Showing results by narrator "Lauryn Allman" in All Categories

When we move to the exclusive Cutters Island, my life changes overnight. Dressed like the perfect wife, pushing my baby down the street in her pink stroller, I look up and smile at the security cameras. Because I know they are watching. And for now, I need to play my part.

FBI Agent Susan Parker’s fun afternoon go-karting with her daughter is interrupted when she’s called to the crime scene of a wealthy local man murdered in his home. As she delves into his life, she discovers the man belonged to an exclusive yet sinister Murder Club obsessed with the mysterious ‘Clothesline killer.’ The previous victims were all single mothers being investigated for suspected neglect who bore the same chilling hallmark–each was strangled in her bed at night by a masked figure. But the Murder Club aren’t the only ones who have been tracking his every move…

It’s my first day back at work, the grief I’m carrying is still with me, but I file it away and put on my professional face to greet my new patient. As a successful psychiatrist and criminologist, I’m used to working with damaged minds. But I’m not prepared for Trent Davis. Sitting across the table from me, his warm brown eyes shine. He laughs easily and part of me can't help but like him, despite what his file says he’s capable of. Then a package arrives for Trent, with my home as the return address. And everything falls apart…

Detective Margot Phalen knows the mind of a serial killer better than most. She learned from the worst: her father, Ed Finch. When bodies keep appearing in the tranquil Muir Woods, California, and a woman is killed in Chinatown, Margot begins to realize these are no ordinary homicides. The eerie similarities to her infamous father's crimes send chills down her spine. But Ed’s been behind bars for years now—surely he couldn’t mastermind this from his cell, could he?

Why does your toddler get upset when his or her routine is disrupted? Why do they follow you from room to room and refuse to play on their own? Why are daily routines such as mealtimes, bath time, and bedtime such a struggle? This accessible guide demystifies the difficult behaviors of anxious toddlers, offering tried-and-tested practical solutions to common parenting dilemmas. Each chapter begins with a real life example, clearly illustrating the behavior from the parent's and the toddler's perspective.

December 1941: ‘Pearl Harbor has been bombed.’ My husband, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s, voice shakes as he tells me the devastating news. We both know what this means: America is at war. Eleanor Roosevelt takes a deep breath. This is her third term as First Lady and she knows what it takes to lead her country alongside charming and charismatic Franklin. She’s dedicated to her role as an activist having spent her life working towards a vision of a better America. But the attack on Pearl Harbor shatters everything.

Sharon Stevenson is a forensic psychiatrist. Her job is to decide whether a patient is of sound enough mind to stand trial, not whether they did or didn’t commit a crime. But Sharon is also a mother grieving the disappearance of her seventeen-year-old daughter, Maddie, who has never been found. And what if the man sitting before her, who has been charged with the murders of several women, also claimed the life of her sweet girl? It’s time to find out the truth.

Detective Margot Phalen has spent over a year hunting San Francisco’s most elusive predator—the Redwood Killer, who leaves his victims alongside the scenic trails of Muir Woods. Each murdered woman connects to the city’s most powerful families—and the corruption leads straight to Margot’s own police department.

As the daughter of notorious serial killer Ed Finch, Margot has spent decades escaping her past—changing her name, her appearance, and building walls no one can breach, except her partner, Detective Wes Fox, whose growing closeness threatens the isolation she depends on. When her troubled brother shows up needing a place to stay, pressuring her to participate in a true crime documentary about their father, Margot’s carefully controlled world begins to unravel.

As a nanny for the wealthy Eatons, Trina watches every day as Rosalind Eaton cradles the baby close. Trina’s baby. The sweet little boy won’t settle—he never does in Rosalind’s arms. It breaks Trina’s heart to see the tiny tears falling down his fat cheeks. His glossy hair is light auburn, and straight. Nothing like the Eaton family’s classic dark curls. Trina has been watching the Eatons for years. And what she knows about their dark past could be their undoing.

When a world-renowned psychiatrist is found dead in an abandoned ranch house in the Californian Santa Carina Valley, a Post-it note with the words “Susan Parker” and a cell phone number is taped to the basement door. Still grieving her husband’s devastating suicide less than a year ago, FBI agent Susan Parker is taking a break from work and trying to rebuild her life as a single mom to her seven-year-old daughter, Natalie. When she’s called to the crime scene of Doctor Magnusson, a chill runs down her spine.

When Rachel moves into a new apartment with her young daughter, Lily, it’s with a huge sense of relief. After escaping an abusive marriage, this perfect downtown fourth-floor rental, within minutes from the lake, feels like the new beginning the two of them deserve. But soon handwritten letters begin to arrive for someone called Annie. Alex says she was just the tenant who lived there before, who moved out one day without a word. Tentatively Rachel opens the first letter, intending to return it to the sender.

Detective Margot Phalen has spent years running from her father’s shadow—and the awful truth of her own past as the daughter of a serial killer. But then she receives a message from him. He’s willing to share his darkest secret—but only with her. Now, as she sits across from the empty chair waiting for Ed Finch to be led in, Margot closes her eyes and steels herself for what lies ahead. The key to solving one of California’s most infamous missing persons cases is here, in the one place she fears most: her father’s cell.

In this memoir, Natasha takes on the therapist's role with her past selves to drag her social anxiety into the open. From feisty Miss 6, lonely Miss 14 reeling from a tumultuous childhood, and defiant Miss 18 pushing back against a world where she didn't fit, through to her present self, Natasha explores the way social anxiety colored her experiences and finds healing through self-acceptance.

Every October, the school where I work takes a trip to a local farm to pet the animals and search for the perfect Halloween pumpkin. This year is even more special, as my daughter, Claire, is coming. She’s so excited, and we really need some fun time together after what we’ve been through.

I stand on the beach and gasp as a wave knocks me over, bringing memories of the night Adam died: the pouring rain, my voice shouting his name. Suddenly, I feel strong arms pulling me from the water. A familiar voice speaks soothing words—and my heart explodes with unspeakable, unbearable hope. I’d know those ocean-blue eyes anywhere. It’s him. It’s impossible. It’s Adam.

Detective Inspector Eleanor Raven arrives at the derelict power station briefed on the murder scene inside. A beautiful young woman has been found, her body posed and a cherry-red lipstick painted across her mouth. But when she catches sight of the engagement ring crusted with blood on her delicate finger, Eleanor pushes back on the grief it provokes. Lydia Greystein had so much to live for. The only way Eleanor can help now is to find the killer responsible, and she and her team immediately set to work.

Meghan Gray hasn’t returned to the golden sands of Hatteras Island since her beloved Pappy passed away 10 years ago. But with her life in New York falling apart—and her dreams of becoming a successful chef going up smoke—she quits her waitress job and heads back home on a hot summer’s day, hoping she’ll find some answers there.

An unrelenting heatwave sweeps the country and starts a fire which uncovers the charred remains of a young woman. But when DI Eleanor Raven attends the post-mortem, it reveals some disturbing details - the girl was dead long before the fire. Her body had been lovingly preserved before being dressed up, her hair perfectly arranged, and a lime-green scarf knotted around her neck.

Baby on hip, Angela Myles hums as she lays out breakfast before the school run when an unexpected knock on the door stops her in her tracks. But when she sees the familiar face through the peephole, she immediately tries to run with her kids out the back door. Because Angela knows her visitor; she knows why they’re here; and she’ll never give up her children.