Showing results by narrator "Joe Hempel" in All Categories

Casey's cabin in the wilderness is not built for a hurricane. Her roof shakes, the lights flicker, and the tree outside her front door sways ominously in the wind. But she's a lot more worried about the girl she discovers lurking outside her kitchen window. She's young. She's alone. And she's covered in blood.

When the matriarch of a rich Seattle family dies under suspicious circumstances, private investigator Thomas Austin is on the case. This time, the suspect list is easy.

Thomas Austin was once a prominent NYPD detective, known for locking up a psychopathic serial killer dubbed "The Holiday Baby Butcher". Now retired in a small beach town in the Pacific Northwest, Austin runs a little café, trying to overcome the loss of his wife, a DA who was gunned down only one year ago.

A key witness in a high-profile federal case vanishes from a government safehouse just hours before testifying, leaving behind no sign of forced entry, no clear escape route, and only one cryptic word scrawled across a windowpane: Midnight. FBI Agent Claire Anderson is tasked with investigating the disappearance off the books. The press can’t find out. The Bureau can’t afford a scandal. And her team—S. W. O. R. D., the Special-Washington-Oregon-Regional-Detachment—has just days to uncover what really happened before the entire case unravels.

The fourth book in this twisty, fast-paced mystery series, The Horror at Murden Cove locks you on a storm-battered island with a killer whose motive is so deranged, you'll have to listen to this audiobook twice to believe it.

When the skeletal remains of a long-missing woman are unearthed in the rolling vineyards of Washington’s Horse Heaven Hills, Detective Thomas Austin is pulled into a case with eerie echoes of the past. The land belongs to one of the region’s most prestigious wineries, and the discovery threatens to shake the industry to its core. Who was she? Why was she murdered? And who buried her beneath the twisting vines of Cabernet Sauvignon? At the same time, across the Puget Sound, a woman vanishes after boarding a cruise ship heading north from Seattle. No sign of struggle. No witnesses.

Amidst the rugged beauty of Oregon's Opal Creek Wilderness, a contestant on a reality survival show falls to his death from an isolated cliff, his body later devoured by black bears. The show's producers are spinning it as a tragic accident, but local police suspect murder. While enjoying a leisurely tour of the Oregon wine country, Detective Thomas Austin is drawn into the mystery when he learns that the deceased is a well-known author who lived minutes from his own home.

Twenty years ago Brandon Penny was a criminal prodigy. Today, he’s a broken-hearted movie buff working a dead-end job. But everything is about to change. As a child, Brandon carefully studied his mother and her crew of thieves. Gifted from the start, Brandon was pulling short cons by age six, stealing jewelry by age eight, and orchestrating heists by age eleven. But one night a job went bad, a gun went off, and Brandon’s mother disappeared.

Four brand-new horror novellas all about books, stories, manuscripts—the written word has never had sharper teeth. In The Skin of Her Teeth, a cursed novel drives people to their deaths. A delivery job turns deadly in The Dark Brothers' Last Ride. In This Book Belongs to Olo, a lonely child has dangerous control over an usual pop-up book. A choose-your-own adventure game spirals into an uncanny reality in The Story. Full of creepy suspense, these collected novellas are perfect for fans of Paul Tremblay, Stephen King, and Joe Hill.

Private investigator Thomas Austin is enjoying a relaxing holiday vacation in picturesque Port Townsend, Washington, accompanied by an intriguing new friend. But his tranquility is shattered when the nearby community of Mystery Bay is rocked by the death of a revered musician at an infamous counterculture festival: The Rabbit Hole.

Andrew Larimer has left his past behind. Rising up the ranks in a New York law firm, and with a heavily pregnant wife, he is settling into a new life far from Kingsport, the town in which he grew up. But when he receives a late-night phone call from an old friend, he has no choice but to return home.

When Guy finds the deed to a house in his mother's attic, it seems like an incredible stroke of luck. Sure, it hasn't been inhabited in years, and vines strangle the age-stained walls, but Guy's convinced he can clean the building up and sell it. He'd be crazy to turn down free money. Right? Rookward House may be hours away from its nearest neighbor, but he can't escape the feeling that he's being watched. Still, he doesn't believe in ghost stories and decides to camp in the crumbling old mansion while he does repairs. Surely nothing too bad can happen in the space of a week.

On Memorial Day, 1992, three decorated navy officers disappeared in the sleepy beach town of Hansville, Washington. Thirty years later, their medals were found in the marshlands of Foulweather Bluff. So were their bones. For private investigator Thomas Austin, this case hits close to home. The son of a JAG lawyer, Austin grew up around the navy. To solve the case, he must piece together clues buried in the marshlands and dark secrets hidden in navy history.

What happens after the happily ever after? Wyatt and Kate were just kids when they mated. Time passes by and life gets comfortable. Sometimes too comfortable. One too many poker nights with the boys. One drunken, passion-filled nightcap. One irreversible, unexpected pregnancy. They always...

For more than a century, professional wrestling has cultivated some of the most eccentric and compelling personalities. As the embodiment of flamboyance and intensity, the "Nature Boy" Ric Flair stood at wrestling's apex for decades, cementing his place as a once-in-a-lifetime athlete and performer. When he was in the ring, fans knew they were witnessing the very best, and he not only became a multi-time world heavyweight champion in the NWA, WCW, and the WWE, but his status as a generational great has been confirmed with inductions into numerous Halls of Fame.

Bloomsbury presents Intercepts by T.J. Payne, read by Joe Hempel The 'Best of BookTok' horror sensation - now with a never-before-seen bonus chapter! Exclusive to the hardback edition. A must-read for fans of Stranger Things, Stephen King's The Institute and Minority Report. Joe works for a...

Beyond simple small talk: what to say and when to say it to be likable, connect, and make a memorable impression. Actionable and applicable verbal maneuvers for just about every phase of conversation - good and bad. Whatever your conversational goal, you’ll find tactics to put you in a winning position - in a literal sense with arguments, and in a figurative sense with making friends. You can never underestimate the power of a simple conversation.

The statues disappeared in an instant. While they were on Earth, they caused confusion and destruction without ever lifting a finger. They also contributed to the untimely death of April May: a young woman who stumbled into their path, naming them the Carls and gaining viral fame in an avalanche of conspiracy theories. When April's friends try to carry on with their lives, a series of clues arrive - mysterious books that seem to predict the future - and which also seem to suggest April may be very much alive...But there's a bigger mystery to solve. 

Conryu has his life all figured out. At least until the final day of school arrives and with it the annual wizard's test. When Conryu passes the test, no one can believe it since everyone knows boys can't do magic. Suddenly thrust into a world of magic and danger, Conryu must figure out how to use his news powers and quickly.

In the city where he lost everything, he'll stop at nothing to learn the truth. Former NYPD detective Thomas Austin has spent three long years haunted by his wife Fiona's unsolved murder. Three years searching for answers. Three years finding little. Until one lead changes everything.