Sherri Smith

Sherri Smith illuminates the dark side of the self-care and wellness industry in a thrilling ride of revenge perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty’s Nine Perfect Strangers. The Retreat is a twisting, bone-chilling suspense that asks: how well do you really know your friends? Four women. Four secrets. A weekend that will change them forever...if they survive. Katie Manning was a beloved child star until her mid-teens when her manager attacked and permanently scarred her face, effectively ending her career and sending her on a path of all-too-familiar post-Hollywood self-destruction. Now twenty-seven, Katie wants a better answer to those clickbait “Where Are They Now?” articles that float around online. An answer she hopes to find when her brother’s too-good-to-be-true fiancée invites her to a wellness retreat upstate. Together with Katie’s two best friends—one struggling with crippling debt and family obligations, one running away from a failed job and relationship—Katie will try to find the inner peace promised at the tranquil retreat. But finding oneself just might drudge up more memories than Katie is prepared to deal with. Each woman has come to the retreat for different reasons. Each has her secrets to hide. And at the end of this weekend, only one will be left standing.

The Retreat

"Mia Haas has built a life for herself far from the North Dakota town where she grew up, but when she receives word that her twin brother is missing, she's forced to return home. Once hailed as the golden boy of their small town, Lucas Haas disappeared the same day the body of one of his high school students is pulled from the river. Trying to wrap her head around the rumors of Lucas's affair with the teen, and unable to reconcile the media's portrayal of Lucas as a murderer with her own memories of him, Mia is desperate to find another suspect. All the while, she wonders, if he's innocent, why did he run? As Mia reevaluates their difficult, shared history and launches her own investigation into the grisly murder, she uncovers secrets that could exonerate Lucas -- or seal his fate. In a small town where everyone's history is intertwined, Mia will be forced to confront her own demons, placing her right in the killer's crosshairs. Follow Me Down is a rare find -- a gutsy, visceral, and beautifully crafted psychological thriller."--

A Novel

Follow Me Down

The virgin's tale

La esclava de vesta

Married to a drunken tavern-keeper, Anna Wirth takes solace in her two sons, hard-working Konrad and the beautiful, flaxen-haired Manfred, who sings like an angel and who, some say, has been touched by God. But at the same time, Anna is desperate to prevent people finding out the truth about her younger son. That he is not like other children: he does not communicate, doesn't make eye contact, lives in his own private world, endlessly collecting and arranging piles of leaves and stones. When rumours of witchcraft sweep through the town, Manfred is seized by those who would use him to pursue their own agenda. As innocent townsfolk are accused, a climate of fear prevails. No one is safe - and at the heart of the terror is Anna's own son. As the death toll mounts, Anna realizes there is only one way to stop the madness. But can she act against a mother's deepest instincts?

The Children of Witches

Follow Me Down is a rare find—a gutsy, visceral, and beautifully crafted psychological thriller that Diane Chamberlain called "an engrossing page turner [that] will keep you guessing right up to the delicious ending" from talented new author Sherri Smith. Mia Haas has built her life far from the North Dakota town where she grew up, but when she receives word that her twin brother is missing, she is forced to return home. Back to the people she left behind, the person she used to be, and the secrets she thought she’d buried. Once hailed as the golden boy of their town, and now a popular high school teacher, Lucas Haas disappears the same day the body of one of his students is pulled from the river. Trying to wrap her head around the rumors of Lucas’s affair with the teen, and unable to reconcile the media’s portrayal of Lucas as a murderer with her own memories of him, Mia is desperate to find another suspect. All the while, she wonders: If he’s innocent, why did he run? As Mia reevaluates their difficult, shared history and launches her own investigation into the grisly murder, she uncovers secrets that could exonerate Lucas—or seal his fate. In a small town where everyone’s lives are intertwined, Mia must confront her own demons if she wants to get out alive.

A Novel of Suspense

Mia has built a life for herself far from the small town where she grew up. But she is forced to return home when her brother goes missing. Once the golden boy of the community, Lucas has disappeared the same day as the body of his student is pulled from the river. Unable to reconcile the media’s portrayal of Lucas as a murderer with her own memories of him, Mia is desperate to find another suspect. But if Lucas is innocent, why did he run?

Married to a drunken tavern-keeper, Anna Wirth takes comfort in her two sons, hard-working Konrad and the beautiful, flaxen-haired Manfred, who sings like an angel and who, some say, has been touched by God.

Rome, 63BC. Offered up by her parents at the age of six to become a Vestal Virgin, one of six hand-picked women who symbolically protected the Roman Republic, Aemilia has spent her entire adult life in the all-female, strictly-guarded Temple of Vesta. But temptation has led her to commit a mortal sin, and she is sentenced to death as Virgins must die, buried alive in a pitch-black tomb. As the end draws near, Aemilia looks back over her claustrophobic, restricted life: the intense friendships she formed; the implacable enemies she made; and, finally, the passionate but forbidden romance which caused her downfall - and yet may be her only hope. A tantalising glimpse into a little-known, forbidden world, THE VIRGIN'S TALE is the moving, erotic and highly-charged story of a woman who dared to risk everything for love.

Sherri Smith

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