A Familiar Sight.

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A shocking murder carries echoes of the past for a psychologist in a startling novel of suspense by a Washington Post and Amazon Charts bestselling author.

Psychologist and criminologist Dr. Gretchen White is a specialist in antisocial personality disorders and violent crimes. She’s helped solve enough prominent cases for detective Patrick Shaughnessy that her own history is often overlooked: Gretchen is an admitted sociopath once suspected of killing her aunt. Shaughnessy still thinks Gretchen got away with murder. It’s not going to happen again.

When a high-profile new case lands on Shaughnessy’s desk, it seems open and shut. Remorseless teenager Viola Kent is accused of killing her mother. Amid stories of childhood horrors and Viola’s cruel manipulations, the bad seed has already been found guilty by a rapt public. But Gretchen might be seeing something in Viola no one else does: herself.

If Viola is a scapegoat, then who really did it? And what are they hiding? To find the truth, Gretchen must enter a void that is not only dark and cold-blooded, but also frighteningly familiar.

Review

Praise for A Familiar Sight

“A horrific brew for readers willing to immerse themselves in it.” Kirkus Reviews

“A strong plot and unforgettable characters make this a winner. Labuskes is on a roll.” Publishers Weekly

A Familiar Sight has everything I crave in a thriller: a shocking, addictive female lead, unexpected twists that snapped off the page, and an ending that made me gasp out loud. I never saw it coming, but it was perfectly in sync with the razor-sharp balance between creepy and compelling that Labuskes carries throughout the novel. This is a one-sitting read.” —Jess Lourey, Amazon Charts bestselling author

Praise for Her Final Words

“Labuskes skillfully ratchets up the suspense. Readers will eagerly await her next.” Publishers Weekly

“Labuskes offers an intense mystery with an excellent character in Lucy, who methodically uncovers layers of deceit while trusting no one.” Library Journal

Praise for Girls of Glass

“Excellent…Readers who enjoy having their expectations upset will be richly rewarded.” Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Praise for It Ends with Her

“Once in a while a character comes along that gets under your skin and refuses to let go. This is the case with Brianna Labuskes’s Clarke Sinclair—a cantankerous, rebellious, and somehow endearingly likable FBI agent with a troubled past. I was immediately pulled into Clarke’s broken, shadow-filled world and her quest for justice and redemption. A stunning thriller, It Ends with Her is not to be missed.” —Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author

It Ends with Her is a gritty, riveting, roller-coaster ride of a book. Brianna Labuskes has created a layered, gripping story around a cast of characters that readers will cheer for. Her crisp prose and quick plot kept me reading with my heart in my throat. Highly recommended for fans of smart thrillers with captivating heroines.” —Nicole Baart, author of Little Broken Things

“An engrossing psychological thriller filled with twists and turns. I couldn’t put it down! The characters were filled with emotional depth. An impressive debut!” —Elizabeth Blackwell, author of In the Shadow of Lakecrest

From the Publisher

Brianna Labuskes is a master at dark psychological thrillers. Not only does she blend in elements of family drama and procedural, but her characters are always complex—a complexity that makes you both scared for them and scared of them. Case in point: Dr. Gretchen White, a police consultant who also happens to be a sociopath.

Gretchen finds her friend Lena Booker, a renowned lawyer, dead after a fatal overdose. In the last minutes of her life, Lena leaves Gretchen a voice mail telling her that her client Viola Kent is innocent. Viola Kent, a thirteen-year-old budding psychopath, is accused of killing her mother. It seems like an open-and-shut case, but in Lena’s message, she says she messed up and needs Gretchen’s help to set things right.

Gretchen has long been drawn to the case, as it echoes her own history. As a child, she was the prime suspect in her aunt’s murder. Her name was cleared, but she’d never been able to shake others’ suspicions.

A Familiar Sight is an incredible start to a series featuring Dr. White. My head was spinning as I tried to figure out if Gretchen was actually a murderer, or if she was just dealt a bad hand. But sometimes the best characters are those who are neither good nor bad. Sometimes they just do what’s necessary to survive.

– Megha Parekh, Editor

About the Author

Brianna Labuskes is the Washington Post and Amazon Charts bestselling author of the psychological suspense novels Her Final WordsBlack Rock BayGirls of Glass, and It Ends with Her. For the past eight years, she has worked as an editor at both small-town papers and national media organizations such as Politico and Kaiser Health News, covering politics and policy. She was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Penn State University with a degree in journalism. Brianna lives in Washington, DC, and enjoys traveling, hiking, kayaking, and exploring the city’s best brunch options. Visit her at http://www.briannalabuskes.com.

Review

Praise for Her Final Words

“Labuskes skillfully ratchets up the suspense. Readers will eagerly await her next.” Publishers Weekly

“Labuskes offers an intense mystery with an excellent character in Lucy, who methodically uncovers layers of deceit while trusting no one.” Library Journal

Praise for Girls of Glass

“Excellent…Readers who enjoy having their expectations upset will be richly rewarded.” Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Praise for It Ends with Her

“Once in a while a character comes along that gets under your skin and refuses to let go. This is the case with Brianna Labuskes’s Clarke Sinclair—a cantankerous, rebellious, and somehow endearingly likable FBI agent with a troubled past. I was immediately pulled into Clarke’s broken, shadow-filled world and her quest for justice and redemption. A stunning thriller, It Ends with Her is not to be missed.” —Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author

It Ends with Her is a gritty, riveting, roller-coaster ride of a book. Brianna Labuskes has created a layered, gripping story around a cast of characters that readers will cheer for. Her crisp prose and quick plot kept me reading with my heart in my throat. Highly recommended for fans of smart thrillers with captivating heroines.” —Nicole Baart, author of Little Broken Things

“An engrossing psychological thriller filled with twists and turns. I couldn’t put it down! The characters were filled with emotional depth. An impressive debut!” —Elizabeth Blackwell, author of In the Shadow of Lakecrest


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