Showing results by narrator "Lauryn Allman" in All Categories

It’s my first day back at work, the grief I’m carrying is still with me, but I file it away and put on my professional face to greet my new patient. As a successful psychiatrist and criminologist, I’m used to working with damaged minds. But I’m not prepared for Trent Davis. Sitting across the table from me, his warm brown eyes shine. He laughs easily and part of me can't help but like him, despite what his file says he’s capable of. Then a package arrives for Trent, with my home as the return address. And everything falls apart…

In Thanopolis, magic is rare - and closely controlled. Those blessed - or cursed - with power are kept under constant guard, assigned to undead spirits who watch their every move. Ever since her father died to save her from this fate, Rovan has kept her magic a closely guarded secret - until an accident exposes her powers for the world to see and her tenuous freedom comes crashing to an end.

Mark and I pride ourselves on giving visitors to our hotel, high on the rugged Maine cliffs with views of the ocean, a vacation they won’t forget. But the Rowes are strangely overfamiliar when they arrive with their teenage daughter. The wife puts a hand on Mark’s forearm, and her husband meets my eyes with a knowing look as I hold my little son tight. They gush that they loved their previous stay here, but I’m certain I’ve never seen them before.

Everyone in the small Midwestern town of Henderson looks up to my perfect parents. With dependable jobs as a midwife and the town sheriff, they help this close-knit community feel safe. But the locals didn’t grow up in my parents’ house. They don’t know what I know. And they wouldn’t believe me if I told them....

We were the perfect family once. Shep, my handsome husband. My darling little boy… and our tiny baby girl. The night she died I lost everything. I know without a shadow of a doubt that I would never, ever have hurt her. I was trying to save her. But nobody believed me. So, I can only watch through the rain-streaked window as Shep’s new girlfriend plays mother to my son. Hugs him, holds him. Does he even remember me? Now I am finally out of the hospital, I will make sure everyone knows what really happened. I will get my son back. The doctors might say my nightmares are dangerous…

Seventeen-year-old Ellie was last seen at a party with her boyfriend, star quarterback Josh, before she went missing… Twenty years later, Ellie has rebuilt her life. The man who ruined it is behind bars. He can't hurt her now. But as Ellie leaves her therapy group, a face she hasn't seen in decades appears before her. Josh, her high school boyfriend, is back in town. As they reconnect after years apart, trying to make sense of their shared trauma, a few streets away, Ellie's seventeen-year-old daughter Jess vanishes.

The best-known secret in the city, Jane is an underground health clinic composed entirely of women helping women, empowering them to embrace their futures by offering reproductive counseling and safe, illegal abortions. Veronica, Jane’s founder, prides herself on the services she has provided to thousands of women, yet the price of others’ freedom is that she leads a double life. When she’s not at Jane, Veronica plays the role of a conventional housewife—a juggling act that becomes even more difficult during her own high-risk pregnancy.

Every October, the school where I work takes a trip to a local farm to pet the animals and search for the perfect Halloween pumpkin. This year is even more special, as my daughter, Claire, is coming. She’s so excited, and we really need some fun time together after what we’ve been through.

Ten years ago: On a warm summer’s evening, four childhood friends gather at a slumber party.... Before dawn breaks, the nightmare begins. One of them dies. One of them is a killer.

I am at home with the television on when I hear the news. A woman has been found by the docks. In heavy tones, the reporter says it appears the notorious local serial killer has returned. My breath comes short in my chest. My legs tremble. I know that can’t be true, because I know who the killer was. My father. My sisters and I learned the shocking truth after his funeral. We made a pledge to say nothing: Revealing the truth would only bring more pain. We set fire to his confession, turning his secrets into ash. But now, someone is sending us a message. Someone knows we lied.

In the pretty, leafy suburb of Ridgeview Pines everyone uses an online message board called The Neighbor List to find out everything that’s happening locally. It makes people feel safe and protected, part of a small and caring community. Jessica Millstone recently moved to the area with her husband and young daughter, and signs up immediately. She loves her warm, inclusive new neighborhood. So when Barbara Draper - who lived two doors down from Jessica and posted on the message board regularly - is found dead, eve

Detective Inspector Eleanor Raven arrives at the derelict power station briefed on the murder scene inside. A beautiful young woman has been found, her body posed and a cherry-red lipstick painted across her mouth. But when she catches sight of the engagement ring crusted with blood on her delicate finger, Eleanor pushes back on the grief it provokes. Lydia Greystein had so much to live for. The only way Eleanor can help now is to find the killer responsible, and she and her team immediately set to work.

An unrelenting heatwave sweeps the country and starts a fire which uncovers the charred remains of a young woman. But when DI Eleanor Raven attends the post-mortem, it reveals some disturbing details - the girl was dead long before the fire. Her body had been lovingly preserved before being dressed up, her hair perfectly arranged, and a lime-green scarf knotted around her neck.

Baby on hip, Angela Myles hums as she lays out breakfast before the school run when an unexpected knock on the door stops her in her tracks. But when she sees the familiar face through the peephole, she immediately tries to run with her kids out the back door. Because Angela knows her visitor; she knows why they’re here; and she’ll never give up her children.

When an underground safe house collapses in Santa Carina Valley, California, FBI Agent Susan Parker is called to lead the investigation. Still reeling from her husband's murder and struggling to rebuild her life as a single mom to her young daughter, Susan is now faced with her toughest case yet. As Susan digs deeper, she uncovers a chilling truth—this was no accident, but a cold-blooded mass murder. The trail leads to a mysterious figure known as ‘The Saint,’ a supposed savior with a twisted hatred and deadly agenda.

FBI Agent Susan Parker’s fun afternoon go-karting with her daughter is interrupted when she’s called to the crime scene of a wealthy local man murdered in his home. As she delves into his life, she discovers the man belonged to an exclusive yet sinister Murder Club obsessed with the mysterious ‘Clothesline killer.’ The previous victims were all single mothers being investigated for suspected neglect who bore the same chilling hallmark–each was strangled in her bed at night by a masked figure. But the Murder Club aren’t the only ones who have been tracking his every move…

When I left my parents’ home in Kentucky, I never thought I’d see my sister again. For years, we kept a terrible secret, and eventually it tore us apart. But when I get the call to say that my sister has been killed and my teenage niece Hannah is coming to live with us, I leave the past behind. Hannah is family, and I need to keep her safe. I know what could happen to her if I don’t. When my niece arrives, she bonds with my daughter Cassie instantly. But then I hear a scream from the girls’ bedroom. And in the garden, someone has lit a fire. It’s a warning.

Sharon Stevenson is a forensic psychiatrist. Her job is to decide whether a patient is of sound enough mind to stand trial, not whether they did or didn’t commit a crime. But Sharon is also a mother grieving the disappearance of her seventeen-year-old daughter, Maddie, who has never been found. And what if the man sitting before her, who has been charged with the murders of several women, also claimed the life of her sweet girl? It’s time to find out the truth.

In the state of Liberty, water is rationed, free speech is hardly without a cost, and Texas has just declared itself its own country. In this society, paranoia is well-suited because eyes and ears are all around, and they are judging. Always judging. This terrifying terrain is explored via Eleanor, a young woman eagerly learning about her magic through her coven. But being a white witch is not as easy as they portray it in the books, and she’s already been placed under "house arrest" with a letch named Stan, a coworker who wronged her in the past and now exists in the form of a cat.

Why does your toddler get upset when his or her routine is disrupted? Why do they follow you from room to room and refuse to play on their own? Why are daily routines such as mealtimes, bath time, and bedtime such a struggle? This accessible guide demystifies the difficult behaviors of anxious toddlers, offering tried-and-tested practical solutions to common parenting dilemmas. Each chapter begins with a real life example, clearly illustrating the behavior from the parent's and the toddler's perspective.