Review by Booklist Review
Nora's life turned into a fairy tale when she married Will Somerset. From a gorgeous lakefront mansion to endless yoga classes, she wants for nothing. That all changes on the night of Will's forty-sixth birthday, when he goes missing. She must discover what happened that night--as no one makes a better suspect than a much younger second wife like Nora. Lavender and Shores have created a fun soap opera of a debut novel that unfolds in two timelines. Nora shows herself to be a subtly unreliable narrator who starts off seeming a bit vapid but who experiences growth throughout the book. Though most of the other characters could use more development, Nora's best friend Este is a breath of fresh (albeit sarcastic) air and adds humor to the story. The authors also do a nice job of bringing the setting of Winter Park, Florida, to life, as it is almost a character on its own. Fans of the Real Housewives franchises will be amused by this mystery and the gossipy melodrama it contains.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
TV writer Lavender and former communications consultant Shores debut with a lukewarm Cinderella story turned murder mystery. Nora Davies, 28, works as "an aimless swim instructor slash receptionist" at a ritzy country club in Winter Park, Fla. There, she meets Will Somerset, a wealthy, recently divorced lawyer in his 40s. Their attraction is immediate and mutual, and before long, Nora becomes Will's second wife and his teen daughter's stepmother. Her bliss is interrupted by animosity from Will's social circle: Winter Park's women see Nora as "a harbinger of younger second wives," and everyone else considers her little more than a gold digger. When Will disappears from his lavish birthday party, the rumor mill churns, and Nora finds herself at the center of his murder investigation. To clear her name, she digs into Will's past, uncovering information that makes her wonder whether her whirlwind romance might have been too good to be true. Lavender and Shores keep the pacing brisk and the prose clean, but their characters are frustratingly two-dimensional, and the workmanlike plot fails to make much of an impression. This disappoints. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, CAA. (June)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
When her husband goes missing, Nora challenges the balance of power in her wealthy community to find out what happened. It's not easy being a younger second wife. As she surveys the glamorous party she's throwing for her husband Will's 46th birthday, 28-year-old Nora Somerset knows that to the ultrawealthy society of Winter Park, Florida, she's an interloper. But after a whirlwind courtship with "Hot Mean Lawyer" Will, Nora seems to have hooked the white whale--and she's head-over-heels in love with him. Never mind that his first wife cuts her dead every time they meet; never mind that his law partner has pressured her to sign an agreement in case the marriage doesn't work out; and never mind that Will, a workaholic, rarely comes home for dinner and shuts her out of his business life. She finds good friends in free-spirited millionaire neighbor Este, her husband, Beau, and their friend Marcus. Despite some marital struggles between Nora and Will, the party celebrates not only Will's birthday but also their recent recommitment to each other. So when Will gets a phone call just before they go upstairs at the end of the evening, Nora isn't worried. And when she wakes up alone the next day, she figures he's at work. But when two days go by without any sign from Will, it becomes clear that something has happened: Her husband is missing and--after his shirt is discovered in the lake behind their house--is presumed dead. The novel begins on the night of the party and then tells the story both forward from the couple's first meet-cute and forward from Will's disappearance. Nora is a feisty, self-aware, and appealing character, but as thrillers go, this is pretty tame. The focus on the wealthy community of Winter Park necessarily limits the possible suspects, so there isn't much suspense baked in. The fascination lies in the way Lavender and Shores pull back the curtain on this enclave of affluence, and how Nora is both repelled and seduced by this world. A story rooted more deeply in setting than in suspense. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
