Book picks similar to
The Playdate by Victoria Jenkins
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Keep Her Safe
Richard Jay Parker - 2018
So when Maggie wakes one night to find a strange woman in her home, she runs to lock herself in her bedroom with her child. But Maggie knows why she’s come… Someone has been targeting mothers and offering them a choice: do as he says or their child disappears. This stranger in her home has until dawn to follow his orders… but Maggie too has the ‘choice’ to make. Can she put the pieces together to stop the cycle before her time is up?An edge-of-your-seat thriller that will keep you guessing until the last page. Perfect for fans of Adam Croft and Tess Gerritsen.
Keep You Close
Karen Cleveland - 2019
But when the FBI starts investigating the kid she thought she knew, will she jeopardize her own career at the Bureau to keep her child safe? From the New York Times bestselling author of Need to Know. . . .Stephanie Maddox makes tough decisions every day. She has her hands full heading the FBI's Internal Investigations division, policing wrongdoers within the Bureau. But, as a single mother, the most important thing in her life is her teenage son Zachary, who's anxiously awaiting college acceptance letters. So when she discovers a gun concealed in Zach's room, her world reels. And then an FBI agent on the domestic terrorism squad shows up at her door and utters three devastating words: "It's about Zachary..."Has she been wrong about her near-perfect son? Is Zach embroiled in something criminal--something deadly? And, if so, what is her greater duty: To protect him? Or to betray him?
The Open House
Sam Carrington - 2020
But not everyone leaves…Nick and Amber Miller are splitting up and selling their Devon family home. But despite the desirable location, the house isn’t moving. Not a single viewing so far. When their estate agent suggests an open house event, Amber agrees, even as she worries about their gossiping neighbours attending and snooping around their home. But Amber has more to worry about than nosy neighbours. Because thirteen people enter her house that afternoon, and only twelve leave.
Someone doesn't want the house to sell, and is willing to do anything to stop it…
The Wrong Family
Tarryn Fisher - 2020
Only now that she’s living in their beautiful house, she sees the cracks in the crumbling facade are too deep to ignore.Still, she isn’t one to judge. After her grim diagnosis, the retired therapist simply wants a place to live out the rest of her days in peace. But that peace is shattered the day Juno overhears a chilling conversation between Winnie and Nigel…She shouldn’t get involved.She really shouldn’t.But this could be her chance to make a few things right.Because if you thought Juno didn’t have a secret of her own, then you were wrong about her, too.
Her Perfect Secret
T.J. Brearton - 2021
The boy whose mother I helped put in prison for life.I recognize the sharp nose and flare to the nostrils. His thick eyebrows and defined cheekbones. But mostly it’s the eyes. Sea green.But my daughter, Joni, keeps calling him Michael. And they’re here at the lake house telling us they’re getting married.It can’t be him. But even if it is, what can I say? Suddenly I’m thrust back fifteen years, looking through photos of a violent and bloody crime scene.I can’t be sure.We haven’t been the perfect family. Joni went through a rebellious phase. Her dad had an affair. But we got through it together. I will do anything to protect us, to protect the life we’ve fought for.Anything.A gripping psychological thriller ready to be devoured by fans of K.L. Slater, Teresa Driscoll, Lisa Jewell, Natalie Barelli, Shalini Boland, Alex Michaelides and Susanna Beard.
Never Tell Them
N.L. Hinkens - 2021
Ray’s young son, Henry—traumatized from the recent loss of his mother—acts like he barely knows his father.But things soon take a turn for the worse when Ray is involved in a multi-vehicle wreck, and suffers a brain injury and subsequent memory loss. Sonia steps in to care for Henry, but soon becomes alarmed at the disturbing things he tells her. Determined to get to the bottom of who her neighbor really is, she snoops around in his house. The shocking clues she uncovers shake her to the core. Her own life is in danger from the deadly lie he is living.The more she digs, the more she finds that some lies are best left buried.- A gripping tale of explosive secrets with a jaw-dropping twist! -Will you enjoy Never Tell Them? If you read any of my favorite psychological and domestic suspense thriller authors including K.L. Slater, Shalini Boland, Adam Croft, Kathryn Croft, Kiersten Modglin, Mark Edwards, Lisa Gardner, Louise Jensen, or Rachel Caine, the answer is a resounding yes!
Close My Eyes
Beverley Harvey - 2021
I couldn’t breathe – something was crushing my chest – all I could see was darkness. A terrible fear, pulling me under. And all because of a glimpse of a face I hadn’t seen in years.Since then I’ve realised: this is a memory of an attack. Something vicious happened to me years ago – a night that changed my life, without me even knowing. My family and friends don’t believe me – they say I’m imagining things, but I know I’m right. What I don’t know is who was responsible. And I won’t stop until I find out.Wherever the truth leads me. Whatever betrayals are uncovered. Whatever the risk.A heart-stopping psychological suspense novel that asks: who do you trust the most? Your friends? Your family? Or your own mind? Fans of T.M. Logan, Claire McGowan and Lisa Jewell will be gripped by Close My Eyes.
The Courier
Holly Down - 2021
. .Five years ago, Laurel Lovejoy had it all. The high-powered city job, the loving husband, the perfect daughter. Now, she is forty and alone, and working for a courier service. But she has discovered that being a delivery driver comes with a superpower: it makes her invisible. People accept her presence without question. They go about their lives, unaware of just how much she sees - how much she knows.Laurel is particularly fascinated by the residents of Paradise Found, an exclusive gated cul-de-sac. She sometimes even finds her way there when she's not working, using her days off to soak up as much information about the inhabitants and their lives as she can. Everyone needs a hobby.Then one day Laurel sees something in one of the houses - something that blows her whole world apart, and will have devastating consequences for everyone involved . . .Perfect for fans of Clare Mackintosh, Adele Parks, Lisa Jewell and The Girl on the Train, THE COURIER will keep you up all night with your eyes glued to the page!
The Mother's Fault
Nicole Trope - 2021
But when I look up, he’s gone. I call the police, my hands shaking so much that I hit the wrong digits twice. ‘My son is missing.’When the police turn up, I’m trapped in the web of my lies.I have hidden the truth from eight-year-old Riley, my little boy who loves climbing trees and always has scraped knees. I have hidden my secret from everyone.Riley knows his father is dead but he has no idea why. He doesn’t know his dad’s real name, and there are no pictures in the house. Not a single person knows what happened eight years ago.I love my son more than anything but the truth is, I have always feared for him. When the first gift arrived in our mailbox, wrapped in blue paper with silver stars, I realised I was right to be afraid.Now, I can see the question in the detectives’ eyes. Am I a mother with a missing child or a mother with a lot to hide? I need them to save my son – but how much can I tell them without losing him forever?
The Liar Next Door
Nicola Marsh - 2021
Thirty houses surrounding a square of garden that is perfect for our kids. We congregate here on major holidays, each family bringing a plate and sharing food and conversation. It’s in the garden that I first met her. The woman who would worm her way into my family and piece by piece tear it apart…I should have known something was wrong from the very beginning. She seemed perfect in so many ways: she floated through the baby shower, a warm smile on her face, chatting to strangers with ease. At first I thought it was sweet that she offered to help me, that she made an effort to get to know us, that she brought over games and knew Luna’s favorite foods… I had no idea that I couldn’t trust another mother…I should have known that someone would eventually discover the secret in my marriage. Why I never believe a word my husband says—and why he shouldn’t believe me. But how could a woman I only just met be the one to find it out?If I’d known, I’d have called the police sooner.And maybe I’d have prevented that dreadful scene. Every neighbor peering through their curtains as the sirens wailed in our street.I could have protected my family.I could have stopped what happened next…Fans of Liane Moriarty, Sally Hepworth and The Girl on the Train will love this utterly unputdownable domestic thriller from USA Today bestselling author Nicola Marsh.
The Replacement Wife
Darby Kane - 2021
She’s also convinced her brother-in-law is a murderer. Josh has one dead wife and one missing fiancée, and though he grieved for them he starts dating someone new. Elisa fears for that woman’s safety, and she desperately wants to know what happened to her friend, Josh’s missing fiancée.Searching for clues means investigating her own family. And she doesn’t like what she finds. A laptop filled with incriminating information. Other women.But when Elisa becomes friends with Josh’s new girlfriend and starts to question things she thinks are true, Elisa wonders if the memories of a horrible incident a year ago have finally pushed her over the edge and Josh is really innocent. With so much at stake, Elisa fights off panic attacks and a strange illness. Is it a breakdown or something more? The race is on to get to the truth before another disappearance because there’s a killer in the family… or is there?
The Second Sister
Claire Kendal - 2017
An intoxicating cocktail of loyalty and secrets, lies and betrayal, reminiscent of Rosamund Lupton’s Sister and Kimberly McCreight’s Reconstructing Amelia.A decade ago, Ella Brooke’s older sister, Miranda, vanished without a trace. With every passing year, Ella has come to resemble more closely the sister she lost—the same dark hair, the same piercing blue eyes—and now she’s the same age Miranda was when she disappeared.Ella has never let go of her sister. She can still feel Miranda’s presence, still hear her voice. She still talks to her. What holds Ella together is her love for her sister’s ten-year-old son and her work as a self-defense expert helping victims.Ella is certain that Miranda was taken, and that one man is key to her disappearance: Jason Thorne. The tabloids report that a new link has been found connecting Miranda to this sadistic serial killer locked away in a psychiatric hospital. Ignoring warnings from the police and the disapproval of her parents, she seeks Thorne out. Ella will do whatever it takes to uncover the truth—no matter how dangerous…
The End of Her
Shari Lapena - 2020
While Stephanie struggles with the disorienting effects of sleep deprivation, there’s one thing she knows for certain – she has everything she ever wanted.Then a woman from his past arrives and makes a shocking accusation about his first wife. He always claimed her death was an accident – but she says it was murder.He insists he’s innocent, that this is nothing but a blackmail attempt. But is Patrick telling the truth? Or has Stephanie made a terrible mistake?How will it end?
Nanny Needed
Georgina Cross - 2021
Discretion is of the utmost importance. Special conditions apply.When Sarah Larsen finds the notice, posted on creamy card stock in her building's lobby, one glance at the exclusive address tells her she's found her ticket out of a dead-end job--and life.At the interview, the job seems like a dream come true: a glamorous penthouse apartment on the Upper West Side of NYC; a salary that adds several zeroes to her current income; the beautiful, worldly mother of her charge, who feels more like a friend than a potential boss. She's overjoyed when they offer her the position and signs the NDA without a second thought.In retrospect, the notice in her lobby was less an engraved invitation than a waving red flag. For there is something very strange about the Bird family. Why does the beautiful Mrs. Bird never leave the apartment alone? And what happened to the nanny before her? It soon becomes clear that the Birds' odd behaviors are more than the eccentricities of the wealthy.But by then it's too late for Sarah to seek help. After all, discretion is of the utmost importance.
After He Died
Michael J. Malone - 2018
Grieving and bereft, she is stunned when a young woman approaches her at the funeral service, and slips something into her pocket. A note suggesting that Paula’s husband was not all that he seemed…When the two women eventually meet, a series of revelations challenges everything Paula thought they knew, and it becomes immediately clear that both women’s lives are in very real danger.Both a dark, twisty slice of domestic noir and taut, explosive psychological thriller, After He Died is also a chilling reminder that the people we trust the most can harbour the deadliest secrets…