Exploring Shadows: My New Psychological Thriller Journey

Writing a psychological thriller is a bold step for any author, especially when it isn't their usual style. For me, it's a new creative chapter, one that dives deep into the complexities of the human mind and the darker corners of emotion and perception.

I am a huge thriller fan and have always wanted to write one. Transitioning to psychological thriller writing requires a whole new mindset. I have been writing lighthearted contemporary fiction for six years now and have three books published with another one on the way.

Thrillers challenge writers to:

• Build suspense through character psychology

• Create complex, multi-layered characters with hidden depths

• Use narrative techniques that keep readers questioning what is true

  
  

My decision to write under a different pen name reflects my desire to separate this new creative identity from my previous works, allowing myself to experiment and take risks. The pen name will be H.M.Walsh

Updates on both genres will continue to be found on this site / blog along with my social media accounts.

Instagram and Threads @taylesbyhayles

Facebook @Author Hayley Walsh

So, without further ado, here is a little taste of what I have been working on. Prologue and the first couple of paragraphs of the first chapter. I hope my readers will support me on this exciting new journey and come along for the ride.

PROLOGUE

TEN YEARS EARLIER

LILY

A beautiful autumn breeze is blowing my lace veil across my face. My incredibly handsome fiancé is about to become my husband. Husband! It’s unlikely I’ll ever get used to that. I believed I would be left on the shelf forever. I’m rather shy and have never been confident around men. When it comes to relationships, I’m a late bloomer, so to speak. He was only my second serious boyfriend, and now here we are at our wedding.

My grandmother’s generation would have considered me positively ancient. An old spinster. I’m thirty-six, and this catch standing beside me is forty-five. I've always had a bit of a thing for older men.

Jack is a doctor. A psychiatrist. He is smart, charming, good-looking, and kind. I have absolutely no idea what he sees in me. A shy pharmacy assistant from Blacktown who didn’t complete her Higher School Certificate. We met a year ago at the pharmaceutical company ball. The pharmacist invited me as his plus one after his wife ran away with their dog groomer.

The celebrant snaps me out of my daydream. My mum gives me one of her loving warm smiles, and my best friend, Ellie, takes my enormous bouquet of Singapore orchids as I turn and face my groom.

‘Do you, Jack, take Lilly to be your wife? Do you promise to cherish her in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, until death do you part?’

‘I do.’

‘Do you, Lily, take Jack to be your husband? Do you promise to cherish him in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, until death do you part?’

‘I do.’

I hear my mother sobbing happy tears. The celebrant touches Jack on the shoulder. ‘I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.’

He kisses me, and the butterflies in my stomach do backflips. I can’t believe I’m marrying this wonderful man. We turn to face our family and friends as the celebrant steps forward. ‘I now present to you all, Mr and Mrs Mason.’

CHAPTER ONE

LILY

Jack used to shower me with expensive gifts and whisk me away on romantic dates. Red roses, jewellery, and fancy restaurants. The works. He would tell me daily how much he loved me. That I was the most beautiful woman he had ever known. His ying to his yang. We had so much in common. Or so I thought.

Now, I spend most of my time walking on eggshells, afraid I’ll say or do something wrong. Cook the wrong meal, even though it was what I swore he had asked for, or forget to produce a receipt for something I had purchased. My nerves frayed down to a single bare thread.

With the help of Dr Google, I now understand that what he was doing throughout our six-month whirlwind romance was love bombing me. He gained my trust, making me feel safe. Had me reeled in hook, line, and sinker. It all changed not long after our wedding.

Hayley Walsh (c) 2026