Showing results by narrator "Patrick Lawlor" in All Categories

Remember the twin golden rules of hitchhiking? #1: Don't go hitchhiking, because the driver who picks you up could be certifiably crazy. #2: Don't pick up hitchhikers, because the traveler you pick up could be certifiably crazy. So what if, on some dark, isolated road, Crazy #1 offered a ride to Crazy #2? When Blake Crouch and Jack Kilborn face-off, the result is a terrifying tale of hitchhiking gone terribly wrong. Like a deeply twisted version of an "After School Special," SERIAL is the single most persuasive public service announcement on the hazards of free car rides.

After 10 years in prison, the man convicted of murdering Detective Wade Jackson's parents declares his innocence. After two years in a coma, a woman suspected of attempted suicide awakens, claiming her ex-husband tried to kill her. Now, two of the most baffling cases facing the Violent Crimes Unit of Eugene, Oregon, will put Jackson and his protégée, Detective Lara Evans, through their most grueling investigations yet.

What does a man drugged and slashed to death by an unknown assailant have to do with a woman felled by a fatal heart attack after learning her bank account had been plundered? The cases seem as different as their scenarios - late night in a tavern parking lot and early the next morning inside a bank. But a troubling theory soon unites them: Was the first crime's murder victim the second crime's mastermind?

The shocking suicide of Beth Daniels' father - a prominent surgeon - has thrown the FBI agent into a tailspin. But when Beth heads to Saint Augustine, Florida, for the funeral, she'll need more than the emotional support of her boyfriend, retired detective Jon Lancaster. She'll need his gut instinct for solving a mystery. No sooner do they arrive than suspicions are aroused. There's the pair of Russians who seem to be watching every move the family makes

Hollywood, 1940: It's been four years since security guard Toby Peters got fired from the Warner Brothers lot for breaking a screen cowboy's arm. Since then he's scratched out a living as a private detective - but now his old friends, the Warners, have a job for him. Someone has mailed the studio a picture of Errol Flynn caught in a compromising position with an underage woman. Although Flynn insists it's a fake, the studio is taking no chances. Peters is to deliver the blackmailer 5,000 dollars and return with the photo negative.

At the end of an especially raucous day at his neighborhood bar, private eye Leo Waterman is surprised to see his old flame, Rebecca Duval, walk in the door. But King County's medical examiner is here on business, not pleasure. Two dead bodies, covered by an old coat that once belonged to Leo's father, have turned up in the trunk of a car. The only thing that seems to connect the men is a controversial local church and its charismatic pastor.

Hearing a dying stranger call you by name would leave anyone full of questions. When it happens to private eye Leo Waterman, the more he learns about the late lottery winner's rags-to-riches-to-ruination life, the more he wants not just answers but justice. That means a road trip to Idaho to find out how a good-hearted young man with millions got skinned - in more ways than one. It's all downhill from there as Leo gets roped into an ugly battle between elderly ranchers and a ruthless developer who knows how to make a killing.

Who slaughtered Jared and Carla Walker and their young son in their own home? Only their teenage daughter, the sole survivor, knows the truth. But it’s buried in her traumatized mind - leaving Detective Wade Jackson to weigh a tangle of inconclusive evidence and size up a gallery of suspects. A gang of carjackers may have graduated to home invasion and homicide, but Jackson’s not ruling out a bitter brother-in-law convinced the Walkers ripped him off big-time, a young heroin addict in forbidden love with the family’s daughter, or the former employer Jared Walker had on the blackmail hook.

When a homeless woman says she’s the mother of a deceased rock idol, sometimes-private-eye Leo Waterman takes it upon himself to investigate the lady’s claim. With the help of "the Boys", a band of dissolute deputies, Leo begins a life-threatening pursuit of the truth nobody wants to hear.

When a call from his daughter, Katie, interrupts his much-needed vacation, Detective Wade Jackson knows it’s bad news. His ex-wife, Renee, has disappeared and Jackson heads home to discover she’s been kidnapped. That same weekend, a young University of Oregon student is brutally beaten and dumped naked at the ER. As Jackson teams with FBI Agent Carla River to retrace Renee’s movements and handle a high-tech, fast-moving ransom demand, Detective Lara Evans must identify the young assault victim, then track down the assailant with no leads to go on…except the whispered rumor of a secret sorority.

This funny and insightful science fiction classic introduces Shoogar, the greatest wizard ever known in his village. His spells can strike terror in the hearts of even his most powerful enemies. But the enemy he faces now is like none he has ever seen before. The stranger has come from nowhere and is ignorant of even the most basic principles of magic. But the stranger has an incredibly powerful magic of his own. There is no room in Shoogar's world for an intruder whose powers match his own, let alone one whose powers might exceed his.

Moneyball meets medicine in this remarkable chronicle of one of the greatest scientific quests of our time - the groundbreaking program to answer the most essential question for humanity: How do we live and die? - and the visionary mastermind behind it.

Taking the battle deep into Arh’Kel territory, Colonel Jenkins, Major Xi Bao, and the newly promoted Captain Podsednik are challenged both in space and on the ground. Can they gain superiority in orbit while Legion mechs are landside? Can heavy metal win the ground? Working together. Fighting separately. Losing means losing the war. Win the battle. Win the prize. Humanity is poised to take its place as the leader of all races. Everything hinges on the Metalheads in their mechs.

In the 21st century, many of the most successful companies focus on the development, success, and happiness of their own employees first. That's because they know engaged employees will enthusiastically take ownership of selling products and serving customers. Not surprisingly, they also know that in the end strong sales and profitability will follow. Are you ready to re-prioritize your people?

America's problem with race has deep roots, with the country's foundation tied to the near extermination of one race of people and the enslavement of another. Racism is truly our nation's original sin. "It's time we right this unacceptable wrong", says best-selling author and leading Christian activist Jim Wallis. Fifty years ago, Wallis was driven away from his faith by a white church that considered dealing with racism to be taboo.

101 Smart Questions to Ask on Your Interview is for every job candidate who thinks the question "do you have any questions for me?" marks the end of an interview. In Fry's view it marks the beginning of the last and perhaps most important interview phase - one that's so important that failing to properly prepare for it can undo all the rest of your hard work, including providing great answers to tough questions.

Corporations can no longer just worship the bottom line. Consumers and customers want to be associated with brands that align with their values. For business success today, your company needs to tell a compelling story that creates engagement, word-of-mouth, and brand loyalty. The Hook gives you a proven methodology to create a compelling narrative, then shows you how to share your story with the world and get consumers and customers to listen to and remember your message.

In this original short story, Brockmann returns with some of her most beloved characters from the Troubleshooters world: Izzy Zanella and his friends in US Navy SEAL Team Sixteen. What should be an easy training jump for SEAL Team Sixteen goes horribly wrong, forcing Izzy Zanella to do what he does best: improvise - at 30,000 feet.

Private eyes Jim Snow and Alice James are baffled by their new client, Cassie Lane, a buxom casino slot technician who hires them to investigate the murder of her ex-lover, Billy Ryan. Billy, a professional horseplayer, has been shot outside his home after a night at the casino with his friend Dean Kale. Later, his stolen car strikes and kills a pregnant teen in a hit-and-run not far from the scene of his murder.

Harry Camden came out of the wilderness unwillingly. It was a girl who attracted him. But Sparrow Roberts, a fight manager, used this romantic lure only to attract Harry into his own sphere, because he knew that Camden had a truly devastating punch.