You've been taken by a serial killer who forces couples to play games designed to break their love... But it's your worst enemy tied up across from you.

Eden Callahan survived a famous serial killer at thirteen by playing dead while her family was butchered around her. When she's attacked by another killer at twenty-one and rescued in the brink of time, she discovers a horrifying truth:

Some serial killers come back as ghosts after they die and possess innocent people to continue their murder sprees.

Eden joins a team of paranormal investigators aimed at finding and extracting these ghosts, and quickly begins hunting the most sadistic entity the team has ever encountered. When he was alive, the Game Master got famous for forcing couples into trials designed to break their love, and now that he's dead, his games have gotten worse.

Eden hunts the Game Master alongside the team, trying to stop him before he kills another victim. When Eden gets captured, she’s scared out of her mind, especially when she sees her worst enemy tied up across from her. There has been a mistake. The Game Master only targets couples in love. She knows her enemy is going to play to win, and she’s going to have to use all her cunning if she has any chance of getting through the trials alive.

Want to read the first 2 chapters? Follow this link to download the sample: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/mw6yfwio41

Tropes: Enemies to lovers / Hate to love / Slow burn / Morally grey MMC / He falls first / Includes two open door 🌶️ scenes

BOOK SPECS:

• Genre: NA Paranormal Thriller, with spice

• 1st in series but stands alone. Each book will stand alone and feature the same team hunting a different serial killer ghost (like an episode of Criminal Minds).

• 1st person

• Present tense

• Single POV

• Length: 610 pages

• Size: 6x9 inches

Trigger warnings: Basically if you can watch Criminal Minds, you're fine, but you can expect:

• Graphic depictions of violence and murder (obviously)

• Saws, axes, scalpels, glass shards, dental forceps, and using them on body parts in really graphic ways

• Teeth and dental trauma

• Dismemberment

• Suicide (off the page in the context of character backstory)

• Rape (off the page in the context of character backstory)

• One detailed sex scene which includes rough sex and consensual non-consent

• Plastic bags and suffocation

• Cannibalism (off the page)

• Loss of parents and younger sibling (graphic on the page)

• Generous profanity (lol)

Please email me at claire@clairefraise.com or message me on TikTok at @clairefraiseauthor if you want to discuss in more detail. I want to make sure everyone has a safe and enjoyable reading experience.

You'll love this if you loved...

1. Everything about Criminal Minds (the team dynamic, the pacing, the cases, behavioral psychology, ugh I friggin love that show)

2. Saw (I drew lots of inspiration from Saw for the games the two enemies have to play)

3. Supernatural (I paid homage to Sam and Dean when creating my worldbuilding system) 

4. A possessive morally grey MMC inspired by Aaron Hotchner and Xaden Riorson who would kill anyone for her

5. Found family like in The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

6. The mix of comedy and gore in Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver

7. True crime (I did a lot of research into the psychology of real serial killers when building the fictional ones in this book. Big true crime fans might catch my easter eggs.)

What beta readers had to say...

"It was one of the best books I‘ve ever read! Probably my second favorite book of all time, after fourth wing!!"

"Girl you are insane, this is one of the best books ive read."

"This is hands down the best book i have read in years, usually it is hard for me to concentrate when reading books, but with this i couldn't get enough of it!"

"The plot of this book is Chefs kiss, best plot i have ever come across."

"Loving the enemies to lovers tension!!"

"Claire this is probably one of the best books I have read in a very long time. I didn't want to stop reading. I pulled late nights to just have one more chapter, one more interaction, one more anything."

"WE LOVE A FOUND FAMILY everyone say thank you Claire"

OK, I’M SOLD! What comes with the preorder?

This is an exclusive limited first edition print run that comes with special features that will not be available after the public release and a package of character art. These features include:

• Forced edges

• Decorative chapter headings and scene breaks

• 8 character cards (of all team members, including Bob)

• 2 NSFW full color vellum page overlays to go inside the book

• 2 BONUS CHAPTERS exclusive to the preorder, including a deleted spicy scene between Griffin and Eden and a chapter from Nico’s POV (as an electronic download delivered to your email when the books are shipped)

• Each copy will come SIGNED by the author

NOTE: All character art and visual design included with the books is designed by a team of human artists.

Shipping:

Shipping costs will be added at checkout and will be calculated based on your location. I offer both U.S. and international shipping.

Pricing: all shipping will be at cost. While the price is high, I won’t make any profit on the rates posted. Every cent will go toward postal fees and packing materials.

International Shipping: I’m so sorry for how expensive international shipping is. I spent so much time researching the cheapest place I could buy shipping labels, and these are the cheapest rates I could get. (The Love Trials is a long and heavy book.) I’ll use Pirate Ship to buy a shipping label for your international package. I won’t know what the price of this label will be until it’s time to ship your order, so I’ve invoiced the estimated cost, and if I’m able to find a label cheaper than the quoted price, I’ll refund you the difference.  

International shipping also takes longer than domestic shipping. Your book will still be mailed out in April, but international shipping can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months to arrive from the US. I appreciate your patience and am so excited for you to read this story.

Import taxes and/or VAT aren’t included in international shipping rates. If your country requires this, you’ll be responsible for paying these fees when you receive your book.

Please reach out to me at claire@clairefraise.com if you have any questions or want more information. I'm SO excited to share this book with you. I've never loved a book like I do this one, and I can't wait for you to get it in your hands.