THE LOVE TRIALS
Book 1
Coming April 28, 2026
When you've been taken by a serial killer who forces couples through trials designed to break their love ... but it's your worst enemy tied up across from you.
Eden Callahan survived a famous serial killer at 13 by playing dead while her family was butchered around her. When she's attacked by another killer at 21, she discovers a terrifying truth:
Some serial killers come back as ghosts after they die and possess innocent people to continue their murder sprees.
Eden is recruited to join a team of paranormal investigators, led by an ex-FBI agent, aimed at finding and extracting these evil ghosts. She begins hunting the most sadistic entity the team has ever encountered. When he was alive, the Game Master grew famous for kidnapping couples and forcing them into trials designed to break their love, and now that he's dead, his games have gotten worse.
Eden hunts for the Game Master along with the team, and she gets along with everyone except for Nico, the six-foot-five, ridiculously gorgeous team leader who glares at her like he wants her dead. Eden and the team have to find the Game Master before he can take any more victims. What she doesn't know is the Game Master already has his sights set on her, and she's going to have to use all of her cunning if she has any chance of staying alive.
TROPES:
- Enemies to lovers
- Hate to love
- Slow burn
- 🌶️🌶️ (two intimate scenes with the reader present)
CONTENT WARNINGS: Basically if you can watch Criminal Minds you're fine, but you can expect:
- Graphic depictions of violence and murder (obviously)
- Teeth and dental trauma
- Dismemberment
- Suicide
- Body horror and bodily mutilation
- Rape (described in detail but off page)
- One detailed sex scene which includes rough sex and consensual non-consent
- Plastic bags and suffocation
- Cannibalism (off-page)
- Loss of parents and younger sibling (graphic on the page)
- Saws, axes, scalpels, glass shards, dental forceps, and using them on body parts in really gross ways
- Generous profanity (I actually do cuss a little iykyk)
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.
What my beta readers are saying...
"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."
"Absolutely amazing book, well done you should be very proud of yourself!. 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. As someone who finds psychology and the paranormal highly interesting this unique concept of serial killer entities needing to be captured by a team of ghost hunters was amazing to read. Could definitely see this book being adapted into a TV series, would 100% watch if it was."
"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"