All Of Us Murderers
When Zeb Wyckham is summoned to a wealthy relative’s remote Gothic manor, he is horrified to find all the people he least wants to see in the world: his estranged brother, his sneering cousin, and his bitter ex-lover Gideon Grey. Things couldn’t possibly get worse.
Then the master of the house announces the true purpose of the gathering: he intends to leave the vast family fortune to whoever marries his young ward, setting off a violent scramble for her hand. Zeb wants no part of his greedy family–but when he tries to leave, the way is barred. The walls of Lackaday House are high, and the gates firmly locked. As the Dartmoor mists roll in, there’s no way out. And something unnatural may be watching them from the house’s shadowy depths…
Fear and paranoia ramping ever-higher, Zeb has nowhere to turn but to the man who once held his heart. As the gaslight flickers and terror takes hold, can two warring lovers reunite, uncover the murderous mysteries of Lackaday House–and live to tell the tale?
NPR pick for Books We Love, 2025 • Picked for BookPage Best Mystery and Suspense of 2025
-
Cover art by Marcela Bolivar
Design by Sourcebooks
Audio narrated by Vidish Athavale
-
Romance with heavy Gothic vibes. Ableism directed against a character with ADHD. Homophobia. Misogyny. References to rape, sexual abuse, domestic abuse, child abuse (not shown on page). Horrible family. Murder. References to enslavement, the slave trade, and abuse of enslaved people. False imprisonment. Character in grip of phobia. Spiders.
-
Arachnophobes, if you can take references to spiders but just want to avoid longer passages with graphic text, there are two scenes to avoid:
Chapter 13: skip from where Zeb goes upstairs after leaving Wynn, and go straight to the next chapter.
Chapter 23: Don’t read the first paragraph. Then towards the end of the chapter, when Zeb is leaving the library, you might also want to skim over after the dialogue line, “Whatever you do, stay quiet” for the next few short paragraphs until the para beginning, “Eternity passed”. (Sorry, that one is harder to mark in the text!)
“a masterful waistcoat ripper… a lovely depiction of a romance between two men who see each other’s flaws as enjoyable parts of their personalities rather than things to fix… The romance is steamy, the history intriguing, the mystery haunting, and the characters entertaining. With Charles’ talent for writing with wit, humor, charm, and desire, this is both a good introduction for new readers and another excellent story for longtime fans.”
“Twisty, atmospheric, and more than a little indebted to Agatha Christie, this satisfying whodunit with a queer twist will keep readers up all night.”
“At the corner of spooky-town and spoof-city, KJ Charles’ gay gothic thriller is a wild ride you won’t want to get off. ... All of Us Murderers balances loathsome characters, a plethora of dastardly twists and well-earned romantic reconnection. Fans of historical romance and mystery lovers with a taste for steam will not put this book down till the last body is buried.”
“a terrific ripping yarn—in case you didn’t work it out from the cover, it’s a full-on, haunted-house, ghastly family, innocent-virgin, blood-on-the-altar, screaming heebie-jeebies-scare-fest while also being a tender gay romance—it’s KJ Charles, what were you expecting?”