Domestic Thrillers We’re Reading This Month
Domestic thrillers have a way of turning the familiar into something unsettling. This month, we’re reading stories that explore the hidden tensions of everyday life.
ME: I make a secret promise as Tom kisses me and pours a glass of ice-cold wine to toast the first night in our dream house: I’m going to forget about his past. For the sake of our son, I’ll keep this family together, no matter what.
HER: Chloe is the only friend I’ve made since the move. I love our long lunches, even though she asks prying questions about my marriage. Tom hates me spending time with her, but I ignore his warning to stay away. I’ve seen the way he looks at her. It’s better to keep your enemies close …
You may think you know what’s going on in my marriage, but you’ll be wrong. Only three things are true: Someone is a liar. Someone is in danger. Someone is a killer.
Aliya reports her wife missing, but as a gay, Muslim daughter of immigrants, she can’t escape the scrutiny and suspicion of those around her. Scared and furious and feeling isolated as strangers and acquaintances alike doubt her innocence, Aliya makes one wrong choice after another. She must fight to prove her innocence in the public eye even as she is torn between her fear that Sam is dead and her desire to find and save her wife. But is safety ever truly possible for them?
A provocative examination of suburban mores, Missing Sam captures the terror manifested in today’s political climate, and the real dangers, both physical and psychological, of being brown and queer in America.
In the middle of the night, Claire is informed that her beloved daughter, Julia, who was away at college, is dead – and life, as she knows it, is over.
Searching for answers, Claire stumbles upon a pile of letters hidden under Julia’s bed in an old, battered shoebox, and feels closer to her daughter than ever before. They tell her that Julia was happy, that she was thriving at university, that she was in love.
But as the letters go on, Claire starts to feel uneasy about something hidden between the lines. Even as she grieves, she must prepare to face a shocking discovery. Because Julia was hiding a terrible secret—and when it’s uncovered, it might make Claire question everything she thought she knew about her daughter…
Then her phone beeps with a voice message. ‘Listen to it on speaker,’ says the detective.
A woman’s voice fills the air.
‘I’m assuming this is the Andrea Gately listed as a contact on the Missing Children of the World website. I’m calling to let you know that I’ve given your details to the police. Why are you using a picture of my son on a missing children’s website? Why are you using it and where did you get it?’
