Book picks similar to
The Liar House by Emily Shiner


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The Place That Never Existed


Jim Ody - 2016
    Not everyone was happy to see them together. Someone from the past was intent on ending their marriage before it had really started. Now, supposedly away from it all in a picturesque log cabin, Paul and Debbie find themselves in the midst of mysterious happenings. Unexplained disappearances with people turning up dead, and all of it centred on the site of an horrific murder. A place the locals wish was a place that never existed.

Housebroken


The Behrg - 2015
    No ransom, no demands; there was nothing they wanted--other than to observe." When Blake Crochet and his family are taken hostage in their own home, they are forced to act out their everyday lives under the observance of two psychotic kidnappers. Each moment Blake must pit the decision to follow their captors' rules against the potential catastrophe of a failed escape.He soon learns that the consequences of both action and inaction are more terrifying than he imagined. As Blake's life erodes beneath him, secrets come to light that threaten to destroy his family before their kidnappers have a chance.Secrets carry consequences too.As the motives behind the kidnapping are revealed, Blake must sacrifice everything to hold on to the ever-shifting definition of what his family has become. In his battle for survival, he will face the ultimate consequence: for to fight a devil, you may have to become one yourself.

Wolf Mountain: A Paranormal Romance Trilogy


Isabella Hunt - 2019
    Just move in for a week while Char was on vacation, feed the dogs, and all would be right in the world. When Char’s brother escapes from prison and shows up at the house, though, her easy two week vacation in the woods turns into a kidnapping lock down. Striker doesn’t seem much different than he had when she’d fallen head over heels in love with him as a kid. And when he explains to her that he didn’t kill anyone, she finds she believes him, and she wants to help prove he is innocent. When people and bears start showing up in their back yard, and Millie thinks she sees a man turn into a bear, her life turns into a spiral of uncertainty— especially when Striker turns into a wolf right in front of her to save her life. The world is nowhere as simple as she thought, and now Millie has to keep Striker’s secret, while fighting off a mob of bears trying to get to him. House sitting should come with hazard pay. SECURING WOLF MOUNTAIN With the weak truce broken, Char knows she’ll have to do the unthinkable and travel to Canada in hopes of convincing her parents to bring the pack back to Vermont to protect the homestead. Her long time friend Colin wants to come, but bringing a bear shifter into the wolf stronghold in Canada is not the best idea. That won’t stop Colin from following her, though,. The journey to save the homestead from Colin’s people will bring Char and Colin closer than either of them expected. Can a bear shifter and wolf shifter find happiness in a world where they were born instinctual enemies? Or will Colin’s presence incite the war Char is hoping to avoid? DEFENDING WOLF MOUNTAIN Bran will defend Char as her alpha no matter what, and with the war already on their doorstep, he’d need to make good on that promise, and soon. But the worst of times manages to pull people together. The last place he expected to end up was in the arms of Esther, Char’s quick witted, argumentative friend. The fire in the girl’s eyes is too much for him to bear, and soon he knows that she has to be his. The clock is ticking to an army falling down on their mountain. There is no room for distraction. But Esther is there, and she refuses to leave, which is good, because he wouldn’t let her go, anyway.

Forget Her Name


Jane Holland - 2018
    Or is she? As she prepares for her wedding to Dominic, Catherine has never been happier or more excited about her future. But when she receives an anonymous package—a familiar snow globe with a very grisly addition—that happiness is abruptly threatened by secrets from her past.Her older sister, Rachel, died on a skiing holiday as a child. But Rachel was no angel: she was vicious and highly disturbed, and she made Catherine’s life a misery. Catherine has spent years trying to forget her dead sister’s cruel tricks. Now someone has sent her Rachel’s snow globe—the first in a series of ominous messages…While Catherine struggles to focus on her new life with Dominic, someone out there seems intent on tormenting her. But who? And why now? She doesn't have the answers - and in one final question lies her greatest fear.Is Rachel still alive?

This Book is Full of Bodies


Rick Wood - 2019
     At least that’s what you’ll tell yourself. You’ll say I’m a monster. A sicko. A deranged killer. But I am no monster, I am no sicko, and I am not deranged. I am simply a man who happens to enjoy murdering people in the most violent of ways. So don’t bother reading this if you have a weak stomach, get easily offended, or are simply not interested in the best way to dispose of a dead body. (It’s pigs, by the way. They eat ANYTHING.) My name is Gerald Brittle. I am a serial killer. And this is my memoir.

You Are Mine


Diana Wilkinson - 2020
    When he returns a happy ending appears within their grasp but there is no escape from the past. And Arthur, Rebecca’s friend who has formed an unhealthy obsession with her, has no intention of letting her go.When Arthur realises that Mitch is the only person standing in the way of his happiness, his thoughts turn to murder…When love and obsession collide, the results are deadly.

Stranger Danger


Steve Richer - 2018
    Especially children. After his parents are found murdered, eight-year-old Boyd is sent into foster care. Tori and her husband Lucas believe a child is the one thing that can improve their idyllic suburban life. They are wrong. The gifted boy's unstable nature bubbles to the surface, driving a wedge between Tori and Lucas. She's certain they can help Boyd with support and therapy, but Lucas has his doubts. Meanwhile, Detective Gannon is counting down the days until retirement as he investigates the murders. What he discovers is the stuff of nightmares.

Little Girl Lost


Addison Moore - 2018
    Allison and James Price move to the navy-blue forests of Concordia Idaho hoping to leave behind the chaos of Los Angeles and the painful memories of his indiscretions. Once settled in the picturesque town, where time seems to have stalled and life moves at a slower pace, their six-year-old daughter, Reagan, befriends a mysterious young girl who seems too idyllic to be true with her pressed pinafores, her perfectly curled pigtails. One late autumn evening, as their playdate winds down, both girls vanish into thin air. The little girl said she lived at the end of the street but the only thing Allison and James find at the end of the cul-de-sac is the gaping mouth of the forest. Their little girl, the mysterious playmate—they’re both gone. Everyone is looking for Reagan. Nobody has come forward to claim the mysterious little girl. Both Allison and James look guilty as hell. Maybe they are. Excerpt We were good people, my husband and I. We had everything you could ask for—successful careers, a stunning home with the requisite, yet clichéd, white picket fence, a precious daughter to call our own. We had secrets, my husband and I. Not many, so few, all of them lethal. I watch as James clasps his hands around the girl’s bird-like neck, squeezing hard until her flesh goes white—so hard you can see his bones bulge severely, stretching thin the skin at his knuckles. We were good people, James and I. It was true until it wasn’t.

The Third Nanny


Michele Pariza Wacek - 2021
    Including the nanny.Janey hadn’t heard from her sister Kelly since she ran away from home eight years ago.Until the day the letter arrived.A disturbing letter.But before Janey could make contact, Kelly disappeared again. And the only clue they had to work with was in Redemption, Wisconsin, where Kelly had worked as a nanny.So, Janey decided to follow in her sister’s footsteps … by taking over her job.The family has secrets, and the more Janey digs, the more twisted the story becomes.And the more Janey realizes she might be the next to disappear.Welcome to Redemption, Wisconsin, a town with a troubling past, where nothing is as it seems.“The Third Nanny” is a standalone, psychological thriller, set in the world of the award-winning Secrets of Redemption series.

Black Widow: The True Story of Giggling Granny Nannie Doss


Ryan Green - 2019
    The doctor who observed the children in their last moments diagnosed food poisoning as the cause. There was no need for an autopsy. His wife, Nannie, blamed tainted grains as the source but Charley wasn’t convinced. Charley didn’t feel safe around his wife. In the middle of the night, he took his eldest daughter and ran for his life. The outpouring of sympathy doubled for Nannie when they discovered her husband’s treachery. To her community, she was a sweet lady renowned for her cheerful disposition. But behind the facade was a much darker and sinister reality. A truth that four of her future husbands, two of her sisters, her mother, her mother-in-law, her nephew and her grandson would perilously discover. Black Widow is a dramatic and chilling account of one of the most shocking true crime stories in American history. Ryan Green’s riveting narrative draws the reader into the real-live horror experienced by the victims and has all the elements of a classic thriller. CAUTION: This book contains descriptive accounts of abuse and violence. If you are especially sensitive to this material, it might be advisable not to read any further

Damaged


Dan Scottow - 2020
    Emily takes the assignment willingly as the case echoes the disappearance of her childhood friend, Alice Abbott, twenty-five years earlier.Returning to the village, Emily renews old acquaintances and rivalries. She reconnects with her estranged brother Adam, who has never quite recovered from tragic events from their past.While she looks into the disappearance of Becky Clarke, Emily revisits Alice’s case but not everyone welcomes her investigation. As lies that have been told for twenty-five years surrounding Alice’s disappearance begin to unravel, Emily is drawn deeper into the mystery. What happened to Alice? Will Becky ever be found?  And do the answers lie closer to home than anyone ever imagined? Damaged is Dan Scottow's unmissable debut. A twisty psychological thriller which will keep you guessing until the very end. It will appeal to fans of authors like Mark Edwards, Cara Hunter and Rachel Abbott.

THE YOUNGEST GREEN BERET: Real people, real combat, espionage, and conflict in the Mekong Delta 1969


Terry McIntosh - 2019
    From working with a double agent who betrays his friendship and exposes a top secret cross border operation, Terry McIntosh wrestles with his own doubts and fears while protecting the rights of others to live free. He was chosen from the ranks of long range reconnaissance training to serve with Special Forces Detachment A-team 414 in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam 1968-1969. The border camp conducted clandestine operations to observe and engage a growing Viet Cong armed force 15 miles across the line. The top secret mission is exposed after team members are accused of executing the double agent. It is believed that Terry McIntosh is the youngest soldier to serve with the Green Berets on an "A" team and earn the coveted Combat Badge. This is his story about the transition from boy to man in the jungles of Vietnam where he met himself for the first time with a sense of shame and honor.

Stench


A.B. Morgan - 2018
    He thought he had succeeded, until the body of a missing woman is discovered under the floor of his cottage. Only then do the guilt and shame of his wife’s mysterious, untimely death and the accusations about his connection to the missing woman combine to break him. The question is not how the missing woman died but why, and who is responsible? Sometimes the truth stinks.

Kids Who Kill: Case 2: Eric Smith


Kathryn McMaster - 2018
    But he chose not to. Eric continued to deal with Derrick's body because he wanted to, because he chose to, and most frighteningly of all, because he enjoyed it."Four-year-old Derrick Robie is dead. The killer's name is Eric Smith. He is just thirteen years old. Eric Smith loves torturing small animals of all descriptions; cats and kittens, birds, even snakes. When he graduates to people, he shows no remorse for what he has done. "I have just met the Anti-Christ," says a family friend to his wife after meeting teen-killer Eric Smith for the first time.This is the true story of a chilling murder of a preschooler who becomes the target of Eric's uncontrollable rage. Did police officers stop a serial killer in the making? You decide.If you read true crime books by Ann Rule, Jack Rosewood, or Kathryn Case, you will enjoy reading Kathryn McMaster's books. Kathryn McMaster is an accomplished author who specializes in true crime and unsolved cases and explores the darkest side of the human mind.

Making Arrangements


Ferris Robinson - 2016
    Reeling from shock, Lang realizes all of her perfect arrangements (from the caramel cake in the freezer for his first Christmas without her to love letters for his first anniversary alone) are in utter disarray. A mute stray dog posts itself on her front porch and a grammar-butchering fashion plate posts herself in Lang's kitchen, regularly revealing too much information. Lillian, Lang's long-lost mother, reappears for the funeral and is as obnoxious as ever. Her son, Teddy, has his own ideas of how she should manage her life, and they don't include cavorting about with a veterinarian who resembles Wimpy. Lang's granddaughter is a bright spot in her life, and Lang can't imagine life without her.With her historical family estate in jeopardy, Lang discovers her husband wasn't as perfect as she thought. Is she strong enough to keep her husband's secret from destroying her life?