The Winter Garden by Alexandra Bell

Welcome to the Winter Gardens of Half Moon House. Please do not mishandle the exhibits. (The owners accept no liability for any events that occur, magical or otherwise…) The Winter Garden open at the stroke of midnight with no great fanfare – after all, this is a time when all virtuous folk should be in bed. But for the few curious souls that brave the opening of its gates what enchantments await. There is all manner of strange and spectacular flora and fauna collected on her travels by the scandalous Lady Beatrice Sitwell and exhibited for the delight of paying customers. By… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Rape & sexual assault
  • Domestic abuse
  • Drug abuse
  • Depression
  • Death of a child & parent
  • Animal abuse

The Bride Stone by Sally Gardner

It is 1796. Duval Harlington, recently released from a French prison, is on his way home. He must reach his late father’s estate Muchmore House before the following evening if he is to inherit it. But the inheritance rests on another he must also be married. He is at a market, hoping to buy a fast horse, when he hears about a wife sale. He takes his chance and makes an extravagant bid for young widow, Edmée Hyde. To his delight and dismay, the bid is accepted and they marry, only to find that he and Edmée are both hiding life-threatening secrets

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Rape
  • Domestic violence
  • Incarceration recounted

All of Us Murderers by KJ Charles

When Zeb Wyckham is summoned to a wealthy relative’s remote Gothic manor, he is horrified to find all the people he least wants to see in the world: his estranged brother, his sneering cousin, and his bitter ex-lover Gideon Grey. Things couldn’t possibly get worse. Then the master of the house announces the true purpose of the gathering: he intends to leave the vast family fortune to whoever marries his young ward, setting off a violent scramble for her hand. Zeb wants no part of his greedy family―but when he tries to leave, the way is barred. The walls of Lackaday… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Period-typical homophobia & ableism
  • Rape & incest recounted
  • Murder

The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan

In 1785, Professor Sebastian Grave receives the news he fears most: the terrible Beast of Gévaudan has returned, and the French countryside runs red in its wake. Sebastian knows the Beast. A monster-slayer with centuries of experience, he joined the hunt for the creature twenty years ago and watched it slaughter its way through a long and bloody winter. Even with the help of his indwelling demon, Sarmodel – who takes payment in living hearts – it nearly cost him his life to bring the monster down. Now, two decades later, Sebastian has been recalled to the hunt… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Graphic blood & injury depiction
  • Animal death (dogs)

On Sundays She Picked Flowers by Yah-Yah Scholfield

When Judith Rice fled her childhood home, she thought she’d severed her abusive mother’s hold on her. She didn’t have a plan or destination, just a desperate need to escape. Drawn to the forests of southern Georgia, Jude finds shelter in a house as haunted by its violent history as she is by her own. Jude embraces the eccentricities of the dilapidated house, soothing its ghosts and haints, honoring its blood-soaked land. And over the next thirteen years, Jude blossoms from her bitter beginnings into a wisewoman, a… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Period-typical racism
  • Rape
  • Physical child abuse (on-page)
  • Emesis
  • Death of a parent

The Revenge Game by Jordyn Taylor

yson is a romantic, and sometimes it gets her into trouble. Like last summer, she thought her co-worker was into her, when in reality he found her flirting pathetic. Then she meets Brenton Riggs Jr., and right away she knows that their connection isn’t just in her head. When he swoops in to save her one night from a less than savory party encounter, she falls head-over-heels. Finally, someone Alyson likes who likes her back! But when she finds out about the King’s Cup—a competition the guy’s at their boarding school started to see who has the most sexual prowress… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Rape & sexual assault mentioned (secondary character)

Perfect Little Monsters by Cindy R.X. He

SElla Moore was the most popular girl in school…and also the most hated. When she’s murdered at her own party, there are too many suspects to count–and too many people who think she deserved it. The police’s prime suspect is the new girl, Dawn Foster. She was the last to hand Ella a drink on the night Ella died. Plus, all of Ella’s friends with a motive for wanting her dead are more than willing to implicate Dawn. But Dawn refuses to go down without a fight. She’s determined to clear her name. As she delves deeper into th… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Lesbophobia, disfiguremisia, ableism and fatphobia & body-shaming
  • Adult-minor relationship and statutoray rape
  • Image-based sexual assault (‘revenge porn’)
  • Infidelity
  • Disordered eating & body image issues
  • Panic attacks
  • Attempted suicide by overdose and stepping in front of a vehicle & suicidal ideation
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Death of a parent
  • Murder & attempted murder
  • Car accident recounted & discussed
  • Poisoning
  • Strangulation
  • Kidnapping
  • Blackmail & stalking
  • Fire
  • Bullying & cyberbullying

Fourteen by J.T. Ellison

Ten victims, each with pale skin and long dark hair. All have been slashed across the throat, the same red lipstick smeared across their lips.In the mid-1980s the Snow White Killer terrorized the streets of Nashville, Tennessee. Then suddenly the murders stopped. A letter from the killer to the police stated that his work was done. Now four more bodies are found, marked with his fatal signature. The residents of Nashville fear a madman has returned, decades later, to finish his sick fairy tale. Homicide Lieutenant Taylor Jackson believes the killings are the work of a copycat killer… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Rape mentioned
  • Infidelity
  • Suicide
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Kidnapping
  • Car accident
  • Animal death mentioned

All The Pretty Girls by J.T. Ellison

Some secrets should stay buried. When a local girl falls prey to a sadistic serial killer, Nashville Homicide Lieutenant Taylor Jackson and her lover, FBI profiler Dr. John Baldwin, find themselves in a joint investigation pursuing a vicious murderer. The Southern Strangler is slaughtering his way through the Southeast, leaving a gruesome memento at each crime scene — the prior victim’s severed hand. Ambitious TV reporter Whitney Connolly is certain the Southern Strangler is her ticket out of Nashville; she’s got a scoop that could break the case. She has no idea how close this story… Read more.

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Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Rape mentioned
  • Infidelity
  • Suicide
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Kidnapping
  • Car accident
  • Animal death mentioned

It’s One of Us by J.T. Ellison

Olivia Bender designs exquisite home interiors that satisfy the most demanding clients. But her own deepest desire can’t be fulfilled by marble counters or the perfect rug. She desperately wants to be a mother. Fertility treatments and IVF keep failing. And just when she feels she’s at her lowest point, the police deliver shocking news to Olivia and her husband, Park. DNA results show that the prime suspect in a murder investigation is Park’s son. Olivia is relieved, knowing this is a mistake. Despite their desire, the Benders don’t have any children. Then comes the confession. Many years ago, Park donated sperm to a clinic… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Rape mentioned
  • Infidelity
  • Infertility & miscarriage (theme, on-page)
  • Kidnapping
  • Home invasion & stalking