The Last Wife

Marie Langham, the unreliable narrator of this gripping thriller from Hamilton (The Perfect Girlfriend) set somewhere in England, wants to honor the last request of her best—and possibly only—friend, Nina Thompson, who has recently died of melanoma: to protect Nina’s family. Marie immediately offers to help Nina’s husband with the children. From there it’s a short hop to moving into the Thompson family home and making herself indispensable. After years of regarding Nina’s life with envy, Marie at last can play the role she has always dreamed of, though not everyone is pleased with this new reality. “The speed at which you gleefully took over has left a few of us a bit shell-shocked,” a good friend of Nina remarks. As unwelcome people from Marie’s past pop up on her doorstep, and as she realizes that her view of Nina was colored by her own longing, she comes to a terrifying decision that leads to murder. Everybody has a nasty side, but that’s just one of the pleasures of this cunning whodunit. A devious plot is another. Hamilton knows how to keep the pages turning. Agent: Hillary Jacobson, ICM. (July)