MMA champ-turned-FBI Special Agent and BAU specialist Dakota Steele is as tough as they come—and as brilliant, too, able to crack serial killers that no one else can. But this new case is unlike anything she's seen, and Dakota, weighed down by the demons of her own past, may have just reached her breaking point.

"The plot has many twists and turns, but it is the ending, which I did not see coming at all, that totally defines this book as one of the most riveting that I have read in years."
—Reader review for Not Like Us

WITHOUT MERCY is the debut novel of a brand new series by critically-acclaimed and #1 bestselling mystery and suspense author Ava Strong.

Dakota's last case broke her, driving her to quit the FBI and return to the hard streets of her South Dakota hometown. She is weighed down by a lifetime of fighting, and by the demons of her dark past: her missing sister who vanished when Dakota was a teenager. Her estranged father, who she still can't bring herself to speak to.

The killer she let get away.

Dakota has hit her low point.

Only the most desperate case—and the tough love of her partner—can lure her back.

Victims are disappearing along empty stretches of desert highway, with no witnesses. The landscape is desolate, the people tough and dangerous. And the police are stumped.

Time is running out before the next victim is taken, and it's up to Dakota to connect the dots.

Can Dakota stop him in time?

Or will her own demons take her for good?

A complex psychological crime thriller full of twists and turns and packed with heart-pounding suspense, the DAKOTA STEELE mystery series will make you fall in love with a brilliant new female protagonist and keep you turning pages late into the night.

Books #2-#5 in the series—WITHOUT REMORSE, WITHOUT A PAST, WITHOUT PITY, and WITHOUT HOPE—are now also available.

"This is a chilling, suspenseful page turner that just might leave you scared at night!"
—Reader review for Not Like Us

"Very intriguing, kept me turning page after page... Lots of twists and turns and a very unexpected ending. Cannot wait for the next in this series!"
—Reader review for Not Like Us

"A roller coaster ride of events... Can't put down until you finish it!"
—Reader review for Not Like Us

"Excellent read with very realistic characters that you become emotionally invested in... Couldn't put it down!"
—Reader review for The Death Code

"An excellent read, lots of twists and turns, with a surprising ending, leaving you wanting to read the next book in the series! Well done!"
—Reader review for The Death Code

"Well worth the read. Cannot wait to see what happens in the next book!"
—Reader review for The Death Code

"Quickly became a story I couldn't put down! I highly recommend this book!"
—Reader review for His Other Wife

"I really enjoyed the fast-paced action, plot design and characterization... I didn't want to put the book down and the ending was a total surprise."
—Reader review for His Other Wife

"The characters are extremely well developed... There are twists and turns in the plot that kept me guessing. An extremely well written story."
—Reader review for His Other Wife

"One of the best books I have ever read... The ending was perfect and surprising. Ava Strong is an amazing writer."
—Reader review for His Other Wife

"Holy cow, what a rollercoaster... Many times I absolutely KNEW who the killer was—only to be proven wrong each time. I was completely surprised by the ending. I have to say, I am thrilled that this is the first in a series. My only complaint is that the next one isn't out yet. I need it!"
—Reader review for His Other Wife

"An incredible, intense, spellbinding, enjoyable story. It will keep you captivated until the end."
—Reader review for His Other Wife