Available Formats
You Always Come Back: A Novel
By (Author) Emily Smith
Crooked Lane Books
Crooked Lane Books
8th October 2024
United States
General
Fiction
813.6
Paperback
320
Width 139mm, Height 209mm
369g
Nine years ago, July Weaver's little sister was one of the first victims of the Pacific Lake Killer, a serial killer in Georgia. When other girls began to disappear and were found dead, it was July's testimony that put her own father into prison for the crimes. After the sentencing, she fled to Nashville to focus on her music career and to try to forget the horrible past. But when her brother tries to kill himself, July is forced to come back home and reunite with her four remaining siblings. What she isn't expecting is to uncover new evidence that makes her question everything that happened to her sister nine years ago. Is it possible that July blamed the wrong person Is it possible that the Pacific Lake Killer is still out there As the linchpin to the case against her father-and the reason the Pacific Lake Killer case is closed-July knows it isn't long before the killer will set their eyes back on her. If they're really still out there. In the vein of Kathleen Barber and Julia Heaberlin comes an electrifying debut suspense that pits the inhabitants of a small town against each other. Nine years ago, July Weaver's little sister was one of the first victims of the Pacific Lake Killer, a serial killer in Georgia. When other girls began to disappear and were found dead, it was July's testimony that put her own father into prison for the crimes. After the sentencing, she fled to Nashville to focus on her music career and to try to forget the horrible past. But when her brother tries to kill himself, July is forced to come back home and reunite with her four remaining siblings. What she isn't expecting is to uncover new evidence that makes her question everything that happened to her sister nine years ago. Is it possible that July blamed the wrong person Is it possible that the Pacific Lake Killer is still out there As the linchpin to the case against her father-and the reason the Pacific Lake Killer case is closed-July knows it isn't long before the killer will set their eyes back on her. If they're really still out there.
Praise for You Always Come Back
Fantastic and hard to put down.
Portland Book Review, 5-star review
A great psychological thriller that hits all the right notes. Strong writing, and great characters make this a good fall novel.
Red Carpet Crash
Emily Smiths psychological thriller You Always Come Back is a tense, absorbing, heartbreaking, and absolutely unputdownable debut; a masterful portrait of what may well be the ultimate dysfunctional family. Smiths quirky yet realistic characters along with her gorgeous prose grabbed me from the first page, while her expert plotting and her unique take on the challenges of escaping a less-than-perfect childhood kept me enthralled until the very end. Highly recommended!
Karen Dionne, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of The Marsh Kings Daughter and The Wicked Sister
Emily Smiths You Always Come Back is one of those very rare debuts that forces you to lean over and read every single word. A family drama in the ranks of Shirley Jacksons The Haunting of Hill House, Smiths story follows July Weavers reluctant return to her family home after vowing never to do so. And who would blame her The Weaver family has a sordid and heartbreaking past, culminating with the patriarch in prison for a series of murders. Smiths writing is sublime and, in July Weaver, she pens a fierce, vulnerable, and flawed protagonist who ranks amongst the most memorable in modern-day thrillers. This is a story that will stay with me for some time.
Carter Wilson, USA Today bestselling author of Mister Tenders Girl
Strong character-driven novel from a writer with a deliciously strong, unique voice. One of the most satisfying reads I've had in a good while.
Alex Marwood, award-winning author of The Killer Next Door
Stunning and accomplished, You Always ComeBack is the serial killer story wed all love to write. Following July and her perfectly-drawn, dysfunctional family, it weaves a tale of trauma and doubt as it crosses between present day and the awful events all those years ago. Compelling and heartbreaking and more than a little bit horrific, I read it breathless for the final, desperate, conclusion.
Sam Holland, author of The Echo Man
Emily Smith is a New Jersey native, who pursued her BFA in Dramatic Writing at NYU and her MFA in Creative Writing at American University. In her spare time, she enjoys writing novels, gardening, reading, and caring for her rambunctious Greater Swiss Mountain Dog.