56 books like Depth of Winter

Dave Robicheaux is a New Iberia, Louisiana, sheriff’s detective in a series by James Lee Burke. You don’t want to get on the wrong side of Dave. He is righteous, but flawed. He regularly attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, struggles with nightmares of Viet Nam and other unseen demons, but has an acute sense of right and wrong. In Crusader’s Cross, his loyal sidekick, Cletus Prucell says of Dave, "He's got polka dot giraffes running around in his head, but he's the best guy I've ever known.” I’m a Burke fan, and I like everything he writes. In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead, and Purple Cane Road are my personal favorites. In Electric Mist, Dave is drawn into a 40-year-old unsolved murder that he witnessed as a college freshman. In the midst of his investigation, Dave has regular conversations with the ghost of Confederate General John Bell Hood.… show more.

Dave Robicheaux is one of my favorite characters, perhaps because I can relate to him so easily. James Lee Burke is a master of metaphors and he can offer descriptions of the sky like no other. His storytelling is enjoyable and almost philosophical at times.

In this book Burke's firsthand knowledge of the pristine scenery in Northern Montana shines above his usual inside look at the Louisiana bayou country. Robicheauxs's sidekick, Clete Purcel, is a colorful and easily likable character.

Swan Peak wasn’t as exciting as the other Robicheaux novels I’ve read but it was still a great page-turner and good story.

Yeah, I know, naming Jack Reacher as one of the badasses of crime fiction is the equivalent of a six-inch putt. A gimme. Child has taken a totally implausible premise—a six-foot-five former Army MP wandering around the United States and finding trouble with nothing but an ATM card in his pocket—and created one of the best characters in suspense literature. When Reacher is on the hunt, the results are never in doubt, which is why we love him. He’s the fullback coming through the line, time and time again, and no one can stop him. One reviewer of Child’s books said that Reacher is never the underdog. That’s a perfect description.

This is the perfect mix of politics and crime fiction, illustrating the old saying that power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Like all the books in this series, I thoroughly enjoy C.J. Box showing me the Wyoming he knows so well, the state’s harsh winters with snow so deep it literally comes up your thighs, the abundant wildlife, and the people.

I love how the story begins with the hero, game warden Joe Pickett, investigating the disappearance of a well-to-do British woman from an elite guest ranch and then unexpectedly spirals headlong into green energy corruption.

Mostly, I appreciate Box’s depiction of self-serving politicians going up against an unassuming game warden who just wants to do his job and go home to his loving family. 

It’s not your typical romance. It’s dark, twisted, gritty, and full of – Damn! I love the bad boys with an ounce of good deep inside. I love women who can come from nothing and are not easily swayed and dominated. The drama pulls you in so deep you feel as if you are there, you can smell it, feel it, and see it all happening right in front of you. Even better you’re the character. 

Diane Harbaugh is a female, strong, badass similar to Jason Bourne. You’re going to love her. Making them cry is an action-packed romp through disillusioned agents, informants, and cartels. Diane navigates on the edges through multiple scapes, all while trying to keep her reputation intact. She must deal with unscrupulous bosses while trusting a rogue CIA agent and a cartel informant. Every time she gets out of trouble, more trouble finds her. This book is worth your time.

Gabino Iglesias has become a phenomenon in horror through a lot of hustle and plain hard work. His 2022 novel cemented his reputation as the king of border horror.

This novel follows the fate of Mario, a man broken by debt due to his family’s crushing medical bills. With a failing marriage, he reluctantly takes a job as a hitman, agreeing to do one last job hijacking a cartel’s cash shipment before it can reach Mexico.

Mario reluctantly works with his meth-addicted friend and a cartel insider. To make this dangerous endeavor worse, enter supernatural horrors that shocked me—and I am not easily shocked.

Is there blood? Of course! Gore? Plenty! Monsters and demons? Yes! You are guaranteed to lose sleep after reading this novel.

Underrated this author may be, but not this book! I wish this genre could be taken as seriously as literary fiction often is, because author Azayler puts her heart and soul into everything she writes. She is truly the queen of urban romance and love, studying the craft to make sure that her characters penetrate the spirit of the reader. No one can make being in love be so dangerous, to the point where the characters are willing to die for it.

Do children always tell the truth?

With so many perspectives and so many puzzles, this thriller had me excited. The chapters from the child's perspective, in particular, stuck with me. I loved how you understood the story through a child's eyes. The naïve narrative makes the worst things particularly horrific. And all without bloodshed!

I can only heartily recommend this page-turner of my German author colleague, which was even made into a series by Netflix.

Superbly written, heart-stopping, action-filled. It’s the story of highborn 18-year-old Cassie Brougham, who on the day before her marriage to a viscount she has loved for years, is abducted by 34-year-old Anthony Wells, the Earl of Clare, who has been watching her since she was a child all the while believing she is his perfect mate. 

Though Anthony’s intention is marriage, that doesn’t stop him from rape to claim her, nor imprisonment, first on his yacht and then in his Italian villa, as he tries to persuade her to marry him. The plot is intricate and intriguing with lots of action and lots of mystery. The characters are richly drawn, including the hero who has a noble side notwithstanding his selfish and brutal act of taking another man’s bride.