Books like 'The Girl Before'
Readers who enjoyed The Girl Before by J.P. Delaney also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary dark romance suspense mystery
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Lie To Her by Melinda Leigh
Lies from the heart lead to a dangerously intimate case for Sheriff Bree Taggert in #1 Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh’s novel of revenge and fatal deceptions.When a digital marketer is found murdered in his backyard—hands bound and face smothered by plastic wrap—Sheriff Bree Taggert and criminal investigator Matt Flynn respond to the call... -
Heartbreak Bay by Rachel Caine
Rated: 4.48 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsThey’re hunting a killer so silent, so invisible, that his unspeakable crimes are the only proof he exists.A car submerged in a remote pond. The bodies of two girls strapped into their seats. The mystery of their mother, vanished without a trace, leads Gwen Proctor and Kezia Claremont into dangerous territory... -
Little Girl Vanished: A small town kidnapping by Denise Grover Swank
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsDisgraced, ex-detective Harper Adams is perfectly content wallowing at rock bottom. She’s lost her job, house, and reputation, and it only gets worse when she’s forced to move back home to Jackson Creek, Arkansas, the one place she swore she’d never return. But everything changes when she gets chilling news... -
The Body Keeper by Anne Frasier
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsThe Thriller Award–winning series continues as Detective Jude Fontaine finds a decades-old connection to missing children that will freeze her blood.A boy’s frozen body is found trapped in the ice of a Minneapolis lake. The horrifying discovery leads Detective Jude Fontaine and her partner, Uriah Ashby, to more bodies in the ice, all of twelve-year-old boys missing for twenty years...Categorized as:
mystery suspense contemporary dark abuse strong heroine heroine sleuth length-medium -
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Can't Go Back by Debra Webb
Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe past and the present collide in the final installment of USA Today bestselling author Debra Webb’s Devlin & Falco series, threatening everything these two detectives care about.Birmingham detectives Kerri Devlin and Luke Falco arrive at the scene of a double homicide to discover that nothing makes sense... -
Unbreakable by Cari Hunter
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsDr. Grace Kendal never stands a chance. The injured woman comes out of nowhere, bleeding heavily and holding a gun. Compelled to help her, Grace is dragged into Elin Breckenridge’s nightmare. Their fight to survive will take them across the country and to the limits of their endurance... -
Last Word by Heather Long, Blake Blessing
Kill them allIt was always me and Daddy, but now I have another family to protect.From the day my father didn’t come home, my life changed irrevocably. From my earliest memories, I’d always known what I would do. Daddy hunted the monsters and when I was old enough, he let me help.Under his tutelage, I trained, studied, and learned... -
The Dark Bones by Loreth Anne White
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsShe’s come back to solve the mystery of her father’s death and confront her own dark past. When Detective Rebecca North left her rural hometown, she vowed never to return. Her father’s apparent suicide has changed that. The official report is that retired cop Noah North shot himself, knocked over a lantern, and set his isolated cabin ablaze. But Rebecca cannot believe he killed himself... -
Ugly by Marie James
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsHooking up with a cop was supposed to be fun.How joking with Detective Lennox Maison about her handcuffs transformed into her actually arresting me was something I could’ve never predicted.I thought it was a joke at first, but what kind of person would joke about the murder of a local woman?Lennox claimed I was the last one to see her alive.I should have an alibi... -
Away from the Dark by Aleatha Romig
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsNine months ago, Sara Adams awoke with no memory. The man holding her hand told her she’s a member of The Light, a tight-knit religious group led by the terrifying and charismatic Father Gabriel. As a woman in the community of The Light, her duty is to be unquestionably obedient and to submit to the will of her husband... -
Cold Silence by Toni Anderson
Rated: 4.51 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsRead the next edge-of-your-seat Romantic Thriller from New York Times bestselling author, Toni Anderson.FBI Hostage Rescue Team member Shane Livingstone is frustrated when an injury sidelines him during an operation to catch a sadistic killer. A killer who auctions off vicious ways to torture his victims and screens the events for money on the dark web... -
Extreme Risk by Jane Blythe
Rated: 4.54 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsCan she accept an offer of help from a patient she’s attracted to?Dr. Piper Hamilton is used to keeping on the fringes. She knows what it's like to be responsible for the death of someone you love and she'd do anything to protect herself from feeling that pain again... -
Murder Girl by Lisa Renee Jones
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones returns with the second book in her electrifying series featuring Lilah Love, an FBI profiler who doesn’t fight her dark side—she embraces it. It’s Lilah Love’s job to inhabit a killer’s mind. The unapologetically tough FBI profiler is very comfortable there. But her latest case is making her head spin... -
Code Name: Gemini by Janie Crouch, Danielle M. Haas
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsTasha Volkov has been on the run for three years from a brutal cartel who want her her family.She already paid a heavy price for crossing them, and has the scars to prove it. Her only choice is to keep running, even if the tiny town of Pine Valley feels more like home to her than anywhere else she's ever been... -
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Bed of Roses by D.V. Fischer
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsI never thought I'd fall for a murderer. As an old employee at a funeral home, Tegan's life had been full of corpses. When her parents died, she couldn't take being surrounded by death anymore. She had to get away, and to do that, she moved to a small, sleepy town in Utah. When Tegan rented a house sight-unseen, she had been told it would need a lot of work...Categorized as:
mystery suspense dark grumpy sunshine contemporary bdsm from hate to love length-short -
Edge of Darkness by Karen Rose
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe fourth and final book in Karen Rose's nail-biting Cincinnati Series revisits your favourite characters battling crime in the city's dark underbelly. Fans of Tess Gerritsen, James Patterson and Karin Slaughter will not be able to tear themselves away from this explosive thriller. Homicide detective Adam Kimble is no stranger to battling demons...Categorized as:
suspense mystery contemporary abuse dark friends to lovers second chances length-epic -
Killman Creek by Rachel Caine
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 42 ratingsEvery time Gwen closed her eyes, she saw him in her nightmares. Now her eyes are open, and he’s not going away.Gwen Proctor won the battle to save her kids from her ex-husband, serial killer Melvin Royal, and his league of psychotic accomplices. But the war isn’t over. Not since Melvin broke out of prison. Not since she received a chilling text…You’re not safe anywhere now... -
The Water Keeper by Charles Martin
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsA riveting new story of heroism, heartache, and the power of love to heal all wounds. Murphy Shepherd is a man with many secrets. He lives alone on an island, tending the grounds for a church with no parishioners, and he’s dedicated his life to rescuing those in peril. But as he mourns the loss of his mentor and friend, Murph himself may be more lost than he realizes... -
Custody Battles by Gregory Ashe
Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsSome parents would die for their children. Others will do a whole lot worse.Emery Hazard and his husband, John-Henry Somerset, are settling into their new normal—at home, with the latest addition to their family, and at work, as Somers adapts to his new role and Hazard manages his expanding agency. The only thing Hazard is worried about is getting through dinner with his in-laws... -
The Ghostwriter by Alessandra Torre
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsI have three months to write the last book of my life. Three months to confess the details of that day, and how it changed everything for me. My name is Helena Ross. I’ve written fifteen romance novels, ten of which have become international bestsellers. But this one isn't a romance, no Happily Ever After in place. This novel holds only the truth, which I have run away from for four years...Categorized as:
mystery suspense dark contemporary tearjerkers competent heroine rich heroine length-medium -
Murder Girl by Lisa Renee Jones
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones returns with the second book in her electrifying series featuring Lilah Love, an FBI profiler who doesn’t fight her dark side—she embraces it. It’s Lilah Love’s job to inhabit a killer’s mind. The unapologetically tough FBI profiler is very comfortable there. But her latest case is making her head spin... -
Club Mafia – The Demon by Stella Andrews
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsThey call me The Demon for a reason and Eliza Ortega is about to find out why.A runaway mafia princess who stumbled from one nightmare to an even bigger one.She has something I want and I intend on collecting.I will stop at nothing to deliver my promise and if there are casualties I will consider it a good day at the office.My hobby is testing limits... -
The Body Counter by Anne Frasier
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsFrom a New York Times bestselling author comes the chilling follow-up to the Thriller Award winner The Body Reader. Months after discovering the mastermind behind her own kidnapping, Detective Jude Fontaine is dealing with the past the only way she knows how: by returning to every dark corner of it... -
The Good Lie by A.R. Torre
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsSix teens murdered. A suspect behind bars. A desperate father. In a case this shadowy, the truth is easy to hide.Six teenagers dead. Finally, the killer behind bars. But are the games just beginning?Psychiatrist Dr. Gwen Moore is an expert on killers... -
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Texas Bodyguard: Chance by Janie Crouch
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsShe has secrets she prefers to keep hidden.Too bad he’s so good at getting to the truth.When a violent attack puts Maci Ford in the hospital, security expert Chance Patterson learns that she’s carrying his baby. Even though she ended their relationship, he’s determined to do whatever it takes to protect her and their child... -
Opal by Freya Barker
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsGEM: A PRIVATELY-FUNDED ORGANIZATION OPERATING INDEPENDENTLY IN THE SEARCH FOR—AND THE RESCUE AND RECOVERY OF—MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN. ALTHOUGH, AT TIMES WORKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT, GEM AIMS TO ENSURE THE VICTIMS RECEIVE JUSTICE…BY WHATEVER MEANS NECESSARY. ____GEM Operator Opal; multifaceted, versatile, a chameleon.She hides in plain sight, adapts, and infiltrates...Categorized as:
suspense mystery single-father dark mature couple forced proximity contemporary length-medium -
Out of Nowhere by Sandra Brown
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 21 ratings#1 New York Times bestselling author Sandra Brown returns with a fast-paced, emotional thriller where the lives of a young mother and a high-rolling consultant collide under devastating circumstances—culminating in a desperate manhunt that will change their futures forever... -
Divine Proportion by Cole McCade
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsWhile Captain Anjulie Zarate y Salazar faces a crisis of loyalty at home, Malcolm Khalaji faces another crisis in Los Angeles—one that will test him to his absolute limits.And that crisis is named Yoon Eun-Ji... -
Deep Spiral by Cole McCade
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsABOUT THIS EPISODE A deadly, unstable shooter. A trap Malcolm and Seong-Jae can't escape. And more than one life on the line as they find themselves facing down one of the Golden Ratio Killer's proxies in a high-stakes hostage situation that could ramp up the serial murderer's mathematical body counts exponentially. And if Malcolm and Seong-Jae aren't careful, they'll be among the tally... -
Hard Angle by Cole McCade
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsUnsettled tensions from the last case come to a head as Seong-Jae reveals his secrets — but will it be enough to repair the fractures in his relationship with Malcolm?Especially when their only promising lead on the Golden Ratio Killer's identity falls apart, along with any hope of returning home to Baltimore and to their life together.When their primary suspect turns up dead..... -
Layered Lies by Kaylie Hunter
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTwo years after her son was abducted, Kelsey Harrison rebuilds a new life for herself. She opens a store, makes new friends, and settles into a peaceful existence. At least, that’s what she hopes the world believes.Behind closed doors, Kelsey hunts her enemies, living a life of lies. She hasn’t forgotten, hasn’t forgiven. She searches for answers still... -
Six Degrees of Separation by Taylor V. Donovan
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 13 ratings*WARNING FROM THE AUTHOR: By Degrees is an ensemble serial with continuing story lines. Six Degrees of Separation is the second installment, and it must be read after Six Degrees of Lust. Thanks. In the sequel to Six Degrees of Lust, F.B.I. team leader Samuel Shaughnessy and bar manager Machlan O’Bannon are exploring a new phase in their non-relationship... -
Hear No Evil by Ivy Fox
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsEvil cannot take hold of an unconsenting soul.Do not be amazed that hell is empty, since all the devils live here.One by one, they will meet their hellish fate.One down…Three to go.EastonA tyrannous society has discovered our most atrocious secret and decided to wage war on us.They’ve had their fun with Finn, and now it’s my turn to be their little puppet...Categorized as:
suspense mystery new adult dark from hate to love college contemporary length-medium -
Deliver Us From Evil by Monica James
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMonsters are real…and that monster is me.I’ve surrendered. I have no other choice.With Babydoll gone, I’m going to do whatever it takes to find her.I will lie.Cheat.Murder…and I’ll do so with a smile.I’ll even sell my soul to the devil…because that’s who my father, Sean Kelly, is. He won’t stop until Belfast is his. He knows I’m at my breaking point... -
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It's Our Secret by W. Winters
From romance author Willow Winters comes a USA Today best-selling emotionally gripping, standalone, romantic suspense. Allison: It was only a little lie.That’s how stories like these get started.But with every lie I told, he saw through it.I think in his heart he knew I was broken; he felt my pain as if it was his.And that’s what changed everything.He’s the reason it all fell apart... -
Never Look Back by Mary Burton
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsExpect the unexpected in this gritty, tense, and page-turning mystery from New York Times bestselling author Mary Burton.After multiple women go missing, Agent Melina Shepard of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation makes the impulsive decision to go undercover as a prostitute... -
Mystic River by Dennis Lehane
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 46 ratingsWhen they were children, Sean Devine, Jimmy Marcus, and Dave Boyle were friends. But then a strange car pulled up to their street. One boy got into the car, two did not, and something terrible happened -- something that ended their friendship and changed all three boys forever.Twenty-five years later, Sean is a homicide detective. Jimmy is an ex-con who owns a corner store... -
Watch Your Back by Karen Rose
A cold case reopened. A murderer re-emerging more deadly than ever before… Baltimore Homicide Detective Stevie Mazzetti has suffered losses no woman should have to endure. And, despite it all, she’s still a fighter. When she learns that her ex-partner might have miscarried justice, she’s determined to put the past to rights, even when she becomes a target...Categorized as:
suspense mystery contemporary military dark single-mother explicit-open-door length-long -
The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsThe latest installment in the highly acclaimed, internationally bestselling Strike series finds Cormoran and Robin ensnared in another winding, wicked case.When frantic, dishevelled Edie Ledwell appears in the office begging to speak to her, private detective Robin Ellacott doesn't know quite what to make of the situation... -
Find Her by Lisa Gardner
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 36 ratings* This is an updated cover of this Kindle edition. *Lisa Gardner's runaway New York Times bestseller—a fast-paced thrill ride featuring Detective D. D. Warren.Seven years ago, carefree college student Flora Dane was kidnapped while on spring break. For 472 days, Flora learned just how much one person can endure... -
Out of Nowhere by Sandra Brown
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 24 ratings#1 New York Times bestselling author Sandra Brown returns with a fast-paced, emotional thriller where the lives of a young mother and a high-rolling consultant collide under devastating circumstances—culminating in a desperate manhunt that will change their futures forever... -
A Reckless Note by Lisa Renee Jones
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 17 ratings“I can chase you, and I can catch you, but there is nothing I can do to make you mine.” ― Morrissey It all started with a note, just a simple note hand written by a woman I didn't know, never even met. But in that note is perhaps every answer to every question I've ever had in my life. And because of that note, I travel thousands of miles. I look for her, but find him... -
Only Time Will Tell by Jeffrey Archer
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsFrom the internationally bestselling author of Kane and Abel and A Prisoner of Birth comes Only Time Will Tell, the first in an ambitious new series that tells the story of one family across generations, across oceans, from heartbreak to triumph. The epic tale of Harry Clifton’s life begins in 1920, with the words “I was told that my father was killed in the war... -
Wrath by Gwyn McNamee
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 5 ratingsAll I see is red.Blood.Pain.Rage.It consumes me.The moment he took her, wrath invaded my soul.I only have one purpose. End him and take back what’s mine. Love isn’t always clean, and wrath is the deadliest sin... -
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Requiem & Reverie by Keri Lake
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 5 ratingsFrom USA Today Bestselling author Keri Lake comes an intense and gritty romantic thriller that'll have you turning the pages well past your bedtime. It takes a killer to catch a killer. And no one understands the motives of ruthless murderer, The Sandman, quite like Rhett Voss. Having spent his childhood in the shadows of the deranged lunatic, he’s become an expert on the topic... -
The Chameleon by Amelia Shea
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 5 ratingsTwo hundred fifty dollars. It’s exactly what Camille Gwin was worth twelve years ago when she was traded to the leader of the Underground to pay off a debt. Barely an adult, she was initiated into the harsh reality of a new world. The Underground. Camille knows how it works. Play the game or get played. Her rise in the Underground came at a cost... -
Tangled up in Hate by Charlotte Byrd
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsEpic love requires an epic sacrifice… A long time ago, I borrowed money from a very powerful family. I paid my debt, but they have come for more. They want everything that I have built and they will hurt her if I refuse. Harley doesn’t understand why I have to break her heart. She hates me, but at least she’s okay…for now... -
Tease Me: A Stark International Novel by J. Kenner
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFrom New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J. Kenner comes a new story in her Stark International series…Entertainment reporter Jamie Archer knew it would be hard when her husband, Stark Security Chief Ryan Hunter, was called away for a long-term project in London. The distance is difficult to endure, but Jamie trusts the deep and passionate love that has always burned between them... -
The Night Blossoms by Leylah Attar
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Leylah Attar returns with a page-turning romantic suspense/thriller that careens down an emotional highway toward a chilling finale. Dark, thrilling, and ingeniously unpredictable...Categorized as:
suspense mystery dark pregnancy friends to lovers contemporary multicultural length-medium -
Duck's Salvation by Andi Rhodes
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsDuck…I finally have the life I want: an amazing fiancée, a baby on the way, Satan’s Legacy MC as my family. And then an accident, or my own stupidity, changes the course of my life forever. Unable to look at me, my fiancé removes herself from the picture, leaving me with a premature baby who requires more love and care than I know how to give...
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