Best Selling Books by Sarah Pekkanen

The instant #1 New York Times bestseller (January 2019) everyone is talking about! People Magazine''s Book of the Week • Bookish''s "Must-Read Books of Winter" • PopSugar''s "Best Books of Winter" • Cosmopolitan''s "2019 Books to Bring to Your Book Club" • Bookbub''s "Biggest Books of Winter" • Refinery 29''s "Best Books of January 2019" • Crime Reads'' "January''s Best Psychological Thrillers" • InStyle''s "7 Books That You Should Resolve to Read This January" • HelloGiggles'' "The 50 Most Anticipated Books of 2019" • USA Today''s "5 New Books Not to Miss" • Marie Claire''s "The Best Women’s Fiction of 2019 (So Far)" • Hypable''s "Winter Releases You Can’t Afford to Miss" "Hendricks and Pekkanen are at the top of their game...You won''t see the final twist coming." —People Magazine “Beware strange psychologists...the authors know exactly how to play on their characters’ love of danger to bring them to the brink of disaster - and dare them to jump off.” —New York Times Book Review "Slickly twisty [with] gasp-worthy final twists...major league suspense." —Publishers Weekly (starred review) "For those who relished the creepy stalking in Hendricks and Pekkanen''s The Wife Between Us, this unnerving tale will have them rethinking what secrets are safe to share and if moral and ethics really matter when protecting the ones you love." —Library Journal (starred review) "Masterfully escalates the suspense." —Booklist (starred review) Looking to earn some easy cash, Jessica Farris agrees to be a test subject in a psychological study about ethics and morality. But as the study moves from the exam room to the real world, the line between what is real and what is one of Dr. Shields’s experiments blurs. Dr. Shields seems to know what Jess is thinking... and what she’s hiding. Jessica’s behavior will not only be monitored, but manipulated. Caught in a web of attraction, deceit and jealousy, Jess quickly learns that some obsessions can be deadly. From the authors of the blockbuster bestseller The Wife Between Us, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen, An Anonymous Girl will keep you riveted through the last shocking twist.

From the author of the acclaimed The Opposite of Me, a poignant, witty novel about marriage, forgiveness, second chances, and the choices that give shape—and limits—to our lives. From the outside, Julia and Michael seem to have it all. Both products of difficult childhoods in rural West Virginia—where they were simply Julie and Mike—they become high school sweethearts and fall in love. Shortly after graduation, they flee their small town to start afresh. Now thirty-somethings, they are living a wealthy Washington, DC, life in their multi-million-dollar home. Julia is a highly sought-after party planner, while Michael has just sold his wildly successful flavored water company for $70 million. But one day, Michael collapses in his office. Four minutes and eight seconds after his cardiac arrest, a portable defibrillator jump-starts his heart. But in those lost minutes he becomes a different man. Money is meaningless to him—and he wants to give it all away. Julia, who sees bits of her life reflected in scenes from the world’s great operas, is now faced with a choice she never anticipated. Should she walk away from the man she once adored—who became a stranger to her long before his sudden change of heart—or give in to his pleas for a second chance and the promise of a poorer but happier life? As wry and engaging as her debut, but with quiet depth and newfound maturity, Skipping a Beat is an unforgettable portrait of a marriage whose glamorous surface belies the complications and betrayals beneath.

"A Washington Square Press paperback original"--Page 4 of cover.

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! One of Newsweek''s Most Anticipated Books of 2020 One of SheReads Most Anticipated Books of 2020 One of PopSugar''s Most Anticipated Books of 2020 One of HelloGiggles’ Most Anticipated Books of 2020 One of Marie Claire’s Best Fiction by Women in 2020 One of Woman’s Day’s Best Fiction Books Coming Out in 2020 The electrifying #1 New York Times bestselling authors of THE WIFE BETWEEN US and AN ANONYMOUS GIRL return with a brand new novel of psychological suspense, YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Shay Miller wants to find love, but it eludes her. She wants to be fulfilled, but her job is a dead end. She wants to belong, but her life is increasingly lonely. Until Shay meets the Moore sisters. Cassandra and Jane live a life of glamorous perfection, and always get what they desire. When they invite Shay into their circle, everything seems to get better. Shay would die for them to like her. She may have to.

"I''m a huge fan of Sarah Pekkanen''s books, and GONE TONIGHT is her best yet." —Colleen Hoover "Jaw-dropping. Layered. Triumphant.” - The New York Times When Ruth Sterling was a teenager, she slipped away one night, desperate to escape an abusive home and a troubling boyfriend. Pregnant, alone, and prepared to do anything to survive, she eventually makes a life for herself—and soon, for her newborn daughter Catherine. For more than twenty years, Ruth has lived quietly and has provided for her daughter. But she is always ready to run at a moment’s notice, and never allows either of them to put down roots too deeply. Now, Catherine is grown and craves a life for herself. This is something her mother will do anything to prevent—but for what reasons? It has always been just the two of them against the world. But how well do they really know each other? When Ruth’s deeply held quest to keep Catherine by her side reveals cracks in her carefully constructed world, both mother and daughter begin a dance of deception. They both have secrets. But which one of them carries the real darkness inside? Propulsive, brilliantly layered, and a true shocker, Gone Tonight is an emotionally thrilling powerhouse of a novel about the things we do for love, and what we’re capable of when pushed to the limit.

“Bittersweet, laugh-out-loud funny, and painfully real.” —Jodi Picoult Internationally bestselling author Sarah Pekkanen examines the lives of three women working and living together in New York City and shows that family secrets may shape us all—but it’s the rich, complicated layers of friendship that can save us. Cate, Renee, and Abby have come to New York for very different reasons, and in a bustling city of millions, they are linked together through circumstance and chance. Cate has just been named the features editor of Gloss, a high-end lifestyle magazine. It’s a professional coup, but her new job comes with more complications than Cate ever anticipated. Her roommate Renee will do anything to nab the plum job of beauty editor at Gloss. But snide comments about Renee’s weight send her into an emotional tailspin. Soon she is taking black market diet pills—despite the racing heartbeat and trembling hands that signal she’s heading for real danger. Then there’s Abby, whom they take in as a third roommate. Once a joyful graduate student working as a nanny part time, she abruptly fled a seemingly happy life in the D.C. suburbs. No one knows what shattered Abby—or why she left everything she once loved behind. Pekkanen’s most compelling, true-to-life novel yet tells the story of three very different women as they navigate the complications of careers and love—and find the lifeline they need in each other.

"The page-turning new novel from the internationally bestselling author known for her "conversational writing style and a knack for making readers care about her characters" (The Washington Post) takes us into the homes of an idyllic suburban neighborhood where we discover the burning secrets hiding just below the surface. Bucolic Newport Cove, where spontaneous block parties occur on balmy nights and all of the streets are named for flowers, is proud of its distinction of being named one the top twenty safest neighborhoods in the US. It''s also one of the most secret-filled. Kellie Scott has just returned to work after a decade of being a stay-at-home mom. She''s adjusting to high heels, scrambling to cook dinner for her family after a day at the office--and soaking in the dangerous attention of a very handsome, very married male colleague. Kellie''s neighbor Susan Barrett begins every day with fresh resolutions: she won''t eat any carbs, she''ll go to bed at a reasonable hour, and she''ll stop stalking her ex-husband and his new girlfriend. Gigi Kennedy seems to have it all together--except her teenage daughter has turned into a hostile stranger and her husband is running for Congress, which means her old skeletons are in danger of being brought into the light. Then a new family moves to this quiet, tree-lined cul-de-sac. Tessa Campbell seems friendly enough to the other mothers, if a bit reserved. Then the neighbors notice that no one is ever invited to Tessa''s house. And soon, it becomes clear that Tessa is hiding the biggest secret of all"--

New from Sarah Pekkanen, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of House of Glass and co-author of The Wife Between Us. A shocking psychological thriller about the complex bonds of sisterhood―and what happens when they are stretched to the breaking point, The Locked Ward “will leave you guessing until the very end” (Jeneva Rose, bestselling author of The Perfect Marriage). Some doors should never be opened. Was it bitter, all-consuming jealousy? Pathological sibling rivalry? Pure insanity? Whatever the cause―and everyone has a theory―it''s the Crime of the Decade when glamorous Georgia Cartwright, who was adopted as a newborn, is accused of killing the biological daughter of her wealthy, Southern family. Georgia is locked in a psychiatric institution where the most violent offenders are held while she awaits trial. The only words she whispers when her estranged twin sister Amanda visits are, “I didn’t do it. You’ve got to get me out of here.” Amanda doesn''t trust Georgia, but she can''t abandon her in a place so eerie and menacing that it seems to exist in another dimension. Is Georgia the victim of a powerful family that''s so depraved murder is the least of their crimes? Or is Amanda being led down a path of madness into the web of a master manipulator?

A "fresh, funny, and satisfying" (New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Weiner) about the complicated bonds of sisterhood. Twenty-nine-year-old Lindsey Rose has, for as long as she can remember, lived in the shadow of her ravishingly beautiful fraternal twin sister, Alex. Determined to get noticed, Lindsey is finally on the cusp of being named VP creative director of an elite New York advertising agency, after years of eighty-plus-hour weeks, migraines, and profound loneliness. But during the course of one devastating night, Lindsey’s carefully constructed life implodes. Humiliated, she flees the glitter of Manhattan and retreats to the time warp of her parents’ Maryland home. As her sister plans her lavish wedding to her Prince Charming, Lindsey struggles to maintain her identity as the smart, responsible twin while she furtively tries to piece her career back together. But things get more complicated when a long-held family secret is unleashed that forces both sisters to reconsider who they are and who they are meant to be.

“Wow, I loved this one so much! I didn’t want it to be over because I was enjoying it so much, but I couldn’t stop turning pages! House of Glass is a gripping thriller that was packed with surprises and compelling characters.” -- Freida McFadden The next thrilling novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Sarah Pekkanen, House of Glass. On the outside they were the golden family with the perfect life. On the inside they built the perfect lie. A young nanny who plunged to her death, or was she pushed? A nine-year-old girl who collects sharp objects and refuses to speak. A lawyer whose job it is to uncover who in the family is a victim and who is a murderer. But how can you find out the truth when everyone here is lying? Rose Barclay is a nine-year-old girl who witnessed the possible murder of her nanny - in the midst of her parent''s bitter divorce - and immediately stopped speaking. Stella Hudson is a best interest attorney, appointed to serve as counsel for children in custody cases. She never accepts clients under thirteen due to her own traumatic childhood, but Stella''s mentor, a revered judge, believes Stella is the only one who can help. From the moment Stella passes through the iron security gate and steps into the gilded, historic DC home of the Barclays, she realizes the case is even more twisted, and the Barclay family far more troubled, than she feared. And there''s something eerie about the house itself: It''s a plastic house, with not a single bit of glass to be found. As Stella comes closer to uncovering the secrets the Barclays are desperate to hide, danger wraps around her like a shroud, and her past and present are set on a collision course in ways she never expected. Everyone is a suspect in the nanny''s murder. The mother, the father, the grandmother, the nanny''s boyfriend. Even Rose. Is the person Stella''s supposed to protect the one she may need protection from?

In this timely and provocative novel, internationally bestselling author Sarah Pekkanen takes us inside a family in crisis and a marriage on the brink after a tragic shooting. How far would you go to save your family? Every morning, as her husband Mike straps on his SIG Sauer and pulls on his heavy Magnum boots, Jamie Anderson tenses up. Then comes the call she has always dreaded: There’s been a shooting at police headquarters. Mike isn’t hurt, but his long-time partner is grievously injured. As weeks pass and her husband’s insomnia and disconnectedness mount, Jamie realizes he is an invisible casualty of the attack. Then the phone rings again. Another shooting—but this time Mike has pulled the trigger. But the shooting does more than just alter Jamie’s world. It’s about to change everything for two other women. Christie Simmons, Mike’s flamboyant ex, sees the tragedy as an opportunity for a second chance with Mike. And Jamie’s younger sister, Lou, must face her own losses to help the big sister who raised her. As the press descends and public cries of police brutality swell, Jamie tries desperately to hold together her family, no matter what it takes. In her characteristic exploration of true-to-life relationships, Sarah Pekkanen has written a complex, compelling, and openhearted novel—her best yet.

From the New York Times bestselling coauthor of The Wife Between Us, a fantastic collection of three of Sarah Pekkanen’s earlier novels—plus three short stories! The Opposite of Me is a “fresh, funny, and satisfying” (Jennifer Weiner) novel about twin sisters who uncover a surprising family secret. In Skipping a Beat, a woman’s husband suddenly wants to rewrite the rules of their relationship in this heartfelt, witty novel about marriage, forgiveness, and what it really means to share a life with someone. These Girls explores the lives of three women working and living together in New York City and shows that while family secrets may shape us all, it’s the rich, complicated layers of friendship that can save us. Also included are three additional short stories: All Is Bright; Love, Accidentally; and Beginning Again.

Paradise isn’t quite what it seems as four college friends meet for an island vacation in this captivating new novel from the acclaimed author of These Girls. An all-expense-paid week at a luxury villa in Jamaica—it’s the invitation of a lifetime for a group of old college friends. All four women are desperate not just for a reunion, but for an escape: Tina is drowning under the demands of mothering four young children. Allie is shattered by the news that a genetic illness runs in her family. Savannah is carrying the secret of her husband’s infidelity. And, finally, there’s Pauline, who spares no expense to throw her wealthy husband an unforgettable thirty-fifth birthday celebration, hoping it will gloss over the cracks already splitting apart their new marriage. Languid hours on a private beach, gourmet dinners, and late nights of drinking kick off an idyllic week for the women and their husbands. But as a powerful hurricane bears down on the island, turmoil swirls inside the villa, forcing each of the women to reevaluate everything she knows about her friends—and herself.

The next electrifying novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author duo behind The Wife Between Us. "Propulsive and thrilling....A page-turner that will keep you guessing until the very end." --Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of Malibu Rising Wealthy Washington suburbanites Marissa and Matthew Bishop seem to have it all—until Marissa is unfaithful. Beneath their veneer of perfection is a relationship riven by work and a lack of intimacy. She wants to repair things for the sake of their eight-year-old son and because she loves her husband. Enter Avery Chambers. Avery is a therapist who lost her professional license. Still, it doesn’t stop her from counseling those in crisis, though they have to adhere to her unorthodox methods. And the Bishops are desperate. When they glide through Avery’s door and Marissa reveals her infidelity, all three are set on a collision course. Because the biggest secrets in the room are still hidden, and it’s no longer simply a marriage that’s in danger. "An utterly compelling, spellbinding read." --Lisa Jewell, author of Then She Was Gone and Invisible Girl

In this collection of excerpts, enjoy a taste of Sarah Pekkanen’s captivating novels, including The Opposite of Me, Skipping a Beat, These Girls, and The Best of Us.

“Writing with rawness and realism, Pekkanen doesn’t hold back…Fans of Liane Moriarty and Anne Tyler will appreciate the story’s depth.” —Booklist “In her signature conversational style, Pekkanen uncovers the truth behind the lies as Josie comes to grips with reality vs. the mirage of her marriage.” —Library Journal (starred review) In this intricate and enthralling domestic drama, perfect for fans of Big Little Lies and The Affair, the internationally bestselling author of the “gossipy page-turner” (Glamour) The Perfect Neighbors goes deep into a marriage in crisis, peeling back layers of secrets to discover where the relationship veered off course—and whether it is worth saving. Josie and Frank Moore are happy…at least Josie thinks they are. As parents of two young girls in the Chicago suburbs, their days can be both busy and monotonous, and sometimes Josie wonders how she became a harried fortysomething mother rather than the driven career woman she once was. But Frank is a phenomenal father, he’s handsome and charismatic, and he still looks at his wife like she’s the beautiful woman he married more than a decade ago. Josie isn’t just happy—she’s lucky. Until one Saturday morning when Josie borrows her husband’s phone to make a quick call—and sees nine words that shatter her world. Now Josie feels as if she is standing at the edge of a sharp precipice. As she looks back at pivotal moments in the relationship she believed would last forever, she is also plunging ahead, surprising everyone (especially herself) with how far she will go to uncover the extent of her husband’s devastating secret. With her “conversational writing style and a knack for making readers care about her characters” (The Washington Post) bestselling author Sarah Pekkanen paints a vivid, kaleidoscopic portrait of a marriage before and during a crisis—and of a woman who fears that the biggest secret of all may be the one she’s hiding from herself.

A heartwarming original estory that shows that there is life—and yes, even love—after heartbreak. Things have always gone perfectly for Corrine Brown—until now. She’s separated from her husband of less than three years, and going solo to her baby sister’s wedding in Minnesota. As happy as she is for Ilsa, the weekend is long and lonely, and she’s eager to get back to her life in LA…until she realizes that her life, as she’s known it, is over. Forced to reinvent herself just when she thought was finally settled, Corrine soon learns that sometimes, the most rewarding adventures are the ones that we least expect. A continuation of the original short e-stories All Is Bright and Love, Accidentally, but told from the point of view of a new character, Beginning Again is a heartfelt take on what happens when one happily ever after fades—and another begins.