Part of Big Little Lies
First published 2017
Madeline remembers every slight and forgives nothing. She watches the other parents at her daughter's school with sharp eyes and a sharper tongue. Beautiful Celeste appears to have the perfect marriage, but bruises tell a different story. Jane, the young single mother, carries a dark secret about her son's father that she cannot share with anyone. These three women meet at the school orientation, where tensions between parents simmer beneath polite conversation. A dispute over a playground incident divides the community into camps. The conflict escalates through the school year, fueled by gossip, jealousy, and hidden truths. On the night of the school trivia fundraiser, all the lies and resentments explode into violence. Someone dies, and the three women must decide how much truth they can bear to tell.
Genres: drama, domestic-fiction, contemporary, psychological-thriller, mystery-thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, intimate, suspenseful, tension-filled
Tropes: multiple-perspectives, secrets-and-lies, slow-burn-mystery, unreliable-narrator
Setting: school, playground
Period: contemporary, school-year
460 pages · Paperback · Berkley
Content warnings: abuse, domestic-violence, murder