Xenopath

Ellen Raskin - The ​Westing Game
For ​over twenty-five years, Ellen Raskin's Newbery Medal-winning The Westing Game has been an enduring favorite. It has sold over one and a half million copies. This highly inventive mystery involves sixteen people who are invited to the reading of Samuel W. Westing's will. They could become millionaires - it all depends on how they play the tricky and dangerous Westing game, a game involving blizzards, burglaries, and bombings! Ellen Raskin has created a remarkable cast of characters in a puzzle-knotted, word-twisting plot filled with humor, intrigue, and suspense.

Alison Kent - The ​Shaughnessey Accord
When ​someone screams Tripp Shaughnessey's name, it's usually a woman in the throes of passion or one who's just caught him with his hand in the proverbial cookie jar. Sometimes it's both. Tripp is sarcastic, fun-loving, and funny, with a habit of seducing every woman he says hello to. But the one who really gets him hot and bothered is Glory Brighton, the curvacious owner of his favorite sandwich shop. The nonstop banter between Glory and Tripp has been leading up to a full-body kiss in the back storeroom. And that's just where they are when all hell breaks loose. Glory's past includes some very bad men connected to Spectra, men convinced she may have important intel hidden in her place. Now, with the shop under siege, and gunmen holding customers hostage, Tripp shows Glory his true colors: He's no sweet, rumpled "engineer" from the Smithson Group, but a well-trained, hardcore covert op whose easy-going rep is about to be put to the test...

Alison Kent - The ​Beach Alibi
They're ​back. The men of the Smithson Group are smart, built, and trained to do everything well-and that's everything. Kelly John Beach is the ultimate spy, a go-to guy known for covering all the bases and moving in the shadows like a ghost. But now Beach is in big trouble: during his last mission, he was caught on video surveillance as he was breaking into a high-rise owned by the notorious crime syndicate Spectra IT. The SG-5 team has to make an alternate tape fast, one that proves Beach was somewhere else at the time of the break-in. The plan is simple: some-one from Smithson will pose as Beach's lover, and SG-5's strategically placed cameras will record the couple's every erotic encounter. But Beach never expects his "alibi" to come in the form of Emma Webster, the sexy coworker who features prominently in his private, not-for-prime-time fantasies. Getting his hands - and anything else he can manage - on Emma under the guise of work is a dream come true.

Alison Kent - The ​McKenzie Artifact
Get ​what you came for with Eli McKenzie, SG-5 Five months ago, SG-5 operative Eli McKenzie was in deep cover in Mexico, infiltrating a Spectra ring that kidnaps young girls and sells them into a life beyond imagining. Not being able to move on the Spectra scum right away was torture for the tough-but-compassionate superspy. But that wasn't the only problem--someone on the inside was slowly poisoning Eli, clouding his judgment and forcing him to make an abrupt trip back to the Smithson Group's headquarters to heal. Now, Eli's ready to return. . .with a vengeance. It seems his quick departure left a private investigator named Stella Banks in some hot water. Spectra operatives have nabbed the nosy Stella and are awaiting word on how to handle her disposal. Eli knows the only way to save her life and his is to reveal himself to Stella and get her to trust him. Seeing the way Stella takes care of the frightened girls melts Eli's armor, and soon, they find that the best way to survive this brutal assignment is to steal time in each other's arms. It's a bliss Eli's intent on keeping, no matter what he has to do to protect it. Because Eli McKenzie has unfinished business with Spectra--and with the woman who has renewed his heart--and this is one man who always finishes what he starts. . .

Alison Kent - The ​Samms Agenda
From ​his piercing blue eyes to his commanding presence, everything about Julian Samms says all-business and no bull. He expects a lot from his team - some say too much. But that's how you keep people alive, by running things smooth, clean and quick. Under Julian's watch, that's how it plays. Except today. The mission was straightforward: Extract Katrina Flurry, ex-girlfriend of deposed Spectra frontman Peter Deacon, from her Miami condo before a hit man can silence her for good. But things didn't go according to plan, and Julian's suddenly on the run with a woman who gives new meaning to high maintenance. Stuck in a cheap motel with a force of nature who seems determined to get them killed, Julian can't believe his luck. Katrina is infuriating, unpredictable, adorable, and possibly the most exciting, sexy woman he's ever met. A woman who makes Julian want to forget his playbook and go wild, spending hours in bed. And on the off-chance that they don't get out alive, Julian's new live-for-today motto is starting right now ...

Alison Kent - The ​Bane Affair
Christian ​Bane is a man of few words, so when he talks, people listen. One of the Smithson Group's elite force, Christian's also the walking wounded, haunted by his past. Something about being betrayed by a woman, then left to die in a Thai prison by the notorious crime syndicate Spectra IT gives a guy demons. But now, Spectra has made a secret deal with a top scientist to crack a governmental encryption technology, and Christian has his orders: Pose as Spectra boss Peter Deacon. Going deep undercover as the slick womanizer will be tough for Christian. Getting cozy with the scientist's beautiful goddaughter, Natasha, to get information won't be. But the closer he gets to Natasha, the harder it gets to deceive her. She's so alluring, so trusting, so completely unexpected he suspects someone's been giving out faulty intel. If Natasha isn't the criminal he was led to believe, they're both being played for fools. Now, with Spectra closing in, Christian's best chance for survival is to confront his demons and trust the only one he can . . . Natasha . . .

Alison Kent - Larger ​Than Life
With ​her wildly popular "SG-5" series, Alison Kent proved that taut suspense and hot, sensual romance make for an irresistible mix. Now, in" Larger Than Life", Kent ups the ante again with a story of two people caught in a high-stakes game where their hearts and lives are on the line...After being beaten and left for dead in the New Mexico desert, Smithson Group agent Mick Savin tries to piece together his last few days. He remembers bits and pieces: gathering crucial intel. An ambush by Spectra thugs. And then...nothing, except waking up in some medical centre in rural west Texas. His mission was top secret. So how did he end up here? The answer is Neva Case. If the former big-city attorney hadn't been out in her pick-up, Mick wouldn't be alive. Mick's never met anyone quite like Neva. She's smart, sexy, and passionate. She also has a secret. Neva runs the Big Brown Barn, an underground shelter for young girls forced into unwanted polygamist marriages. Neva would do anything for these girls - and that's what worries Mick. Neva may be trusting, but Mick's instincts tell him that something's not quite right. He's not about to let someone get to Neva and the girls on his watch. Especially when one of the girls brings trouble straight to the barn's front door. Now, with the shelter in unimaginable danger and time running out, Mick is in for the fight of his life, one that could cost him the woman he's come to love more than anything...

Alison Kent - Deep ​Breath
When ​a guy stops at a roadside diner, he expects bad chili, not a hostage situation. But that's where SG-5 operative Harry van Zandt finds himself when an armed cartel blows through the door They're not after him but the woman in the next booth, and their message is clear: she's got seventy-two hours to locate and deliver a valuable historical document or her brother dies. And if Harry wants to live, he'd better go with her. Harry has his own undercover mission to finish, but with a trigger-happy band on their tails, it'll have to wait. Not that he minds helping George McClain. The tough treasure hunter is as smart as she is sexy. She's also desperate. That artifact could finally clear her late father's name. She needs Harry if she's going to double-cross these thugs and keep it for herself, and her gratitude is the kind that could turn a guy's head. Too bad that document is of vital importance to the Smithson Group, and Harry's Top Secret Mission is to get it before it falls into the wrong hands. Now, the beautiful, infuriating woman he's starting to fall for could lead him right to what he needs--"and what she so desperately wants. Out on the open road with a price on their heads, two unlikely lovers are caught in a game of secrets, lies, betrayals, and desire, where trust is risky and love leaves no time to catch your breath.

Alison Kent - Beyond ​a Shadow
Undercover ​operative Ezra Moore has come to Comfort Bay, Oregon, to unload a shipment of illegal weapons and take down evil syndicate Spectra IT. But even the best-laid crimes can go very, very wrong... Alexa Counsel likes her calm, and OK, sometimes boring life in Comfort Bay. But there's nothing boring about the local B&B's hot new handyman. Even though she senses Ezra's not who he says he is, Alexa's in too deep to turn back now. Now, playing cat and mouse with a vicious criminal, Alexa and Ezra will discover just how dangerous and delicious starting a new life--and finding a new love--can be.

Alison Kent - No ​Limits
The ​Heat is On . . . Simon Baptiste's latest SG-5 mission just went south in a major way. It seems like a good time to take care of some business back home in Louisiana. Simon knows it ain't going to be pretty. He's got old enemies in Bayou Allain who won't exactly roll out the red carpet. But Simon's first night back is more than he bargained for. Not only has the homestead gone to hell in a hand basket, but there's a half-naked woman hiding inside it-a woman whose face Simon knows all too well. It's Michelina Ferrer, the sultry spokesmodel for her family's Ferrer fragrance empire-and Simon's been staring at her picture on a billboard outside his Manhattan apartment for weeks... And It's Only Getting Hotter . . . Micky Ferrer came down to Bayou Allain looking for her old college friend, only to discover that Lisa Landry has been missing for days. As soon as Micky starts asking questions, someone runs her car off the road. She's hiding out in the old Baptiste place when Simon shows up-and he's the hottest thing she's laid eyes on since she got to town. Simon agrees that something strange is going on and that Lisa's disappearance may be tied to it. As he and Micky search for answers, the sweltering heat makes it hard to keep their heads straight or their hands off each other...even as they unravel the small-town secrets that some people are willing to kill for...

Alison Kent - The ​Perfect Stranger
Some ​like it hot. The men and women of Alison Kent's sizzling SG-5 series like it hotter. In this all new novel of steamy suspense, the jungle is the only place wild enough for a hotshot helicopter pilot and a renegade rich girl with one hell of an agenda... Bachelor parties are fun, as long as you're not the poor sap getting hitched...or slipped a Mickey and waking to discover you just became the poor sap. Not to mention that your "wife" is pregnant, and if you don't go along to her village to meet the in-laws, the nice police comandante will be muy unhappy. Just another day in the life of helicopter pilot J. Jackson Briggs? Not so much. His Smithson Group gig wasn't supposed to be dangerous, but the woman who drugs him, then knocks him out, then drugs him again certainly is. She also may or may not be a nun. She's definitely a lying, scheming, lethally gorgeous...American. Jack's light years from believing the story Jillian Endicott gives him about her noble cause in the sweltering wilds of San Torisco, but he knows one thing: he'll get the truth-and plenty more-from her, one way or another... Being an Endicott of the Boston Endicotts taught Jillian plenty about the haves vs. the have-nots-and made it easy to choose sides. But there's nothing easy about her mission in San Torisco, and things only get harder when Jack Briggs is thrown into the mix. Six-foot-three of big Texas mouth and big...other things...Jack's pegged her as a bored little rich girl. Hey, he can think what he wants, as long as he does what she wants. Do unto others what needs to be done-that's Jillian's motto. Problem is, Jack knows how to push her buttons from minute one-and the closer he gets to pushing herover the edge, the more she wants him to... Now under dark velvet cover of jungle nights, two rebels with a cause are going deep-and falling hard-for the perfect stranger..

Alison Kent - With ​Extreme Pleasure
Only ​Something This Dangerous. . . After three weeks in Manhattan, Kingdom Trahan is ready to get back to bayous, crawfish boils, and afternoons fishing on the Gulf. But before he can pull out of the parking garage, he meets a curvy detour. King noticed Cady Kowalski on the photo shoot he just endured--sexy and confident, with a waifish look that belies the way she corralled him into submission using only a can of hairspray. Yet Cady isn't confident now. She's bruised, edgy, and desperate to get out of town. . . Could Feel This Good. . . For years, Cady has been looking over her shoulder, wondering when the gang of drug-running criminals who killed her brother would make their move on her. She's grown used to having no one to turn to, no one to trust. But King isn't walking away--not even when their lives are threatened, again and again. Drawing Cady's pursuers out of hiding is the only way to end this, and it's also the most reckless thing they can do. . .short of diving into a red-hot affair from which there's no turning back. . .

Sammi Carter - Candy ​Apple Dead
Abby ​Shaw has returned to her hometown of Paradise, Colorado - leaving behind a career in corporate law and a cheating husband - to take over her aunt's candy shop, Divinity. But her sweet new life quickly turns sour when a fellow merchant dies in a fire. With all clues pointing to arson - and Abby's brother as the number one suspect - she must sink her teeth into finding the killer.

Joanne Fluke - Laura Levine - Leslie Meier - Candy ​Cane Murder
'Tis ​the season for trimming the tree, caroling, baking cookies, and curling up by the Yuletide waiting for Santa to drop down the chimney. But in this festive collection of holiday whodunits, murder is also paying a visit... "Candy Cane Murder" by Joanne Fluke Bakery owner Hannah Swensen feels a little stuffed in her elf costume--but it's too late to count calories. Lake Eden's annual Christmas gala is upon her and eager children are waiting. Wayne Bergstrom, owner of Bergstrom's Department Store, happily ho-ho-hos his way through the festivities in his Santa suit. But when a trail of candy canes leads to his corpse in a snow bank, Hannah must find Kris Kringle's killer. "The Dangers of Candy Canes" by Laura Levine When a wealthy suburbanite takes a lethal tumble off his roof while installing a giant candy cane, the roofing contractor being held responsible for murder asks freelance writer Jaine Austen to investigate. But solving this untimely holiday death means delving into the cutthroat Christmas decorating wars among scheming neighbors with dirty secrets in their stocking. It takes a fruitcake hiding a weapon and a stunning confrontation to expose the mastermind of this holiday murder. "Candy Canes of Christmas Past" by Leslie Meier Twenty-some years ago, Lucy Stone arrived in Tinker Cove, Maine, and discovered her knack for solving mysteries when she met Miss Tilly, the town librarian, whose mother took a fatal fall down the basement stairs one Christmas Eve. The "accident" left a cloud of suspicion on Miss Tilly's father and a slew of other suspects. The only clue was a glass candy cane found smashed to bits by the victim's body. Now Lucy must learn the mystery of the glass candy cane as she unlocks the doors of Christmas past, exposing secrets, scandal, and a killer who got away with murder. Whether a gift for yourself or that special someone on your list, there's no better way to spend the holidays than with these tantalizing mysteries of murder...

Josh Lanyon - Snowball ​in Hell
Los ​Angeles, 1943 Reporter Nathan Doyle had his reasons to want Phil Arlen dead, but when he sees the man's body pulled from the La Brea tar pit, he knows he'll be the prime suspect. He also knows that his life won't stand up to intense police scrutiny, so he sets out to crack the case himself. Lieutenant Matthew Spain's official inquiries soon lead him to believe that Nathan knows more than he's saying. But that's not the only reason Matt takes notice of the handsome journalist. Matt's been drawn to men before, but he must hide his true feelings--or risk his entire career. As Nathan digs deeper, it becomes increasingly difficult to stay one step ahead of Matt Spain--and to deny his intense attraction to him. Nathan's secrets may not include murder, but has his hunt put him right in the path of the real killer? Previously published, newly revised by author.

Carola Dunn - Requiem ​for a Mezzo
Daisy ​Dalrymple and Scotland Yard inspector Alec Fletcher enjoy a splendid performance of Verdi's Requiem, featuring her neighbor's sister Bettina, until the poisoned singer suddenly breathes her last. The diva was difficult and provoked many enemies - a philandering tenor, a burly Russian bass, and her own turbulent vocal coach husband.

Carola Dunn - The ​Winter Garden Mystery
In ​England, 1923, the Honourable Daisy Dalrymple has made a decision that, while shocking to her class, is in perfect keeping with the spirit of the times. Rather than live with relatives until she marries, she has undertaken to earn her own living with her writing. Her series of articles on country manor houses has proven popular with the readers of Town and Country and in February she travels to Occles Hall to research her latest piece. What she finds there is a household under the thumb of the ill-tempered and demanding Lady Valeria. The discovery of the body of a pregnant maid buried in the winter garden does nothing to improve Lady Valeria's mood. When the local constabulary arrests the Welsh under-gardener who had been involved with the maid for the murder, Daisy is sure of his innocence and suspects that the whole affair is consciously being swept under the carpet. Wary of the air of secrecy that permeates Occles Hall and determined to prove the innocence of the young Welshman, Daisy convinces Alec Fletcher of Scotland Yard to investigate the murder - a murder that is more complex and horrifying than either could have imagined.

Carola Dunn - Death ​at Wentwater Court
Honorable ​Daisy Dalrymple takes an unusual step to assert her independence in 1922 - a job. Writing about the Wentwater family, her Christmas visit is disrupted by unwelcome guest and "utter cad" Lord Stephen Astwick. When his body is found frozen under the estate lake, attractive Scotland Yard DCI Alec Fletcher enlists Daisy, whose photos suggest murder.

Patricia Highsmith - Deep ​Water
The ​great revival of interest in Patricia Highsmith continues with this work that reveals the chilling reality behind the idyllic facade of American suburban life. In Deep Water, set in the small town of Little Wesley, Vic and Melinda Meller's loveless marriage is held together only by a precarious arrangement whereby in order to avoid the messiness of divorce, Melinda is allowed to take any number of lovers as long as she does not desert her family. Eventually, Vic tries to win her back by asserting himself through a tall tale of murder—one that soon comes true.

Tami Hoag - Deeper ​than the Dead
Tami ​Hoag is in a class by herself, beloved by readers and critics alike, with more than 22 million copies of her books in print. California, 1985. Four children, running in the woods behind their school, stumble upon a partially buried female body, eyes and mouth glued shut. Close behind the children is their teacher, Anne Navarre, shocked by this discovery and heartbroken as she witnesses the end of their innocence. What she doesn’t yet realize is that this will mark the end of innocence for an entire community, as the ties that bind families and friends are tested by secrets uncovered in the wake of a serial killer’s escalating activity. Detective Tony Mendez, fresh from a law enforcement course at FBI headquarters, is charged with interpreting those now revealed secrets. He’s using a new technique—profiling—to develop a theory of the case, a strategy that pushes him ever deeper into the lives of the three children, and closer to the young teacher whose interest in recent events becomes as intense as his own. As new victims are found and the media scrutiny of the investigation bears down on them, both Mendez and Navarre are unsure if those who suffer most are the victims themselves—or the family and friends of the killer, blissfully unaware that someone very close to them is a brutal, calculating psychopath.