Thriller Author Kathleen Kent Explores Genre-Bending Suspense
By Kathleen Kent
My grandmother, an eighth-generation descendant of an accused Salem witch, used to say that there were no such things as witches, just ferocious women. In recent years the crime/thriller/mystery genres have been opened to the publication of intense and exciting novels written by some ferocious women wielding their own unique brand of literary magic. Into this cauldron I love to add a good dose of horror, not necessarily the blood and gore kind, but the kind that gets beneath the skin, slowly, inexorably, until it’s too late to do anything but face the dark. Here are a few of my favorites.
Any genre can be elevated by great writing—ingenious plotting, realistic characters, and relentless pacing—and Lauren Beukes is one of the best at wrapping dark things in pretty packages. Broken Monsters opens with one of the most unique, and horrific, scenes in a crime novel. And the narrative, as a whole, contains some of my favorite elements: a strong female protagonist, an atmospheric setting (in this case Detroit, corrupt and broken), multiple perspectives that converge in unexpected ways, and dark gallows humor and biting social satire. The suspense works so well because it feels so real. Wait, were those footsteps in the hallway. . .?
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This deeply affecting and atmospheric novel is also set in the 1950’s. It’s a midcentury tale of the true-to-life horrors of racism in the American South. Narrated by a Black twelve-year-old boy named Robbie Stephens, Jr., who’s sent to a notorious and prison-like reformatory school in Florida, it is a chilling recounting of the brutality and enforced labor systemic in these institutions. Robbie’s sister, Grace, who works tirelessly to rescue her younger brother, must negotiate her own ordeals as a young Black woman in the Jim Crow-era South. Her love and perseverance are lanterns in the darkness of the reformatory, which is filled with the ghosts of long-dead inmates seeking vengeance on their tormentors. This beautifully written, multi-dimensional novel is part historical novel, part family portrait and part riveting ghost story that will stay with the reader for a long time.
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Trade Cloth; Trade Cloth
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As a life-long fan of Stephen King’s novels, I always appreciated the blending of full-bodied character development, a tightly drawn narrative with a dash of the terrifying supernatural. The female protagonist of White Horse, Kari James, must confront barriers, both in the material world and in the spiritual world, in solving the mystery of her mother’s disappearance. Drawing on her own indigenous roots, Ms. Wurth shades her heroine’s journey with generational memory, and trauma, family betrayal and the courage to find the truth, no matter the cost. Kari James, as a character, is brave, spiky, raw, and utterly memorable.
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After reading everything written by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Mexican Gothic has to be my favorite. Gritty cities like Chicago or Detroit hold a firm place in the firmament of traditional crime fiction. But there is a special seductive quality to older, more secluded places, like the fading gothic mansion in the story, High Place, in the hills outside of Mexico City. Noemi, the main protagonist of the novel, is a wealthy debutante who thrives in the rarified circles of endless parties and social events. But when she receives a desperate plea from her cousin at High Place (who suspects her husband of poisoning her) Noemi travels immediately to her cousin’s side. She soon meets the other residents of High Place: the ancient, imperious patriarch of the family, the sly and secretive husband, and the younger son, who appears to be Noemi’s only true ally within the walls of gathering ghosts. The house itself becomes a central character in the story, invading Noemi’s sleep with dreams drenched in blood and impending disaster. The pitch-perfect contrast between the sharp edges and shiny newness of the 1950’s, and the decay of centuries past creates an irresistible plunge into a world of family secrets and impending madness.
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Trade Paperback
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Kathleen Kent is the author of the Edgar Award-nominated TheDime, as well as three bestselling historical novels: The Heretic’s Daughter, TheTraitor’sWife, and The Outcasts. Kent lives in Dallas, TX.
It is 1990 when Melvina Donleavy arrives in Soviet Belarus on her first undercover mission with the CIA, alongside three fellow agents—none of whom know she is playing two roles. To the prying eyes of the KGB, she is merely a secretary; to her CIA minders, she is the only one who can stop the flow of nuclear weapons from the crumbling Soviet Union into the Middle East.
For Mel has a secret; she is a “super recognizer,” someone who never forgets a face. But no training could prepare her for the reality of life undercover, and for the streets of Minsk, where women have been disappearing. Soviet law enforcement is firm: murder is a capitalist disease. But could a serial killer be at work? Especially if he knew no one was watching? As Mel searches for answers, she catches the eye of an entirely different kind of threat: the elusive and petrifying “Black Wolf,” head of the KGB.
Filled with insider details from the author’s own time working under the direction of the U.S. Department of Defense, Black Wolf is a riveting new spy thriller from an Edgar-nominated crime writer, and a biting exploration of the divide between two nations, two masterminds, and two roles played by a woman pushed to her breaking point, where she’ll learn that you can only ever trust one person: yourself.
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