The Kill Fix By DG Elliott

The Kill Fix is one heck of an adrenaline-rush that fires on all cylinders from start to finish. With constant action and tremendous thrills, DG Elliott is a fantastic new voice in the genre.

The former Navy Special Forces and CIA officer Frank ‘Fix’ Xavier is a man accustomed to violence and trauma in his hardened past. His past pulls him back into the fold when a terrorist plot is found simmering to attack on United States soil. With time running out, he teams up with DEA agent Kate Martens to dive deep into uncharted territory where combat reigns supreme, chasing a shadowed enemy across the globe for a fight to the end while rushing to prevent a new global conflict.

I personally enjoyed the non-stop action sequences and shootouts that were imbued with the right amount of details and authenticity for a rich and fast-paced narrative. DG Elliott’s writing quickly crafts Frank Xavier as a kickass protagonist with the wits and skills to back himself up against killers and terrorists. While you’re hooked in with Frank to get to the bottom of the conspiracy, the story itself continues to twist and turn with each new chapter, accelerating at high efficiency of engaging storytelling until the explosive conclusion that feels worth the short wait. 

The Kill Fix is a lean and mean thriller that wastes no time in setting up its hero to tackle realistic and compelling challenges and before you know it, you’ve become a fan of Frank ‘Fix’ Xavier as a new hero to keep your eyes peeled for.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Kill Fix
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Shadow Strike By Aiden Bailey

Shadow Strike is Aiden Bailey’s most personal, kinetic and powerful thriller yet as he pits the Trigger Man against the man who created him. 

Racing through the bustling streets of Osaka all the way to the jungles of Southeast Asia, Mark Pierce is relentless in his pursuit of a Chinese hypersonic missile that crashed in Japanese territorial waters. At the same time, a face from his past recognizes Pierce as a name long lost, Arkady Volkov of Russian Special Forces. With his past crashing down on his present, he must outmaneuver the threats before they envelop him into the darkness he thought he had earlier escaped.

Aiden Bailey lets loose his protagonist to go berserk in Shadow Strike and I’m very glad he did, for all the riveting action sequences and personal touches that mark this story as Bailey’s best work. While we’ve seen Mark go up against corrupt and cerebral villains, Pierce now has to physically match up against his old mentor. From zipping bike chases to hide-and-seek with pistols, Shadow Strike makes good on its promise to hook your attention and keep you locked in. 

For fans of the series, this book is a major pay off as we finally learn some harrowing secrets about Mark Pierce, aka Arkady Volkov. The secrets that have been simmering in the last few stories finally erupt into a frenzy of emotions and developments that ensure you won’t look at Pierce the same way again. With the narrative diving into Pierce’s electric and tragic past while also dealing with the present day crisis of an incredibly dangerous missile falling into the wrong hands, the momentum never lets up for you to give it a rest. You’re constantly scrambling to find out what happens next in a flow state that stems from gripping writing and cinematic action. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Shadow Strike
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Direct Action By Stephen Leather

Stephen Leather brings the oldie but goldie school spy charm in this off-the-headlines thriller, Direct Action.

Dan “Spider” Shepherd is faced with a double threat in this latest outing. He and his old team are being investigated for a murder that occurred on his watch while serving abroad just as he is sent undercover to infiltrate a group of vigilantes who are taking matters into their own hands supposedly weeding out the bad apples who’ve found their way on British soil through weak immigration.  As Dan works his way through the group, he finds there’s more at play with a larger force acting as the puppeteer behind the scenes.

Leather goes all in with his realistic and slow-burn  depiction of espionage tradecraft, emphasizing human wits and intelligence in the world of undercover operations. Shepherd takes a much more active role in this outing as he goes into a den of killers himself, with little more than his own instincts and training to save himself, keeping violence rightfully as a last resort to avoid breaking cover. This makes for some harrowing close calls throughout the book. 

Direct Action boasts a very timely narrative constructed around immigration and those who would pervert it on both sides of the equation. The story delves into moral questions afflicted by politics and prejudice, all the while steadily building to a ferocious finale that ultimately brings a very satisfying conclusion while offering a slightly uncomfortable mirror to the harsh realities of the world.

Direct Action is a worthy addition to the vast world of spy craft and kinetic operations that Stephen Leather continues to evolve with the changing times.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Direct Action
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Fourth Option By Jack Carr and M.P. Woodward

Jack Carr and M.P. Woodward are a dangerously dynamic duo in their collaboration in The Fourth Option. You get the action of gritty military thrillers in an urban setting with smart and hardcore storytelling reminiscent of old vigilante thrillers that remain our favorites to this day.

Former Navy SEAL and CIA ground branch operative Chris Walker is a man on his last legs, broken down by the horrors of the wars he has faced and disillusioned by the institutional discrimination, he’s about to end his life as he gets the most important call of his life, a call that gives him purpose; his best friend’s wife needs his help. She’s lost her son to the opioid crisis, or so it seems. When all roads to justice close down, Walker must be brave enough to take the fight to the institution that has taken innocent lives under a grand conspiracy that threatens anyone who looks too closely into it.

The Fourth Option benefits immensely from Carr’s tactical ability to craft kinetic and explosive action sequences. There’s a whole bunch of them with Chris Walker tearing down the city to get to the bad guys, and each sequence trumps the one before. At the same time, we see M.P. Woodward’s charisma seep into the narrative as Chris deals with foes of dubious statuses as much as he deals with his own self-image. Chris is a warrior with the mind of a philosopher. His personal anecdotes through his quest for justice help elevate both the protagonist and the narrative with well-timed and compelling reflections of what it means to be a man of violence. It’s perhaps this quality that best exemplifies the unique nature of the book as a standout thriller.

The Fourth Option is a riveting tale of revenge and violence with a remarkable protagonist who can certainly lead his own series and the story works just as well as a standalone as it does to launch a new name. Jack Carr and M.P. Woodward are rockstars on their own and a force to be reckoned with as a team. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Fourth Option
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Beggars Will Ride By Nate Granzow

Nate Granzow’s books are some of the most unhinged, human, and entertaining thrillers that I’ve read. He speaks to the reader unencumbered by limiting genres, packing his stories with drama, action and great characters that become your friends and enemies for real.

Bringing back the Kristofferson brothers, Niklas and Kessler, Granzow takes the readers back to the prohibition era. Niklas and Kessler may have had their share of violence and bloodshed, but they’re pulled back into the fold once more when they’re double crossed by the Pig’s Eye Syndicate. As they’re hunted down by their adversaries, the Kristofferson brothers are gonna have to take the fight to their enemy’s doorstep brutally and quickly while dodging a dogged police officer hot on their tails.

Granzow adds a mix of dark humor, feral action and unpredictable twists and turns that lead our characters into places we just don’t see until it’s too late. The 1920’s come to life with Granzow’s lifelike descriptions that add to the elegance of the narrative, along with some cool shootouts with ingenious weaponry of the past. The lean, character-focused storytelling makes Beggars will Ride an unputdownable read from start to finish with a combination of mystery and action.

Beggars will Ride is a terrific break from the usual stories in the genre, emphasizing great writing and complex but fun scenarios that make this a memorable read. The ending takes your breath away with its spectacular twist.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Beggars Will Ride
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Council By Matthew Betley

Matthew Betley marks a triumphant return to the thrillerverse with a bonafide action-packed narrative built on an emotionally charged character-driven arc in The Council.

To the regular joes and janes, Owen Pierce is a damn-good lawyer. But what hides beneath the veneer is a man who understands that the law itself sometimes doesn’t give justice. So he spends his remaining hours as a member of The Council, an organization that trains and deploys assassins for the greater good, or so it seems. When a mission pits Owen against the last person he expected to fight, he begins to see that The Council has its own blinders that are more sinister than anything he’s stopped so far. Feeling betrayed, Owen will scorch Earth to exact retribution, and save the free world while he’s at it.

I picked up The Council knowing next to nothing about the book. All I read was Matthew Betley’s name and that was enough to get me to try. This is perhaps the best book of 2026 I’ve read yet and we haven’t even reached the year. This statement may sound bold but it’s backed up by logic and pure adrenaline-fun that Betley excels at infusing into his stories. The Council boasts some of the most vivid and cinematically engaging action sequences rocking tactical and technical authenticity in every single page. Whether it’s a fight between a katana and a knife, a brazen heavy machine gun shootout, or a calculated clearing of hostile quarters with CQB, Betley goes solid on all kills.

The action works as great as it does because of the underlying foundation, which in this case are the characters. Owen Pierce and his team reflect  on the best of us, as flawed and broken as they are, because they do what’s right even when the easiest path is to avoid what’s right. This moral compass helps install a strong bond between you and the characters without any drag in its connection. The story is direct, unflinching, and raw in its depiction of trauma and pain that molds our heroes into the warriors they become. Owen Pierce and his team became instant new favorites before I even finished the whole book.

The Council is a riveting roller-coaster thriller bursting with awesome and memorable action sequences and taut plotting connected together with a strong emotional undercurrent that serves as the bedrock for this adventure. I can’t wait to see this take off into a multi-book series and even a movie/tv-show. It’s that superb. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Council
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Girls In The Dark By Avery Bishop

Avery Bishop crafts a dark and mesmerizing story that showcases both the best and worst in humanity. The Girls in the Dark is a gripping tale of abuse, violence, and secrets that will leave you breathless at the end.

Megan Hadley is a survivor. She and her sister Allison were abducted and tortured by a serial killer who targets twins. Megan lived to tell the tale of how she escaped the clutches of evil. But as famous as she’s gotten, she’s caught the eye of her past. Is Allison really gone, or is she coming back to air the dirty secret that has made Megan so famous?

The narrative seeps into your bones with its eerie and sinister twists and turns. It’s crazy genius how Bishop makes the narrative feel off-center, making you wonder just what it is that feels wrong, and it only builds more and more with each new revelation until a major breakthrough. The horror and trauma are presented with its due respect, raw and powerful but not overly graphic; strengthening the core of the narrative without weighing down on you.

The winding path to the truth is far more rewarding when experienced with as little insight into the plot as possible. The Girls in the Dark stands out as one of the darkest and bestest dramatic thrillers in recent memory.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Girls In The Dark
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Hunting Ground By Andrew Warren

Hunting Ground is an all-you-want buffet of action and suspense with Thomas Caine embodying the vibe of modern-day James Bond adventures with the panache and wit of old school charm. 

Thomas Caine has a one-too-many close-calls on his latest mission that makes him wonder if he should hang up the guns and live a calmer life. His dreams come crashing down as an attack by a white supremacist group hits close to home, attacking his loved ones and causing a fatal injury. Harboring a thirst for vengeance and spurred on by the dangerous notion of more attacks happening across the United States, Caine takes up arms to stop the violence, by inflicting even more pain on those who harmed him first.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Andrew Warren knows best how to craft cinematic and bond-esque action sequences. From the opening salvo of gravity defying and hardcore shootout turned fisticuffs turned motorcycle chase on a train, there’s plenty to go around. And this is just the opening sequence. Warren keeps you on the edge of your seat with tremendous energy and exciting pacing that never lets up. 

Caine’s personal life also spirals as we see him in a vulnerable state wanting to give up his guns but he’s pulled back in and he’s mad about it. His personal journey is well-planned and executed, not just an afterthought to the pumping action. I can’t wait to see where he goes next in his odyssey.

Hunting Ground is a calculated and enthralling action ride with all the cinematic flavors of action you’d like to see on the big screen as well as in the pages of a riveting thriller.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Hunting Ground
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

None Witness By JT Patten

JT Patten constantly ups his game and he branches out and scores big time with None Witness, an unexpectedly terrific thriller.

Killian Kane has a past. He grew up as a reluctant enforcer of the Chicago Outfit. A chance encounter lands him in the sights of a secretive organization; a Vatican-adjacent authority known only as the Resolution Office. They remake him as  a custodian, cleaning up the unforgivable messes. When a priest is brutally murdered in New York, Killian is tasked with investigating it. He soon follows the trial across multiple ritualistic murders, perpetuated by someone sharing a similar past who is hellbent to expose the dirty secrets of the Resolution Office. With time running out, Kane must face both the threat of the killer and his past that comes calling with vengeance. 

Patten is a master of dark, bold and gritty stories that cut through to the deepest levels of our psyche to give us the ultimate reading experience. His attention to detail towards building storied characters whose motivations and agendas stand above surface-level cliches go a long way to cement the story as a memorable tale through the darkest vestiges of humanity while simultaneously entertaining you with intrigue and well-timed action sequences that are earned through plotted storytelling. From the unpredictability of the main antagonist to the strong arc of the protagonist on his journey from a cleaner of messes to dealing brutal justice, every single chapter feels like a reward that keeps on giving. 

None Witness is an excellent thriller that stands fresh and tall among its peers and adds subtle commentary of the world without bogging down the pacing. Be warned, the ending is going to break you. All the more reason to read it. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase None Witness
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Survivor By Andrew Reid

Andrew Reid’s The Survivor is a fast-paced twisty adventure with an intensity that rivals the best of the race-against-time stories.

A seemingly ordinary day in the subway goes horrendously wrong as a man’s past catches up to him. With an invisible but very real adversary threatening the safety of the others, the man must do whatever he’s told to do in order to keep his fellow passengers safe, realizing that the person on the other end of the line has something very sinister planned for him. Can he outwit the police and the nameless threat before he forfeits his life?

I am thoroughly impressed with how Reid sets this narrative almost completely in a single setting of a subway train yet never loses momentum in keeping readers engaged with a relentless barrage of oh-crap jaw-dropping reveals and an aura of terror that something wild and crazy might happen in the next page, which somehow ends up to be quite the prophecy as you read through the suspenseful story. Reid smartly weaves past and present day storylines together such that each chapter reveals a secret that makes you look at the characters differently. You could be rooting for a character one moment and then questioning all of their actions the next, and then swinging back and forth as the narrative peels off its layers for the final twist that really flips the story on its head. 

The Survivor is a delightfully engaging and intense thriller that delivers copious amounts of adrenaline straight to your bloodstream for a midnight hour reading rampage. Andrew Reid knows how to keep readers thoroughly engaged. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Survivor
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Dark Time By Nick Petrie

Peter Ash and the gang face off their dangerous threat yet, a cult hellbent on bringing Armageddon to life in The Dark Time.

When Katelyn Thorsen, known as KT, receives a death threat, she knows it has something to do with her latest investigation into tech giants. What she doesn’t know is how quickly that threat rears its ugly face, until Peter Ash steps in to protect KT and her daughter and inserts himself into a dangerous position. As the gang tries to keep their charges alive, they dig deeper into the rabbit hole that has the potential to spell an end for the tech-powered world we’ve become so comfortable in. 

Nick Petrie rocks and rolls with this action-packed narrative as we see Peter, June, and Lewis unleash havoc on perhaps the most dangerous adversary they’ve faced yet. Even as a bonafide action thriller, The Dark Time is part commentary on our reliance on technology, part crime thriller, and all action from the get-go. Every chapter brews a fresh storm for the characters to evade or push through headfirst, and you never know what will happen in the next moment so you keep on flipping the pages. With such a cinematic tinge to the action and characters, The Dark Time reads fast and hard with no good place to rest, so you best keep on reading till the last page. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Dark Time
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Beirut Extraction By Nick Irving

It’s a pleasure to read a spy thriller that highlights the grim and dangerous realities of the tradecraft with the no-nonsense demeanor of a well-informed and experienced scribe. 

When a senior Lebanese intelligence officer in Beirut looks for an out, British intelligence makes it their directive to get the man out, or ensure no one else can have him. In Beirut, a city bustling with activity of all sorts of enterprises, the net starts to shrink quicker than expected with options dwindling by the hour. A race to the asset ensues with operatives and civilians alike caught in the web.

Beirut Extraction feels like an official playbook of spies. The characters and challenges feel so real and ripe with intensity of the real world that it’s sometimes almost impossible to imagine this is a work of fiction. Perhaps it has seeds of reality. From the overall objective to the operational execution of the extraction and hiccups that plague the mission, the narrative benefits greatly from a realistic approach of multiple angles and characters whose paths entangle to form the full story.

Come for the highly detailed and realistic narrative and stay for the intense nail-biting action in Beirut Extraction.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Beirut Extraction
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Hard Line By Mark Greaney

The Hard Line is the answer to every Gray Man fan’s prayer that this series continue on for a long, long time. Mark Greaney refuels the saga with a new personal story for Court Gentry and an ending that merits a follow-up as great as this one.

The intelligence gathering apparatus of the United States falls under fire when attacks spawn up across the country targeting high value individuals. With a growing feeling that this is the work of a mole placed at a strategically sensitive position, Court’s boss, Matt Hanley, sets up a team to investigate and intervene where necessary to ferret out the leak. While Court is getting into battles on the urban streets, he has a bullseye on his back as he’s pursued by a legendary assassin who has a personal vendetta against The Gray Man. With walls closing in from all sides, can The Gray Man make it out unscathed before this life of violence takes yet another chip off his soul?

One of the most resonating features about The Gray Man is his surprising relatability with us normal folks. He gets frustrated, he swears, he tries his best when the odds are stacked against him. He also inspires when he goes the impossible at times. Mark Greaney captures lightning in a bottle once more with a plethora of kinetic and energetic action sequences that stand out in the series. These combat sequences not only emphasize Court’s prowess, but also highlight his vulnerability as a human who pushes himself farther than one is comfortable with, in the name of something bigger than himself.

Greaney doesn’t shy away from highlighting the moral quandary of the ugly business that The Gray Man is such a big part of; Killing. As readers, we get caught up in the hype of the action, never batting an eye on who’s on the receiving end of our hero’s violence. That’s what Greaney subtly calls out to with a narrative that pits Court against an assassin who faced a grievous loss at the hands of The Gray Man and is now out for blood. It’s the classic moral dilemma where you can’t fully support nor denounce either side, such is the strong and powerful characterization of each side. The conflict is a raw and emotionally charged reflection of what life amounts to, a commentary on the endless cycles of revenge and violence that can only end if both sides walk away. But can they do that with the losses they faced at the hands of each other? 

The Hard Line is a different breed of thrillers and it’s one that I am happy to read any given day. It’s got tons of gritty action, high stakes, and a personal touch that makes you appreciate literature in all its glory. Much like the last few Gray Man stories, this one ends on a cliffhanger, happily frustrating you that Greaney isn’t releasing two books at once. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Hard Line
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Murder At 30,000 Feet By Susan Walter

Murder at 30,000 Feet reads like a spiritual successor of the OG whodunnits where the readers go through a plethora of clues and insights like a real life sleuth with some crafty twists in the mix that lead to a devastatingly satisfying resolution.

A Puerto Rico bound flight takes off with a packed flight thanks to a destination wedding and a basketball tournament. What starts off as a typical flight turns lethal when a passenger is found dead in the lavatory. What takes place is a suspenseful unraveling of secrets with a deep dive into different perspectives of diverse characters whose collective pasts and shameful skeletons in the closet all led to this fateful flight and the gruesome murder on it.

Susan Walter crafts a scintillating and dramatic narrative of high stakes yet grounded in the most primal and banal human emotions that drive the characters to embrace their secrets. Each perspective opens up an insight into the character, opening up like a Russian doll with one twist after another unfurling just when you think you’ve gotten the full gist of the story. The narrative structure took me to the Agatha Christie stories where readers get a sense of the full dilemma from the eyes of various characters, all of whom are so intricately tied to the plot that the finale is immensely satisfying. 

Tackling timely and compelling themes of human flaws and courage under fire with a tight setting in the air and a steady pacing that unfurls at the right time for the right impact, Murder at 30,000 Feet is a riveting and powerful story of love, violence, and a dark pursuit of justice. It’s going to stick with you long after you finish it.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Murder At 30,000
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

They'll Take Everything By C.H. Connor

They’ll Take Everything is a fantastic debut by C.H Connor who delves deep into the human psyche to deliver a haunting yet wholesome narrative about loss and grief with the fast-paced momentum of a bona-fide crime thriller.

David Dale is a man intimately familiar with tragedy following the untimely deaths of his wife and children. He’s haunted by the fact that it was his carelessness that led to their deaths. Channeling grief into opening a charity, he begins to feel things are finally looking up. But fate has other plans for him; he’s targeted for what seems to be an extortion attempt by a criminal syndicate. As David sinks deeper into the world of danger, he finds himself facing his past once more, when a secret about the horrible night his family died comes back from the grave. 

What struck me the most about this thriller was how personal and intimate this story becomes as it unveils. It starts off as a bit of a slow-burn as the author takes some time to introduce the protagonist and get readers acquainted with the broken character. It’s precisely this time spent with the protagonist that sets the stage for a riveting crime story that follows as David is targeted by a deranged and scary gangster whose unhinged nature genuinely makes you worried for David. 

The narrative also immensely benefits from David’s regular joe character as you truly feel worried for him. No combat skills, no hardened past, just a man who’s cornered and has to use his wits and allies to survive attacks. The action is gritty, raw, and hard-hitting for the very same reason.

They’ll Take Everything is an emotionally charged and powerful story that slowly gets you enveloped in its grip but once it does, the author takes you for a grand and unexpected journey with an ending that will shock you. I would absolutely read what C.H Connor puts out next.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase They'll Take Everything
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Asset By Mike Lawson

The Asset is a cerebral and simmering political-espionage thriller that’ll shock you with how dark and disturbing it progressively gets until the shocking finale.

Political researcher and savvy investigator Joe DeMarco can dig up dirt in the cleanest of corners. So it’s a no-brainer for the former Speaker of the House to enlist his services in verifying the news that Lydia Chang, the wife of one of his biggest rivals, might be working undercover as a Chinese agent. Not wanting to overplay his hand, the Speaker needs concrete proof and DeMarco is put on the job. Not only does DeMarco have to outsmart the intelligence agencies acting aggressively in their goal to corrupt the American government, but also the source of the intelligence who may have some very unsettling secrets of her own. 

Lawson creates palpable tension in his narrative with a supreme emphasis on realistic tradecraft and scenarios where outthinking your opponent for a win-win scenario is more interesting than any kinetic and guns-blazing situation. The lack of traditional action opens the door to old-school intelligence gathering and intense banter between characters, all in various shades of grayscale moralities, that benefit this narrative immensely. Every dialogue and exchange adds to the unraveling of the major plot secret by secret until the last shoe drops and a race to the finish line ensues to find out the fates of the characters. 

The Asset is an exciting old-school thriller with lots of political intrigue and sleuthing that takes you back to the classic detective tales.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Asset
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Wolf Hour By Jo Nesbo

Jo Nesbo writes his magnum opus with an emotionally powerful and immensely twisty thriller that will leave you speechless by the end. 

A sniper takes out a small-time crook in Minneapolis and vanishes into thin air. With leads drying out, Detective Bob Oz takes an interest in the case. His unorthodox methods give him the best chance at catching his man, but will he be able to see the killer coming at him before it’s too late?

The synopsis is best left as vague as possible because Jo Nesbo hits you with many right-hook twists and turns you’ll best enjoy as you discover along the pages. The narrative dives into the all-too-relatable themes of pain, suffering, and longing which elevate the characters up from your standard ones to an unpredictable and dangerous avenue where you find yourself even rooting for the killer at times. Jo Nesbo keeps you mesmerized with one tantalizing twist after another as the detective puts his mind to the case with cool discoveries and sometimes dangerous mistakes that hit the readers as much as the characters right in the gut with the full weight of a freight train. Just when you get cocky you’ve gotten the story nailed down, it takes a sharp gasp-worthy turn towards a path you hadn’t anticipated. 

Wolf Hour is masterful storytelling propelled by intelligent design and smartly-timed revelations that flip the narrative on its head multiple times until you’re holding onto your seat for dear life, so make sure you’re sitting comfortably while reading. 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Wolf Hour
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

The Bourne Revenge By Brian Freeman

Writing a legacy character is a tough cookie, especially with how far you can take the origin story and make something meaningful and special out of what fans already know and love without veering too far from the established lore. I was delighted to read The Bourne Revenge, for it adds an exciting paradigm to Bourne’s memory loss without taking away from what the fans appreciate about the whole series.

Jason Bourne is on the mend from his last misadventure, a dangerous reckoning that cost him his love and his hope. With revenge on his mind against the cabal that pulled the strings, he sets off on a mission to investigate a hazy memory in his past where he supposedly went toe to toe with some of the most lethal operatives. When that investigation leads him to a woman who suffered the same fate of a wiped memory, Bourne begins to realize that the reason for his memory loss may not be as much of a coincidence as he had chalked up. 

Brian Freeman brings the heat in this latest Jason Bourne thriller. It’s packed with vivid and immersive action sequences that simply ooze adrenaline right into your bloodstream as you’re reading through cinematic car chases, shootouts, and furious fisticuffs. The pacing is stupendously addictive; I tried hard to keep this book going for more than a day but I’d finished it before I knew it. 

Revealing a backstory that tied so well with Bourne’s past adds a personal core to the narrative, where Freeman retains the authenticity of the original lore but adds a crafty twist that respects and builds upon what the fans love and want more of. The strong character development shaped by years of betrayals, losses, and an indomitable spirit of fortitude keeps Jason Bourne a very relevant and powerful figure in the thriller community. The Bourne Revenge goes a long way to show that Brian Freeman not only continues the legacy of Robert Ludlum but matches up to the same quality and authenticity in more ways than one. For those who prefer some good tunes with their reads, Moby’s Extreme Ways hits extra-special with the closing chapter. You’re welcome! 

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Bourne Revenge
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Underdogs By Stephen Leather

Underdogs is Stephen Leather at his finest with a fresh change of style with fast-paced and technically engaging action. 

Andy Bird is a man living the harsh streets of London as a homeless man. One look at him wouldn’t give you the full picture, but he’s Andy “Deadman” Bird, an ex-SAS veteran who lost his hearing on a mission gone haywire. Unable to adjust to life back home, he finds himself in an undesirable place but he’s got his dog, Tyrone with him. As fate would have it, it’s on the streets of London that he witnesses a murder that starts a chain reaction with trained killers and cops alike hunting Andy and Tyrone. They may be underdogs, but that’s their speciality.

Stephen Leather raises the bar on crafting a distinctive protagonist in Andy Bird. Even as a deaf protagonist, Andy not only learns to rise up to the challenge but also shows us that there’s nothing we can’t succeed at if we’re willing to go the extra mile. The unorthodox challenge of a deaf character trying to dodge bullets and close encounters when every sound matters adds a crispy layer of excitement and anticipation to the action in Underdogs. Andy’s bond with Tyrone also adds with an emotional driving force to elevate the storytelling from a straight-forward action thriller to a compelling thriller that keeps you hooked with tenacity. 

It wouldn’t be a Stephen Leather story without kickass action, high stakes, and nail-biting excitement. Underdogs delivers on all with flying colors and then some. As soon as you start your journey with Underdogs, you’re only going to put it down once you’ve run out of pages to flip.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Underdogs
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Cold Zero By Brad Thor & Ward Larsen

Brad Thor and Ward Larsen write a high-stakes adventure in this freezing cold action-packed thriller.

Hemisphere Airlines Flight 777 is transporting a prototype for upsetting the world power with just a few keystrokes. With all eyes on this piece of tech, there’s no time for chances. When the jetliner is brought down by sabotage in the icy barren wasteland of the North Pole, the ball falls to C.I.A. operative Kasey Sheridan and First Officer Brett Sharpe to navigate their predicaments while trying to keep the prototype from falling into the hands of other nations highly interested in getting their hands on this dangerous piece of tech. 

Cold Zero has a special place on my shelves because it doesn’t shy away from being adventurous. You’ve got plane crashes, frigid temperatures, colliding submarines, high technology, and an unyielding race against time for survival where no one side can truly be trusted, all blended together to present a strong contender for the most memorable and fun-filled book of the year. Where Thor and Larsen shine together the most is having all of these elements work together in a way that feels plausible and pulse-pounding. It’s out there, but not so much that you believe it can’t happen at all. Crazier things have happened. The emphasis on developing Sheridan and Sharpe as relatable and authentic characters who give you a sense of inspiration for trying to beat such harsh odds compels you to read past your snack-time at work. It’s dangerous, but worth it. 

If you like the political intrigue of Brad Thor’s Scot Harvath books and Ward Larsen’s espionage, David Slaton series, you’re going to love Cold Zero. It’s the start of what I hope is a long running series and collaboration between two maestros of the thrillerverse.

Follow Kashif on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase Cold Zero
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

Meet The Review Team