Dead Girls Tell No Tales

by Carissa Ann Lynch

Some stories refuse to die.

In a forgotten corner of small-town Indiana, Adrianna McMahon serves up nuts and fudge at the mall while hiding from her dark past. When her seventeen-year-old coworker, Rebel James, drops off a bloodstained notebook full of stories about missing girls, Adrianna recognizes a haunting pattern—one leading straight to New Day High School, where her own nightmare began decades ago.

Then Rebel disappears and the bodies of dead girls start appearing.

Each murder mirrors one of Rebel's stories with terrifying precision. But they also hint at Adrianna's own past and a secret she hasn't told a soul. But how could Rebel, or anyone, have known? It's not long before the police are asking questions . . . and Adrianna doesn't have the right answers.

As body count rises, Adrianna must Is Rebel crying out for help, or luring her into a twisted game? The truth might cost Adrianna everything—including her life.

2026 by Carissa Ann Lynch. ℗ 2026 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Mystery Thriller, Fiction, Ebooks, Crime, Suspense

Audible Audio

First published August 1, 2026

About the author

Besides my family, my greatest love in life is books. Reading them, writing them, holding them, smelling them…well, you get the idea. I’ve always loved to read, and some of my earliest childhood memories are me, tucked away in my room, lost in a good book. I received a five dollar allowance each week, and I always — always — spent it on books. My love affair with writing started early, but it mostly involved journaling and writing silly poems. Several years ago, I didn’t have a book to read so I decided on a whim to write my own story, something I’d like to read. It turned out to be harder than I thought, but from that point on I was hooked. My first and second books were released by Sarah Book Publishing: This Is Not About Love and Grayson’s Ridge. I’m a total genre-hopper. Basically, I like to write what I like to read: a little bit of everything! I reside in Floyds Knobs, Indiana with my husband, three children, and massive collection of books. I have a degree in psychology and worked as a counselor.

Reviews

[megs_bookrack · Rating 4 out of 5]

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Dead Girls Tell No Tales follows a downtrodden Fantasy author, Adriana McMahon, who after some life issues, moves back in with her Mom in her small Indiana hometown.

Adriana, struggling with writer's block, is running out of money quick. At this point, she's worried her publisher is going to show up, demanding her advance back. It's dire times at the McMahon house.



Desperate to make ends meet, Adriana gets a job at a local shop. It's there that she meets 17-year old, Rebel James, a high school girl with a love of creative writing.

Rebel is noticeably an outcast amongst her peers. She's in need of a friend, or any sort of adult figure in her life, frankly. When she approaches Adriana about helping her with a writing project, Adriana's hesitant, but she also sees glimmers of herself in Rebel, and does want to help.

She ends accepting Rebel's request, and becomes a bit of a mentor to the teen. When Rebel suddenly disappears, and bodies of dead girls begin being found in the local area, Adriana becomes desperate to find out if her friend is okay, something no one else seems to understand.



Making matters more upsetting, it seems the murders are mirroring some of Rebel's stories. Was Rebel trying to tell Adriana something through her writing?

Additionally, it all seems oddly-connected to Adriana's own past, stirring up buried memories of her best friend she lost years before. The entire affair puts Adriana in a tailspin, making her logic and reasoning hard for others to follow.

Her Mom thinks she's lost it, as do the local authorities, who are watching her closely because of her arguably erratic behavior. But Adriana knows something dark is going on in this town, and she's gonna get to the bottom of it come hell or high water.



Dead Girls Tell No Tales is a true Popcorn Thriller. I could totally imagine this playing out as a Lifetime movie, and I don't mean that in a bad way.

It kept me invested the whole way through. It did take me a few minutes to get used to Adriana's narrative voice. She's a quirky one, but after I just accepted the fact it is who she is, I started to really enjoy it.

I think part of it is related to the personal tragedies she suffered as teen. I feel like she got sort of stunted in that part of her growth, so at times, you think, how old is this woman? But honestly, in relation to everything going on, it does make sense.



I wouldn't say there's anything ground-breaking about the plot, but it was still entertaining and a fun weekend read. Sometimes, that's all you need.

I think The Bachelorette Party is still my favorite from this author, but this would be a close second. It reminded me a lot of Whispers of Dead Girls by Marlee Bush, and I did enjoy this one more.

I would recommend this to Readers of Popcorn Thrillers. If you're looking for something quick and suspenseful, that won't require you to burn down all your brain power during the reading process, this could be the book for you.



Thank you to the publisher, Thomas & Mercer, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I had a great time.

[Sarah Cramer · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was…ok. Interesting premise, poor execution. I believe this book was written by AI, and here’s why:

1- The story does not match the Goodreads and Amazon descriptions. It feels like someone wrote the description, plugged it into AI, then forgot to check to make sure all of the elements were there.
2- The characters are very one-dimensional and behave in inconsistent ways.
3- The writing style was off. At times, it reminded me of a sixth grader writing in a diary.
4- There are so many clichés that I laughed out loud more than once (“goodbye cruel world”…really?).
5- The overabundance of em dashes.

I received this book for free from Amazon First Reads, and it’s probably one of the worst ones I’ve ever gotten. I rarely rate books this low, but I couldn’t, in good conscience, go any higher.

[Emma Nelson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was tricked by the description and these reviews wtf was that 😭

[Steve Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't identify with the main character Adrianna, a struggling writer, who makes one bad decision after another and fails to learn from any of them.

The book shows promise early with the intriguing friendship/mentor-student/coworker relationship that develops between Adrianna and Rebel, a troubled teen.

Working together at a nut shop (was this an inside joke?), they uncover clues and become much too heavily involved in a string of killings, involving young girls at an alternative school, which both attended.

Then Rebel disappears and Adrianna is on her own, free to make poorer decisions than ever.

She is determined to find out what happened to Rebel and to learn the truth about who killed the other girls ... and possibly Rebel. She pushes and probes, fails to tell police all that she knows, and behaves so suspiciously that she becomes a suspect herself.

The ending fizzles, descending into comic book/grade B horror movie territory with regard to both plot and dialogue.

Remember the old cliche in which the ditzy horror movie victim pauses at the top of the stairs leading to a dark basement and everyone screams, "No, no, no ... don't go!" ... but she goes anyway?

Coming down the home stretch, Adrianna makes several bad decisions in a row that are even worse than this.

Even the most patient of readers may feel like standing up and hollering, "What were you thinking?!"

All of this aside, readers may find themselves rooting for Adrianna anyway, if they make it as far as the final pages.

[Jordan Guerrero · Rating 2 out of 5]

**⭐️⭐️ 2/5 Stars**

I've always found it a little strange when someone chooses to be friends with someone half their age. It feels like it says more about them than the story ever intends to. That was my first red flag with Adrianna, who came across as someone desperately trying to hold onto her youth and relive her high school days.

My biggest problem with this book was Adrianna herself. She has a remarkable talent for doing the exact opposite of what any reasonable person would do and then acting completely shocked when it blows up in her face. Every time I thought, "surely she can't make a dumber decision than that," she somehow managed to prove me wrong. At some point, it stops being a flawed character making mistakes and starts feeling like the plot only moves forward because everyone is acting like an idiot.

And honestly, that's what frustrated me most. We don't have to write stupid characters to create tension. There are plenty of ways to keep a story moving without making readers question how these people have survived this long.

By the end, I realized I just didn't care. The characters were bland, frustrating, and so busy making terrible decisions that I found it hard to stay invested in what happened to them. When something dramatic happened, my reaction wasn't concern, it was more along the lines of, "well, what did you think was going to happen?"

I honestly still don't know how I feel about this book other than knowing I didn't enjoy most of my time with it. The characters annoyed me, the story never fully pulled me in, and once I finished, I was mostly relieved to be done with it.

At best, this was a 2 star read for me.

[Barbara Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unsure...

What am I unsure of. Well, first I am trying to determine which exact genre this book would be called. Sci-fi, mystery, crime novel, teenage mellow drama or just an undetermined set of fantasies mixed in with a whole lot of poor decisions. Well, I read it from start to finish but I suppose it should be classified as YA drama and call it done.

[Nicole]

i quit i can’t stand this woman

[Vanessa Sumner · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is terrible. I only made it halfway through before I came to the reviews to see what other people made of it. It is so weirdly written and doesn’t seem human. I don’t know if Amazon is testing AI books out on us to see if we will like them or what but this has to be AI or AI assisted. There are all these weird mistakes such as the MC’s glasses. The purpose of the glasses kept changing. In one scene she’s wearing them for reading and the next scene she can’t see something far away because she’s not wearing her glasses. This is exactly the type of mistakes AI makes. Or all the exclamation points. Human authors, especially thriller writers, just don’t use them in this manner.
The story kept getting increasingly daft. For example, at one point the MC walks across glass in her bare feet. The AI author then has her pacing in the glass and then “I’m walking on my tiptoes now, like a ballerina, dancing toward a death show…”. Yes, the ellipses are everywhere (there are 7 sets of ellipses on page 172 alone). And yes, she’s tiptoeing barefoot through glass to get a closer look at her laptop screen. It’s just so dumb, guys. I really can’t see a human author writing something this terrible and getting chosen out of hundreds of books to be put on Amazon First Reads. This has got to be an experiment. It makes me want to cancel my Prime membership more than ever, honestly.

[Susan Davis]

Talky. Preposterous. Preachy. Silly

Talky. Preposterous. Preachy. Silly. Mostly silly. Sounds like a teenager tho hero is supposed to be grown.Mish mash of common tropes.

.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this as my Amazon First Reads for July. This book is crazy. It was a little slow and annoying in some parts but once it got going it was a ride.

[Wendy Westfere]

Nope.

[ritα ⏾⋆.˚ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m sorry, this just wasn’t for me. At all.
A grown woman obsessed with a teenager? Nope.

Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for the ALC of this book in return for a honest review.

[Victoria (storieswithtorie) · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. Did not like the writing whatsoever

[Dawn McGill Dalrymple · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh

[|Stephanie| · Rating 3 out of 5]

The life of a writer . . . It’s strange, to say the least. It’s a life of boredom, but for someone who hasn’t left the house in days, I consider myself well traveled.

[Kristina Haro · Rating 4 out of 5]

This may be the best book I’ve ever read that was a “Kindle First Reads” freebie. I was shocked at the ending. The last 10% of the book read like a horror movie. The narrator was a little bit annoying as she kept putting herself in danger, but she had good intentions. As always, I do get irritated whenever fictional towns are “made up” instead of using real town names. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this and plan to read her other books.

[Emma · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m making a mental note of the approximately half a dozen “mental notes” in the first chapter.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We are no longer the keepers of your secrets."

This quote alone makes me so glad I went back to finish this sooner rather than later(or even never with how busy I've been). I put this down because I had a flare-up and when it was over I had to move on to my newer stuff on the list but this week I decided I needed to clear my immediate backlist and I am not disappointed. The main character did annoy me, she has this very grating/childish feeling personality but after I looked past that and got invested in the murders everything went smoothly. I liked the ending and was slightly shocked with the outcome but still felt satisfied.

[Shayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was an easy to read mystery thriller. Adriana isn’t a particularly likable main character so it’s unfortunate we get stuck in her head and angst for the entire book as she tries to figure out what has happened to her co-worker/friend (?) Rebel. The description of the book is not at all what the story is about. First of all, the notebook is not blood stained or full of stories of missing girls. It barely features in the story. The only missing girl Adriana ever focuses on for the whole book is Rebel. Both girls did attend New Day, an alternative high school, but there are no haunting patterns. The murders do not mirror Rebel’s stories because we never really get to know much about the notebook. Adriana doesn’t have the right answers when she is questioned by the police because she doesn’t think, takes stupid risks, and does things even though she knows it won’t look good just to find out the truth and keep the plot going. Ugh! The person writing the description either didn’t read the book or it’s AI. I felt a little disappointed because the description promised a lot it didn’t deliver.

I think I’d like this book better if Adriana was smarter and more likable as a main character or there were other perspectives or timelines. I have a hard time with any book where the character is so much in her head and just worrying constantly. It’s repetitive and really drags down the pace of the book because I just want to skip all the internal dialogue.

Thank you to NetGalley & Thomas and Mercer for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Catherine mercier · Rating 2 out of 5]

This grown ass women’s obsession with a 17 year old was not it for me. DNF. I tried.

[Kirsten Desorcy · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

This story is interesting. First of all, I appreciated that the author sucks you into the story from the start. The thing that threw me off was that the MC was supposed to be 38 but talks, acts and thinks like a teenager. It could be due to her stolen innocence, but I think of it more as her need to escape reality. The poor decisions taken throughout the story definitely are more juvenile and immature than expected and it frustrated me. I liked the premise of the story but I wanted a bit more depth into the characters. A bit more maturity perhaps? Because even the adults felt very immature with their dialogue and reactions. I did like that the author inserted a bit of herself within the pages, bringing in a bit of humor and vulnerability. Overall, the book was one that I didn’t want to put down (I finished it in a few hours) but felt like it was missing something that would appeal to a more mature audience. 3.75⭐️

Also note to author/publisher: the abstract for the novel has some inconsistencies with the book - I’d recommend fixing that (the notebook wasn’t bloodstained and didn’t specifically mention dead girls).

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a complimentary advanced copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own and are in no way influenced by the author, publisher or NetGalley.

[Courtney McGhee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I actually REALLY enjoyed this one! Was it perfect? Absolutely not. Did I question some of the writing and character decisions? CONSTANTLY. 😂 But did I have a good time reading it? YES!

First of all, CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOW THE DESCRIPTION OF THIS BOOK ISN’T EVEN ACCURATE?!

The synopsis makes it sound like Rebel drops off this mysterious, bloodstained notebook filled with stories about missing girls, and then girls start turning up dead in ways that perfectly mirror those stories. UMMM…THAT’S NOT REALLY WHAT HAPPENS?! The notebook isn’t even bloodstained, and it plays nowhere near the role the description suggests. I went into this expecting a thriller about fictional murders coming to life. Instead, I got a story about grooming, manipulation, childhood trauma, obsession, and a predator who has apparently been getting away with his behavior for decades. And honestly? I liked the actual story better than the one they advertised!

Now, let’s talk about Adrianna. MA’AM. YOU ARE 38 YEARS OLD. PLEASE ACT LIKE IT. 🤦🏼‍♀️ My biggest complaint was that the writing felt a little juvenile at times. Adrianna is supposed to be a grown woman, but some of her internal dialogue and decisions made her seem like a teenager. The repetitive thoughts, dramatic reactions, and complete lack of self-preservation had me wanting to reach into the book and shake her. But I did like her determination to find Rebel. Their unlikely friendship was sweet, and I appreciated that Adrianna refused to give up on a girl who seemed to have very few people looking out for her.

NOW LET’S TALK ABOUT THAT TEACHER. The fact that the same teacher who groomed and took advantage of Adrianna when she was younger was STILL doing it to his students all these years later was absolutely disgusting. And this was honestly one of the most disturbing and interesting aspects of the entire book. Adrianna spent years carrying the trauma of what happened to her, and meanwhile, this man was continuing the exact same behavior with another generation of vulnerable girls. HOW MANY GIRLS DID THIS MAN HAVE TO HURT BEFORE SOMEBODY FINALLY STOPPED HIM?! I thought the book did a good job showing how grooming can affect someone long after the abuse ends, especially when the adult responsible is allowed to continue living his life without consequences.

But then we get to the CURRENT STUDENT. GIRL. WHAT IN THE ACTUAL WORLD WAS WRONG WITH YOU?! 😳
Finding out that the teacher was still involved with a student was disturbing enough, but discovering that she had taken things to an entirely different level and was actually holding Rebel captive and TORTURING HER?! I did not see that coming! I was expecting the teacher to be directly responsible for everything, so I loved that the story took the situation in another direction. The manipulation, jealousy, and obsession surrounding that relationship made the whole situation even more twisted.

And can we PLEASE discuss THE ROOM FULL OF CREEPY DOLLS?! ABSOLUTELY NOT. 💀 Of all the places Adrianna could have discovered Rebel, she finds her being held captive in a room surrounded by dolls?! I don’t know what it is about dolls, but putting them in an already horrifying situation makes everything approximately 100 times creepier. 😂 That entire reveal was so unsettling, and I loved it! The idea that Rebel was alive but had been trapped and tortured while everyone was trying to piece together what happened to her was terrifying.

I also loved how the mystery eventually connected Adrianna’s past with Rebel’s present. What initially seemed like separate situations turned out to be tied to the same cycle of abuse and manipulation. And that’s what made the ending work for me. It wasn’t just about finding a missing girl. It was about Adrianna being forced to confront something she’d spent years trying to bury, while realizing that the same predator who had hurt her was still hurting other girls. THE MAN WAS THE COMMON DENOMINATOR IN ALL OF THIS. And while I appreciated the twists, I also couldn’t help thinking about how much of this could have been prevented if someone had taken the original abuse seriously. That was probably the most upsetting part of the entire story.

I will say that some of the final confrontations felt a little over-the-top, almost like something out of a horror movie. But honestly? By that point, I was invested enough that I didn’t care. 😂 The story was fast-paced, the chapters were short, and I genuinely wanted to know what happened next. Even when Adrianna was making decisions that had me questioning her intelligence, I couldn’t stop reading.

My biggest criticisms are still the somewhat juvenile writing, Adrianna’s questionable decision-making, and the completely misleading book description.

But overall, I thought the mystery was clever, the twists were entertaining, and the darker themes gave the story more substance than I originally expected.

[Candie Holland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book# 88 2026
"Dead Girls Tell No Tales" ~ Carissa Ann Lynch
⭐⭐⭐⭐

" Dark, Twisted, and Completely Addictive"

"Dead Girls Tell No Tales" by Carissa Ann Lynch was a fast-paced, twisty read that kept me guessing. The story has that deliciously dark mix of secrets, lies, complicated relationships, and the feeling that everyone knows more than they’re admitting.

I really enjoyed the suspense and how the mystery slowly unraveled. Just when I thought I had figured out where the story was headed, another revelation made me question everything again. The characters are flawed and messy, which added to the tension and made it difficult to know who could actually be trusted.

This was an entertaining psychological thriller filled with secrets, questionable choices, and enough twists to keep those pages turning. A solid 4 star read for anyone who loves mysteries where nobody is quite as innocent as they seem. 📚
#booktok #BookRecommendations #bookworm #booklover #books

[Bee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I understand the author's vision, I really do. I even understand the main character's distrust of cops.

However, I've got to say that Adriana is perhaps one of the most irritating protagonists I've seen in a while. Every decision she makes is incredibly stupid and incredibly selfish — and believe me, I can excuse a main character being selfish or having moments of idiocy. And what was with her constantly referring to herself as middle aged, when she's supposed to be just in her late thirties??

I will say that the bare bones of this story are great, and I do love the atmosphere. I really tried to like this one.

The main character is less Nancy Drew or Camille Preaker, and more Amelia Bedelia Strikes Again.
(I did add a star because of the mention of True Detective. So sue me.)

Thank you to Netgalley for this unique experience.

[Brianas_best_reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

✨Review✨

Thank you so much Carissa Ann Lynch for the gifted copy of DEAD GIRLS TELL NO TALES which is releasing on 8/1/26.

“Some stories refuse to die.”

I really enjoyed this dark and twisty thriller. It’s broken down into acts with very short chapters that keep the pace moving along perfectly.

The suspense keeps you on your toes and I couldn’t wait to see how the past and present were all tied together. I don’t want to spoil anything, but be sure to give this one a read!

4/5 ⭐️

[Kayla Hopkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this one, but it ended up being…..just okay for me.

There were definitely moments that pulled me in, and I found myself genuinely invested at times. Unfortunately, those moments were broken up by stretches where I was simply bored and waiting to pick back up.

Overall, this wasn’t a bad thriller! I’m glad I read it, but it’s not one of my faves.

[Ashley Branoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Nothing ground breaking but probably the best Amazon first reads I have read. It dragged slightly near the end and the writing was not incredible but I couldn’t put it down and had short chapters. Signs of a good thriller.

[Lisa Case · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sorry to say that this book was kinda terrible. The writing was so poor and repetitive that I wonder if a real person wrote it or AI. I hate to leave a review like this but honestly, anyone could’ve written this better

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely a good one. The character is brave and fearless…She is very foolish at times, and goes into danger without thinking. But it all boils down to a great story. Can’t tell you if she turns up dead too…you will just have to read it!

[Lavender]

Placeholder.

I won this book via Goodreads Giveaways.