by Jayne Castle
First published 2026
Alice Radstone stands in her hotel room staring at a corpse in the shower. Two masked men creep toward her bed. She escaped from a psychiatric asylum ten months ago after her first visit to the Hotel of Dreams left her accused of killing a husband she cannot remember on a wedding night that never happened in her mind. Now her second attempt at rebuilding her life crumbles around her. The former Ballantine Academy teacher thought she could avoid this place forever, but desperation drove her back. When the mysterious Owen March appears claiming he wants to rescue her, Alice faces an impossible choice. Trust this dangerous stranger or face the kidnappers alone. Someone wants Alice dead or captured, and Owen may be her only chance at survival. Together they must navigate the deadly secrets of the hotel while fighting an attraction that could save or destroy them both.
Genres: adventure, suspense, mystery, thriller, action, contemporary-romance
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Hotel of Dreams
Period: 10 months ago
297 pages · Kindle Edition · Berkley
Content warnings: mental-illness