Lisa Unger's Blog

Omg! Exciting new developments on the television adaptation of Confessions on the 7:45. The project, originally set up at Netflix, is now in development at Hulu with the magnificently talented Charise Castro Smith to write, superstar Eva Longoria to direct, and powerhouse Jessica Alba to star in her first series since her Golden Globe nominated role in Dark Angel. What an extraordinary trio of powerful women! I’m in awe.

Enter to win a copy

Close Your Eyes and Count to 10: A Novel by Lisa Unger

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I’m thrilled to announce my new novel CLOSE YOUR EYES AND COUNT TO 10, coming February 18, 2025! It is about single mom Adele who travels to a remote island in the Atlantic to participate in an extreme game of hide-and-seek hosted by Maverick Dillan, a daredevil social media star and his company Extreme Games and Insane Challenges. Adele has traveled to Falcao Island, leaving her teenagers alone for the first time, to try to win the million dollar prize. After all, these things are just stunts, right? All for the cameras? There’s no real danger. But as a storm bears down and a very real threat looms, the situation quickly turns from game to race for survival.

One of the big inspirations for this story came when my family and I traveled to the Azores, a chain of islands in the Atlantic. I'll share more later, as we get closer to the release date.


Review copy requests open on NetGalley: .


Thanks for reading!

Omg. I’m beyond honored! UNKNOWN CALLER won the ITW Thriller Award for Best Short Story! Huge congrats to my fellow nominees, incl. my friends the immensely talented Chris Bohjalian and J.T. Ellison. Thanks to my editors Kjersti Egerdahl and Howard Mittlemark for all their kindness, insight, and hard work on my behalf, the Amazon Publishing team, to ITW and all the award judges, and of course the readers. Wow! I’m floating.

After writing 20 novels, I share with Publishers Weekly “Soapbox” what I’ve learned along the way. Publishing is a tough business with lots of highs and lows. But guess what I do on good days and bad… read on to find out!

Wow. I am so thrilled to share that SECLUDED CABIN SLEEPS SIX is an instant USA Today bestseller. Huge thanks to all of the wonderful booksellers and readers for making this possible!    

I’m so thrilled and honored to share that SECLUDED CABIN SLEEPS SIX is a People Magazine “Book of the Week.” “In Unger’s 20th terrifying thriller, DNA ancestry kits lead to revenge when siblings, spouses and friends vacation in an isolated luxury cabin. As a dangerous storm threatens, creepy anonymous texts and a menacing presence twist…

SECLUDED CABIN SLEEPS SIX is an Amazon Editor’s Pick! “As always, Unger expertly pairs calm-on-the-surface, insightful character studies with mounting tension and slowly-emerging secrets that morph into terrifying twists and reveals.” —Vannessa Cronin, Amazon Editor Thank you so much! I’m honored to be on this stellar list of must-read mysteries and thrillers.

  Omg! I am beyond thrilled to share that this powerhouse team of mega-talented women, Golden Globe nominated actress Jessica Alba and Charise Castro Smith, writer & co-director of the Oscar-winning “Encanto,” will be at the helm of the Netflix series based on my novel CONFESSIONS ON THE 7:45. What a dream team! I’m honored…

Some big news to share! I am excited to announce that I am the new International Thriller Writers Organization (ITW) co-president along with Gregg Hurwitz! This is such an important organization. And it’s an honor and pleasure to serve this tremendous community of writers. ITW supports and celebrates long-time authors in their careers, while it…

I’ll happily pay for your pumpkin frap while I ponder death… In this very personal essay, I talk to Good Housekeeping about why I write thrillers. Read The Article.