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And Then I Heard the Quiet
Set in the charming village of Fort Langley, Alyssa Hall’s mystery novel, And Then I Heard the Quiet, introduces us to Valerie Russo, a young woman grappling with her past while aspiring to coordinate events for the upcoming 2010 Olympics in Canada. In an attempt to find some peace, Valerie takes a temporary gig house-sitting—and dog-sitting—for the affable Carter family. What begins as a serene retreat swiftly turns into a complex adventure, as an unexpected encounter pulls her into a whirlwind far beyond her expectations.
The charm of this novel is anchored in its vividly drawn characters, who, though they echo the familiarity of American sitcom figures, are perfectly suited to the quaint, drama-filled backdrop of Fort Langley. Their distinctive personalities may stretch the bounds of realism, but they leave a memorable impression that enriches the unfolding mystery. Although the plot might initially appear predictable, it expertly incorporates a series of unexpected twists that captivate readers all the way to its sudden and satisfying conclusion.
The portrayal of the protagonist, Valerie, presents a subtle challenge in the narrative. Her tragic past is gently woven into the story from the beginning, with occasional hints throughout that seek to build intrigue. This narrative choice may leave readers eager for more clarity, which could enhance engagement with her character in initial readings. While this stylistic approach subtly teases out her backstory, it’s a technique that may become more noticeable upon re-reading when the element of mystery is familiar.
And Then I Heard the Quiet stands out as an excellent choice for a leisurely vacation read. Its succinct form and engaging twists offer a delightful escape. It’s perfect for anyone eager to delve into a light, captivating mystery. This mystery novel will be a charming pick for readers in search of both relaxation and intrigue.
Pages: 240 | ASIN : B0CYXS9J6D
Enough Is Enough
A Few Casualties So What follows a former hitman turned reluctant problem-solver who is tasked to prevent a gang war by figuring out who murdered two teens from rival crime families. What was your inspiration for Chubby Pone’s character, and how did you craft his outlook on life?
Chubby is a nickname my family gave me. Though I am not fat, my oldest sister gave it to me when I was a baby, and Pone came from a coworker whose maiden name was Pone. I thought of Al Capone, which gave the character a gangster appeal. I based him on myself on some things I have gone through in my life, and also my son, who dealt with ignorance from growing up with alopecia. He was teased a lot, and as he got older, he accepted baldness and is now a college graduate and married. I wanted a character with a light and dark heart when it is needed. You can ignore people who are immature, but there are times when you have to say that enough is enough and fight back.
When you first sat down to write this story, did you know where you were going, or did the twists come as you were writing?
The first part of the book, I did, and then the characters started talking to me if that makes any sense. Most writers will tell you that as you get deeper into your story, the characters start to come to life and give you ideas on what to do next.
Is this the first book in the series? If so, when is the next book coming out, and what can your fans expect in the next story?
Yes, and the 2nd book is already out. ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE BIG EASY: Down On The Bayou. The most disgusting and blackest character I ever created. You’ll have to buy and read the book to find out what I mean.
Author Links: GoodReads | X (Twitter) | Facebook | Website | Amazon
Bad Actor
Bad Actor is a gritty and sharply observed noir that follows Ellis Dunaway, a washed-up TV writer turned private investigator, as he’s pulled back toward the fringes of Hollywood. The book blends a murder mystery involving the death of a high-profile agent, the troubles of fallen actor Urs Schreiber, and Ellis’s own struggles with sobriety, fading relevance, and financial strain. Vaughn sets the action against a vividly sketched Los Angeles, equal parts glitz, decay, and absurdity, while drawing the reader deep into Ellis’s sardonic inner world.
The writing had me hooked from page one. Vaughn’s voice is lean, smart, and sly, with a knack for tossing in lines that sting as much as they amuse. The dialogue crackles, bouncing between bone-dry humor and tense undercurrents. I loved how Ellis is flawed without being a cliché. He’s self-aware enough to see his own failings, but still likely to trip over them anyway. The mix of PI procedural detail, showbiz satire, and personal confessions makes the book feel like it’s living in multiple genres at once. And somehow, Vaughn keeps the balance.
Beneath the twists and snappy banter, there’s a steady hum of commentary on reinvention, ego, and the way Los Angeles eats its own. Vaughn doesn’t preach; he just lets his characters prove the point. I found myself laughing in one paragraph and then unexpectedly feeling the weight of Ellis’s loneliness in the next. The city in this book isn’t just a backdrop, it’s a character with its own moods, grudges, and jokes. It reminded me of walking through Hollywood after midnight: the beauty, the weirdness, the sense that anything could happen, good or bad.
Bad Actor delivers as both a mystery and a character study. It’s for readers who like their noir with bite, their comedy tinged with sadness, and their protagonists both frustrating and impossible to abandon. If you’re into Michael Connelly but wish Harry Bosch swore more, smoked more weed, and wandered into surreal Hollywood detours, this is your book. I’d hand it to anyone who loves a crime story that doesn’t just solve a case but also lays bare the person doing the solving.
Pages: 245 | ISBN: 979-8-9865319-3-9
A Game of Masquerade
A Game of Masquerade blends historical crime with speculative fiction, pulling Jack the Ripper out of the fog and into a stranger and darker light. The story follows Professor Orlando Delbrotman, a time-traveling outsider who stumbles into the grimy alleys of 1888 London. His mission is unclear even to himself at first, but soon he becomes entangled in the investigation of the Ripper murders alongside Scotland Yard. What begins as an observational trip turns into a dangerous game of survival, trust, and pursuit, with the Professor moving between the dim-lit taverns, cold morgues, and filthy streets of Whitechapel. The setting is thick with atmosphere, and the narrative swings between gritty human suffering and the strange detachment of an alien mind learning the limits of morality.
The writing carries the weight of the setting with vivid detail, but it also knows when to lean on humor or eccentricity. I liked how the author didn’t shy away from the brutal realities of the time. The women in the story aren’t romanticized; their hardship is tangible, and their conversations are raw. The Professor, in contrast, is formal, almost awkward, and I found that gap between his precise, alien perspective and the chaos around him strangely compelling. The pacing can be a slow burn in places, but that gave me time to sit with the tension rather than rush through it.
Some parts felt theatrical, almost like a stage play with its sharp entrances and dramatic exchanges. Sometimes it worked, adding color and energy, and other times it brought me out of the scene. Still, I admired how the book balanced historical authenticity with a speculative twist without letting one overwhelm the other. The Ripper mystery has been told in countless ways, yet this take felt fresh, partly because of the outsider’s-eye view and partly because of the relatable moments that broke through the gloom.
I’d recommend A Game of Masquerade to readers who enjoy historical mysteries with a speculative slant, particularly those who like their stories gritty yet occasionally whimsical. If you’re curious about what happens when history’s shadows meet something not quite of this Earth, you’ll find plenty to chew on here.
Pages: 333 | ASIN : B0DW69W3S1
A Few Casualties So What
In A Few Casualties So What, Wilson Jackson drops the reader straight into the grit and shadow of Metro City, a place where the Great Meteor has bent time, pulling the ghosts of the Prohibition era into the raw edge of the future. The story follows Chubby Pone, a former hitman turned reluctant problem-solver, navigating gang rivalries, crooked alliances, and his own tangled loyalties. When the children of two crime lords are murdered, Pone is thrust into a dangerous game of diplomacy and survival, caught between warring families, corrupt politics, and a city that seems to breathe violence. Through smoky clubs, high-stakes poker tables, and sudden bursts of gunfire, Jackson blends noir grit with a sharp-tongued wit, crafting a crime saga that is as much about character as it is about bullets.
I enjoyed the texture of Jackson’s world. It isn’t just described, it’s lived in. The details, from the way Pone polishes his bowler hat to the stink of cheap booze in a gangster’s breath, make the city feel like it’s been around for decades before the first chapter starts. I could almost hear the slap of shoes on wet pavement. That said, the prose sometimes lingers in these textures. There were moments I wanted the story to push past the ambiance and get to the meat of the scene. Still, the dialogue crackles. Pone’s banter, especially with Red and his poker buddies, is sharp, often funny, and layered with unspoken history.
The plot itself feels like a pool game. It’s slow, deliberate setups punctuated by sudden, violent breaks. I appreciated that the violence never felt cheap. Even the drive-bys and assassinations have a code, and when that code is broken, the weight of it lingers. Pone is a fascinating protagonist because he’s neither romanticized nor demonized. He’s competent but flawed, dangerous but bound by his own sense of justice. There’s a cynicism here, but also a surprising tenderness in how he treats his chosen family. I found myself caring less about the “whodunit” than about how Pone would navigate the moral knots he’s tied into.
A Few Casualties So What felt less like a crime novel and more like an invitation into a very specific corner of a city. Jackson’s writing is rich, unhurried, and atmospheric, and his characters carry the kind of weight that makes you believe they’re out there somewhere, still playing cards in a smoky basement. This book would be a strong pick for readers who love noir that takes its time, crime stories that don’t flinch from moral complexity, and dialogue that could cut glass.
Pages: 270 | ASIN : B0F4675T6Z
Still Waters Run Deep
PEOPLE PERSONnel follows a burnt-out HR manager trudging through her final year at a shrinking charity while juggling caregiving for her declining mother and quietly plotting a radical act of mercy. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
I have worked in HR in the not-for-profit sector for over 30 years and I live in Whitstable (UK). I have written before (historical) but thinking of the old adage, ‘write what you know’ I decided to do just that. I wrote something where character and location were key. You’ll notice it is not set in a particular time because I didn’t want it to date. I hope it will be picked up and televised one day so that my antihero can reach a wider audience and I can retire, like Janice.
I found Janice to be a very well-written and in-depth character. What was your inspiration for her and her emotional turmoil throughout the story?
Thank you. No spoilers but I wanted her to be a very ordinary person who ends up in the position of doing extraordinary things. She flies under the radar. She is invisible and for what happens in the story the fact that she is so overlooked gives her a very significant advantage.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Still waters run deep. It’s the quiet ones you want to watch out for. Again, no spoilers, but most fictional killers are larger than life as are the characters who catch them. To me it’s far more disturbing if the killer turns out to be someone just like you. I put, ‘But she always seemed so nice…’ on the back cover because that’s what people always say when their crimes come to light. Janice is a person who keeps herself to herself.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?
I wrote this book 8 years ago and only very recently revisited it and got it published. I do have ideas for another book about Janice, perhaps a prequel, and hopefully that will be out in the next 6-12 months rather than in another 8 years.
Author BlueSky
She commutes every day from her home in Whitstable, Kent to London and is soon to retire from her standalone role for a not-for-profit sector organisation, that is facing very difficult financial decisions. She is innocuous, dull, easily overlooked and cut an inconsequential, loveless path through, what appears to have been, a largely non-eventful life.
Everyone knows she wouldn’t lift a finger. Everyone knows she wouldn’t swat a fly. Everyone knows she’ll just sit there and be quiet. No one would think twice about her, but Janice Mead’s savage way of exiting those who are now surplus to her requirements may change all that. See what kind of a person Janice Mead really is.
Someone Had to Lie
Jack Luellen’s Someone Had to Lie is a sharply-paced legal-political thriller that follows James Butler, an attorney drawn back into the deadly world of drug cartels and covert operations after the mysterious murder of his close friend, retired DEA agent Joe Aguilar. When Aguilar leaves behind a cryptic file hinting at something “bigger” than they had ever imagined, possibly tied to the fentanyl crisis, the CIA, and unspeakable corruption, James and his wife, Erica, set off on a relentless, twisty journey for truth. What they uncover challenges their assumptions, endangers their lives, and demands justice in a world where institutions may not be what they seem.
I got hooked fast. The writing moves like a freight train: short chapters, lots of movement, and cliffhangers that kept me saying, “Just one more.” Luellen knows his legal lingo and law enforcement dynamics, but he doesn’t get bogged down in it. What I liked was how natural the dialogue felt. It had snap and humor, especially between James and Erica, which gave some breathing room between the darker turns of the plot. That balance made it feel real. The emotional weight of losing a friend, the slow burn of uncovering buried secrets, and the creeping dread of being watched all rang true. Sometimes the exposition leaned a little heavy, especially when laying out CIA history or drug policy, but even that fed the tension and gave backbone to the conspiracy.
But what really kept me invested were the questions Luellen pushed forward. What happens when people who are supposed to protect us start playing by their own rules? What if the truth never fits in a soundbite or a press release? The book doesn’t serve easy answers, and I liked that. It leaves room for moral messiness. Erica, especially, stood out. She’s not a sidekick. She’s sharp, she’s bold, and she holds her own without being written as a cliché. And James, for all his competence, feels human. Tired, grieving, angry. The fact that this story had roots in real history (Iran-Contra, CIA allegations, the fentanyl epidemic) made it hit even harder. It’s a fiction book that feels almost too believable for comfort.
Someone Had to Lie is gripping, gutsy, and unapologetically current. It’s a solid choice for readers who love political thrillers, legal intrigue, or true crime vibes with just enough fiction to keep the pages flying. If you liked The Pelican Brief or Narcos, this’ll be right up your alley. It’s a thriller that makes you think about who’s pulling strings in the shadows.
Pages: 312 | ASIN : B0DK7NWSZL
Breath Play
Breath Play is a mystery-thriller that follows Dan Burnett, a retired NYPD detective turned private investigator, as he uncovers the chilling pattern of murdered young nurses whose bodies wash ashore along Long Island Sound. While juggling a budding romance with his girlfriend Mia and supporting his daughter Hannah in her new career, Dan finds himself unable to resist the pull of a developing serial killer case. As each victim’s backstory is revealed, and the investigation tightens around eerie patterns and disturbing truths, the book builds a slow, suspenseful momentum filled with quiet tension and emotional depth.
I enjoyed the way the book mixes the peaceful rhythm of Dan’s post-retirement life with the unsettling presence of violent crime. The writing is smooth and conversational. Like listening to someone recount an incredible story. The dialogue is natural, the pacing is just right, and the scenes between Dan and Mia are some of the most intimate I’ve read, not just physically, but emotionally. The sensual moments don’t feel forced; they feel like part of a very real, very lived-in relationship. That kind of emotional realism adds a weight to the story that goes beyond solving murders.
What I appreciated was how the story took its time, weaving in layers of Dan’s life beyond the central investigation. The car theft subplot, in particular, added depth and a welcome change of pace, giving us a fuller picture of Dan’s world and the kind of cases he handles. It might not have been directly tied to the serial killer thread, but that contrast made the darker moments hit even harder. The life of a PI isn’t just one mystery at a time, and Terhaar captures that beautifully. The suspense crept in slowly, building until I realized I was completely hooked. And those Elsa Nordstrom reports are absolute gut-punches. They brought the victims to life in a way that was deeply moving.
This book isn’t just for crime fiction fans, it’s for readers who love characters with heart, quiet moments that carry weight, and thrillers that don’t rely on explosions to keep your attention. If you’re someone who enjoys character-driven mysteries with a slow burn and a touch of romance, Breath Play will stick with you. It’s warm, dark, tender, and smart. I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a mystery that feels personal.
Pages: 229 | ASIN : B0FH7MLZGK
LITERARY TITAN 