This trip was meant to mend the fractures in our family. I expected the week to feel long—but I never imagined that one of us wouldn’t live to see the seventh day…
Dragging my suitcase into the quaint, rustic cottage, I exchange a hopeful smile with my sister-in-law, Kelli. Maybe this holiday will finally force us to confront our grudges and leave with something resembling peace.
But my optimism collapses almost immediately. Instead of cozy meals and outdoor adventures, the first night becomes a tightrope walk—dodging Martha’s cutting remarks and enduring my father-in-law Karl’s unfiltered misogyny.
Old tensions flare, leaving my mother-in-law, Gill, powerless to salvage the “perfect family getaway” she’d envisioned. Only my daughter remains blissfully unaware of the storm brewing around her. As I put her to bed that first night, dread settles in my stomach. How will I survive the rest of this week?
With each passing day, the atmosphere thickens. Buried resentments bubble up, and the cottage feels less like a retreat and more like a pressure cooker, ready to detonate. Even the idyllic setting can’t soften the constant hostility. It’s only a matter of time before someone reaches their breaking point—before a single, unbearable voice pushes another to the edge.
When everything finally erupts, the truth becomes undeniable.
This holiday will end with a body.
And a killer among us.
An addictive, tension-filled psychological thriller about a toxic family trapped with their secrets in isolation—perfect for fans of Daniel Hurst and Freida McFadden.
