Beverly Books | Sundown Girls

Sundown Girls

L.S. Stratton

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In the tradition of Jordan Peele and Tiffany Jackson’s The Weight of Blood, a YA thriller about a Black teen whose fight for survival forces a small southern vacation town to face its dark history of racial violence.

When sixteen-year-old Naomi Ward and her family head to a secluded cabin in the Shenandoah Valley for summer vacation, they don’t know the small, mountain town of Sparksburg, Virginia has a dark and twisted past. But when they arrive, Naomi can’t shake the feeling that something about Sparksburg just isn’t right—and it smells god awful, but for some reason Naomi is the only who can smell the town’s stench.

When she learns Sparksburg had once been a Sundown Town—a town where Black people weren’t allowed after sunset lest they be murdered—Naomi’s unease starts to make sense. As Naomi digs more into Sparksburg’s violent origins, she finds herself haunted by the ghost of a girl, appearing nightly outside her window. Then she learns of two girls who’ve recently gone missing and suspects the past may still be present in Sparksburg and beneath the quaint façade of this tourist town is a palpable danger.

When Naomi decides to track the disappearance of the two girls herself, she becomes suspicious of a local man who has kindled fear in Naomi more than once. She soon learns he has a connection to one of the missing girls, and Naomi is certain he’s responsible for the disappearances.

When no one believes her, Naomi takes matters into her own hands. But to save the missing girls, she’ll have to finally face her own past trauma as a “missing girl” as she finds herself in a fight for survival.

Gripping and triumphant, L.S. Stratton tells an important and unforgettable story of racial reckoning inspired by historical events.

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Posts about this title from Beverly Books

Beverly Books\ \ Kristian\ \ • Jan 11

The new year means a new crop of books being published. Which means you have the opportunity to try out a new genre or author. You have the chance to get recommendations from friends, near and far.\ \ \ \ I actually posted on my substack, so check out the list of my most anticipated books to learn more!\ \ Kristian's Most Anticipated Books of 2026

Kristians Most Anticipated Fiction Books of 2026

35 books

Posts about this book from across Bindery

Boozhoo Books\ \ Naomi\ \ • Mar 31

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First, let's talk book club books. \ \ Regrettably, I DNFed The Year of the Witching. This one just was not for me. \ \ I made it to the last quarter of The Night Watchman and then was confirmed to moderate Bookcon and all plans changed. I then was confirmed to moderate Bay Area Book Festival. \ \ My immediate reading priority: read all of the panel for Bookcon, finish The Night Watchman, read April's bookclub books, start reading the panel for May!\ \ So far I've read: \ \ Nothing Ever Happens Here by Seraphina Nova Glass\ \ This one was a small town thriller with a missing husband who could be an attacker, and a senior community with a podcast who helped solve it all. ADORED. \ \ Sundown Girls by LS Stratton\ \ This was a YA thriller with a supernatural bent and focus on the history of sundown towns. UNPUTDOWNABLE. Kept you guessing to the very end. \ \ How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine\ \ Also a YA thriller with slashers. Fans of My Heart is a Chainsaw will love the movie references in this one! This one also has a bit of a supernatural bent. \ \ You guys, I've already lost track of the body count! It's A LOT. \ \ I'm currently reading Who's All Going by Lisa Springer\ \ Another YA thriller! These have all been so great. This one is has influencers, a resort, a wellness cult. Hard to put down. \ \ Have you read any of these?\ \ Upgrade for $5 or login

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Boozhoo Books\ \ Naomi\ \ • Mar 28

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\ \ Super excited to meet folks at Bookcon this year!\ \ And I’ve been keeping a huge secret (which as a gossip has been so hard!) \ \ I will be moderating 2 THRILLER Panels\ \ Saturday: Murder She Wrote: Thriller Writing and the Art of Suspense\ \ Sunday: The Perfect Spot for Murder\ \ I’ll also be giving away What Feeds Below arcs!\ \ Check out the books below from the authors on the panels (+ What Feeds Below!)\ \ \ \ \ \ My goal is to read 10 thrillers in 20 days! I’m almost done Nothing Ever Happens Here and I have NO IDEA how this one is going to end? Which one should I pick up next? How many bodies will drop across 10 books?! (From the attending authors I read The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark and The Scammer by Tiffany D Jackson last year- and they were two of my faves!)\ \ Will I be seeing you at Bookcon?](https://boozhoo.binderybooks.com/item/ShX4MxPjQp3iEyURYU54/)

I'm Moderating at Bookcon 🔪

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Beverly Books\ \ Kristian\ \ • Jan 11

Kristians Most Anticipated Fiction Books of 2026

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The Skyy Life\ \ Erika\ \ • Jan 8

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26 Releases to add to your 2026 TBR

In no particular order, these are just SOME of the books that are being released this year that I cannot wait to read.

📖Are any of these on your TBR?

✨I have the ARCs to some of these and can’t wait to share my thoughts. I have read a couple off this list (🔗 goodreads, storygraph, and bindery gets all the bookish reviews & tea)

🗒️Please note: the publication date is subject to change. These are what I was able to find so far as of last week (bc I forgot to post this 🤣🤗)

#bookrecommendations #diversereads #bookstagrammer #2026bookreleases #tbr

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Boneyard Picnic\ \ Natalie Meagan\ \ • Dec 16 2025

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January Releases | Vlogmas Day 16

Start the new year off right by expanding your TBR with these fun, spooky and weird titles publishing in January!

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