In the small town of Monta Clare, Missouri, girls are disappearing. When the daughter of a wealthy family is targeted, the most unlikely hero emerges—Patch, a local boy with one eye, who saves the girl, and, in doing so, leaves heartache in his wake. Patch and those who love him soon discover that the line between triumph and tragedy has never been finer. And that their search for answers will lead them to truths that could mean losing one another.
Timeless and bittersweet, Husbands & Lovers takes readers on an unforgettable journey of heartbreak and redemption, from the revolutionary fires of midcentury Egypt to the moneyed beaches of contemporary New England. Acclaimed author Beatriz Williams has written a poignant and beautifully voiced novel of deeply human characters entangled by morally complex issues—of privilege, class, and the female experience—inside worlds brought shimmering to life.
Brooke Hastings is ready to end her six-week affair. Gideon Ross is charming but not worth throwing away her marriage for. So, she breaks it off, hoping Gideon will understand. He doesn’t. Gideon insists that he and Brooke are meant to be together. Finally, he backs off, but not before issuing a promise that he’ll never let her go. Six years later, Brooke wants to believe it’s all behind her. Gideon has vanished. But Brooke is worried. And maybe she’s right to be. Because Gideon is a man who keeps his promises.
Hannah finds community in a true-crime forum that’s on a mission to solve the murders of four women in Atlanta. After William, a handsome lawyer, is arrested for the killings, Hannah begins writing him letters. But when William writes back, Hannah’s interest in the case goes from curiosity to obsession. When a fifth woman is discovered murdered, the jury has no choice but to find William not guilty, and Hannah is the first person he calls upon his release. The two of them quickly fall into a routine of domestic bliss. Well, as blissful as one can feel while secretly investigating their partner for serial murder.
Daphne McFadden is tired of rejection. After submitting her manuscript to dozens of agents, she’s gotten rejection after rejection. And so, Daphne submits her manuscript again, under a man’s name. Imagine her surprise when it becomes a publicity darling. Only she needs a man to play her alter ego Zane Remington. Enter Chris Stanton, who absolutely looks the part of a survivalist. But Chris has a few secrets of his own. When Daphne’s book becomes a bestselling sensation and they’re forced to go on tour together, Daphne finds herself wondering if this city‑boy geek is exactly what she needs to push her to claim her dreams.
On the way to an annual book club retreat, Eileen Merriweather, a Literature professor’s car unexpectedly breaks down, and she finds herself stranded in a quaint town that feels like it’s right out of a novel of her favorite romance series. It’s perfect but trapped in the late author’s last unfinished story. Elsy is sure that’s why she must be here: to help bring the town to its storybook ending. Except there is a character in Eloraton, a grumpy bookstore owner, that does not want her finishing this book. Which is a problem because Elsy is beginning to think the town’s happily-ever-after might just be intertwined with her own.
It’s the opening night of The Manor, and no expense has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles and crystal pouches for guests’ healing have been placed in the Seaside Cottages and Woodland Hutches. Everyone is wearing linen. But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. Just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. And the Sunday morning of opening weekend, the local police are called. It all began with a secret. Now the past has crashed the party. And it’ll end in murder.
The worst thing to ever happen on Hemlock Circle occurred in Ethan Marsh’s backyard. One July night, ten-year-old Ethan and his best friend and neighbor, Billy, fell asleep in a tent set up on a manicured lawn in a quiet, quaint New Jersey. In the morning, Ethan woke up alone. Thirty years later, Ethan has reluctantly returned to his childhood home and he begins to notice strange things happening in the middle of the night. Someone seems to be roaming the cul de sac at odd hours, and signs of Billy’s presence keep appearing in Ethan’s backyard. Is someone playing a cruel prank? Or has Billy, long thought to be dead, somehow returned to Hemlock Circle?
As a young couple who flip houses, Charlie and Eve can’t believe the killer deal they’ve just gotten on an old house in a picturesque neighborhood. As they’re working in the house one day, there’s a knock on the door. A man stands there with his family, claiming to have lived there years before and asking if it would be alright if he showed his kids around. Eve lets them in but as soon as the strangers enter their home, uncanny and inexplicable things start happening. And when Charlie suddenly vanishes, Eve slowly loses her grip on reality. Something is terribly wrong with the house and with the visiting family—or is Eve just imagining things?