The Bodies

Longlisted for the 2026 CWA Twisted Dagger Award

From the author of Richard & Judy Book Club pick The Memory Wood.

The edge-of-your-seat, chilling thriller you won't forget--the perfect holiday read for fans of Alex Michaelides and Lucy Foley.

"Blood-chilling... the best hook of any thriller in the last few years." -- Helen Fields, author of The Profiler

When did your child become a killer?

When you look down at your newborn baby, you realize what other parents mean--you would do anything to keep your child safe.

So when Joseph Carver wakes one night to find his teenage son, Max, covered in blood--his voice shaking as he insists it was a mistake--Joseph does the only thing he can.

He helps Max bury the body.

Joseph thinks that's the end of the nightmare--until it happens again.

You'd do anything for your child--even cover up a murder. But would you do it twice?

Readers can't get enough of The Bodies:

"A twisty, relatable, endlessly gripping thriller." -- T.M. Logan
"Brilliantly written and genuinely terrifying." -- that's life (Crime Scene)
"The definition of unputdownable. A fantastic thriller." -- Lisa Ballantyne
"So tense I could barely breathe!" -- Jackie Kabler

"A razor-sharp thriller--atmospheric, intense, unnerving, and addictive." -- Five-star reader review
"I was hooked after the first chapter... unputdownable!" -- Five-star reader review
"Never lets up with thrills... deserves five stars and more." -- Five-star reader review
"A fabulous thriller... truly nail-biting." -- Five-star reader review

Praise for Sam Lloyd:

"Propulsive, sinister, gripping." -- Alex Michaelides
"An intense, atmospheric, and truly original thriller." -- Shari Lapena
"Original, creepy, utterly addictive." -- Andrea Mara
"Remarkable. Undoubtedly the best thriller I've read in a long time." -- Lesley Kara
"Fiendishly clever." -- Sunday Times
"A rare new thriller talent." -- Daily Mail

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Transworld
Published: 10/27/2026
ISBN: 9781529177411
Pages: 384
Weight: 0.81lbs