Most Popular Books by Roderick Thorp

In this bestselling book that inspired the hit movie by the same name, starring Frank Sinatra, an apparent suicide forces a PI to reconsider his most famous case Joe Leland returned from World War II with a chest full of medals, but his greatest honor came after he traded his pilot’s wings for a detective’s shield. Catching the Leikman killer made Joe a local hero, but the shine quickly wore off, and it wasn’t long before he left the police force to start his own private agency. Years after his greatest triumph, Joe has a modest income and a quiet life—both of which may soon fall apart. When Colin MacIver dies at the local racetrack, the coroner rules that he took his own life, but his widow knows better. Because MacIver’s life insurance policy doesn’t cover suicide, his wife is left broke, desperate, and afraid for her safety. She hires Leland to find out who could have killed her gentle, unassuming husband—a simple question that will turn this humble city inside out.

From the author of Nothing Lasts Forever, the basis for the movie Die Hard, comes a heart-pounding thriller! When a young coast guard lieutenant commander, Sam Merrill, finds a “ghost” yacht full of one billion dollars’ worth of gold, money, and contraband, he becomes a national sensation and the poster boy for America’s war on drugs. As a reward, the government sends Sam and his wife, Amy, on an all-expenses-paid vacation to the Bahamas. Sam’s newfound fame becomes a nightmare when Amy is kidnapped not long after they arrive in the tropical paradise. Sam is confronted with the pursuit of his life, fighting to save Amy and ultimately himself as he faces death-defying challenges at every turn and a drug kingpin named Chino who will stop at nothing to see him dead. In way over his head, outgunned, and outnumbered when the chase leads him to Cartagena, Sam has to overcome overwhelming odds as he races against time to figure out why his wife was kidnapped and where she is being held—and save her from bad guys who will stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

A sober cop’s life is upended when his powerful ex-brother-in-law is murdered Quitting drinking may have saved Frank Devlin’s life, but it killed his career. When the NYPD detective got sober, he also stopped taking bribes, and his rise through the ranks slowed to a crawl. After thirteen years of working the drug-plagued Lower East Side, he has a new relationship and a modicum of inner peace—both of which are threatened when Devlin’s past comes back to destroy him. A crazed junkie guns down a Senate hopeful and his mistress, and the police suspect that Devlin may be involved for two reasons: the candidate was once his brother-in-law, and the junkie was his longtime snitch. To clear his name, Devlin must sort out a murderous conspiracy that will make him wish he had never climbed onto the wagon.

Suspected of killing at least 50 young women in the Seattle-Portland area in the 1980s, the Green River Killer has never been caught--until now. Here, bestselling author Thorp takes the reader into the minds of both a detective fighting personal demons and a human demon whose wanton disregard for human life is so despicable his actions and motivations make the reader cringe. Thorp has imagined a surprise ending to his roller-coaster thriller that is genuinly surprising.

Decades after his father’s murder, a Los Angeles cop gets a chance to set things right Michael Gallagher is twelve years old when his father is hit by a speeding truck. While crusading for public housing, his father ran afoul of the city’s most corrupt politicians, and Michael is certain they were responsible for the crash. As his father is lowered into the ground, Michael vows vengeance—no matter how long it takes. Decades later, Michael, now a police officer, is awakened one night by gunfire. Outside his window, he sees helicopters and squad cars arriving at the scene of the crime. It’s a massive operation, but the next day, there is nothing about it in the logbooks. To learn what really happened that night, Michael descends into the black heart of Los Angeles, where he will learn the truth about his father—if he’s lucky enough to stay alive.

High atop a Los Angeles skyscraper, an office Christmas party turns into a deadly cage-match between a lone New York City cop and a gang of international terrorists. Every action fan knows it could only be the explosive big-screen blockbuster Die Hard. But before Bruce Willis blew away audiences as unstoppable hero John McClane, author Roderick Thorp knocked out thriller readers with the bestseller that started it all. A dozen heavily armed terrorists have taken hostages, issued demands, and promised bloodshed — all according to plan. But they haven’t counted on a death-defying, one-man cavalry with no shoes, no backup, and no intention of going down easily. As hot-headed cops swarm outside, and cold-blooded killers wield machine guns and rocket launchers inside, the stage is set for the ultimate showdown between anti-hero and uber-villains. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good fight... to the death. Ho ho ho!

A diva and a showman work together to make history, finding romance along the way After Queen Victoria, Jenny Lind is the most famous woman in Europe. A Swedish soprano with a voice like an angel’s and a temperament to match, she is in Vienna when she meets the shortest man she has ever seen. General Tom Thumb is a three-foot-tall sensation whom P. T. Barnum has made one of the wealthiest men in the world. Thumb arrives with a message from Barnum offering Lind more money than she has ever dreamed of, to do something she has never done before: perform in America. While Lind makes her way across the Atlantic, Barnum, the Great American Showman, whips US audiences into a frenzy. By the time the singer lands in New York, “Lindomania” is in full effect. As Lind and Barnum travel the country, they play for packed houses every night. The public loves Lind, but as the tour wears on, P. T. Barnum will come to love her more.

Thirty-two young people describe their experiences with and views about drugs, sex, politics, and society.

Un tueur dévoré par des pulsions incontrôlables. Un flic hanté par sa proie. Deux obsessions irrépressibles pour un chef-d''œuvre du thriller. Août 1982. Phil Boudreau, détective de la brigade des mœurs de Seattle, est appelé en urgence dans une des banlieues de la ville. On vient de retrouver le corps d''une jeune femme dans la Green River. Les services de police présents sur les lieux ne lui demandent qu''une chose : identifier la victime, qui semble être une de ces jeunes prostituées que son travail l''amène à fréquenter. Boudreau la reconnaît et pense immédiatement à un suspect possible, Garrett Richard Lockman. Mais le rapport qu''il envoie à sa hiérarchie, dans lequel il fait état de ses soupçons, est enterré sans qu''il en connaisse la raison. Bientôt, les victimes se multiplient dans la Green River, presque toutes de jeunes prostituées de la ville. Mis à l''écart des investigations, Boudreau décide de mener seul une enquête clandestine qui va durer près de dix ans, au rythme de surprises et de rebondissements spectaculaires, jusqu''à une conclusion totalement inattendue. Face à lui, un tueur aussi manipulateur qu''insaisissable, le pire cauchemar d''une ville aux abois. Inspiré par le tueur de la Green River, qui a fait près de cinquante victimes dans les années 1980, Roderick Thorp nous offre dans ce thriller aussi captivant qu''ambitieux l''une des figures du mal les plus fascinantes depuis Hannibal Lecter. Aussi sommes-nous très heureux, après Au-delà du mal de Shane Stevens et Il de Derek Van Arman, de vous faire découvrir ce chef-d''œuvre, publié en 1997 aux États-Unis, et inexplicablement inédit en France jusqu''aujourd''hui.

orig. Die Hard