Immersive and compelling—this neighborhood’s a nice place to visit, but you wouldn’t want to die there.
In Reida’s mystery novel, a street in a tony Atlanta suburb acquires a well-deserved nickname: Murder Avenue.
Adelaide McKenzie can’t believe her good fortune: After growing up in a trailer park, she now resides with her handsome surgeon husband, William, in a huge white mansion that looks like a wedding cake, “the kind you don’t want to slice into because it’s too fancy to eat.” But happy as she is, she knows fairy tales aren’t real. Flaws and secrets, ranging from minor to major, abound among many of her neighbors, including Ray Willis (“There’s something almost reptilian about the way she blinks”); Helen Beecham, who waits each day for 4:00, “an acceptable time for her first Moscow Mule”; adulterer Conner Boyle; homophobe Beverly Grant; racist HOA president Pam Muenster; and neo-Nazi Tripp Schulman. Faith Martin, earning money for college during her gap year, weaves in and out of the homes, doing housework and running errands for the residents. After an extravagant party, two of those people are murdered. Faith is shocked to find that after the murders, there is no sign that such crimes occurred (“Everyone wants to pretend nothing bad can ever happen in a place like this”). But when the killings continue, tensions understandably ratchet up, as do accusations and media coverage. In addition to her evil characters, the author also provides quite a lot of laughs, even as the body count ramps up. (When resident Soon-Li Jung opts for a home elliptical machine instead of a gym membership, the device is only used to hold wet laundry: “It might not help with her heart rate, but it can dry six sweaters at once.”) The killings aren’t grisly and there are some sweet bits, but rough language keeps this mystery from being strictly cozy. A fast pace and a strong ending are welcome features.
Immersive and compelling—this neighborhood’s a nice place to visit, but you wouldn’t want to die there.Pub Date: April 2, 2024
ISBN: 9781684429639
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Keylight Books
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
The story unfolds so irresistibly that newcomers may think Grisham’s been writing thrillers like this his whole life.
What hasn’t legendary legal eagle Grisham tried yet? How about a thriller about serial kidnapping and international terrorism.
When Paul and Chelsea Tanner disappear during a day trip on their Paris honeymoon, their abductors demand a ransom of $2 million from Chelsea’s wealthy parents, and a few days later the same sum from Paul’s much less well-heeled parents. After orthopedist Lowell Clayburn, Chelsea’s father, ponies up the ransom without breathing a word to the authorities, his daughter is promptly released. But even though Paul’s parents sell their home, liquidate their assets, and borrow money from the Clayburns to meet the kidnappers’ demands, the villains hold on to Paul anyway. Asked whether he’s ever seen such an outcome in a double kidnapping, FBI deputy director Andrew Strong tells Lowell: “No, this is a new one.” But it’s not, as Strong knows all too well; it’s the third such active case, all involving honeymooning couples whose bridegrooms had served in the armed forces. After masterfully drawing readers in with his bare-knuckle account of the Tanners’ abduction and the attempt by their families and the CIA to tell the lies required to keep caring friends and the rapacious press at bay, Grisham effortlessly switches gears to follow CIA agent Rae Claire Russo and Stuart Nash, a former Department of Justice prosecutor at Guantanamo Bay who agrees to marry her so they can serve as bait for the kidnappers, whose motives include justice and revenge as well as cold hard cash. So much for the imprisoned Paul’s wistful reflection that “hopefully, it was only about money.”
The story unfolds so irresistibly that newcomers may think Grisham’s been writing thrillers like this his whole life.Pub Date: Sept. 29, 2026
ISBN: 9780385550543
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2026
Starts with a bang and closes with a knockout punch of an ending.
A violent attack hijacks a woman’s memory in this novel of domestic suspense.
McFadden wastes no time pulling the trigger in this harrowing story that starts with gunfire then swiftly propels readers into a crack tale of secrets and misdirection. Originally self-published in 2016, the book carries the same formidable weight as McFadden’s later novels featuring unsuspecting women who lose their power then fight to recapture it—mostly from men who have betrayed them. That formula perfectly fits Dr. Charlotte McKenna, a 37-year-old dermatologist who isn’t looking for love until the most handsome man she’s ever seen begins to woo her. There are warning signs about Clark Douglas and Charlotte overlooks them to her detriment—but is he a killer? The novel has dual timelines split between events leading up to the day Charlotte barely survives a head wound meant to kill her and the months afterward, when she struggles to reclaim her memory and her mobility. In real life, McFadden is a physician trained to treat brain injuries. Her expertise gives Charlotte’s rehabilitation authenticity, and her writing talent makes it interesting and engaging. As good as that timeline is, readers will yearn to get back to the alternate timeline about who wants Charlotte dead. It’s only a matter of time before Charlotte starts to remember who tried to kill her, and the clock is ticking toward their next attempt. McFadden dishes up plenty of suspects: Charlotte’s secretive husband, Clark; a former patient turned stalker who confronts Charlotte on her honeymoon; and the angry husband of a patient who blames Charlotte for his wife leaving him. Though the story is delicious and dark, McFadden brightens things up with a possible love interest for Charlotte and a surprise ending sure to please the author’s many fans.
Starts with a bang and closes with a knockout punch of an ending.Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2026
ISBN: 9781464249617
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Poisoned Pen
Review Posted Online: July 6, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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