Publishers Weekly
10/23/2023
Marshall’s propulsive mystery-cum-psychological drama (after What Lies in the Woods) plunges readers into the precarious world of expectant mother Emma Palmer, whose husband, Nathan, has just lost his job. Faced with eviction, the couple returns (at Nathan’s insistence) to Emma’s childhood home of Arden Hills, which she has not visited since the murder of her parents 14 years earlier. No one was ever arrested for the crime, but many locals—including a police detective—believe Emma was responsible. Following the deaths, Emma and her younger sisters, Juliette and Daphne, were separated, with the two younger girls going into foster care. Emma’s return stirs up old animosities, frightening memories, and a killer’s instincts. When another murder occurs shortly after Emma arrives, the sisters reunite to finally address what really happened to their parents, sharing long-buried secrets in the process. Marshall shrewdly interlaces past and present timelines, alternating perspectives between the three sisters to shed new light on old information. Even genre veterans will have trouble sussing out the culprit. Skillful misdirection and urgent plotting make this a winner. Agent: Lauren Spieller, Folio Literary. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
“Titillating novel centering on secrets hoped to be buried in the past. . . Moving quickly and deftly, Marshall weaves a tension-filled novel that will make you question familial trust and community relations.”
—Seattle Times
“A propulsive and intricate psychological thriller. . . Meticulously plotted. . . Marshall’s deft writing teases out revelations aplenty, perpetually ratcheting up the tension—and an element of violence—while keeping the story skimming along. Family connections prove both their damage and their worth in this community-focused thriller.”
—Kirkus (starred review)
“In No One Can Know, murdered parents, family secrets and small-town gossip build suspense. . . Absorbing. . . Marshall shows myriad sides of each character while adding plausible misdirections, keeping the reader off-kilter.”
—South Florida Sun-Sentinel
“The dual time line and shifting points of view keep the reader hooked, revealing a complex web of family dynamics and characters. Marshall has penned an extremely twisty suspense novel…the story is a well-paced and solid psychological thriller.”
—Booklist
“Propulsive mystery-cum-psychological drama. . . Marshall shrewdly interlaces past and present timelines, alternating perspectives between the three sisters to shed new light on old information. Even genre veterans will have trouble sussing out the culprit. Skillful misdirection and urgent plotting make this a winner.”
—Publishers Weekly
Praise for Kate Alice Marshall:
“Unexpected plot twists, deep psychological perspicacity, and an endlessly interesting dance between past and present . . . evokes the dread and intensity of Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects.” —New York Times Book Review
“Kate Alice Marshall knows how to deliver fast-paced twists and turns as she takes readers into the dark recesses of the imagination.” —West Sacramento News-Ledger
“A master of misdirection, Marshall infuses the novel with secrets and sorrow, false identities and frailty, hostility and hypocrisy . . . A riveting read and a thoughtful and alarming take on childhood.” —The Free Lance-Star
“This is a wildly disturbing thriller with lots of twists . . . This suspenseful and atmospheric novel will keep readers glued to the final page.” —Deadly Pleasures
“Utterly riveting. What Lies in the Woods is a stunner—dark, unflinching, and as twisty and sharp as a tangle of thorns.” —Riley Sager, New York Times bestselling author of The House Across the Lake
“Shines an incisive light on the secrets of a small-town community . . . Elevating this novel beyond the plethora of other thrillers is terrific writing . . . Great writing and boldly drawn characters bring a terrifying tale to all-too-vivid life.” —Kirkus (starred review)
“In a novel filled with emotional depth and convincing red herrings, Marshall delivers a propulsive mystery about trust, secrets, and friendships.” —Booklist (starred review)
FEBRUARY 2024 - AudioFile
Karissa Vacker performs this complex thriller featuring three sisters and the haunting mystery of who brutally murdered their parents in the family home 14 years earlier. When Emma is forced to return to the home where her parents were killed, she hopes to keep her presence as quiet and temporary as possible. With everything seemingly working against her, Emma has to solve her parents' murder to clear her two sisters and end a lifetime of suspicion. Vacker's narration keeps listeners on their toes throughout this twisty story of corrupt officials, sociopathic relatives, and dark family secrets. Vacker's character work captures the shifting nature of Emma's desperate need to protect her complicated family members. V.B. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2023-10-21
A newly pregnant woman finds herself confronting a grisly incident from her past in this propulsive and intricate psychological thriller.
Emma has just discovered she’s pregnant when she’s also faced with an astonishing financial deception on the part of her husband, Nathan. Since they’re about to lose their rental apartment, she agrees that they can temporarily move back into the spacious family home she owns jointly with her sisters. Trouble is, that house was the site of her parents’ deaths 14 years ago—when Emma was just 16—and, as it turns out, Emma has her own secrets that she’s been keeping from Nathan and others. Once they return to Emma’s New England hometown to an often unfriendly reception, Emma slowly begins to reestablish previous relationships, including those with her estranged sisters, Daphne and Juliette. But, as Marshall’s meticulously plotted novel reveals quite quickly, Juliette and Daphne have just as many secrets. The time-shifting account, even given its multiple narrators, flows at a furious pace, exposing the bare bones of a familial horror show in the form of some seriously bad parenting. But is that the only nefarious element driving the characters’ lives? Marshall’s deft writing teases out revelations aplenty, perpetually ratcheting up the tension—and an element of violence—while keeping the story skimming along.
Family connections prove both their damage and their worth in this community-focused thriller.
