I am thrilled to finally share the news that my second novel, SMALL SECRETS, will be publishing this October with Thomas & Mercer in ebook, paperback, and audio!
SMALL SECRETS is the story of two true crime podcasters, now on a disgraced hiatus after wrongfully accusing an innocent man, who decide to reinvestigate an unsolved murder from their hometown seventeen years ago after the killer strikes again in the present. But as they dig up hometown secrets that were meant to stay in the past, the foundation of their friendship cracks. How well do either of them really know what happened that night — or each other?
SMALL SECRETS is my love letter to the true crime boom that has kept me riveted (and paranoid!) during evening walks and 2am insomnia sessions when every creak or rustle sounds murderous. If you’re a true crime fan who devoured Dahmer, who never misses a Ted Bundy documentary, or whose favourite thing is My Favorite Murder, this book is for you.
Because I love true crime. I’m facinated by the depravity of serial killers, and the unspeakable horrors they inflict upon others. I devour stories of murder and beheading and bodies being found in the woods. I’m a true crime fan — which means, technically, that I’m a fan of murder.
SMALL SECRETS is a book about the guilty, squirmy feeling I get when “enjoying” a story about someone’s death. It’s about the blurred line between true crime and crime fiction, and the idea of bereaved families’ pain being used to sell movie tickets or fund a podcaster’s new house.
Violent death has been commercialised. But — and I ask this as someone who is paid to write about murder — should it be?
As many of you know, my first novel THE EDGE is a deeply emotional thriller about depression, grief, and loss, and I put a lot of my own feelings and anxieties onto the page. I worked through my trauma as Clementine worked through hers, and it’s something that resonated with a lot of readers.
Well, SMALL SECRETS comes from a Lucy Goacher who just wanted to have fun.
Forget trauma — this book is dark, creepy, and cool. It’s a perfect-for-Halloween romp through true crime clichés, giving you paranoia between friends, blood-soaked crime scenes, and some twists I’m really excited for you to experience. And I’m desperate to get my hands on the audiobook version — I can’t wait to see how the narrators have brought Stevie and Nate’s banter to life in the podcast extracts dotted throughout the book!
I wrote SMALL SECRETS while I was stressed about THE EDGE publishing, and I was so scared of getting it wrong that I put off starting it until about two months before my deadline. I pulled more all-nighters than I can remember, trying coffee for the first time to keep me going (not a fan!) while being driven insane by the flies I realised too late had moved into my bedroom houseplants and were constantly swarming my screen.
But even in this state, I loved the book. Right before deadline, I went walking alone on Halloween in the rain, seeing kids in their costumes and shop windows festooned with cobwebs and pumpkins, and I just knew I had something. SMALL SECRETS will always be the book of wet autumn leaves, tired eyes, and the solitude of midnight.
And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
So, if you’re interested in a slick, fun psychological thriller with horror elements, you can read more about SMALL SECRETS (and find the pre-order links!) here.
Lucy Goacher 