The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett

Author Amanda Bailey decides to write a book about the Alperton Angels case. Twenty years ago, three members of a cult were found dead, while the two teenage members of the group escaped with a baby. Amanda decides to focus her research on finding where the baby is now. Amanda soon learns, however, that there are some who want to forget that the Alperton Angels ever existed and will kill to keep the case buried. The story is told through emails, letters, and transcripts of interviews that Amanda does with all those involved over the last two decades, heightening the suspense and getting the reader involved in the puzzle.

Hero by Thomas Perry

Justine Poole works for the private security firm Spengler-Nash. One evening, Justine is assisting her boss Ben, making sure Jerry and Estelle Pinsky get home safely. Justine and Ben succeed in protecting the Pinskys, but Justine kills two of the five men who were attempting to rob the couple at their home. Mr. Conger, who hired the robbers, is embarrassed that a woman was able to basically take out five men. He hires hit man Leo Sealy to kill Justine. Hero follows the cat and mouse game between Justine and Sealy around Los Angeles. Will Justine be able to stay alive and eliminate the threat?

Lowbridge by Lucy Campbell

Katherine moves to her husband Jamie's hometown of Lowbridge, a small community about an hour outside of Sydney, after their teenage daughter Maggie's death. Katherine is devastated by Maggie's passing and is numbing her grief with pills and alcohol. Katherine and Jamie are also drifting apart as a couple. One day, Katherine happens upon the Lowbridge Historical Society. Eventually, volunteering there starts to help her to heal. When Katherine decides to organize an exhibition about the history of the women's center that opened thirty years ago, she discovers articles about teenager Tess Dawes who went missing around that time. Katherine becomes interested in Tess' story, much to the dismay of Jamie. In an alternating storyline, the reader is taken back to 1986 to get a firsthand look at Tess and her friends Sim and Luisa. Will Katherine be able to find out what happened to Tess all those years ago? Lowbridge is a great read-alike for the novels of Christian White and Silence by Susan Allott.

Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby

Neither Ike Randolph nor Buddy Lee Jenkins were accepting of their gay sons. Isiah and Derek met in college, fell in love, married, and had a three-year-old daughter, Arianna. Recently, however, Isiah and Derek were murdered and the police have no leads on the killer. Both Ike and Buddy Lee are grieving and angry, and they want justice for their boys. Both ex-cons (now with regular jobs), Ike and Buddy Lee team up--an unlikely pair, with Ike being black and Buddy Lee a southern white man, yet having their loss and regret in common. They will stop at nothing to avenge their sons deaths and make the killer pay.

Northwoods by Amy Pease

Eli North has hit rock bottom. He is drinking too much. He has nightmares about and continued trauma from his service in Afghanistan. He works as a deputy in the local police department, where his mother Marge is the sheriff. One night, while on duty and drunk, he finds local teenager Ben Sharpe dead.  Also, Ben's friend Caitlin Wallace has gone missing. In the northwoods Wisconsin resort town of Shaky Lake, the police operate on a very limited budget, so Marge, Eli, and their two fellow officers finds themselves working with Chicago-based FBI agent Alyssa Mason. In her debut novel, Pease writes a story with a great sense of place, interesting characters, and a mystery that has the reader guessing until the end. I hope we see more of Eli North or at least another book by the author. A great read-alike title would be The Distant Dead by Heather Young.

First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

Evie Porter is thrilled that her relationship with Ryan is getting serious and that he's asked her to move in. However, her excitement isn't for the usual reasons--she's been hired to get close to Ryan and report back to her boss, Mr. Smith. In fact, Evie is not even her real name. First Lie Wins is a fast-paced novel with many twists and turns as Evie tries to stay one step ahead of those who are out there to take her down. A great read-alike for Liv Constantine, Julie Clark, and Greer Hendricks.

Northern Spy by Flynn Berry

Tessa lives with her young son Finn outside of Belfast and is a producer at the BBC. One day, her sister Marian is seen participating in an armed robbery. The police tell Tessa that Marian is a member of the IRA. Tessa doesn't believe it's true, since both she and Marian are against all the violence that has occurred over the years. What if the evidence the authorities have is real? Could Marian really have put Tessa and Finn in danger? Northern Spy keeps the reader on the edge of their seat as Marian's decisions have serious repercussions for everyone.

Invisible Woman by Katie Lief

Joni's past and her friendship with college roommate Val come rushing back when Hollywood bigwig Lou Pridgen is accused of assaulting several women. In the 1980's, Jodi directed two critically acclaimed films--the first starring Val, who was raped at that time by Lou and another man. Val decided to not go to the police then, and she and Joni lost touch. For the past twenty-five years, Joni has focused on motherhood and her marriage to Paul, who found major success in television. Lately, Joni has been unhappy with Paul and his work obsession. When Joni contacts Val to talk about what happened in the past, both women's lives change irrevocably. Invisible Woman is a page turner in the style of Peter Swanson.