The Praying Mantis Bride (Nameless)

About this book

Nameless has no name, no past and no questions he is allowed to ask. He only has a handler he has never seen, a stack of cash, a stream of borrowed identities and a mission that arrives one case at a time. In The Praying Mantis Bride, the third episode of Dean Koontz's Nameless: Season 1, his latest assignment leads him into the orbit of Lucia, a stunning woman with a fortune of roughly a hundred and forty million dollars and three wealthy husbands behind her. Posing as an insurance investigator, Nameless travels from a decaying Florida trailer park to a sunlit home in Scottsdale, Arizona, listening to those who knew Lucia best. Her bitter, whiskey-sipping mother has a chilling story to tell. A stepdaughter remembers a sweet, refined young bride and a vacation that ended in tragedy. Every account adds another piece to a portrait that is charming, unsettling and possibly deadly. Koontz blends dark humour, sharp-edged character sketches and creeping suspense in this fast, compact instalment of about 14,000 words. It is ideal for readers who enjoy short, serialised thrillers with a touch of the macabre, and for anyone who wants a quick, gripping read with a sting in its tail. Start The Praying Mantis Bride right now: buy it and read it instantly in your browser, with an optional printed copy available.

Author

Dean Koontz

Length

~52 pages

Reading time

1 h 2 min

Chapters

26

Released

November 11, 2026

Languages

🇬🇧 EN · 🇵🇱 PL · 🇩🇪 DE · 🇫🇷 FR · 🇪🇸 ES · 🇮🇹 IT · 🇧🇷 PT-BR · 🇲🇽 ES-MX · 🇵🇹 PT · 🇺🇦 UK · 🇨🇿 CS · 🇸🇰 SK · 🇬🇷 EL · 🇭🇺 HU · 🇹🇷 TR · 🇳🇱 NL · 🇷🇴 RO · 🇧🇬 BG · 🇭🇷 HR · 🇷🇸 SR · 🇸🇮 SL · 🇱🇹 LT · 🇱🇻 LV · 🇪🇪 ET · 🇸🇪 SV · 🇩🇰 DA · 🇳🇴 NB · 🇫🇮 FI · 🇯🇵 JA · 🇰🇷 KO · 🇨🇳 ZH · 🇹🇼 ZH-TW · 🇮🇩 ID · 🇻🇳 VI · 🇹🇭 TH · 🇮🇳 HI · 🇸🇦 AR · 🇮🇱 HE

Formats

eBook · Print edition

Print format

Paperback, 13.5 × 21 cm, 64 pages

Age rating

Mature 17+