First published 2026
The narrator believed nothing bad could touch her charmed existence. She had everything: a supportive husband, a comfortable home decorated with her daughter's artwork, and Stella, her gentle, loving child. She had worked hard to build this life and treasured every moment of it. Then her nanny staggers toward her, bloodied from an attack, with devastating news. Stella has been taken. As the narrator sits in shock in her daughter's bedroom, she notices a worn stuffed cat with black thread eyes. The sight freezes her blood because she suddenly understands who orchestrated the kidnapping and what they want from her. This knowledge forces her to confront how far she will go to rescue Stella before her deepest fears become reality. The discovery transforms what seemed like a random crime into something far more personal and terrifying.
Genres: fiction, mystery, adult, adult-fiction, thriller
Vibes: dark, emotionally-intense, gripping, psychological, suspenseful
Tropes: hidden-past, high-stakes-rescue, unreliable-narrator
260 pages · Kindle Edition · Bookouture
Content warnings: child-abuse, kidnapping