

A Dark and Secret Place
Books | Fiction / Thrillers / Psychological
3.7
Jen Williams
For fans of Kathleen Barber and Julia Heaberlin comes a chilling psychological suspense from award-winning author Jen Williams about a woman who discovers her late mother had a decades-long secret correspondence with a serial killer, begging the question: how well do we know our own family and even ourselves? When prodigal daughter Heather Evans returns to her family home after her mother's baffling suicide, she makes an alarming discovery--stacks and stacks of carefully preserved letters from notorious serial killer Michael Reave. The "Red Wolf," as he was dubbed by the press, has been in prison for over twenty years, serving a life sentence for the gruesome and ritualistic murders of several women across the country, although he has always protested his innocence. The police have had no reason to listen, yet Heather isn't the only one to have cause to re-examine the murders. The body of a young woman has just been found, dismembered and placed inside a tree, the corpse planted with flowers. Just as the Red Wolf once did. What did Heather's mother know? Why did she kill herself? And with the monstrous Red Wolf safely locked inside a maximum security prison, who is stalking young women now? Teaming up with DI Ben Parker, Heather hopes to get some answers for herself and for the newest victims of this depraved murderer. Yet to do that, she must speak to Michael Reave herself, and expose herself to truths she may not be ready to face. Something dark is walking in the woods, and it knows her all too well.
Thriller
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More Details:
Author
Jen Williams
Pages
304
Publisher
Crooked Lane Books
Published Date
2021-06-08
ISBN
1643855743 9781643855745
Community ReviewsSee all
"Heather returns home to bury her mother who committed suicide. While going through her mother's things, she finds multiple letters to Michael Reave, a serial killer known as "The Red Wolf." Baffled by the letters and her mom's suicide note, she digs deeper looking to figure out what drove her mom to suicide and why the suicide note is addressed to more than just Heather.<br/><br/>This is an atmospheric psychological horror story that slowly builds and then really takes off on you. Williams does a tremendous job of building the dread and fear. I found Heather to be a well developed and likable character. The pacing is great for the style of novel. I would recommend this to psychological thriller fans. Do be aware of one scene of animal cruelty at approximately the 30% mark of the book. <br/><br/>My thanks to Crooked Lane Books, author Jen Williams, and NetGalley for gifting me a digital copy of the book in exchange for my honest review."
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Chris Hicks
"Heather returns home to her mother's house after her moms apparent suicide. Heather isn't convinced she'd kill herself.<br/><br/>As she makes funeral arrangements she finds bird feathers and a mysterious note saying "I know what you are, do you"<br/><br/>Upon cleaning her moms house out, Heather stumbles upon letters she wrote back and forth to the Red Wolf, a notorious serial killer in prison, hidden in a cracker tin in the attic.<br/><br/>As a former investigative journalist fired for misconduct duct, she begins to dig into who the Red Wolf is and interviews him in prison to find out more about her mom and his connection.<br/><br/>SPOILERS she finds that the hearts of the victims were all buried at a local drug/hippie commune where her mom spent time when she was a teenager and THAT'S how she got to know Michael Reave, the red wolf. <br/><br/>So who is the copycat murderer killing women now and if the red wolf is still in prison, is he innocent or shape shifting or does he have a protege?<br/><br/>SPOILERS turns out Michael and Heather's mom, Colleen, had an affair while on the commune and she and a twin brother were born shortly after Colleen moved off the commune. Her FATHER is the Red Wolf and her twin brother is the repeat killer bringing back al the babies from the commune now as grown women in the hearts he harvests and plants back at Fiddlers Field.<br/><br/>Creepy and a really good book just how I like them!"
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marie que
"What a plot and twist! Finding out who your real father is. "
S E
Shima Escobar
"my new favorite book!"
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danielle








