Brian McAuley, professor of Screenwriting at ASU, one of the five horror writers, acted as moderator for the recent Horror panel at the Poisoned Pen Bookstore. Signed books by his fellow writers, Brian Asman, Richard Chizmar, W.H. Chizmar, and Abe Moss, are available in the Webstore, https://store.poisonedpen.com/.

Check out the books.

From the author of Man, F*ck This House (And Other Disasters)

Two feuding #VanLife influencers must put aside their differences in order to survive when they are stalked by a masked killer in a remote stretch of Death Valley.

Morgan and Jasper are the couple everyone wants to be: beautiful, successful, and constantly mobile. Their #VanLife content has captured the hearts and minds of a million online followers, who all “smash that subscribe button” to watch as the loving couple documents their outdoor adventures.

But it’s all a sham. Their relationship is on the rocks. Jasper doesn’t know Morgan’s trolling the dating apps. Morgan doesn’t know Jasper blew all their earnings on shady crypto investments. What started as a fun way to share their love of nature has turned into a grind. Plus, they’ve also got stalkers: fans whose parasocial obsession with the couple verges on the terrifying.

When Jasper gets a contract to shoot a promo for an upstart granola company at the Ubehebe Crater, a gorgeous but remote section of Death Valley, he talks Morgan into taking a last-minute trip. He’s secretly hoping this trip will not only solve their financial woes but also help them reconcile. But things go wrong immediately. A mysterious black van runs them off the road. Their cameraman seems like a lunatic. And soon, they find themselves stranded in the desert, pursued by a masked killer. Can Morgan and Jasper put aside their differences long enough to survive both the killer and the desert itself?

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Brian Asman, author of the viral sensation Man, F*ck This House, is a writer, actor, and director from San Diego. Good Dogs is his debut novel. Find him on social media (@TheBrianAsman) or his website BrianAsmanBooks.com.

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The terrifying horror trilogy finale to the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling series that includes Chasing the Boogeyman and Becoming the Boogeyman from “one of horror’s indispensable writers” (Paste).

Notorious serial killer Joshua Gallagher—dubbed “the Boogeyman” by the media—has vanished from prison. One moment, he was locked inside a maximum-security cell; the next, he was gone, leaving behind on the wall a crude hangman puzzle and two chilling words: IT’S TIME.

Now, days later, the world is coming apart again. Bodies are turning up near writer and Gallagher confidante Richard Chizmar’s home, echoing the Boogeyman’s signature horrors. The news frenzy reignites while the police chase shadows…even as Gallagher’s twisted true crime fanbase celebrates online, acknowledging that he’s something more than human now.

To everyone else, it’s a desperate hunt for answers. To Chizmar, it’s more like destiny closing in. The evidence, the sightings, the voices in the dark all point to one unthinkable conclusion: the Boogeyman never left. And very soon, Chizmar must come face-to-face with the thing wearing Gallagher’s skin, and learns all too quickly that some nightmares don’t return—they evolve.

“Richard Chizmar delves deep into our worst fears and touches the darkness that lives there.” —S. A. Cosby

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Richard Chizmar is the author of New York Times bestselling novels Chasing the Boogeyman, Becoming the Boogeyman, Memorials, and Widow’s Point: The Complete Haunting (cowritten with son, W.H. Chizmar), and coauthor (with Stephen King) of the New York Times bestselling novella Gwendy’s Button Box, the novel Gwendy’s Final Task, and the solo novella Gwendy’s Magic Feather. His short fiction has appeared in dozens of publications, most recently, the bestselling anthology, The End of The World as We Know It: New Stories of Stephen King’s The Stand. He is the founder and publisher of the specialty press publisher of horror and dark suspense, Cemetery Dance. He has won two World Fantasy awards, four International Horror Guild awards, and the HWA’s Board of Trustees award. Chizmar’s work has been translated into more than fifteen languages throughout the world, and he has appeared at numerous conferences as a writing instructor, speaker, panelist, and guest of honor. Follow him on X, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky: @RichardChizmar, or visit his website at RichardChizmar.com.

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The USA TODAY bestseller and acclaimed solo debut from the New York Times bestselling coauthor of Widow’s Point: The Complete Haunting—a post-apocalyptic/survival horror novel written in the bestselling traditions of Stephen King’s The Mist and Josh Malerman’s Bird Box.

A top-secret government project hits upon a revolutionary idea for transporting matter across the vast reaches of the universe, and it succeeds in bringing something back. Something alive. Soon, mankind’s reign comes to an abrupt halt when a truck hauling a very special shipping container overturns and rolls off the highway, unleashing an otherworldly horror upon an unsuspecting New England countryside, where it cannot be contained…

Several years later, an unidentified man emerges from the rubble of humanity, seeking other survivors and a shred of hope amid an eerie and lonely landscape. He travels by night up the rural East Coast, discovering Americana ruins and encountering monsters the likes of which no one has survived. Scarred and molded by the cruel horrors of this new natural order, he must face his own dwindling humanity and pray that any others out there have not become monsters themselves…

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W.H. Chizmar is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling coauthor (with Richard Chizmar) of Widow’s Point: The Complete Haunting, as well as numerous short stories and essays. He lives in Maryland with his Bernese Mountain Dog, J.J. (short for James Joyce).

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The 5th book in the Killer VHS Series, hailed as “the modern-day Goosebumps for Adults” by Horror Obsessive.

She’s making a list… and chopping it twice!

In this sequel to the acclaimed slasher that Stephen Graham Jones called “a novella with a heart the size of a franchise,” the survivors of the Christmas Eve carnage at the Thornton house head to the Church of Nodland to confront the local congregation. Little do they know that Candy Cain is coming to town to wish one and all a very merry axe-mas!

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Brian McAuley is a USA Today Bestselling author and WGA screenwriter living and dying in Arizona.

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Perfect for fans of You’re Next and Invasion of the Body Snatchers, “this monstrous horror story uses supernatural horror elements to creep us out. Unsettling and atmospheric.” (Capes & Tights)

This edition features bonus material.

Meeting the family is scary. Surviving them is a nightmare.

Connie can’t deny she’s nervous about meeting her boyfriend’s family. Spending the weekend at their ritzy woodland summer home, Evan has already given her fair warning that his parents are cold, snobbish, and especially unpleasant toward those outside their usual social circles.

So when Evan’s mother warmly greets them with open arms, Connie is as confused as he is. Evan’s parents are nothing like he described.

They’re so friendly, in fact, Evan himself can hardly believe they’re real.
Then, while helping with dinner, Connie overhears strange noises coming from the basement—what almost sounds like voices calling out for help.

Connie doesn’t realize that once the door is opened, it can’t be closed. Or that once she descends those rickety steps into the darkness below . . . she may never see the light of day again.

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Abe Moss has been writing horror stories for as long as he can remember, and hopes to never stop. With each book he writes, he hopes to try something a little different. The possibilities are endless and that’s what he really loves about storytelling. He hopes you’ll enjoy his stories too!

He also writes suspense thrillers as Beau Savage . . . if you’re into that kind of thing.

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Enjoy the conversation with the five horror authors.

Critic Oline Cogdill sent a review of Henry Wise’s Promised Land. Last year, Wise won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel for Holy City. Now, you can order a copy of the sequel through the Webstore, https://tinyurl.com/5cstc69k

Here’s Cogdill’s review as it originally appeared in the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

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Book review: Bloodstains, bullets & swamp secrets drive the gripping new mystery ‘Promised Land’

‘Promised Land’ by Henry Wise; Atlantic Crime; 384 pages; $27

A promised land can take myriad shapes and ideas. For some residents of south Virginia, that idea for a promised land leads to the oddly named Snakefoot, a dark, gloomy swamp that “refuses to shine but somehow shines” in Henry Wise’s lyrical and dynamic “Promised Land.”

A sequel to Wise’s 2025 Edgar Award-winning “Holy City,” this latest novel is a hard-charging yet emotional police procedural that delves into isolation, family issues, a connection to the land, and violence simmering under the surface.

Deputy Sheriff Will Seems and Deputy Tania Jameson investigate the disappearance of Rainbo Boon, whose abandoned pickup truck is found stuck in the mud with bloodstains and a scattering of bullets. The investigation leads the deputies farther into the swamp and to Rainbo’s far-flung kinfolk, including his teenage grandson, Buck, who at first is cooperative but then withdraws his help.

Family secrets tumble out as Wise bends a plot that twists with unpredictability. The past continues to loom large for each resident, affected also by the present and the promise of a future. This is especially true of Will, whose personal history and future inform his decisions.

The Southern landscape, beautiful and bleak, “a jagged monotony of land,” becomes a character itself in the engrossing “Promised Land.”

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed Lauren Willig to discuss her new book, What Happens iAt Nightfall. Willig calls is a paranormal contemporary romance, but she said she discovered it’s part of a hot new genre, horrormance. There are signed copies of the book in the Webstore, https://tinyurl.com/2jk7dtc7

Here’s the summary of What Happens At Nightfall.

New York Times bestselling author Lauren Willig returns with What Happens at Nightfall, a delightfully Gothic romantic adventure, complete with a little bit of demon-hunting.
In the sprawling Gothic expanse of Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery, some secrets refuse to stay buried.
Recently laid off and searching for purpose, Jess reluctantly joins her best friend on a supposedly fun nighttime cemetery tour. Separated from her group by accident, she discovers a bunch of terrified boys and a strange, ancient key. Both lead to Green-Wood’s surprisingly handsome resident arborist, Adam Chervinsky.
Recently widowed, Adam has more to protect than the leafy residents of Green-Wood. His children, still dealing with the loss of their mother, are acting strangely. A haunting is afoot, and Jess seems to know more than she’s letting on. Sparks fly between Jess and Adam—and the unquiet spirits of Green-Wood rise from their century-long slumber.
As Jess and Adam delve deeper into the cemetery’s haunted history, they uncover a Gilded Age curse, a ghostly socialite, and a demonic pact that stretches across generations. What lies hidden in the Green-Wood’s splendid Vanderwilt mausoleum? As the line between the living and the dead blurs, and the shadows of Green-Wood begin to stir with malevolent intent, Jess must confront not only the supernatural forces but a shocking connection to the past if she and Adam truly want to live happily ever after.

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Lauren Willig is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. An alumna of Yale University, she has a graduate degree in history from Harvard and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. She lives in New York City.

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Enjoy the conversation with Lauren Willig, and find yourself in the forefront of the newest hot genre, horrormance.

I missed Deb Lewis’ list of books in my email, so I’m a day late publishing her October picks. Here’s the list, plus one review. You can order your copies through the Webstore, https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Queen of Lombard Street by Lisa Kleypas

Do You See What I See? by Peter Swanson

What Happens At Nightfall by Lauren Willig

The Throwaways by Greta Kelly

The Family Cross by James Patterson

The Bookshop Below by Georgia Summers

Peck & Peck by Bonnie Garmus 

The Woman Of The House by Kate Mooney

The Key To A Killer by Olivia Blacke

A Serving of Hope byHisashi Kashiwai,  Jesse Kirkwood  

Chain Reaction by Lee Child and Andrew Child 

Review:

Chain Reaction by Lee Child and Andrew Child

One always has to worry about the women lucky enough to land a romantic entanglement with Reacher—they tend to wind up heartbroken or dead. Not this time. In Chain Reaction, Major (now General) Susan Turner will have you holding your breath for both her life and her career. We already know Reacher considers Turner someone he trusts, someone he turns to when he needs help. What’s new—and satisfying—is the reversal: this installment reveals Susan feels exactly the same way about him. So when she needs to run an investigation outside official channels, with her career on the line, she tracks Reacher down herself. The two team up for a wild ride involving massive AI data centers, miles of gravel, and tech-bro deceit. A fabulous addition to a fabulous series.  

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed Clare Mackintosh for a virtual appearance at the bookstore. Mackintosh’s new domestic thriller is It’s Not What You Think. You can order a copy through the Webstore, https://tinyurl.com/mtu8e435

Here’s the description of It’s Not What You think.

An unsettling, groundbreaking novel that crackles with immediacy, It’s Not What You Think masterfully delivers a thriller steeped in current tensions and thought-provoking characters. Long after the stunning ending, Clare Mackintosh will make you question not only what happened on the page but our world today. For fans of Lisa Jewell, Gillian McAllister and Alice Feeney, It’s Not What You Think grabs you by the throat and never lets you go.

He has a secret. She knows he’s lying…

Nadeeka is certain Jamie is having an affair. She knows the tell-tale signs. She’s been here before.

When Jamie claims to be at work late, she knows he’s lying. He’s with another woman, and she’s determined to catch him in the act.

But when Nadeeka arrives home to confront him, Jamie can’t explain himself. The house has become a crime scene…Jamie is dead.

YOU THINK YOU KNOW THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE

YOU THINK YOU KNOW WHO YOU CAN TRUST

YOU THINK YOU KNOW HOW THE STORY ENDS

IT’S NOT WHAT YOU THINK. 

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Clare Mackintosh is a former police officer and a Sunday Times number one bestselling crime author. Her books have sold more than three million copies, been optioned for screen and translated into 40 languages. She appears regularly at literary festivals and bookshop events across the UK and beyond.

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Enjoy the conversation with Clare Mackintosh.

Barbara Peters, owner of the bookstore, welcomed Liam Callanan to The Poisoned Pen to discuss his book about aviation history, Stone Age Astronaut. You can order a copy of the book through the Webstore, https://tinyurl.com/38j9wrdr

Here’s the description of Stone Age Astronaut.

A soaring adventure, a riveting biography, and a reclamation of a great American story lost to history.

In Stone Age Astronaut, award-winning author Liam Callanan uncovers the astonishing life of Lester Maitland—the Milwaukee-born aviator who, in 1927, became the first person to fly to Hawaii, earning national acclaim on par with Charles Lindbergh’s transatlantic triumph. For a brief moment, the two men shared headlines, White House invitations, and fame. But while Lindbergh’s legacy grew, Maitland’s all but vanished.

Callanan brings Maitland back into the spotlight, tracing his meteoric early career: flight instructor at nineteen; one of the US Army’s first test pilots; the first American to fly faster than 200 mph; and the pioneering airman whose Pacific crossing earned him the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Just twenty-two days after becoming Executive Officer of the Far East Air Service Command—and one day after Pearl Harbor—Maitland witnessed the destruction of much of the Far East Air Force in the Philippines. Later, he commanded the 386th Bomb Group in Europe, making him World War II’s oldest bomber pilot, only to be abruptly and mysteriously retired weeks before D-Day. After the war, Maitland experienced a series of professional and personal disappointments, and he quietly faded into obscurity. He eventually became an Episcopal priest, serving small parishes far from the glamour of his early days in the cockpit.

The pages of Stone Age Astronaut hum with the tension and excitement of early aviation, rendered in a richly detailed narrative and Callanan’s research—spanning archives, newspapers, interviews, and travel to key sites—to reveal the remarkable sweep of Lester Maitland’s world. Along the way, readers encounter a constellation of notable figures: Amelia Earhart, Billy Mitchell, Ernest Hemingway, Gerald Ford, Richard Bong, the Dole Pineapple King, Harry Houdini, and even a Skull and Bones–affiliated aviation official.

With sparkling prose and a storyteller’s instinct for detail, Callanan resurrects a man whose life intersected with major events, eras, and personalities—but who has inexplicably slipped through the cracks of American memory.

A gripping portrait of ambition, innovation, fame, failure, and reinvention—and the enduring human urge to fly—Stone Age Astronaut ensures that Lester Maitland’s extraordinary story will no longer be forgotten. 

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Enjoy the conversation with Liam Callanan.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed Michael Koryta. back to the bookstore. The two have been together since Koryta’s first book when he was just twenty-one. His latest book, Die Famous, may be inspired by Koryta’s fascination with John Dillinger. Check out the video for his comments about that interest. And, you can order a signed copy of Die Famous through the Webstore, https://tinyurl.com/3j6afphh

Here’s the description of Die Famous.

The Four Winds meets Bonnie and Clyde in this exhilarating historical thriller in which an unforgettable mother races to find the gangster she once loved—before the law gets to him first.

“The best gangster novel I’ve ever read.” —Stephen King
“This story accomplishes the near-impossible: it is both big-hearted and thrilling.” —Ariel Lawhon
“This will be the bar to which other historical crime fiction will be measured, and I do not say that lightly. In fact, I’ve never said it before.” —David Baldacci

On the day Savannah Cody spots her first gray hair, she decides it’s time to murder the father of her only child. Edward “Nickel” Terhune is the getaway driver for the Brady Gang, one of the FBI’s most wanted criminals—with an enticing bounty set on his head. Dragging her son, Alford, and her father, Wendell, a retired railroad detective, along for the quest, Savannah embarks to find the man she once loved and the nation now fears, journeying across an America transformed by the Great Depression. But Alford—and soon, the FBI—notice that the closer the family gets to Nickel, the less clear Savannah’s motivations seem to be.

As the Brady Gang races to escape the law—or get rich trying—Nickel realizes he might not be able to outrun his mistakes. He dreams of a route that will lead him to peace, but no map shows one like that. Will Savannah find him before the police do? And if so, who will return home alive?

Cleverly layered and emotionally taut, perfect for readers of The Lincoln Highway, The Frozen River, and The Alice Network, Die Famous follows a remarkable family as they race toward an impossible reunion—and asks us to consider where our own loyalties lie when ambition, devotion, and truth mean something different to each person telling the story.

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Michael Koryta is a New York Times bestselling author of over twenty novels—including Those Who Wish Me Dead, which has been adapted into a film starring Angelina Jolie and directed by Taylor Sheridan. His previous novels were New York Times notable books, national bestsellers, and have won numerous awards, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Koryta is a former private investigator and newspaper reporter. He lives in Bloomington, Indiana, and Camden, Maine.

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Enjoy the conversation with Michael Koryta.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed Don Bentley to the bookstore to talk about Vince Flynn Double Tap. Kyle Mills, who wrote ten of the Vince Flynn books, acted as guest host. He passed the torch to Don Bentley a few books ago. You can order a signed copy of Vince Flynn Double Tap through the Webstore, https://tinyurl.com/2c6c9rbx

Here’s the description of Vince Flynn Double Tap.

Vince Flynn’s #1 New York Times bestselling Mitch Rapp series continues the American Assassin storyline, taking the young CIA operative on his first deep-cover mission in which he infiltrates a jihadi organization bent on unleashing a weapon of mass destruction—written by Don Bentley.

Mitch Rapp signed up to be an assassin.

A lone wolf who hunts and kills his nation’s enemies on their turf.

Now, he has a new mission.

When Mitch’s target—a Pakistani chemical weapons scientist for hire—is snatched from the streets of Verona, the American assassin must penetrate the jihadi cell responsible for the brazen kidnapping before they can make use of the scientist’s deadly expertise.

But Mitch isn’t the only one interested in the scientist.

The Pakistani represents an existential threat. A threat that will fray alliances, force enemies to seek common ground, and resurrect long settled vendettas. As the events triggered by the kidnapping cascade out of control, Mitch Rapp must stop the chain reaction before the Middle East reaches critical mass.

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#1 New York Times bestselling author Vince Flynn (1966–2013) created one of contemporary fiction’s most popular heroes: CIA counterterrorist agent Mitch Rapp, featured in thirteen of Flynn’s acclaimed political thrillers. All of his novels are New York Times bestsellers, including his stand-alone debut novel, Term Limits.

Don Bentley is the New York Times bestselling author of multiple books in several series including the Matt Drake novels, the Tom Clancy Jack Ryan Jr. series, and now the Vince Flynn Mitch Rapp series. Don is a former FBI Special Agent, SWAT team member, and Army Apache helicopter pilot. Learn more at DonBentleyBooks.com.

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Enjoy the video featuring Don Bentley and Kyle Mills.

Andre Hardy was recently at The Poisoned Pen to talk about his debut thriller, Tear the City Down. It’s never a bad idea to buy a signed copy of a debut author’s first work. You can order a signed copy ofTear the City Down through the Webstore, https://tinyurl.com/2mnbt79e. You can also watch the recent event on YouTube.

But, before ordering the book, you might want to read critic Oline Cogdill’s review of Tear the City Down. She originally published it in the South Florida Sun Sentinel before sharing it here. Thank you, Oline.

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Book review: Ex-NFL player Andre Hardy scores with debut thriller ‘Tear the City Down’

‘Tear the City Down’ by Andre Hardy; Grand Central; 432 pages; $30

Since retiring from the NFL, Andre Hardy has turned to writing in various genres — essays, short stories and nonfiction. Now Hardy, a member of the league’s Retired Players Association, turns to crime fiction with “Tear the City Down,” a rip-roaring, action-packed debut.

“Tear the City Down” works well as a story about parental devotion, the bonds between fathers and daughters, and how to break away from a criminal past, with jazz, football and tennis added in.

Hardy centers on Coltrane Davis, a self-admitted “hustler” who wants to leave behind his criminal past. But Coltrane has become rich and successful being “a fixer” for the wealthy, corrupt Saul Sollman, who’s become one of San Diego’s top crime lords. Saul also is a psychopath.

Coltrane has come a long way from his rough beginnings. It will not be easy for him to leave his partnership with Saul, the lucrative flow of money, the fancy lifestyle or the action he craves. Still, he wants to be a good father to his teenage daughter, Naima, whose talent at tennis is growing.

After he and his daughter return from a tournament in Boca Raton, Coltrane is determined to focus on Naima and her burgeoning career. First, though, he is pulled into the disappearance of the Los Angeles Chargers’ star running back, who vanishes before a big game. Saul and the player’s agent have much invested in the investigation that leads Coltrane into San Diego’s underbelly.

Hardy approaches “Tear the City Down” with an assured hand — keeping the plot tight and brisk, the characters realistic, and the action elaborate yet believable. Coltrane’s determination to be the kind of father that Naima needs and deserves fuels the story. Hardy also knows how to delve into darkness and violence without overwhelming the story.

It’s a terrific debut that richly deserves a sequel.