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James Swain

Biography

James Swain

James Swain is the nationally bestselling author of over 20 mystery novels. His books have been named Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews Best Mystery Books of the Year, and he has received three Barry Award nominations and a Florida Book Award for fiction. In 2006, he was awarded France’s prestigious Prix Calibre .38 for Best American Crime Writing. Born in Huntington, New York, he graduated from New York University and worked as a magazine editor and screenwriter before moving to Florida to run a successful advertising firm. When he isn’t writing, he enjoys performing close-up magic.

James Swain

Books by James Swain

by James Swain - Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

The shocking suicide of Beth Daniels’ father, a prominent surgeon, has thrown the FBI agent into a tailspin. But when Beth heads to Saint Augustine, Florida, for the funeral, she’ll need more than the emotional support of her boyfriend, retired detective Jon Lancaster. She’ll need his gut instinct for solving a mystery. No sooner do they arrive than suspicions are aroused. There’s the pair of Russians who seem to be watching every move the family makes. A final, cryptic phone call Martin Daniels made to his granddaughter. Strange blood evidence on his estate. More than $1 million missing from Martin’s account. And his cell phone, wiped clean, along with clues to a double life. To Beth, it’s disturbingly clear: the man she loved was a stranger.

by James Swain - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

A disturbing missing-person case reunites ex-Navy SEAL Jon Lancaster and FBI Agent Beth Daniels. Skye is just one of a dozen young women who have disappeared from Florida without a trace. Beth can do more than just imagine their fear. She was a victim herself --- a trauma that’s strengthened her fight for justice. Then Lancaster uncovers a scrap of evidence, and the mystery begins to unravel. But the lead comes with a personal sting: the involvement of his estranged brother, Logan, an ex-con recruited into the shepherding of human trade. The only way for Logan to shed his demons is to come clean. For Lancaster and Daniels, that means being drawn, secret by secret, into a dangerous underground world.

by James Swain - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Wherever she goes, Nicki Pearl is being watched. Each stalker is different from the last, except for one thing --- their alarming obsession with her. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Nicki’s father is turning to someone who can protect her: retired private detective and ex–Navy SEAL Jon Lancaster. Teaming up with FBI agent and former abduction victim Beth Daniels, Lancaster can help --- his way. Unlicensed and unrestricted, he plays dirty. But this case is unusual. Why so many men? Why this one girl? Does Nicki have something to hide? Or do her parents? Trawling the darkest depths of southern Florida, Lancaster faces a growing tide of secrets and deception.

by James Swain - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Master grifter Billy Cunningham has built a lucrative career conning a long list of Las Vegas casinos. In fact, he’s never walked into one he couldn’t rip off. Now he’s scheming a “super con” with a gang of high-profile cheats --- a one-time-only scam that could rake in a cool multi-million-dollar payday. All goes as planned until Chinese crime lord Broken Tooth strong-arms Billy into rigging the Super Bowl, too. Billy has no choice but to play ball. Broken Tooth has a special edge on him: blackmail. When someone on his own team betrays Billy, all bets are off. Both the super con and Super Bowl gambits are in jeopardy. And just who’s scamming who?

by James Swain - Fiction, Supernatural Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

Magician Peter Warlock is a psychic who peers into the future. During a séance, he is confronted by a group of evil spirits called shadow people, beings who have the power to kidnap a person’s soul. The shadow people are connected to a serial killer who Peter must find in real time before he claims his next victim. To save many lives, Peter may have to tap into a legacy that he has always dreaded…and a power that may consume him.

by James Swain

DARK MAGICis a genre-bending supernatural thriller from national bestselling novelist and real-life magician James Swain.