A Taste For Vengeance

Another delightful installment in the internationally acclaimed series featuring Chief of Police Bruno: When a British tourist fails to turn up for a luxurious cooking vacation in the idyllic village in the south of France that Bruno Courrèges calls home, the chief of police is quickly on the case. Monika Felder is nowhere to be found, and her husband, a retired British general, is unreachable. Not long after Bruno discovers that Monika was traveling with a mysterious Irishman with a background in intelligence, the two turn up dead. Was she running away? How much does her husband really know? Meanwhile, the star of the girls’ rugby team is pregnant, jeopardizing her chances of being named to the French national squad. Bruno’s search for the truth in both cases leads him in some unexpected directions—but as ever, he and his friends find time along the way to savor the culinary delights of the region.

Of Vengeance portrays the evolution of an innocuous girl into a brilliant, cold-blooded killer, whose painstaking preparation makes every crime untraceable, and whose faultless reasoning makes her all too sympathetic.

The first installment in the delightful, internationally acclaimed series featuring Chief of Police Bruno. Meet Benoît Courrèges, aka Bruno, a policeman in a small village in the South of France. He’s a former soldier who has embraced the pleasures and slow rhythms of country life. He has a gun but never wears it; he has the power to arrest but never uses it. But then the murder of an elderly North African who fought in the French army changes all that. Now Bruno must balance his beloved routines—living in his restored shepherd’s cottage, shopping at the local market, drinking wine, strolling the countryside—with a politically delicate investigation. He’s paired with a young policewoman from Paris and the two suspect anti-immigrant militants. As they learn more about the dead man’s past, Bruno’s suspicions turn toward a more complex motive. "Enjoyable.... Martin Walker plots with the same finesse with which Bruno can whip up a truffle omelette, and both have a clear appreciation for a life tied to the land." —The Christian Science Monitor "A nice literary pairing with the slow-food movement.... [It is] lovely...to linger at the table." —Entertainment Weekly "A wonderfully crafted novel as satisfying as a French pastry but with none of the guilt or calories." —Tuscon Citizen's Journal

Her whole life has been a series of misfortune, each event orchestrated by a man in her life. These men were supposed to look after her and protect her but instead they stole her innocence. Her father, her teachers, her bosses...each different man was a horrible monster waiting to feed on poor meek Melanie. But, there was a different side of Melanie they didn’t know about. Now the beast was awakening and it wanted it’s revenge. Meek Melanie was being swallowed by the angry creature inside and the men in her life needed to beware before they fell victim to the rising power of her vengeance.

Hank Brandt has received information no spy chief ever wants to hear: one of his operatives has disappeared, and with him, valuable intelligence about a Nazi rocket program. This threat grows more dangerous by the day as Brandt rushes to gain information about its operations and hopefully, its weaknesses. But he can't put the pieces of the failed operation back together alone, and calls upon his most cultivated spy, Sam Abel. Meanwhile, behind enemy lines, Lothar Eichler feels the foreboding winds of change against the shore where the Nazis hide their most coveted secret. The spy-hunter Aksel Falke has recruited Eichler to root out future subterfuge on the island. Both men’s superiors have begun to inquire about a troublesome American saboteur who has brought such a great deal of frustration to the Reich. Sam is losing ground fast, but finds an unlikely ally in an Austrian priest, Father Jan Lukas, who is hell-bent on sabotaging the Nazis in any way possible. But will his help be enough? Sam will once again be tasked with inserting himself behind enemy lines, this time, before the sky falls.

"If only I could hate her more than I should've had. I should've never trusted her. If I had known she would become a traitor in the end. She feigned innocence all along."Dark secrets, hidden lies and envy broke the bond of two successful entrepreneurs and caused a woman to lose all that she had. A modern-day story of passion, love and betrayal.

An anonymous skull, an unsolved murder, sinister rumors from the Cold War era of espionage—Bruno's investigation into a long-standing cold case finds him caught between an enigmatic winegrower and a menacing Communist organization from the past. After attending an exhibit on the facial reconstruction of ancient skulls, Bruno wonders if this technology might provide an invaluable clue to a thirty-year-old cold case. But learning the identity of the murder victim is only the beginning. The investigation quickly turns thorny and leads Bruno to a reclusive vintner, Henri Bazaine, whose education at a vocational school in a formerly Communist region has raised some eyebrows. An inquiry into the defunct school turns up shadowy reports of possible connections and funding from the Stasi, the repressive police agency of the former East Germany. The scrutiny on Henri intensifies once Bruno discovers that he was declared dead thirty years ago and has been living under an assumed name ever since. The strange case is further complicated as Parisian bureaucrats get involved, hinting that essential diplomatic relations might be at stake. And to make matters even worse, the Dordogne is suffering from an intense summer drought that is sparking fires across the region. But as always, Bruno will keep a cool head through it all--and, bien sûr, takes time to enjoy a sumptuous Périgordian meal!

When a different kind of justice is needed -- swift, effective, and personal -- a new type of avenger must take action. Vengeance features new stories by bestselling crime writers including Lee Child, Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane, and Karin Slaughter, as well as some of today's brightest rising talents. The heroes in these stories include a cop who's seen too much, a woman who has been pushed too far, or just an ordinary person doing what the law will not. Some call them vigilantes, others claim they are just another brand of criminal. Edited and with an introduction by Lee Child, these stories reveal the shocking consequences when men and women take the law into their own hands.