THE LOVE TRIALS
Book 1
Coming April 28, 2026
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.
This is book 1 in a brand new series inspired by Criminal Minds and Supernatural about ghost hunters who hunt the ghosts of serial killers. Each book will stand alone and feature the same team hunting a different serial killer ghost (like an episode of early Criminal Minds).
Tropes:
- Enemies to lovers
- Hate to love
- Slow burn
- 🌶️🌶️ (two intimate scenes with the reader present)
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
- Body horror and bodily mutilation
- 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
- Loss of parents and younger sibling (graphic on the page)
- 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.
You will love this if you loved:
1. Everything about Criminal Minds (the team dynamic, the pacing, the cases, *chef's kiss*)
2. Saw (I drew lots of inspiration from Saw for the games the enemies have to play)
3. Supernatural (I paid homage to Sam and Dean when creating my ghost hunter worldbuilding)
4. A possessive morally gray 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 drew inspiration from real life serial killers when building the fictional ones featured in this book. Big true crime fans might catch on.)
8. Very 3D characters who feel like real people (at least they do to me, I find myself talking to them like imaginary friends on the regular lol)
What 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"