Here are 100 books that Tallchief fans have personally recommended if you like
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I've been fascinated by cultures shrouded in secrets and mystery since childhood, a fascination that intensified when efforts to unravel the mystery and expose the truth were stonewalled, leading to frustrating dead-ends. I spent decades trying to uncover the truth history obscures through research that included travel to the lands of secrets, mystery, and sometimes outright lies. As a writer, I draw from experience, education, and imagination because I know it's sometimes necessary to wrap truth in fiction to protect it. The books I've selected speak to that reality.
A story of characters who use hardship as a springboard to success; I was immediately pulled in by a plot told through the eyes of characters as if we were in a pub and they were sharing life lessons. The brutal honesty of how innocents get caught in the crossfires of greed and quests for power resonates. The ending is both poignant and haunting.
Jeffrey Archer's Kane and Abel is a global phenomenon that has captivated readers worldwide, spawning two sequels and dominating bestseller charts the world over.
Two strangers born worlds apart with one destiny that will define them both.
William Lowell Kane, the son of a Boston millionaire, and Abel Rosnovski, the son of a penniless Polish immigrant, are born on the same day on opposite sides of the world and brought together by fate and the quest of a dream.
Locked in a relentless struggle spanning sixty years and three generations, the two men battle for supremacy in pursuit of an…
I've been fascinated by cultures shrouded in secrets and mystery since childhood, a fascination that intensified when efforts to unravel the mystery and expose the truth were stonewalled, leading to frustrating dead-ends. I spent decades trying to uncover the truth history obscures through research that included travel to the lands of secrets, mystery, and sometimes outright lies. As a writer, I draw from experience, education, and imagination because I know it's sometimes necessary to wrap truth in fiction to protect it. The books I've selected speak to that reality.
I was introduced to Clive Cussler novels in an airport while waiting for a connection. I've been hooked ever since.
The piece de resistance of Dirk Pitt's NUMA adventures, Inca Gold, stands out for its haunting authenticity as it draws readers into a world where, thanks to Clive's brilliance, his alternate takes on history are all too plausible.
Dirk and the NUMA team that backs and believes in him never disappoint with stories that keep you guessing til the dramatic end.
The twelfth hair-raising Dirk Pitt thriller sees the adventurer hunt for a fabulous hoard of Inca gold, before the richest prize known to man is lost forever.
ACTION-PACKED ADVENTURE
A call for help from a stricken archaeological expedition brings Dirk Pitt to a sacred well, high in the Andes. There he confronts a band of ruthless art thieves, who plunder ancient sites for their precious artefacts.
But soon Dirk Pitt faces even graver danger, as he searches for a lost Spanish galleon and hunts for a fabulous hoard of Inca gold. And in a desperate race against time, Pitt must…
I've been fascinated by cultures shrouded in secrets and mystery since childhood, a fascination that intensified when efforts to unravel the mystery and expose the truth were stonewalled, leading to frustrating dead-ends. I spent decades trying to uncover the truth history obscures through research that included travel to the lands of secrets, mystery, and sometimes outright lies. As a writer, I draw from experience, education, and imagination because I know it's sometimes necessary to wrap truth in fiction to protect it. The books I've selected speak to that reality.
Given to me by my paternal grandmother during a bout of insomnia, this book kept me up all night as I tried to unravel not only the plot but the characters themselves.
False starts set up for a surprise ending as the author leads readers through a setting that puts them at home in the story.
This book is an electrifying story from "New York Times" bestselling author Stuart Woods that moves from the urban chaos of Atlanta and Los Angeles to untamed island hideaways, from moments of tender passion to acts of overwhelming violence.
I've been fascinated by cultures shrouded in secrets and mystery since childhood, a fascination that intensified when efforts to unravel the mystery and expose the truth were stonewalled, leading to frustrating dead-ends. I spent decades trying to uncover the truth history obscures through research that included travel to the lands of secrets, mystery, and sometimes outright lies. As a writer, I draw from experience, education, and imagination because I know it's sometimes necessary to wrap truth in fiction to protect it. The books I've selected speak to that reality.
I've had a fascination with small New England towns since childhood, intrigued by how they are portrayed as romantic yet forbidding if not outright hostile to outsiders.
Comes the Blind Fury beautifully satisfies this fascination as John masterfully weaves a tale of secrets small-town residents collude - willingly or not - to hide, uncovering a motivation that proves even one bad apple can destroy a crop and burying your head in the sand does not release you from guilt.
A riveting tale that leaves you guessing who is friend and who is foe right to the dramatic end.
A century ago, a gentle blind girl walked the cliffs of Paradise Point. Then the children came -- taunting, teasing -- until she lost her footing and fell, shrieking her rage to the drowning sea... Now Michelle has come from Boston to live in the big house on Paradise Point. She is excited about her new life, ready to make new friends... until a hand reaches out of the swirling mists -- the hand of blind child. She is asking for friendship... seeking revenge... whispering her name...
Sometimes I have to take a trip back to my reading "roots": gothic mystery and suspense. This list is a deep dive into some of my very favorite vintage gothic authors and ones that I consider to be icons of the genre. These writers formed the foundation not only for my reading tastes but also for who I have become as a writer. The memories of my younger self come flooding back when I revisit these authors and their works as I have done with this list. Some of these novels are hard to come by now but, in my opinion, the older and more beat-up paperback, the better.
I spent so many summer afternoons as a teenager reading Barbara Michaels’ novels.
She is another writer who managed to set in stone my love and fascination for tales gothic and truly inspired and informed my own writing.
This one with a copyright of 1973 has it all. Isolated, rural setting with a historic stone cottage, creepy, almost folk horror-esque townspeople, a twisted villain, and a supernatural edge.
But it also has something that Michael’s specialized in: dialogue that captures relationships in a very approachable and identifiable way despite the vintage year.
Witch captures her mastery of the gothic and ticks all the boxes of a great read in the genre.
A wonderful Gothic suspense story filled with clever twists and turns, Witch by Barbara Michaels will have you on the edge of your seat.
It was more than her dream house. For divorcee Ellen March, buying the secluded old house nestled in the pine woods marked the start of a new life. Now she could put her failed marriage behind her, enjoy the quiet solitude of small town life in Virginia, and get to know her new neighbour, the handsome Norman McKay.
But strange visions began to cloud her mind - the shadowy figure of a woman, a ghostly white…
I am a lifelong history lover. I was the kid who hung around the feet of the elders, listening to their stories and learning about the past. That led to a deep interest in tracing family history, which has been a passion since about the age of ten. I still can get lost for hours finding ancestors or reading about their lives. That interest led me to a double major in college and I earned a Bachelor of Arts in both history and English with a two-year degree in journalism. I live a short distance from Oklahoma and one of my favorite pastimes is to go to powwows whenever possible.
It's a heart-wrenching tale of lost love and a second chance at happiness with edge-of-the-chair suspense. It appeals to me because I have some Cherokee heritage which resonates. I love second chance at romance stories because I married the man I fell in love with in high school – at the age of 32!
He was home from prison. Ten years compressed in the nerve-racking space of a few seconds. This tall, broad-shouldered stranger was her husband. Every memory she had of his appearance was there, stamped with a brutal decade of maturity, but there. Except for the look in his eyes. Nothing had ever been bleak and hard about him before. He stared at her with an intensity that could have burned her shadow on the floor. Words were hopeless, but all that they had. “Welcome back,” she said. Then, brokenly, “Jake.” He took a deep breath, as if a shiver had run…
As a child, I read many Nancy Drew books and loved how she solved the clues. During the last couple of years I have developed a deeper interest in mystery and romantic suspense books. I enjoy trying to figure out the clues in other's tales and creating my own. The challenge is like putting a puzzle together for me when I write in this genre. Recently I wrote two short cozy mysteries and a romantic suspense that were published for the Christian market. I have a couple of cozy mystery works in progress that will soon be ready to share with readers. My other books often have hints of mysteries.
12 Days will keep you on the edge of your seat. The past will collide with the present for a retired policeman who struggles with his faith, his work, and his relationship with those who care for him.
This is a new author to me and I was impressed with how she intricately woven the story together providing plenty of surprises and twists. When his estranged girlfriend's life is on the line, the mystery will morph into a suspenseful game that will threaten them both.
His journey of faith was important to the story and I was glad to see that be an important part of the story.
As a child, I read many Nancy Drew books and loved how she solved the clues. During the last couple of years I have developed a deeper interest in mystery and romantic suspense books. I enjoy trying to figure out the clues in other's tales and creating my own. The challenge is like putting a puzzle together for me when I write in this genre. Recently I wrote two short cozy mysteries and a romantic suspense that were published for the Christian market. I have a couple of cozy mystery works in progress that will soon be ready to share with readers. My other books often have hints of mysteries.
The Hidden Gate is a sweet cozy that I found intriguing.
The story has both a contemporary setting and one from the past. The two meld together to leave the reader wondering what happened to a young girl who disappeared in the past and what her relationship to the present day characters might be.
I found myself cheering for those wronged in the past and mourning for the unfortunate child's demise. The lead characters where appealing and made great sleuths for solving the crime.
Sometimes I have to take a trip back to my reading "roots": gothic mystery and suspense. This list is a deep dive into some of my very favorite vintage gothic authors and ones that I consider to be icons of the genre. These writers formed the foundation not only for my reading tastes but also for who I have become as a writer. The memories of my younger self come flooding back when I revisit these authors and their works as I have done with this list. Some of these novels are hard to come by now but, in my opinion, the older and more beat-up paperback, the better.
This novel put a pin on what became a life-long fascination with gothic fiction for me.
I first read it over forty years ago and it is hands-down the most memorable novel ever from my early reading diet.
Why is it so memorable? It hits all the high notes necessary for gripping suspense/mystery/romance in this genre and is laden with all the gothicky feels.
It includes a bit of the supernatural, mystery of an old gravestone, mood setting in the Virginia hills, and a heroine in a dangerous pickle.
Originally published in 1971, it is out of print now but find a copy if you can. You won’t regret it.
All of the books I’ve listed above have flawed characters. Characters that deal with emotional and/or moral dilemmas. The plots: murder, missing children, or runaway husbands are secondary to me. What I look for in a book and what I write about in my Cole and Callahan series, are characters with flaws. People who struggle with truth. Cops or investigators that hide or skew evidence because the truth would cause more harm than good. It’s the moral dilemma I want. The angst we all feel when we are faced with a particularly painful decision. That’s what real life is and that’s what brings a book and a character to life.
Not A Happy Family is a Domestic Suspense novel. The Mertons have everything, money, a beautiful home, and plenty of vacations. So why, after Easter dinner with their three children are they found dead? The kids are distraught. Or are they? What childhood secrets do each of them carry and is one of them murderously vindictive? I come from a big family and always enjoy reading about dysfunctional families. Luckily, my own family was only semi-dysfunctional for the most part. Nothing I needed to kill my parents over.
