Emily O’Brien Books

Vengeance Is Mine (Emily O’Brien #1)

Emily O’Brien is slowly putting the pieces of her life back together after her husband, a state trooper, is killed during a traffic stop. But six months after his death, she finds an envelope behind his desk that sends her searching for answers about a case he was secretly working when he died. Soon she’s convinced his death was no random act of violence; it may have been necessary to quiet his investigation into the deaths of six drug runners.
Drawing on her years working the crime beat for a major Chicago newspaper, Emily begins asking questions about Alex’s death. Her inquiries take her from a tornado-ravaged community searching for a way to recover to a wealthy and powerful family with political aspirations and connections. As the dots begin to connect, it becomes evident that the same people who killed Alex are beginning to target her as well, forcing Emily to seek protection from some very unlikely sources.
As she draws closer to the truth, Emily must face the rage driving her toward vengeance, a rage that is just as dangerous to her soul as the threats against her life.

Buried Truth (Emily O’Brien #2)

Life could be better for smalltown reporter Emily O’Brien. Her love life is lousy, her bills are piling up and she barely survived the holidays with her dignity intact.
When her alma mater contacts her to temporarily take a teaching gig, she decides it’s a chance to boost her finances if nothing else. She doesn’t expect to get involved with an old flame as she tries to find research that went missing after a professor commits suicide, following a series of clues left behind.
Their journey challenges everything that Emily believes — about her faith, about human nature, about finding love again. But as determined as Emily is to find the research, someone else is just as committed to making sure the truth stays buried.

Foul Play (Emily O’Brien #3)

Every time I think of my past, I’m filled with shame, both for the things I’ve done and the people I’ve hurt. Adam Wheeler definitely fell into the category of people I should have treated better, one of the people who tried to help me when I wouldn’t save myself…Two hunters find a corpse in a forest preserve outside Mt. Compton, Illinois, but no one can explain how Adam Wheeler died. Driven by guilt to attend a funeral in her hometown, reporter Emily O’Brien learns of his death and sets out to find out who killed her former friend and teammate. As she begins unraveling Adam’s secrets, her discoveries paint a tale of love, control and revenge – and possibly a motive for murder. But her search comes with a price. Emily must also face the demons from her own past and find a way toward forgiveness and redemption. As her hunt for the killer continues, Emily finds that the questions she’s asking are putting her in danger and soon she also is running for her life.

Flesh and Blood (Emily O’Brien #4)

When Winston Chronicle crime reporter Rosemary Lostant is found beaten to death in her apartment, the police wonder if a story she was working on got her killed or if she had attracted a stalker. So when suspicion instead falls on Kim Whitaker, a sports writer at the same paper, fellow reporter Emily O’Brien is shocked. Determined to prove him innocent, Emily begins an investigation of her own, scouring Rosemary’s notes for evidence and tracking down a recent parolee with an axe to grind.
But her progress is stalled when she has to turn her attention to covering the death of a Winston man who went overboard while with his wife on a cruise. What begins as a simple story quickly turns complicated as Emily realizes his own family, including his wife, may have wanted him dead.
As she attempts to sort out both murders, Emily’s questions attract the attention of a killer, one who has no qualms about making her the next victim.

In the Presence of My Enemies  (Emily O’Brien #5)

Carolyn Mercer is desperate. Her perfect life is about to be ruined unless she falls in line with a self-help group she joined with her new husband. Backed into a corner, she can think of only one person to help her escape her situation – reporter Emily O’Brien, a friend of her ex-husband who blames her for the breakup.
While the two aren’t exactly enemies, they’ve never been friends. Still, Carolyn’s problem isn’t one Emily can leave her to face on her own. Joining the group to see if she can dig up some dirty laundry, Emily finds more than just con men bilking the gullible. The leaders have tapped into dark forces and they will go to any lengths to get what they want.
The deeper she gets, the higher the stakes, with Emily needing to call on her faith to find a way out. But, despite her best efforts, Emily’s intervention leads to deadly repercussions, for her, for Carolyn and for the people they love.

Extreme Measures (Emily O’Brien #6)

Everyone thinks Holly Brennan ran away from her problems, the biggest one being her mom’s creepy boyfriend. But reporter Emily O’Brien isn’t so sure. She sets out to find out where the college student has gone, putting her at odds with the family, the police, even her own boyfriend, Craig Caldwell. But as Emily picks up Holly’s trail, she finds hints something more sinister may have happened to the girl, something evil and twisted that has been allowed to thrive for far too long. But can she prove it? Putting her career, her relationships and her life on the line, Emily is determined to find out, no matter what it takes.

Hidden in Darkness (Emily O’Brien #7)

Two grisly murders shatter the illusion of safety in the sleepy town of Clarkstown. And Christopher Potter, known for his trouble with police, insists he’s the one who did it. Just days after pleading guilty in spectacular fashion, he demands an interview with Winston Chronicle reporter Emily O’Brien, who reluctantly agrees to meet with him. The tale he spins brings into question what actually happened that night and whether Potter acted alone – and whether he’s really guilty at all. As Emily tries to track down the truth, tragedy strikes close to home, forcing her to evaluate her relationships and her future. But not everyone wants the truth of what happened in Clarkstown to come to light. And someone is willing to kill to keep that secret.

Tangled Web (Emily O’Brien #8)

Winston High School is under cyberattack. A hacked blog becomes a venue to threaten a cheerleader. Online videos of students and staff expose secrets and threats that begin to tear the school community apart. Reporter Emily O’Brien is assigned the story, along with fellow reporter Sarah Lowman, and they soon find themselves at odds with police as to how to handle coverage. As the media attention grows, the threats begin to escalate and Emily attracts the attention of an intelligent, but disturbed, individual working from the shadows. But when Emily begins to back away, the shadowy threat becomes all too real, striking out at Emily and those she loves.