On a cold January evening in 50BC, two strangers enter Rome - one an Egyptian ambassador and the other a eunuch priest. Both are seeking Gordianus the Finder, who has a reputation for solving murders. But the ambassador, a philosopher named Dio, asks for something Gordianus cannot give - help in staying alive. And before the night is out, Dio is brutally assassinated. Now Gordianus must begin the most dangerous case of his career. Hired to investigate Dio's murder by a beautiful woman with a scandalous reputation, he will follow a trail of intrigue into the highest circles of political power and the city's secret arenas of debauchery. There Gordianus will learn that nothing is as it seems, not the damning evidence he uncovers, nor the suspect he sends to trial, not even the real truth behind Dio's death which also lies shrouded in secrets - though not of the state, but of the heart.

The most dangerous people are those you trust. The dismembered body of a young woman is discovered in a forest near Hamburg. Her remains give a terrifyingly vivid account of the unimaginably cruel torture she suffered before her death. She won't be the only victim. Within a very short period of time, more women are discovered. Assistant District Attorney Alex Gutenberg and criminal psychologist Dr. Evelin Wolf feverishly try everything to bring down the serial killer before he takes his next victim. A clue leads them to a severely mentally disturbed inmate of an asylum for the criminally insane. He seems to be the key to solving the current crimes. But the interned remains silent. Evelin has only one chance: She must succeed in penetrating the inmate's tainted mind. But the price is high. Evelin tracks down a terrible secret and suddenly finds her own life at stake…

Janey Hallahan was born into the criminal life. After the death of her father, she became head of the family business - every day making dark decisions that make her family firm richer, no matter how dangerous. While Janey rules gangland with an iron fist, she always sticks to her own code of honour, and the innocent never get hurt. One of her workers, Danny McInroy runs an exclusive club in Glasgow - the kind of place where the ultra-wealthy can fulfil their darkest desires, for a hefty cost. He's good at his job, but his arrogance and propensity to violence makes him a liability. But when Janey discovers that he's linked to the disappearance of two women, it's time to take revenge. Because no one messes with Janey, or her empire. . .and as gangland is about to learn, a powerful woman will stop at nothing to protect her reputation.

Random House presents the audiobook edition of Run Away by Harlan Coben, read by Steven Weber. The brilliant new thriller from the international bestselling author described by Dan Brown as 'the modern master of the hook and twist'. ______________________ YOU'VE LOST YOUR DAUGHTER. She's addicted to drugs and to an abusive boyfriend. You haven't seen her in six months. Then you find her busking in New York's Central Park. But she's not the girl you remember. This woman is frail, filthy, terrified, and in more trouble than you ever imagined. You don't stop to think. You approach her. You beg her to come home. SHE RUNS. You follow. What choice do you have? And as you descend into the dark, dangerous world she's lost herself in, you quickly find yourself out of your depths. Down here, no-one is safe - and now both of you might never make it out alive...

A single phone call changes everything. Three days later, Kleo, a typical 21-year-old girl,is back on the surgery table. Another open-heart surgery. Shes no stranger to hospital stays, but this procedure is different: bigger, more dangerous, more final. Between beeping monitors, white walls, and constant fear, Kleo struggles with a reality that wont let her escape. Only in brief messages with her best friend and other close friends does a sense of normality return, before the next procedure, the next examination, the next sleepless night follows. text me after surgery tells the true story of a young woman who is confronted with her own mortality far too early. A story of pain, hope, friendship, and the courage to keep living, even when suddenly nothing can be taken for granted anymore.This is the English translation of the German book text me after surgery.

"Gorgeously written and desperately hot... Hands down, my favorite romance of the decade." - Alix E. Harrow, New York Times bestselling author of Starling House A sapphic regency romance about the duke who fears nothing... until the woman she never forgot walks through the door and brings her to her knees. Set in a world of powerful female nobles and the women who love them... Kate, Duke of Howard, is known throughout Europe as a merciless autocrat not to be crossed. Consumed by a bitter rivalry, she avoids society and has vowed never to trap a woman into marriage with a monster like herself. The beautiful, ambitious courtesan Celine Genet once threw herself on the mercy of the visiting Duke of Howard. She was desperate to escape the guillotine. But after a night of searing passion, the duke left her to the ravages of Revolutionary Paris and didn't look back. Now Celine is in London and in possession of a dangerous letter that proves the Duke of Howard committed treason as a child - and possibly even murder. Celine wants a titled husband in return for keeping the duke's secret, leaving Kate no choice but to parade her around the most fashionable ballrooms. But as Celine takes society by storm, Kate finds herself growing fond of the woman set on destroying her. And as their attraction mounts, Kate faces an impossible choice: keep her childhood secret, or win the woman she loves. Anna Cowan's The Duke is an utterly unforgettable, page-turning romance featuring two women who, separately, are a danger to each other, but together, could be the most powerful duo London has ever seen. "The Duke is Georgette Heyer quadrupled and queered, flipping the erotic appeal of a cold-hearted alpha into an alternate England in which women can be dukes and marry whom they please. I loved and envied the way it combined the originality of My Lady Jane, the luxury of Bridgerton, and the smutty, fabulous sex of Fingersmith." - Eloisa James, New York Times bestselling author of Viscount in Love

The scorchingly hot alpha male mafia romance from J. T. Geissinger, author of TikTok sensation Pen Pal. Two people are bound by a debt that must be collected - no matter the cost . . . Five years ago, Natalie's world shattered. Her fiancé disappeared, and all that remained were her broken heart and a million unanswered questions. Until a mysterious stranger arrives in town. Kage is no ordinary neighbour. He is tall, dark and dangerous. He is a feared Russian mobster, an assassin known in the underworld as the Reaper. And Natalie is drawn to Kage, like a moth to a flame. Heat crackles between them with every look, desire flares into passion and she falls hard, helpless to resist. Kage develops an all-consuming, obsessive need for Natalie. But Kage has a secret. And, as their connection deepens, the dangerous reality of Kage's life begins to bleed into Natalie's world. With a bloody syndicate war brewing and enemies closing in, Kage will burn his empire to the ground to protect the woman he loves. But in a world ruled by ruthless creatures, surviving might cost them everything . . . Fans LOVE Ruthless Creatures . . . 'It consumed me completely' 'I am so obsessed with Nat and Kage' 'Geissinger is the queen of funny banter' 'He's every bit of your BIG, brooding, sexy and mysterious MMC' Tropes include . . . Mafia romance Alpha male Opposites attract Touch her and die He falls first Discover Carnal Urges, the second book in the addictive Queens and Monsters series by J. T. Geissinger.

The BRAND NEW utterly heart-pounding thriller from NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING author of The Wives, Valerie Keogh Must-read for fans of Freida McFadden and Lisa Jewell! Fiona Carlton has never needed a man to make her life complete. Until she meets charming, handsome and sophisticated Richard. She is consumed, first by lust, then by a love for him that overwhelms her. The only problem? Richard already has a wife. But a little detail like that isn't going to stand in Fiona's way... Richard's wife, Lydia, however, is not a woman to be trifled with. She's sacrificed everything for her husband, been the perfect stay-at-home wife and mother, raised two beautiful children, built a happy home full of memories. She refuses to stand by and watch a woman like Fiona take what's hers. But when both women discover the truth about the man they love, everything changes... And Richard is about to learn that if a woman scorned is dangerous, two wronged women are deadly. Don't miss this brand new thriller from the million copy bestseller Valerie Keogh! Praise for Valerie Keogh: 'Keogh is the queen of compelling narratives and twisty plots' Jenny O'Brien 'A wonderful book, I can't rate this one highly enough. If only there were ten stars, it's that good. Valerie Keogh is a master story-teller, and this is a masterful performance.' Bestselling author Anita Waller 'Keogh is no. 1 for a reason, and this is another perfect slice of domestic noir. A definite 5 stars.' Bestselling author, Keri Beevis 'I was blown away with this book!' Reader Review 'I didn't see the twist coming at all!' Reader Review 'A rollercoaster of a story!' Reader Review

'Imagine Bridgerton crossed with Hustle (only 10 times better!)' 'Scoundrously entertaining, I loved everything about it' 'One major plot twist had me actually shouting at the book' 'Fast-paced; witty and fun' 'Be prepared to read fully into the night' A twisty and compelling game from the author of THE HOUSEKEEPERS... Nothing is quite as it seems in Victorian high society as L ondon's most talented con woman has five days to lift a fortune from the richest family in England. 'Sheer delight from start to finish' Janice Hallett 'Hay keeps the pages turning and the reader guessing' The Times 'As fiendishly clever as its characters' Jennie Godfrey SHE PLAYS BY HER OWN RULES. Few can know the mysterious woman called the Queen of Fives. A talented hustler in silk and furs, she tricks fortunes from unscrupulous men with five signature moves. Masquerading as a wealthy debutante, Quinn Le Blanc has five days to win the hand of the most eligible duke in England - and disappear with the family riches. BUT HAS SHE MET HER MATCH? As Quinn targets the corrupt, charismatic Kendals, a stranger watches her from the shadows. Soon a dangerous game begins to play out within the grand drawing rooms and lavish balls of London's high society. The Kendal family all have secrets of their own, and Quinn may not have the upper hand for long... --- 'A dangerous game... delivered with fabulous aplomb' Daily Mail 'Audacious, cunning, quick-witted' Louise Candlish 'A period piece, a full-throttle thriller and a masterclass in characterisation - historical fiction doesn't get more exciting than this' Erin Kelly 'A fabulous mix of Victorian skullduggery and high society, full of twists that keep you turning the pages' Katy Watson Praise for THE HOUSEKEEPERS: 'The perfect holiday read' Guardian 'Punch-the-air good' Kiran Millwood Hargrave 'Delightfully mischievous' The Times 'Imagine Ocean's 8 had an illegitimate baby with Fingersmith' Erin Kelly 'Impressive' Sunday Times 'Kept me hooked 'til the last page' Jennifer Saint

A whistleblower is dead. A journalist is hunted. And only one man can keep her alive. After a career in special forces, then as a smokejumper, Cole Mercer is ready for a new challenge. When he hears that the world-renowned covert operations team at Jameson Force Security is opening a facility in Seattle, Cole knows exactly where he belongs. What he doesn't expect is to come face-to-face with the woman he never stopped loving—the one who walked away before either of them said goodbye. Investigative journalist Tessa Ward has uncovered proof that a powerful real estate developer is tied to a string of deadly wildfires in the Pacific Northwest. It's the kind of story that could make her career... or end her life. When her source is murdered in cold blood, Tessa realizes the truth is more dangerous than she ever imagined. With no other options, Tessa knows she has no choice but to turn to the one man she swore she'd never ask for help. Some fires are set on purpose. Others never stop burning. Their past ended in heartbreak, but when it's clear she's being hunted, Tessa and Cole are forced to set aside their hurt. As they chase a trail of corruption, arson, and murder, every life-or-death decision reignites old passions. But the closer they get to the truth, the more dangerous the game becomes—and one wrong move could cost them everything, including each other.

In this New York Times bestselling thriller, a doctor is kidnapped in the mountain wilderness after a fight with her husband -- and as the FBI closes in, she must make dangerous choices to survive. Dr. Emory Charbonneau, a pediatrician and marathon runner, disappears on a mountain road in North Carolina minutes after an argument with her husband Jeff. But by the time he reports her missing, the trail has (literally) gone cold. Fog and ice encapsulate the wilderness and freeze the search. While police suspect Jeff of instant divorce, Emory regains consciousness only to find herself the captive of a man whose violent past is so dark he won't even tell her his name. She's willing to take any risks necessary to survive. But before she can escape, the two encounter dangerous people who adhere to their own code of justice. A desperate young woman is caught at the center of a dispute, and Emory can't bring herself to look the other way, even if it means breaking the law. Rising tension and barely restrained passion blurs the lines between right and wrong, and Emory begins to wonder if the man with no name is the one who has rescued her from death . . . and from heartbreak. Combining the nail-biting suspense and potent storytelling that has made Sandra Brown one of the world's best-loved authors, Mean Streak is a wildly compelling novel about love, deceit, and the choices we must make when our lives are on the line.

A secret political cartoonist risks ruin when she falls for the dangerously handsome marquess she's been skewering in ink. A rebellious wallflower. Lady Beatrix Winslow is a wallflower by choice—and a revolutionary by necessity. While Society sees a duke's beautiful, stubbornly unmarried daughter, Bea leads a secret double life as B. Adroit, the anonymous political cartoonist mercilessly skewering Parliament's most powerful men. Every sketch risks discovery, disgrace, and ruin. The last thing she can afford is scrutiny...especially from the man she most enjoys humiliating in ink. A dangerously seductive political heir. Nicholas Archer, Marquess of Vanover, is brilliant, controlled, and infuriatingly handsome—a master strategist groomed for political greatness. Playing the long game has always been his strength, and courting Lady Beatrix should be nothing more than a calculated alliance. But Bea's sharp tongue, fierce intelligence, and barely restrained defiance awaken something far more dangerous than desire: the need to unravel her defenses until she wants him as much as he wants her. A forced courtship that could expose her secrets...or ignite a scandal neither of them can survive. As their reluctant courtship turns into a battle of wills, stolen glances, and forbidden tension, Bea's secret life edges closer to exposure—and Nicholas must choose between securing his future or claiming the one woman capable of undoing him. Because when a wallflower goes to war, love isn't just a risk. It's the most dangerous rebellion of all.

The scorchingly hot alpha male mafia romance from J. T. Geissinger, author of TikTok sensation Pen Pal. Two people are bound by a debt that must be collected - no matter the cost . . . Five years ago, Natalie's world shattered. Her fiancé disappeared, and all that remained were her broken heart and a million unanswered questions. Until a mysterious stranger arrives in town. Kage is no ordinary neighbour. He is tall, dark and dangerous. He is a feared Russian mobster, an assassin known in the underworld as the Reaper. And Natalie is drawn to Kage, like a moth to a flame. Heat crackles between them with every look, desire flares into passion and she falls hard, helpless to resist. Kage develops an all-consuming, obsessive need for Natalie. But Kage has a secret. And, as their connection deepens, the dangerous reality of Kage's life begins to bleed into Natalie's world. With a bloody syndicate war brewing and enemies closing in, Kage will burn his empire to the ground to protect the woman he loves. But in a world ruled by ruthless creatures, surviving might cost them everything . . . Fans LOVE Ruthless Creatures . . . 'It consumed me completely' 'I am so obsessed with Nat and Kage' 'Geissinger is the queen of funny banter' 'He's every bit of your BIG, brooding, sexy and mysterious MMC' Tropes include . . . Mafia romance Alpha male Opposites attract Touch her and die He falls first Discover Carnal Urges, the second book in the addictive Queens and Monsters series by J. T. Geissinger.

The scorchingly hot alpha male mafia romance from J. T. Geissinger, author of TikTok sensation Pen Pal. Two people are bound by a debt that must be collected - no matter the cost . . . Five years ago, Natalie's world shattered. Her fiancé disappeared, and all that remained were her broken heart and a million unanswered questions. Until a mysterious stranger arrives in town. Kage is no ordinary neighbour. He is tall, dark and dangerous. He is a feared Russian mobster, an assassin known in the underworld as the Reaper. And Natalie is drawn to Kage, like a moth to a flame. Heat crackles between them with every look, desire flares into passion and she falls hard, helpless to resist. Kage develops an all-consuming, obsessive need for Natalie. But Kage has a secret. And, as their connection deepens, the dangerous reality of Kage's life begins to bleed into Natalie's world. With a bloody syndicate war brewing and enemies closing in, Kage will burn his empire to the ground to protect the woman he loves. But in a world ruled by ruthless creatures, surviving might cost them everything . . . Fans LOVE Ruthless Creatures . . . 'It consumed me completely' 'I am so obsessed with Nat and Kage' 'Geissinger is the queen of funny banter' 'He's every bit of your BIG, brooding, sexy and mysterious MMC' Tropes include . . . Mafia romance Alpha male Opposites attract Touch her and die He falls first Discover Carnal Urges, the second book in the addictive Queens and Monsters series by J. T. Geissinger.

An exiled princess teams up with the last man she thought she could trust in the start of an immersive debut fantasy series filled with a sizzling reluctant allies-to-lovers romance, a world to get lost in, dangerous quests, and dragon bonds. FEATURED IN WATERSTONES' BEST ROMANTASY BOOKS ROUND-UP 2024 'Exactly the kind of story that makes my romantasy-loving heart flutter' NISHA J. TULI , bestselling author of Trial of the Sun Queen She is vengeance. He will be her sword. No one in Imirath had ever seen a dragon, until five eggs long thought fossils hatched in the presence of their young princess, Elowen Atarah. Fearing the power his daughter would wield through her soul-bond with the creatures, King Garrick imprisoned her for many years, desperately trying to break the bond that united them, until a daring rescue saved Elowen from his clutches - but left her five precious dragons at his mercy. Years later, Elowen is now a woman determined to free her dragons. Having established a queendom of her own, she is ready to do whatever is necessary to save her people from starvation and seek vengeance against her father. Even if that means leaving the home she built for herself. Or having to align herself with the Commander of Vareveth, Cayden Veles, the most feared and dangerous man in all the kingdoms of Ravaryn and her father's sworn enemy. Cayden promises to help Elowen if she will stand with him and all of Vareveth in the pending war against Imirath. Despite their contrasting motives, Elowen can't ignore their undeniable attraction as together they plot to infiltrate her father's impenetrable castle to steal back her dragons and seek revenge on their common enemy. The pull between Elowen and Cayden becomes impossible to resist, even when trusting each other seems both reckless and essential. But with the threat of war looming over them, the imminent heist will be their most dangerous adventure yet.

An exiled princess teams up with the last man she thought she could trust in the start of an immersive debut fantasy series filled with a sizzling reluctant allies-to-lovers romance, a world to get lost in, dangerous quests, and dragon bonds. FEATURED IN WATERSTONES' BEST ROMANTASY BOOKS ROUND-UP 2024 'Exactly the kind of story that makes my romantasy-loving heart flutter' NISHA J. TULI , bestselling author of Trial of the Sun Queen She is vengeance. He will be her sword. No one in Imirath had ever seen a dragon, until five eggs long thought fossils hatched in the presence of their young princess, Elowen Atarah. Fearing the power his daughter would wield through her soul-bond with the creatures, King Garrick imprisoned her for many years, desperately trying to break the bond that united them, until a daring rescue saved Elowen from his clutches - but left her five precious dragons at his mercy. Years later, Elowen is now a woman determined to free her dragons. Having established a queendom of her own, she is ready to do whatever is necessary to save her people from starvation and seek vengeance against her father. Even if that means leaving the home she built for herself. Or having to align herself with the Commander of Vareveth, Cayden Veles, the most feared and dangerous man in all the kingdoms of Ravaryn and her father's sworn enemy. Cayden promises to help Elowen if she will stand with him and all of Vareveth in the pending war against Imirath. Despite their contrasting motives, Elowen can't ignore their undeniable attraction as together they plot to infiltrate her father's impenetrable castle to steal back her dragons and seek revenge on their common enemy. The pull between Elowen and Cayden becomes impossible to resist, even when trusting each other seems both reckless and essential. But with the threat of war looming over them, the imminent heist will be their most dangerous adventure yet.

She is my greatest fear, my deepest regret, and my innermost longing. Lilian I checked every box there is in life: Forbes 30 Under 30, Tech Innovator, Top Female CEO, and the title claiming me the wealthiest woman on the planet. Others call me cold and calculating, but I know I earned a place at the table. Until everything falls apart with the death of my co-founder. Suddenly, I am hunted. The dark secrets that were supposed to stay hidden behind my perfect, curated mask threaten to surface and drown me. And then I met her. The woman, who saves my life, and changes everything. Everything. Kat If you ask me who I am, I would tell you I am a ghost that strikes from the shadows. I kill. For revenge. For equalizing. For justice. I never had much regard for those who use and abuse others for their own profit, not back then, not now. And nothing will ever change that. Until one day, I meet her. Wealthy. Greedy. Predatory. And my number one target. Only my heart, the one I never thought I had, has other plans. A sapphic love story between two powerful women, dangerous, destructive, obsessive, calculating. Please note: The story contains very dark and possibly triggering topics and themes, including psychopathic behavior, descriptive smut, and kinky scenes. Please see the author's website for the full list.

Brilliantly paced, lit with sparks of danger and underlying menace, these are dazzling, provocative stories about Svengali men, and radical women who outmanoeuvre them, about destructive marriages and curdled friendships, about mothers and sons, about moments which change or haunt a life. Alice Munro takes on complex, even harrowing emotions and events, and renders them into stories that surprise, amaze and shed light on the unpredictable ways we accommodate to what happens in our lives. A wife and mother, whose spirit has been crushed, finds release from her extraordinary pain in the most unlikely place. The young victim of a humiliating seduction (which involves reading Housman in the nude) finds an unusual way to get her own back and move on. An older woman, dying of cancer, weaves a poisonous story to save her life. Other stories uncover the 'deep holes' in marriage and their consequences, the dangerous intimacy of girls and the cruelty of children. The long title story follows Sophia Kovalevsky, a late nineteenth-century Russian emigree and mathematical genius, as she takes a fateful winter journey that begins with a visit to her lover on the Riviera, and ends in Sweden, where she is a professor at the only university willing to hire a woman to teach her subject. Munro's unsettling stories turn lives into art, expand our world and our understanding of the strange workings of the human heart.

A Good Morning America 'January Book That Can Get Us Through Anything' A Most Anticipated Novel of 2022 by The New York Times, Good Housekeeping, Harper's Bazaar, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post, PopSugar, Shondaland, Yahoo!, and Crime Reads A destitute woman deceives her way into the guesthouse of a Hollywood Hills mansion and inadvertently becomes a target in the twisted game of the wealthy family upstairs in the next intoxicating novel from Eliza Jane Brazier. Lyla has always believed that life is a game she is destined to win, but her husband, Graham, takes the game to dangerous levels. The wealthy couple invites self-made success stories to live in their guesthouse and then conspires to ruin their lives. After all, there is nothing worse than a bootstrapper. Demi has always felt like the odds were stacked against her. At the end of her rope, she seizes a risky opportunity to take over another person’s life and unwittingly becomes the subject of the upstairs couple’s wicked entertainment. But Demi has been struggling forever, and she’s not about to go down without a fight. In a twist that neither woman sees coming, the game quickly devolves into chaos and rockets toward an explosive conclusion. Because every good rich person knows: in money and in life, it’s winner takes all. Even if you have to leave a few bodies behind.

Guy Gavriel Kay, bestselling author of the groundbreaking novels Under Heaven and River of Stars, once again visits a world that evokes one that existed in our own past, this time the tumultuous period of Renaissance Europe - a world on the verge of war, where ordinary lives play out in the grand scheme of kingdoms colliding. From the small coastal town of Senjan, notorious for its pirates , a young woman sets out to find vengeance for her lost family. That same spring, from the wealthy city-state of Seressa, famous for its canals and lagoon, come two very different people: a young artist traveling to the dangerous east to paint the Grand Khalif at his request - and possibly to do more - and a fiercely intelligent, angry woman, posing as a doctor's wife in her role of a spy. The trading ship that carries them is commanded by the clever younger son of a merchant family - with ambivalence about the life he's been born to live. And farther east a boy trains to become a soldier in the elite infantry of the khalif - to win glory in the war everyone knows is coming. As these lives entwine, their fates-and those of many others - will hang in the balance, when the khalif sends out his massive army to take the great fortress that is the gateway to the western world . . .