The Book of Cold Cases

Author: Simone St. James

Genre: Mystery / Thriller

Sub-genre: Cold Case / Supernatural-tinged Crime Fiction

Synopsis:

A true-crime blogger becomes obsessed with a decades-old double murder case that was never solved. When she convinces the woman acquitted of the crimes to be interviewed, the two begin unraveling a story that refuses to stay in the past—especially as unsettling, possibly supernatural events start to surface around the investigation.

Review:

This is a cold case story that leans heavily into atmosphere, and that’s where it really succeeds.

The dual timeline structure—1970s investigation alongside present-day exploration—feels very intentional in how it builds tension. The past doesn’t just explain the present; it actively interrupts it. Every new detail from the original case reframes what you think you understand about Beth, the crime, and the town’s collective memory.

What makes Beth such an effective character is how little access you’re given to her interiority. She exists almost entirely through other people’s interpretations of her, which creates this constant instability around whether she is victim, villain, or something in between. That uncertainty is the engine of the book.

Shea’s storyline works as a counterbalance—more grounded, more investigative, but gradually destabilised as the supernatural elements begin to creep in. The book never fully commits to explaining those elements in a clean, rational way, and that ambiguity is clearly deliberate. It keeps you suspended between genres rather than settling into one.

The horror here isn’t loud. It’s built through repetition, unease, and the idea that some stories don’t stay buried just because they’ve been “solved.” There’s a growing sense that the past is not finished with the present—and may never be.

The pacing is steady, but the tension accumulates well. It’s less about twists and more about slow realisation, which fits the tone of the case itself.

Final Thoughts:

A moody, layered cold case mystery that blends investigative storytelling with subtle supernatural dread. It’s strongest when it stays ambiguous, letting atmosphere and suspicion carry the weight rather than resolution.

Rating:

★★★★

Similar books:

✦ The Sun Down Motel — Simone St. James

✦ Home Before Dark — Riley Sager

✦ The Haunting of Ashburn House — Darcy Coates

✦ Mexican Gothic — Silvia Moreno-Garcia