Beach Thriller
- Judith D Collins
- Apr 13
- 3 min read
By: Jamie Day
Narrators: Emily Shaffer, Jane Oppenheimer, Jennifer Pickens, Megan Tusing
Macmillan Audio
ISBN: 9781250358233
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: 06/09/2026
Format: Other
My Rating: 5 Stars (ARC)
The next riveting summer suspense by the author of THE BLOCK PARTY, ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY, and THE LAKE ESCAPE Jamie Day.
It's been nearly twenty years since Holly last visited the charming town of Beauport, Massachusetts, and it remains as enchanting as she remembers. The boardwalk is still lively with tourists browsing shops and exploring art galleries. Crescent Beach looks unchanged, with light reflecting off the cold Atlantic waves. However, Holly's painful memories still linger. She feels intense pangs of guilt, just as strong now as they were then—when her sister tragically died right here in Beauport, and Holly did nothing to stop it.
As a struggling writer, declining sales have forced Holly out of her cherished New York apartment. Now, she must live in the last place she wants: her family's long-abandoned beach house, where she last saw her sister alive.
Holly arrives on a mission from her literary agent to write a best-selling book. But she’s not the only one with an agenda. Someone is watching Holly's every move from the shadows. The Watcher sees all and knows what Holly doesn’t. Some secrets must remain buried.
With writer’s block and a long-neglected cottage to fix, Holly feels as though she’s drowning in financial burdens. Reinventing herself won’t be easy, but she does make some helpful friends along the way. There's Gail, the property-obsessed realtor who introduces her to a friendly handyman named Ethan. The local psychic, Serena, also supports her, although she warns of impending danger. Then there's the young, mysterious Jade, a runaway teen in Beauport on a secret mission. Jade has nowhere to go, so Holly takes her in. When Jade lands a job with the powerful Carmichael family, Holly feels overwhelmed with dread. The Carmichaels' influence in town has waned over the years, but they will always have a dark connection to her tragic past. Their hidden secrets could also endanger young Jade.
As threats from the ominous Watcher become increasingly sinister, Holly realizes that, even though the distant past is a faint echo, it is still close enough to be deadly.
Praise
“Set in an idyllic New England seaside town, Jamie Day's new thriller is rife with juicy gossip, slippery locals, and more than one buried secret. Day is a master plotter--the twists piling up like waves on a shore--but also a born entertainer, ratcheting up the suspense while also delivering complicated family dynamics, a touching love story, and a sly sense of humor. A real page-turner.” -- Peter Swanson, author of KILL YOUR DARLINGS
Seductive, sinister, and impossible to put down, Beach Thriller proves that there’s nothing more dangerous than returning to the place where your worst secrets were born. Jamie Day turns a postcard-perfect seaside town into a pressure cooker of guilt, buried truths, and quiet menace, where the past watches―and waits. Smart, atmospheric, and deliciously unsettling, this is the kind of beach read that lures you in with sunlight and charm…then tightens its grip long after the last page. Bravo!
-- Kaira Rouda, author of WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS
In Beach Thriller, Jamie Day trades crashing waves for creeping dread. When a struggling writer returns to the beach town where her sister died, she plans to rewrite her future―but someone’s watching, and they know exactly where the bodies are hidden. Twisty, taut, and laced with unease, this is a seaside suspense story with teeth.
~ Kimberly Belle, author of THE EXPAT AFFAIR
“Take the familiar themes of sisterhood, a cold case and a woman’s reluctant return to her small home town, put them in the hands of master Jamie Day, and you have BEACH THRILLER, a slow build Gothic suspense that keeps you reading while on the edge of your seat.”
― Christina Dodd, author of THUS WITH A KISS I DIE
About the Author
Jamie Day lives in one of those picture-perfect, coastal New England towns you see in the movies. And just like the movies, Jamie has two children and an adorable dog to fawn over. When not writing or reading, Jamie enjoys yoga, the ocean, cooking, and long walks on the beach with the dog, or the kids, or sometimes both. INSTAGRAM
