Book picks similar to
The Daughter She Lost by Lauren Westwood
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I Let Him In
Jill Childs - 2021
I thought I was over it. I thought I’d finally learned to block it out. But I’m right back there, all over again, inside the house, and I’m afraid...When Louise Taylor is hit by a car as she cycles home in the rain following a fight with her boyfriend, she’s left hurt, confused, and housebound in her cramped apartment while she recovers. And worse, something tells her it wasn’t an accident.Desperate to keep busy and distract herself from the flashbacks to her childhood that are beginning to resurface, she hires Edward – a friend of a friend – to repaint her shabby living room and, hopefully, keep the past at bay.But when Edward arrives – quiet, considerate and handsome – Lou instantly feels like they’ve met before, that she can trust him. Tired of carrying the guilt alone after all these years, Lou tells Edward her secret. And to her surprise, he doesn’t pull away. He doesn’t gasp, or grimace or preach about what she did. And Lou is so relieved to finally be free of this burden at last.Until she learns that Edward has a secret of his own. One he’s been waiting a very, very long time to tell...A gripping domestic drama from a USA Today bestselling author full of twists and turns, and with a very unexpected ending. Fans of Amanda Prowse, Kerry Fisher and Jodi Picoult won’t be able to stop turning the pages.
Beach Wedding
Michael Ledwidge - 2022
But this isn’t the first time Terry has been to the Hamptons.As the designer tuxedos are laid out and the flowers arranged along the glittering surf, Terry can’t help but take another look at a decades-old murder trial that rocked the very foundations of the town—and his family. He soon learns that digging up billion-dollar sand can be a very dangerous activity. The kind of danger that can very quickly turn even the most beautiful beach wedding into a wake.
Watching Edie
Camilla Way - 2016
And she had dreams back then—but it didn’t take long for her to learn that things don’t always turn out the way you want them to.Now, at thirty-three, Edie is working as a waitress, pregnant and alone. And when she becomes overwhelmed by the needs of her new baby and sinks into a bleak despair, she thinks that there’s no one to turn to…But someone’s been watching Edie, waiting for the chance to prove once again what a perfect friend she can be. It’s no coincidence that Heather shows up on Edie’s doorstep, just when Edie needs her the most. So much has passed between them—so much envy, longing, and betrayal. And Edie’s about to learn a new lesson: those who have hurt us deeply—or who we have hurt—never let us go, not entirely…
The Last House on the Street
Diane Chamberlain - 2022
But the trophy home in Shadow Ridge Estates, a new development in sleepy Round Hill, North Carolina, will always hold tragic memories. But when she is confronted by an odd, older woman telling her not to move in, she almost agrees. It's clear this woman has some kind of connection to the area...and a connection to Kayla herself. Kayla's elderly new neighbor, Ellie Hockley, is more welcoming, but it's clear she, too, has secrets that stretch back almost fifty years. Is Ellie on a quest to right the wrongs of the past? And does the house at the end of the street hold the key? Told in dual time periods, The Last House on the Street is a novel of shocking prejudice and violence, forbidden love, the search for justice, and the tangled vines of two families.
Widow's Island
L.A. Larkin - 2021
And they’re coming to find you…Stephanie Miller is an average working mom. She isn’t perfect, but when her war hero husband dies and her work as a scientist puts her in news headlines, her past laid bare for all to see, she’s determined to make a new life for herself and teenage daughter, Amy. But she fears it’s only a matter of time before the biggest mistake of her life is revealed.As Stephanie and Amy take refuge on a remote island in Washington, it feels like they’re learning how to live again. But then they come home to graffiti on their garage door, there’s no escaping the hate online, and Stephanie is sure someone is watching from the shadows outside their house.When someone close to Stephanie is murdered in cold blood, she knows her worst fears have come true. Someone knows the truth. And she must become the fighter her husband always knew her to be if she is to protect her daughter, and everything left in the world that she loves.An absolutely nail-biting thriller from bestselling author, L.A. Larkin. Perfect for fans of Rachel Caine, Lisa Regan and Gregg Olsen. An addictive, unputdownable, up-all-night read.
The Husbands
T.J. Brearton - 2019
He destroys their families. Then he comes after the husbands. “Do you want to know who killed your wife?” he asks.Kelly Roth, FBI profiler, returns home to Syracuse to stop a sadistic serial killer. Three murders in three separate jurisdictions in central New York State have the same pattern: women killed by fatal headshots from a hunting rifle. Kelly Roth is sent from Virginia to help the local police.Each victim was found murdered in a remote area or in a quiet park. The media call him “The Park Killer.” But Kelly doesn’t think the killer lurks in the bushes. She thinks he hunts his victims somewhere else.But is he really contacting the bereaved husbands or is this a cover for their own guilt? Kelly will risk her own life in a heart-stopping race against time to stop more murders and find out the truth.HOW FAR WOULD YOU GO TO DISCOVER WHO KILLED YOUR WIFE?If you like Jeffery Deaver, Linwood Barclay, Lisa Unger, Kendra Elliot, or JD Robb you will enjoy this compelling new mystery novel.The book is set in New York State, an area the author brings to life with compelling detail based on his local knowledge.ALSO BY BEST-SELLING AUTHOR T.J. BREARTON HABIT SURVIVORS DAYBREAK BLACK SOUL DEAD GONE TRUTH OR DEAD GONE DARK WEB DARK KILLS
Nowhere to Run
Jack Slater - 2017
A dead body. A killer on the loose. Returning to Exeter CID after his son’s unsolved disappearance Detective Sergeant Peter Gayle’s first day back was supposed to be gentle. Until a young girl is reported missing and the clock begins to tick.Rosie Whitlock has been abducted from outside her school that morning. There are no clues, but Peter isn’t letting another child disappear.When the body of another young victim appears, the hunt escalates. Someone is abducting young girls and now they have a murderer on their hands. Time is running out for Rosie, but when evidence case relating to his own son’s disappearance is discovered the stakes are even higher…
Looking for more from DS Peter Gayle? Don’t miss his next case in:
No Place to Hide What reviewers are saying about NOWHERE TO RUN ‘a lot of suspense and tension as the story twists and turns.’ - Carol (Goodreads)
My Last Lie
Ella Drummond - 2019
Old secrets. Theo and Pilar. The perfect couple. Successful, beautiful and very much in love. Until a year ago - and the tragedy that nearly tore them apart. When their baby died, a part of them died with him. Now they’re trying to rebuild themselves, moving to a stunning house in rural Cornwall. But someone knows all their secrets – and will stop at nothing to disturb their fragile peace. Theo and Pilar are about to learn that you can try to hide – but you can never outrun your past. A unputdownable, gripping psychological thriller that will hook you until the final shocking twist. Fans of The Girl on the Train, Behind Closed Doors and The Wife Between Us will be captivated.
And Then You Were Gone
R.J. Jacobs - 2019
Even better, her life is coming together: she’s got a great job, her own place, and a boyfriend, Paolo, who adores her. So when Paolo suggests a weekend sailing trip, Emily agrees—wine, water, and the man she loves? What could be better? But when Emily wakes the morning after they set sail, the boat is still adrift…and Paolo is gone.A strong swimmer, there’s no way Paolo drowned, but Emily is at a loss for any other explanation. Where else could he have gone? And why? As the hours and days pass by, each moment marking Paolo’s disappearance, Emily’s hard-won stability begins to slip.But when Emily uncovers evidence suggesting Paolo was murdered, the investigation throws her mania into overdrive, even as she becomes a person of interest in her own personal tragedy. To clear her name, Emily must find the truth—but can she hold onto her own sanity in the process?
A Pleasure and a Calling
Phil Hogan - 2014
Heming. He was the estate agent who showed you around your comfortable home, suggested a financial package, negotiated a price with the owner, and called you with the good news. The less good news is that, all these years later, he still has the key. That's absurd, you laugh. Of all the many hundreds of houses he has sold, why would he still have the key to mine? The answer is; he has the keys to them all. William Heming's most at home in a stranger's private things. He makes it his business to know all their secrets, and how they arrange their lives. His every pleasure is in his leafy community. He loves and knows every inch of it, feels nurtured by it, and would defend it - perhaps not with his life but if it came to it, with yours. Things begin to change when Mr. Hemings' obsession shifts from many people to one, and then a dead body winds up in someone's garden. For a man who is used to going unremarked, Mr. Heming's finds his natural routine becomes uncomfortably interrupted.
Bad Girls with Perfect Faces
Lynn Weingarten - 2017
“Ready?” he said.I faked a smile back. I had gotten so good at faking things.I thought: You brought this on yourself, Sasha. You will have to pretend forever now.He squeezed my hand again. He couldn’t begin to imagine what this actually was. He had no idea what I’d done. What any of us had. When Sasha’s best friend Xavier gets back together with his cheating ex, Ivy, Sasha knows she needs to protect him. So she poses as a guy online to lure Ivy away.But Sasha’s plan goes sickeningly wrong. And she soon learns to be careful of who you pretend to be because you might be surprised by who you become…
Rules for Moving
Nancy Star - 2020
What no one knows is that she also has a secret: her life is a disaster, and it’s just gotten worse. Her husband, whom she was planning to leave, has died in a freak accident. Her six-year-old son, Henry, has stopped speaking to everyone but her. Lane’s solution? Move. Growing up, that was what her family did best.But when she and Henry pack up and leave, Lane realizes that their next home is no better, and she finally begins to ask herself some hard questions. What made her family move so often? Why has she always felt like an outsider? How can she get Henry to speak?On a journey to help her son find his voice, Lane discovers that somewhere along the way she lost her own. If she wants to help him, she’ll need to find the courage to face the past and to speak the truth she’s been hiding from for years.
I Could Be You
Sheila Bugler - 2020
But whose life is it? On a stifling hot day, former journalist Dee Doran finds the crumpled body of her friend at the roadside. Katie and her little boy, Jake, have been a light in Dee’s otherwise desolate life – now a woman is dead and a child is missing. Katie has been keeping secrets for a long time. Years earlier, she fell for the wrong person. But he was in love with someone else; who he couldn’t have but couldn’t keep away from. When jealousy and desire spilled over into murder Katie hid the truth, and has been pretending ever since.As Dee assists the police with their enquiries she’s compelled to investigate too. She realises Katie wasn’t who she claimed to be. Lies are catching up. Stories are unravelling. Revenge is demanded and someone must pay the price. The question is: who?
Don’t miss this explosive crime thriller perfect for fans for Alex Marwood and Fiona Barton.
The Best of Friends
Lucinda Berry - 2020
Reeling from the worst night of their lives, the three mothers plunge into a desperate investigation of the bizarre incident. How could something so horrible happen in their wealthy Southern California suburb? They soon discover that the accident was just the beginning, and troubling discoveries lead to chilling questions: Do they really know their children? Do they even know each other? As more secrets surface, a fog of doubt and suspicion threatens to poison their families, their friendships, and the whole community. With the illusion of happiness and safety long gone, these women must now confront the hazards of heartbreak, the consequences of jealousy, and the dangers of living double lives.
The Shore House
Heidi Hostetter - 2020
It’s a chance to relive the carefree joy of summers past: basking in the hot sun, cooling off in the surf and enjoying long, relaxing evenings watching fireflies on the deck. But when Kaye’s son and daughter arrive, late and uncooperative, it becomes clear the family desperately need to reconnect.Kaye and her daughter Stacy have been quietly at odds for years and resentment has grown around words unsaid. Faced with spending the summer months in such close quarters, Kaye is determined to remind Stacy of happier times and why she once loved their beautiful beachside home.But both Kaye and Stacy are holding something back… and only when a heart-stopping moment on the beach puts what Stacy most loves at risk are the two women finally able to set free the secrets in their shared past.