SHORT BIO
Tara Goedjen has lived all over the world, forever in search of the perfect setting. A former academic, she holds a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Alabama, and she also worked as an editor for a Sydney-based publishing house for several years.
These days, Tara splits her time between sunny Atlanta and the moody Pacific Northwest, where she's often out hiking through the woods while dreaming up her next novel. Please Enjoy Your Stay is her adult debut.
LONG BIO
Tara Goedjen writes atmospheric thrillers. Her forthcoming novel, PLEASE ENJOY YOUR STAY, is coming out October 13th, 2026 with Emily Bestler Books (S&S).
Before writing novels, Tara worked as a tennis coach (in Europe), as a college lecturer (in Australia), and as a fiction editor for a global publishing house.
She has a Master of Fine Arts and a PhD, and is also the author of two young adult mystery novels: No Beauties or Monsters and The Breathless. Her short fiction has appeared in AGNI, BOMB MAGAZINE, Meanjin, TEXT, and Fairy Tale Review, among others.
Tara loves traveling the world and talking about books. She currently lives with her family in the misty Pacific Northwest, where she can usually be found hiking through a mysterious wood while dreaming up her next novel.
BOOKS
“A gripping page-turner you’ll want to stay up all night to finish.” —Amy Tintera, New York Times bestselling author
After a true crime podcast reopens her cousin’s murder case, a woman must confront her past at a glamorous European castle where she follows a trail of toxic family secrets and deadly lies in this “addictive, atmospheric” (Tiffany Crum, New York Times bestselling author), gothic-tinged thriller perfect for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.
When they were teenagers, Mia’s beloved cousin was murdered during their stay at an infamous castle in the Austrian Alps. As the only witness, Mia’s testimony put the killer behind bars, but it tore her life apart: the media accused her aunt, a controversial true crime author, of being involved. Now, a decade later, the murderer is appealing his conviction, and a popular true crime podcast starts covering the case, determined to exonerate him, and resurfacing lies about Mia’s family in the process.
Desperate to protect her aunt—and what she knows to be the truth—Mia returns to Austria. The castle is being revamped as a luxury hotel, and Mia gets a job as a nanny for the new owner, hiding in plain sight as she investigates, needing to set the story straight once and for all. But after someone mysteriously disappears on the property and sinister new evidence emerges regarding her cousin’s death, she realizes she might have accused the wrong man...and put her own life in danger.
“With nerve-shattering suspense, Goedjen expertly peels away layers of secrets, hidden motives, and deadly intentions to reveal a monster no one sees coming. Come for the intrigue, stay for the pitch-perfect pacing and unrelenting tension. Please Enjoy Your Stay is not to be missed” (Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author).
Publisher: Atria/Emily Bestler Books
Publish Date: October 13, 2026
ISBN: 978-1668217115
PLEASE ENJOY YOUR STAY
NO BEAUTIES OR MONSTERS
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Publish Date: December 07, 2021
ISBN: 978-1524714802
“A desert full of mystery. A girl who sees things she shouldn’t. Desperate to unlock the secrets of Twentynine Palms, I raced through this book!” —Erin A. Craig, New York Times bestselling author
Welcome to Twentynine Palms, where nothing is what it seems.
Rylie hasn't been back to the military base in Twentynine Palms since her father died. She left a lot of memories out there, buried in the sand of the Mojave Desert. Memories about her dad, her old friends Nathan and Lily, and most of all, her enigmatic grandfather, a man who cut ties with Rylie’s family before he passed away. But her mom’s new work assignment has sent their family to Twentynine Palms again, and now, Rylie’s in the one place she never wanted to return to.
At least her old friends are happy to welcome her home. Well, some of them, anyway. It turns out Lily is gone, vanished into the desert. To make matters worse, there are whispers around town of a mysterious killer on the loose.
But it isn’t just Twentynine Palms that feels frightening—there’s something wrong with Rylie, too. She’s seeing things she can’t explain. Visions of monstrous creatures that stalk the night.
Somehow, it all seems to be tied to her grandfather and the family cabin he left behind. Rylie wants the truth, but she doesn’t know if she can trust herself. Are the monsters in her head really out there? Or could it be that the deadliest thing in the desert . . . is Rylie herself ?
THE BREATHLESS
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Publish Date: October 10, 2017
ISBN: 978-1524714765
“This sultry Southern tale is drenched in atmosphere! A world of secrets, mysterious family heirlooms, and forbidden love. Get ready to be bewitched by a story where not only does the past live on . . . the dead do, too!”—Adriana Mather, New York Times bestselling author of How to Hang a Witch
No one knows what really happened on the beach where Roxanne Cole’s body was found, but her boyfriend, Cage, took off that night and hasn’t been seen since. Until now. One year—almost to the day—from Ro’s death, when he knocks on the door of Blue Gate Manor and asks where she is.
Cage has no memory of the past twelve months. According to him, Ro was alive only the day before. Ro’s sister Mae wouldn’t believe him, except that something’s not right. Nothing’s been right in the house since Ro died.
And then Mae finds the little green book. The one hidden in Ro’s room. It’s filled with secrets—dangerous secrets—about her family, and about Ro. And if what it says is true, then maybe, just maybe, Ro isn’t lost forever.
And maybe there are secrets so dark, they should never see the light of day.