The Swamps

Glass (Nothing Ever Happens Here) serves up an atmospheric thriller about a video production crew’s efforts to crack a pair of missing persons cases. Macy’s amateur interest in ghost hunting has evolved into a hit YouTube show, Ghost Patrol, that she cohosts with her husband, Ethan. The couple travels to the Louisiana bayou after learning of the recent disappearances of two local women, Elizabeth Brockton and Emily Tremblay: Elizabeth was sitting in front of her home when she vanished, and a few weeks later, Emily disappeared while walking home from a restaurant. The parish where both lived is teeming with “tales of curses and evil,” and rumors that black magic was involved inspire Macy and Ethan to investigate, hoping to attract more viewers and land a Netflix deal. Their project proves risky when, after they start looking into Elizabeth’s and Emily’s disappearances, the couple learns of a grisly murder in the area and comes to believe they’ve been coaxed to Louisiana by sinister forces. Eerie prose (“The cypress trees look like finger bones with the flesh stripped off”) and a cornucopia of surprises keep the pages of this Southern gothic turning. Fans of Michael Koryta fans should take note. Agent: Sharon Bowers, Folio Literary. (Jan.)