame is too strong. Suddenly, the contract’s been signed. Now what can she do? Alexa realizes she’s trapped in an underworld of evil from which she desperately wants to escape. Her iron-clad book contract changes its wording whenever she thinks of a loophole and King always seems one step ahead of her. Desperate to get her life back, she devises schemes to untether herself from this hellish existence to no avail. She laments the old adage, Be careful what you wish for.
Buy this book if you’re a reader who loves a page-turning, heart-stopping, psychological thriller with some magical realism thrown in.
I get so much satisfaction in the writing process. I take care to choose just the right word, to make sure each sentence has the right cadence. I appreciate other writers who respect the craft in this way, and I hope my readers do so with me. Writing is a need, a desire for expression, and springs from well within my subconscious mind. Thoughts rise up, scenes rise up and blend in with the over-arching story. These thoughts emerge whenever they want to and wherever I am and probably not when I am at the computer. The computer is for the craft, the technique. The thoughts come during walks, or while driving the car, or at the grocery store. I am the willing recipient of these thoughts and so they seek me out. It’s a mystery this business and art of writing and it keeps me enthralled.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!