Tremendous new thriller from the award-winning author of UNDER THE BEETLE’S CELLAR and THE RED SCREAM, and once again featuring indomitable Molly Cates as the feisty, funny, flawed heroine. Our main character Marin is invited to live at Lovelace House by the owner, Alice Lovelace, who is a famous horror writer. Marin shows up without a penny to her name and tries to be nanny to the 2 Lovelace children - who of course play creepy pranks on her and are generally creepy ("creepy" is the word of the day for this review). She finds dead birds in her room and learns about creepy Lovelace traditions like how when you cut your hair, you keep it in the house forever. Marin is determined to understand what is actually happening at Lovelace House and get to the bottom of what everyone is hiding. The story unfolds and gets weirder (in a great way) as time goes on. I had a few guesses for what the reveal was going to be and none were right.

I really loved the build of this book as it lets you question how much if any of the creepy occurrences are real or just a bit of fun conjured up by a couple of kids who love torturing their Nannie’s until they eventually quit. There’s a few moments in here that I actually laughed out loud over the sass of the two girls and the exasperation Marin felt trying to keep up with them.All women have a goth phase, we all need to mourn. Some of us just choose to show it on the outside.” McCauley skillfully wrangles haunting atmosphere, anticipatory tension, and macabre humor to cultivate a slow-boiling thriller couched in a decades-old mystery.' — Publishers Weekly

Marin sees animals who are critically, even fatally, injured limping around. At first she isn’t sure whether they’re dying or if something else is happening to them. Several birds in this state end up in her room. Some scholars have argued that the poem can be read as exploring the experience of a traumatized Union Soldier during the American Civil War. Read more in this article published at White Heat, a blog run by Dartmouth college. The other characters all have quirks and I love that we slowly get pieces to a puzzle that Marin is trying to figure out. I also laughed a few times (mostly with the little girls). Macabre yet somehow cozy, All the Dead Lie Down is perfect for readers who enjoy charmingly disturbing children and grand old houses full of secrets. A great book to curl up with on a dark night.' — Kendare Blake, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Three Dark Crowns

Superb storytelling and gripping suspense once again from the author who puts Patricia Cornwell in the shade.