Death of a Parent & Guardian – Page 165

Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

Maggie Holt is used to such questions. Twenty-five years ago, she and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. They spent three weeks there before fleeing in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors. His tale of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon, rivaling The Amityville Horror in popularity—and skepticism.

Today, Maggie is a restorer of old homes and too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father’s book. But she also doesn’t believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don’t exist. When Maggie inherits Baneberry Hall after her father’s death, she returns to renovate the place to prepare it for sale… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Adult-minor relationship discussed
Physical child abuse recounted
Cheating mentioned
Nightmares & night terrors
Murder-suicide mentioned
Suicide by asphyxia mentioned
Alcohol consumption
Prescription pill use
Cancer mentioned
Blood & gore depiction, including dead bodies
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a father
Death of a husband
Death of a sister
Death of a child
Murder mentioned
Home invasion
Strangulation
Disappearance of a child recounted
Bullying recounted

Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

No visitors. No nights spent away from the apartment. No disturbing the other residents, all of whom are rich or famous or both. These are the only rules for Jules Larsen’s new job as an apartment sitter at the Bartholomew, one of Manhattan’s most high-profile and mysterious buildings. Recently heartbroken and just plain broke, Jules is taken in by the splendor of her surroundings and accepts the terms, ready to leave her past life behind.

As she gets to know the residents and staff of the Bartholomew, Jules finds herself drawn to fellow apartment sitter Ingrid, who comfortingly, disturbingly reminds her of the sister she lost eight years ago. When Ingrid confides that the Bartholomew is not what it seems and the dark history hidden beneath its gleaming facade is starting to frighten her, Jules brushes it off as a harmless ghost story—until the next day, when Ingrid disappears… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Classism
Cheating recounted
Nightmares
Suicide (on-page & recounted)
Self harm by burning (on-page)
Alcohol consumption
Recreational drug use
Nonconsensual drugging
Blood & physical injuries depiction
Nonconsensual medical procedures & experimentation
Emesis
Hospital
Surgery
Needles & syringes
Cancer & terminal illness mentioned
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a mother & father mentioned
Death of a friend
Murder & attempted murder
Knife violence
Gun violence
Graphic fire (on-page)
Kidnapping & captivity
Car accident
Disappearance of a friend (theme)
Death from a fall (on-page)
Poverty theme
Homelessness

Unforgiven by Jay Crownover

Unforgiven by Jay Crownover

Hill Gamble is a model lawman: cool and collected, with a confident swagger to boot. Too bad all that Texas charm hasn’t gotten him anywhere in his personal life, especially since the only girl he ever loved has always been off-limits. But then Hill is assigned to investigate her father’s mysterious death, and he’s forced back to the town—and the woman—he left behind.

When Hill left Loveless, he broke Kody Lawton’s already battered heart. And now that he’s working on her father’s case, avoiding him is impossible. She can handle Hill and her unwanted feelings—until he puts his life on the line to protect her. Suddenly, Kody realizes that Hill could be taken away from her…for good.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Suicide
Self harm
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a father

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough

Louise is a single mom, a secretary, stuck in a modern-day rut. On a rare night out, she meets a man in a bar and sparks fly. When Louise arrives at work on Monday, she meets her new boss, David. The very married man from the bar… who says the kiss was a terrible mistake but who still can’t keep his eyes off Louise.

And then Louise bumps into Adele, who’s new to town and in need of a friend, but she also just happens to be married to David. As Louise is drawn into David and Adele’s orbit, she uncovers more puzzling questions than answers. The only thing that is crystal clear is that something in this marriage is very, very wrong, but Louise can’t guess how wrong―and how far a person might go to protect their marriage’s secrets.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Fatmisia & body shaming
Rape by coercion
Adult-minor relationship recounted
Domestic violence
Cheating
Abortion
Sleep disorder & night terrors
Substance addiction
Recreational drug use
Overdose
Alcohol consumption
Psychiatric hospital
Burns
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a wife
Death of a mother
Murder & attempted murder
Stalking
Fire recounted
Graphic animal death & death of a pet

Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods by Rick Riordan

Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods by Rick Riordan

A publisher in New York asked me to write down what I know about the Greek gods, and I was like, Can we do this anonymously? Because I don’t need the Olympians mad at me again. But if it helps you to know your Greek gods, and survive an encounter with them if they ever show up in your face, then I guess writing all this down will be my good deed for the week.

So begins Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods, in which the son of Poseidon adds his own magic–and sarcastic asides–to the classics.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Misogyny
Slavery
Rape
Incest
Sexual harassment
Parental abandonment & neglect
Alcohol consumption
Nonconsensual drugging
Pregnancy
Pregnancy from rape
Childbirth
Blood & gore depiction
Dead bodies & body parts
Dismemberment
Cannibalism
Emesis
Death of a father & husband
Death of a daughter
Infanticide
Murder
Torture
Whipping mentioned
Imprisonment
Animal death

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

Since his mother’s death six years ago, Carter Kane has been living out of a suitcase, traveling the globe with his father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane. But while Carter’s been homeschooled, his younger sister, Sadie, has been living with their grandparents in London. Sadie has just what Carter wants—school friends and a chance at a “normal” life. But Carter has just what Sadie longs for—time with their father. After six years of living apart, the siblings have almost nothing in common. Until now.

On Christmas Eve, Sadie and Carter are reunited when their father brings them to the British Museum, with a promise that he’s going to “make things right.” But all does not go according to plan: Carter and Sadie watch as Julius summons a mysterious figure, who quickly banishes their father and causes a fiery explosion… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Death of a mother recounted
Disappearance of a parent
Explosion
Fire

The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan

The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan

Percy is confused. When he awoke from his long sleep, he didn’t know much more than his name. His brain fuzz is lingering, even after the wolf Lupa told him he is a demigod and trained him to fight with the pen/sword in his pocket. Somehow Percy manages to make it to a camp for half-bloods, despite the fact that he has to keep killing monsters along the way. But the camp doesn’t ring any bells with him. The only thing he can recall from his past is another name: Annabeth.

Hazel is supposed to be dead. When she lived before, she didn’t do a very good job of it. Sure, she was an obedient daughter, even when her mother was possessed by greed. But that was the problem—when the Voice took over her mother and commanded Hazel to use her “gift” for an evil purpose, Hazel couldn’t say no… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Ableism & ableist language
Racism & racist language
Parental abandonment
Amnesia
Flashbacks & blackouts
Nightmares
Suicide recounted
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a sister recounted
Death of a mother by gun violence mentioned
Murder & attempted murder
Knife violence & stabbing
Kidnapping
Train accident
Animal attack
Bullying

The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

Jason has a problem. He doesn’t remember anything before waking up in a bus full of kids on a field trip. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper, and his best friend is a guy named Leo. They’re all students at the Wilderness School, a boarding school for “bad kids,” as Leo puts it. What did Jason do to end up here? And where is here, exactly? Jason doesn’t know anything—except that everything seems very wrong.

Piper has a secret. Her father has been missing for three days, ever since she had that terrifying nightmare about his being in trouble. Piper doesn’t understand her dream, or why her boyfriend suddenly doesn’t recognize her. When a freak storm hits during the school trip, unleashing strange creatures and whisking her, Jason, and Leo away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood, she has a feeling she’s going to find out, whether she wants to or not… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Parental abandonment
Amnesia
Cancer mentioned
Physical injuries
Emesis
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a mother recounted
Death of a grandfather mentioned
Kidnapping
Fire
Loss of autonomy (possession)
War themes & battle scenes
Bullying

The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan

When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped. And now it’s up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. Who is powerful enough to kidnap a goddess?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Ableism & ableist language
Parental abandonment
Nightmares
Alcohol consumption & abuse mentioned
Blood & injury depiction
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a mother recounted
Torture
Gun & knife violence
Disappearance of a friend
Kidnapping
Car accident mentioned
War themes

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can’t seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse – Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy’s mom finds out, she knows it’s time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he’ll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds…. Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

Ableism
Parental abandonment, child abuse & domestic violence
Infidelity mentioned
Nightmares & hallucinations discussed
Alcohol consumption mentioned
Injury depiction, emesis & mentions of terminal cancer
Death of a mother
Death of an uncle mentioned
Explosion
Knife violence
Car accident
Incarceration
War themes
Drowning mentioned
Hurricane, lightning & storms (on-page)
Earthquake
Animal cruelty
Bullying