A #MSWL from Jessica Faust

I’m hungry and the Trader Joe’s crunchy peanut butter on my desk isn’t doing it for me. I need a good read. Something that makes me pull up a chair and ignore every beep and bing from my computer. Something that makes me miss a subway stop and email an author at 11:00 at night just to make sure she knows how excited I am.

I’ve been scouring my query inbox and sadly coming up short. Nothing I’ve read to date is satisfying my #MSWL (Manuscript Wish List). Part of me wants to simply tell you that I’m looking for good recommendations, but I know that’s going to get me submissions that are far outside my expertise. Instead, I think I’ll give you some descriptions of what I’d like to find.

Magical Realism:

It’s been a long time since I put that out there, but I love a book that’s set in today’s contemporary world (or historical world) with just a touch or hint of magic. Sarah Addison Allen is my go-to example of this, but also check out Ellery Adams and Heather Blake.

Dark and Twisted (or Twisty):

I definitely want darker books, romantic suspense, nonromantic suspense and thrillers. Nothing gratuitous, but a grisly murder and a dark and twisted path to discovery. I just finished Sara Blaedel and really enjoyed her. Definitely dark. I’d also love to see more like Karen Rose, Allison Brennan or Shelley Coriell.

Stories with Marital Strife and Dark Secrets:

I love a good story with a bad marriage. The wife who discovers the dark secret her husband is keeping, or who is struggling to keep her own dark secret hidden.

Stories with an Unsolved Past:

I do like cold case stories and love a story about someone returning to a place once called home to finally uncover the secrets that have kept her hostage.

Adventure Stories:

Not choose your own adventure, but stories in which the heroine finds herself in a dangerous situation, preferably lost in the wilderness somewhere. This could be adult or YA, but I love a survival story.