A Life Through Books

Historical Thriller, Conspiracy Thriller, Political Thriller, Action Thriller

Date Published: August 18, 2026

A standalone thriller. New readers can start right here.

When Professor Jack Sullivan is asked to decode a cipher from the war's final days, he expects a historical curiosity. Instead, he uncovers a thread Jefferson Davis died protecting, a secret never meant to resurface.

Jack, his fiancée Emma Wilson, and former SEAL Steve Johnson are pulled into a hunt more dangerous than any battlefield. From Washington's archives to the back alleys of New Orleans, from the coast of Mexico to the shadowed ridges of Arkansas, every trail leads deeper into the world of the Knights of the Golden Circle, a brotherhood long believed defunct.

But the Knights didn't disappear. They became patient.

For 160 years they studied what force could never win. They embedded themselves in the institutions Americans trust, and waited for the moment when they wouldn't need to seize power. They would be invited to take it.

Now their heirs have risen. A cartel is running weapons north while a cyberattack probes the power grid, and a senator climbs toward power on the fear both create. Jack begins to realize he was never hunting the treasure. He was being led to it.

Joined by Homeland cyber analyst Priya Patel and hunted by enemies he cannot see, Jack has four days to break a design older than anyone imagined before the trap closes around everyone he loves.

"The high-stakes, of-the-moment, infiltrated-America suspense simply does not let up." 

— BookLife by Publishers Weekly

Some secrets don't stay buried. They grow roots.

Great for fans of Steve Berry and Clive Cussler.

Praise for Echoes of Fortune: Knights of the Golden Circle

"One part Jack Reacher, one part Indiana Jones... an impressively entertaining action thriller." 

— Kirkus Reviews ("GET IT")

"Leng lets history press against the present, sometimes like a warning and sometimes like a buried fuse." — Literary Titan

About the Author

 David R Leng is the award-winning author of the Echoes of Fortune historical conspiracy thriller series, winner of three PenCraft Awards, including Thriller of the Year and back-to-back Best Thriller honors, two Literary Titan Gold Awards, and a Kirkus Reviews "GET IT" selection.

A lifelong resident of Southwestern Pennsylvania, David grew up in the shadow of the same battlefields his characters explore. He spent summers near the Shades of Death wilderness in western Maryland and has kayaked the Youghiogheny River, where a chance encounter with a stranger carrying a metal detector and asking about Braddock's gold planted the seed for the series.

His debut novel, The Search for Braddock's Lost Gold, follows historian Jack Sullivan into the unsolved mystery of General Braddock's vanished army payroll from the 1755 Battle of the Monongahela. The series has since expanded to the sunken Confederate secrets of Cozumel and the shadowed world of the Knights of the Golden Circle.

When he is not unraveling centuries-old conspiracies, David can be found scuba diving, boating, or in his woodshop. He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and family.

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Date Published: 06-06-2023

Publisher: KCIN Entertainment Group, LLC

Books 1 & 2 (Book 3 releases September 8, 2026.)

The Dark Waters series follows the rise and fall of one of Philadelphia's most powerful families.

Judge Keenan Waters and his family have spent decades building a legacy of power, influence, and respect. But behind the perfect public image lie buried secrets, betrayal, and deadly consequences that threaten to destroy everything they've built.

As loyalties are tested and relationships crumble, the Waters family is pushed closer to the edge of ruin. With shocking twists and intense family drama, the Dark Waters series keeps the readers turning pages until the very end.

Perfect for fans of Black & African American Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Fiction, the first two books are available now, with the shocking conclusion, Dark Waters 3, arriving September 8, 2026.

 

 About the Author

Nick Haskins is the author of the Dark Waters series, as well as novels She's Obsessed, Betrayed, My Husband's Wife, and On the Edge of Heat.

Known for his suspenseful storytelling and unforgettable characters, Haskins has spent more than a decade building a catalog of contemporary drama and suspense that has attracted readers across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

Born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, where he still resides, Haskins began his publishing career in 2011 and has remained committed to independently producing professional, reader-focused books. In addition to writing novels, he is creating film and visual media projects based on his work.

Haskins continues to connect with readers while developing new stories to expand his publishing catalog.

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Crime Thriller

Date Published: April 8, 2026

Publisher: MindStir Media

However, Tom is soon informed by the local sheriff that he and his family are the targets of a threatening letter, mysteriously signed "The Avenger." The unknown author accuses Tom and Josh of being land-grabbers with blood on their hands and vows to seek revenge.

Against this tense backdrop, three individuals-each driven by their own pain and misguided sense of justice-embark on separate journeys of revenge. While the first merely seeks to resolve personal grievances and jealousy through minor acts of vandalism, the other two harbor far more sinister intentions, representing both physical and metaphorical storms on a path of chaos and destruction.

     Kerr attended Georgia Southern University, where he received his bachelor’s degree in English and master’s degree in educational administration. After a forty-four-year career as an English teacher and school administrator, he retired in 2020 and turned his attention to writing mystery novels.
     Today, he and his wife, Lois, live in Woodstock, Georgia, where the they enjoy being close to their daughter, Paige, son-in-law, Chris, and grandsons, Banks and Ford.
 

Your Author Journey (and that which contributes to the author’s writing process):
 
     During a very long career of teaching high school English, Kerr taught thousands of students and, in the process, honed his own creative writing skills. The result was his successful debut mystery novel, Secrets of Crick Road Bridge followed by his latest book, Storms of Crick Road Bridge.
     Kerr’s background of having a small-town, rural upbringing and a lifelong career teaching high school English and literature gives the novel its heart and creates a narrative that is both intimate and reflective.
     Storms of Crick Road Bridge is deeply rooted in the rhythms, relationships, and complexities of small-town life. The novel explores the close-knit nature of rural life, where everyone knows each other’s history and family reputations matter. Conflicts and secrets are not just personal—they ripple through the entire community.
     Literary references and themes draw on Kerr’s experience as a teacher. This perspective brings literary depth, moral inquiry, and a belief in the transformative power of education, forgiveness, and second chances. Together, these elements create a novel that is both a compelling mystery and a meditation on human complexity and the hope for redemption.

 
 

 The Why? Your reason for writing the book:
 

As a fan of the mystery-thriller genre, Kerr wanted to write a novel that was not reduced to a typical gun-blazing detective story or standard whodunnit. Unlike many thrillers that focus on a single protagonist or detective, Storms of Crick Road Bridge weaves together the lives of multiple families and generations in the small town of Eden Valley.

     The narrative explores not just the crime itself, but the ripple effects of trauma, secrets, and redemption spanning decades and involving a wide cast of interconnected characters. While rooted in the mystery-thriller tradition, the novel incorporates elements of family saga, social drama, and even true crime. The inclusion of detailed backstories, community rebuilding, and the emotional toll on survivors give the novel a distinctive and authentic voice that sets it apart from more formulaic thrillers.

 
 About the Book (compelling summary, key themes, target audience):

Eden Valley is a quiet town in northwestern Pennsylvania still healing from a dark chapter in its history. Two years ago, the community was shaken by a kidnapping and a series of murders. Tom Stallings, the town’s celebrated hero, solved the crimes and identified the evil demon responsible. In an effort to revitalize the town, Tom’s son, Josh, has purchased the town orchard, naming it The Stallings Orchard at Crick Road Bridge.

However, Tom is soon informed by the local sheriff that he and his family are the targets of a threatening letter, mysteriously signed “The Avenger.” The unknown author accuses Tom and Josh of being land-grabbers with blood on their hands and vows to seek revenge.

Against this tense backdrop, three individuals—each driven by their own pain and misguided sense of justice—embark on separate journeys of revenge. While the first merely seeks to resolve personal grievances and jealousy through minor acts of vandalism, the other two harbor far more sinister intentions, representing both physical and metaphorical storms on a path of chaos and destruction.

Through these intertwined stories, the novel explores key themes such as the complexities of human nature, the burden of secrets, and the transformative power of forgiveness and resilience both for the individuals and the community as a whole.

Storms of Crick Road Bridge appeals to a broad audience, including fans of multi-generational sagas, readers of crime and psychological thrillers, those interested in small-town America, and readers who appreciate richly developed characters, literary fiction with social themes, and complex, interwoven plots.

Message for Readers:

The underlying message of Storms of Crick Road Bridge is that facing the truth,      

seeking forgiveness, and relying on the support of others are essential steps toward healing and personal growth. The story encourages readers to confront their own secrets and regrets, act with compassion, and believe in the possibility of second chances— even after profound suffering.

 

      

About the Author

 

 David Kerr grew up in the small, rural community of Enon Valley, Pennsylvania, in the '50s and '60s where the main source of employment was farming or working in the steel mill industry. Surrounded by families who struggled to maintain their middle- class lifestyle and hold tightly to the American values of God, family, and country, little did he realize that these people and places would become the inspiration for his novels.

A graduate of Georgia Southern University, Kerr served as an English teacher and school administrator for forty-four years. Following his retirement, he wrote and published two mystery novels, Secrets of Crick Road Bridge and Storms of Crick Road Bridge.

Today, he and his wife, Lois, live in Woodstock, Georgia, where they enjoy being close to their daughter Paige, son-in-law, Chris, and grandsons, Banks and Ford

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Medical Thriller

Date Published: April 22, 2026

The end of disease is the end of humanity.

Can the destruction of humanity be prevented?

At an international medical conference, infectious-disease physician Noah Winter encounters the enigmatic Dr. Balodis—a visionary who claims to have engineered microbes capable of regenerating human cells, ending aging, and curing the world’s deadliest diseases.

But the miracle comes with a terrifying cost. Balodis plans to force humanity’s evolution—and reshape the world order. Once unleashed, the organisms mutate beyond control, spreading rapidly across the globe.

Hunted by intelligence agencies, mercenaries, and Balodis’s private army, Noah must expose the truth before the cure becomes a global extinction event.

Time is running out—and the cure may be humanity’s final mistake.

 

 

About the Author

Mo Kramer brings a background in medicine, communication, and psychology to the world of suspense fiction. After publishing several nonfiction books, Kramer makes a thriller debut with a chilling story of microbes, invisible threats, and the dangerous illusion of human control. Combining scientific realism with psychological suspense, this thriller keeps readers on edge while leaving disturbing questions behind long after the final page.

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Crime Thriller / Suspense

Date Published: 09-07-2026

Publisher: Mission Point Press

Prey animals are taken down by predators. It’s as if prey animals are made to be food. 

Carnivore predators possess razor-sharp canine-like teeth. Carnivores are the watchers from the shadows. All of them, such as lions, tigers, bobcats, and wolves, are wired the same way. They don’t eat lettuce for lunch. To a carnivore, you simply look like another rabbit in the grass. 

There’s another carnivore that is often overlooked – humans. Humans have canine teeth. They are born wired with the same instincts as the alpha predators. 

We’re taught to control it. Supposedly. 

Birds will tell you when the sun is going to come up. At the faintest glimmer of dawn's early light, they begin to converse with each other, presumably to find out where the bugs are that day. Usually, we don't hear them in their earliness. Our day starts later. Usually. 

Frogs and insects do the same during the pre-dawn moments, buzzing and croaking in the woods, fields, and swamps. Presumably they do this to find out where the predators are. It's been said that frogs might be telling each other where the rattlesnakes and blue herons are at any given time. We don't usually hear them croaking away in the early hours of the day. Usually. 

Today, however, as the woods came to life with this early morning serenade, Jim Peters could hear them very clearly. It was August of 1990. He was in his cabin in mid-Michigan, situated on the edge of a quiet, deep-woods nature refuge known as Turtle Lake. Peters was lyingin bed backwards, that is, with his feet at the head of the bed and his head at the foot of the bed, chin resting on his wrists as he looked at a model train set. 

The train set, an ancient Lionel from the 1940s, included buildings, roads, bridges, cars, trucks, a shopping center, and a train running through it. The set looked ordinary enough to the casual passerby or rare visitor to the cabin. But in fact, it was window dressing, a model of the crime scene that was to come. The train had nothing to do with it. 

In a short while, when the birds, frogs, and bugs had quieted down, Peters would push a button and Mozart's opera The Magic Flute would float from the speakers connected to his compact disc machine. Peters liked Mozart. The music was pure and uncluttered. It flowed from one section into another so smoothly that it was hard to tell a transition had taken place. The complexities of its composition flowed as smoothly as pouring oil. 

As smoothly as the diabolical scam he was planning.

About the Author

Bob’s extraordinary musical abilities were the subject of numerous brain studies, which have inspired a popular RadioLab podcast.

Little did they know that Bob was also a talented writer.

For years he wrote articles about his saloon-playing days for music publications. Many of these stories were compiled into a book called The Journeyman Piano Player: Adventures in Gracious Dining. Bob has written reams of poetry, some of which became lyrics to songs that he composed. The longest piece of poetry he ever wrote was the lyric book for The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, a grand opera he composed and orchestrated.

Mr. Milne has been fascinated by nature his entire life. At a young age he realized that instincts are present in all species of birds, mammals (including humans), and literally every living thing in nature. He has used this information countless times over his lifetime to predict what the human species will do in future situations.

Bob is now retired from the long piano tours and is enjoying his woodland home. Today he spends his time studying nature in the woods. Signed copies of his book may be purchased through his website.

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