Spotlight of Pretty Dead Things by Kelsey Cox

PHOTO CREDIT:

TYPORAMA
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PRETTY DEAD THINGS

KELSEY COX

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ALL INFORMATION IN THIS POST IS COURTESY OF THE PUBLISHER’S WEBSITE AND THE AUTHOR’S GOODREADS PAGE.

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Secrets emerge as a Texas beauty pageant turns deadly in this rich and addictive novel with a jaw-dropping twist from psychological suspense author Kelsey Cox

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July 7, 2026

Minotaur

St. Martin's Press

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PRAISE FOR PRETTY DEAD THINGS:

"Riveting." —People

"Heart-pumping." —Nina Simon

"Jaw-dropping." —Amanda Eyre Ward

"Joins my auto-buy list forever." —Rachel Hawkins

"Cox’s second suspenseful outing serves the exact amount of treachery you’d expect, with lots of figurative backstabbing and a few literal deaths. The diverting characters parade their messes across the page for the reader’s judging, and there’s no shortage of options for who’ll be crowned killer in the end." —Booklist

"Cox builds to satisfying reveals and delivers well-honed critiques of pageant culture. Fans of suburban suspense will enjoy themselves." —Publishers Weekly

"As twisted as a Texas rattler, Pretty Dead Things by Kelsey Cox will leave you breathless! I couldn’t put it down!" —Lisa Jackson, #1 New York Times bestselling author

“Tense, twisty, and impossible to put down, Pretty Dead Things builds from simmering small-town secrets to a high-stakes locked-room nightmare. As rising tensions collide on the night of a glittering pageant, no one is safe and nothing is what it seems. Gripping, propulsive, and full of surprises—a dazzling, unforgettable thriller.” —Tiffany Crum, New York Times bestselling author of This Story Might Save Your Life

"A juicy, addictive thriller packed with complicated women and a past that refuses to stay buried. Pretty Dead Things will keep you guessing until its jaw-dropping end." —Daphne Woolsoncroft, author of Night Watcher

"I couldn't put this book down! Set in the world of glittering Texas beauty pageants, PRETTY DEAD THINGS is compelling and layered, rife with rich characters, juicy twists, and secrets upon secrets. Cox expertly ratchets up the suspense with every page, building to a finish I never saw coming!" —Sophie Stava, author of Count My Lies

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ABOUT PRETTY DEAD THINGS:

2000: Isabelle Whitmore vanishes at Sherman Ranch in Anhalt, Texas, without a trace.

2025: The Lone Star Princess Pageant is about to begin, but this year it’s offering more than an annual dose of rhinestone heels and plunging necklines. Competition is stiffer than ever —and long standing grudges are about to resurface. Ingrid fled Anhalt in the wake of her sister Isabelle’s disappearance and has now returned, just in time for a construction crew to start digging up Sherman Ranch; the pageant brings up past traumas that Melanie can't forget; Cat, newly sober, starts to feel threatened in ways that bring back old demons; and Sarah Lynn, who comes from a long line of pageant winners, knows that losing is not an option.

When old resentments and new confrontations reach their boiling point, temperatures drop to deadly degrees as a record-setting storm brings down the state’s power grid. With everyone trapped under one roof, scores will be settled, and more than one person will end up dead.

Beauty dies. Secrets never do.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Photo Credit: Nick Pitarra

Kelsey Cox (she/her) received her MFA in fiction from Purdue University and works from home in the Texas Hill Country.

You can often find her writing at Mammen Family Public Library, chasing around her two young daughters, or watching British mysteries with her mom and aunts. 

On nights when bedtime goes as planned, she enjoys curling up on the sofa, glass of wine in hand, and a book with complicated characters and a killer twist in her lap.

Party of Liars is her debut novel.

**AUTHOR PHOTO AND

BIO TAKEN FROM 

THE PUBLISHER’S WEBSITE**

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SOCIAL LINKS:

Goodreads

Instagram

Website

Facebook

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