Kubica’s skill at writing teenagers is even more impressive than her twisty plot.
A woman must discover the motive for a horrific murder in order to save her niece—unless her niece was involved.
When Courtney Gray discovers the bloody, battered body of her sister-in-law, Emily, she briefly considers whether her brother, Nolan, might be to blame. Ever since he lost his job six months before, their marriage had been crumbling under the strain and they’ve barely been able to keep their fighting private. While it may have been Emily’s idea that the two families rent a cottage together at a primitive resort in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, Courtney knows that Nolan and teenagers Reese and Wyatt were unenthusiastic, even resentful about the forced family trip. But when she immediately finds Nolan’s body, and 17-year-old Reese appears to be missing, the deaths take on an even more sinister significance and become an even greater mystery. Did someone break into their cottage, and if so, to what end? Did Reese, who had fought bitterly with her parents the night before, have anything to do with their deaths? Is Wyatt sleepwalking for real, or is he just pretending? And why does Courtney’s husband, Elliott, have flecks of blood on his shoes? Kubica mostly alternates chapters between Courtney’s perspective in the present and Reese’s voice in the past. The chapters from Reese’s point of view are easily the most poignant; Kubica builds a complex character who suffers from uncontrollable rages and is still straddling the line between childhood and adulthood, resenting her mother even as she wishes for her attention, making vulnerable decisions in order to feel liked. In some ways, it would have been interesting to experience the entire novel through her eyes instead of the common structure of two voices, two timelines that often drives contemporary thrillers.
Kubica’s skill at writing teenagers is even more impressive than her twisty plot.Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2026
ISBN: 9780778387992
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Park Row Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
Starts with a bang and closes with a knockout punch of an ending.
A violent attack hijacks a woman’s memory in this novel of domestic suspense.
McFadden wastes no time pulling the trigger in this harrowing story that starts with gunfire then swiftly propels readers into a crack tale of secrets and misdirection. Originally self-published in 2016, the book carries the same formidable weight as McFadden’s later novels featuring unsuspecting women who lose their power then fight to recapture it—mostly from men who have betrayed them. That formula perfectly fits Dr. Charlotte McKenna, a 37-year-old dermatologist who isn’t looking for love until the most handsome man she’s ever seen begins to woo her. There are warning signs about Clark Douglas and Charlotte overlooks them to her detriment—but is he a killer? The novel has dual timelines split between events leading up to the day Charlotte barely survives a head wound meant to kill her and the months afterward, when she struggles to reclaim her memory and her mobility. In real life, McFadden is a physician trained to treat brain injuries. Her expertise gives Charlotte’s rehabilitation authenticity, and her writing talent makes it interesting and engaging. As good as that timeline is, readers will yearn to get back to the alternate timeline about who wants Charlotte dead. It’s only a matter of time before Charlotte starts to remember who tried to kill her, and the clock is ticking toward their next attempt. McFadden dishes up plenty of suspects: Charlotte’s secretive husband, Clark; a former patient turned stalker who confronts Charlotte on her honeymoon; and the angry husband of a patient who blames Charlotte for his wife leaving him. Though the story is delicious and dark, McFadden brightens things up with a possible love interest for Charlotte and a surprise ending sure to please the author’s many fans.
Starts with a bang and closes with a knockout punch of an ending.Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2026
ISBN: 9781464249617
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Poisoned Pen
Review Posted Online: July 6, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2026
Nail-biting and pressure-packed.
Jack Ryan Jr. and company race to stop a killer wave in this Tom Clancy thriller.
The ship Meridian Star departs eastern Russia unknowingly carrying a pair of containers with radioactive cesium chloride. The vessel is hijacked and scuttled in Micronesia near the Mariana Trench, and the crew is murdered. A huge insurance claim results, and Jack, an accomplished deep-sea diver who works for Hendley Associates, is there to investigate. The hostile Chinese learn it’s there and want that illicit cargo. Meanwhile, the Naval Undersea Warfare Center discovers a huge, mysterious object in 600 feet of water. At that depth, the pressure is unsurvivable without complex special equipment, which is vintage Tom Clancy. Whatever the strange object is, it’s “not a ship…not a submarine…not an aircraft.” On the side is a faded hammer and sickle and Cyrillic letters that spell Siren. Ryan teams up with Navy divers, and they look for a way to safely enter and explore the object. They discover that the underwater contraption has thermonuclear warheads attached, left and long forgotten by the USSR. If the warheads explode, they could still achieve their apparent purpose—to trigger a tsunami and destroy Guam, which is strategically important to the U.S. The Chinese know it too, and the race is on to take control. The result is plenty of high-stakes undersea action, where death can come from a bullet, a knife, or a sliced air hose. But there’s action on land, too. Navy master diver Carla Bennett and Jack take on a surprise assault in a hotel where Carla shows off stellar fighting skills—better than Jack’s. These two aren’t the only heroes here, as there’s a well-balanced cast of characters, all brave and likable. And of course—of course—where there’s a bomb, there’s a ticking clock.
Nail-biting and pressure-packed.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2026
ISBN: 9798217183166
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2026
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