Jess Lourey

OK
About Jess Lourey
Jess Lourey teaches, travels, and writes about secrets.
She's the Amazon Charts bestselling Edgar, Agatha, ITW Thriller, and Lefty-nominated, Anthony-winning author of nonfiction, children's books, YA adventure, magical realism, and crime fiction. She's a retired professor of writing and sociology, a recipient of The Loft's Excellence in Teaching fellowship, a TEDx presenter (check out her TEDx Talk to discover the surprising inspiration behind MAY DAY, her first published novel), and a leader of writing retreats for women and online creative writing classes for all.
She lives in Minneapolis with her foster cats (and occasional foster puppies, but man are those goobers a lot of work). Drop by jessicalourey.com to find out more.
(The UNSPEAKABLE THINGS epilogue lives here: http://jessicalourey.com/survey-two.)
Customers Also Bought Items By
Author updates
Books By Jess Lourey
★ "...[A] hair-raising thrill ride." ―Library Journal (starred review) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
★ "A fast-paced, sometimes brutal thriller reminiscent of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code." ―Booklist (starred review) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Salem Wiley is a genius cryptanalyst, courted by the world’s top security agencies ever since making a quantum computing breakthrough. She’s also an agoraphobe who's afraid to leave her own home. When her mother’s disappearance is linked to a plot to assassinate the country’s first viable female presidential candidate, she's forced out of her safe zone.
Drawn into a labyrinth of messages encrypted by Emily Dickinson and century-old codes tucked inside the Beale Cipher, Salem begins to uncover the truth: an ancient and ruthless group is hell-bent on ruling the world, and only a select group of women stands in its way.
Salem's Cipher is the first in an ongoing series of heart-pounding thrillers that international bestselling author Lee Child calls "highly recommended!"
Salem's Cipher
Mercy's Chase
"The fascinating historical information combined with a storyline ripped from the headlines will hook conspiracy theorists and action addicts alike." ―Kirkus Reviews
❤️ ✨ Let these romcom mysteries take you away...to a cozy world of romance, humor, and happy endings! ✨❤️
The day Mira's father chose alcohol over his family, the pain about crushed her. She fled the tiny town where everyone knew her business and built a new life in the big city, one short on friends but long on emotional safety. When she caught her bass-playing boyfriend tuning another woman’s instrument, though, the life she'd carefully crafted came crashing down.
She became that abandoned girl all over again, fleeing to a small town very much like the one she'd escaped.
There, she’s shocked to land a wonderful librarian job, great friends, and Johnny, the kind, uber-sexy gardener who seems fated to be her one true love. It’s too bad about the clock ticking on her stay.
That, and the alarming number of murders. ✨❤️
WARNING: Belly laughs, suspense, clumsy romance, and a good-hearted crew dying to become your new best friends lie within these pages. Do not open until you're ready to escape into a laugh-out-loud, page-turning adventure!
This convenient bundle includes these four, bingeworthy, full-length novels, which are the first four books in the series:
May Day
June Bug
Knee High by the Fourth of July
August Moon
⭐ "Get started on this Lefty-nominated series if you've previously missed it!" ―Library Journal (starred review)
⭐ Jess Lourey named to Book Riot's "10 Funny Mystery Authors Like Janet Evanovich" list!
Inspired by a terrifying true story from the author’s hometown, a heart-pounding novel of suspense about a small Minnesota community where nothing is as quiet—or as safe—as it seems.
Cassie McDowell’s life in 1980s Minnesota seems perfectly wholesome. She lives on a farm, loves school, and has a crush on the nicest boy in class. Yes, there are her parents’ strange parties and their parade of deviant guests, but she’s grown accustomed to them.
All that changes when someone comes hunting in Lilydale.
One by one, local boys go missing. One by one, they return changed—violent, moody, and withdrawn. What happened to them becomes the stuff of shocking rumors. The accusations of who’s responsible grow just as wild, and dangerous town secrets start to surface. Then Cassie’s own sister undergoes the dark change. If she is to survive, Cassie must find her way in an adult world where every sin is justified, and only the truth is unforgivable.
Perfect town. Perfect homes. Perfect families. It’s enough to drive some women mad…
In a tale inspired by real events, pregnant journalist Joan Harken is cautiously excited to follow her fiancé back to his Minnesota hometown. After spending a childhood on the move and chasing the screams and swirls of news-rich city life, she’s eager to settle down. Lilydale’s motto, “Come Home Forever,” couldn’t be more inviting.
And yet, something is off in the picture-perfect village.
The friendliness borders on intrusive. Joan can’t shake the feeling that every move she makes is being tracked. An archaic organization still seems to hold the town in thrall. So does the sinister secret of a little boy who vanished decades ago. And unless Joan is imagining things, a frighteningly familiar figure from her past is on watch in the shadows.
Her fiancé tells her she’s being paranoid. He might be right. Then again, she might have moved to the deadliest small town on earth.
What if everything you thought you knew about Stonehenge was wrong?
When agoraphobic genius Salem Wiley lands her dream job as an FBI cryptanalyst, she vows never to return to the witch hunt underworld, where ancient secrets encrypted by hunted women have the power to rewrite history. Her resolve disappears when sweet Mercy Mayfair, the child she is pledged to protect, is kidnapped.
As the clock ticks, Salem must face the terrible truth that there is only one way to free Mercy: crack the unbreakable code of Stonehenge.
Mercy's Chase is the second in an ongoing series of heart-pounding thrillers:
Salem's Cipher
Mercy's Chase
Praise for Salem's Cipher:
★ "...[A] hair-raising thrill ride." ―Library Journal (starred review)
★ "A fast-paced, sometimes brutal thriller reminiscent of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code." ―Booklist (starred review)
Librarian and aspiring PI Mira James has stumbled across one dead body a month since moving to the small town of Battle Lake, Minnesota, and she'd give her left foot to break that streak this April. Things aren't looking good when a local girl vanishes and Mira discovers a disturbing note that suggests her father—dead for ten years—is connected to the disappearance.
To make matters worse, chiseled police chief Gary Wohnt is scrutinizing her every move, aching to finally put her behind bars or in bed. And the cherry on this crap sundae? Mira discovers that her sexy Adonis boyfriend, Johnny, is planning a surprise for her. Problem is, she doesn't know if it's a marriage proposal or an intervention.
April Fools is a funny and fast-paced romcom mystery guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat when you aren't laughing in the aisles. Grab your copy and join the Battle Lake crew today!
⭐ Jess Lourey named to Book Riot's "10 Funny Mystery Authors Like Janet Evanovich" list
⭐ "I read this out of order. It made no difference and I absolutely loved it...this is a fast-paced page turner." ―Jane B. (NetGalley)
⭐ "What a fun, cheeky, cleverly-plotted book! I'm not the typical 'mystery reader' but...I was very glad I gave it a chance. Recommend!" ―Jenna H. (NetGalley)
A doll walks into a bar...
Ida Gilbertson of the Battle Lake Senior Sunset has a new hobby: crafting life-sized dolls to display around town. Budding PI Mira James finds the homemade mannequins creepy enough on their own, but when she's forced to sit next to one and discovers a human corpse under the hat and wig, it becomes personal.
Police Chief Gary Wohnt, trying to save face because of his newfound attraction to Mira, is all too eager to pin the blame on her. When her sleuthing gives him the perfect excuse to lock her up, it's up to Mayor Kennie Rogers and Mrs. Berns to help her escape.
Racing against the clock, Mira must unmask the murderer before she either becomes a jailbird...or the next dolled-up victim.
⭐ Jess Lourey named to Book Riot's "10 Funny Mystery Authors Like Janet Evanovich" list! ⭐
✨ Finalist for the Lefty Award for Best Humorous Mystery ✨
There's big trouble brewing in little Battle Lake...
Beer and polka music reign supreme at October Fest, Battle Lake's premier fall festival. To kick off the celebration, the town hosts a public debate between the two congressional candidates: straight-laced Arnold Swydecker and slippery incumbent, Sarah Glokkmann.
As a reporter for the Battle Lake Recall, Mira James is roped into writing up the word war. But the festive mood sours when a visiting blogger is found dead. To keep the heat off her best friend's fiancé―an ex-con reporter―Mira wades through the candidates' dirty laundry and some murderous mudslinging to expose the killer.
⭐ "Snappy jokes...and the classic romance setup enhance a clever plot...get started on this Lefty-nominated series if you've previously missed it!" ―Library Journal (starred review)
⭐ "Lourey has cleverly created an entertaining murder mystery with the most unlikely murder accomplice ever. Her latest is loaded with humor, and many of the descriptions are downright poetic."—Booklist (starred review)
From Amazon Charts bestselling author Jess Lourey comes a compilation of three full-length, romcom mystery novels that will leave you guessing―and laughing―until the very end! These are the included books:
September Mourn
October Fest
November Hunt
Ride along with fish-out-of-water Mira James and her quirky Battle Lake crew as they navigate hilarious romance, hidden mysteries, and a dead body a month. Three laugh-out-loud page-turners in one convenient bundle!
⭐ "Lourey has cleverly created an entertaining murder mystery with the most unlikely murder accomplice ever. Her latest is loaded with humor, and many of the descriptions are downright poetic." ―Booklist (starred review)
⭐ Jess Lourey named to Book Riot's "10 Funny Mystery Authors Like Janet Evanovich" list!
The Amazon Charts bestselling author of Unspeakable Things and Bloodline explores the darkness at the heart of the rural Midwest in a novel inspired by a chilling true crime.
In the summer of ’84, fourteen-year-old Frankie Jubilee is shuttled off to Litani, Minnesota, to live with her estranged mother, a county prosecutor she barely knows. From the start, Frankie senses something uneasy going on in the small town. The locals whisper about The Game, and her mother warns her to stay out of the woods and away from adults.
When a bullying gang of girls invites Frankie to The Game, she accepts, determined to find out what’s really going on in Litani. She’s not the only one becoming paranoid. Hysteria burns through the community. Dark secrets emerge. And Frankie fears that, even in the bright light of day, she might be living among monsters.
✨ "[An] incredible series!" ―Suspense Magazine ✨
From Amazon Charts bestselling author Jess Lourey comes the latest bundle of three full-length, hilarious, romcom mysteries that will leave you guessing―and laughing―until the very end!
December Dread
January Thaw
February Fever
Ride alongside fish-out-of-water Mira James as she combines her unique detective style with humor and wit to solve a murder a month. Three unputdownable romcom mysteries in one convenient bundle!
*Don't forget to check out March of Crimes and April Fools, the explosive series finales!
⭐ "The best outing yet for Mira." ―Kirkus Reviews
⭐ Jess Lourey named to Book Riot's "10 Funny Mystery Authors Like Janet Evanovich" list!
Killers hiding in plain sight. Small-town secrets. A girl who knows too much. From the Amazon Charts bestselling author of Unspeakable Things and Bloodline comes a nerve-twisting novel inspired by a shocking true crime.
Minnesota, 1977. For the teens of one close-knit community, summer means late-night swimming parties at the quarry, the county fair, and venturing into the tunnels beneath the city. But for two best friends, it’s not all fun and games.
Heather and Brenda have a secret. Something they saw in the dark. Something they can’t forget. They’ve decided to never tell a soul. But their vow is tested when their friend disappears—the second girl to vanish in a week. And yet the authorities are reluctant to investigate.
Heather is terrified that the missing girls are connected to what she and Brenda stumbled upon that night. Desperately searching for answers on her own, she learns that no one in her community is who they seem to be. Not the police, not the boys she met at the quarry, not even her parents. But she can’t stop digging because she knows those girls are in danger.
She also knows she’s next.
- ←Previous Page
- 1
- 2
- 3
- Next Page→