Lies Between Us

“Nothing bad ever happens” on the Long Island Sound’s exclusive Pelican Island—until tragedy strikes in this knotty seaside mystery by Goodman (The Meadowbrook Murders). Neighboring families the Golds and the Silvers share many things, including beach days, bonfires, a reputation for being wealthy and well-connected, and secrets. Eighteen-year-old Lucy Gold and her sisters, intense 17-year-old Millie and watchful 15-year-old Frankie, have grown up alongside Lucy’s boyfriend Ethan Silver and his brothers, amiable middle child Trevor and youngest child Alex, who is gay and closest to Frankie. Orbiting them are Lucy’s ex-girlfriend Olivia Godwin and Olivia’s widely disliked cousin Billy. After a raucous party, Billy is found dead in the surf, and the tight-knit circle begins to fray. As romantic histories, jealousies, and long-buried resentments surface, it seems that nearly everyone has a motive. When local police prove incompetent, Frankie launches her own investigation. Via the sisters’ rapidly alternating perspectives, the author showcases her thriller savvy, playing fair with genre conventions and planting evidence in plain sight while preserving a final surprising turn. The result is a polished slow burn that peels back the layers of the white-cued protagonists’ coastal affluence to expose the sinister secrets beneath. Ages 14–up. Agent: Alyssa Reuben, WME. (June)