What Lies In Darkness
Her family is missing
Late Christmas Eve, the Harper family’s car crashed on a desolate stretch outside Black Lake. Sixteen-year-old Alice was found injured by the side of the road—and alone. It was as if her parents and younger sister, Ella, had simply disappeared.
Only lies remain
One year later, Alice still deals with nightmares and unanswered questions when she and her friends find Ella’s blood-stained backpack in the basement of an abandoned home.
How many secrets can one family hide?
As Detective Jess Lambert investigates, she uncovers dark secrets that put her on a collision course with her own past. Jess’s only witness is haunted by her own ghosts—ghosts that might ultimately be connected to Jess. But the dead don’t give up their secrets easily. Neither do the living.
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Praise for What Lies In Darkness
“Utterly compelling. In Detective Jess Lambert, McDonald has captured the perfect mix of gritty determination and haunted soul. With twists and turns everywhere, What Lies in Darkness delivers the kind of page-turner you don’t just read, but devour.” —Lisa Gardner, New York Times bestselling author
“WHAT LIES IN DARKNESS is a smart, twisty thriller you won’t soon forget. Expertly crafted, with complex and fascinating characters. I am hooked on the Jess Lambert series, it keeps getting better and better.” —Samantha Downing, internationally bestselling author
“WHAT LIES IN DARKNESS is a riveting story about the love of family, the devastation of loss, and the secrets we keep. And it has earned Christina McDonald a place in the pantheon of thriller-writer greats. Change your plans for the night because you won’t be able to put this one down.” —Alex Finlay, critically-acclaimed author of What Have We Done
“Shocking, atmospheric, and tense, WHAT LIES IN DARKNESS is an emotionally powerful and twisty page-turner. With rich prose and multi-faceted characters, McDonald has expertly crafted a genre-bending supernatural thriller, making it an absolute must read!” —Jeneva Rose, New York Times bestselling author
“With richly drawn characters and striking imagery, Christina McDonald delivers a taut, thick-with-atmosphere puzzler that doubles as a meditation on resilience in the face of trauma and an exploration of the sacrifices we make for those we love. Don’t miss it!” —E.G. Scott, international bestselling author of The Rule of Three
“Jess Lambert is my new favorite detective! Christina McDonald’s WHAT LIES IN DARKNESS is a must read. Every single character leaps off the page. The story grabbed me on page one and didn’t let go until the last shocking, twisty page!” —Debra Webb, USA Today bestselling author of All The Little Truths
“WHAT LIES IN DARKNESS follows Jess Lambert through a perplexing case when a family goes missing, leaving one girl behind. Skillfully plotted with finely tuned prose, this compelling thriller will leave readers wanting more from McDonald and the flawed but wonderfully human protagonist she’s created!” —Wendy Walker, Nationally Bestselling Author of What Remains
“WHAT LIES IN DARKNESS is both a smart and edgy mystery and a searing portrayal of loss and betrayal. In Detective Jess Lambert, McDonald has gifted crime fiction with an unforgettable lead, a woman both in love with and struggling against the ghosts that haunt her. I tore through this, mesmerized by the dueling perspectives, hypnotized by McDonald’s prose, and shocked by twists that kept coming all the way to the very last page. This is the perfect book for readers who love their thrillers fast-paced and deeply emotionally intelligent.” —Ashley Winstead, author of Midnight is the Darkest Hour
“Eerie and evocative, Christina McDonald’s genre-bending police procedural/paranormal mystery masterfully (and beautifully) explores grief, loss, longing, and healing. The stakes are high, the tension is palpable, and the secrets are explosive. Be prepared for breath-hitching twists you never saw coming.” —Marcy McCreary, author of The Summer of Love and Death
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Reader’s House Literary Gateway – Read The Full Interview