The Book of Cold Cases - by Simone St James (Paperback)

About the Book

In 1977, Claire Lake, Oregon, was shaken by the Lady Killer Murders: Two men, seemingly randomly, were murdered with the same gun, with strange notes left behind. Beth Greer was the perfect suspect, but she was acquitted. In 2017, Shea Collins runs a true crime website, a passion fuelled by the attempted abduction she escaped as a child. When she meets Beth by chance, Shea asks her for an interview. To Shea's surprise, Beth says yes. The allure of learning the truth about the case from the smart, charming Beth is too much to resist, but even as they grow closer, Shea senses something isn't right.

Book Synopsis

A Most Anticipated Novel by PopSugar * Crime Reads * Goodreads *

A true crime blogger gets more than she bargained for while interviewing the woman acquitted of two cold case slayings in this chilling new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Sun Down Motel.

In 1977, Claire Lake, Oregon, was shaken by the Lady Killer Murders: Two men, seemingly randomly, were murdered with the same gun, with strange notes left behind. Beth Greer was the perfect suspect--a rich, eccentric twenty-three-year-old woman, seen fleeing one of the crimes. But she was acquitted, and she retreated to the isolation of her mansion.

Oregon, 2017. Shea Collins is a receptionist, but by night, she runs a true crime website, the Book of Cold Cases--a passion fueled by the attempted abduction she escaped as a child. When she meets Beth by chance, Shea asks her for an interview. To Shea's surprise, Beth says yes.

They meet regularly at Beth's mansion, though Shea is never comfortable there. Items move when she's not looking, and she could swear she's seen a girl outside the window. The allure of learning the truth about the case from the smart, charming Beth is too much to resist, but even as they grow closer, Shea senses something isn't right. Is she making friends with a manipulative murderer, or are there other dangers lurking in the darkness of the Greer house?

Review Quotes

"Lovers of true crime will get a kick out of this thriller that oozes atmosphere."
--Silvia Moreno-Garcia, New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic and Velvet Was the Night

"Simone St. James knows how to haunt you. The Book of Cold Cases is St. James at the top of her game, expertly weaving the past and the present to reveal a chilling tapestry of real world mystery and supernatural suspense that will have you turning pages well past your bedtime and jumping at every little sound."
--Jennifer McMahon, New York Times bestselling author of The Drowning Kind

"No one writes a ghost story like Simone St. James, whose uniquely spooky thrillers are as chilling as they are captivating, and The Book of Cold Cases is St. James at her best.Steeped in atmosphere and spine-tingling chills, this gripping mystery will haunt you from the very beginning."
--Laura McHugh, award-winning author of What's Done in Darkness

"This modern Gothic triumph is a cross between your most bingeworthy true crime podcast and The Haunting of Hill House. It's compulsively readable...but don't read it at night. The hauntings in this story scared me, and I write this stuff for a living."
--Wendy Webb, author of The Keepers of Metsan Valo

"Prepare to lose some sleep when you dive into The Book of Cold Cases...[A] creepy thriller."
--Pop Sugar

"You will sink into this novel faster than you would a peat bog.
--Crime Reads

"[A] chilling paranormal thriller...St. James keeps the suspense high."
--Publishers Weekly

"St. James is particularly gifted at doling out twists."
--New York Times Book Review

"St. James' 2020 novel The Sun Down Motel was a master class in the dread, as is the terrific The Book of Cold Cases."
--Sun Sentinel

"St. James delivers another superbly entertaining, genre-blending delight...When it comes to sending shivers down readers' spines, St. James gives Shirley Jackson a run for her money, and her latest addictively readable novel will have one sleeping with the lights on."
--Library Journal, starred review

"A twisty and satisfying paranormal mystery you won't want to read alone at night."
--Kirkus Reviews

"St. James's signature ability to tell connecting stories across decades is on display here...in a gripping tale that will appeal to fans of crime fiction tinged with the supernatural."
--Booklist, starred review

About the Author

Simone St. James is the New York Times bestselling author of The Sun Down Motel and The Broken Girls. She spent twenty years behind the scenes in the television business before leaving to write full-time.