The Last Invitation

This gripping thriller from Kane (Pretty Little Wife) focuses on the Sophie Foundation in Chevy Chase, Md., a charitable organization set up by a group of influential women to fund special projects relating to women’s health and welfare. Some members, though, take a hands-on approach to dealing with men they consider risks to the community. Gabby Fielding, who’s in a contentious child custody battle with her ex-husband, Baines, arrives at his house one day to find him dead, blood oozing from a gunshot wound to his head. The police rule it a suicide, but Gabby is unconvinced. She begins to suspect that Baines’s demise is part of a string of suspicious deaths of prominent men. Meanwhile, divorce lawyer Jessa Hall, a law school classmate of Gabby’s, is at a low point when she receives an invitation to join the Sophie Foundation. Jessa jumps at the chance to be part of this powerful and well-connected band of sisters, but she soon has regrets. Skillfully intertwined chapters told from the viewpoints of Gabby, Jessa, and others keep the suspense level high. Only a too neat ending disappoints. Readers will be curious to see what Kane does next. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary. (Dec.)