Publication Date: September 15, 2026
Some wounds don’t heal. They fester. They whisper. They take over.
In Dark Ugly Places, trauma isn’t something you survive — it’s something that survives you.
Thirty-four-year-old Nicola Holiday loses everything in a hit-and-run: her husband dead, her body broken, her fourteen-year-old daughter Emmy forever changed. With no one held accountable, she spirals into grief, panic attacks, and financial ruin — awakening a hereditary darkness she’s spent her life trying to outrun.
That darkness has a voice now. Her name is Martha, and she aches for revenge.
As Nicola’s grip on reality loosens, Martha slips into another life — one of wealth, glamour, and moral rot. When she crosses paths with the wife of a famous actor, Nicola’s suspicions ignite.
Pulled between vengeance and annihilation, Nicola and Martha collide with a woman whose secrets may be the key to everything — or the thing that destroys them both.
Dark, provocative, and deeply unsettling — a haunting psychological portrait of female rage, obsession, and the terrifying lengths the mind will go to survive unbearable pain.
Because sometimes the most dangerous place isn’t the past. It’s inside your own head.
When a hit-and-run accident upends Nicola’s life, the aftermath forces her to confront a painful past.
Author Ashley Mansour delivers a riveting tale featuring a broken main character, both physically and mentally. Dark Ugly Places shines a light on how fragile minds manage to cope with tragedy.
Alongside Nicola is her teen daughter, Emmy, who also bears scars. Together, they navigate a broken legal system with no visible culprit. It’s only through various medications that they manage to survive.
The author weaves in an incredible plot twist with the appearance of Martha. She knows how to save Nicola, especially when clues point to the person who wreaked such havoc.
As the action unfolds, readers learn more about the connection between Nicola and Martha. Revenge becomes a dangerous game with permanent consequences.
Dark Ugly Places offers a “must-read” with an impact that will last well after the unexpected conclusion.
Ashley Mansour writes dark, addictive psychological suspense with domestic tension, emotional depth, and a cinematic edge. Her novels explore obsession, betrayal, power, and the unsettling truths that live beneath polished lives and intimate relationships.
She is the author of the international bestseller Blood, Ink & Fire and the psychological thriller Dark Ugly Places. Drawing on a background in publishing, film, and television development, Ashley brings a sharp visual sensibility and page-turning intensity to her fiction. She writes about rebellious women seeking vengeance, morally gray relationships, and unspeakable scandals.
When she is not writing, Ashley works with aspiring authors to help them shape and strengthen their manuscripts. She lives in Irvine, California, with her husband, daughter, and Bernedoodle, Bernie.
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