Books

USA TODAY BESTSELLER • Perfect for fans of Gillian Flynn, Paula Hawkins, and Tana French, R. K. Jackson’s lyrical, twisty psychological thriller debut follows an aspiring journalist as she uncovers dark truths in a seaswept Southern town—aided by a mysterious outcast and pursued by a ruthless killer.

When Martha Covington moves to Amberleen, Georgia, after her release from a psychiatric ward, she thinks her breakdown is behind her. A small town with a rich history, Amberleen feels like a fresh start. Taking a summer internship with the local historical society, Martha is tasked with gathering the stories of the Geechee residents of nearby Shell Heap Island, the descendants of slaves who have lived by their own traditions for the last three hundred years.

As Martha delves into her work, the voices she thought she left behind start whispering again, and she begins to doubt her recovery. When a grisly murder occurs, Martha finds herself at the center of a perfect storm—and she’s the perfect suspect. Without a soul to vouch for her innocence or her sanity, Martha disappears into the wilderness, battling the pull of madness and struggling to piece together a supernatural puzzle of age-old resentments, broken promises, and cold-blooded murder. She finds an unexpected ally in a handsome young man fighting his own battles. With his help, Martha journeys through a terrifying labyrinth—to find the truth and clear her name, if she can survive to tell the tale.

Praise for The Girl in the Maze
 
“A Southern Gothic thriller with a twisty plot and echoes of Tana French.”—Dianne Emley, bestselling author of Killing Secrets

“The Girl in the Maze has suspense, action, memorable characters and even a perfect storm.”—Savannah Morning News

“One of the best books I’ve read [this year] . . . The Girl in the Maze is a genre-crushing story that’s part mystery, part thriller, with elements of horror. The result is a terribly entertaining novel.”—Cemetery Dance

“I’m very familiar with coastal Georgia, including Savannah and the islands. Somehow, Jackson has captured the mysterious beauty and sense of impending danger one always feels there. The setting itself becomes both a mirror and a character in this intriguing and suspenseful story.”—Barbara Lebow, Guggenheim Fellow, author of A Shayna Maidel

“The Girl in the Maze is as mysterious and suspenseful as it is intriguing—much like Georgia’s coastal marshland, where the tale is set.”—Santa Barbara News-Press

“This scared the hell out of me.”—Laura Otis, MacArthur Fellow, author of Müller’s Lab
 
“A suspenseful book, well written, and with a beautiful setting rich in history. I thoroughly enjoyed this supernatural thriller, and recommend it to all fans of the genre.”—I Heart Reading

“A fast-paced psychological thriller that keeps you engaged from beginning to end.”—Reading Femme

“Enthralling . . . a psycho-thriller of dark secrets in a small historic Georgian coastal town.”—Judith D. Collins Must Read Books

In a haunting novel of psychological suspense from the author of The Girl in the Maze (“A Southern Gothic thriller with a twisty plot and echoes of Tana French.”—Dianne Emley), a gifted young woman battles her own mind . . . and finds that some voices will never be silenced.
 
Following her diagnosis as a schizophrenic, Martha Covington has been easing herself back into her quiet life on a small island off the Georgia coast. The trouble is, Martha’s research into local healing roots has earned her an unfounded, and frankly unwelcome, reputation as a psychic. But when an elderly couple from Atlanta tracks her down, desperate for any sign of their missing grandson, Peavy, Martha confronts a terrifying possibility: that the line between intuition and insanity may not be as clear as she’d like to believe.

First comes a spine-tingling vision that feels too real to be imagined. Then Martha receives a message in her dreams that the boy may yet be alive. Despite her therapist’s insistence that it’s all in her head, Martha travels to Atlanta to investigate Peavy’s mysterious disappearance, where she is reunited with handsome law student Jarrell Humphries. A trail of cryptic clues leads the pair deep into a heart of a dangerous conspiracy whose members will stop at nothing—including murder—to protect their secrets.

Praise for Kiss of the Sun

“[This] stunning follow-up to The Girl in the Maze . . . will take your breath away.”—It’s About the Book

“Filled with suspense . . . A character-driven series of a young woman’s struggle to develop her journalism career while fighting the demons of mental illness.”—Judith D. Collins Must Read Books

“I fell in love with Martha in her first book, Girl in the Maze, and that love continued in this book.”—Books to Curl Up With