First published 2025
Georgia Cartwright sits in a psychiatric institution for violent offenders, accused of murdering her adoptive family's biological daughter. The glamorous adopted child of a wealthy Southern family now awaits trial behind locked doors. When her estranged twin sister Amanda visits, Georgia whispers only one plea: "I didn't do it. You've got to get me out of here." Amanda feels torn between suspicion and loyalty. She cannot abandon Georgia in such a threatening place, yet she questions whether her sister tells the truth. The case has captured public attention as the Crime of the Decade, with theories ranging from jealousy to sibling rivalry to mental illness. Amanda must decide if Georgia fell victim to a corrupt family capable of framing her for murder, or if her sister is manipulating her from within the ward's walls. The institution itself feels otherworldly and dangerous. As Amanda searches for answers, she risks her own sanity while navigating the twisted dynamics between adopted and biological children in a family where murder may be the smallest transgression.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, psychological-thriller
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: sibling-rivalry, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Psychiatric Institution, Southern Family Home
Period: Contemporary
307 pages · Hardcover · St. Martin's Press
Content warnings: mental-illness, murder