For fans of inspirational and Christian Thrillers! Here are ten brand-new, never-before-published novellas of suspense, intrigue, and thrills from ten of your favorite authors. This special anthology is available for a limited time only!
Rick Acker writes high-octane suspense novels during breaks from his “real job” as a Supervising Deputy Attorney General in the California Department of Justice, which provides inspiration for his acclaimed legal thrillers.
Rick has also teamed with award-winning romantic suspense author Colleen Coble to pen bestsellers such as I Think I Was Murdered and their Tupelo Grove series. Library Journal praises their “dynamic author partnership,” and predicts they “will continue to produce hits.”
When Rick isn't writing or lawyering, you can usually find him with his wife Anette exploring in the hills east of San Francisco, watching a good movie together, or, of course, reading. You can visit him on the web at www.rickacker.com.
I am working my way through this great collection of suspense stories and reading some new to me authors. I am certainly going to check out other of their books. I have read Secrets by Rick Acker, The Wrecking by Christy Barritt, Ten Seconds Til...by Braxton Degarmo, and Malicious Intent by Jordyn Redwood. Secrets by Rick Acker is a story of international competition in the race for space travel. Things start off with a bang when Scott Sherman, owner of an aerospace company, Space Pirates, Inc. dies when his pacemaker malfunctions. It soon becomes apparent that someone sabotaged the pacemaker and this caused his death. Scott was to testify in a lawsuit against his company brought by a Russian competitor, the Volkov Institute and its president and research scientist, Viktorya Mikhailova. Viktorya's daughter, Arina, worked at the Institute before she was hired by Scott. Viktorya alleges that Arina took Volkov's secrets to Space Pirates that has given them an edge. With Scott's death, everything has become complicated. Arina is a precarious position between her loyalty to Scott and keeping her relationship with her mother civil. There are a lot of twists and turns in this story that will keep you glued to the end. I enjoyed a peak into Patricia Bradley's Memphis Cold Case series with Revenge. I have read the series and enjoy this novella. One Step Back by Luana Ehrlich is a great look into her series featuring CIA agent Titus Ray. He is in Tehran gathering human assets to spy on the Iranian government. Until it goes wrong. Filled with suspense, danger, and intrigue.
I didn't what to expect from the box set because I hadn't read any of the authors before. I rather enjoyed it. Each story was pretty fleshed out with a mystery to solve and exciting suspense. Will look for more from these authors.
Read Secrets by Rick Acker and Undercut by Heather Gilbert. I really enjoyed both of these thrillers--surprisingly well developed for novellas and lots of action, romance, and intrigue. See my full review here and pick up this entire collection for a low price!
Due to time, I have only read one of the books in this collection so far. The book by Heather Day Gilbert. I found it to be filled with suspense, even though it is a Novella. I was gasping at times because I didn’t know what was happening next. I’d say that’s a well-written suspense novel to cause me to do that! I look forward to going back and reading more of this collection.
I've finished the first two stories and have just begin the third. So far, so good! The stories have been suspenseful featuring international espionage and serial killers, but yet clean and not too graphic.
A variety of relationships is explored including a mother and daughter caught on opposing sides of a company lawsuit, a victim and her budding relationship with an investigator, and a detective considering whether he should postpone an engagement to his journalist girl friend who is a recovering addict.
I bought this novels collection because it includes "Undercut" by one of my favorite authors and set in one of my favorite places, Appalachia, but I've found through the years that novella collections are a great way to be introduced to new authors some of whom have become new favorites of mine!
This is a powerhouse anthology with some seriously-acclaimed contributors, both traditionally- and indie-published. Of the 10 authors, I had previously read novels by Christy Barritt, Braxton DeGarmo, Patricia Bradley, and Heather Day Gilbert. And most of the rest were on my “to read” list. So I knew the collection was a safe bet.
Story by story, my thoughts:
Secrets, by Rick Acker: This a new-to-me author, and I’m glad to see he has a number of other books out. Very much a positive find, for me. Secrets is a high-stakes, high-tech international thriller that raises some disturbing possibilities. I enjoyed the voice, pacing, details… and the fact that it could be tense without scaring me. Special mention goes to Kevin, the autistic computer whiz. I love seeing characters who aren’t “ordinary” portrayed strongly in fiction. First on my Rick Acker to-read list will be another Kevin story.
The Wrecking, by Christy Barritt: When a serial killer returns to terrorize a small town, he pleads for help from the one woman he released. Personal and fast-paced romantic suspense, and what I liked best was the heroine’s determination not to let her past destroy her, and the story’s focus on sensory details.
Revenge, by Patricia Bradley: Romantic suspense that’s a sequel to Justice Delayed. It doesn’t give away the suspense plot for the novel, but you’ll know how the romance worked out. The heroine has a prescription drug addiction, and I don’t often see that kind of struggle in a protagonist. It was interesting to see how that played out in this story.
Ten Seconds Til… by Braxton DeGarmo: A vigilante serial killer with a talent for using explosives… it might be tempting for the police to let this one keep going, but they can’t. And investigating makes them targets as well. I enjoyed the tone of this one, as well as trying to figure out the puzzle.
One Step Back, by Luana Ehrlich: Titus Ray is a US agent under cover in Iran, recruiting sources of information. Most thrillers like this are too intense for me, and I enjoyed being able to read this one. Titus is an interesting character, and I enjoyed watching him carry out his covert operation in such a different setting.
Undercut, by Heather Day Gilbert: Romantic suspense, where the heroine, Molly, reconnects with former crush Zane Boone, a PTSD-scarred ex-military sniper turned lumberjack. Zane is convinced someone’s stalking him. He’s very much in alert mode, and it shows in his reactions. It didn’t take long for Molly to impress me, and she certainly carries the heroine role with courage.
Burn Time, by Heather I. James: After serving time for an act of revenge she insists her former boss deserved, Charlie discovers she’s a target: the man thinks she stole something she doesn’t have. Strong narrative voice for the heroine, although this one was a bit too dark for me. I also found the FBI agent kind of goofy, and was surprised to find some minor bad language. Still, a good read.
Full Draw, by Robert Liparulo: Fantastic descriptions, sometimes with a nice dash of humour. Fast-paced, high action, international contemporary thriller blending human and immortal characters. This story lets the characters Hutch and Jagger, from two different Robert Liparulo series, meet, which I found fun.
Malicious Intent, by Jordyn Redwood: When people around mystery author Lexie Sloan start dying in methods straight out of her novels, she becomes the prime suspect. This story lets us meet detectives Brett Sawyer and Nathan Long in their first case together, before the start of Jordyn Redwood’s Bloodline Trilogy. They look like they could be an interesting team.
Zero Sum, by Jan Thompson: A high-tech cyber thriller, where a team of hackers have been involuntarily implanted with devices that can kill them – can Cayson Yang stay alive long enough to find someone to get the technology out of his head? I had trouble figuring out what was going on in this story, in part because I haven’t read the author’s other books to know who the people and organizations were. At the end I’m still not sure who did this to Cayson and his team, or how. Or who some of the players were.
This collection was definitely worth buying. I did find some stories had typos, but most didn’t. I’ve found some new-to-me authors to follow, and read new stories from authors I already enjoy. It’s a mix of straight-up thrillers and romantic suspense, and the variety is a good thing in a collection this long.
On Undercut by Heather Day Gilbert, part of Kill Zone anthology: I can count on any book by uber-gifted Heather Day Gilbert to hit the mark, especially when it comes in the form of a compact thriller, one a busy reader can easily enjoy in a leisurely day. Her writing is crisp, her characters well-defined and plotting precise — all of which suit novella-length fiction perfectly.
I don’t know any author who has published in more genres than Heather, and here’s the thing: she’s at the top of her game in all of them. {This writer’s envious aside: I have no idea how she does it.} Undercut is a shining example. In fact, I wonder if the brevity of the medium doesn’t in fact sharpen Heather’s storytelling skills. This one will especially appeal to women who enjoy a clean, compelling romantic thriller with a light spiritual touch — and of course a satisfying conclusion of justice sought and found.
Thanks to the author for providing me this book free of charge. All opinions are mine.
I enjoyed getting to know new aurhors...new to me. Spies, suspense, Christian without being preachy are the books i gravitate to. Had all of this with twists and turns . Cant go wrong with this boxed set. Going to check out these new authors.
I read The Wrecking which Is a captivating thriller that keeps you guessing. Will the FBI discover who the killer is in time to protect Samantha and keep him from killing another victim? Read and find out. As always Christy Barrett writes an exciting read and I highly recommend.
Prepare yourself for extreme danger and suspense from a collection of masterful action mystery artists. Each entry in this set is a stand-alone drama full of questions and twists. These thrillers offer a sample of each author's work coupled with good, clean fun. The biggest benefit is for those of us with a limited time or numerous interruptions. You may choose to read one or a couple of the offerings in a sitting. In the future, I'll be checking into more titles offered by these writers.
"Kill Zone" features a novella by Jordyn Redwood titled "Malicious Intent". I have loved Redwood's writing since I discovered "Proof", the first novel in the Bloodline Trilogy. Her new novella features the two detectives from that series as they work their first case together as partners.
Nathan Long has a chip on his shoulder, and Brett Sawyer has ties to a suspect. They've never worked together, so it was fascinating watching them work out the kinks in their partnership. When I met these fictitious characters they were a top notch team, chasing down the perps like a well oiled machine.
"Malicious Intent" gets my "Packs a Punch" stamp of approval. The entire "Kill Zone" collection is on sale right now for only .99...but hurry! Price goes up after October 8th! I'll be sharing more reviews as I make my way through this stellar collection.
I love a good suspense tale and this collection sure provides that. Honestly, I would have bought it on the strength of the names of Jordyn Redwood and Heather Gilbert alone. I have read both their contributions so far and they're great! Redwood's feels like a full length novel. I can't wait to get to the rest of the novellas. I will update as I do.
I have just finished reading 'Malicious Intent', one of the novellas included in this Kill Zone collection, and author Jordyn Redwood has set the bar high for the other authors. Her story introduces the two detectives who are featured in Redwood's Bloodline Trilogy and we get to witness the first case that they worked together. Nathan Long is trying to atone for what he considers as grave errors during his time working for the FBI and Brett Sawyer might be considered a tad sarcastic but this first case allows them to figure out a working partnership. And what a beginning it turns out to be!
'Malicious Intent' is filled with suspense, psychological terror, medical drama and intriguing characters. Christian faith is also an underlying element but it never feels like you are being preached to. If you are wanting a plot with twists and turns, mystery and suspense and good versus evil, then you definitely need to read this story. But be warned! You should prepare to read it in one sitting because you will want to read it without stopping. I started it and I could not put it down! Five stars for 'Malicious Intent'.
I received a complimentary copy but I wasn't obligated to post a review.
- People close to author Lexie Sloan begin to die in ways that mirror the plots from her books. Is someone trying to set her up, or has she really come up with the perfect plan for murder? - Even though this story is part of a collection of novellas, the author does a great job of making this a complete story. This case brings together detectives Nathan Long and Brett Sawyer for the first time. To read more great stories with these two detectives, don't miss Jordyn Redwood's series Bloodline Trilogy!
Revenge by Patricia Bradley 4.5 stars
- Andi Hollister must come to terms with her drug addiction, or say goodbye to the love of her life Will Kincaide. When she finally decides to enter rehab, another addict turns up dead. Was it just an accident, or was Andi the intended target? - This is like a bonus story that continues from book one (Justice Delayed) of the Memphis Cold Case series. If you want more of Andi and Will's story, don't miss this!
Patricia Bradley, the author of Revenge in this collection, writes gritty, inspiring Romantic Suspense about believable people struggling with, or learning to acknowledge, real-life problems--whether they face the past to make sense of it to heal, or unravel long-standing mysteries to understand the present and move forward. The hero or heroine interacts with suitably challenging love interests, but must conquer the obstacles between them to reach romance. While doing so, hero and heroine must both deal with past failures or bad habits while being pursued by cunning, determined, and often crazed killers. In this fast-paced, gripping novella, Will must decide if Andi has overcome her pain-pill addiction enough to risk building a life with her, and she works to regain her life while escaping the human predator from whom she rescued a girl, which now makes him seek Revenge. Warning—do NOT start reading unless you have time to finish this at one sitting.
Malicious Intent was a book I didn’t want to put down and continue to think about even though I’m done. I loved it. It kept me guessing from the very beginning and I had no idea who the killer was. I love how the author takes real life issues and puts a sinister twist on them, making the reader wonder, “what if????” I felt as though I was in the house with Grace and Lexie and then again with Brett and Nathan. I could live the scenes like I was watching a suspense show on television. So glad to read about Nathan and Brett as they first became partners. Wanting to read more.
I really enjoyed reading Killzone as it introduced me to new authors whose books I hadn’t read yet. A must read as it will whet your appetite for more. A great way to find new authors whose books you may like.
Some of the authors wrote tremendously great stories, but several of them were just too weird for me. I was particularly fascinated by the story by Luana Ehrlich and ended up reading a number of her books before returning to this set of books.
Most of the stories were very good, but a couple were not really my style. My favorite one was by Robert Liparulo, which brought together the characters from two of his series that I have read.
Revenge by Patricia Bradley 4* 3/1/20 (99) Memphis Cold Case #1.5 set in Memphis & Tennessee, continues the story from book 1 in series All in all interesting, realistic and suspensful though too short and a bit too convinient.
One Step Back by Luana Ehrlich 6* - 10/26/19 (145) Titus Ray #0.5 Loved it very much and I'm glad I finally started this series. I'm looking forward to continue with the 1st in series tonight.
Kill Zone is a sampling of novellas from 10 authors in the thriller genre. Each has a keen level of suspense. This is a good book to get if you want to get a taste of what each writer has to offer. They are quick reads because the excitement level keeps you interested. Some of my favorite authors are included: Pat Bradley. Jordyn Redwood. And Carrie Stuart Parks. Test the waters and pick your favorite next read from among these awesome authors. *I purchased this book from Amazon. All opinions are my own.*