The Laughing Dead

book notes

title: The Laughing Dead
author: Jess Lourey
series: Steinbeck and Reed, #3, #3
published: 7.22.2025
publisher: Thomas & Mercer
genre(s): thrillers
pages: 308
format: eBook
buy/shelve it: Amazon | B&N | BookBub | BookHype | StoryGraph | Goodreads
rating:

the blurb

Two murder investigations, decades apart, threaten to expose a cold case agent’s darkest secrets in a pulse-pounding thriller by the Edgar Award–nominated author of The Taken Ones.

The bodies of three teenage girls are found in central Minnesota—each with her mouth fixed in a ghoulish grin, smiling at a deadly joke no one can hear. But authorities eventually close and forget the curious case, dubbed the Laughing Dead.

Decades later, cold case agent Evangeline “Van” Reed is called to the scene of a crime where the victim wears that same horror-movie smile. But this time someone seems to be sending a Van’s police ID has turned up at the scene, making her the prime suspect. It’s not that outlandish, considering her secrets—ones she’s never even told her partner, forensic scientist Harry Steinbeck.

As she feels others closing in, Van reopens the mystery of the Laughing Dead, hoping to find a connection to clear her name. But the search only gets darker. Because the more Van digs backward in time, the closer she comes to a terrible Everything she has spent her life trying to hide is returning to haunt her.

a few notes

trigger warning: ❗captivity, domestic abuse, kidnapping, cult, poisoning❗

POV: 3rd person; multi
setting: Minnesota
keywords/phrases: cult, trauma, trust
tropes: protagonist as suspect, righting past wrongs, haunted past
spice: 0/5
language: 2/5 🤬🤬

mood reading: in the mood for a twisty read with deep emotions.
bonus points: Owl, the foster dog

my review

This book was just incredible. The author uses multiple perspectives and timelines to tell the interwoven plotlines, which serves to build the anticipation to the max. So many secrets, so many connections, so many questions… and the answers just lead to more questions.

Van is such a complex character. She’s equal parts badass, softie, and victim. She puts on a display of detachment, but she craves connection even as she rejects it. It’s clear her trauma has informed how she looks at and interacts with the world. It’s something that really endears her to the reader. She’s all the more amazing for how much she’s had to overcome… by herself. Harry, too, has baggage which has shaped him into the man he’s become. But his heart is huge, and his mind so open. Their dynamic is simply beautiful.

The suspense level was off the charts with so many twists and turns, some deeply terrifying moments and situations. The stories told were so gripping, so intertwined. And it brought together some of the stories from the first two books in very satisfying ways.

But what made the book for me was the ending. 100% in love with it. It was utter perfection.

Now I can only hope there will be more.

Rating Report
the story
the characters
the writing
the pacing
Overall:

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

• 2025 Cloak & Dagger Reading Challenge
• 2025 PopSugar Reading Challenge

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