AUDIOBOOK
About
New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger's dark psychological thriller featuring two wronged women on very different paths "succeeds as a suspense novel on every level." -Sandra Brown, #1 New York Times bestselling author
Claudia Bishop's perfect life fell apart when the aftermath of a brutal assault left her with a crumbling marriage, a newborn daughter, and a constant sense of anxiety about the world around her. Now, looking for a fresh start with a home restoration project and growing blog, Claudia takes on a crumbling old house-one that unbeknownst to her has an ugly history and may hide long buried secrets.
For Zoey Drake the defining moment of her childhood was the horrific home invasion murder of her parents. Years later, she has embraced the rage that fuels her. Training in the martial arts has made her strong and ready to face the demons from the past-and within.
Strangers to each other, and walking very different paths in the wake of trauma, these two women are on a collision course-because Zoey's past nightmare and Claudia's dreams for her future take place in the very same house. As Zoey seeks justice, and Claudia seeks peace, both will confront the monsters at the door that are the most frightening of all. Lisa Unger is an award-winning New York Times and internationally bestselling author. Her novels have sold more than two million copies and have been translated into thirty-three languages. She lives in Florida. Visit LisaUnger.com. The Red Hunter one
Raven looked repentant, but Claudia knew that she wasn't. The girl had her head bent, and the sheets of her blue-black hair, thick and impossibly glossy, fell to hide her face. It was October. A week from Halloween, and this was Claudia's second time in the principal's office since school began. The first one was about grades. Raven was already struggling. We can see from her test scores that she's capable of more, the desperate math teacher said. But it's like she's just not here. Not paying attention. Leaving answers blank on her test. Mrs. Bishop, she's not even trying.
Claudia could already see it on Principal Blake's face: The Look. It was the expression that careful people, kind people got when they started to wonder if there was something wrong with Raven.
"It's difficult to start a new school," said Principal Blake. "But here at Lost Valley Central we have a zero-tolerance policy for physical violence."
Physical violence? That was new. Claudia still wasn't sure what Raven had done. She'd raced in as soon as Principal Blake had called. A bland man with a soft voice and graying head of hair, he had greeted her in the office with an understanding smile. We've had a problem in the cafeteria. A girl has gone home.
"Oh, really?" said Raven. "So, it's okay for her to be verbally abusive to me, and I just have to sit there and take it?"
"That's enough, Raven," said Claudia. She wondered if she sounded as exhausted by her daughter as she felt. The kid's capacity for outrage was endless.
"There are other ways to solve your problems that don't involve flipping a lunch tray onto someone," said the principal easily. "What did she say to you exactly? What made you so angry?"
Raven shook her head. "It doesn't matter."
The principal answered her with a quick nod, like he got it, like he knew how cruel kids could be and how words could hurt as badly as any blow.
"I understand that bullying can be verbal and emotional as well as physical. And Clara Parker has had her moments; she's sat here with me more than once. Still, when we step over that line into the physical, that can't be tolerated."
Oh, god, thought Claudia. She's going to be suspended-expelled. She could just hear her sister Martha crowing, I told you that changing schools wasn't the solution. You can't just keep running away.
Claudia Bishop's perfect life fell apart when the aftermath of a brutal assault left her with a crumbling marriage, a newborn daughter, and a constant sense of anxiety about the world around her. Now, looking for a fresh start with a home restoration project and growing blog, Claudia takes on a crumbling old house-one that unbeknownst to her has an ugly history and may hide long buried secrets.
For Zoey Drake the defining moment of her childhood was the horrific home invasion murder of her parents. Years later, she has embraced the rage that fuels her. Training in the martial arts has made her strong and ready to face the demons from the past-and within.
Strangers to each other, and walking very different paths in the wake of trauma, these two women are on a collision course-because Zoey's past nightmare and Claudia's dreams for her future take place in the very same house. As Zoey seeks justice, and Claudia seeks peace, both will confront the monsters at the door that are the most frightening of all. Lisa Unger is an award-winning New York Times and internationally bestselling author. Her novels have sold more than two million copies and have been translated into thirty-three languages. She lives in Florida. Visit LisaUnger.com. The Red Hunter one
Raven looked repentant, but Claudia knew that she wasn't. The girl had her head bent, and the sheets of her blue-black hair, thick and impossibly glossy, fell to hide her face. It was October. A week from Halloween, and this was Claudia's second time in the principal's office since school began. The first one was about grades. Raven was already struggling. We can see from her test scores that she's capable of more, the desperate math teacher said. But it's like she's just not here. Not paying attention. Leaving answers blank on her test. Mrs. Bishop, she's not even trying.
Claudia could already see it on Principal Blake's face: The Look. It was the expression that careful people, kind people got when they started to wonder if there was something wrong with Raven.
"It's difficult to start a new school," said Principal Blake. "But here at Lost Valley Central we have a zero-tolerance policy for physical violence."
Physical violence? That was new. Claudia still wasn't sure what Raven had done. She'd raced in as soon as Principal Blake had called. A bland man with a soft voice and graying head of hair, he had greeted her in the office with an understanding smile. We've had a problem in the cafeteria. A girl has gone home.
"Oh, really?" said Raven. "So, it's okay for her to be verbally abusive to me, and I just have to sit there and take it?"
"That's enough, Raven," said Claudia. She wondered if she sounded as exhausted by her daughter as she felt. The kid's capacity for outrage was endless.
"There are other ways to solve your problems that don't involve flipping a lunch tray onto someone," said the principal easily. "What did she say to you exactly? What made you so angry?"
Raven shook her head. "It doesn't matter."
The principal answered her with a quick nod, like he got it, like he knew how cruel kids could be and how words could hurt as badly as any blow.
"I understand that bullying can be verbal and emotional as well as physical. And Clara Parker has had her moments; she's sat here with me more than once. Still, when we step over that line into the physical, that can't be tolerated."
Oh, god, thought Claudia. She's going to be suspended-expelled. She could just hear her sister Martha crowing, I told you that changing schools wasn't the solution. You can't just keep running away.