Recommended reading - Crawlspace, by Herbert Lieberman (1971):

Crawlspace

By Herbert Lieberman.

Published by Pocket.

First published 1971.

First Edition.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0671775324

ISBN-13: 978-0671775322

Description:

In this novel of mounting suspense from award-winning author Herbert Lieberman, a terrifying surprise waits beneath a couple’s New England home. Albert and Alice Graves live a normal, if monotonous, domestic life. They never had children; they spend their days tending to their home and enjoying their time together.

One day, when the oil man, Richard, is refilling their furnace, Alice invites him to dinner, never suspecting that a casual act of charity will lead to a horrifying, morbid discovery in the crawlspace underneath their beloved house.

The Graves take Richard into their lives, becoming attached to his presence as though to the son they never had. Their town, though, is not nearly so welcoming. When the locals lash out against the Graves and their strange houseguest, the contented household is irrevocably drawn into a darkness they could not have imagined.

Recommended reading - City of the Dead (1976):

City of the Dead

By Herbert Lieberman.

Hardcover.

First published 1976.

Published by Simon & Schuster.

ISBN 13: 9780671222727

ISBN 10: 0671222724

ASIN: 0671222724

Description:

The grim and fascinating world of the big-city pathologist is the backdrop for this terrifying journey into the depths of the human soul.

In 1970s New York, a forensic pathologist must use his professional skills to save his own daughter in this “harrowing” award-winning crime novel (The New York Times).

In the gritty seventies, Manhattan is a dark, dangerous, and threatening place. One of the bright spots in this decaying metropolis is Paul Konig. As the city’s chief medical examiner, he has developed an impressive reputation for his skills in forensic pathology – skills that will be put to the ultimate test when a dangerous psychopath kidnaps Konig’s daughter.

Awakened by phone calls featuring his daughter’s desperate screams each night, Konig finds his life unraveling, not only personally but professionally. Between the case of a serial killer who leaves a trail of severed body parts in his wake, an investigation into the forensic work on an alleged prison suicide, and a nakedly ambitious deputy medical examiner, he is at the end of his rope, and it will take every ounce of his strength to save his own life – as well as his family’s.

Perfect for fans of Patricia Cornwell or Kathy Reichs, City of the Dead is a chilling thriller by the author of Crawlspace and a winner of the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, featuring “a massive amount of authoritative detail” about the life of a coroner (Kirkus Reviews).