This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration.

Pretty Dead Things

Summary: 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.

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

2025: The annual Lone Star Princess Pageant looms, bringing long-standing grudges to the surface. 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.

Some secrets are better left buried.

KELSEY COX’S NOVELS

“Riveting.” —People

“Heart-pumping.” —Nina Simon

“Jaw-dropping.” —Amanda Eyre Ward

“Joins my auto-buy list forever.” —Rachel Hawkins

 

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

As a reigning Miss Christmas of *mumble mumble* year, beauty pageants have always fascinated me. The makeup, the hair (as my friend Rhiannon says “Tease it to Jesus!” )and the dresses… Oh my!

After enjoying Party of Liars last year, when this came across my Netgalley, I was like YASSSSSS!

 

What I liked:

This cover could go down as my fave cover of 2026. Stay tuned.

There is so much to unpack in this story and Kelsey Cox does it with style.

All the characters. There are some you will love. Some you will hate. Some you will love to hate. It’s like a charcuterie board of characters!

 

Bottom line: From my Goodreads review: If you like dark stories of frenemy behavior, missing girls, pageant queens and drama higher than the hair these beauty queens are striving for, you have found the right book.

 

*This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.*

 

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Happy Reading and Bookishly Yours,

T @ Traveling With T