FOR BETTER AND WORSE

After planning the perfect murder on their first date decades before—theoretically, of course—a married couple find themselves testing just how foolproof their plan was.

Natalie and Will Clarke met in law school and now, years later, are raising a spunky 11-year-old named Charlie in a small seaside Florida town. Will spends his days behind a desk doing real estate law while Natalie is always in court in her capacity as a defense attorney. Their marriage has lost a bit of its spark, and Natalie worries Will may be having an affair, but overall things are good. Tensions rise when the principal of Charlie’s school, a former close friend of the Clarkes’, is accused of molesting a child. Gossip swirls around town. It only hits home, however, when Charlie confesses to Natalie that he is also a victim. Aware of all the extra trauma and pain that Charlie will have to deal with if he makes an official statement, Natalie makes a decision that will change her family forever: The principal has to die. Hunt (Best Friends Forever, 2018) has concocted another thriller of small-town Florida life gone extra wrong. Each page races forward as the characters contend with different obstacles thrown in their ways, from pills to police to unfortunate phone calls. The narrative switches between Natalie and Will, which, though at first refreshing, gets old two-thirds of the way through since Natalie is the more compelling character. The question of whether they'll get caught or not permeates the book, as each revelation questions whether the Clarkes are still in the clear or if they’re even on the same side. The end, when it comes, is unexpected and ominous, as is only proper.

A twisty tale for fans of domestic thrillers.