Masque of Honor: Book One in the Fields of Honor Series

by Sharon Virts

Genre: Historical Fiction • History 

Summary:

Set in antebellum Virginia and inspired by the true events surrounding the 1819 Mason–McCarty duel, Masque of Honor tells the story of John “Jack” Mason McCarty and his second cousin, Armistead Mason—two young men born into Virginia aristocracy whose ambitions, flaws, and fierce pride put them on a dangerous collision course.

As political rivalries, romantic entanglements, family tensions, and public scandal deepen the animosity between them, neither man is willing to back down. Despite the efforts of the women who love them, their increasingly bitter feud sets in motion a devastating chain of events. The first book in the Fields of Honor series, Masque of Honor explores honor, ambition, loyalty, and the consequences of allowing pride to dictate our choices.

Why I recommend this book:

I’m partial to this one! Masque of Honor holds a very special place in my heart, and I couldn’t put together a collection of summer reads without including Jack and Armistead.

Their story began for me with the true events surrounding the 1819 Mason–McCarty duel and opened the door to a fascinating world of family rivalries, politics, scandal, romance, and complicated relationships. It ultimately became the beginning of my Fields of Honor series.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historical fiction inspired by true events
• Enjoy family rivalries, political intrigue, and scandal
• Are drawn to complicated characters driven by ambition and honor
• Like sweeping stories of romance, loyalty, and betrayal

The Other

by Thomas Tyron

Genre: Horror • Ocult • Supernatural 

Summary:

Thirteen-year-old identical twins Niles and Holland Perry may look alike, but they couldn’t be more different. Niles is kind and eager to please, while Holland is daring, mischievous, and increasingly cruel. After the sudden death of their father, the boys spend the summer roaming their family’s ancestral farm in a quiet New England town while their grieving mother withdraws from the world around her.

As Holland’s pranks become increasingly sinister, Niles struggles to explain—or contain—his brother’s behavior. But beneath the seemingly idyllic summer setting, something far darker is unfolding, in a psychological tale that explores just how close innocence and evil can exist.

Why I recommend this book:

I first read The Other in high school, and Holland Perry is one of those characters I have never forgotten. Like Damien in The Omen, he still sends shivers up my spine.

What makes this story so unsettling is the contrast between its idyllic New England setting and the darkness slowly revealing itself within it. It’s psychological horror that gets under your skin and stays there—which is probably why I still remember it so vividly all these years later. For a classic retro scare, The Other is hard to beat.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love classic psychological horror
• Enjoy idyllic settings with something sinister beneath the surface
• Like unsettling stories about childhood and family
• Appreciate slow-building horror that gets under your skin

The Exorcist

by William Peter Blatty

Genre:  Thriller • Horror • Paranormal

Summary:

Eleven-year-old Regan MacNeil is living with her mother, Chris, when her personality suddenly begins to change. Her increasingly disturbing and violent behavior defies explanation, and as doctors fail to find a cause, Chris becomes desperate for answers.

Convinced that something far more sinister has taken hold of her daughter, she eventually turns to two Catholic priests for help. What follows is a terrifying battle against an ancient malevolent force that will test their faith and demand unimaginable sacrifices. Originally published in 1971 and inspired by reports of a purported demonic possession in the 1940s, The Exorcist has endured as one of horror’s most infamous novels.

Why I recommend this book:

No scary book list would be complete without what I consider one of the most frightening stories of all time—The Exorcist. I first read it in middle school, and when my mother realized what I had read, she thought I would be scarred for life. She may have had a point!

If this story of a child seemingly possessed by a demonic force doesn’t scare the bejesus out of you, nothing will. And trust me, as terrifying as the movie is, it has nothing on the terror of the written word. More than fifty years after it was first published, The Exorcist can still make you afraid to turn off the lights.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love classic horror that has stood the test of time
• Enjoy stories about faith, doubt, and the supernatural
• Want genuinely unsettling psychological and demonic horror
• Aren't afraid of a book that may keep them up at night

A Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires

by Grady Hendrix

Genre:  Thriller • Horror • Fantasy

Summary:

Patricia Campbell’s days are consumed by family responsibilities and an endless list of chores, but her true-crime-loving book club gives her a much-needed escape. Then a handsome and mysterious stranger named James Harris moves into her Charleston neighborhood and turns Patricia’s predictable world upside down.

At first, James is charming and intriguing, but something about him doesn’t add up. He avoids daylight, has no bank account, and Patricia’s elderly mother-in-law insists she knew him decades ago. When local children begin disappearing, Patricia and the women of her book club start to suspect that a very real monster has moved into their neighborhood. The problem is getting anyone else to believe them.

Why I recommend this book:

Every Halloween reading list needs a good vampire story. You could always turn to Dracula or Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire for your bloodthirsty fix, but The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires is a wonderfully modern alternative.

I loved the premise of a group of Southern book club women realizing a vampire has moved into their neighborhood—and deciding they have no choice but to take him out themselves. What begins with plenty of dark humor and satire gradually becomes something genuinely frightening. A fun, clever, and seriously creepy read for All Hallows’ Eve!

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love vampire stories with a fresh, modern spin
• Enjoy dark humor alongside genuine horror
• Appreciate stories about underestimated women taking matters into their own hands
• Like suburban settings where something monstrous hides beneath the ordinary

The Ruins

by Scott Smith

Genre:  Thriller • Horror •  Suspense

Summary:

Two American couples are enjoying a lazy beach vacation in Mexico when an impulsive decision takes them far from their resort. Along with new friends, they set out in search of a missing traveler who has ventured into the jungle toward a remote archaeological site near ancient Mayan ruins.

What begins as an adventure quickly becomes a nightmare when the group realizes they are trapped and something sinister is waiting for them in the wilderness. Isolated from help and facing an increasingly horrifying threat, their tropical escape becomes a desperate fight for survival.

Why I recommend this book:

What starts as a relaxing Mexican vacation slowly spirals into a nightmare beyond anything you could imagine. But what made The Ruins so terrifying for me was how invested I became in the characters. I genuinely cared about what happened to them, which made every new turn even more horrifying.

This was one of those stories I simply could not put down. The sense of isolation and mounting dread stayed with me long after I finished it—and it might just make you reconsider your next Mexican vacation!

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love survival horror and isolated settings
• Enjoy stories where an innocent adventure goes terribly wrong
• Like becoming emotionally invested in characters before putting them through hell
• Appreciate mounting dread and a sense that escape may be impossible

Hearth Shaped Box

by Joe Hill

Genre:  Thriller • Horror •  Paranormal 

Summary:

Aging rock star Jude Coyne has a fascination with the macabre and a collection of unusual artifacts to prove it. So when he discovers an online listing offering a dead man’s suit—along with the ghost supposedly attached to it—he can’t resist adding it to his collection.

Jude assumes the seller is a stranger and the ghost story is nothing more than a gimmick. He is wrong on both counts. When the suit arrives in a heart-shaped box, so does something far more sinister, and Jude soon finds himself haunted by a terrifying presence with a very personal reason for wanting revenge.

Why I recommend this book:

No, it’s not the song by Nirvana, although it is about an aging rock star. The premise of Heart-Shaped Box immediately hooked me: a man who collects macabre artifacts actually buys a ghost on the internet. What could possibly go wrong?

Quite a lot, as it turns out. I loved how quickly what seems like a bizarre impulse purchase becomes something deeply personal and genuinely terrifying. Joe Hill created a relentless, visual story that played out almost like a horror movie in my head. A terrifying, cinematic read.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love relentless supernatural horror
• Enjoy a good old-fashioned ghost story with a modern premise 
• Like flawed characters forced to confront their pasts
• Appreciate fast-paced, cinematic scares

The Omen

by David Seltzer

Genre:  Thriller • Horror •  Paranormal 

Summary:

Jeremy Thorn and his wife, Katherine, have welcomed their young son Damien into what seems like an idyllic family life. But as Damien grows, a terrifying pattern begins to emerge. Fatal accidents, suicides, and inexplicable acts of violence seem to follow the family wherever they go.

As Jeremy searches for answers, he is forced to consider the unthinkable: that these horrifying events may somehow be connected to his seemingly innocent child. Damien is no ordinary boy, and the truth about who—or what—he really is may be more terrifying than anything Jeremy could have imagined.

Why I recommend this book:

No list of classic horror would be complete without The Omen. I first read it in high school, and Damien has been sending shivers up my spine ever since.

There is something uniquely terrifying about taking the innocence we associate with childhood and turning it completely on its head. All these years later, The Omen still haunts me. If you’re in the mood for a little retro scare, this one absolutely deserves another read.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love classic horror that still delivers a scare
• Enjoy supernatural stories centered on good versus evil
• Like mounting dread and ominous coincidences
• Want a retro horror read with an unforgettable villain

The Hunger

by Alma Katsu

Genre:  Thriller • Horror • Historical Fiction 

Summary:

Inspired by the true story of the Donner Party, The Hunger follows a wagon train of pioneers whose journey west descends into disaster. As dwindling rations, bitter quarrels, a disastrous route, and a series of mysterious deaths push the travelers to the brink, long-held secrets and suspicions begin to surface.

Then members of the party start disappearing, and the survivors begin to fear that their terrible misfortunes may be more than bad luck. Something seems to be stalking them through the wilderness—something dark, disturbing, and hungry. Blending historical fact with supernatural horror, The Hunger reimagines one of the most infamous tragedies of the American West.

Why I recommend this book:

Stephen King called it “deeply disturbing.” I call it horrifically delicious—no pun intended. Based on the true story of the Donner Party, The Hunger takes an already harrowing chapter of American history and imagines something even more sinister lurking behind it.

I love historical fiction that takes real events and makes you see them in an entirely different way, and Alma Katsu’s blend of history and supernatural horror did exactly that. Knowing the terrible fate awaiting the Donner Party only adds to the mounting sense of dread. A word of warning: Do not read this one after dark!

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historical fiction with a supernatural twist
• Are fascinated by the story of the Donner Party
• Enjoy survival stories set in unforgiving landscapes
• Like horror that explores what happens when people are pushed to their limits

The Amityville Horror

by Jay Anson

Genre:  Thriller • Horror •  Paranormal 

Summary:

In December 1975, George and Kathleen Lutz moved with their family into a large house in Amityville, Long Island. They knew the home had a horrifying past: just over a year earlier, Ronald DeFeo Jr. had murdered six members of his family there. But the house—and its surprisingly affordable price—was too good to pass up.

Twenty-eight days later, the Lutz family fled the house, claiming they had experienced a terrifying series of unexplained and paranormal events. The Amityville Horror recounts their brief stay and the alleged haunting that became one of the most infamous—and controversial—supernatural stories in American popular culture.

Why I recommend this book:

If you love classic cult horror, look no further than The Amityville Horror. Yes, we’ve all seen the movie—but have you read the book?

What makes this story especially unsettling is the real tragedy behind it. Ronald DeFeo Jr. really did murder six members of his family in the Long Island house before the Lutz family moved in the following year. What the Lutzes claimed happened after that has been debated for decades, but that only adds to the fascination. True haunting or not, The Amityville Horror still has the power to scare the hell out of me.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love classic haunted-house stories
• Are fascinated by horror connected to real-life events
• Enjoy paranormal phenomena and unexplained occurrences
• Like books that leave you debating what really happened

You Like it Darker

by Stephen King

Genre:  Thriller • Horror •  Mystery 

Summary:

In You Like It Darker, Stephen King returns to the short story with a collection of twelve tales exploring fate, mortality, the supernatural, and those unsettling moments when ordinary life suddenly slips into something much darker.

From a psychic vision that turns one man’s life upside down to a grieving widower who receives a sinister inheritance, the stories move between the strange, the terrifying, and the deeply human. In “The Dreamers,” a Vietnam veteran takes a seemingly ordinary job only to discover that some corners of the universe may be better left unexplored. Throughout the collection, King blends psychological suspense and supernatural horror with his signature ability to find darkness lurking just beneath everyday life.

Why I recommend this book:

I love anything by Stephen King. I was in ninth grade, babysitting for a neighbor, when I found Carrie on the family’s bookshelf—and I was hooked. My favorite Stephen King novel, and the one that scared me the most, is Pet Sematary.

Perhaps that’s why I was so enthralled by “The Dreamers,” one of the twelve stories in You Like It Darker. Like Pet Sematary, it takes its protagonist beyond the point of no return, into a place where some things are better left unexplored. Stephen King has been giving me nightmares since ninth grade, and “The Dreamers” proved he can still do it!

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love short stories that pack a serious punch
• Enjoy psychological and supernatural horror
• Like stories that find darkness lurking beneath ordinary life
• Appreciate Stephen King's mix of terror, humanity, and the unexpected

The Devil and Mrs. Davenport

by Paulette Kennedy

Genre:  Thriller • Historical Fiction •  Mystery 

Summary:

Missouri, 1955. Loretta Davenport has lived a sheltered life as a wife and young mother, married to an ambitious professor at a Bible college. But when a local girl is murdered, and Loretta begins receiving strange messages and visions from beyond, her carefully ordered world starts to unravel.

While her husband, Pete, dismisses her experiences as delusions—and eventually becomes convinced she is under the influence of the Devil—Loretta finds support from a parapsychologist who believes her abilities are a gift. As her connection to the dead grows stronger, Loretta must uncover the truth behind the messages she is receiving while fighting to reclaim control of her own life.

Why I recommend this book:

Strange voices, eerie premonitions, and a killer on the loose—what more do you need? The Devil and Mrs. Davenport had all the ingredients for the kind of dark, atmospheric story that immediately pulls me in.

I was especially intrigued by the question at the heart of Loretta’s story: Is she really communicating with the dead, or is something else happening to her? Set against the expectations placed on women in the 1950s, the supernatural mystery becomes something more—a story about a woman learning to trust herself when the person closest to her insists she shouldn’t. This was a wonderfully Gothic and unsettling read.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love Gothic mysteries with a supernatural element
• Enjoy stories about women challenging the expectations of their time
• Are intrigued by mediums, premonitions, and messages from beyond
• Like historical fiction that explores the question of what—or whom—to believe

The Only One Left

by Riley Sager

Genre:  Thriller • Horror •  Mystery 

Summary:

In 1929, the brutal murders of the Hope family shocked the Maine coast and gave rise to a chilling schoolyard chant blaming seventeen-year-old Lenora Hope. Although the police could never prove her guilt, Lenora was the only member of her family left alive, and she has remained inside Hope’s End, the family’s cliffside mansion, ever since.

More than fifty years later, home-health aide Kit McDeere arrives at the decaying estate to care for the now elderly Lenora. Unable to speak, Lenora communicates by typing on an old typewriter—and one night offers to finally tell Kit everything about what happened in 1929. But as Lenora’s story unfolds, Kit begins to wonder whether she is hearing the truth and whether the seemingly helpless woman in her care might still be dangerous.

Why I recommend this book:

What could be more intriguing than an old, possibly haunted mansion and a decades-old murder mystery immortalized in a creepy children’s playground chant? The Only One Left had me hooked from the start.

I loved unraveling the mystery of what really happened to the Hope family alongside Kit, never quite knowing what—or whom—to believe. And with the crumbling Hope’s End perched high above the Maine coast, Riley Sager delivered twists that left me feeling as though I were hanging from the edge of a cliff—literally.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love old mansions and decades-old murder mysteries
• Enjoy unreliable narrators and stories where no one can quite be trusted
• Like unraveling family secrets one revelation at a time
• Appreciate twisty suspense with a Gothic atmosphere

King Nyx

by Kirsten Bakis

Genre:  Historical Fiction • Horror •  Mystery 

Summary:

In the winter of 1918, Anna Fort accompanies her husband, Charles, to Prosper Island, a remote, frozen estate where he hopes to finish his book under the patronage of an eccentric millionaire. But when Anna learns that three girls have disappeared from a school run by their host, she becomes determined to find out what happened to them.

As Anna searches for answers, strange occurrences on the island begin to blur the line between reality and illusion. A mysterious figure in the woods appears to resemble a long-lost friend, while the return of Anna’s own psychological “troubles” makes her question what she can trust—including her own mind. Is Prosper Island haunted, or is something even more sinister behind the missing girls?

Why I recommend this book:

If you think it’s hard to escape a town’s secret past, imagine being surrounded by water as well as ghosts. King Nyx immediately drew me into the strange, isolated world of Prosper Island, where it becomes increasingly difficult to tell what is real and what might exist only in Anna’s mind.

I loved the dark, dreamlike atmosphere and the constant sense that something sinister was lurking just beneath the surface. As Anna searched for three missing girls, I found myself questioning her perceptions right along with her. This was the kind of unsettling story that kept me guessing—and even had me questioning what I believed.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love dark, dreamlike Gothic fiction
• Enjoy remote islands and claustrophobic settings
• Like unreliable perceptions that blur reality and illusion
• Appreciate mysteries involving missing people and possible ghosts

Small Town Horror

by Ronald Malfi

Genre:  Horror • Thriller •  Mystery 

Summary:

Andrew Larimer has built a successful life far from Kingsport, the small town where he grew up. But when a late-night phone call from an old friend draws him home, he is forced to reunite with four childhood friends—and confront a past they have spent twenty years trying to leave behind.

The five share a dark secret about a night that changed all their lives, and now something is pulling them back together. As old memories resurface and talk of a curse begins to seem less impossible, Andrew discovers that his friends aren’t the only ones keeping secrets. Kingsport has some of its own.

Why I recommend this book:

It’s not just haunted houses that I find thrilling. In the horrifyingly dark Small Town Horror, five friends return to their hometown and are forced to face a past they thought they had left behind.

I loved the slow burn of this story. Just when I thought I understood where it was headed, another secret or twist changed everything—and suddenly I had no idea where the story was going. And that ending? I was blown away.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy slow-burn horror that builds to unexpected twists
• Love stories about childhood friends reunited by a shared secret
• Appreciate psychological horror that keeps you questioning what is real
• Like small towns with dark histories of their own

The September House

by Carissa Orlando

Genre:  Horror • Thriller •  Mystery 

Summary:

When Margaret and her husband, Hal, buy a beautiful Victorian home at a surprisingly affordable price, they soon discover why: it’s haunted. Every September, the walls drip blood, ghosts roam the halls, and something far more terrifying seems to be lurking in the basement. But while Hal has had enough, Margaret has no intention of leaving. It’s her house, ghosts and all.

After four years, Hal abruptly disappears, and their daughter Katherine—who knows nothing about the hauntings—arrives determined to find him. With September just beginning, Margaret must search for her missing husband while keeping the truth about the house from her daughter. But as the hauntings grow more dangerous, it becomes clear that the house has secrets of its own—and it intends to keep them.

Why I recommend this book:

The cover of The September House says it all: a hauntingly beautiful Victorian that is, well…haunted. Given my love of spooky old houses, I knew this one was for me.

What I especially loved was the unexpected humor woven throughout the darkness. This creepy, complex story had me laughing out loud one minute and holding my breath the next—a combination I didn’t expect, but thoroughly enjoyed.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love haunted-house stories with an original twist
• Appreciate dark humor mixed with genuine scares
• Enjoy complicated family dynamics
• Like heroines who refuse to behave the way a horror story expects

The House of Last Resort

by Christopher Golden

Genre:  Horror • Thriller •  Mystery 

Summary:

Looking for a fresh start, a young couple moves to Becchina, a tiny village in Italy, where they purchase an old house they hope will become their dream home. But from the moment they arrive, something doesn’t feel quite right.

As unsettling events begin to reveal the house’s dark past, their idyllic new life quickly turns into something far more sinister. What began as a chance to start over becomes a terrifying struggle to uncover the secrets of their new home—and survive them.

Why I recommend this book:

Did I mention I love spooky old houses? (Actually, I live in one!) So naturally, The House of Last Resort caught my attention. An old house in a tiny Italian village with a mysterious past was simply too intriguing to resist.

I love a story where the setting becomes almost a character itself, and this one delivered plenty of atmosphere, secrets, and things that go bump in the night. It was exactly the kind of spooky read I wanted to get lost in.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Can't resist a seriously creepy old house
• Love supernatural horror rooted in a place's dark history
• Enjoy atmospheric European settings
• Like stories where the house itself feels like a character

The Guest List

by Lucy Foley

Genre:  Mystery •  Thriller  

Summary:

On a remote island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather for the glamorous wedding of a rising television star and an ambitious magazine publisher. Every detail has been carefully planned, from the designer dress and luxe party favors to the dramatic island setting.

But beneath the celebration, old resentments, jealousies, and secrets begin to surface. Then someone turns up dead. Cut off from the mainland and surrounded by people with reasons to hold a grudge, the guests are left with a chilling question: Who among them wanted someone at this wedding dead—and why?

Why I recommend this book:

Speaking of creepy settings, The Guest List reminded me of a line from the Eagles’ “Hotel California”—you can check out, but you can never leave. A wedding at an ancient castle on a remote Irish island already had all the ingredients for the kind of atmospheric mystery I love.

Add a group of guests harboring secrets and resentments, an isolated setting, and a murder, and I was hooked. This creepy whodunit kept me guessing and delivered plenty of chills along the way. It was also one of my Read with Sharon book club picks, and a wonderfully unsettling one to share.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love locked-room-style mysteries and isolated settings
• Enjoy whodunits with plenty of suspects
• Like stories filled with secrets, grudges, and shifting suspicions
• Appreciate atmospheric mysteries that keep you guessing

Mexican Gothic

by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Genre: Historical Fiction • Gothic •  Mystery 

Summary:

After receiving a frantic letter from her newlywed cousin begging to be rescued from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada travels to High Place, a remote mansion in the Mexican countryside. The glamorous young debutante may seem an unlikely detective, but she is smart, determined, and not easily frightened.

At High Place, Noemí encounters her cousin’s unsettling new family and a house that seems to have a life of its own. As disturbing visions of blood and doom invade her dreams, she begins uncovering a history of violence, madness, and long-buried family secrets. The deeper Noemí is drawn into the strange and seductive world of High Place, the more uncertain it becomes whether she will ever be able to escape.

Why I recommend this book:

Who doesn’t love a haunted house on Halloween? Silvia Moreno-Garcia doesn’t disappoint with this wonderfully dark Gothic tale set in a remote mansion in the Mexican countryside.

I was immediately drawn into the eerie world of High Place, where the house itself is only the beginning of what Noemí has to fear. With family secrets hidden behind its walls, disturbing visions, and a heroine determined to uncover the truth, Mexican Gothic delivered exactly the kind of seductive and terrifying story I love for spooky season.

In fact, I included Mexican Gothic in my list of scary books to read for Halloween that I put together for People Magazine.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love Gothic fiction and sinister old houses
• Enjoy smart, determined heroines
• Appreciate lush, atmospheric settings
• Like stories where family secrets and the supernatural intertwine

Murder Road

by Simone St. James

Genre: Mystery • Horror •  Thriller

Summary:

In July 1995, newlyweds April and Eddie take a wrong turn while driving to the resort town where they plan to spend their honeymoon. On a deserted road called Atticus Line, they stop for what appears to be a lone hitchhiker—only to discover that she is badly wounded. Before they can get her to safety, a mysterious truck comes barreling down the road behind them.

When the hitchhiker dies, April and Eddie become the prime suspects in a series of unexplained murders that have plagued Atticus Line for years. Determined to clear their names, they begin digging into the town’s dark history and soon discover that something supernatural is at work on that lonely stretch of road—and they may be its next victims.

Why I recommend this book:

After The Sun Down Motel, I knew I wanted to read more of Simone St. James’s wonderfully creepy stories, and Murder Road did not disappoint. A young couple, a wrong turn, a deserted road, and a town with a dark history—it had all the ingredients for the kind of haunted tale I love.

What starts as a wrong turn quickly becomes something far more sinister, with no easy way back and seemingly no escape from the secrets surrounding Atticus Line. St. James once again gave me that perfect mix of mystery and supernatural suspense that keeps me turning the pages—and looking over my shoulder.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love creepy road-trip stories and wrong turns
• Enjoy mysteries surrounding unsolved crimes
• Like supernatural suspense mixed with a murder investigation
• Appreciate stories about small towns hiding dark secrets

The Sun Down Motel

by Simone St. James

Genre: Mystery • Horror •  Thriller

Summary:

In 1982, Viv Delaney takes a job as the night clerk at the Sun Down Motel in Fell, New York, while saving money for a move to New York City. But there is something deeply unsettling about the motel—and then Viv mysteriously disappears.

Thirty-five years later, Viv’s niece Carly arrives in Fell determined to find out what happened to the aunt she never knew. Her search leads her back to the Sun Down Motel, where little seems to have changed since 1982. As Carly begins investigating Viv’s disappearance, she finds herself drawn into the same dark mysteries—and supernatural forces—that haunted her aunt decades earlier.

Why I recommend this book:

Simone St. James is one of my favorite modern-day writers of haunted tales, and The Sun Down Motel was the book that first introduced me to her work. I discovered it while my husband and I were traveling across the country, and the cover immediately reminded me of a 1960s rendition of Alfred Hitchcock’s Bates Motel.

A few chapters in, I was already thinking twice about where we overnighted for the rest of the trip! I loved the combination of mystery, atmosphere, and the supernatural, and I’ve been a fan of Simone St. James ever since.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love mysteries told across two timelines
• Enjoy haunted places with dark histories
• Like strong female characters determined to uncover the truth
• Appreciate stories that blend crime, mystery, and the supernatural

The Indigo Girl

by Natasha Boyd

Genre: Historical Fiction • Colonial America •  Biographical Fiction

Summary:

South Carolina, 1739. At sixteen years old, Eliza Lucas is left in charge of her family’s plantations while her father pursues his military ambitions abroad. With the estates struggling and the family’s future uncertain, Eliza becomes convinced that cultivating indigo could save them.

Few believe she can succeed, and the knowledge required to produce the valuable dye is closely guarded. Defying expectations, Eliza forms unlikely alliances and pursues an experiment that will eventually transform South Carolina’s economy. Based on Eliza Lucas Pinckney’s letters and historical records, The Indigo Girl tells the story of an ambitious young woman whose determination left a lasting mark on colonial America.

Why I recommend this book:

Eliza Lucas Pinckney’s story is exactly the kind of history I love discovering: a teenage girl whose accomplishments had an enormous impact, yet whose name is far less familiar than it should be.

I was fascinated by her determination to master indigo cultivation despite being told repeatedly that it couldn’t be done. Her story is also complicated by the realities of slavery and the world in which she lived, which makes it important not to romanticize her success. Natasha Boyd brings to life an ambitious, intelligent young woman navigating business, family responsibility, politics, and the limitations of colonial society.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy historical fiction about overlooked women who shaped American history
• Are fascinated by colonial agriculture, commerce, and entrepreneurship
• Like stories about young women challenging expectations
• Appreciate historical fiction that explores both achievement and the complexities of its era

The Lacemaker

by Laura Frantz

Genre: Historical Fiction • Revolutionary War •  Historical Romance

Summary:

On the eve of the American Revolution, Lady Elisabeth “Liberty” Lawson’s privileged life in Williamsburg collapses. Abandoned by her fiancé and suspected of sympathizing with the British, she finds herself caught between the English world into which she was born and the revolutionary movement transforming Virginia.

With help from Patriot Noble Rynallt, Liberty begins rebuilding her life as a lacemaker while confronting increasingly dangerous political choices. As Williamsburg erupts with suspicion and rebellion, she must decide where her loyalty truly lies—and what she is willing to sacrifice for love, independence, and a new beginning.

Why I recommend this book:

Colonial Williamsburg on the brink of revolution is such a vivid setting, and I was immediately drawn to Liberty Lawson’s transformation from Virginia belle to a woman forced to make her own way in a rapidly changing world.

What I enjoyed most was the tension between personal loyalty and political conviction. Liberty’s background ties her to England, while everything around her is pushing toward independence. Laura Frantz makes the uncertainty of that moment feel immediate, reminding us that for the people living through the Revolution, the outcome—and the right side to choose—was anything but obvious.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love immersive stories set in colonial Williamsburg
• Enjoy historical romance against a backdrop of political upheaval
• Like heroines rebuilding their lives after losing security and status
• Appreciate stories about divided loyalties during the Revolution

A Girl Called Samon

by Amy Harmon

Genre: Historical Fiction • Biographical Fiction •  Historical Romance

Summary:

Born in Massachusetts in 1760, Deborah Samson grows up longing for freedom after being bound out as an indentured servant. When the colonies go to war with Britain, that longing takes a daring form: Deborah disguises herself as a man and enlists in the Continental Army.

Living and fighting as a soldier gives Deborah the independence she has always craved, but it also forces her to conceal her identity while confronting the brutality of war. Inspired by the remarkable life of the real Deborah Sampson, the novel follows a young woman willing to risk everything for her country’s freedom—and for the chance to determine the course of her own life.

Why I recommend this book:

I have always been drawn to true stories of women who refused to accept the boundaries placed around them, and Deborah Sampson’s life is extraordinary. At a time when women had virtually no place in the military, she disguised herself as a man and served in the Continental Army.

Amy Harmon turns that remarkable history into an emotional story about freedom on both a national and deeply personal level. I loved the parallel between a country fighting for independence and a young woman fighting for the right to shape her own future.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy historical fiction based on extraordinary true lives
• Love courageous heroines who defy the expectations of their time
• Are interested in the everyday soldiers of the American Revolution
• Like sweeping stories that combine history, adventure, and romance

The Turncoat's Widow

by Mally Becker

Genre: Historical Mystery • Espionage • Revolutionary War Fiction

Summary:

Winter, 1780. Recently widowed Rebecca Parcell is struggling to maintain her Morristown farm while neighbors whisper that she may be a Loyalist sympathizer who betrayed her Patriot husband. The truth is even more dangerous: her husband was secretly a British spy, and George Washington knows it.

Washington offers to protect Rebecca’s farm if she helps unravel the secrets her husband left behind. Paired with escaped British prisoner Daniel Alloway, Rebecca is drawn into an espionage mission that takes them from Morristown to British-occupied New York City. There they uncover a plot that could threaten the future of the Revolution itself.

Why I recommend this book:

A Revolutionary War mystery with George Washington, a secret British spy, an endangered widow, and an espionage mission into occupied New York? This one had my attention immediately.

I especially enjoyed the way Mally Becker places an ordinary woman in an extraordinary situation. Rebecca isn’t looking for adventure or political glory; she is trying to save her home and survive the rumors surrounding her husband. Watching her discover just how little she knew about the man she married adds another layer of mystery to an already dangerous world of spies and divided loyalties.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love Revolutionary War mysteries and espionage
• Enjoy stories involving George Washington and secret intelligence networks
• Like reluctant heroines pulled into dangerous investigations
• Appreciate a blend of history, suspense, and romance

My Dear Hamilton: A Novel of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton

by Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie

Genre: Historical Fiction • Biographical Fiction • Historical Romance

Summary:

Eliza Schuyler comes of age amid the dangers and ideals of the American Revolution, where she meets Alexander Hamilton, George Washington’s brilliant young aide-de-camp. Their marriage places her at the center of the new nation’s political life—but also exposes her to ambition, scandal, betrayal, and profound loss.

After Hamilton’s death, Eliza must decide how to preserve the legacy of the complicated man she loved while also reclaiming her own. Drawing from letters and original sources, the novel presents Eliza not simply as a founding father’s wife, but as a revolutionary woman whose work, resilience, and influence helped shape America’s memory of its founding generation.

Why I recommend this book:

Eliza Hamilton is one of those women whose name is familiar largely because of the man she married, yet her own life was extraordinary. She endured war, public scandal, devastating loss, and decades of widowhood—and still went on to build a legacy that was entirely her own.

What I appreciated most was seeing the Revolution and the early republic through Eliza’s eyes. Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie give us the love story people know while also revealing the strength, anger, forgiveness, and determination of the woman who helped ensure Alexander Hamilton would not be forgotten.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historical fiction about the women behind America’s founding fathers
• Enjoy sweeping stories of love, betrayal, war, and resilience
• Are interested in Alexander and Eliza Hamilton beyond the musical
• Appreciate novels grounded in letters and original historical sources

The Tory Widow

by Christine Blevins

Genre: Historical Fiction • Revolutionary War • Historical Romance

Summary:

In 1775 New York, Anne Merrick is a widow trying to keep her late husband’s printing business afloat, even though it means continuing to print Tory propaganda she does not believe in. Years earlier, she met the ardent Patriot Jack Hampton on the day the Stamp Act was repealed; now, when the Sons of Liberty ransack her shop, Jack unexpectedly reenters her life.

As the colonies move toward open war, Anne can no longer remain safely on the sidelines. Drawn toward Jack and the Patriot cause, she must decide whether to protect the life she knows or risk everything for a new country—and for her own independence.

Why I recommend this book:

I’m always interested in stories that show the Revolution from the perspective of people who didn’t begin with an easy or obvious allegiance. Anne Merrick is trying to survive, not become a political symbol, and that makes her choices feel especially human.

I also loved the printing-press setting. In a revolution fueled by pamphlets, newspapers, rumors, and ideas, controlling the printed word could be almost as powerful as carrying a weapon. Anne’s journey from reluctant observer to someone willing to choose a side gives this story both heart and historical tension.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy Revolutionary War fiction with romance and political tension
• Like heroines forced to choose between survival and conviction
• Are interested in printing, propaganda, and the power of ideas
• Love stories set in colonial New York

The Frozen River

by Ariel Lawhon

Genre: Historical Fiction • Mystery • Historical Crime

Summary:

Maine, 1789. When a man is discovered frozen in the Kennebec River, midwife and healer Martha Ballard is called to examine the body. Her conclusion points to murder—and to a disturbing case she documented months earlier involving two of the town’s most respected men.

Martha’s diary records the births, deaths, crimes, and secrets of her close-knit community, giving her knowledge few others possess. When a local physician dismisses her findings and the legal system begins to close ranks, Martha refuses to remain silent. Over the course of one brutal winter, she pursues the truth even as the investigation threatens her family, her reputation, and those she loves.

Why I recommend this book:

I love historical fiction that begins with a real person whose life sounds almost too remarkable to be true, and Martha Ballard is exactly that kind of woman. A midwife, healer, diarist, and keen observer of her community, she left behind an extraordinary record of eighteenth-century life.

Ariel Lawhon turns that history into a gripping murder mystery while preserving what makes Martha so compelling: her intelligence, courage, and refusal to be dismissed. I was captivated by a woman willing to challenge powerful men and an imperfect legal system in pursuit of the truth.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historical mysteries centered on real women
• Enjoy strong, intelligent heroines who challenge the rules of their time
• Are fascinated by early medicine, midwifery, and justice
• Like atmospheric winter settings and slow-building investigations

America's First Daughter

by Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie

Genre: Historical Fiction • Biographical Fiction • Family Drama

Summary:

Drawing on thousands of letters and original sources, America’s First Daughter tells the story of Martha “Patsy” Jefferson Randolph, Thomas Jefferson’s eldest daughter and lifelong confidante. After her mother’s death, Patsy becomes her father’s companion and protector, accompanying him to France and witnessing both political revolution and the complicated private life of one of America’s founding fathers.

As Patsy grows older, she is forced to choose repeatedly between her own desires and her devotion to her father and family. Love, slavery, scandal, financial hardship, and the burden of protecting Jefferson’s reputation shape her life as she helps preserve not only her father’s legacy, but that of the new nation he helped create.

Why I recommend this book:

I’m fascinated by the women who stood beside the famous men of history yet had extraordinary stories of their own. Patsy Jefferson was far more than Thomas Jefferson’s daughter; she was his confidante, protector, and, in many ways, the keeper of his legacy.

Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie bring Patsy vividly to life while refusing to simplify the difficult choices she faced. I was especially drawn to the tension between family loyalty and personal conviction, and to the way the novel asks us to look beyond the familiar portrait of a founding father and consider the women whose sacrifices helped shape that legacy.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy richly researched fiction about America’s founding families
• Love stories that bring overlooked women in history to the forefront
• Appreciate complicated family relationships and moral choices
• Like novels based on letters, documents, and real historical lives

Rebel Spy

by Veronica Rossi

Genre: Historical Fiction • Espionage • American Revolution

Summary:

In 1776, rebellious Frannie Tasker sees an unexpected chance to escape her brutal stepfather after a shipwreck near her home in the Bahamas. Assuming the identity of a drowned young woman, she is rescued by a British merchant ship and carried to New York, where she begins a new life as Emmeline Coates.

For three years, Frannie moves through British-occupied society while hiding who she really is. But as she witnesses the realities of war, she realizes her false identity gives her access to information that could help the Patriot cause. Soon she is risking everything to spy on British officers and pass intelligence to George Washington’s Culper spy ring as the mysterious Agent 355.

Why I recommend this book:

I’m always intrigued by the women who played important roles in American history but left behind only fragments of their stories. Agent 355 is one of those fascinating figures, and Rebel Spy imagines how an ordinary young woman might have become one of George Washington’s most mysterious intelligence agents.

I loved the combination of espionage, mistaken identity, danger, and history. Frannie has to survive in a world where one wrong word could expose everything, while deciding for herself what freedom is worth fighting for. It’s a wonderful reminder that some of the Revolution’s most courageous participants worked in the shadows.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy Revolutionary War fiction with spies and secret identities
• Love courageous heroines who take enormous risks
• Are fascinated by George Washington’s Culper spy ring
• Like fast-moving historical fiction inspired by real mysteries

Bargains of Fate: Book Two in the Fields of Honor Series

by Sharon Virts

Genre: Historical Fiction • Historical Drama • Political Fiction

Summary:

Jack McCarty has worked hard to move beyond the duel with Armistead Mason that nearly destroyed his future. Now one of Virginia’s brightest young lawyers, he is married to Lucinda Lee, the woman he loves, and once again poised for political success.

But the past is never far behind. A devastating tragedy binds Lucinda and her sister Fanny in unexpected ways, while Jack’s own lapse in judgment threatens the life he has fought to rebuild. As family scandal, dramatic court cases, political ambition, and old rivalries collide, Jack once again finds himself facing the dangerous code of honor that nearly cost him everything. Based on true events from the American Regency era, Bargains of Fate explores the uneasy boundaries between power and integrity, love and desire, honor and consequence.

Why I recommend this book:

I’ll admit I’m a little partial to this one! Bargains of Fate continues the story I began in Masque of Honor, following Jack McCarty as he tries to become the man he believes he can be—even when old habits, family pressures, and the expectations of honor keep pulling him in dangerous directions.

What fascinated me most while writing this book was how much of the drama came directly from the historical record. Politics, scandal, courtroom battles, complicated marriages, and the ever-present threat of another duel made this period anything but quiet. I loved returning to Jack and Lucinda’s world and exploring what happens after a person survives one life-changing mistake—only to discover that fate may have another bargain waiting.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy historical fiction inspired by real people and events
• Like political intrigue, courtroom drama, and family scandal
• Appreciate complicated characters who must live with the consequences of their choices
• Love richly researched stories set in early nineteenth-century America

The Grays of Truth

by Sharon Virts

Genre: Historical Fiction • Mystery • Thriller

Summary:

Winner of the 2025 International Book Award for Best Historical Fiction.

In Reconstruction-era Baltimore, members of the city’s elite are dying under mysterious circumstances. When Jane Gray Wharton’s husband dies unexpectedly, she initially has no reason to question his death. But after Jane and her daughter become gravely ill while visiting the same house just weeks later, she begins to suspect that someone may be poisoning members of her family.

Jane is a trained chemist and former nurse, but a history of delusion, loss, and institutionalization causes others—and Jane herself—to question what she believes. As the deaths multiply and her grip on reality begins to falter, Jane must determine what is real, who she can trust, and whether she can uncover the truth before it is too late. Inspired by true events involving one of Baltimore’s most prominent families, The Grays of Truth blends murder, mystery, and a haunting chapter of American history.

Why I recommend this book:

I’ll admit I’m a little partial to this one! I first discovered the story behind The Grays of Truth while researching my second novel, Veil of Doubt. As I delved into nineteenth-century forensic science, I stumbled upon the trial of Baltimore socialite Ellen Wharton—and once I began reading the court transcripts, I was hooked.

The case had so many of the elements I look for in a story: wealth, power, politics, multiple unexplained deaths, a botched investigation, early forensic science, and a cast of complicated real-life characters, each with a possible motive for murder. At the center of it all was a woman whose history made it difficult for others to believe her—and sometimes difficult for her to believe herself. What more could I want in a story?

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historical mysteries inspired by extraordinary true events
• Are fascinated by early forensic science and criminal investigations
• Enjoy unreliable narrators who make you question what—and whom—to believe
• Appreciate stories filled with wealth, power, scandal, politics, and murder

Sarafina

by Philip Fracassi

Genre: Historical Fiction • Horror • Supernatural Fiction

Summary:

In the midst of the Civil War, three brothers make a desperate choice: abandon their posts and risk execution rather than die fighting a war they believe is already lost. Their journey home is grueling, as they battle hunger, injuries, dangerous terrain, and the constant threat of being discovered.

Then, deep in the woods, they come upon what seems like salvation—a remote cabin occupied by a beautiful woman named Sarafina and her young son, Titus. She welcomes the brothers, feeds them, and gives them a place to recover. But one of the brothers senses that something isn’t right. A mysterious creek, a hidden cavern, and the strange land surrounding the cabin suggest that the horrors they escaped on the battlefield may be nothing compared with what is waiting for them in the woods.

Why I recommend this book:

Historical fiction and horror are two genres I love, so when I discovered a story that brings them together against the backdrop of the Civil War, I was immediately intrigued. Three brothers fleeing the horrors of battle, only to stumble upon something even more terrifying deep in the woods? I had to know what happened next.

What drew me in was the way Philip Fracassi takes an already dark and dangerous period in American history and layers something sinister and supernatural over it. Sarafina is unsettling, atmospheric, and full of mounting dread—exactly the kind of story that makes you wonder whether the greatest danger is the one you can see coming or the one you never imagined was there.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy historical fiction with a terrifying supernatural twist
• Are drawn to dark stories set during the Civil War
• Love isolated settings where nothing is quite what it seems
• Appreciate survival stories that explore loyalty, fear, and the lengths people will go to make it home

A Penance for Crows

by Shannon Morgan

Genre: Supernatural Fiction • Horror • Thriller

Summary:

Forty years ago, Grizela Urquhart fled Glasgow for Beanna Dubh, a remote island off the coast of Ireland, hoping to escape a painful past. But even after decades there, the eccentric painter remains an outsider in an isolated community governed by the church, old superstitions, and a deep-seated belief that the island’s thousands of crows are harbingers of disaster.

When Grizela discovers the body of a young priest marked with a sinister symbol, suspicion quickly turns toward her. Then she begins hearing demonic whispers that no one else can hear, forcing her to question her own mind. Determined to protect four young girls she has taken under her wing, Grizela begins uncovering secrets that connect the island’s present darkness to the past she has spent decades trying to escape.

Why I recommend this book:

A remote Irish island, thousands of ominous crows, a murdered priest, and a community filled with secrets—there was no way I could resist A Penance for Crows.

I was especially intrigued by Grizela. She’s an outsider in a place that already feels cut off from the rest of the world, and when she begins hearing voices no one else can hear, you’re left wondering how much of what she experiences can be trusted. Add in old superstitions, buried secrets, and the wonderfully Gothic setting of a windswept island, and this had all the makings of the kind of dark, atmospheric mystery I love.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love dark, atmospheric stories set in remote locations
• Enjoy mysteries steeped in folklore, superstition, and religious secrets
• Like complicated, potentially unreliable protagonists
• Appreciate Gothic fiction where the past refuses to stay buried

Carry Me to my Grave

by Christopher Golden

Genre: Supernatural Fiction • Horror • Thriller

Summary:

Growing up, Malcolm and his siblings endured a cruel childhood chant accusing their mother, Maggie Wise, of being a witch. Now Maggie is dying, and before taking her final breath, she makes Malcolm promise to return her body to her birthplace in Shediak, Maine.

But Maggie’s death seems to awaken something. A mysterious figure watches from beneath a willow tree, ancient evils begin to stir across the country, and forces determined to prevent Maggie from reaching her final resting place close in. As Malcolm and his sister-in-law Violet begin the journey to Maine aboard the Imperial Limited, violence erupts and long-buried horrors emerge. Whatever Maggie did in her past, something has been waiting a very long time to make her pay for it.

Why I recommend this book:

A dying mother with a mysterious past, a childhood chant accusing her of witchcraft, and a final request that unleashes something evil—Carry Me to My Grave had my attention immediately.

I love a story where you know from the beginning that the past is hiding something terrible, but you have to keep reading to discover exactly what it is. Christopher Golden layers family secrets, witchcraft, and supernatural horror into a journey where the danger grows with every mile. And when long-buried things start waking up because one woman has died, you know her secrets are going to be worth uncovering.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love supernatural horror rooted in family secrets
• Enjoy creepy folklore, old promises, and long-buried evil
• Like stories where an ordinary journey becomes increasingly terrifying
• Appreciate dark, atmospheric tales that blend family history with the supernatural

Hell Is a Farm

by J.T. McNair & J. LeMay

Genre: Mystery • Suspense • Thriller

Summary:

Rural Alabama, 1958. Sisters Rose and Violet Martin have already endured a brutal foster care system when they are sent to live with Eunice and Cleo Duke, respected foster parents in a deeply religious community near Huntsville. But Rose immediately senses that something about the isolated Duke farm—and the family living there—is terribly wrong.

Meanwhile, local officer Michael Houston is investigating a string of disappearances that increasingly seem connected to the farm. As buried secrets begin to surface and Michael finds himself targeted by someone determined to frame him, Rose realizes she may be the only person who can protect her younger sister. To save Violet from becoming the next child to disappear, she must find a way to expose the monsters hiding in plain sight.

Why I recommend this book:

Sometimes the most frightening stories don’t need ghosts or supernatural forces—the monsters are frightening enough on their own. That’s what intrigued me about Hell Is a Farm.

The isolated Alabama setting, the missing children, and a young girl who realizes long before the adults around her that something is terribly wrong create the kind of slow-building dread that keeps me turning the pages. I was especially drawn to Rose and her fierce determination to protect her little sister. There’s something particularly chilling about a story where evil is hiding behind a perfectly respectable facade.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy dark historical fiction inspired by real social issues
• Like stories about seemingly ordinary people hiding horrifying secrets
• Appreciate courageous young protagonists fighting to protect those they love
• Prefer suspense where human monsters can be more frightening than supernatural ones

The Seance Garden

by Juliet Blackwell

Genre: Mystery • Supernatural Fiction • Historical Mystery

Summary:

Professor Harper Grae has devoted her academic career to studying the history of witchcraft, ghosts, and the occult—but she doesn’t believe in any of it herself. When a lost bet lands her on a nighttime ghost tour through historic Monterey, her skepticism is put to the test when the group discovers the body of a local artist on the grounds of the nearly two-hundred-year-old Perles Mansion.

The murder bears an eerie resemblance to the death of another woman in the same garden nearly two centuries earlier. As Harper investigates the mansion’s history and searches for a connection between the two crimes, she begins encountering evidence she can’t easily explain. Could the ghost stories surrounding the Perles Mansion actually be true?

Why I recommend this book:

A skeptical historian, a centuries-old mansion, two murders nearly two hundred years apart, and a possible ghost? This one checked all the boxes for me.

I was especially drawn to the idea of a woman who has spent her career studying the supernatural without actually believing in it—only to encounter something that challenges everything she thinks she knows. Add in a historical mystery and an old mansion with secrets of its own, and The Séance Garden was hard to resist.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love a good murder mystery with a ghostly twist
• Enjoy skeptical protagonists forced to reconsider what they believe
• Are intrigued by mysteries that connect crimes across centuries
• Appreciate atmospheric historic settings, old mansions, and supernatural secrets

House of Splinters

by Laura Purcell

Genre: Supernatural Fiction • Historical Fiction • Horror

Summary:

When her father-in-law dies, Belinda Bainbridge sees an unexpected opportunity for a new beginning. She, her husband Wilfred, and their children move to The Bridge, his remote ancestral estate, where Belinda hopes to finally create the happy family home she has always wanted.

Instead, they find a neglected estate with financial troubles, unsettling stories about a servant who died there years earlier, and a collection of strange wooden figures known as “silent companions” that seem to fascinate their young son. Then Wilfred’s brother arrives with a very different version of the family’s history, forcing Belinda to question what she has been told—and whether the secrets of The Bridge might put her own children in danger.

Why I recommend this book:

Give me a remote ancestral home with a mysterious past, a family with secrets, and some seriously creepy wooden figures, and you know I’m going to be intrigued.

What drew me to House of Splinters was the sense that something is wrong almost from the moment Belinda arrives at The Bridge. The deeper she digs into the house and its history, the less certain she becomes about the family she married into—or what might be lurking within her new home. Dark, Gothic, and wonderfully unsettling, this is exactly the kind of old-house mystery I love.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Can’t resist a crumbling old house filled with secrets
• Love Gothic mysteries centered on troubled families and dark histories
• Enjoy historical fiction with an unsettling supernatural edge
• Like slow-building suspense where it becomes difficult to separate imagination from reality

A Box Full of Darkness

by Simone St. James

Genre: Mystery • Thriller 

Summary:

Strange things have always happened in Fell, New York, but for siblings Violet, Vail, and Dodie, nothing compares to the day their little brother Ben disappeared during a childhood game of hide-and-seek. He seemingly vanished without a trace, leaving behind a family shattered by unanswered questions.

In the years that followed, the siblings experienced terrifying visions and unexplained events that eventually drove them away from Fell. Violet, in particular, has never escaped the spirits that haunted her childhood. Twenty years later, the siblings are drawn back to the town they tried to leave behind for an impossible reason: Ben has returned. And he may finally have the answers they’ve spent decades both searching for and fearing.

Why I recommend this book:

Simone St. James is one of my favorite modern writers of haunted tales, so of course A Box Full of Darkness caught my attention. A childhood disappearance, three siblings haunted by what happened, and a brother who suddenly returns twenty years later? I needed to know where she was taking this story.

I love the way St. James blends a good mystery with the supernatural, leaving you wondering which secrets belong to the living and which belong to the dead. And returning to Fell, New York—the setting of The Sun Down Motel, another favorite of mine—made this one even harder to resist.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy suspense with a historical mystery at its core
• Love atmospheric settings and isolated locations
• Appreciate stories about old Hollywood and filmmaking
• Like books that blend history, mystery, and just a touch of the supernatural

Under the Stars

by Beatriz Williams

Genre: Mystery • Romance 

Summary:

Moving between present-day New England and 1846, Under the Stars follows three women whose lives become connected across generations by a mysterious collection of paintings and secrets buried for nearly two centuries.

Audrey Fisher and her famous actress mother, Meredith, reluctantly return to Winthrop Island, where Audrey discovers a hidden trove of paintings depicting the same mysterious woman. Their search for answers leads back to Providence Dare, a young woman who fled Boston aboard the steamship Atlantic in 1846 while being pursued by a detective investigating the suspicious death of her employer. As a catastrophic storm threatens the ship, Providence must protect both her identity and her life. Gradually, the mystery of her disappearance and the paintings connect the past to Audrey and Meredith’s complicated family history.

Why I recommend this book:

I love historical fiction that uncovers a mystery piece by piece, especially when the answers are hidden across generations. Beatriz Williams gave me everything I enjoy in this kind of story—a dual timeline, family secrets, art, a historic New England setting, and a fascinating mystery rooted in a real maritime disaster.

Of course, Riley Sager adds his own signature twists. The isolated island, the century-old disappearance, the mysterious diary, and the lingering question of whether something supernatural is at work create an atmosphere that is equal parts suspenseful and irresistible.

I was particularly drawn to the way the stories of these three women echoed one another despite being separated by nearly two centuries. At its heart, Under the Stars was as much about mothers, daughters, and the legacies we inherit as it was about solving the mystery of Providence and the paintings. I loved watching those connections emerge and seeing how truths buried in the past could still transform lives generations later.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy suspense with a historical mystery at its core
• Love atmospheric settings and isolated locations
• Appreciate stories about old Hollywood and filmmaking
• Like books that blend history, mystery, and just a touch of the supernatural

Best Read On...

A long summer afternoon when you have nowhere else to be. Find a shady spot, pour yourself something cold, and settle in. With its island setting, family secrets, mysterious paintings, and history waiting to be uncovered, it's the kind of book made for lingering over during the last lazy days of summer.

If Walls Could Talk

by Jean Grainger

Genre: Mystery • Thriller 

Summary:

When Orla retreats to Dunmara, a County Clare house that has stood since 1689, its walls begin to surrender their stories one room at a time—the loves, the losses, and the lives lived long before her own. As past and present intertwine, Jean Grainger crafts a beautifully layered novel that reminds us that old homes are more than brick and timber—they are keepers of memory.

Why I recommend this book:

This book spoke to me in a deeply personal way. Many people ask why I wrote Masque of Honor. The answer is simple: the house came first.

When Scott and I restored Selma, I became captivated by the lives that had unfolded within its walls over nearly two centuries. Every room seemed to hold a story waiting to be discovered. As I uncovered letters, newspaper accounts, and forgotten pieces of history, I found myself wondering about the people who had walked those halls before me. Those questions eventually became Masque of Honor.

Today, many visitors to Selma believe its former residents still make their presence known. Whether you believe in ghosts or simply in the enduring imprint of history, there is something undeniably powerful about an old home that has witnessed generations of joy, heartbreak, triumph, and loss.

Jean Grainger captures that feeling beautifully. She reminds us that houses are more than places where we live—they become silent witnesses to the lives lived within them. If you've ever walked through a historic home and wondered what stories its walls could tell, this novel will feel wonderfully familiar.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historic homes and forgotten stories
• Enjoy dual-timeline historical fiction
• Believe places can hold memories long after people are gone
• Appreciate atmospheric novels with heart and history

An Infinite Love Story

by Chanel Cleeton

Genre: Romance • Science Fiction

Summary:

Set against the excitement and uncertainty of the 1960s Space Race, An Infinite Love Story follows Vivian Mitchell after her astronaut husband, Joe, disappears during a 1968 space mission. As the nation watches and waits, Joe and his fellow astronauts are feared dead, leaving Vivian to grieve in the public eye while privately revisiting the extraordinary love story they shared.

When the investigation blames the disaster on operator error, Vivian becomes determined to clear Joe’s name and discover what really happened. Then mysterious messages begin to arrive—messages she believes could only have come from Joe. Blending history, romance, mystery, and a touch of magical realism, the novel explores a love that may be powerful enough to transcend space and time.

Why I recommend this book:

I was immediately intrigued by the idea of setting an epic love story against the Space Race, a period defined by extraordinary ambition, possibility, and risk. Chanel Cleeton captures both the excitement of that moment in American history and the very personal sacrifices made by the astronauts and the families who loved them.

Of course, Riley Sager adds his own signature twists. The isolated island, the century-old disappearance, the mysterious diary, and the lingering question of whether something supernatural is at work create an atmosphere that is equal parts suspenseful and irresistible.

What stayed with me most was Vivian’s determination not to let others write the final chapter of Joe’s story. Her search for the truth becomes inseparable from the story of their marriage and the memories she refuses to let go. An Infinite Love Story was a moving exploration of love, loss, and hope—and of how far we are willing to go for the people we love.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historical fiction inspired by the Space Race
• Are fascinated by the people behind history-making moments
• Appreciate a touch of magical realism
• Believe some love stories can transcend time and distance

The Unknown

by Riley Sager

Genre: Mystery • Thriller • Supernatural Suspense

Summary:

In 1926, five women vanished from a secluded island in Vermont without a trace. One hundred years later, a film crew arrives to recreate the infamous mystery—and history begins to repeat itself. As actress Marin Keane searches for answers in a diary left behind by one of the missing women, she uncovers unsettling secrets that blur the line between reality and the supernatural. With eerie twists, mounting suspense, and an unforgettable setting, Riley Sager delivers a story that keeps readers guessing until the very last page.

Why I recommend this book:

Although I spend most of my reading time immersed in historical fiction, every now and then I love picking up a novel that keeps me turning pages long past my bedtime. The Unknown is exactly that kind of book.

One of the things I enjoyed most was its classic Hollywood feel. The story centers around the making of a film, complete with legendary actresses, ambitious directors, and all the intrigue that unfolds both on and off the set. As someone who has always loved classic movies, I found myself picturing the glamour and mystery of old Hollywood while reading these pages.

Of course, Riley Sager adds his own signature twists. The isolated island, the century-old disappearance, the mysterious diary, and the lingering question of whether something supernatural is at work create an atmosphere that is equal parts suspenseful and irresistible.

If you enjoy stories where the past refuses to stay buried, you'll find plenty to love here. Even though this isn't historical fiction in the traditional sense, history is woven into every chapter, proving once again that old mysteries have a way of finding new audiences.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Enjoy suspense with a historical mystery at its core
• Love atmospheric settings and isolated locations
• Appreciate stories about old Hollywood and filmmaking
• Like books that blend history, mystery, and just a touch of the supernatural

Best Read On...

A rainy evening with the lights turned low. Once you arrive on New Avalon, you'll be reluctant to leave—and you may find yourself questioning every unexplained sound long after you've finished the final chapter.

The Island Club

by Nicola Harrison

Genre: Chic Lit • Beach Reads

Summary:

Set on California’s idyllic Balboa Island in 1956, The Island Club follows three very different women whose seemingly picture-perfect lives are beginning to unravel.

Milly Kinkaid has moved her family to the island hoping to save her troubled marriage. Sylvia Johnson, a respected society matriarch, discovers that her husband has put their financial security—and their beloved new Island Club—at risk. And Adele Lambert has spent decades guarding a secret that could destroy the life she has carefully built. As each woman confronts the truth about her circumstances, an unlikely friendship forms, with the game of tennis bringing them together in unexpected ways.

Why I recommend this book:

The sun-drenched setting of 1950s Balboa Island immediately caught my attention, but it was the lives of the three women behind that picture-perfect setting that kept me turning the pages. Nicola Harrison beautifully captures a time when appearances mattered enormously, particularly for women, and when the lives they were expected to lead did not always leave room for the lives they wanted.

I especially enjoyed watching the friendship between Milly, Sylvia, and Adele develop as each confronted her own secrets, disappointments, and fears. With its gorgeous coastal setting, complicated relationships, and a little tennis mixed in, The Island Club felt like a natural addition to my summer reading list.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love historical fiction with a glamorous mid-century setting 
• Enjoy stories centered on complicated female friendships
• Are drawn to family secrets and lives that aren't quite as perfect as they appear
• Love coastal settings, country clubs, and a little tennis
• Want a character-driven summer read with plenty of heart

Best Read On...

A sunny summer afternoon, preferably somewhere near the water - all you need is a beach chair, a cold drink, and a few uninterrupted hours of reading.

A Happier Life

by Kristy Wooson Harvey

Genre: Mystery • Chic Lit • Beach Reads

Summary:

In the seaside town of Beaufort, North Carolina, an abandoned family home holds the answer to a decades-old mystery: what happened to Rebecca and Townsend Saint James when they disappeared in 1976?

Nearly fifty years later, their granddaughter Keaton Smith arrives in Beaufort to prepare the house for sale and finds herself immersed in the lives of grandparents she never knew. As she uncovers their belongings, traditions, and secrets, she begins to question everything she has been told about her family. Moving between Keaton’s present and Rebecca’s life in the summer of 1976, A Happier Life explores the enduring bonds of family, love, and home—and the secrets that connect generations.

Why I recommend this book:

A family mystery, a historic home, and a seaside North Carolina setting immediately drew me to A Happier Life. I’ve always been fascinated by the stories we inherit from our families and how much our understanding of the past can shape who we become.

I loved the way Kristy Woodson Harvey connected two generations through the same home, slowly revealing the truth behind a family story that had long been accepted as fact. With its wonderful sense of place, memorable characters, and a mystery at its heart, this was exactly the kind of story I love getting lost in during the summer.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love dual-timeline stories that connect generations
• Enjoy family mysteries and long-buried secrets
• Are drawn to old homes filled with history
• Love atmospheric Southern coastal settings
• Appreciate stories about family, belonging, and finding your way home

Best Read On...

A lazy summer afternoon with a porch, a breeze, and something cold to drink.

Our Last Vineyard Summer

by Brooke Lea Foster

Genre: Family Drama • Beach Reads

Summary:

Set on Martha’s Vineyard and moving between 1965 and 1978, Our Last Vineyard Summer follows Betsy Whiting as she returns with her sisters to their family’s beloved summer home after the death of their father, a prominent senator. When their mother announces that the house must be sold to pay his debts, the family is forced to confront far more than the loss of a cherished place.

As Betsy navigates strained relationships with her mother and sisters, she begins to uncover long-held secrets surrounding her parents and a forbidden romance from the past. Against the nostalgic backdrop of summer on the Vineyard, two generations of women grapple with love, loss, family expectations, and the changing roles of women in America.

Why I recommend this book:

Martha’s Vineyard is such an evocative summer setting, and I was immediately drawn to a story about a family returning to a beloved home filled with memories and secrets. But what interested me even more was the novel’s exploration of two generations of women during a period of enormous social change.

Brooke Lea Foster beautifully captures the complicated relationships between mothers, daughters, and sisters while exploring the choices women made for themselves and the expectations placed upon them. The combination of family secrets, a dual timeline, and the nostalgia of summers on the Vineyard made this an easy choice for my summer reading list.

Perfect For Readers Who...

• Love family sagas filled with secrets
• Enjoy stories about mothers, daughters, and sisters
• Are drawn to changing roles for women in the 1960s and 1970s
• Love nostalgic summer settings and historic family homes
• Appreciate stories where a beloved place becomes a character of its own

Best Read On...

A breezy summer afternoon when you can imagine the salt air coming off Martha’s Vineyard on one of those days when you wish summer could last just a little longer.