Meet BTB Reviewer Stuart Ashenbrenner

 
 

Background: I grew up in the country, now living in Portland, Oregon. I'm the father to an awesome little girl. I read primarily thrillers and mysteries, but I will also venture into the classics when I can. I'm a huge women's basketball and hockey fan, and by day, work as a macOS Security Researcher.

Go-To Author: Tom Wood. His Victor series is a brutal as it is brilliant. A fantastic fictional look inside the mind of a cold-blooded killer.

Second, Dennis Lehane. He's famous for Mystic River and Shutter Island, but I love his Kenzie/Gennaro series. It's a first-person detective mystery that is just as fantastic in audiobook as the written version.

Author People Should Discover: Jordan Harper. If you haven't read She Rides Shotgun or Everybody Knows, you're missing out. Great noir-style novels.

William Kent Krueger. His standalones and his Cork O'Connor series are some of my new favorites. Visceral, emotional, and powerful.

Book You Would Recommend From 2023: All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby. Cosby is one of the best. His novels are dark, tense, but a treat to read. I finished this novel in barely over a day. It sucks you and hits hard.

Most-Anticipated Book Of 2024: Shadowheart by Meg Gardiner. Her UNSUB series is terrifyingly good. Caitlin Hendrix is one of my favorite protagonists, and I'm so excited to see her back on the pages again.

Favorite Local/Indie Bookstore: Broadway Books in Portland, OR. A small store in PDX, but with a great staff and a pile of great books.

Powell's in Portland, OR. Powell's is known for its enormity. It's fun to just go and hang out there for hours.

Favorite Charities: Objective-See. I'm nerding out here, but Patrick Wardle creates free Mac Security tools to help protect users against malware. I've supported him for years, and I hope you will too.

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View Stuart’s Latest Reviews (book pub. dates)

Nemesis by Gregg Hurwitz (2/11/25)
They All Fall The Same by Wes Browne (1/7/25)
Spirit Crossing by William by Kent Krueger (8/20/24)
Don't Let the Devil Ride by Ace Atkins (6/25/24)
Doe Run by Sean Jacques (6/18/24)
Shadowheart by Meg Gardiner (6/18/24)
Holy City by Henry Wise (6/4/24)
The Instruments of Darkness by John Connolly (5/7/24)
One of Our Own by Lucinda Berry (3/12/24)
Lone Wolf by Gregg Hurwitz (2/13/24)
The Exploit by Daniel Scanlan (9/14/23)
The Blue Hour Sanction by Landon Beach (8/29/23)
Lethal Range by Ryan Steck (8/15/23)
Deadlock by James Byrne (8/8/23)
The Last One by Will Dean (8/8/23)
All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby (6/6/23)
Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane (4/25/23)
Ozark Dogs by Eli Cranor (4/4/23)
The Sniper by Jim Lindsay (3/7/23)
The Last Orphan by Gregg Hurwitz (2/14/23)
The Fear of Winter by S.C. Sterling (1/18/23)
Everybody Knows by Jordan Harper (1/10/23)
Blaze Me a Sun by Christoffer Carlsson (1/3/23)
A History of Fear by Luke Dumas (12/6/22)
The Other Side of Night by Adam Hamdy (10/11/22)
The Furies by John Connolly (9/27/22)
Fields of Fire by Ryan Steck (9/6/22)
The Hacker by Daniel Scanlan (9/1/22)
Heat 2 by Meg Gardiner & Michael Mann (8/9/22)
The Neighborhood by Matthew Betley (8/9/22)
Dirt Creek by Hayley Scrivenor (8/2/22)
It Dies with You by Scott Blackburn (6/7/22)
Assassin's Edge by Ward Larsen (4/12/22)
The Paradox Hotel by Rob Hart (2/22/22)
Beneath the Stairs by Jennifer Fawcett (2/22/22)
Sierra Six by Mark Greaney (2/15/22)
Dark Horse by Gregg Hurwitz (2/8/22)
The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb (2/1/22)
The Runaway by Nick Petrie (1/18/22)
Targeted by Stephen Hunter (1/18/22)
Insurrection Day by Chris Hauty (1/4/22)
Armored by Mark Greaney (12/9/21)
The Body Man by Eric P. Bishop (11/11/21)
Final Spin by Jocko Willink (11/9/21)
The Last Protector by Simon Gervais (11/1/21)
The Nameless Ones by John Connolly (10/26/21)
Appointment in Tehran by James Stejskal (10/01/21)
Enemy at the Gates by Kyle Mills (9/14/21)
You Can Run by Karen Cleveland (8/31/21)
The Island by Ben Coes (8/17/21)
The Family Plot by Megan Collins (8/17/21)
The Mercenary’s Deception by Angela R. Watts (7/15/21)
Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby (7/6/21)
Sleeping Bear by Connor Sullivan (7/6/21)
Shadow Target by David Ricciardi (6/15/21)
Target Acquired by Don Bentley (6/8/21)
Chasing the Lion by A.J. Tata (6/1/21)
Basil's War by Stephen Hunter (5/4/21)
The Devil’s Hand by Jack Carr (4/13/21)
All the Violent Memories by J.B. Stevens (3/26/21)
Burying The Newspaper Man by Curtis Ippolito (3/16/21)
The Outside Man by Don Bentley (3/2/21)
A Man At Arms by Steven Pressfield (3/2/21)
Relentless by Mark Greaney (2/16/21)
Savage Road by Chris Hauty (1/5/21) 
A Violent Gospel by Mark Westmoreland (1/1/21)
Time to Hunt by Simon Gervais (11/10/20)
The Hidden Vector by Matthew Snyder (9/28/20)
Total Power by Kyle Mills (9/15/20)
The Dirty South by John Connolly (8/20/20)
Assassin's Strike by Ward Larsen (8/18/20)
The Grim Alliance by Angela R. Watts (7/22/20)
Near Dark by Brad Thor (7/21/20)
Blacktop Wasteland by y S.A. Cosby (7/14/20)
The Lincoln Conspiracy by Brad Meltzer (5/5/20)
Savage Son by Jack Carr (4/14/20)
Broken by Don Winslow (4/7/2020)
Without Sanction by Don Bentley (3/3/20)
One Minute Out by Mark Greaney (2/18/20)
Cities of the Plain by Cormac McCarthy (pub. 5/12/98)
The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy (pub. 6/7/94)
All The Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy (4/21/92)
The Orchard Keeper by Cormac McCarthy (5/5/65)

Nemesis By Gregg Hurwitz

When one of the only “friends” The Nowhere Man has ever had seemingly betrays his trust and his code, Evan Smoak aka The Nowhere Man aka former Orphan X, goes on the offensive, determined to uphold his Commandments. 

In the tenth installment in the Orphan X series, Gregg Hurwitz delivers yet another thriller that is sure to top the Best of 2025 lists next year. He is Escher with the pen, creating mind-bending twists and turns leaving you with your eyes crossed, but still willing his readers to finish yet another chapter. Hurwitz books are renowned thrillers due to their intricate, detailed yet spell-binding prose. It drifts readers across the pages like a musical staff, each note perfectly placed, complete with sharps and flats, false endings, and crescendos. Hurwitz is A Midsummer Night’s Dream or The Great Gatsby, and each novel leaves me intoxicated on X's vodka, sending me into a spiral as we await the next book in the series.

It’s hard to convey how well written and stellar these books are. This book takes a turn deep into the psyche of The Nowhere Man, battling with his ever-growing “human” side. As much as I yearn to learn more of Smoak’s relationship with Mia, this novel takes a sharp turn into his brotherhood with Tommy Stojack, the hilarious and gruff arms dealer. It is a beautifully knit tale of friendship, strife, silence, and doing the right thing.

One of my favorite parts of a Hurwitz book is his ability to weave in life lessons that the reader can literally take and implement into their lives — about being a proper human, about your relationship with yourself and your emotions, and friendship. 

This novel is bound to stick with readers for a long time. And I will now pour a plastic handle of Svedka into a highball glass with a dozen ice cubes to mourn the fact that I will dearly miss Smoak, Joey, Tommy, Dog, and Vera until the next time I pick up an Orphan X book. Come to think of it, now may be the perfect time to re-read the entire series…

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They All Fall The Same By Wes Browne

Burl Spoon is a cannabis kingpin in the south, but when his strung out daughter goes missing, leaving behind Spoon's granddaughter, he starts asking questions. When he discovers that his daughter died from an overdose on fentanyl-laced heroin, Burl demands retribution. Pitted against the Begley family, the heroin dealers that sold his daughter the drugs, Burl must pull his whole organization to exact revenge.

In a thrilling southern noir, Wes Browne delivers a gripping pulse-pounding novel that will keep you up late into the night. Burl, Clovis Begley, and the other cast of characters are intricate and interesting, each infused with a certain amount of chaos. The scenes and landscapes are so vividly painted that they transport you there, sitting in the humidity and heat. Each chapter rolls into the next, making you unable to stop reading. I found myself both loving and hating Burl, making this an emotional rollercoaster as you both hope for his success, yet pray for his demise.

Set right before and during the Covid-19 pandemic, this novel is replete with action, perfect for thrill-seekers. A wonderfully descriptive southern noir.

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Spirit Crossing By William By Kent Krueger

Cork O'Connor returns to the pages after a year hiatus in Spirit Crossing, one of my most anticipated books of 2024, and William Kent Krueger delivers in every sense of the word.

When the body of a missing girl is discovered on a remote piece of land by Cork O'Connor's family, the media swarms to Aurora, Minnesota looking for answers. Across town at Spirit Crossing, the protest of an oil pipeline that threatens the land of the Ojibwe is starting to turn more violent as police and protesters clash. Cork and his family are stuck in the middle, and due to his nephew's discovery of the body, the O'Connor family is suddenly in the crosshairs of the potential murderer.

Last year, I was talking to fellow BTB reviewer Steve Netter as we drove to a William Kent Krueger book event in Hood River, Oregon. I had read two Cork O'Connor novels, as well as the stand-alones, and Steve had told me he binged the entire Cork O'Connor series (19 books) over the course of a year because he loved them so much. Okay, I thought, I wonder if I could do the same and have them all finished in 11 months when Kent's next book, Spirit Crossing comes out. I started the first chronological book in Kent's series, titled Lightning Strike the day after Thanksgiving of 2023. I finished three in November, six in December, six more in January, and wrapped up the last four in February, as well as re-read each of the stand-alone novels in March. I have never read a series, especially such a long one, that quickly. I was instantly hooked. So you can imagine my anticipation and excitement when I got my hands on the twentieth book in the Cork O'Connor series, Spirit Crossing.

Over the course of a Kent book, you come to fall in love with the characters. They are down-to-earth, lovable (for the most part), and they always leave an impression. Spirit Crossing is no different, with the introduction of a few new characters into the series. Of course, one of the best parts of this series is the family dynamics between Cork and his children. You feel the love, the frustration, and the caring. 

Once again, Kent has delivered a harrowing, beautifully knit novel of mystery, love, and hope. He paints a beautiful picture of the landscape - Iron Lake, the stars peppering the night sky, the smell of the pines. By the end of the novel, you feel like you exist in Aurora, down at the end Gooseberry Lane, in the old Quonset hut called Sam's Place, or out on Crow Point with Meloux.

William Kent Krueger can leave you lost of breath, crying, or joyful - a master with the pen. There is no book I look forward to more than a Cork O'Connor novel, and Spirit Crossing was as engaging and exciting as it was picturesque and beautiful.

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Don't Let The Devil Ride By Ace Atkins

When the husband of Addison McKellar doesn't return from a work trip, Addison tries not to worry. But as the days turn into a week, she starts realizing that everything is not as it seems. Fueled by concern, she gets in contact with a private investigator, the legendary Porter Hayes of Memphis. As they start to untangle the lies and secrets, Porter and Addison look to uncover the mystery, and hopefully her husband as well. 

Don't Let the Devil Ride is a Faulknerian, mid-southern noir that is as thrilling and tense as it is witty. Atkins weaves an intriguing tale with deep characters that, although diverse, have that Ace Atkins signature. I found myself immediately hooked from the moment I met Addison, and her evolution throughout the novel was interesting and a joy to follow.  

Ace Atkins is a machine. He quite often pens multiple books in a single year, dozens in the Robert B. Parker series, as well as his own Quinn Colson and Nick Travers series. However, he came in swinging for the fences with a new standalone, and he blew the cover off of the ball with a moonshot into the bayou. He continues to churn out hit after hit, and Don't Let the Devil Ride is a genius blend of mystery whodunnit, thriller, and suspense.

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Doe Run By Sean Jacques

Doe Run, Missouri is small-town America. It features all of the trademarks - everybody knows everybody, the booze flows freely, and long running grudges hold true. As Pen Cullen returns to the town he grew up in, old relationships leap up like solar flares. The dynamic between the protagonist Penn Cullen, his former lover Tara, and childhood best friend Byron, is as interesting as it is dramatic. Old and new pain run rife through the town in this phenomenal debut thriller by Sean Jacques.

Doe Run was so interesting to me, as someone who grew up in a town of around 600 people and had a graduating class of 19. I returned on occasion, and the emotions that Jacques captured on these pages was as palpable as the smell of Copenhagen. The relationships were so intricate and complex, making you feel the pain of the characters.

This southern noir is terrific. It’s dark, gritty, and packed full of violence, infusing guilt and redemption into a classic thriller. The pages fly past like Cullen is his Firebird. I would love to read anything else Sean Jacques creates. 

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Shadowheart By Meg Gardiner

When 2021 came to an end, I hopped on a call with the rest of the BTB crew, and we gave our year-end award winners, while also mentioning what books in 2022 we were most looking forward to. I had mentioned that I was looking forward to an untitled Meg Gardiner book, although there had yet to be any mention of one. As I sat down, now in 2023 to read the newest novel in her UNSUB series, Shadowheart, I was so excited. 

 Meg Gardiner once again absolutely crushed it. With one of my favorite book series, Meg Gardiner delivered another brilliant serial killer thriller that will leave readers gasping for breath.

 When a killer, drunk out of his mind, drives his car into a police station parking lot with dead people in his backseat, Caitlin Hendrix is called in to investigate. The deeper she digs, and with the killer behind bars, she realizes there is a copycat - the Broken Heart Killer - killing people under the cover of night and dumping them in the river. The deeper Hendrix digs, the more she discovers about the killer and the copycat, racing against the clock, trying to stop the copycat before they kill another victim. On top of this, she is still trying to solve another investigation simultaneously.

 Meg Gardiner once again delivers a top-of-the-line thriller with Shadowheart. One of the most intriguing and pulse-pounding novels I've read in some time, I couldn't put it down. It's one of those 'read it while you walk around the house', 'read it while you eat breakfast', 'read it during work meetings', 'read it in the washroom' type of books. It was literally hair-raising (I took a picture of the goosebumps one of the parts gave me). Gardiner is second to none when it comes to crafting a twisting and turning plot, creating lovable and hateable characters, and keeping readers locked in from page one until well after the book is over. This is a novel I will remember for a long time - Gardiner's best book to date.

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Holy City By Henry Wise

When Will Seems returns to rural Southern Virginia as a deputy sheriff, he realizes that a place where he once called home, is anything but. Tom Janders, an old friend of Will's, is murdered and all of the evidence seems to point to a man whose innocence Will is certain of. Will Seems traverses through old hardships, unhealed wounds of the past, and a town who hasn't forgotten the transgressions of old. 

In one of the best debuts I've read to date, Henry Wise weaves a brilliant tale of small town, southern noir. It touches every piece of what it is like to be from a small town -- where you're defined as you were as a child, where you're known for your follies, where gossip reigns supreme. Holy City infused a detective mystery with a police procedural and out popped an enthralling, captivating southern noir thriller that kept me reading early into the morning. 

This was one of those novels that touched my heart, reached deep into my soul, and tugged at my emotions. Wise has crafted a beautiful novel, replete with all of the trademarks of a fantastic thriller. 

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The Instruments Of Darkness By John Connolly

One of the darkest, most terrifying books of recent memory, John Connolly returns Charlie Parker to the pages with a book that will be sure to keep you up reading late into the night, even if it's just so you don't have to close your eyes. The Instruments of Darkness is shaping up to be on the best books of 2024. 

When young Henry Clark goes missing from his home in the middle of the night, and his bloodied blanket is found in the trunk of his mother's car, lawyer Moxie Castin is called in to handle the murder defense. Moxie, in turn, brings in private detective Charlie Parker to assist with the defense. As Parker begins to turn over stones and talk to witnesses, it's discovered that maybe there are more mysteries and questions around the boy's disappearance than initially speculated. Parker's questions take him across Maine, speaking with gangsters, gun runners, lawyers, the DA, psychics, and everything in between. Parker races against the clock, slowly ticking away until the mother, Colleen, goes on trial. 

In another fantastic addition to the Charlie Parker franchise, The Instruments of Darkness is another twisting drive down a dark, wooded road, where the trees are retaking their land and everything that lies within it.  

I was quickly enraptured within the pages, and readers can't help but descend into this darkness right alongside Parker. Connolly brilliantly blurs the lines between thriller, crime, and horror, with a touch of the supernatural in the way only Connolly can. It's another terrifying ride in the Charlie Parker universe that is guaranteed to stop your heart.

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One Of Our Own By Lucinda Berry

In an enthralling, captivating audio adventure comes the next smash hit from Lucinda Berry. With fascinating characters and a storyline that seemingly swerved all over the road, One Of Our Own is an audiobook that I blazed through in a single weekend.

At night, when Felicia isn’t working as a lawyer, she fields phone calls from the Suicide Prevention Hotline. One life-altering evening, a call comes through from a young woman who is contemplating ending her life. As Felicia tries to learn more about the girl, she comes across a startling discovery — that her son attends the same high school. Breaking all protocol, Felicia gives out her personal cell number for the girl to reach out. When she does, Felicia is determined to keep this girl alive and safe but at what cost to her own family?

One Of Our Own was impossible to “put down.” Told in a first person POV, I found myself enraptured by Felicia and the (very few) other characters in this story. I was so impressed with Berry’s ability to hold attention for the entirety of the story all the while just using a single POV. She ever so perfectly straddled the line between doing what’s right and taking care of your family - a tricky balance. She did it with such cunning and ease. I found myself so deeply pulled into this story in a way that no story has done for some time.

The narration is impeccable. AJ Cook and Tessa Albertson do a fantastic job. From the more contextual dialogue to crying and heavy emotions, they embodied the characters and truly brought them to life.

One Of Our Own is an instant classic, wrapping up the tell-tale 'stuck between a rock and a hard place' into prose and delivering a pulse-pounding thriller.

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Lone Wolf By Gregg Hurwitz

One of the deadliest assassins returns in the latest installment of the Orphan X series. Gregg Hurwitz delivers another action-packed, emotional ride through the hills of Los Angeles.

When Evan Smoak aka The Nowhere Man aka Orphan X is found depressed and drinking alone, his friend and computer whiz Joey convinces him to return to his work, but to do it slowly. Even though one of the Commandments states, One mission at a time, he agrees to find a small dog, and the mission quickly becomes a second mission when he witnesses an assassin kill a man. Evan Smoak barely saves the life of the man's daughter in the process. Now on the hunt for the killer, Smoak wanders through the darkest depths of Los Angeles in search of answers. From the alleys lined with the homeless to most expense, sprawling estates in the Hollywood hills, he searches high and low for answers. And he gets them.

If there is any character who has evolved the most over the course of his run, it's got to be Evan Smoak. He's still as sharp and lethal as ever, but the way that Hurwitz has morphed him from a stone cold killer to an actual human being is quite impressive. In Lone Wolf, Hurwitz intertwines artificial intelligence with money disparity, making it an interesting, thought-provoking thriller by one of the best in the business. I miss Evan's interactions with Nia, his neighbor down the hall in Castle Heights, but it was fun watching Smoak explore the other relationships with those in his building.

Gregg Hurwitz is such an incredible writer -- his prose is always so eloquent and poetic -- even when it's describing gruesome brutalism.

Lone Wolf is a crushingly brilliant piece of fiction. One of the books I look forward to most each year is the new Orphan X novel, and this book did not disappoint. Another fun and exciting joy ride through LA, thriller readers won't want to miss this.

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The Exploit By Daniel Scanlan

In one of my favorite new series comes the follow-up to the stellar debut by Daniel Scanlan, The Exploit, bringing back FBI Special Agent Ericka Blackwood in one of the best techno-thrillers ever written.

When the prolific hacker Dantalion escapes Blackwood's grasp, she has to put all of her time and resources into capturing him. When Dantalion resurfaces, it is with an incredibly sophisticated attack on Pakistan airspace, involving a carefully coordinated attack with drones. Sending the world to the brink of World War III, Blackwood knows her time is running short.

Coming off the intrigue and excitement of his debut novel, Scanlan crafted another hit thriller, with interesting technologies replete with terrifying hacking techniques that are realistic and so incredibly sophisticated. Out of all of the techno-thriller books I've read, or even just regular thrillers that employ some light tech references or hacking techniques, this series is by far the best. It is packed with cutting edge technology and fascinating hacking ideas (*taking notes*). Not only that, but Scanlan has crafted one of the best, and most interesting new characters in the genre in Ericka Blackwood.

The Exploit is a brilliant cross-genre concoction of thriller, techno-thriller, hacker lore, and realistic possibilities, making it a terrifying blend of a thriller that will leave readers wanting to go off grid and only returning to civilization to grab the new Daniel Scanlan book.

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The Blue Hour Sanction By Landon Beach

In one of the most intriguing books of the summer, Landon Beach's The Blue Hour Sanction delivers a perfect combination of fastballs, curveballs, and homeruns.

I was first introduced to Beach's novels with Huron Breeze a few years ago, and each book since helped perfectly parlay into The Blue Hour Sanction, which provides the origin story to Adrienne Astra. Where a small town girl becomes one of the most brilliant and lethal assassins, this novel wraps you up like a boxer's fists and blasts you in the jaw with each and every turn of the page. It was a dark read that had me locked in from page one with maybe the most lethal female protagonist I've ever seen grace the page. Beach's writing is second to none, and his talent truly shines through in this brilliantly crafted thriller.

With a novel so raw and gritty it felt like I had sand in my mouth, The Blue Hour Sanction is a great novel that all thriller fans will need to read this year. It works as a standalone as well, but once you read this, you'll want to know everything there is to know about Adrienne Astra. Don't miss one of the best reads of the summer!

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Lethal Range By Ryan Steck

Rarely do I curse when I finish a book, but as I wrapped up Lethal Range, I had an “Oh f***, it’s over” moment. It’s so difficult finishing a great novel because then you know the next book you read likely can’t compete. That’s what it was like finishing this barn burner. It was an all-out, thrilling, guns-blazing, superb sequel to Steck’s hit debut thriller, Fields of Fire. 

The story starts off with Matthew Redd off working in Spain when Redd authorizes an unauthorized raid and then realizing his team got set up. Even worse, back home in Montana, his wife and sick child are being intimidated by the Infidels MC gang. A suspended Redd quickly returns home to his family where he knows there’s a battle with the MC right around the corner. 

Ryan Steck’s follow-up to Fields of Fire is a brilliant, northern thriller. Blurring the lines between military thriller and western, Steck weaves multiple genres into an action-packed, movie-like novel - think Lonesome Dove but with more motorcycles and, somehow, more gunfire. Or Clint Eastwood in Sons of Anarchy.   

Do you like thrillers? Ok, then pick up a copy of this book. Do you like westerns? Then grab one. Do you like books at all? Do yourself a favor and pick one up. EVERYONE should read Lethal Range. Make sure this makes it one your reading list this year. 

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Deadlock By James Byrne

A witty and comedic page-turner, Deadlock continues James Byrne's Gatekeeper series with one of the most intriguing, fresh faces in the thriller genre.

Desmond 'Dez' Aloysius Limerick is trouncing around California when he gets a call from Raziah Swann, whose journalist sister in Portland, Oregon, is in the hospital after being mugged. Dez arrives and is immediately thrust into a potential conspiracy behind the tech giant in Oregon, Clockjack. Dez uses his Gatekeeper skills to open and close doors that aren't meant to be opened by the likes of him.

Dez has to use his size and wit to take on Clockjack in this action-packed thriller. It is such a brilliant follow-up to Byrne's debut. Dez is one of the more interesting characters I've read in some time. His hilarity and unique skills make him fascinating, propulsive goof that is a blast to read.

Rarely does a book, especially the sophomore novel, so vastly exceed my expectations, but James Byrne does that with his incredible thriller, Deadlock. Dez is one of the more dynamic characters to cross the page, and Deadlock is a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants novel that will grip readers right out of the gate. It's a must-read for those who enjoy Nelson Demille or a noir-style action novel.

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The Last One By Will Dean

From one of the top suspense writers in the genre comes a new, terrifying thriller that is sure to be a contender for the BTB Book of the Year. The Last One is the latest in brilliant novels by the ultra-talented Will Dean, who year after year proves he is one of the best writers doing it today. 

Caz Ripley is aboard the RMS Atlantica for a nice relaxing trip across the Atlantic Ocean with her boyfriend Pete. When she wakes up after the first night, she finds that Pete is not next to her. As she walks out into the hallway, she finds all of the cabin doors open, and EVERYONE is gone. Or are they??? How will she navigate this ship safely back to shore? How will she eat? Can she survive? 

Chapter-ending cliff hanger after chapter-ending cliff hanger, The Last One is a horrifying, nightmare-inducing thrill ride. It's rare for me to get so sucked in to a novel like this one. There are times I literally checked my heart rate BPM because this novel was so intense. I must admit, when I got through the first chapter or two, I was thinking, "How in the hell is Will going to keep up this pace for a whole book?" But good lord, did he ever! I'm going to need the next few days to mentally decompress. 

This book will expose your nerve endings and touch each and every one of them with a hot fire poker. With twist after twist and turn after turn, your head will be spinning, you'll fall ass over teakettle, and you'll never want to board a cruise-liner again. This book is not for the faint of heart and is a gut-wrenching ball of anxiety that will tug at your heart strings, but it is so damn good.

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All The Sinners Bleed By S.A. Cosby

From the master of southern noir comes a raw and gritty tour de force which cements Cosby as one of the top writers penning novels today. All the Sinners Bleed is a harrowing tale encompassing all aspects of a fantastic thriller. 

Titus Crown is the sheriff of Charon County in Virginia. On the first anniversary of his hiring, his radio comes alive, and Titus has to respond to a shooting at a local school. After the shooting is done, Titus uncovers what could be a serial killer on the loose, and it’s up to him and his deputies to find them. Titus's darkest prayer is to stay alive along enough to catch the killer. 

Cosby weaves together a terrifying story with his fourth novel. With each book, we see Cosby getting better and better, whether it be his story-telling or his characters. Titus Crown is such an intriguing, dynamic character who is every bit as fallible as the rest of us, but his flaws make him that much more likable and believable. All the Sinners Bleed melts social issues, mysteries, and that 'Sit down, let me tell you a story' feeling together into a maelstrom of emotional musicality, with each character acting as a different string on the violin of this story - some being low and booming; others a harmonic.  

It's been quite some time since I read a book in 24 hours. I was reading this book while trying to cook dinner, while 'watching' my kid, at the drive-thru, everywhere. This book was a beautifully dark, serial killer crime novel, and I felt, in my bones, that this was paying homage to one of my all-time favorite novels, Dennis Lehane's Darkness, Take My Hand. No doubt, it is one of the best books of the year. 

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Small Mercies By Dennis Lehane

Small Mercies is a tour de force cementing Dennis Lehane as one of the top thriller writers of all time. Taking on race and poverty in South Boston the days approaching school busing, where white students were bussed to predominantly black schools and vice versa, Lehane approaches the situation through the eyes of Mary Pat Fennessy, a white, Irish mother of a high school student in "Southie".

In the summer of 1974, as the schools are about to start busing students across town, Mary Pat, a tough woman from Southie, wakes up one morning to find her daughter never returned the night before. That same night, a young black boy is killed after being struck by a subway. Mary Pat knows her daughter Jules isn't involved, but she starts hunting for her daughter. This inevitably leads her to Marty Butler, who is the chieftain of the Irish mob. He keeps Southie running smoothly, but is he involved?

Small Mercies is an emotional bulldozer. Mary Pat leaves no stone left unturned, no face left unpunched, no beehive hairdo left un-pulled, no box cutter left retracted.

Mary Pat is so very fallible. She's racist, angry, violent, dangerous, and impoverished, but at the same time, she doesn't want to be. She truly wants to be better, and the tensions and riots of the busing crisis only exacerbate it more.

In typical Dennis Lehane fashion, this novel leaves you thinking and musing on the story and characters. I've pondered what makes me love Lehane's books so much, what brings me back to them over and over again, what makes me read each book well over a dozen times and never tire of them, and I think Gregg Hurwtiz put it more succinctly than I ever could. He said, "You're rung out by the end...we inched out a 51% victory." I think this is such a great point. By the end of Small Mercies, you find yourself sometimes agreeing with the antagonist, and although the book wraps up nicely, with a "victory", you oft ask yourself, was all of that pain for the protagonist worth it. If I left you confused there, you best just read the book, and by the end, you'll understand why.

Small Mercies is one of my favorite books of 2023. It's a siren call to the readers, a book that you find impossible to put down, and a smash hit.

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Ozark Dogs By Eli Cranor

From the author of the stellar debut, Don't Know Tough, comes the second book by Eli Cranor - a raw, gritty, emotional story of a grandfather's attempt to save his granddaughter. Ozark Dogs is the quintessential southern noir thriller by one of the best in the business. 

Vietnam veteran Jeremiah Fitzjurls has taken care of his high school granddaughter Jo ever since her father, and his son, was sentenced to life in prison. With a deceased wife, Jeremiah tries his best to raise his granddaughter, while not have a maternal bone in his body. Battling with PTSD from the war, as well as a alcohol addiction, Jeremiah's worst fears come to fruition when one evening, Jo doesn't return home. As the search for her reaches into the depths of the Ozarks, Jeremiah's war comes home, as he would do anything to retrieve Jo. 

Eli Cranor has crafted another harrowing tale - replete with violence, love, heartache, the strength and bond of family, the things that tie us all together, loss, and triumph. I struggle to put into words how this book was - it was so incredibly emotional. I was thinking that I got way too invested in the characters, but it turns out, Cranor can just pen such interesting, intricate protagonists. Like Indiana Jones running from the boulder, this book was an avalanche of action. I was frequently blindsided by the twists & turns, constantly caught off-guard, and routinely stuck dangling from the cliffs that Cranor left me hanging on. The imagery and details felt raw and nuanced and done in only the way I've seen Cranor do.  

This thriller sub-genre of noir - southern noir in this case - is delivering some of my favorite novels in existence, and Cranor is a spearhead of the genre. With stories are both timely and timeless, Cranor delivers a Tyson-like fist to the face, with what is bound to be a contender for the BTB Book of the Year, with Ozark Dogs. 

Side note: It's rare that when an author narrates their own audiobook, and I find it enjoyable. I typically lean on the 'just leave it to the professionals' axiom when it comes to narrators. However, Cranor has narrated both of his books, and I am stunned at how phenomenal of a narrator he is. Bravo!

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The Sniper By Jim Lindsay

The Sniper is a brilliant biography of one of the greatest marksmen to ever walk the planet. A blend of coming-of-age, thriller, military history, and comedic tales, The Sniper perfectly weaves the story of Vietnam sniper Chuck Mawhinney in a fascinating read that will fly by as fast as a bullet out of a Remmington. 

This story kicks off with the one story I had heard about Mawhinney - in the Arizona Territory in Vietnam, on a peninsula in a river with dozens and dozens of Vietnamese soldiers wading across the river in his direction. From here, you get to learn about everything that led to this moment - from Mawhinney's childhood, to his tales of adolescence, his first kill in the Marines, and everything in between. Author Jim Lindsay dove deep into Mawhinney's life and recounts the moments with crystal clear clarity, bringing Mawhinney's life into a beaming spotlight. This novel has inklings of Lindsay's debut non-fiction novel, The Little Bastards, with hilarious childhood tales of small town living, but also blends the action of a modern military thriller. It is a book that has you nervous, laughing, astonished, and bewildered all within its pages. 

It's rare that I read a book in only a sitting or two anymore, but The Sniper was one of those books. I felt like I was sitting at the Idle Hour in Baker City right next to them, sipping Coors Light, enveloped by the stories. Lindsay made this book feel like you were in the room, talking with Mawhinney, right next to him, as he recounted his life story. A brilliant, fascinating, and real tale of heroism from one of the top marksmen to ever live.  

Epilogue from the reviewer: Sometime between 2016-2018, I was repairing computers in Corvallis, Oregon, and I received a phone call from a gentleman who needed some help with his computer. I went to his house, and upon entering, saw a giant poster board covered with sticky notes with different words or phrases on it. It was semi-obvious what it was about, as I saw phrases like "Chuck's childhood," "Vietnam," etc. I asked this man, Mr. Lindsay, about what he was working on - it was a book he was outlining about a man named Chuck Mawhinney. At the time, I had heard of Mawhinney from a documentary on the History Channel about snipers. Jim began to recount the novel, told me about Chuck, and I was fascinated. I was praying I would get to see this book on a shelf one day, as the story sounded incredibly interesting. I'm thankful that day has finally arrived, and I am grateful that I got the opportunity to give it a read.

Follow Stuart on Twitter or contact him via the site.

Purchase The Sniper
(Note: most indie bookstores can fulfill an order as quickly as larger retailers. Please consider contacting them for your next purchase.)

Barrington Books
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Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen

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