An Amazon Best Book of 2020: Mysteries & Thrillers

A 2020 Goodreads Choice Awards Semifinalist: Best Mystery & Thriller

"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