FOUR $0.99 books! Fill your e-reader for less than $4!

We've banded together to bring you four of our thrilling novels (because with the heat wave we've got going on, we all could use some chilling goosebumps to cool us down, right?). Read about each book below, and pick each up at your favorite ebook retailer for $0.99. Happy reading!

All Good Deeds (Lucy Kendall #1) by Stacy Green

Lucy Kendall doesn't believe she's a serial killer. She simply eradicates the worst of society and brings justice to the innocent–the children she failed to protect during her decade in Child Protective Services.

A missing child sets off a chain of events linked to a suspect in a life-changing case in Lucy's past. Her chosen path is terrifying–but the search for the kidnapped child pulls her into web of evil and malice beyond her darkest imagination. 

Get your copy: Amazon | Nook | iBooks | Kobo | Google Play

Blood Stained (Lucy Guardino FBI Thrillers Book 2) by CJ Lyons

Just your average Pittsburgh soccer mom, baking brownies and carrying a loaded forty-caliber Glock…

Until recently Supervisory Special Agent Lucy Guardino was a shining star in the FBI's roster. But after killing a man and disobeying orders, Lucy's been sidelined, chained to her desk. When a mysterious letter arrives hinting that, thanks to Lucy, the wrong man was blamed for a string of serial rapes, kidnappings, and killings four years ago, Lucy jumps at the chance to re-open the case—despite orders to leave well enough alone. What Lucy doesn't know is that what happened four years ago was all a lie, fueled by sacrifice and betrayal, designed to shield the real killer. 

With the lives of her family, a group of innocent children, and the future of one desperate boy at risk, Lucy races to stop an innocent from killing and a killer from butchering more innocents. 

Get your copy: Amazon | Nook | iBooks | Kobo 

Secret Justice: A Judge Willa Carson Mystery Novel
(The Hunt For Justice Series Book 3) by Diane Capri

Tampa’s free-spirited Judge Wilhelmina Carson returns in the third installment of this well-loved series. During Tampa’s annual Gasparilla Pirate Festival, murder chases Judge Willa’s beloved secretary into a world of corruption, bank fraud, and art theft while Willa’s dad, Jim Harper, suffers hell of his own making.

Just as Willa is recovering from the shock of meeting her father’s new trophy wife, her secretary Margaret Wheaton becomes mysteriously involved with a nefarious jeweler. When both Margaret’s husband and the jeweler end up dead, Margaret is the number one suspect. Judge Willa sets out to prove Margaret innocent and takes the reader on a ride through Tampa’s month-long pirate party, with twists and turns that keep you guessing until the very end: whodunnit?

Get your copy: Amazon | Nook | iBooks | Kobo | Google Play

I Have a Secret (Sloane Monroe Book 3) by Cheryl Bradshaw

No one knows the value of keeping a secret more than Doug Ward. But after washing the past twenty years down with a smooth glass of whisky, his steely resolve has started to crack. And he doesn't want to keep quiet. Not anymore.

When dried blood is found on the deck of the cruise ship where Doug was last seen, private investigator Sloane Monroe finesses her way into the surveillance room, sees Doug's bloody body heaved over the railing. 

How many more will die before Sloane uncovers the biggest secret of all?

Get your copy: Amazon | Nook | iBooks | Kobo | Google Play

Call it dark justice, not murder. Because Lucy Kendall is not a serial killer. She simply takes out the trash and brings justice to the innocent.

2015 Independent Publisher Book Awards Bronze Medalist for Best Mystery/Thriller (Ebook)

Lucy Kendall doesn’t believe she’s a serial killer. She simply eradicates the worst of society and brings justice to the innocent–the children she failed to protect during her decade in Child Protective Services.

A missing child sets off a chain of events linked to a suspect in a life-changing case in Lucy’s past. Her chosen path is terrifying–but the search for the kidnapped child pulls her into web of evil and malice beyond her darkest imagination.

Lucy is jaded and desperate, but will her desperate race for justice prevent her from seeing the truth?

Packed with suspense, All Good Deeds is a dark psychological thriller with a finely crafted mystery that takes readers into the deepest recesses of the human psyche.

So what does this have to do with being a thriller author? One word: distraction. I don’t know how it works for authors of other genres, but writing about all things dark and twisted takes its toll on a person. In order to put the reader into the moment, I’ve got to be in the character’s shoes. That means trying to process how he or she is feeling. One of my favorite quotes from Jensen Ackles is when he’s describing one of the best scenes in Season 4 of Supernatural. The scene involves Dean telling Sam about hell and the things he did while he was there. It’s heartbreaking, and Jensen said after the shot, he just had to walk away because he was an emotional wreck. It didn’t matter that Jensen didn’t have Dean’s forty years in hell to draw from – he still put himself at an emotional place and used that to make the scene work.

That’s not much different than what writers do. Grieving mother, sick killer, abused kid–whoever our character is, we’ve got to get into their heads. Believe me, that wears a person out.

And so the distractions come in. Now, I’m the first to admit I probably have too many distractions, but that’s another post. Sometimes, when I’ve written a particularly rough scene, I hop onto my favorite websites in search of something to make me laugh or say aww.

Here are a few of my faves:

9gag.com
Dogshaming.com
Reddit.com/aww
Huffington Post – weird/dumb criminals section
Pinterest

What do you do when you need a moment of laughter? As a reader, what scenes/books affected you so deeply you had to search for something lighthearted to pull you out of the funk?

ALL GOOD DEEDS is the January Book of the Month for Psychological Thrillers at Goodreads! This is a major honor, and the discussion is great. Stop by and join in!

My parents still live in the same white farmhouse I grew up in, and sometime in the last several years they started locking up at night. But that was it. No one ever thought about locking the doors during the day, whether they were home or not. That changed a week ago when my dad came back from taking my mother to dialysis and a strange, white van was in the driveway. As he sat in his truck trying to figure out who the vehicle belonged to, a blond woman walked out of their house.

Dad confronted her, and she gave him some half-assed excuse about looking for Stockport, another tiny town every local knows how to get to. He didn’t see anything missing, and he didn’t call the Sheriff. But when Mom got home later in the day, she realized her Percocet was missing. I got involved and called the Sheriff. We didn’t have much hope of finding out who the woman was, and I posted a warning to local Facebook friends. Guess what? No less than five different people contacted me with her name and various but similar stories about her.

That’s when I got really pissed. If these people knew who she was just by description, how could the deputy not? I called the Sheriff with her name, and he knew exactly who she was. As a matter of fact, he’d had recent dealings with her. My father later identified a recent booking shot, and the deputy said he’d see what he could put together. Since my father caught her trespassing at the very least, we were hopeful she would be charged. From what I hear, it’s been very hard for the police to keep her nailed down with anything. I’m not sure why that is, and I’m trying to give them the benefit of the doubt. But it’s infuriating. This girl preys on older people for their prescription medications, as if the senior community doesn’t have enough to worry about. On top of dialysis and watching everything she puts in her mouth, my mother now has to wonder if she’s totally safe in her own home.

Times have changed. The doors are locked now. Our kids will never know what it’s like to grow up trusting their neighbors, and that’s very sad to me. We now have to teach them to be wary of anyone who approaches them, and to constantly warn them that no matter how nice anyone looks, any individual is capable of harming them. It sucks, but that is at least something I can control.

Nearly two hours away from my aging parents, I’m frustrated. I’m waiting for an update from the deputy tonight, and if nothing is moving in the case, I’ll be talking to the Sheriff again. And I’m not above taking out an OP-Ed in the county newspaper, because if this girl isn’t stopped, she WILL prey on more senior citizens.

What about you, readers? Would you let things lie or keep pushing the issue?

Don’t forget, See Them Run (Lucy Kendall #2) is now available! And if you’re not a member of my mailing list, sign up now. A brand new character is coming to the Delta Crossroads, and I’m giving my mailing list subscribers a serial novella featuring the character for FREE. Coming in February!

Have a wonderful and SAFE holiday!

i’ve decided to try a new theme on the blog. I’m calling it Confessions of a Thriller Author, and every Monday, I’ll be posting about some of the darker things that go through my own twisted mind.

Confessions of a Thriller Author #1

People often ask me about my love of true crime, thrillers, and all things dark. Those who are under the impression that I am a sweet mom from Iowa are amazed at the sinister things I prefer to read and write. In my bio, I mention watching crime shows with my parents growing up, and I know that’s probably what planted the seed. The theme song from Hill Street Blues is one of my earliest memories, after all. Along with Dallas, which is probably where I got my flair for the dramatic.

But it goes much deeper than that. If I had to do it over again (and I actually understood myself when I was in college) I would have majored in criminal psychology. I am always fascinated by the WHY of things, and it is frustrating for me not to get an explanation. On one hand, I cannot fathom killing another human being, much less torturing them. But on the other, I want to crawl inside the mind of the person who would do such a thing. Are they really just a coldblooded psychopath? Are they a combination of nature and nurture? Many times, law enforcement and psychologists don’t get these answers handed to them on a silver platter. There is no reason why. And I still I want to know more.

Consider the psychopath Ted Bundy. What sort of things went on in his mind when he was seeking his next victim? Was he excited for the kill, for the control, or for the depraved acts he would do to them? Or what about coldblooded killer Gary Ridgway, better known as The Green River Killer, who is believed to have killed over 100 women, all of whom were prostitutes. What would a day in his head be like? How could someone look at another human being and so coldly judge them, let alone dispose of them so callously as Ridgway?

For me, it is the unknown about the psychopathic killer that is the most interesting. And their ability to blend into the crowd, to become Average Man, that makes them so frightening.

From a law enforcement perspective, I’d love to be able to understand what the police and other departments go through in the search for these people. Watching the crime shows on Investigation Discovery is no more than a glimpse into the criminal world.  Without being in the moment with the police, FBI, criminal profilers and psychologists, we will never truly understand what’s it’s like to be in their shoes and follow these killer’s paths.

It’s this sort of dark interest that drove me to create Lucy Kendall and to explore the idea of her being a sociopath. If I can’t find my answers in real life, I seek them through fiction. In many ways, writing Lucy has been like interviewing my own serial killer. I find myself digging deeper, wanting to know more about the choices she makes and if she will ever realize who she truly is. The fun part is that I get to provide the answers.

And that is the long version of why I like to read and write about sociopaths and psychopaths (pick your term), serial killers, criminal minds, cops, and all around bad people. It’s the thirst for understanding and the need to unravel their minds. I’m thankful to have the opportunity to do so with my fictional characters.

What about you, crime fiction lovers? Do you enjoy reading and researching about criminals and serial killers because you need to understand? What drives your dark interest?

Come back next Monday for my next confession, and have a wonderful and SAFE holiday!

And now on to the WINNER! Earlier this month I launched a contest to name the serial killer who will make his presence known to Lucy Kendall. I received many awesome suggestions, and the choice was very difficult, but I’ve chosen a winner.

It’s The Silver Stalker, suggested by Michelle Willms. She also presented some great background ideas for the killer, and I’m excited to talk with her about them.

The Silver Stalker will make his presence known later in the series, but it will be in a BIG WAY, so stay tuned. Congrats to Michelle, and thanks to everyone who submitted ideas!

PRAISE FOR ALL GOOD DEEDS

Unique Protagonist and a story that’s incredibly tense…

A must read book for intrigue, danger, suspense and mystery lovers…

WOW – this has quite a punch!

The class had a mix of new and experienced authors, published and unpublished.

DISCLAIMER #1: when I say published, I’m including indie published.

As I listened to the great presentations, I kept hearing the phrases “attracting an agent,” or “staying out of the slush pile.” Many of the talks referenced all the tiny little things that can make an agent or editor toss a manuscript aside. I could see the unpublished authors squirming and turning green.

As the day went on, I had one unrelenting thought: I’m so glad to be indie!

DISCLAIMER #2: Your publishing path is yours alone. Neither is an easy choice or a get rich quick opportunity, and both mean HARD WORK and rejection.

Let me clarify, being grateful to be Indie has nothing to do with confidence in my writing. In the last couple of months I have learned to believe in myself more than ever. I’m very proud of all my books, and I’m exceptionally happy with the latest thriller, ALL GOOD DEEDS, and the Lucy Kendall character.

I’m grateful I chose Indie because I don’t have to worry about an agent rejecting me because of personal preference, or because the marketing department doesn’t know if they could sell my book, or because I used two spaces at the end of a sentence instead of one (true story.) I get to bypass all that and focus on the story and the writing.

And while there are writing rules we all must follow (Grammar, anyone?! And the three-act structure), I don’t have to worry about pleasing the status quo or taking risks. I don’t know if an agent or editor or marketing department would have believed in Lucy Kendall. But that doesn’t matter, because I do.

DISCLAIMER #3: Indie Publishing isn’t for the faint of heart. I believe in investing in your business, and that means paying for good, EXPERIENCED editors and cover artists.

Now, a word on editing. It’s everything. I pay for developmental, copyediting, and proofing. And I will continue to do so because I learn so much about writing every time my editor tears apart my manuscript. To me, Indie publishing means subcontracting the editing, formatting, and cover art. That means I’m a business, and to be successful, you have to invest in the highest quality available.

But the best part of this journey is that I don’t have to worry about pleasing anyone but myself and the readers. I get to put them first, and that’s extremely liberating!

Writing isn’t about the royalty (although that’s a beautiful bonus), but about being able to stay true to the story in my head and my heart. I’m blessed to have editors who understand my vision but won’t hesitate to tell me when I’m derailing.

Just to be clear, this post isn’t about traditional vs. Indie. I hate that argument. Only you can decide what’s best for your career, and what will make you happy in the long run. The beauty is that we have so many more choices than we did five years ago. Despite all the extra headaches that come with being Indie published, I’m so grateful to have made that choice.

What about you? Do you love your chosen publishing path? Or are you still trying to decide which is right for you?

Be honest. Even though some of you shudder in your boots at the idea of writing or reading about a serial killer, even more of you are fascinated by what makes this tick. Ted Bundy was a charming, terrifying psychopath. How many women did he really kill?

Jeffrey Dahmer was a beaten down, miserable man who mutilated gay men and boys. Gacy hid bodies in the crawlspace beneath his house. The Zodiac has never been caught, H.H. Holmes and Ed Gein were part of the inspiration for Leatherface, and of course, Jack the Ripper (and no, I’m not sold on the idea of his finally being identified).

These people have fascinated us for years. Bundy had groupies. Manson gets a ton of letters. Hannibal Lector, another mashup fictional creation of serial killers, is often cheered for by readers and viewers. And don’t forget Dexter, the psychopath we all rooted for until the very end. And no, we’re not talking about how the series ended. Sigh.

The point is, these people are an enigma, and that’s part of why we’re fascinated with them. When I originally started penciling ideas for my Lucy Kendall Series, I thought about the idea of two serial killers coming together and forming some kind of romantic relationship. The idea intrigued me for a minute, and then I quickly realized I had something much darker and juicier on my hands. Lucy Kendall, eradicator of pedophiles, was born.

See, she doesn’t believe she’s a killer when she first walks across the pages of ALL GOOD DEEDS. She’s performing a necessary duty to society, and if that means she’s risking her eternal soul, then so be it. Saving kids is worth it.

Enter Chris Hale, a strikingly good looking man who cheerfully tells her he’s a sociopath and they’re of the same ilk. He’s a serial killer too, and why don’t they join forces.

Panicked, Lucy denies, denies, denies. And she’s immediately intrigued by Chris. Is he really a sociopath? Maybe, although he seems much too compassionate. And is he truly a serial killer? She’s not sure, but she’s going to find out, because Chris has no intention of going away. But even more troublesome to Lucy is this notion that she herself is a serial killer.

She’s not one of those people. Is she?

AN EXCERPT FROM ALL GOOD DEEDS

“You. It’s not often I find someone who’s like me.”

“Like you?”

“In the same line of work.”

I said nothing.

“I don’t like to use the popular name for it.” He leaned over the table, into my space. His eyes burned even brighter up close. In another scenario, I would have matched his body language, flirted a little. A woman should always seize the opportunity to get up close and personal with a face like his. Unless he’s a stalker with the power to send her to the lethal injection chamber. “You know, serial killer. The term is so … trendy. I like to call myself the garbage man. Just taking out the trash.”

Of all the presumptuous, stupid things to say. I wasn’t a serial killer, and I had no interest in aiding this man’s sick fantasies. “I don’t know who you are–”

“Name’s Chris Hale. I’m a paramedic and an Aries. I love Indian food. Italian, too. And Mexican. Pretty much all food. I’ve got a major sweet tooth. Never done drugs, I’m an only child. I’ll spare you the sob story. Anything else?” He smiled again, the lines around his eyes crinkling in a ruggedly attractive way that probably made plenty of women act foolish.

Purchase ALL GOOD DEEDS now!

Don’t miss the official launch party for ALL GOOD DEEDS happening TODAY on Facebook! Starting at noon central, I’ll be sharing series secrets and giving away some seriously cool swag. Stop by and learn all about Lucy Kendall!

In my new thriller ALL GOOD DEEDS, former Child Protective Services worker turned private investigator and vigilante killer of pedophiles Lucy Kendall states very clearly that pedophiles can’t be cured. She bases her opinion on 10 years with CPS and seeing countless repeat offenders, as well as national statistics.

Lucy, as so many of our characters do, gets this very hardline belief from her creator. I don’t think they can be cured, and I really don’t believe they should have a second chance. But let me clarify, for myself and for Lucy: I’m distinguishing between pedophiles and registered sex offenders. While many registered sex offenders are pedophiles, the term and the law encompasses a wide range of acts and ages. You can read more about it here.  Lucy is after child molesters.

Which brings me to the question: should our laws be tightened to ensure a child molester never gets out? I realize that brings up the massive budgetary issues our state and federal prisons face, but how many repeat offenders are there in this country? How many kids are molested by someone who was once incarcerated for the same crime but was released because time was served? I don’t believe these people can control their urges–even the few who actually want to.

Consider the case of Joe Ed Davis, a Texas man convicted of indecency with a child for the second time. Under Jessica’s Law, Texas sentenced him to an enhanced sentence of life in prison instead of the usual two to twenty year sentence for the Second Degree Felony. Jessica’s Law was signed into effect in 2007, the result of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford’s kidnapping, rape, and murder by John Couey. Couey was a registered offender. Jessica’s father Mark Lunsford fought for tougher sex offender laws throughout the United States. About 30 state legislatures have taken varied approaches, but the main component is a 25-year mandatory sentence and lifetime electronic monitoring.

Oklahoma is working to implement the death sentence for repeat child molesters.

But is that enough? Why do these monsters who go over children, get a second chance at all? Why must there be at least one more victim before they are permanently stopped? The answer is only simple if you look at it from an emotional standpoint, and unfortunately, lawmakers can’t do that. It’s a tangled mess that will likely never be solved. As a mother, all I know is that if someone did that to my child, I would be hard pressed to think of any law or have any sort of compassion to give someone a second chance.

And those questions led me to the creation of Lucy Kendall. She spent 10 years in our convoluted system trying to help kids and seeing the worst happen over and over again. One of her first cases involved eleven-year-old Justin Beckett, who raped and murder his neighbor and friend. Justin served his time and was released as an adult. Lucy snapped, and then started learning the benefits of cyanide. In ALL GOOD DEEDS, she’s confident she’s on the right path. But then a little girl goes missing, and she just happens to live across the street from Justin Beckett, the very man Lucy begged the courts not to release.

Loaded with guilt and a little self-righteous attitude, Lucy sets off to find the little girl herself and prove to the world she was right about Justin Beckett all along.

What do you think about repeat child molesters? Should it be one and done no matter the cost?

ALL GOOD DEEDS is available now.

A very dark and twisted serial killer is going to make an appearance in The Lucy Kendall Series, and I need your help naming them!

I’m looking for something chilling, something that would elicit fear as a front page headline. I’m talking The Nightstalker, Son of Sam, BTK, etc.

My killer is a true psychopath, with very few preferences for killing, meaning any murder weapon will do. The killer isn’t opposed to sexual sadism, but likes to play the game and to control others. This killer operates on the eastern side of the United States.

The contest is easy: the person who comes up with the best name by September 30 will receive a signed copy of ALL GOOD DEEDS (Lucy Kendall #1). The winning name will be used in the Lucy Kendall Series, and the winner will be given credit in the acknowledgments for coming up with the serial killer’s moniker.

Email me at stacygreenauthor@gmail.com with your entries. Contest ends September 30th. Winners will be announced within a week.

Good luck!

NO BAD DEED SHOULD GO UNPUNISHED.

Lucy Kendall lived her life in a strange mixture of carefully calculated moves and impulse decisions. Cracking the skull of the man who molested her sister and attacking her was impulse. Spending half her teenage years drinking and acting out were calculated cries for attention from her narcissistic mother followed by impulsive rages at her lack of concern.

The decade spent working in Child Protective Services before becoming a private investigator taught her two truths. One, CPS failed miserably in protecting children. Two, Lucy was more than willing to do it for them, meting out her brand of dark justice in spite of her own fear of death. But Lucy’s crusade is compromised when a self-proclaimed sociopath offers to help—and leaves her no choice but to accept it.

When eight-year old Kailey Richardson is abducted, it sets off a chain of events linked to Justin Beckett, a suspect in a life-changing case in Lucy’s past. The path she’s chosen since dealing with Beckett has been dark and terrifying—but she has no idea just how deep she will go or where the twisted road will take her.

She’s about to find out.

If you liked Dexter, you’ll love Lucy! The first book in my new thriller series will be available at all vendors on September 15th, but Kindle readers can PRE-ORDER NOW! This means the book will automatically load onto your device at 12:01 a.m. September 15th. How’s that for the early bird getting the worm?

CLICK HERE to PRE-ORDER

An excerpt from ALL GOOD DEEDS

“The Iceman.” Chris ignored the bait. “That’s your inspiration, right? The mob hit man who lost count at 200 murders. His method was easy and anonymous. He spilled the bad stuff, his mark got angry about it but didn’t do anything about the wet shirt or pants. The goods seeped through his the mark’s skin and twenty to thirty minutes later, into the bloodstream, and the Iceman was long gone. It’s brilliant, really. Great choice, for cold weather anyway, considering the health hazards. I just hope you’re more than a hit man. Woman, excuse me.”

My chest tightened into an iron cast, and my jaw ached from the hard set. If this guy knew the routine, he no doubt had proof. “Seriously, have you ever thought about seeking professional help?”

He ignored me and kept rambling. “Like I said, I’m a paramedic. And I’m observant. I saw you at a scene a few months back. You were standing to the side, in the middle of the onlookers. But something on your face gave you away–to me, at least. Guess I’m good at spotting my own kind.” He rested his chin on his hand and gazed at me with obvious admiration. To anyone else, we probably looked like we were on a first date and still stuck in the awkward getting-to-know-you stage.

“I’m not your kind.” He was nothing like me. I was just sick and tired of seeing a broken justice system routinely fail children who’ve already been treated like disposable playthings. So I did everything I could to balance the creaking scales of justice–the same scales many people want to believe are designed to protect the vulnerable in society. But those scales don’t shield anyone, even our most innocent victims. Their function is to balance the lines of bureaucracy.

Sometimes I have to fill the void.

He probably picked his victims at random and took them somewhere to torture them before finally killing them. If he was actually a serial killer.

Pre-Order ALL GOOD DEEDS