Books By Mel


Black Pawn (Michael Cailen Book 1)

Genre: Espionage / Suspense Thriller

After witnessing something he wasn't meant to see, Michael Cailen is caught in a real life game of chess where every move could be his last. A former special ops soldier, he uses his training and skills to stay alive and one step ahead of those hunting him.

Jessica Nickoli's life is forever changed when a chance encounter with Michael in a cafe almost leads to her death. Saved by Michael, she must go on the run with him as it becomes clear they intend to kill her now too.

As Michael learns more about Jessica's murky past and questionable career as a computer hacker he begins to wonder if there is more to her than meets the eye. He soon realizes it was not mere coincidence that brought them together. With his own survival now dependent on hers, he will stop at nothing to protect her as they work together to bring down the powerful forces working to kill them.


Forced Move (Michael Cailen Book 2)

Genre: Espionage / Suspense Thriller

Responsible for exposing rogue CIA agents and bringing a Russian mafia to their knees two years ago, Michael and Jessica Cailen are trying to adjust to their new quiet home life. However, when Michael is called to help an old friend rescue his niece from kidnappers, it sets in motion a string of events that turns their new "normal" lives upside down and places them in a unique position to take down one of the most villainous men on the planet. In this riveting sequel, follow Michael and Jessica as they dare to pick apart a vast criminal empire that no one has been able to touch until now.


Critical Play (Michael Cailen Book 3)

Genre: Espionage / Suspense Thriller

No longer in hiding from a notorious Russian Mob or running from corrupt CIA agents, Michael and Jessica Cailen have settled in to a quiet life, adapting to their new role as parents. However, when an old friend arrives at their door needing their help they find themselves in the middle of a deadly conspiracy that reaches across the globe.

Unable to receive help from their friends in the CIA, they are forced to turn to an unlikely ally. A man with mysterious power and influence who happens to be Jessica's estranged father. The stakes are higher than ever as Michael takes on corrupt government officials colluding with terrorists who will do everything in their power to keep from being exposed.

Identity

Genre: Suspense Thriller / Romantic Suspense

This slow-burn thriller set in Moscow will keep you glued to the page as the secrets from April's past begin to unravel. Living as a paramedic in sunny San Diego, April Peterman spends her days saving the lives of others. With a pleasant and cheerful personality, she has no shortage of friends and is known to all as an easy-going and trustworthy person. When a shady ex-boyfriend unexpectedly emerges from her past, however, it raises questions about just who April Peterman really is. His sudden appearance followed by her curiously evasive and volatile reactions to questions, as well as an attempt to disappear, deepens the mystery and threatens a burgeoning relationship with a man whose life she saved while leaving everyone wondering just what she could possibly be running from.


What Can't Be Bought (Part 1 & 2)

Genre: Drama / Romance

Taking a captivating turn from spy thrillers, Mel brings the perfect blend of high-stakes intrigue and intense romance to a story about two people from entirely different worlds—and the undeniable spark that changes everything.

While on the trip of a lifetime in Europe, Amanda Pierce finds herself stranded alone in Edinburgh after her traveling companion deserts her for a wealthy local. Disillusioned and ready to write off the entire trip, a brief, chance encounter with Viktor changes her trajectory overnight.

Viktor has wealth, power, and everything money can buy—except the one thing he didn't know he was missing. Amanda is unlike anyone in his world: fiercely independent, deeply cautious, and thoroughly unimpressed by elite status. Knowing her disdain for the wealthy, Viktor makes a split-second choice to hide who he really is, terrified of losing her before they even begin.

What starts as a whirlwind connection quickly deepens into an intense, life-altering devotion. But as secrets begin to surface, love alone isn't enough. Bound by past trauma and battling toxic coping mechanisms, Amanda and Viktor are forced to confront their deepest insecurities—just as external forces threaten to tear them apart.

From hidden wealth to high-stakes peril, follow the exhilarating two-part journey of two flawed souls fighting for a love that money can't buy... and surviving the danger that comes with it.



What Can't Be Stolen 

Genre: Drama / Romance 

To the outside world, Viktor and Amanda Dostoyinsky have a storybook romance. He is a brilliant billionaire who fell for an independent IT technician who cared nothing for his vast fortune. Together, they share a deep devotion and stand as the public faces of a sweeping global charity. But behind closed doors, a fragile marriage is being pushed to its absolute limits.


Struggling under the weight of a devastating personal tragedy, Viktor buries himself in relentless corporate negotiations and high-stakes business distractions to outrun his grief. Meanwhile, Amanda finds herself increasingly isolated by her husband's growing emotional absence, left to navigate her profound sorrow alone.


When an unsolicited business proposition from Simon Roberts, a charismatic New York real estate mogul, enters the frame, it threatens their fracturing relationship even further. Viktor's inherent, razor-sharp distrust warns him of a hidden agenda, while Amanda opens up to a perilous new friendship with a man who seems to understand her emotional isolation better than her own husband. As hidden friction sparks into painful deceptions, the life they built together is clouded by profound uncertainty.


What Can't Be Stolen is a tense, emotional romantic suspense novel about trauma, the fragility of trust, and the fierce battle to protect love when everything around you is falling apart.


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My Beef With Plot Holes

Part of the reason it takes me so long to write one of the Cailen thrillers is my strong detest of plot holes. I find movies hard to enjoy sometimes because so many of them have such giant plot holes I can't even get past it. Haha. Watch a couple "CinemaSins" or "How It Should Have Ended" (HISHE) videos on YouTube and you'll know what I mean. Just keep in mind, "What has been seen, cannot be unseen." Once your mind is opened up to plot holes, you might just see them everywhere. It's a curse.  Because I am overly aware of them, when I write I agonize over the story and events, endeavoring to make them both plausible and logical, which is not always easy. Sometimes I make a huge mistake and end up having to rewrite small, or sometimes large, portions of the book because the events don't make sense based on one tiny detail that can't be changed or ignored. I'll give you an example of one. **Spoiler Alert!** In Critical Play , Jessica i...
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Not that writing spy thrillers isn't fun. It is. But sometimes it can get a little dark since there's usually bad guys doing something bad and the good guys must stop it. I had this story in my mind for a while and it was fun, cheerful with bits of tension and suspense woven through and I decided to go for it and get it on paper. I'm really happy I did. I had so much fun writing it! It was just the break I needed to regroup during this difficult time. My latest books, What Can't Be Bought: Part 1 & 2 are about two people who meet quite haphazardly and are forever changed in a good way. Viktor thinks he's all set in life until he meets Amanda while she's vacationing in Europe and he's there on business. They spend some time together and he immediately realizes she's the piece that's been missing in his life. There's only one problem. She's very vocal in her disdain of wealthy people and Viktor is super wealthy. So he tries to hide it from...
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What had happened was...

Life can change in a second. One minute, you're on top of the world. The next you're at the bottom of a large boulder wondering what's going to happen to you. This is literally what happened to me over 3 years ago, not long after publishing Identity .  It all started one fateful day in September of 2017 when I went hiking with a group of friends on Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire. We made it to the top with no issues. It was great. We sat on the top for a while, enjoying the view while trying to hide from the flies. (Swams of flies. It was gross.)  We had just started to descend and I was walking down a very large boulder when my foot slipped and I began sliding down the boulder. Seconds later my foot hit a raised edge on the rock and I heard and felt a snap. I knew I was in trouble but was also a little in denial and promptly jumped to my feet and attempted to hurry back down the mountain. (Ridiculous.) I took about 10 steps before I was forced to accept the reality. A li...
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