In no particular order…
The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave
Library Journal: Hannah’s husband of two years, Owen, disappears amidst a work scandal; the only things he leaves her are a duffel bag full of money and a cryptic note that says “protect her,” referring to his teenage daughter Bailey. When investigators reveal that Owen is not who he says he is, the mystery deepens, and Dave (Hello, Sunshine) heightens the stakes with the dynamic between Hannah and stepdaughter Bailey. Will Bailey come to trust her? Will Hannah be able to protect her as Owen asked? Dave focuses the action by filtering it through only Hannah’s perspective, which keeps the plot tight where it could have been complicated, as Hannah chases leads to figure out who her husband used to be and meets people from his past. The first-person, present-tense point of view makes the pace quick; readers will be hooked from the start. Skillfully woven into the present mystery are flashbacks of scenes between Hannah and Owen, showing their tender relationship and Owen’s behavior that hints at his past. VERDICT For readers who like a resilient, resourceful heroine and a compelling domestic suspense story. –Sonia Reppe (Reviewed 05/01/2021) (Library Journal, vol 146, issue 5, p50)
Mrs. March by Virginia Feito
Library Journal: DEBUT Mrs. March hasn’t read the recent best-selling book by her husband George; all she’s gleaned is that its main character is an unlikable, weathered woman. When a clerk at the local patisserie tells her that the book’s protagonist seems to be based on Mrs. March herself, she’s floored: “‘But…—isn’t she…’ Mrs. March leaned in and in almost a whisper said, ‘a whore?'” She runs out of the bakery, imagining all of her Upper East Side neighbors reading the book and laughing at her. Days later, she finds on George’s desk a newspaper clipping about the recent disappearance of a young Maine girl named Sylvia; it reports that police have learned that she was beaten, raped, and murdered. George makes frequent trips to a hunting lodge in the area of the disappearance, and Mrs. March begins to imagine him as Sylvia’s killer. Soon she travels to Maine and connives her way into Sylvia’s home, where she spots signed copies of several of George’s books; in her mind, this certifies her husband’s guilt. Mrs. March’s flights of fantasy now progress to psychotic episodes and flashbacks to her stoic upbringing; even readers will begin to question what is real and what is imagined. VERDICT Feito’s debut can be classified as a literary psychological thriller, but it doesn’t fit neatly into one genre. Fans of novels about psychological degeneration will be satisfied. –Edward Goldberg (Reviewed 08/01/2021) (Library Journal, vol 146, issue 8, p54)
The Sinful Lives of Trophy Wives by Kristin Miller
Publishers Weekly: In this soapy, shrewdly plotted page-turner from bestseller Miller (In Her Shadow), it appears the third time may finally be the charm for San Francisco socialite Georgia St. Claire—aka the Black Widow because of the suspicious demises of her previous two wealthy spouses—until, days before the wedding, her intended, multimillionaire businessman Robert Donnelly, disappears from his yacht. With the police taking a less than zealous approach, Georgia turns for help to two neighbors in her exclusive gated community: longtime bestie and TV news diva Erin King, whose marriage to a plastic surgeon has hit some turbulence, and newcomer Brooke Davies, the recent bride of a much older tech billionaire. As the trio scramble to figure out what’s happened to Robert, it becomes clear to Brooke—whose smarts people tend to underestimate because of her classic trophy wife looks—that Georgia and Erin seem to share some dangerous secrets, which Brooke can relate to far better than either suspects. The exhilarating plot speeds along until hitting several jarring twists toward the end. Nonetheless, prepare to savor an escapist fantasy with sass to spare. Agent: Jill Marsal, Marsal Lyon Literary. (July) –Staff (Reviewed 05/17/2021) (Publishers Weekly, vol 268, issue 20, p)
All the Little Hopes by Laura Weiss
Publishers Weekly :Weiss (If the Creek Don’t Rise) delivers an intriguing coming of age story of two 13-year-old girls whose summer idyll is complicated by mysterious events. Lucy Brown lives on a tobacco farm in Riverton, N.C., in 1943 with her six siblings. She forms a quick friendship with Bert Tucker, who comes to Riverton to stay with her pregnant aunt Violet, whose husband Larry has disappeared, after Bert’s mother dies. Lucy’s mother then brings Bert into the Browns’ home when Violet is admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Lucy’s understanding of WWII is based on her knowledge of her older soldier brother, Everett, and of her father’s deal with the U.S. government to provide beeswax. But after Riverton becomes home to a Nazi prisoner-of-war camp, Lucy learns firsthand of the war’s divisiveness, as rumors and distrust run rampant through the community. Lucy, an avid Nancy Drew reader, then bands with Bert in an effort solve the mystery of Larry’s disappearance, and of a singer who went missing after performing at a town dance. Weiss expertly highlights how Lucy and Bert’s innocence is altered by their experiences, with spot-on depictions of the rural Southern community. This is magnetic from the start. Agent: Rebecca Gradinger, Fletcher and Co. (July) –Staff (Reviewed 05/03/2021) (Publishers Weekly, vol 268, issue 18, p)
A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins
Library Journal: After Daniel Sutherland is brutally stabbed to death on a houseboat in London, five people find their lives entangled and scrutinized as the police seek out his killer. Laura, who still suffers from the effects of a childhood car accident, had a recent one-night stand with the victim. Theo is an aging author still in love with his ex-wife Carla, who is Daniel’s aunt. Irene is a widowed older woman living on her own, still missing her husband and now freshly mourning the loss of her next-door neighbor and best friend Angela, who was Daniel’s mother. Miriam lives on the houseboat next to Daniel’s and was the one to find him. She also has a history with Theo, whom she has accused of stealing her unpublished memoir for his own crime novel. Hawkins deftly spools out their stories, expertly maneuvering suspenseful twists and turns as the characters’ flaws and motives are exposed. VERDICT Hawkins (The Girl on the Train; Into the Water) returns with another novel of psychological suspense, sure to top best-seller lists. She takes seemingly ordinary characters and peers deeply into their complicated lives, skillfully building tension and keeping readers guessing. –Melissa DeWild (Reviewed 08/01/2021) (Library Journal, vol 146, issue 8, p51)
