Meg's Picks: March 2018, part 1

A trio of thrillers of note are arriving next month. What's so note-worthy? Read on to find out!

The Other Mother, by Carol Goodman. As I've just finished Goodman's last book (and absolutely loved it, by the way), I can't help but be excited about her next! Daphne and infant daughter Chloe are starting over the hard way. Daphne's on the run from an emotionally abusive husband, and she's hiding out in the Catskills, working under an assumed name. She's trying to do everything right, but struggling...until she meets Laurel, and they become fast friends. Laurel also has a daughter named Chloe, and the women's fast friendship leads to telling secrets that maybe should have been left hidden. What price would Daphne be willing to pay for her friendship with Laurel? Goodman is a magnificent storyteller, and this is at the very top of my to-read list this spring.

Let Me Lie, by Clare Mackintosh. From the best-selling author of I Let You Go and I See You. Anna has never been able to reconcile the suicides, seven months apart, of her parents. She then receives a card that simply reads "Suicide? Think again." This card (clue? cruel joke?) catches the interest of retired detective turned civilian desk clerk in the local police station. When the two begin an unofficial investigation, Anna begins to receive death threats, and she must decide whether the truth or her remaining family's safety is more important. Mackintosh is creating quite a fanbase with her gripping, satisfying thrillers.

Tangerine, by Christine Mangan. If there's a book to film adaptation that I think is going to be a splash in the near future, it's this debut from Mangan. (George Clooney's Smokehouse Pictures have already bought the film rights, and Scarlett Johansson is set to star.) Alice hasn't spoken to her former Bennington roommate Lucy since a terrible accident nearly a year ago, so she's almost relieved when Lucy turns up in sun-scorched 1950's Tangier, eager to make up and move on. But soon Alice is starting to feel stifled and controlled by Lucy...again. And then Alice's husband disappears... Advance praise makes favorable comparisons to Patricia Highsmith's The Talented Mr. Ripley, Alfred Hitchcock, Gillian Flynn and Donna Tartt. Place your holds now--don't say I didn't warn you!