Book picks similar to
Devil in the Countryside by Cory Barclay
historical-fiction
mystery
horror
fantasy
The Last Passenger
Manel Loureiro - 2013
Assembling a team of experts and sparing no expense, he aims to precisely recreate the circumstances of the Valkyrie’s doomed final voyage. Little does Feldman or his team know that the ship has an agenda of its own. As the Valkyrie begins to weave its deadly web, Kate realizes that she must not only save herself, but the world as she knows it.
Heaven's Peak
Miguel Estrada - 2018
However, everything changes when Kevin witnesses his sister being kidnapped by a bizarre creature. The police are skeptical of his story, so he decides to unveil the mysteries surrounding the town on his own.On the other side of the investigation, FBI agent Norman James will do anything to solve the baffling case, except believe a traumatized teenager's nonsense.Meanwhile, newscasts predict a blizzard approaching in the next couple of days, as people in the town begin to behave strangely.Will they be able to find the little girl before Heaven's Peak is consumed by darkness?
Heaven's Peak is the first full-length horror-thriller novel from author Miguel Estrada. If you like suspense, mystery and dread, prepare for a ride you won't forget.
A Burnable Book
Bruce Holsinger - 2014
A Burnable Book is an irresistible thriller, reminiscent of classics like An Instance of the Fingerpost, The Name of the Rose and The Crimson Petal and the White. London, 1385. Surrounded by ruthless courtiers—including his powerful uncle, John of Gaunt, and Gaunt’s flamboyant mistress, Katherine Swynford—England’s young, still untested king, Richard II, is in mortal peril, and the danger is only beginning. Songs are heard across London—catchy verses said to originate from an ancient book that prophesies the end of England’s kings—and among the book’s predictions is Richard’s assassination. Only a few powerful men know that the cryptic lines derive from a “burnable book,” a seditious work that threatens the stability of the realm. To find the manuscript, wily bureaucrat Geoffrey Chaucer turns to fellow poet John Gower, a professional trader in information with connections high and low. Gower discovers that the book and incriminating evidence about its author have fallen into the unwitting hands of innocents, who will be drawn into a labyrinthine conspiracy that reaches from the king’s court to London’s slums and stews--and potentially implicates his own son. As the intrigue deepens, it becomes clear that Gower, a man with secrets of his own, may be the last hope to save a king from a terrible fate.Medieval scholar Bruce Holsinger draws on his vast knowledge of the period to add colorful, authentic detail—on everything from poetry and bookbinding to court intrigues and brothels—to this highly entertaining and brilliantly constructed epic literary mystery that brings medieval England gloriously to life.
Switching Hour
Robyn Peterman - 2015
Released from the magic pokey and paroled with limited power is enough to make any witch grumpy.However, if you throw in a recently resurrected cat, a lime-green Kia and a sexy egotistical werewolf, it’s enough to make a gal fly off the edge.Not to mention a mission…with no freaking directions.So here I sit in Asscrack, West Virginia trying to figure out how to complete my mysterious mission before All Hallows Eve when I’ll get turned into a mortal.The animals in the area are convinced I’m the Shifter Whisperer (whatever the hell that is) and the hotter-than- asphalt-in-August werewolf thinks I’m his mate.Now apparently I’m slated to save a bunch of hairy freaks of nature?If they think I’m the right witch for the job, they’ve swallowed some bad brew.
With This Ring
Amanda Quick - 1998
But he is also a noted antiquities expert, which is why Beatrice Poole has demanded his reluctant assistance. The freethinking authoress of "horrid novels," Beatrice is searching for the Forbidden Rings of Aphrodite, a mythic treasure she suspects played a role in her uncle's death. Beatrice finds Leo every bit as fascinating as one of the heroes in her novels-and she's convinced he's the only one who can help her. But after only five minutes in her company, Leo is sure he's never met a woman more infuriating...and more likely to rescue him from boredom. Yet the alliance may well prove to be the biggest mistake of their lives. For a villain lurks in London, waiting for the pair to unearth the Forbidden Rings-knowing that when they do, that day will be their last....
Gravity
Abigail Boyd - 2011
One night in the town of Hell, Ariel's best friend goes missing. Those around her believe Jenna ran away, but when Ariel is tormented by nightmares and paranormal activity, she realizes Jenna's disappearance was part of a bigger mystery. Ariel's obsession with haunted houses and horror movies makes her the perfect detective. But to complicate matters, a handsome newcomer named Henry Rhodes plagues her with unwanted attention. Though he doesn't believe in the supernatural events, she enlists his help and that of quirky nerd Theo. What is making the lights at school flicker? And why did Ariel dream of the old abandoned Dexter orphanage? When Ariel finally discovers the truth, it's much worse than she ever feared.
The House of Closed Doors
Jane Steen - 2012
Yet Nell is determined to elude the duties and restrictions of matrimony. So when she finds herself pregnant at the age of 17, she refuses to divulge the name of the father and even her childhood friend Martin is kept in the dark.Nell's stepfather Hiram sends Nell to live at the Poor Farm of which he is a governor, to await the day when her baby can be discreetly adopted. Nell is ready to go along with Hiram's plans until an unused padded cell is opened and two small bodies fall out.Nell is the only resident of the Poor Farm who is convinced that the unwed mother and her baby were murdered, and the incident prompts her to rethink her decision to abandon her own child to her fate. But the revelations to which her questions lead make her realize that even if she manages to escape the Poor Farm with her baby, she may have no safe place to run to.
Bound to Night
Nina Croft - 2010
She dreams of freedom, a normal life, and going home, but after eight long years, she believes it will never happen. Her life changes with the arrival of the stunningly gorgeous Jack, the latest unwilling guest of The Facility. Passion flares between them, but Jack refuses to share his body or his mind.Jack must fight his burning desire for Tasha; he has a job to do—destroying The Facility—plus a very good reason for keeping his distance from for the young werewolf. Only when they escape their prison, does he admit his feelings and accept the possibility of a future together. However, Tasha yearns for a normal life, and Jack is a vampire…As the past unravels and they uncover the secrets behind Tasha’s attack, she realizes that ‘home’ is farther away than ever. Now, she must decide if that matters when the alternative is an place at Jack’s side…
Alone
Marissa Farrar - 2009
Then she meets a stranger, Sebastian, who shows her the possibility of a different future. Only Sebastian has a dark secret; he is a vampire. As Serenity’s life takes a terrifying turn, she finds herself drawn into a world she never knew existed; one of murder, love, and immortality. She is forced to confront her own weaknesses to save both her own life and that of the vampire she has come to love. But in the end all that matters is; can she find the strength to be Alone ?
Maniac on the Loose
Steve Hudgins - 2018
Fearing that he'll lose his job if word gets out, the head of the hospital, Dr. Franklin Grimm desperately attempts to cover up the escape. Meanwhile, there is a Maniac on the Loose.
Turned
Morgan Rice - 2011
The one ray of light in her new surroundings is Jonah, a new classmate who takes an instant liking to her.But before their romance can blossom, Caitlin suddenly finds herself changing. She is overcome by a superhuman strength, a sensitivity to light, a desire to feed--by feelings she does not understand. She seeks answers to what’s happening to her, and her cravings lead her to the wrong place at the wrong time. Her eyes are opened to a hidden world, right beneath her feet, thriving underground in New York City. She finds herself caught between two dangerous covens, right in the middle of a vampire war.It is at this moment that Caitlin meets Caleb, a mysterious and powerful vampire who rescues her from the dark forces. He needs her to help lead him to the legendary lost artifact. And she needs him for answers, and for protection. Together, they will need to answer one crucial question: who was her real father? But Caitlin finds herself caught between two men as something else arises between them: a forbidden love. A love between the races that will risk both of their lives, and will force them to decide whether to risk it all for each other…
Bone China
Laura Purcell - 2019
But Dr Pinecroft has plans for a revolutionary experiment: convinced that sea air will prove to be the cure his wife and children needed, he arranges to house a group of prisoners suffering from the same disease in the cliffs beneath his new Cornish home. While he devotes himself to his controversial medical trials, Louise finds herself increasingly discomfited by the strange tales her new maid tells of the fairies that hunt the land, searching for those they can steal away to their realm.Forty years later, Hester Why arrives at Morvoren House to take up a position as nurse to the now partially paralysed and almost entirely mute Miss Pinecroft. Hester has fled to Cornwall to try and escape her past, but surrounded by superstitious staff enacting bizarre rituals, she soon discovers that her new home may be just as dangerous as her last.
The Devil's Metal
Karina Halle - 2012
But all her plans are left in the dust when she’s contacted by Creem magazine to go on the road with one of her favorite groups, the up-and-coming metal band, Hybrid. At first the assignment reads like a dream come true. Not only will Dawn land some much-needed credibility as a female music journalist, but she’ll finally get to experience life from the other side of the stage, and maybe crack the drunken, enigmatic code that is guitarist Sage Knightly. Instead, Dawn finds herself on an aging tour bus filled with ego-maniacs, band politics and a whole lot of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll. When monsters start showing up in dressing rooms and some of Sage’s groupies become increasingly strange and dangerous, Dawn discovers the band is not only going places – they’re going straight to Hell. And Dawn has a backstage pass.***The Devil's Metal is the first book in a two-part New Adult Horror/Paranormal Romance and very (very!) loosely based on the author's exploits as a music journalist. Hell comes in different forms.
Windwood Farm
Rebecca Patrick-Howard - 2014
She uses her camera and oil paints to recreate the once beloved and grand structures of yesterday for her clients, showing them how the buildings would have appeared in their prime. With her latest assignment at Windwood Farm, however, she may have bitten off more than she can chew.Commissioned by the Stokes County Historical Society to paint the once grand stone house before a development company turns the surrounding farm into a subdivision, the job starts like any other. Soon, however, as Taryn becomes involved in the photographing and painting of the house, unusual occurrences begin to happen.For the first time ever, when Taryn looks through her camera, she sees more than decay and empty rooms; she’s finally able to see the past come alive as the formerly grand house begins to fill with furniture and belongings before her very eyes.Every old house is supposed to be haunted, but this one seems to take the cake. Why does the young woman weep from the upstairs bedroom? Why is the sense of evil so strong that even vandals have stayed away for more than 50 years? What happened to the young neighbor who disappeared in the 1920s and does his disappearance have anything to do with the house’s mysteries?More importantly, will Taryn herself be able to escape with her sanity and life before the house comes down? Because now it seems like someone is trying to kill her! Using what her camera reveals to her and her wits, she’ll try to unravel the mysteries of the farm and get out before it’s too late
In the Shadow of Lakecrest
Elizabeth Blackwell - 2017
Kate Moore is looking for a way out of the poverty and violence of her childhood. When a chance encounter on a transatlantic ocean liner brings her face-to-face with the handsome heir to a Chicago fortune, she thinks she may have found her escape—as long as she can keep her past concealed.After exchanging wedding vows, Kate quickly discovers that something isn’t quite right with her husband—or her new family. As Mrs. Matthew Lemont, she must contend with her husband’s disturbing past, his domineering mother, and his overly close sister. Isolated at Lakecrest, the sprawling, secluded Lemont estate, she searches desperately for clues to Matthew’s terrors, which she suspects stem from the mysterious disappearance of his aunt years before. As Kate stumbles deeper into a maze of family secrets, she begins to question everyone’s sanity—especially her own. But just how far will she go to break free of this family’s twisted past?