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Cryptic: Puzzles, Book One

by Jodi Payne , BA Tortuga

Cryptic - Jodi Payne and BA Tortuga
Part of the Puzzles series:
  • Cryptic: Puzzles, Book One
Editions:Kindle: $ 4.99
ISBN: B09BKB3DX5
Pages: 190

Derek “Crash” Wheeler never really wanted to make detective. He was a good marine and a great beat cop, but now he has to deal with cases like the one that just landed in his lap. Multiple deaths. Probably a serial killer. And if that isn't bad enough, now he has a crazy ex-profiler calling and texting, acting like he knows exactly what’s going on.

Matthew Herrera has more than one clue about Derek’s case. He worked on a serial murder case once that took everything away from him, and while the perpetrator went to jail, Matthew knows the case isn’t over. This murderer likes to play games, and he doesn’t work alone.

Racing against time, Derek and Matthew have to learn to work together to solve this case, and they find they have a chemistry they can’t deny, even if it feels selfish to indulge. People are dying out there, and it will take all their skills to work out this puzzle before it’s too late, or before one of them becomes the next victim.

This book is on:
  • 3 To Be Read lists
Published:
Publisher: Tygerseye Publishing
Editors:
LC Hinson

Cover Artists:
AJ Corza, Alexandria Corza

Genres:
Contemporary, Mystery & Thriller, Suspense

Tags:
author - american, format - book, format - kindle, format - kindle unlimited, format - novel, format - novel <100K, format - paperback, format - series, what - concept - danger, what - emotion - anxiety, what - emotion - grief, what - emotion - survivor guilt, what - topic - crime, what - topic - murder, what - topic - serial killer, where - city - new york city, where - country - usa, where - state - new mexico, where - state - New York, who - occupation - cops / law enforcement, who - occupation - detective, who - occupation - police, who - occupation - profiler

Pairings: M-M
Heat Level: 4
Romantic Content: 4
Ending: Click here to reveal
Character Identities: Gay
Protagonist 1 Age: 26-35
Protagonist 2 Age: 26-35
Tropes: Enemies to Lovers, Forced Proximity, Hurt / Comfort, Office / Workplace Romance, Opposites Attract
Word Count: 50K
Setting: New York City
Languages Available: English
Series Type: Continuous / Same Characters

About the Authors

Jodi Payne

JODI spent too many years in New York and San Francisco stage managing classical plays, edgy fringe work, and the occasional musical. She, therefore, is overdramatic, takes herself way too seriously, and has been known to randomly break out in song. Her men are imperfect but genuine, stubborn but likable, often kinky, and frequently their own worst enemies. They are characters you can’t help but fall in love with while they stumble along the path to their happily ever after.

For those looking to get on her good side, Jodi’s addictions include nonfat lattes, Malbec, and tequila any way you pour it. She’s also obsessed with Shakespeare and Broadway musicals. She can be found wearing sock monkey gloves while typing when it’s cold, and on the beach enjoying the sun and the ocean when it’s hot. When she’s not writing and/or vacuuming sand out of her laptop, Jodi mentors queer youth and will drop everything for live music. Jodi lives near New York City with her beautiful wife, and together they are mothers of dragons (cleverly disguised as children) and slaves to an enormous polydactyl cat.


BA Tortuga

Western to the bone and an unrepentant Daddy’s Girl, BA Tortuga spends her days with her hounds and her beloved wife, having mother-daughter dates, and eating Mexican food. When she’s not doing that, she’s writing. She spends her days off watching rodeo, knitting, and surfing Pinterest in the name of research. Following their own personal joys, BA and Julia heard the call of the high desert and they now live in the New Mexico mountains. BA’s personal saviors include her wife, her best friends, and coffee. Lots of coffee. Really good coffee.

Having written everything from fist-fighting cowboys to rural single dads to werewolves, BA does her damnedest to tell the stories of her heart, which is committed to giving everyone their happily ever after. With books ranging from heart-warming stories of found families, to rodeo cowboys that are fighting to make a mark, to fiery passionate love affairs, BA refuses to be pigeon-holed by anyone but the voices in her head.