★ 01/01/2020
Cassie McDowell's short life hasn't been easy, but the year she turns 13 is the scariest yet. She and her older sister have always feared their father, an unemployed artist whose drunken rages cause Cassie to sleep under her bed or in the closet. Now there are worse things to fear in 1980s Lilydale, MN. There's a Peeping Tom, a curfew for everyone under 18, and a man who abducts boys, and brings them back changed. Cassie fears anyone could be the kidnapper: her middle-school music teacher; a police officer; even her own father. When a boy she admires disappears and doesn't return, Cassie begins searching, even in forbidden basements. From the beginning, readers see tragedy coming, as Cassie looks back on that fateful summer. VERDICT The atmospheric suspense novel is haunting because it's narrated from the point of view of a 13 year old, an age that should be more innocent but often isn't. Even more chilling, it's based on real-life incidents. Lourey may be known for comic capers (March of Crime), but this tense novel combines the best of a coming-of-age story with suspense, and an unforgettable young narrator.—Lesa Holstine, Evansville Vanderburgh P.L., IN
Set in Lilydale, Minn., in the 1980s…the suspense never wavers in this page-turner.” —Publishers Weekly
“The atmospheric suspense novel is haunting because it’s narrated from the point of view of a 13-year-old, an age that should be more innocent but often isn’t. Even more chilling, it’s based on real-life incidents. Lourey may be known for comic capers (March of Crimes), but this tense novel combines the best of a coming-of-age story with suspense and an unforgettable young narrator.” —Library Journal
“Part suspense, part coming-of-age, Jess Lourey’s Unspeakable Things is a story of creeping dread, about childhood when you know the monster under your bed is real. A novel that clings to you long after the last page.” —Lori Rader-Day, Edgar Award–nominated author of Under a Dark Sky
“A noose of a novel that tightens by inches. The squirming tension comes from every direction—including the ones that are supposed to be safe. I felt complicit as I read, as if at any moment I stopped I would be abandoning Cassie, alone, in the dark, straining to listen and fearing to hear.” —Marcus Sakey, bestselling author of Brilliance
“Unspeakable Things is an absolutely riveting novel about the poisonous secrets buried deep in towns and families. Jess Lourey has created a story that will chill you to the bone and a main character who will break your heart wide open.” —Lou Berney, Edgar Award-winning author of November Road
“Inspired by a true story, Unspeakable Things crackles with authenticity, humanity, and humor. The novel reminded me of To Kill A Mockingbird and The Marsh King’s Daughter. Highly recommended.” —Mark Sullivan, bestselling author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky
“Jess Lourey does a masterful job building tension and dread, but her greatest asset in Unspeakable Things is Cassie—an arresting narrator you identify with, root for, and desperately want to protect. This is a book that will stick with you long after you’ve torn through it.” —Rob Hart, author of The Warehouse
“With Unspeakable Things, Jess Lourey has managed the near-impossible, crafting a mystery as harrowing as it is tender, as gut-wrenching as it is lyrical. There is real darkness here, a creeping, inescapable dread that more than once had me looking over my own shoulder. But at its heart beats the irrepressible—and irresistible—spirit of its 12-year-old heroine, a young woman so bright and vital and brave she kept even the fiercest monsters at bay. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time.” —Elizabeth Little, Los Angeles Times bestselling author of Dear Daughter and Pretty as a Picture
