If you could start over, brand new? New town, new name, new neighbors, and a chance to put a bloody past behind you?

Would you risk everything to come to the aid of someone you barely knew?

When Shannon Winters answers a desperate cry for help from a woman whose grandson died in county lockup from an alleged overdose, she thinks it’s an unfortunate but familiar story. Black, brown and poor white addicts barely rate a mention on the news or get a fair shake from a justice system stacked against them when they’re on the outside, let alone incarcerated. But something about the story resonates, and she takes up the woman’s cause. Ultimately, she finds herself wading into a vast criminal conspiracy which includes corrupt elements of law enforcement, and the wrong kinds of people notice. The more she digs, and the more questions she asks, the more she becomes a threat. And these people have ways to deal with threats. When an attempt on her life hits close to home, Ricky Hynes can only think of one man who can help. There’s a problem, though.

That man is dead.

As his best friend and one of the very few people who know otherwise, Ricky has a decision to make. He knows if the world learns Noah Winston is alive, the top spot on the FBI’s Most Wanted list is a certainty and a cold cell awaits. But Ricky also knows Shannon’s would-be killers won’t stop until they’re successful.

Deep down Ricky knows doing nothing is not an option.

When he gets Ricky’s call, the man now known simply as Hines is living in a small town on the west coast. His neighbors think he is a consultant for a defense contractor who travels frequently for business. He does, but unbeknownst to them he’s no hands-off consultant. He is what he has always been. A killer of men, and that type of business is always booming. Nevertheless, he otherwise lives a quiet, unassuming life, is friendly with neighbors, and has grown especially close with a couple of kids on the street. He seems to finally be free of the burning need for revenge which consumed him for decades and is as close to at peace as a man like him can be. He probably should have known it wouldn’t last.

Even dead men have a duty.

Readers will re-connect with familiar characters in this sequel to Ties That Kill and meet new ones as a global conspiracy is uncovered, one run by a ruthless organization that preys on the most vulnerable among us and employs a cadre of professional killers to protect itself. These people are used to working in the shadows, pulling the levers of power from afar. But they’re about to find out the shadows are a perfect place for a dead man to operate.

Silent Justice Book II, Dead Man’s Duty, is available from Tule Publishing today!

About the Author

Fran Thomas finds one of the most difficult things about the writing process is trying to find the absolute right genre to describe his books. Mystery, thriller, suspense, multicultural, Black/African-American, crime/conspiracy? As a former Principal, he now appreciates the D. All of the above option his students had on many tests.

Desperate to find heroes who looked like him while growing up, Fran gravitated to Marvel comics, and appreciated how its diverse heroes challenged cultural stereotypes. Iconic characters like the Black Panther, Storm and Luke Cage added unique perspectives and contexts to dynamic storytelling, as did anti-heroes like The Punisher. His Silent Justice series continues that tradition.

When not writing, he can typically be found in the gym, Krav Maga dojo or reading–Marvel comics are still a staple. A lifelong New Englander, he is eagerly awaiting the springtime arrival of his first grandchild.

New month, new mysteries! Whether you’re looking for a mystery with political intrigue, procedural  mystery, or a Nun in Seattle, we’ve got the perfect read.

GIVEAWAY: Because who doesn’t love FREE books?

We will pick ONE winner to receive a digital book of their choice from the March mystery releases.

Comment down below saying which book you’re looking most forward to reading! Giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY. The winner will be randomly selected and announced at the end of the month.

Good luck and happy reading!

Something Prowling in Paradise Park

by Kris Bock

Three cases. One body. Zero chance of staying out of trouble.

Kate Tessler may have thought her days of chasing danger were over. But the former war correspondent’s “retirement” in sunny Paradise, Arizona, is anything but quiet. With her eccentric circle of friends and colleagues, Kate has built a new life—full of mysteries, mayhem, and the occasional stakeout—as she works towards earning her PI license.

After wrapping her last case, Kate wonders what’s next when three cases—all brought by friends—fall into her lap. Squatters in a snowbird’s house, local pedigree dogs disappearing, and smash and grab burglaries at local pot shops. Kate juggles the cases with help from her usual cast of amateur crime solvers, including the teen sons of Paradise’s mayor. As she digs, Kate suspects at least two cases are connected.

But things turn deadly when a late-night stakeout leads Kate and one teen sidekick, interested in investigative work, straight to a body. Was it a gruesome accident—or something far more sinister?

With humor and high stakes, The Accidental Detective mysteries prove that danger and friendship don’t retire quietly.

Enjoy an Excerpt →

Gone in Three Seconds

by Jim De La Vega

A human time bomb has three minutes. Cassidy Chord has even less.

A terrified woman bursts into a Los Angeles ER with a fresh tattoo she swears she didn’t get. The numbers on her skin count down.

00:03 — BOOM.

The explosion kills the victim and a nurse. Hours later, a businessman in the LAX baggage claim detonates the same way.

Former Blackhawk pilot, now forensic psychologist Dr. Cassidy Chord survived the blast that destroyed her leg, but nothing’s prepared her to pit wits against a foe turning random civilians into walking weapons. The terrorist has stalked and studied Cassidy, engaging her in his sick game — leaving her gifts, clues, and disappearing pictures and emails that turn her from FBI consultant to suspect.

As attacks escalate across Los Angeles, Cassidy goes rogue because anyone can be next. Anywhere. Anytime. If you’re marked, you’re already gone.

Tick. Tick. Tick. BOOM.

Enjoy an Excerpt →

Fatal Silence

by Carol Light

Lexie Gilroy thought running the family construction office for a week would be routine—until thieves rumble off with their brand-new bulldozer before sunrise. She knows one of the criminals. He once saved her life. Now she wants answers, and she’s not waiting for the police to hand them over.

Reporter Jack Huddleston is chasing redemption, and Southern Pines board member Cal Kinney has his own suspicions about missing money. They, too, would rather keep the law at arm’s length while they get their facts straight.

And Crossroads police chief Tim Birch has a big problem of his own. The FBI has informed him of a link between their quiet town, a truck driver stabbed in a bar fight, and an international theft ring.

Secrets here run deeper than anyone guessed. And in Crossroads, loyalty can be the most dangerous weapon of all. If Lexie, Tim, and two unlikely allies don’t trust the right people—and the wrong ones at the right time—they’ll be the next names added to a killer’s list.

Enjoy an Excerpt →

Dead Man’s Duty

by Fran Thomas Jr.

When the truth is buried deep, digging can be deadly.

Investigative reporter Shannon Winters is stuck covering lifestyle fluff—until a desperate Black grandmother begs her to uncover the truth behind her grandson’s death in prison. Officially ruled a suicide, the young inmate’s death hides something far darker: a cover-up pointing to retaliation by someone with far-reaching power.

Shannon’s pursuit unravels a network of corruption, trafficking, and international crime. When trained killers come for her, she survives only because of the intervention of Noah Winston—a man believed to be dead, now living under an assumed name and working sanctioned (and unsanctioned) black ops missions against the cartels.

Noah knows helping Shannon could blow his cover and possibly land him behind bars. She knows trusting him could put her investigation—and her life—in greater danger. But as the conspiracy tightens its grip, both face the same reality: walking away means letting the truth die with them.

To expose the killers, they’ll have to stay one step ahead … or become the next bodies to disappear.

Enjoy an Excerpt →

Framed

by Anna J. Stewart

When photographer Riley Temple develops a roll of film and uncovers an image of a murdered woman, she becomes the target of a deadly Hollywood conspiracy. The deeper she digs, the clearer it becomes that someone powerful wants her silenced.

Her only ally is LAPD Detective Quinn Burton, a man whose loyalty to his family and the force is as unshakable as his attraction to Riley. Their partnership sparks an undeniable chemistry, but their investigation threatens to expose his father—the city’s police commissioner—as part of a secret society thriller that rules Los Angeles’s elite.

As Riley and Quinn race to uncover the truth, danger closes in. Caught between duty and desire, they’ll have to trust each other to survive. But in this world of love, lies, and corruption, trust could be the most dangerous choice of all.