Book picks similar to
A Bad, Bad Thing by V.J. Chambers
psychological-thrillers
mystery
bundlep
bad-boys
Hush Little Baby
Joanna Barnard - 2017
When baby Oliver breaks his arm, no-one can (or will) say how it happened.His mother is exhausted.His father is angry.His older sister is resentful.And they all have something to hide...
The Golden Child
Wendy James - 2017
Two gorgeous children, a handsome husband, destiny under control. For her real-life alter-ego Beth, things are unravelling. Tensions are simmering with her husband, mother-in-law and even her own mother. Her teenage daughters, once the objects of her existence, have moved beyond her grasp and one of them has shown signs of, well, thoughtlessness ...Then a classmate of one daughter is callously bullied and the finger of blame is pointed at Beth's clever, beautiful child. Shattered, shamed and frightened, two families must negotiate worlds of cruelty they are totally ill-equipped for.This is a novel that grapples with modern-day spectres of selfies, selfishness and cyberbullying. It plays with our fears of parenting, social media and Queen Bees, and it asks the question: just how well do you know your child?
Cry to Me
J.A. Schneider - 2021
No one heard the shots that killed him and wounded Liddy. The band was loud and guests were scattered. When the police declare the crime a failed murder-suicide attempt and Liddy as their suspect, her sister Kim is devastated and insists it's a setup. Wyatt's handsome brother David and Liddy's closest friends try to help Kim investigate...but questions arise. Could Liddy have only pretended to be happy, snapped, and shot her husband? Above all, Kim's worst anguish is wondering
if she ever really knew her sister...
With a hurricane approaching, the police put their investigation on hold, and those closest find themselves all under one roof. Relationships unravel, and Kim thinks, "This is terrifying. We're all five of us in this house. At night in a hurricane with no power...and a terrible feeling of menace. I can't shake it."
The Liar’s Daughter
Claire Allan - 2020
Do they?
Joe McKee – pillar of the Derry community – is dead. As arrangements are made for the traditional Irish wake, friends and family are left reeling at how cancer could have taken this much-loved man so soon.But grief is the last thing that Joe’s daughter Ciara and step-daughter Heidi feel. For they knew the real Joe – the man who was supposed to protect them and did anything but.As the mourners gather, the police do too, with doubt being cast over whether Joe’s death was due to natural causes. Because the lies that Joe told won’t be taken to the grave after all – and the truth gives his daughters the best possible motive for killing him…
A gripping suspense novel about deadly secrets and lies. The perfect read for fans of Clare Mackintosh.
The Quiet Girl
S.F. Kosa - 2020
Quiet girls won't stay silent forever.When Alex arrives in Provincetown to patch things up with his new wife, he finds an empty wine glass in the sink, her wedding ring on the desk, and a string of questions in her wake. The police believe that Alex's wife simply left, his marriage crumbling before it truly began. But what Alex finds in their empty cottage points him toward a different reality:His wife has always carried a secret. And now she's disappeared.In his hunt for the truth, Alex comes across Layla, a young woman with information to share, who may hold the key to everything his wife has kept hidden. A girl without a clear recollection of her own past. A strange, quiet girl whose memories may break them all.To find his wife, Alex must face what Layla has forgotten. And the consequences are anything but quiet.
The Innocent Wife
Amy Lloyd - 2018
You Trust Him. So Why Are You So Scared?Twenty years ago, Dennis Danson was arrested and imprisoned for the brutal murder of a young girl. Now he’s the subject of a true-crime documentary that’s whipping up a frenzy online to uncover the truth and free a man who has been wrongly convicted.A thousand miles away in England, Samantha is obsessed with Dennis’s case. She exchanges letters with him, and is quickly won over by his apparent charm and kindness to her. Soon she has left her old life behind to marry him and campaign for his release.When the campaign is successful and Dennis is freed, however, Sam begins to discover new details that suggest he may not be quite so innocent after all. But how do you confront your husband when you don’t want to know the truth?
Little Girl Gone
Stephen Edger - 2018
Slater.
Will she ever see her daughter again?
It’s every parent’s worst nightmare. Alex Granger only turned her back for a moment – but a moment was all it took for her world to be destroyed. Her two-year-old daughter Carol-Anne has vanished, seemingly into thin air.Alex’s husband Ray is a detective, so he’s used to dealing with horrific cases. But nothing could have prepared him for this. Forced to watch from the sidelines, he is forced to confront the fact that he might never see his daughter again.With no suspects, no DNA evidence and no promising leads, the investigation starts to stall. Then Alex receives a note, telling her exactly what to do if she wants to see her daughter again… And Alex must ask herself, is she really prepared to do anything to save her child?
Gloop!
David Brian - 2015
It has lain in the cold and dark of the bog, waiting patiently for a host to set it free. Now, for John Cluer and his family, nothing will ever be the same again.A novelette of approximately 10,000 words.
He Started It
Samantha Downing - 2020
And for very good reasons—we'll get to those later. But when their wealthy grandfather dies and leaves a cryptic final message in his wake, the siblings and their respective partners must come together for a cross-country road trip to fulfill his final wish and—more importantly—secure their inheritance.But time with your family can be tough. It is for everyone.It's even harder when you're all keeping secrets and trying to forget a memory—a missing person, an act of revenge, the man in the black truck who won't stop following your car—and especially when at least one of you is a killer and there's a body in the trunk. Just to name a few reasons.But money is a powerful motivator. It is for everyone.
Follow You
Richard Jay Parker - 2017
Now you can’t escape.When an online prank goes viral and triggers a spate of gruesome murders, documentary maker Hazel Salter watches in horror. But then Hazel’s childhood friend, Meredith Hickman, is the next victim and Hazel knows she has to find out what happened to her.Is it one killer or more? Random acts of violence, or part of a bigger, twisted plan?The police have no leads, but Hazel has a theory – one she’ll stop at nothing to prove – and she also has a film crew. She’ll make a documentary, catch the killer, and give Meredith justice.Her stage is the abandoned amusement park where Meredith was found. Her cast are the family and friends the killer left behind. And her crew? They keep disappearing, one by one…A shocking, ‘just-one-more-page’ thriller with the most twisted killer you’ll ever meet. This book will hook you from the first page and keep you guessing long into the night. PERFECT for fans of James Patterson, Mo Hayder, and Chris Carter.
Insanity
Lauren Hammond - 2012
Adelaide Carmichael and Damien Allen couldn’t be more opposite.Adelaide’s mother abandoned her when she was ten years old, leaving her to be raised by her abusive and alcoholic father.Damien on the other hand came from a wealthy family, was a local celebrity, and seemed to have a bright future ahead of him.Despite their differences, Adelaide and Damien were young, wild, and fiercely in love.And they had a plan.They were going to run away.Be together forever.And their plan was set in motion, until tragedy struck and for some reason, Adelaide wound up in The Oakhill Institution for the insane.Adelaide has no idea what she did to wind up at Oakhill, but she knows one thing for sure...She wants out.And after Damien follows her there to aid her in escaping, Adelaide slowly begins putting together the pieces of her memory that are missing.And it doesn’t take Adelaide long to figure out that sometimes...That one true love never dies.Warning:Do not read if you have a weak heart.
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 Bad Mother
Isabelle Grey - 2013
During a surprise visit from Australia, a long-lost aunt lets slip a family secret that unsettles her fragile world.In shock, and feeling betrayed by her whole family, Tessa confides in her ex-husband just as he reveals he has a new woman in his life.Struck unexpectedly by jealousy; balancing her own turmoil against the demands of parenting, Tessa tries to trace her birth father, with devastating results. Yet she fails to see how this is a crucial moment in her children's lives. If she gets things wrong, the consequences could be fatal.This ebook edition contains extra book club discussion questions penned by the author.
A Familiar Sight
Brianna Labuskes - 2021
Gretchen White is a specialist in antisocial personality disorders and violent crimes. She’s helped solve enough prominent cases for detective Patrick Shaughnessy that her own history is often overlooked: Gretchen is an admitted sociopath once suspected of killing her aunt. Shaughnessy still thinks Gretchen got away with murder. It’s not going to happen again.When a high-profile new case lands on Shaughnessy’s desk, it seems open and shut. Remorseless teenager Viola Kent is accused of killing her mother. Amid stories of childhood horrors and Viola’s cruel manipulations, the bad seed has already been found guilty by a rapt public. But Gretchen might be seeing something in Viola no one else does: herself.If Viola is a scapegoat, then who really did it? And what are they hiding? To find the truth, Gretchen must enter a void that is not only dark and cold-blooded, but also frighteningly familiar.
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.