In this suspenseful thriller set in Dallas, A. W. Gray takes us behind the police lines of a homicide investigation and into the private passions that fuel an urban nightmare.
A stolen BMW is recovered with a stash of cocaine, lurid photos, and a charred, dismembered body. Dallas Metro detective Ham Benno soon connects the victim to a secret circle of family depravity and sexual indiscretion—a mother and daughter who blur the lines between predator and prey.
Are the suspects innocent targets? Guilty avengers? Nothing has ever been proven, and a stone-cold killer is about to strike again.
Called the Fiddleback, he is an inhuman predator with a taste for human prey and an appetite for torture. Dallas cop Courtney Bedell is the only person who has ever seen this killer and lived to tell about it. Now, to save herself and those she loves, Courtney must match wits with a madman unlike any she’s ever known—and lure the Fiddleback into a web of her own design.
Venom is a tautly spun thrill ride that will keep listeners on the edge of their seats long into the night.
“A tightly crafted and suspenseful read.”—John Lescroart, New York Times bestselling author
The beast that walks like a man feeds beneath a blood-red Texas moon.
Billy Ed and Dory Barnes left the honky-tonk in Tombley’s Walk on a warm Texas night. They were looking for a little privacy. They never returned.
Billy Ed’s body was found soon after, ripped to pieces by a savage, wolf-like creature that walked on two legs. Dory survived the brutal attack. But she has been changed into something horribly, inexplicably … different.
As a full moon bathes the town in terror, the residents bolt their doors in fear of the night. But no lock will keep out the unspeakable horror that has infected the once-sleepy Texas community—a gruesome evil that won’t be sated until the last drop of human blood is drained from Tombley’s Walk.
In 1991 Nancy Dillard Lyon, daughter of a powerful Dallas real estate tycoon, was murdered, poisoned with arsenic. Nancy’s brother became convinced her adulterous husband, Richard, was responsible. And so Richard was arrested, tried, and convicted—and sentenced to life in prison. But did the evidence support this conviction?
Mystery novelist A. W. Gray made his nonfiction debut with this provocative true-crime account of sex, incest, infidelity, drugs, and murder—one that raises doubts about the justice that was served in this case.
“Must reading.”—Jack Olsen, Edgar Award–winning true-crime writer
The crime: murder. The accused: a wealthy Texas congressman. The victim: a young intern with whom he was having an affair. Attorney Sharon Hays is reluctant to defend this charismatic politician—for highly personal reasons. Now she must either withdraw from the case, confessing to the secrets of her own past, or remain silent and defend a man she has every reason to hate.
“Gregory conjures up plenty of plot twists to keep the suspense alive.”—Publishers Weekly
At a gala event in downtown Dallas, lawyer Sharon Hays runs into an old friend turned Hollywood star who is in town promoting her most recent film with her current lover—a Hollywood bad boy. But when a brutally murdered corpse is discovered in her posh hotel suite, the starlet finds herself accused of the crime. Sharon is all too eager to take up her friend’s defense, but the facts of what happened that night in the hotel room are far from clear. Sharon’s friend claims she never went back to the room, and her lover had supposedly blacked out. Soon Sharon finds herself in the media spotlight defending America’s sweetheart.
Beautiful and brainy Texas attorney Sharon Hays must stand alone against mobsters, political corruption, and coverups when she discovers key evidence that could prove a man on death row innocent of killing his socialite wife. But little does she realize that the real killer still prowls in the shadows—and will stop at nothing to silence her!
“There is plenty of courtroom atmosphere, and readers who enjoyed Hays’ first outing with In Self Defense may want to follow her here.”—Publishers Weekly
In this spine-chilling courtroom drama, beautiful thirtysomething defense attorney Sharon Hays takes on the case of Midge Rathermore, the teenage daughter of a Texas millionaire, who is accused of hiring a hit man to kill her father. In addition to her case, Sharon finds herself and her daughter being stalked by a savage sexual psychopath.
“Fast-paced…Gripping…Bravely clips along and even provides a few surprises and twists that make it a worthwhile tale.”—Publishers Weekly
Defending a flashy, big-time Houston lawyer who is accused of killing his wife, Dallas attorney Bino Phillips becomes involved with a sultry blues singer, a vindictive judge, and a hired killer with a cleanliness fetish. Before long Bino will uncover corruption and conspiracies perpetrated by those on both sides of the law. And with all the deals being made, Bino is left to sort it out on his own.
“[Bino Phillips] finally prevails here with brain power and a sweet toughness that readers will find appealing…The plotting and writing are crisp, and Bino serves up the just desserts in fine, funny style. Gray knows Texas, the law, and law enforcement; his fast-moving story is first-rate.”—Publishers Weekly
This crime fiction novel from the author of the Bino Phillips series follows former Dallas police officer Frank White as he matches wits with an attractive ex-convict, who tries to entrap him in a kidnapping plot through which she hopes to beat the system. Facing a counterfeiting scheme, double crosses, and murder, White must summon all his skills as a detective to hunt down the conspirators and bring them to justice.
“Shares is top-shelf crime fiction. Readers will like Frank and be able to feel his efforts at self-control. The villains are memorably evil, particularly Darla Bern, a stunning sometime porn actress spurned by Frank in the coed federal lockup, and Randolph Money, a clever white-collar savings-and-loan shark who is also a stone killer. The plotting is appropriately intricate, and the revenge is sweet. Gray, also the author of the excellent Bino Phillips mysteries, is an underappreciated master of the genre.”—Booklist (starred review)
Bino Phillips has seen his share of crime-fighting, but nothing has prepared him for the desperate search for a serial killer stalking the streets of Dallas—a serial killer that has more than the usual thirst for blood. One woman has been found, the blood sucked from her body. She and a friend, who remains missing, were to be key witnesses in Bino’s defense of a young coed dealer. Now Bino finds himself in a sudden race against death, especially when the killer gets personal and targets Bino’s secretary as his next victim. Used to be you could call the Feds for help. But for some reason even they’re stumped by this clever would-be Dracula.
“About as powerful a purveyor of hard-boiled fiction as there is on the contemporary scene…Gray paints vivid, compelling pictures of both major and minor characters…Nonstop action, sparkling dialogue, and clever plot twists add up to one helluva read.”—Publishers Weekly
Lackey Ferguson met Marissa Hardin once, the morning he signed on to build a bathhouse at the Hardins’ fancy Fort Worth home. But when Marissa is found brutally murdered, Lackey becomes the number one suspect in a trumped-up case, while a sexual psychopath runs loose. Desperate to find the real killer, Lackey must evade arrest while keeping an eye on his fiancée—who may just be the killer’s next target.
“Packs disturbing crime scenes, salty language, and cynical working-class views of the power elite…Readers will sympathize with the underdog heroes of this rousing, hard-boiled suspense story.”—Publishers Weekly
