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Instinct: A Novel


Jason M. Hough - 2021
    Welcome to Silvertown. Population: 602 (for now). Officer Mary Whittaker has yet to be fully welcomed by the residents of this tiny, quirky mountain town which seems to be home to more conspiracy theories than any other place in America. But with the chief of police on leave, she is left alone to confront a series of abnormal incidents—strange even by Silvertown standards. A teenager dies tragically after eating obviously poisonous mushrooms from his lawn. A hiker found dead on a trail, smiling serenely after being mauled by a bear. A normally doting mother leaving her toddler twins behind without noticing. Other residents seem to have lost all sense of self-preservation as they walk out in front of Mary’s moving cruiser or sit placidly in the middle of a sharp bend in a mountain road. It’s almost as if the townsfolk are losing their survival instincts, one by one. As she digs deeper into her investigation and uncovers a larger conspiracy lurking below the surface of Silvertown, Officer Whittaker finds herself on the brink of falling prey to whatever has possessed the town and she must distinguish the truth from paranoia-fueled lies before she ends up losing her own instincts…and her life.

Haven


Tom Deady - 2016
    His face, disfigured from a childhood accident, seemed to confirm he was the monster the community hoped to banish. With Paul in prison, the killings stopped.For seventeen years, Haven was peaceful again. But Paul served his time and has now returned to Haven--the town where he grew up, and the scene of his alleged crimes. Paul insists he didn't commit those crimes, and several townspeople believe him including the local priest, a young boy named Denny, and his best friend Billy.Trouble is, now that Paul is back home, the bizarre killings have started again--and the patterns match the deaths from Haven's past. If Paul isn't the killer, who is?Or WHAT is? An unlikely band of adventurers attempts to uncover the truth, delving into long-hidden tunnels that might actually be inhabited by a strange, predatory creature.Haven is a compelling horror epic in the spirit of It or Summer of Night, and a stunning debut novel from a gifted author who knows that the darkest horrors lurk inside human beings, even when there is a monster on the loose.Praise for Haven;"Haven is a big, generous, Stephen King-like small town boys vs. monster epic."— Stewart O'Nan, author of The Night Country and A Prayer for the Dying"A wonderfully entertaining ride, reminiscent of the Creature Features of yesteryear."— Sloane Kady, author of Irreparable Deeds"Full of well-drawn characters and slow burn suspense, Tom Deady's Haven is a terrific dose of New England horror that harkens back to some of my favorite classic monster fiction from writers like Rick Hautala and Charles L. Grant. If you’re a fan of this sort of thing, you’ll know that’s damn high praise. Give it a read."— Christopher Golden, New York Times bestselling author of Snowblind and Dead Ringers"Haven is about scars, both literal and figurative; it's about second chances and broken memories. This is a great small-town horror novel—a bullet-read with deep characters and perfect pacing. Best of all, it's creepy as hell."— Rio Youers, author of Westlake Soul and Point Hollow“If coming-of-age novels with a bad-ass monster sound good to you… if mounting suspense with a true to life cast of characters peaks your interest…then Tom Deady’s HAVEN is right up your alley. Reminiscent of Charles L. Grant, HAVEN is a fun and nostalgic romp that brought me back to my own youth in small-town New England. And who doesn’t love a good monster tale?” – John McIlveen, author of HANNAHWHERE, winner of the 2015 Drunken Druid Award and Stoker Award nominee.

Keep Me Close


Jane Holland - 2021
    What would you do?When shy publisher Kate Kinley finds mysterious bruises on her mother’s arms she assumes the worst. Suffering with early onset dementia, her mother insists that nothing is wrong; it was just a clumsy accident. But was it an accident, or has her mother’s illness made her forget what really happened?In desperate need of someone she can trust, her isolation and paranoia grow as the closest people in her life become key suspects.With each heart-stopping revelation, Kate begins to realise that the perpetrator is no longer interested in inflicting bruises; they want blood.Keep Me Close is a compelling story of gross immorality, a cautionary tale of how easily wicked people can take advantage of the vulnerable elderly people in your life.If you love dark, psychological revenge-thrillers like The Sister-in-Law, The Babysitter and The Girl on the Train, you will love this twisty, sinister read. Perfect for readers of Gillian Flynn, Karin Slaughter, and Paula Hawkins.

Ruby Falls


Deborah Goodrich RoyceDeborah Goodrich Royce - 2021
    Twenty years later, transformed into soap opera star Eleanor Russell, she is fired under dubious circumstances. Fleeing to Europe, she marries a glamorous stranger named Orlando Montague and keeps her past closely hidden. Together, Eleanor and Orlando start afresh in LA. Setting up house in a storybook cottage in the Hollywood Hills, Eleanor is cast in a dream role—the lead in a remake of Rebecca. As she immerses herself in that eerie gothic tale, Orlando’s personality changes, ghosts of her past re-emerge, and Eleanor fears she is not the only person in her marriage with a secret. In this thrilling and twisty homage to Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, the story ricochets through the streets of Los Angeles, a dangerous marriage to an exotic stranger, and the mind of a young woman whose past may not release her.

Just One Look


Lindsay CameronLindsay Cameron - 2021
    Eyes aren't the windows to the soul. Emails are.Cassie Woodson is adrift. After suffering an epic tumble down the corporate ladder, Cassie finds the only way she can pay her bills is to take a thankless temp job reviewing correspondence for a large-scale fraud suit. The daily drudgery amplifies all that her life is lacking--love, friends, stability--and leaves her with too much time on her hands, which she spends fixating on the mistakes that brought her to this point.While sorting through a relentless deluge of emails, something catches her eye: the tender (and totally private) exchanges between a partner at the firm, Forest Watts, and his enchanting wife, Annabelle. Cassie knows she shouldn't read them. But it's just one look. And once that door opens, she finds she can't look away.Every day, twenty floors below Forest's corner office, Cassie dissects their emails from her dingy workstation. A few clicks of her mouse and she can see every adoring word they write to each other. By peeking into their apparently perfect life, Cassie finds renewed purpose and happiness, reveling in their penchant for vintage wines, morning juice presses, and lavish dinner parties thrown in their stately Westchester home. There are no secrets from her. Or so she thinks.Her admiration quickly escalates into all-out mimicry, because she wants this life more than anything. Maybe if she plays make-believe long enough, it will become real for her. But when Cassie orchestrates a "chance" meeting with Forest in the real world and sees something that throws the state of his marriage into question, the fantasy she's been carefully cultivating shatters. Suddenly, she doesn't simply admire Annabelle--she wants to take her place. And she's armed with the tools to make that happen.

Embrace the Work, Love Your Career: A Guided Workbook for Realizing Your Career Goals with Clarity, Intention, and Confidence


Fran Hauser
    This book helps put you in the driver's seat to embrace the journey and love your career." —Rebecca Minkoff, Founder of Rebecca Minkoff & The Female Founder CollectiveYOU ARE DESERVING OF A CAREER YOU LOVE.Fran Hauser, best-selling author of The Myth of the Nice Girl , follows up with a workbook for women who want to get more out of their careers. Embrace the Work, Love Your Career combines accessible advice, time-tested strategies, creative prompts, and thoughtful exercises into one holistic resource. Stemming from years of experience in senior leadership at Time Inc.'s People, InStyle and Entertainment Weekly as well as AOL and Coca-Cola Enterprises, Hauser centers her career guidance around six main actions:Fall in love with your careerDesign your career action planCreate time and spaceKnow your valueBuild your dream teamReflect and resetEach chapter starts with practical advice and includes prompts and exercises to help readers create their own personal career action plans. Palate-cleansing meditations and coloring breaks conclude each chapter, offering chances for calming reflection. Through simple, inspiring, and actionable tools, Embrace the Work, Love Your Career teaches women to be empowered to focus on the things that truly matter, set boundaries and, ultimately, realize their full potential.PRAISE FOR FRAN HAUSER:Named one of the "6 Most Powerful Women in NYC's Tech Scene" by Refinery29 "Is it possible to be both kind and a total badass? Yes—and Fran Hauser tells us how." — goop "Fran Hauser turns the 'nice girl' notion on its head."— Forbes "Fran gets into the mess—and gets specific—explaining how she has learned to handle all kinds of uncomfortable moments with authenticity and grace" — Refinery29

The Catalain Book of Secrets


Jessica Lourey - 2014
    In a concealed room beneath the twisting stairs of the Queen Anne lies the Catalain Book of Secrets, the repository of the wisdom the Catalain women have gathered since the beginning of time.Ursula Catalain, current keeper of the Book of Secrets, is content to concoct spells in her garden cottage until the ghost of the man she murdered appears at her door in a new form. His return pulls Jasmine, Ursula's daughter, back into the fold. Once the most powerful of the Catalains, Jasmine foreswore her gift to bury a shameful secret.The ghost of the murdered man also calls home Katrine, Jasmine's sister, who's been banished for fourteen years. Finally able to return to Faith Falls and the beloved Queen Anne, Katrine must claim the Catalain power she's spent her whole life running from if she is to save her mother and sister from the murdered man's curse.Told in a majestic mosaic of strong women's voices, The Catalain Book of Secrets weaves together alchemy, hope, tragedy, and true love to spin a tale in the style of Garden Spells, Eva Luna, and Practical Magic.

The Perfect Neighborhood


Liz AltermanLiz Alterman
    The gossip comes to an abrupt halt when five-year-old Billy Barnes goes missing on his walk home from kindergarten. Billy’s mother, Rachel, blames herself for being at work and letting her only child walk alone. Cassidy, Billy’s teenage babysitter, was also late to arrive on the afternoon he disappeared and blames herself for his disappearance. As the clock ticks down, police are unable to find any trace of Billy, forcing Rachel to ponder the enemies she’s made in their well-off suburb. Could it be one of her neighbors who stole her son? Would they abduct Billy to hurt her? How easy would it be to take a child while the parents or nannies are distracted? When another child goes missing, the town is put under a microscope as the police try to get to the bottom of the disappearances. Will they be able to find the two children, or will it be too late? What secrets lie at the heart of this tragedy, and how far will one go to keep those dangerous secrets buried?

Ashfall Apocalypse


M.L. BannerM.L. Banner - 2022
    Cities are leveled. No one is left untouched.Ronald Ash and his small Texas town experience the effects firsthand when an enormous dam breaks and wipes away everything in its path, including Ron's wife.Nan Thompson is already at her lowest point in life when the wave destroys all that she owns.As suffocating ash falls and temperatures plummet, strangers must band together quickly if they hope to survive another day.But as supplies dwindle, something more threatening looms ahead. The lawless have taken over and they want what the survivors have.If you're a fan of The Day After Tomorrow, The Postman or Snowpiercer, then you'll love this explosive action-thriller about survival and hope when all looks hopeless, from USA Today Bestseller, ML Banner.Rated PG-13 for violence.

Other People's Things


Kerry Anne KingKerry Anne King - 2021
    Klepto. Spectacular failure to launch. Nicole Wood’s sticky fingers have earned her many names, but it’s not that she’s stealing—some objects just need to be moved elsewhere, and the universe has chosen her to do it. Still, being a relocator of objects isn’t easy. With her marriage on the rocks, no real-world skills, and the threat of prison hanging over her head, Nicole is determined to change her ways.Things seem to be looking up, thanks to a godsent job with her sister’s housecleaning business—until she encounters a seemingly harmless paperback that insists on moving from one client’s home to another’s. Nicole hopes no one will notice, but the action stirs up long-hidden secrets and triggers a series of fateful events that threatens to destroy the life she’s creating and hurt those closest to her. She’ll need to embrace her unwieldy gift and take a chance on love in order to unravel the mystery and fix what’s gone wrong.

Nobody But Us


Laure Van RensburgLaure Van Rensburg
    Steven is a wealthy and privileged teacher at an elite Manhattan school. His and Ellie's relationship has stirred up envy among the teachers in his academic circle.When they head out for their romantic break, they're both excited to get to know each other better away from prying eyes. But when a snowstorm strands them in the house, they begin to realize that neither of them is quite who they say they are—and that one of them won't escape the weekend alive.

The Fourth Child


Jessica Winter - 2021
    In the fall of 1991, as her children are growing older and more independent, Jane is overcome by a spiritual and intellectual restlessness that leads her to become involved with a local pro-life group. Following the tenets of her beliefs, she also adopts a little girl from Eastern Europe. But Mirela is a difficult child. Deprived of a loving caregiver in infancy, she remains unattached to her new parents, no matter how much love Jane shows her. As Jane becomes consumed with chasing therapies that might help Mirela, her relationships with her family, especially her older daughter, Lauren, begin to fray. Feeling estranged from her mother and unsettled in her new high school, Lauren begins to discover the power of her own burgeoning creativity and sexuality—a journey that both echoes and departs from her mother’s own adolescent experiences. But when Lauren is confronted with the limits of her youth and independence, Jane is thrown into an emotional crisis, forced to reconcile her principles and faith with her determination to keep her daughters safe. The Fourth Child is a piercing love story and a haunting portrayal of how love can shatter—or strengthen—our beliefs.

Adrenaline


John Benedict - 2005
    at Mercy Hospital, anesthesiologist Doug Landry finds himself the focus of the blame. Is he really incompetent or is there some- thing more sinister going on? As Doug struggles to clear his name and unravel the secret of the mysterious deaths, it becomes clear that someone will stop at nothing to keep him from exposing the devastating truth. Doug becomes trapped in a grisly race against time to prevent more deaths--including his own. From the boardroom to the recovery room to the thrilling climax in the operating room, Adrenaline is a heart-pounding, adrenaline rush of suspense, action and intrigue in an extremely realistic setting. If you like the novels of Robin Cook and Tess Gerritsen, Adrenaline will leave you breathless.

First Do No Evil


Carey BaldwinCarey Baldwin - 2012
    One reluctant heroine—wielding a Glock was never on her to-do list. One crazed villain—an entire flock of baa baa black sheep won’t be enough to put you to sleep. And a lifesaving vaccine with one deadly side effect—murder.There’s a killer lurking in Dr. Skylar Novak’s family tree: the gene for breast cancer. That’s why her brilliant brother invented the Bella vaccine. But even if the miracle drug protects her from the cancer that took her mother’s life, it can’t save Sky from the flesh and bone evil stalking her in secret.When the killer strikes, detective Daniel Benson finds himself in the wrong place at the right time. The bold detective manages to save Sky’s life…just in time for her to return the favor. Survival leads to seduction, and Danny risks everything—his career, even his life, to keep Sky safe. But will the buried sins they uncover cost him her heart?Danny’s strong arms may hold her close, but only Sky can stop the terror that’s coming next.What readers like you are saying about First Do No Evil:"One of the best books you will have the pleasure of reading! First Do No Evil deeply resonated in my soul. I am shouting my praises from the rooftops and waiting impatiently for my friends to read it so we can sit on the patio and discuss it over chilled wine and snacks."- Maxine Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐"So beautifully well written with believable plot. I would say it was absolute genius!" -Wendy Oblouk Amazon reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐"At times I am so deep into the story I have to remind myself to breathe!!!"- Danielle Duran Amazon reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐"So riveting it takes your breath away! What makes this book such an incredible reading experience is the unique voice of the author and characters that stick with you long after you finish the story." -Amazon reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐"A dazzling talent!" - Rhayne for Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

An Honest Lie


Tarryn FisherTarryn Fisher
    You’d better come if you want to save her.”  Lorraine—“Rainy”—lives at the top of Tiger Mountain. Remote, moody, cloistered in pine trees and fog, it’s a sanctuary, a new life. She can hide from the disturbing past she wants to forget. If she’s allowed to. When Rainy reluctantly agrees to a girls’ weekend in Vegas, she’s prepared for an exhausting parade of shots and slot machines. But after a wild night, her friend Braithe doesn’t come back to the hotel room. And then Rainy gets the text message, sent from Braithe’s phone: someone has her. But Rainy is who they really want, and Rainy knows why. What follows is a twisted, shocking journey on the knife-edge of life and death. If she wants to save Braithe—and herself—the only way is to step back into the past. This seething, gut-punch of a thriller can only have sprung from the fiendish brain of Tarryn Fisher, one of the most cunning writers of our time.Looking for more great reads by Tarryn Fisher? Don't miss The Wives and The Wrong Family.