The Grand Puppet Master

Shay debuts with a spine-tingling techno-thriller. When Lacey Green was a child, her nanny, Mia Liao, suggested she harness her intense curiosity to help others as a detective. As an adult, Lacey has become a popular TikTok PI with assistance from Mia, who helps design her elaborate disguises. Lacey draws on those skills when her father, Shawn, dies of a suspected suicide in Hong Kong, soon after sending Lacey a cryptic message warning her not to travel to his hometown because “there are demons here lurking in the shadows. And if they catch you, they’ll never let you go.” After a little digging, she comes to suspect that Shawn’s death is connected to a bizarre disease outbreak that causes those infected to devour their own body parts. The outbreak itself may be tied to technology Shawn was developing to treat severe mental illness, and the more Lacey investigates, the more she becomes convinced that Shawn’s work could spell doom for the entire world. Shay smoothly combines a chilling premise, exciting action, and a consistently captivating mystery. It’s an auspicious first outing. (Self-published)