J
Jason Rekulak
Jason Rekulak writes thrillers that grab you from the first page. His breakout novel, Hidden Pictures, is a perfect example of his talent for suspense and horror.
Hidden Pictures
Synopsis
Fresh out of rehab and rebuilding her life, Mallory Quinn takes a job as a nanny for Ted and Caroline Maxwell, caring for their sweet five-year-old son Teddy in a leafy New Jersey suburb. It seems like the fresh start she needs — until Teddy's drawings start to change.
What begin as a child's stick figures become disturbing, sophisticated images no five-year-old should be able to make: a woman dragged through a forest, a shallow grave. As the pictures grow darker and more detailed, Mallory becomes convinced that Teddy is channeling something — or someone — and that the Maxwells' perfect home holds a secret.
Illustrated with Teddy's unsettling drawings, Jason Rekulak's Hidden Pictures is a genre-bending supernatural thriller about addiction, motherhood, and the things that refuse to stay buried.
Genres
Characters
Mallory QuinnProtagonist
Twenty-three, newly sober after an OxyContin injury spiralled into heroin, hired as the Maxwells' live-in babysitter. Her history is why no one believes what she says about the drawings.
Ted MaxwellSupporting
Teddy's father, an affable tech worker who is more sympathetic to Mallory than his wife is.
Caroline MaxwellSupporting
Teddy's mother, a Spring Brook professional who sets strict rules about screens and sugar and about what Mallory may say to her son.
Teddy MaxwellSupporting
The shy five-year-old in Mallory's care, whose drawings of an imaginary friend grow far beyond what a child his age could produce.
Adrian (Hidden Pictures)Supporting
The Maxwells' landscaper, about Mallory's age, who becomes her ally and the one person willing to look into the drawings with her.
Goodreads Choice Award for Best Horror (2022)
Frequently asked questions
Are the illustrations in the book essential to the story?
The illustrations are integral to the narrative experience rather than being purely decorative, as they serve as a primary vehicle for the mystery and evolve in complexity alongside the plot.
Does this book have any connection to the author's other works?
This is a standalone novel and does not share a narrative universe or characters with the author's other books.