Southern Gothic

An improbable premise sinks this thriller set in Savannah, Ga., from Wiley (The Intern). Aspiring author Meredith Harper, who runs the Southern Gothic Bookstore, has accepted that her first novel, Red Ribbon, will never be published. She has also become obsessed with bestselling author Michael Black, who vanished years earlier after cheating on his sick wife. Meredith has gone as far as creating “Black’s Legacy, an online forum for Black’s friends and foes to talk about all the theories and mysteries of his disappearance.” Then Black appears in her home, having rewritten and greatly improved Red Ribbon. Meredith is grateful to him for editing her novel, which can now be sold to a publisher under her name. Though Black may be a murderer, she becomes romantically involved with him. Readers who enjoy yelling at movie screens for a heroine to act differently to avoid an obvious peril will feel at home. Awkward prose doesn’t help (“She focused as much as possible, trying to enjoy every sliver of this dreamy night”). (Jan.)