Lisa Unger

Lisa Unger (née Miscione; born April 26, 1970) is an American author of contemporary fiction, primarily psychological thrillers.^[1][2]

Lisa Unger
Lisa Unger
Born	Lisa Miscione (1970-04-26) April 26, 1970 (age 53) New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.
Occupation	Novelist
Nationality	American
Alma mater	The New School for Social Research
Period	2002–present
Website
lisaunger.com

Biography

Miscione was born in New Haven, Connecticut but grew up in the Netherlands, England and New Jersey. She spent her teens in the Long Valley section of Washington Township, Morris County, New Jersey.^[3][4] Miscione moved to New York City after high school, where she graduated from the New School for Social Research and spent a decade working in publishing in New York. During a vacation in Florida, she met her future husband Jeff Unger, who was vacationing from Detroit. After marrying Unger, she resigned her job, moved to Florida and gave herself a year to sell her first novel. Fairly quickly, she found an agent and sold a deal to produce four crime novels.^[2] Her first four books were published in her maiden name of Lisa Miscione.^[4]

In 2002, she published Angel Fire, the first book featuring Lydia Strong. The book received mixed reviews. Publishers Weekly described it as "gripping and terrifying right through the carnage of its final scene" and commended the novel's depictions of grisly scenes.^[5] Rex Klett, writing for Library Journal, praised the Unger's writing style and the book's suspense.^[6] However, Kirkus Reviews called it "predictable" and "flatly written", criticizing Lydia's characterization.^[7]

In June 2006, Unger published Beautiful Lies, her first novel under her married name,^[2] through Crown Publishing Group. It became a New York Times Best Seller the week it was released.^[8]

Awards

Beautiful Lies was selected as a Doubleday Book Club International Book of the Month.^[9] It was also chosen in 21st place in the top 50 "Best Books of 2006" by the editors of Amazon.com,^[10] a BookSense pick^[11] and a finalist in the International Thriller Writers Organization "Best Novel" Award in 2007.^[12]

In the Blood won the 2015 Silver Falchion Award for Best Novel (Crime Thriller)^[13] and was a Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee for Best Mystery & Thriller 2014.^[14]

Novels

Writing as Lisa Miscione. Re-released in 2011 by Crown Publishing Group:

• Angel Fire (2002) – Lydia Strong #1
• The Darkness Gathers (2003) – Lydia Strong #2
• Twice (2004) – Lydia Strong #3
• Smoke (2005) – Lydia Strong #4

As Lisa Unger.

• Beautiful Lies (2006) – Ridley Jones #1
• Sliver of Truth (2007) – Ridley Jones #2
• Black Out (2008) – Standalone
• Die for You (2009) – Standalone
• Fragile (2010) – Jones Cooper #1 (The Hollows book 1)
• Darkness, My Old Friend (2011) – Jones Cooper #2 (The Hollows book 2)
• Heartbroken (2012) – Standalone
• In the Blood (2014) – Standalone (The Hollows book 3)
• Crazy Love You (February 2015) – Standalone (The Hollows book 4)
• Ink and Bone (June 2016) – Jones Cooper #3 (The Hollows book 5)
• The Red Hunter (April 2017) – Standalone
• Under My Skin (Oct. 2018) – Standalone
• The Stranger Inside (Sep 2019) - Standalone
• Confessions on the 7:45 (Sept. 2020) – Standalone
• All My Darkest Impulses (May 2021) – House of Crows #1
• Fog Descending (May 2021) – House of Crows #2
• Circling the Drain (May 2021) – House of Crows #3
• Love the Way You Lie (May 2021) – House of Crows #4
• Last Girl Ghosted (Oct. 2021) – Standalone
• Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six (Nov. 2022) - Standalone

Novellas

• The Whispering Hollows (2016) (The Hollows series)

References

1. Corrigan, Maureen (March 29, 2015). "The dead are more dangerous than the living in the thriller 'Crazy Love You'". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
2. Bancroft, Colette (August 6, 2011). . The Tampa Bay Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Archived from the original on 21 December 2013. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
3. Franze, Anthony (January 1, 2014). . The Big Thrill. Delaware: International Thriller Writers. Archived from the original on 2 June 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2017. A Between The Lines Interview with Lisa Unger by Anthony J. Franze"], The Big Thrill, January 1, 2014. Accessed May 18, 2016. "My teen years were spent in a small town in New Jersey called Long Valley. When I turned eighteen, I left for college in Manhattan and spent the next thirteen years in New York City. My brother swears that Long Valley was my inspiration for The Hollows.
4. Cogdill, Oline H. (November 15, 2013). . Publishers Weekly. New York City, New York: PWxyz, LLC. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
5. "Angel Fire". Publishers Weekly. January 7, 2002. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
6. Klett, Rex (January 2002). "Angel Fire. (Mystery & Suspense)". Library Journal. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
7. "Angel Fire". Kirkus Reviews. November 15, 2001. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
8. . Archived from the original on 2014-04-18. Retrieved 2014-04-17.
9. "Doubleday Entertainment's Newest International Book-of-the-Month Selection is Lisa Unger's Thrilling New Novel Beautiful Lies" (Press release). Doubleday Entertainment. 2006-05-01. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
10. "Best Books of 2006: Editors' Top 50". amazon.com. 2006. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
11. . booksense.com. May 2006. Archived from the original on 2008-05-09. Retrieved 2008-08-15.
12. . bookreporter.com. 2007-03-17. Archived from the original on 2008-05-09. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
13. "In the Blood - Lisa Unger". Retrieved 18 May 2016.
14. "Goodreads Best Mystery & Thriller 2014 - Goodreads Choice Awards". Retrieved 4 September 2016.

External links

• Lisa Unger's website
• Lisa Unger on a Comfort Junkie’s Resistance to Adventure Travel (The Wall Street Journal March 2015)
• Lisa Unger's Official Wattpad Profile
• Interview with Publishers Weekly
• Do Some Damage Interview
• Interview with ITW's The Big Thrill
• Interview with Booklist
• Interview with Suicide Girls