Book picks similar to
The Perfect Daughter by Joseph Souza
netgalley
mystery
fiction
young-adult
Shutter
Laurie Faria Stolarz - 2016
But photographs never tell the whole story. After Day crosses paths with Julian, the world she observes and the truths she believes—neatly captured in black and white—begin to blur.Julian does not look like a murderer, but his story is full of holes, and his alibis don’t quite add up, either. This time, Day is determined to see the entire picture…whatever it reveals.Did he kill his parents? Or didn’t he?While Julian remains on the run, Day digs deeper into his case. But the more facts she uncovers, the longer her list of questions becomes. It’s also getting harder to deny the chemistry she feels with Julian.Is it real? Or is she being manipulated?Day is close to finding the crack in the case that will prove Julian’s innocence. She just needs time to focus before the shutter snaps shut.
Her Sister's Secret
S.E. Lynes - 2021
I thought what we all thought: that Annie and Dom led perfect lives in a lovely cottage in a quiet village by the sea, with flowers at the front gate and an apple tree in the garden. Everyone knew them: generous, loving Dom, creative, joyful Annie.But I never saw Annie as she sat waiting for Dom well into the night. I didn’t see her smiling through her tears. I didn’t know what the perfect couple were hiding.So when sirens break the silence of the night and flames rise against the dark sky, and I get the call I never expected, I’m left with a simple burning question: who was to blame?A brilliantly twisty tale of family secrets and the darkness that can lie behind closed doors, Her Sister’s Secret will keep you turning the pages till the final devastating revelation. Fans of Lisa Jewell, Gillian Flynn and Louise Candlish will love it.(Previously titled: The One To Blame)
Heart Like Mine
Amy Hatvany - 2013
But when she meets Victor Hansen, a handsome, charismatic divorced restaurateur who is father to Max and Ava, Grace decides that, for the right man, she could learn to be an excellent part-time stepmom. After all, the kids live with their mother, Kelli. How hard could it be?At thirteen, Ava Hansen is mature beyond her years. Since her parents’ divorce, she has been the one taking care of her emotionally unstable mother and her little brother—she pays the bills, does the laundry, and never complains because she loves her mama more than anyone. And while her father’s new girlfriend is nice enough, Ava still holds out hope that her parents will get back together and that they’ll be a family again.But only days after Victor and Grace get engaged, Kelli dies suddenly under mysterious circumstances—and soon, Grace and Ava discover there was much more to Kelli’s life than either ever knew.Narrated by Grace and Ava in the present with flashbacks into Kelli’s troubled past, Heart Like Mine is a poignant and hopeful portrait about womanhood, love, and the challenges of family life.
Flee
Miranda Kavi - 2012
I have to keep it a secret. Everything was fine, until I met him. I can't stay away...Aurora Lockette has a supernatural ability she hides from the world. Gavyn Dhaval is a newly famous actor that shies away from the spotlight. When Aurora and Gavyn literally collide in a fender bender on her first day of law school, they are irresistibly drawn to each other.When Aurora's secret is revealed, she has no choice but to abandon Gavyn to go into hiding to escape the media frenzy. A secret society of gifted humans contacts her to warn of dark forces that seek to destroy her and everyone she loves. Aurora must try to understand who and what she is while she fights to protect herself and her loved ones from a hidden, sinister force.This is an alternate-cover edition for ASIN B00AFNO4ZE.
I Am Her Revenge
Meredith Moore - 2015
Manipulative and cruel, Mother has deprived Vivian not only of a childhood, but of an original identity. With an endless arsenal of enticing personalities at her disposal, Vivian is a veritable weapon of deception.And she can destroy anyone.When it’s time to strike, she enrolls in a boarding school on the English moors, where she will zero in on her target: sweet and innocent Ben, the son of the man who broke Mother’s heart twenty years ago.Anyone… except for the woman who created her.With every secret she uncovers, Vivian comes one step closer to learning who she really is. But the more she learns about herself, the more dangerous this cat and mouse game becomes. Because Mother will stop at nothing to make sure the truth dies with her.
The East End
Jason Allen - 2019
He likes the rush and admittedly, the escapism. One night just before Memorial Day weekend, he breaks into the wrong home at the wrong time: the Sheffield estate where he and his mother work. Under the cover of darkness, their boss Leo Sheffield -- billionaire CEO, patriarch, and owner of the vast lakeside manor -- arrives unexpectedly with his lover, Henry. After a shocking poolside accident leaves Henry dead, everything depends on Leo burying the truth. But unfortunately for him, Corey saw what happened and there are other eyes in the shadows.Hordes of family and guests are coming to the estate the next morning, including Leo's surly wife, all expecting a lavish vacation weekend of poolside drinks, evening parties, and fireworks filling the sky. No one can know there’s a dead man in the woods, and there is no one Leo can turn to. With his very life on the line, everything will come down to a split-second decision. For all of the main players—Leo, Gina, and Corey alike—time is ticking down, and the world they’ve known is set to explode.Told through multiple points of view, THE EAST END highlights the socio-economic divide in the Hamptons, but also how the basic human need for connection and trust can transcend class differences. Secrecy, obsession, and desperation dictate each character’s path. In a race against time, each critical moment holds life in the balance as Corey, Gina, and Leo approach a common breaking point. THE EAST END is a propulsive read, rich with character and atmosphere, and marks the emergence of a talented new voice in fiction.
The Girls Next Door
Mel Sherratt - 2016
Only four will come out alive.Six months after the stabbing of sixteen-year-old Deanna Barker, someone is coming after the teenagers of Stockleigh, as a spate of vicious assaults rocks this small community. Revenge for Deanna? Or something more? Detective Eden Berrisford is locked into a race against time to catch the twisted individual behind the attacks – but when her own niece, Jess Mountford, goes missing, the case gets personal. With the kidnapper threatening Jess’s life, can Eden bring back her niece to safety? Or will the people of Stockleigh be forced to mourn another daughter…?
Don't Forget To Breathe
Cathrina Constantine - 2015
Unaware that the killer still lingers, she rushes to her mother’s side, only to be grabbed from behind. And everything fades to black.Leo has been battling personal demons after a year of retrograde amnesia. She’s been having vivid dreams of that day. And her dreams are getting worse—she’s starting to remember. Two more bodies are discovered and they are oddly linked to her mom’s unsolved homicide.Leo befriends her new neighbor. He’s eager to visit Star Hallow’s notorious haunted mansion. It’s located on a deserted cul-de-sac where she once lived and where her mom was murdered. But it’s the Lucien Estate, the mansion next door to her old home, where they happen upon misty ghosts, ghosts that just might help to unravel the homicides.Will Leo’s memories send her reeling into a relapse, or will she be able to overcome her demons to find her mother’s killer – only to become the next victim?
The New Girl
Ingrid Alexandra - 2018
Everyone apart from Mary.And when Rachel starts sleepwalking, everyone’s fears grow. But there’s something about the new girl that Mary can’t help but trust, and having recently escaped a toxic relationship, she needs the support.Rachel becomes a friend and an ally, and Mary soon discovers that they have more in common than she ever could have imagined.In fact, Rachel seems to know more about Mary than she knows about herself…
Uncaged
John Sandford - 2014
Shay Remby arrives in Hollywood with $58 and a handmade knife, searching for her brother, Odin. Odin’s a brilliant hacker but a bit of a loose cannon. He and a group of radical animal-rights activists hit a Singular Corp. research lab in Eugene, Oregon. The raid was a disaster, but Odin escaped with a set of highly encrypted flash drives and a post-surgical dog. When Shay gets a frantic 3 a.m. phone call from Odin—talking about evidence of unspeakable experiments, and a ruthless corporation, and how he must hide—she’s concerned. When she gets a menacing visit from Singular’s security team, she knows: her brother’s a dead man walking. What Singular doesn’t know—yet—is that 16-year-old Shay is every bit as ruthless as their security force, and she will burn Singular to the ground, if that’s what it takes to save her brother.
Shadow Woman
Linda Howard - 2012
. . and memories that can kill. SHADOW WOMAN Lizette Henry wakes up one morning and makes a terrifying discovery: She doesn’t recognize the face she sees in the mirror. She remembers what she looks like, but her reflection is someone else’s. To add to the shock, two years seem to have disappeared from her life. Someone has gone to great and inexplicable lengths to keep those missing years hidden forever. But the past always finds a way to return. Strange memories soon begin to surface and, along with them, some unusual skills and talents that Lizette hasn’t a clue about acquiring. Sensing that she’s being monitored, Lizette suddenly knows how to search for bugs in her house and tracking devices in her car. What’s more, she can elude surveillance—like a trained agent. Enter a mysterious and seductive stranger named Xavier, who claims he wants to help—but who triggers disturbing images of an unspeakable crime of which Lizette may or may not be the perpetrator. With memories returning, she suddenly becomes a target of anonymous assassins. On the run with nowhere to hide, Lizette has no choice but to rely on Xavier, a strong and magnetic man she doesn’t trust, with a powerful attraction she cannot resist. As murky waters become clear, Lizette confronts a conspiracy that is treacherous and far-reaching and a truth that, once revealed, may silence her and Xavier once and for all.BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Linda Howard's Running Wild.Praise for Shadow Woman “Dazzling . . . From the opening line, [Shadow Woman] will grab readers and take them on an exhilarating and terrifying adventure!”—RT Book Reviews “Fast-paced, intricately detailed romantic suspense . . . Readers won’t want to put it down until the extraordinary conclusion. . . . Highly recommended.”—Fresh Fiction “An intriguing plot and captivating characters [with] lots of drama, tension, intrigue and suspense.”—The Star-Ledger
Mother May I
Joshilyn JacksonJoshilyn Jackson - 2021
Bree rejected that fearful outlook, and life has proved her right. Having married into a family with wealth, power, and connections, Bree now has all a woman could ever dream of.Until the day she awakens and sees someone peering into her bedroom window--an old gray-haired woman dressed all in black who vanishes as quickly as she appears. It must be a play of the early morning light or the remnant of a waking dream, Bree tells herself, shaking off the bad feeling that overcomes her.Later that day though, she spies the old woman again, in the parking lot of her daughters' private school . . . just minutes before Bree's infant son, asleep in his car seat only a few feet away, vanishes. It happened so quickly--Bree looked away only for a second. There is a note left in his place, warning her that she is being is being watched; if she wants her baby back, she must not call the police or deviate in any way from the instructions that will follow.The mysterious woman makes contact, and Bree learns she, too, is a mother. Why would another mother do this? What does she want? And why has she targeted Bree? Of course Bree will pay anything, do anything. It's her child.To get her baby back, Bree must complete one small--but critical--task. It seems harmless enough, but her action comes with a devastating price.Bree will do whatever it takes to protect her family--but what if the cost tears their world apart?
The Girl Who Ran Away
Tikiri Herath - 2017
A forced goodbye. A treacherous plot. She was only 12……when she stopped trusting.The day she loses her parents to a fiery car crash, Asha’s life is thrown into chaos.She has no choice but to join an extended family, she never knew existed. Then, one day, when a strange man visits, she realizes nothing is what it seems in her new home. In a world where girls are a commodity, evil can wear many faces and can be even your own kin. Can she outwit those coming after her?She’ll need all her guile to escape her fate in time. But Asha’s a ferocious fighter who’ll never back down.This is an edge-of-your-seat, gritty tale of crime and deceit that will take you on a mad dash from the heart of Tanzania to a seaside village in India, to a ritzy North American city where evil can hide in the most unexpected of places. Like Lisbeth Salander? You’ll love Asha from the Red Heeled Rebels. Get it now. The Girl Who Ran Away is the first novel of The Red Heeled Rebels international thriller series. Formerly titled Betrayed / Disowned. If you like gripping tales with flawed but gutsy heroines, vigilante action in exotic locales and twists that leave you at the edge of your seat, you’ll love these books by multiple award-winning Canadian novelist, Tikiri Herath.
Safe Haven
Patricia MacDonald - 2001
. .Dena returns to her hometown for a high school reunion. She gets together with Brian, her high school crush, and ends up pregnant.She moves back to the small town where she grew up to start a new life with horse breeder Brian.But behind closed doors, Dena’s perfect life becomes the perfect nightmare.Heavily pregnant, Dena flees to her best friend’s place.But someone out there wants to take that away from her too. Days later, Dena’s friend is found battered to death.Did Brian do it?
With Malice
Eileen Cook - 2016
She discovers she was involved in a fatal car accident while on a school trip in Italy. A trip she doesn’t even remember taking. She was jetted home by her affluent father in order to receive quality care. Care that includes a lawyer. And a press team. Because maybe the accident…wasn’t an accident.As the accident makes national headlines, Jill finds herself at the center of a murder investigation. It doesn’t help that the media is portraying her as a sociopath who killed her bubbly best friend, Simone, in a jealous rage. With the evidence mounting against her, there’s only one thing Jill knows for sure: She would never hurt Simone. But what really happened? Questioning who she can trust and what she’s capable of, Jill desperately tries to piece together the events of the past six weeks before she loses her thin hold on her once-perfect life.