I Love It When You Lie

Set in Willow Gap, Ala., this exceptional mystery from Bird (The Night She Went Missing) focuses on the three Williams sisters: Tara, the eldest, has married the local Southern Baptist pastor; June has become a nurse and has married a doctor; and Clementine, the youngest, is still in college. Their brother, now Willow Gap’s mayor, has scandalized the townsfolk by marrying Stephanie, whose major crime in their eyes is being a Northerner. Readers know from the outset that someone is dead, and that the Williams family had a hand in his demise, as revealed through the viewpoints of the three sisters and their sister-in-law. Bird judiciously doles out salient details of the women’s lives and the decisions that have brought them to their current roles. The potential identity of the victim constantly shifts, as each woman has a bone to pick with her man. Rather than a whodunit, this is a “who’s going to get what he deserves.” As Stephanie says, “Justice would be great, but revenge is so much sweeter.” This tale of sisterhood is un-put-downable. Agent: Hayley Steed , Madeleine Milburn Literary TV & Film Agency. (Mar.)