Even occasional television viewers have caught an episode or two of NCIS since it began airing
in 2003. Yep, that’s 21 years of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service digging into criminal
cases and bringing the bad guys to justice.

So if you love these characters, you’ll definitely relate to these Tule mysteries, too:

Leroy Jethro Gibbs:

He’s the tough, no-nonsense leader of the NCIS team, a former Marine with
a strong sense of duty and justice. But he also struggles with personal tragedies, finds it difficult
to open up emotionally and is known for his gut instincts.

If he’s your guy, you don’t want to miss Can’t Go Home by Melinda Di Lorenzo. Detective Trinity
Calhoun joined LEO to make a difference after her best friend was killed — but now someone
wants her to relive the experience.

Abby Sciuto:

Ah, the upbeat forensic scientist who’s also into goth. Her childlike enthusiasm is a
breath of fresh air in a serious profession, but don’t confuse quirky with careless. Abby is highly
intelligent and brings the skills!

Rebecca Cuthbert is certainly comfortable with quirky as she consults with a talking cat to clear
herself from the suspect list when the town’s shady antiquities dealer is found dead in Deanna
Drake’s Paws, Claws, and Curses.

Timothy McGee:

This tech-savvy agent has grown from an insecure probie to a confident senior
agent due in large part to the fact that he’s often the voice of reason. He’s also by the
book—literally, as one of his nerdy interests is writing.

True crime writer Dougal Lachlan, the hero in C.J. Carmichael’s Buried, understands. Lachlan
finds himself needing answers to a cold case and ends up working with a local librarian to
unearth the secrets buried in small-town Twisted Cedars.

Ziva David:

As a former Mossad officer turned NCIS agent, she’s highly trained in combat and
interrogation. Even though her playful side emerges a times, her complex relationship with her
past makes her an intriguing character.

Agent Heather Slade in The Package by Kimberley Troutte is as badass as you expect from a
highly trained government asset with no memory and no home. But this mission to smuggle a
package from the oppression’s leader challenges all of that.

Donald “Ducky” Mallard:

The medical examiner may be known for his rambling stories, but
there’s a method to his storytelling. He knows people, and that along with his war experiences
make him an excellent profiler, too.

Kate Tessler of Something Shady at Sunshine Haven by Kris Bock can relate. A war injury has
sidelined this news correspondent back home, where she finds a new purpose for her
observation skills by investigating suspicious deaths at a nursing home.

Jenny Shepard:

She has solid connections that helped her become NCIS director, but she struggles
to balance her personal need for revenge on her father’s killer with her professional
duties—and that obsession ultimate leads to tragic consequences.

If only Sheriff Elizabeth Benoit of Straight for the Kill by Winter Austin had taken a page from
Jenny’s book. But she’s not about to turn down the opportunity to finally nail the former sheriff
for his sins, regardless of what it costs her.

Caitlyn Todd:

She’s one of NCIS’s dedicated profilers who is a whiz at counterfeit bill analysis and
protection detail. But her compassion can sometimes be a fault, as she tense to get emotionally
attached to victims and lets her personal believes and emotions influence her judgment.

She has a kindred spirit in KB Jackson’s Charlotte McLaughlin. In A Matter of Life and Depths,
Charlotte finds herself being asked to find evidence that clears her late husband’s former
mistress from murder charges—and there’s more on the line than just karma.

Ellie Bishop:

As a profiler, she’s top-notch. But NCIS fans know and love her for her knack of
remembering details by connecting them to what she was eating at the time.

Ms. Bishop has a doppelganger in Ellie Hart, the heroine in Emmie Lyn’s Sprinkles and a
Situation. She’s all about walking dogs with a donut in her hand, but murder and mystery
manage to find her on these jaunts.