Cash Call, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 5

Cash Call, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 5

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Stan and Rebekah's good friends, Don and Pam Blaylock, are living the American dream--a beautiful home, wonderful children, Don has a great job and Pam is president of Junior League. But all that changes when they make an imprudent investment in a Golden Dragon restaurant franchise and their son is arrested for DWI. Cash Call is a legal horror story that could happen to anyone.Stan and Rebekah's good friends, Don and Pam Blaylock, are in deep trouble. An imprudent investment in a Golden Dragon franchise and their son's arrest for DWI trigger an avalanche of misfortune culminating with the murder of Luther Bell, the smooth-talking restaurant promoter responsible for their impending demise. While Stan conducts a preemptive investigation to prove his clients are innocent, he is inundated with lawsuits and claims from their growing list of creditors and must deal with the inevitable marital strife that threatens this once proud family. Then one of Stan's old flames resurfaces and makes a play for Stan's affections. A wrongful death suit worth millions, ancient Peruvian pottery filled with diamonds, and a confrontation with the Mob round out this nail-biting legal thriller.
Read online
  • 1 112
Cactus Island, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 8

Cactus Island, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 8

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

In order to successfully defend a teenager accused of murder, Dallas attorney Stan Turner must prove that an alien spacecraft flew over central Texas!Stan is called out to Possum Kingdom Lake in central Texas where there's been a tragic Jeep accident. The teenage driver, Steven Caldwell, survives unscathed but his passenger dies. It appears to be just another tragic auto accident until the sheriff discovers Steven and the victim were in love with the same girl. When Steven is charged with murder, he insists the accident wasn't his fault. He claims he was distracted by an alien spacecraft flying overhead. At first Stan thinks his client's story is ridiculous, but as his investigation progresses he discovers his client may be telling the truth.
Read online
  • 843
Unconscionable, A Rich Coleman Novel Vol 3

Unconscionable, A Rich Coleman Novel Vol 3

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Volume 3 of the Rich Coleman Novel series. A timely novel about one greedy of mortgage lender who made himself millions but destroyed the lives of thousands of Americans and helped send the American economy in a tailspin.An ex-military contractor tries to leave the world behind, but it’s not as simple as he thinks...especially once the blood lust strikes.Horrific experiments took the two things that mattered most to William Strickland -- his family and his humanity. Now a twisted mutation of human and animal DNA, he is up against the most powerful corporation in the world... and all he has are his wits, his will, and the wolf.Grab this riveting thriller today and free the beast inside!
Read online
  • 741
Tarizon, Civil War, Tarizon Trilogy Vol 2

Tarizon, Civil War, Tarizon Trilogy Vol 2

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Leek Lanzia is given command of the 3rd Loyalist Army and quickly gains the support of the people against the tyrant Videl Lai.Leek Lanzia, who many believe is “the Liberator” mentioned in the Prophecy, is given command of the remnants of the mutant army after it is decimated by the TGA’s seemingly invincible hovertanks. He must reorganize and rebuild the army if there is going to be any chance of stopping the TGA from marching all the way to Rigomol and overrunning the capital city. After losing a bid to becoming chancellor, Lorin aligns herself with Leek in order to preserve the organization she and her father have so painstakingly built and to save the Nanomites from Videl Lai’s ordered genocide. While rebuilding the Loyalist’s 3rd Army, Leek proves himself a capable leader and quickly gains the support and admiration of his soldiers and the people of Tarizon. But as the war drags on Leek yearns to rescue his mate, Lucinda, held captive by Videl Lai in the capital city of Shisk.
Read online
  • 689
Shroud of Doom

Shroud of Doom

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Volume II of the Tarizon Saga, a prequel to the Tarizon Trilogy, The Liberator, Civil War, and Conquest Earth. Chronicles the period directly after Tarizon's cataclysmic super volcanic eruptions that killed millions and left the planet under a shroud of volcanic ash.Thousands of years ago a group of explorers were sent out from the planet Pharidon to find new habitats for their exploding population. After years of searching without success the explorers split up with one finally discovering Earth and the other Tarizon. The Pharidon explorers thrived on Tarizon but as their population grew and spread out over the globe, nations were formed each claiming sovereignty over its populace. Eventually national pride, greed, and envy led to a hundred cycle global nuclear war. Peace only came after a spiritual leader, Sandee Brahn, led a movement to unify the planet and bring about lasting peace. His goal was accomplished at a World Assembly where the Supreme Mandate was written and ratified by all the nations of Tarizon and peace was finally restored. Shroud of Doom takes place thirty-seven years after unification (37 A.U.) The planet's ecology is slowly recovering from the effects of the long war that has killed millions, destroyed most of the planet's infrastructure, and left Tarizon barely habitable. In order for the human population to survive huge domes have been constructed over the cities to protect the inhabitants. Unfortunately, the cities were unable to contain the entire population and millions were left outside the domes to die. Although most did die a few, known as the Mutants, managed to adapt to Tarizon's hostile environment and survived. Like the mutants the two other sentient life forms on Tarizon, the Nanomites and the rhutz were left outside the domes to fend for themselves. Shroud of Doom is the story of the collision of these two worlds which eventually plunges Tarizon into civil war.
Read online
  • 688
Brash Endeavor

Brash Endeavor

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Step into the shoes of Dallas attorney, Stan Turner, in the late 1970's as he begins the practice of law. Broke but determined to get his practice going, Stan starts with only a $2,000 cash advance on his American Express Card. It's the late 70's, a boom time in Dallas, and there are a lot of shady oil and gas and real estate promoters around. It isn't long before a couple of Stan's clients get him in serious trouble. When Stan's wife, Rebekah, is arrested for murder and a client turns out to be a ghost, Stan turns in his legal pad for a detective's notebook and goes to work to solve these most perplexing mysteries.Review"Brash Endeavor" was fabulous-a real page turner-I didn't want it to end! --Allison Robson, KLBK TV 13, Lubbock TXWilliam Manchee could be Dallas' answer to John Grisham. Manchee, an author who has maintained a private law firm in Dallas since 1975, recently published Brash Endeavor, a page-turning tale of a small- time lawyer in over his head with some big time clients. Just like Grisham's books, the protagonist appears to be a thinly veiled version of Manchee. The novel follows Stan Turner--the character that Manchee introduced in the well-received Undaunted, as he moves to Dallas to open up his own law practice and becomes involved with an insurance scam that ends up with his wife being falsely accused of murder. It sounds like just the kind of potboiler that Grisham is known for. Let's just hope Manchee doesn't option any of his books to movie producers. ---- The Dallas Observer, Fall 1998
Read online
  • 637
Cactus Island

Cactus Island

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Stan is called out to Possum Kingdom Lake in central Texas where two boy scouts have driven off a cliff in a jeep. The driver, Steven Caldwell, survives unscathed but the passenger dies. It appears to be just another tragic auto accident until the sheriff discovers Steven and the victim were in love with the same girl. When Steven is charged with murder he asks Stan to defend him, but Stan is reluctant to do so because Steven claims he ran off the road when he saw a spacecraft hovering overhead. In order to prove Steven's innocence he'd have to prove that aliens had visited Possum Kingdom Lake!ReviewWilliam Manchee's Cactus Island: A Stan Turner Mystery is one legal thriller that will have you scratching your heads, even if you don't believe in extra-terrestrial life. How do you defend someone who insists that they saw a space ship that caused them to lose control of his jeep, plunging over a hill and resulting in the death of a friend who had been a passenger in the vehicle? The driver, Steven Caldwell, who survives the accident, is accused of murder for reckless driving and the incriminating evidence slowly builds up, particularly when the sheriff discovers that the two friends were in love with the same girl. Attorney Stan Turner initially refuses to defend Caldwell on the grounds that this could make him the laughing stock of the legal community. On the other hand, if he succeeds, he would be considered a brilliant litigator. Eventually, Turner gives in and takes on the case, while continually grumbling that every time he thinks he has it under control strange things happen. In addition to our murder trial, Manchee cleverly interweaves another mystery- one involving a divorce between Cheryl Windsor and her husband Martin, who mysteriously has disappeared along with one of the his employees- a manager at one of his hotels. This one is handled by Turner's partner Paula Waters, who is troubled that her client, Cheryl Windsor, seems to be having convenient lapses of memory as the district attorney gathers a great deal of damning evidence against her. Could she have something to do with her husband's disappearance? When Waters tries to find out more about Martin Windsor, she comes to the conclusion that he may have intentionally disappeared in order to avoid his assets being divided by the divorce court. In fact, he made sure all of his assets disappeared along with him and moreover he seems to have been involved with off-shore bank accounts. What eventually is exposed is that although the two mysteries seem to be miles apart, they are very much interconnected, particularly when we are clued in that Martin Windsor, an immigrant from Hungary, seems not to have left any records evidencing his existence in the USA. Who is Martin Windsor and where did he come from now becomes of prime importance? Manchee provides his readers with a dexterously plotted tale that ties everything together with a surprise ending. And even if you don't believe in space ships and aliens, you have to admit that this would make great courtroom drama- if it actually happened! --Norman Goldman, Bookpleasures.comWith Cactus Island William Manchee offers another riveting tale in his ongoing Stan Turner series. The reader is hooked immediately from the Cactus Island first line in this gripping, keenly portrayed story theme. The narrative is told in the first person, chapter by chapter by Stan and law partner Paula Waters. Initially I had a little problem deciding who was talking, but I soon had that figured out and zipped right into the story. Transitions are handled well, I wondered how Manchee could pull plot and sub plot together in a believable manner, and found that Manchee has done it again with wit and adroit writing. As always Manchee s characters are uncontrived, well portrayed and plausible. I have found with Manchee s character there is no middle ground, we really like the likeable, and really despise those deserving our aversion. Colloquy flows naturally as the characters work to unravel problems. The plot zenith and outcome are handled with usual Manchee aplomb. I have no problem believing that Stan would have dealt with the situations he faced in Cactus Island precisely as is drafted by author Manchee. Writer Manchee has set together another great milieu of engaging, convincing characters, predicaments and blunders. The tale Manchee weaves in Cactus Island brings us another great romp with full time lawyer part time sleuth Stan Turner and his law partner Paula Waters. With the character Doc Verner and his insistence that aliens have landed on Cactus Island, Manchee has added a little plot twist to titillate and surprise the reader. Cactus Island is a well-written tale filled with many of the characters we have come to enjoy from the first works in this ongoing series. The Turner children are now nearly grown up we see Stan, Rebekah and their family much as our own. And that is in part what makes this series so engaging. --Molly Martin Reviews"Cactus Island" is part of the "Stan Turner Mystery" series. It was the first one that I have read in this series. I enjoyed it so much; I am looking forward to going back and catching up on the other ones. It starts out as a suspenseful mystery. I can't say murder mystery because in one case, the death is suspicious and in the other case, we aren't sure if the person is actually dead or has just disappeared. Stan and his partner Paula are both defense attorneys on cases that initially appear dissimilar, however, as the plot thickens it is discovered that there is a connection between the two. By the end of the story, they are totally intertwined. The plot also evolves from a mystery to a science fiction tale. I absolutely loved this twist in the story. It made it much more fun to read. The characters are well developed and each has their own personal issues to deal with. This makes the novel seem more real to you because it adds more dimension to the drama that is occurring within the plot. Because it is a series, they also already have their relationships established and seem very comfortable within their roles. Mr. Manchee has a gift of leading you to a thought about what is happening in the story, then acknowledging it, and then adding suspense that takes you off in a different direction. This was great. I would finally think I figured things out, and then realize that I wasn't even close. Then with the sci-fi angle, it really changed things. Reading "Cactus Island" is definitely like riding a rollercoaster and it is all fun! I did get a few goose bumps along the way. If you like straight up, non-paranormal fiction, this book is not for you. However, if you like shows like X-Files and books with paranormal or science fiction elements, read "Cactus Island," and you will be in heaven! I sure was. --Reader Views From the PublisherCactus Island is book seven of the Stan Turner Mystery series featuring legal sleuths Stan Turner and Paula Waters. It marks a turning point in the series as Stan's involvement with the CIA intensifies as he is enlisted to help them keep a dark and ghastly secret that, if revealed, could cause widespread panic and outrage. To further complicate matters, Stan suffers a tragic personal loss in this episode that will have a dramatic impact on future books in the series. Finally, a new series will be spun off from the final chapter of the novel---but that's all we can tell you for now.
Read online
  • 632
Ca$h Call

Ca Call

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

[Cash Call]Stan and Rebekah’s good friends, Don and Pam Blaylock, are in deep trouble. An imprudent investment in a Golden Dragon franchise and their son’s arrest for DWI trigger an avalanche of misfortune culminating with the murder of Luther Bell, the smooth talking, restaurant promoter responsible for their impending demise. While Stan conducts a preemptive investigation to prove his clients are innocent, he is inundated with lawsuits and claims from their growing list of creditors and must deal with the inevitable marital strife that threatens these once proud families. Then one of Stan’s old flames resurfaces and makes a play for Stan’s affections sending Rebekah in a rage that culminates in a confrontation with the intruder and a .38 special. A wrongful death suit worth millions, ancient Peruvian pottery filled with diamonds and a confrontation with the Mob round out this nail biting legal thriller.ReviewA modern day Perry Mason, Turner is living proof that defending accused murderers doesn't always pay one's mortgage. -- Deadly Doses, Mary WelkAgain, Manchee has provided readers with an impressive contemporary mystery to test even the most experienced sleuthing mind. -- Brenda Weeakes, MyShelf.comThe action moves at a brisk pace with surprising (and ingenious) plot twists ... this may be Manchee’s best work... -- The Book ReaderWriter Manchee has put together another great setting of entertaining, convincing characters, predicaments and blunders. -- Molly's ReviewsFrom the PublisherCash Call, the fourth of the Stan Turner Mystery Series is about greed. As usual Stan's clients are looking to make a fast buck, but this time Stan gets caught up in the frenzy himself and pays a high price for his sins. Cash Call is legal horror story that can happen to any of us. It's a great book to read to gain understanding as to how fragil our world really is, so we can take the necessary steps to protect ourselves from all the dangers that lurk at our doorstep.
Read online
  • 606
Deadly Distractions, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 6

Deadly Distractions, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 6

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Stan is called back from vacation when his client is cornered in his barn by the FBI, allegedly having killed an IRS agent. It seems like a hopeless case as a witness claims Dusty Thomas was standing over the dead agent's body with a shotgun in hand. But Dusty professes his innocense and he's been a hard luck client, so Stan agrees to defend him.After two tough years practicing law, Stan and his family take a well-deserved vacation to Colorado. Unfortunately the vacation is cut short when a client is found standing over the body of a dead IRS agent. It appears to be an open and shut case since Dusty Thomas has had a long feud with the dead agent Bobby Tuttle, and more than enough motive to kill him, yet he claims to be innocent.Stan's new partner Paula Waters convinces Stan to finish his vacation promising to handle Dusty Thomas' arraignment and get an investigation underway. While Stan is away, she makes good on her promise and even manages to arrange financing for Dusty's defense. But Stan is mortified when he reads in the Colorado papers that a radical paramilitary group, the Citizens Defense Alliance or CDA, is doing the funding. Since the CDA denies the legitimacy of the federal income tax and has been a target of federal prosecutors for many years, Stan and Paula immediately come under the close scrutiny of the FBI and the press. To further complicate matters, Stan's best client and close friend, Tex Weller, is reported missing by his wife. When Stan investigates his disappearance, he finds a letter that leads him to believe Tex is in Ecuador.While Stan is searching for Tex in Ecuador, Paula continues her investigation of Bobby Tuttle's murder and quickly discovers a long list of enemies with motive to kill him. But her investigation is sidetracked when she learns Stan is missing and may have been kidnaped. As weeks go by and Stan isn't found, she is forced to turn her attention back to the Dusty Thomas case and leave the search for Stan up to the FBI and the local Ecuadorian authorities. Barely able to concentrate, she plods on and day by day and soon becomes convinced that Dusty Thomas is innocent.
Read online
  • 601
Brash Endeavor, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 3

Brash Endeavor, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 3

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Step into the shoes of Dallas attorney, Stan Turner, as he begins the practice of law. Then hang on for the ride of your life as Stan immediately steps into a rattlesnake's nest and has to do some fancy two-steppin' to avoid a lethal strike from his own clients. When Stan's wife, Rebekah, is arrested for murder, Stan turns in his legal pad for a detective's notebook and goes to work to save her.In this volume 2 of the Stan Turner Mysteries, Step into the shoes of Dallas attorney, Stan Turner, in the late 1970's as he begins the practice of law. Then hang on for the ride of your life as Stan immediately steps into a rattlesnake's nest and has to do some fancy two-steppin' to avoid a lethal strike from his own clients. When Stan's wife, Rebekah, is arrested for murder and a client turns out to be a ghost, Stan turns in his legal pad for a detective's notebook and goes to work to solve these most perplexing mysteries. Teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, Stan pushes on relentlessly to extricate himself and his family from certain doom. Sex, greed and a lust for power drive this most extraordinary novel to a stunning conclusion.
Read online
  • 541
Black Monday, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 7

Black Monday, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 7

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

It's October 17, 1987, and there have been three murders in Dallas that night. The owner of a troubled thrift and his mistress are found in their condo with their throats cut and a woman is asphyxiated in her home along with her eleven dogs. Paula ends up defending the man accused of the double homiced and Stan is shocked to find out he has been appointed the executor over the old ladies' estate.This story begins on the infamous Black Monday, October 19, 1987. As the stock market is taking a nosedive and banks and S&L's are falling left and right, Stan is asked by the CIA to help an operative unravel an IRS garnishment and ends up caught in a fire-fight between the CIA and the FBI.His day grows more complicated still as he receives the surprising news that he has been named as the executor of the estate of one Lottie West, who has died in suspicious circumstances and who--Stan soon discovers--has been hiding priceless art treasures stolen during World War II.So the last thing Stan needs is a visit from his law partner, Paula Waters, who tells him she wants to defend the man accused of killing the chairman of one of Dallas' troubled thrifts. And it's only Monday...
Read online
  • 522
Disillusioned, A Stan Turner Mystery  Vol 2

Disillusioned, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 2

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

Stan returns to law school after narrowly escaping the United States Marines Corps and court martial for the murder of his drill sergeant. He thinks law school should be a snap after the ordeal he has just endured, but he is wrong and quickly finds himself mired in a web of intrigue and deception that threatens both him and his family.After being discharged from the United States Marine Corps, Stan ends up in Dallas where he intends to finish law school. In the spring of 1976, while attending SMU, he is recruited into the Republican party, elected county chairman, and finds himself helping President Gerald Ford in his campaign against Jimmy Carter. The campaign is marred, however by an untimely FBI investigation into the financial dealings of a major party contributor, Brad Thornton.The investigation unleashes an avalanche of misfortune beginning with the alleged murder-suicide of Stan’s friend, Rob Shepard, his wife Cindy and their three children and culminating in the resignation of two Republican candidates for the 67th District’s state representative seat. Stan, who can’t believe his best friend could have murdered his family, launches his own personal investigation to clear Rob’s name. When the investigation turns up new evidence that threatens members of a powerful Mexican drug cartel, Stan becomes the target of Cartel thugs and hit men. Undaunted by these threats, Stan enlists the help of a resourceful classmate, Paula Waters, and a law professor, Harry Hertel (aka Snake) and undertakes a dangerous mission to extract a key witness held by the Cartel at a Mexican resort. Still saddled with the responsibly to field a candidate in the 67th District Stan recruits his assistant, Kristina Tenison, for the job. Kristina is reluctant to run as no woman has ever been elected to this office since Reconstruction, but when Stan agrees to be her campaign manager, and promises her she’ll win, she reluctantly enters the race against the veteran incumbent, Ron Wells. But as the election draws near and she still finds herself lagging in the polls, she wonders if she hasn’t made a big mistake and questions Stan’s continued assurances that she’ll win.
Read online
  • 514
The Prime Minister's Daughter

The Prime Minister's Daughter

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

A Texas high school student who has a chance encounter with the daughter of the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago and thinks he is in love. He knows there is no hope for such a long distance relationship but can't shake the feeling that she is his soul mate.Trouble in Trinidad is the story of an American high school student, Kevin Wells, who is wounded while thwarting an attempted assassination of the Prime Minister of Trinidad-Tobago. While he is recovering he is visited by the Prime Minister's daughter, Kiran Shah, and falls in love. When he is summoned by the FBI to go to Trinidad he is elated because he will be able to see Kiran. What he doesn't know is that the rebel party responsible for the assassination attempt has vowed to kill him.
Read online
  • 490
Act Normal

Act Normal

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

In this 8th episode of the Stan Turner Mystery series Dallas attorney Stan Turner struggles to keep his practice going in the wake of the tragic loss of his son and his rapidly disintegrating marriage. Stan, who has been recruited by the CIA for its ultra top secret Tarizon Repopulation project, gets his first assignment to defend a woman accused of murdering her children and alien husband. The alien husband, however, is not from Mexico but Tarizon, a planet in another solar system. Stan must not only prove his client innocent but also make sure nobody finds out that the government is allowing aliens to live and propagate on Earth. While Stan is busy with his CIA project, Paula is asked to defend the accused in the arson-murder of a prominent scientist and his family. While a bitter feud between neighbors over a barking dog and a chain link fence appears to be the motive for the crime, Paula discovers several others who have benefited from Chester Brown's death. In the midst of the two murder cases Stan is lured into a dangerous relationship with an alien woman assigned to him as a legal assistant. He soon learns that the women of Tarizon are even more mysterious and dangerous than those on Earth.
Read online
  • 480
Tarizon, Conquest Earth, Tarizon Trilogy Vol 3

Tarizon, Conquest Earth, Tarizon Trilogy Vol 3

William Manchee

Mystery & Thrillers / Science Fiction & Fantasy / Suspense

The war is over but the TGA command on Clarion, Tarizon's largest moon, refuses to surrender the Intergalactic Fleet made up of six huge attack cruisers and thousands of fighters. Led by Videl's adopted son, Evohn Cystrom, the Purists announce their intentions to conquer Earth and then return to destroy Tarizon.Thi final book of the Tarizon Trilogy is the story of the Loyalist desperate attempt to warn the United States of an imminent attack by the Intergalactic Fleet and to thwart a carefully crafted plot to overthrow the U.S. government, the first stage of Evohn Cystrom's plan to conquer Earth.
Read online
  • 448
183