I grew up in an extremely rural area before the internet, where there was no cable. So, I read. Reading led to my desire to write, and I have. When Jackie discussed the characters of The Waking Bell with me, I envisioned an American version of Rebecca, where the protagonist is a naïve young woman who follows her heart in a dark, gothic setting. While I didn’t grow up in the mountains, I have experienced the differences between people from different backgrounds that live in the same rural area. Those experiences are whereThe Waking Bell begins.
Rebeccais suspenseful, creepy, and downright eerie. I loved it. The unnamed protagonist was a stroke of genius and added to the gothic feel. But it’s the story that is the most gripping. Daphne du Maurier did a masterful job of laying out the mystery of what happened to Rebecca. Was it a tragic accident or something more?
* 'The greatest psychological thriller of all time' ERIN KELLY * 'One of the most influential novels of the twentieth century' SARAH WATERS * 'It's the book every writer wishes they'd written' CLARE MACKINTOSH
'Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again . . .'
Working as a lady's companion, our heroine's outlook is bleak until, on a trip to the south of France, she meets a handsome widower whose proposal takes her by surprise. She accepts but, whisked from glamorous Monte Carlo to brooding Manderley, the new Mrs de Winter finds Max a changed man. And the memory…
Peyton Place. Saying the title conjures up all sorts of images. This book rocked the literary world when it was released by tackling the intricacies of small-town life, especially gossip. I will say it’s not just the characters that stand with me after reading the book, but the story itself. The book captures the reality of the consequences of these scandals and the secrets kept.
When Grace Metalious's debut novel about the dark underside of a small, respectable New England town was published in 1956, it quickly soared to the top of the bestseller lists. A landmark in twentieth-century American popular culture, Peyton Place spawned a successful feature film and a long-running television series—the first prime-time soap opera.
Contemporary readers of Peyton Place will be captivated by its vivid characters, earthy prose, and shocking incidents. Through her riveting, uninhibited narrative, Metalious skillfully exposes the intricate social anatomy of a small community, examining the lives of its people—their passions and vices, their ambitions and defeats, their…
The Lost Ones is set a few years before my book, but I found it intriguing, and it has ghosts. While I usually don’t write ghost stories, I have written with supernatural undertones. This book has what I love: mysterious twists and turns. What’s more, I wanted to recommend it because I kinda stumbled upon it and wanted to share.
SHORTLISTED FOR THE GOLDSBORO BOOKS GLASS BELL AWARD
SHORTLISTED FOR THE HISTORICAL WRITERS' ASSOCIATION DEBUT CROWN
'A gothic gem of intrigue and atmosphere' HWA Debut Crown Judges
England, 1917
Reeling from the death of her fiance, Stella Marcham welcomes the opportunity to stay with her pregnant sister, Madeleine, at her imposing country mansion, Greyswick - but she arrives to discover a house of unease and her sister gripped by fear and suspicion.
Before long, strange incidents begin to trouble Stella - sobbing in the night, little footsteps on the stairs - and as events…
I’m not certain how many readers know of this book. But even though the time setting isn’t the same, I related to Willow’s character and Cady Blue. Both haven’t had an easy life, but you will fall in love with them. If you read this book, let me know if you do. Perhaps it’s because both characters have had hard beginnings.
Those were the words I lived by growing up, the words that protected me in an unsafe home. But words are only letters and eventually even they couldn't keep his hands off me.
Hoping to leave behind the shattered life of my past, I find myself in a boring, small town, with an aunt I've never met and at a school I loathe.
But soon I learn not everything in this world is as black and white as I've determined. Sometimes those we are so quick to judge often need a…
I loved The Four Windsbecause it made me feel a connection to my grandmothers who lived through the Great Depression. They never talked about it to me at all, but the ramifications were seen in their actions. I believe when you can make that kind of connection, it’s a triumph to the author. A great story.
"The Bestselling Hardcover Novel of the Year."--Publishers Weekly
From the number-one bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Great Alone comes a powerful American epic about love and heroism and hope, set during the Great Depression, a time when the country was in crisis and at war with itself, when millions were out of work and even the land seemed to have turned against them.
“My land tells its story if you listen. The story of our family.”
Texas, 1921. A time of abundance. The Great War is over, the bounty of the land is plentiful, and America is on…
A small Appalachian town is gripped in mystery. A missing child. A mysterious death. Clandestine love affairs. Soft-spoken Cady Blue finds herself caught in the middle of all the mysterious happenings when rumors splinter the mountain people and the townsfolk. Yet, despite asserting there is no threat, Cady Blue realizes something is very, very wrong in her small town. To make matters worse, the town war hero, Matt Pritchard, has awakened feelings she has never experienced, but she feels a lingering evil that could jeopardize her chance for happiness. Secrets whispered give way to a sense of foreboding that threatens the very soul of the town, and Cady soon discovers how deadly those secrets can be.
He’s riddled with guilt. She’s annoyed with the status quo.
The death of a crime boss’s daughter forces Detective Neil Caldera to leave NYC. He seeks refuge in the tranquil embrace of a small town, where he finds himself entangled in the labyrinth of a teenage girl’s murder. Tess Fleishman’s pale skin and extreme weight loss portrays a disease she wants others to see. While inside, a compulsion for Neil fuels her passion to have him or destroy him.
He's riddled with guilt. She's annoyed with the status quo. The death of a crime boss's daughter forces Detective Neil Caldera to leave NYC. He seeks refuge in the tranquil embrace of a small town, where he finds himself entangled in the labyrinth of a teenage girl's murder. Tess Fleishman's pale skin and extreme weight loss portrays a disease she wants others to see. While inside, a compulsion for Neil fuels her passion to have him or destroy him. As Neil delves into the heart of the town's secrets, will truth deliver solace? Or will Tess prevail?
