The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

I didn’t realize (at first) that this was a modern-day retelling of Jane Eyre (which, despite good intentions, I’ve not yet read). That kind of bummed me out, because I’d ordinarily want to have read the original novel first before diving into something like this. Once I knew what I was reading, I toyed with the idea of setting it aside, but I was already so invested in the story that it would have been impossible for me to do it.

A Good Father by Catherine Talbot

“By the end of next summer, before the kids go back to school, I will kill my family.”

Based on the strength of the first sentence, I felt confident I would enjoy reading this book. Despite the wow factor of the opening line, I would quickly come to realize it was a mistake to assume the rest of the book would be equally captivating.

The Good Mother by Cathryn Grant

If Amy had to describe her life in one word, it would be ‘perfect.’ Her marriage, her home, twin daughters. She feels certain she’s the envy of her close-knit circle of friends. Everything was just as she wished it to be—until that shameless woman moved into town and had the audacity to allow her to play soccer on their soccer team. And now her daughter wanted to be friends with that woman’s child? Amy decided right then and there that Charlotte had to go… one way or another.