These Toxic Things

A Thriller

By: Rachel Howzell Hall

Narrated by: Susan Dalian

A dead woman’s cherished trinkets become pieces to a terrifying puzzle.

Mickie Lambert creates “digital scrapbooks” for clients, ensuring that precious souvenirs aren’t forgotten or lost. When her latest client, Nadia Denham, a curio shop owner, dies from an apparent suicide, Mickie honors the old woman’s last wish and begins curating her peculiar objets d’art. A music box, a hair clip, a key chain - twelve mementos in all that must have meant so much to Nadia, who collected them on her flea market scavenges across the country.

But these tokens mean a lot to someone else, too. Mickie has been receiving threatening messages to leave Nadia’s past alone.

It’s becoming a mystery Mickie is driven to solve. Who once owned these odd treasures? How did Nadia really come to possess them? Discovering the truth means crossing paths with a long-dormant serial killer and navigating the secrets of a sinister past. One that might, Mickie fears, be inescapably entwined with her own.

©2021 by Rachel Howzell Hall. (P)2021 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Susan Dalian's narration keeps the tension building in this thriller through her spot-on timing.... Dalian creates believable characters, including the spoiled and petulant Mickie, along with her caring parents and convincingly voiced men. The result is a thrilling mystery.” (AudioFile Magazine)

“Deeply moving, Villa’s debut fills a longstanding need in LGBTQ+ literature for more Latinx characters and a love story between two BIPOC characters. A lovely, important book that deserves a wide readership.” (Booklist, starred review)

“This cleverly plotted, surprise-filled novel offers well-drawn and original characters, lively dialogue, and a refreshing take on the serial killer theme. Hall continues to impress.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

Very Good

Okay, so I knew from about the 3rd chapter that there was a serial killer. The ins and outs were what kept me on the edge of my seat. Once I got into it I couldn't stop. The book is really good and I recommend it.

I liked it

I personally enjoyed this book. It was descriptive and just fun to read. I enjoyed living the main characters life with her and trying to solve the mystery. The narration was good as well.

Engaging

I loved every moment of this book. I enjoyed the main character and liked that she had such supportive friends and family in her life as the story unfolded.

Emotional Thriller

It has such a variety of emotions and struggles several twenty-somethings go through. Plus a mystery only a curious cat would dare to find herself involved in. Enjoyed the different subplots going on throughout the main story and seeing how they all came around to the ending. I loved Susan Dalian reading and will look for more of her narrations. PS I want a Memory Bank

Well, narrated, but story is shallow

It’s hard to tell where this story is going even in the first two hours. The narration is good, but I’m not sure that there is any power in the dialogue behind it.

Loved the Secret Message in this book

Loved the hidden message above all had to re read to understand how the begging leave clues in the ending I knew from the beginning the chick was the one but this book is like Rachel Howzell Hall last book but only if she got away with it but love how the author had the villain try to rewrite history after forgotten a new remembrance would be there dope story great story great writer love the new narration

The principal character...

a modern story. I'm not sure if the main character is Michaela....or her cell phone!

Great characters, great listen!

This is a fun, gripping mystery with terrific characters and a complex mystery, I enjoyed every minute.

The narration really helped me get through this.

I think the book is good. I liked Mickie and loved the idea of her work with Memory Bank. The unfolding of the main plot was well done and had several interesting aspects. Much of Mickie's personal drama turned this into more of a slog than I would have liked. The narration helped me get through the duller bits. I listened at 2x speed and mostly read along with my ebook and finished this in a day while recovering from injury. I have to admit, though, that I would have stalled in reading this on my own. The abundance of details creates a vivid picture for the story, but it can also bog you down as you're scanning through all the text. It's very interesting, but not riveting. I was able to stay focused and zip through it, though, with the audio book.

Had to draw my moral line in language

Loved the main character and her family's bond. Liked the narration. Intrigued at the place of work. I just had to draw my own moral decision on some content. I quit a quarter way in. Leave the f words for fabulous, fantastic, not filth.