BV Lawson

A Shamus Award Finalist and Named Best Mystery in the 2015 Next Generation Book Awards A body in a rundown Opera House. A missing manuscript A dark family secret. Still suffering nightmares from a case that ended tragically, brilliant freelance crime consultant Scott Drayco considers retiring from crime solving altogether. When a former client bequeaths Drayco a rundown Opera House in a Virginia seaside town, he figures he'll arrange for a quick sale of the place while nursing his battered soul in a peaceful setting near the shore. What he doesn't count on is finding a dead body on the Opera House stage with a mysterious "G" carved into the man's chest. With hopes for a quick sale dashed and himself a suspect in the murder, Drayco digs into very old and very dangerous secrets to solve the crime and clear his name. Along the way, Drayco must dodge a wary sheriff, hostility over coastal development, and the seductive wife of a town councilman - before the tensions explode into more violence and he becomes the next victim. EDITORIAL REVIEWS: "Lawson uses the gothic features of the abandoned Opera House to great effect, creating an atmospheric background for the crimes and the solving of them, all of it accompanied with music that's almost like another character. The pace never sagged and it kept me enthralled." - Long and Short Reviews "Lawson's book was so good, I read it twice from beginning to end...The citizens of Cape Unity are as diverse and multi-layered as any person living in the large cities, and Lawson portrayed them splendidly." - Reader's Favorite Reviews "The storyline here is nicely structured, and creatively ties together two murder mysteries, which occurred decades apart. The small town setting is ideal, the lead character engaging, and the supporting cast interesting and diverse. Overall, a solid start to this series." - Omnimystery News "A nice tight mystery in a realistic setting. Totally enjoyable." - Terrie Farley Moran, national bestselling author of the Read 'Em and Eat Mystery Series Category Keywords: free, freebie, vigilante justice, crime fiction, FBI agents, murder, private detective, suspense, mysteries, thrillers, mystery & detective, private investigator series, detective novel series, literary mystery, murder mystery series, serial killers, small town mysteries, vengeful, mystery series, thriller books, crime books, suspense books, best mystery novels, J.A. Jance, Tana French, Louise Penny, Karin Slaughter

Scott Drayco Mystery #1

Played to Death

Death on Holiday: 3 Short Tales of Mirth and Mayhem

Read the first six books in the Scott Drayco mystery series that Library Journal called “worth putting on your reading list." Finalists for the Shamus, Silver Falchion, Daphne, Library Journal Indie Best Mystery, and Foreword Book Reviews awards, with over 1,000 five-star reviews! The box set includes six complete novels in the engrossing mystery series featuring crime consultant Scott Drayco who readers describe as “not a stereotypical detective” and “an extremely complex character.” If you enjoy heart-tugging stories, twisty mysteries, and thrilling suspense, then you’ll love BV Lawson’s bestselling series. This digital box set includes: PLAYED TO DEATH: When a former client bequeaths crime consultant Scott Drayco a rundown Opera House in a Virginia seaside town - complete with a body inside - Drayco gets trapped in a tangled web of music, madness, and murder that reaches across the Atlantic into some of the darkest days of human history. REQUIEM FOR INNOCENCE: Crime consultant Scott Drayco is lured back to the Eastern Shore of Virginia to investigate an attack on a disabled girl and wades into a sea of lies, seduction, and secrets to keep the girl safe ... and stop a murderer from striking again. DIES IRAE: After a mysterious music code is left at a crime scene, Scott Drayco plays deadly games with a killer. But is it voodoo, vengeance, or pure villainy? ELEGY IN SCARLET: When crime consultant Scott Drayco’s long-AWOL mother returns and is charged with murder, he becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth even though everyone tells him to walk away. As he falls deeper into secrets, lies and cons, he begins to suspect the case may be all part of an elaborate scam ... where the only one being fooled is Drayco himself. THE SUICIDE SONATA: Can a piece of music be cursed? A song linked to suicides is found with a victim's body, but was it really suicide—or a cleverly disguised murder? After a series of puzzling incidents, and crime consultant Scott Drayco starts suffering from depression himself after playing the sonata, can he be sure of what's real or what's imagined? DEADLY DANCE: When detective Scott Drayco's ex-girlfriend begs him to prove her rich fiance is innocent of murder, he reluctantly takes on the case. But as Drayco encounters a mysterious commune, possible Russian traffickers, and false identities, he plunges deep into a cesspool where nothing is as it appears - and a deadly dance with the devil could be his undoing. What reviewers are saying: "Lawson's protagonist is greatly compelling." - Publishers Weekly Booklife Prize "Worth putting on your reading list." - The Library Journal "BV Lawson has created a memorable character in Drayco, a concert pianist turned FBI agent, turned crime consultant. He also has the fascinating condition of synesthesia, which not only adds a mysterious depth to his character it is integral to the plot." - Big Als Books & Pals Keywords: brainy detectives, thrillers, traditional mysteries, crime thrillers, murder, mystery series, private investigator, detective books, crime series, thriller series, crime thriller series, vigilante justice, detective series, private investigator series, PI series, private eye series, crime authors, thriller authors, psychological thrillers, mystery boxed sets, crime box sets

The Scott Drayco Mystery Series Omnibus, Books 1-6

Kaye George

Jack Bates

Nigel Bird

Eric Beetner

Patricia Abbott

Loren Eaton

Blu Gilliand

Seana Graham

Eirek Gumeny

R.L. Kelstrom

Evan Lewis

B. Nagel

Sean Patrick Reardon

Sandra Seamans

Absolutely Kate

GRIMM TALES is a collection of stories by some of the top names in online crime fiction, all based on classic fairy tales. As novelist Ken Bruen writes in his introduction, "Ever imagined what would have come down the dark pike if The Brothers Grimm were more Brothers Coen and wrote mystery?" The collection is edited by John Kenyon, editor of Grift magazine, and contains 17 stories by Patricia Abbott, Absolutely*Kate, Jack Bates, Eric Beetner, Nigel Bird, Loren Eaton, Kaye George, Blu Gilliand, Seana Graham, Eirik Gumeny, R.L. Kelstrom, John Kenyon, BV Lawson, Evan Lewis, B. Nagel, Sean Patrick Reardon and Sandra Seamans.

Grimm Tales

Gary Cahill

Tom Barlow

John H. Dromey

Ian Creasey

Eryk Pruitt

Ed Ahern

Wayne Scheer

Jed Power

Peter DiChellis

Patti Abbott

S.R. Mastrantone

Kevin R. Doyle

Desperation is the same in any language. Madness respects no borders. Greed and revenge transcend cultural differences. In this third collection of stories from Plan B Magazine, we find tales from all the corners of the crime world. From Cold War espionage to small town stick-ups, high-powered diplomacy to the opportunism of poverty, these are stories of the darkness of the human heart. And once in a while, how the light of our common humanity can transcend that darkness. Table of Contents: "Sirens" by Gary Cahill "House Cleaning" by Ian Creasey "Murderous Lies" by Peter DiChellis "Doing God's Work" by Wayne Scheer "Um Peixe Grande" by Patti Abbott "Loveable Alan Atcliffe" by S.R. Mastrantone "Slice" by Tom Barlow "How Green Was My Valet" by John H. Dromey "The Least Of These" by BV Lawson "Miscellany" by Eryk Pruitt "Stars & Stripes" by Jed Power "Alten Kameraden" by Ed Ahern "The Farm" by Kevin R. Doyle

a mystery and crime anthology

Plan B Volume III

Heart Tugging Mystery & Thrilling Suspense​ Scott Drayco isn’t a typical detective: a former concert pianist, he turned to law enforcement after a violent attack put an end to his music career. His unusual background, eidetic memory, and chromesthesia—a form of synesthesia where he "sees" all sounds as colors, shapes, and textures—give him unique insights into twisty cases others don't want to touch. Book in this series have been a finalist for the Shamus, Silver Falchion, Daphne, and Foreword Review Awards "Lawson's protagonist is greatly compelling." - Publishers Weekly Book Prize "Worth putting on your reading list."- Library Journal ​"I fell in love with the main character and found myself cheering him on to solve each mystery." - 5-star review ​"So good, I read it twice from beginning to end." - 5 star review Read the first three books in the Scott Drayco mystery series—60% off the print price!

The Scott Drayco Series: Books 1-3

NOTE: This is a sequel to book #3 in the Scott Drayco series, DIES IRAE, which should be read before ELEGY IN SCARLET if you want to avoid spoilers! When crime consultant Scott Drayco’s long-AWOL mother returns and is charged with murder, he’s dragged into a world of secrets, lies, and cons as he becomes obsessed with solving the mystery about her and his own past.

A Scott Drayco Mystery

Elegy in Scarlet

Revenge is best served ... bold. When Beverly Laborde becomes a con artist to exact vengeance on the man who shut down her grandmother's antiques business and sent her to an early grave, she comes face to face with the handsome but haunted Vermont police detective, Adam Dutton—who doesn’t know whether to arrest her or ask her out on a date. But Beverly and Adam soon face an even worse problem than their inconvenient growing attraction toward each other: they've both incurred the wrath of the wealthy and formidable Reginald Forsythe. Forsythe’s criminal tendrils seem to reach into all areas of Vermont politics and the Northeastern Antiquities League. And he’ll do anything to keep his dark secrets safe. Beverly and Adam enlist the help of a sympathetic antiques dealer and the mysterious “Mr. X,” but will it be enough to prove Forsythe is guilty not only of theft and bribery but possibly murder? Beverly and Adam soon learn that even though they may not be able to outgun their nemesis individually, together they just might have a fighting chance.

Steal Away: An Adam Dutton & Beverly Laborde Mystery

The sequel to the Shamus Award-nominated PLAYED TO DEATH Crime consultant Scott Drayco is in the middle of a thorny case in Washington, D.C. involving murder victims who were all wheelchair-bound. Then, out of the blue, he gets a worried call from a friend on Virginia's Eastern Shore about an attack on an innocent disabled girl. Working once again with Sheriff Sailor and Deputy Nelia Tyler, Drayco discovers almost everyone believes the girl's attack was an accident. But he begins to suspect otherwise when he crosses paths with a badly disfigured man and the man's enigmatic Goth son, as well as one of the smoothest and most dangerous figures Drayco has encountered in his career. Meanwhile, his conflicted feelings toward the soon-to-be-divorced town councilman's wife, Darcie Squier, continue to simmer under the surface and threaten to undermine his focus and cloud his judgement. But he's well aware he needs to keep his faculties razor-sharp if he's to solve the riddle of whether the cases in D.C. and the Eastern Shore are linked - or is he dealing with not one monster, but two? PRAISE FOR BV LAWSON'S SCOTT DRAYCO SERIES "Lawson uses the gothic features of the abandoned Opera House to great effect, creating an atmospheric background for the crimes and the solving of them, all of it accompanied with music that's almost like another character. The pace never sagged and it kept me enthralled." - Long and Short Reviews "Lawson's book was so good, I read it twice from beginning to end...The citizens of Cape Unity are as diverse and multi-layered as any person living in the large cities, and Lawson portrayed them splendidly." - Reader's Favorite Reviews "The storyline here is nicely structured, and creatively ties together two murder mysteries, which occurred decades apart. The small town setting is ideal, the lead character engaging, and the supporting cast interesting and diverse. Overall, a solid start to this series." - Omnimystery News "A nice tight mystery in a realistic setting. Totally enjoyable." - Terrie Farley Moran, national bestselling author of the Read 'Em and Eat Mystery Series Category Keywords: vigilante justice, crime fiction, FBI agents, murder, private detective, suspense, mysteries, thrillers, mystery & detective, private investigator series, detective novel series, literary mystery, murder mystery series, serial killers, small town mysteries, vengeful, mystery series, thriller books, crime books, suspense books, best mystery novels, J.A. Jance, Tana French, Louise Penny, Karin Slaughter

Requiem for Innocence

COMBINES "Grave Madness" and "Vengeance is Blind" into one volume! Scott Drayco had everything going for him: handsome, brilliant, a talented classical pianist. After violence scarred him physically and emotionally, he turned to an FBI career and now freelances as a crime consultant, taking on cases other people often don't want to touch. From a suspected serial killer who plays mind games with Drayco, to murder and revenge at 20,000 feet, these eight stories delve into the darkest mysteries of the human soul. Praise for Derringer Award-winning BV Lawson's short fiction: "We've had the pleasure of reading these tales and can enthusiastically recommend them." - Omnimystery News "...One of the best shorts I've read this year. Scary and triumphant in the bleakest kind of way with two of the best characters I've read. - AJ Hayes "Awesome story. Beautifully written...you have really written something special." - Terrie Farley Moran "BV Lawson ends the anthology on a strong note. Scott Drayco investigates the death of a shock jock and...cleverly solves the crime. All in all, an excellent read for lovers of quality mystery fiction." - Jacqueline Seewald

Eight Scott Drayco Mystery Stories

False Shadows

If you play with fire ... you get murder. When a series of arsons targets Vermont antiques stores, Detective Adam Dutton and con-woman Beverly Laborde worry a shop owned by their friend might be next. But the stakes take an even deeper and uglier turn after a body is found inside one of the burned buildings. Was it an accident, suicide ... or murder? Adam and Beverly hoped they'd seen the last of a crime syndicate operating under the Northern Antiquities League—and that they could finally put those dark memories behind them. But do the arsons signal the last gasp of the NAL? Or is a new mob threat rising from the ashes? With the help of the mysterious Mr. X, Adam and Beverly race to get to the bottom of the fires before any more lives are lost ... including their own.

Burn Away: An Adam Dutton & Beverly Laborde Mystery

A mysterious music puzzle. A murdered co-ed. Sinister secrets. Three years ago, Scott Drayco left the FBI after an incident involving his partner, Mark "Sarg" Sargosian. Now a freelance crime consultant, Drayco often helps law enforcement on cases, but he never imagined his estranged former partner would turn up on his doorstep, pleading for Drayco's help. A co-ed at an elite Washington, D.C., private college has been murdered, and the victim's friend - Sarg's own daughter Tara - might be the next target. The killer left behind a puzzling music code at the crime scene, and Drayco soon learns he has two things in common with the murdered girl - a music background and synesthesia. The case takes an even stranger turn after a second murder and a second music code, with signs pointing toward a possible ritualistic killing. Then, Drayco himself starts receiving coded messages . . . PRAISE FOR BV LAWSON'S SCOTT DRAYCO SERIES "Lawson uses the gothic features of the abandoned Opera House to great effect, creating an atmospheric background for the crimes and the solving of them, all of it accompanied with music that's almost like another character. The pace never sagged and it kept me enthralled." - Long and Short Reviews "Lawson's book was so good, I read it twice from beginning to end...The citizens of Cape Unity are as diverse and multi-layered as any person living in the large cities, and Lawson portrayed them splendidly." - Reader's Favorite Reviews "The storyline here is nicely structured, and creatively ties together two murder mysteries, which occurred decades apart. The small town setting is ideal, the lead character engaging, and the supporting cast interesting and diverse. Overall, a solid start to this series." - Omnimystery News "A nice tight mystery in a realistic setting. Totally enjoyable." - Terrie Farley Moran, national bestselling author of the Read 'Em and Eat Mystery Series Category Keywords: vigilante justice, crime fiction, FBI agents, murder, private detective, suspense, mysteries, thrillers, mystery & detective, private investigator series, detective novel series, literary mystery, murder mystery series, kidnapping, serial killers, small town mysteries, vengeful, mystery series, thriller books, crime books, suspense books, best mystery novels, J.A. Jance, Tana French, Louise Penny, Karin Slaughter

Dies Irae

Barb Goffman

Bobbi A. Chukran

Judy Penz Sheluk

Earl Staggs

Albert Tucher

John M. Floyd

Andrew MacRae

JoAnne Lucas

Walter Soethoudt

O'Neil De Noux

Julie Tollefson

Laurie Stevens

Sandra Murphy

Pamela A. De Voe

Suzanne Berube Rorhus

Su Kopil

Tim Wohlforth

Herschel Cozine

Nineteen authors spin yarns of murder, mayhem, clues, and confessions in this anthology of stories culled from the Short Mystery Fiction Society. Sometimes, crime has the sound of poison dripping or the whistle of a knife through the air. And, sometimes, it happens with a “flash and bang.” Collected here are some of the finest short mystery and crime stories to emerge from the Short Mystery Fiction Society, which boasts more than sixteen hundred members around the world. The diverse range of voices represented here takes readers from small-town diners and neighborhood pawn shops to Viking ships, ancient Chinese courts, and beyond. Full of dangerous secrets and violent crimes, seasoned gumshoes and amateur sleuths, Flash and Bang serves as a showcase of the incredible talent in the SMFS ranks. Flash and Bang includes contributions from Herschel Cozine, Bobbi A. Chukran, Su Kopil, P.A. De Voe, Laurie Stevens, Tim Wohlforth, Suzanne Berube Rorhus, Sandra Murphy, Julie Tollefson, O’Neil De Noux, John M. Floyd, JoAnne Lucas, Andrew MacRae, Judy Penz Sheluk, Albert Tucher, Earl Staggs, Barb Goffman, BV Lawson, and Walter Soethoudt.

A Short Mystery Fiction Group Anthology

Flash and Bang

BV Lawson

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