The Last Housewife

"Deliciously unputdownable." —The Washington Post "A stunning, disturbing thriller that will have your mind and heart racing." —Samantha Downing From the author of the acclaimed In My Dreams I Hold a Knife comes a pitch-black thriller about a woman determined to destroy a powerful cult and avenge the deaths of the women taken in by it, no matter the cost. While in college in upstate New York, Shay Evans and her best friends met a captivating man who seduced them with a web of lies about the way the world works, bringing them under his thrall. By senior year, Shay and her friend Laurel were the only ones who managed to escape. Now, eight years later, Shay's built a new life in a tony Texas suburb. But when she hears the horrifying news of Laurel's death—delivered, of all ways, by her favorite true-crime podcast crusader—she begins to suspect that the past she thought she buried is still very much alive, and the predators more dangerous than ever. Recruiting the help of the podcast host, Shay goes back to the place she vowed never to return to in search of answers. As she follows the threads of her friend's life, she's pulled into a dark, seductive world, where wealth and privilege shield brutal philosophies that feel all too familiar. When Shay's obsession with uncovering the truth becomes so consuming she can no longer separate her desire for justice from darker desires newly reawakened, she must confront the depths of her own complicity and conditioning. But in a world built for men to rule it—both inside the cult and outside of it—is justice even possible, and if so, how far will Shay go to get it?

Kit Deleeuw must prove the innocence of a suburban housewife accused of murder.

"[A] mordant debut novel....examines what it means to covet the lives of others, no matter the cost."—The New York Times "Tense, twisty, and packed with shocks."—Riley Sager, New York Times bestselling author of Survive The Night Six friends. One college reunion. One unsolved murder. Ten years after graduation, Jessica Miller has planned her triumphant return to her southern, elite Duquette University, down to the envious whispers that are sure to follow in her wake. Everyone is going to see the girl she wants them to see—confident, beautiful, indifferent. Not the girl she was when she left campus, back when Heather Shelby's murder fractured everything, including the tight bond linking the six friends she'd been closest to since freshman year. But not everyone is ready to move on. Not everyone left Duquette ten years ago, and not everyone can let Heather's murder go unsolved. Someone is determined to trap the real killer, to make the guilty pay. When the six friends are reunited, they will be forced to confront what happened that night—and the years' worth of secrets each of them would do anything to keep hidden. Told in racing dual timelines, with a dark campus setting and a darker look at friendship, love, obsession, and ambition, In My Dreams I Hold A Knife is an addictive, propulsive read you won't be able to put down. "Beautiful writing, juicy secrets, complex female characters, and drumbeat suspense—what more could you want from a debut thriller?"—Andrea Bartz, author of Reese's Book Club pick We Were Never Here

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “A raucous, whip-smart collection of stories featuring retro-feminist ladies who lunch.” —Elle Meet the women of American Housewife. They wear lipstick, pearls, and sunscreen, even when it’s cloudy. They casserole. They pinwheel. And then they kill a party crasher, carefully stepping around the body to pull cookies from the oven. Taking us from a haunted pre-war Manhattan apartment building to the unique initiation ritual of a book club, these twelve delightfully demented stories are a refreshing and wicked answer to the question: “What do housewives do all day?”

What if you had a friend that had all sorts of advice on homemaking, budgeting, being frugal but wanting for nothing, and homeschooling? What if this friend could show you how to create a household budget from A to Z that would cut your bills in half...or almost? She could give you some advice on Urban farming with super easy ways to compost and how to travel, have the guest stay over, throw all sorts of parties and really celebrate the holidays on pennies. She would even show you how to decorate a home from garage sales and dress well from thrift stores. Then she had all these recipes for scratch cooking, household cleaners, and even homemade cosmetics! She could even help you with the children and create free home based playgrounds, homeschools, and great nutrition, safety proofing the house, and making emergency kits. Wow, what a handy friend! Well, she's right here. This is a homemaker that knows her stuff and wants to help you live a wonderful lifestyle in a sustainable and inexpensive way. No matter what budget you are working with, a military salary, fixed income, disability, one income family...there is so much advice here. Even the frugal veteran might pick up a thing or two. There is even advice for getting out of debt and building a savings fast and ideas on making some money from home. How about buying a home and fixing it up on a budget? She has done it all and raised a family on one small income and managed to keep her homemaking position for years. Let her share all this good stuff with you.

A mother-daughter story about the strong pull of tradition, and the lure and cost of breaking free of it. When Shoko decided to marry an American GI and leave Japan, she had her parents' blessing, her brother's scorn, and a gift from her husband-a book on how to be a proper American housewife. As she crossed the ocean to America, Shoko also brought with her a secret she would need to keep her entire life... Half a century later, Shoko's plans to finally return to Japan and reconcile with her brother are derailed by illness. In her place, she sends her grown American daughter, Sue, a divorced single mother whose own life isn't what she hoped for. As Sue takes in Japan, with all its beauty and contradictions, she discovers another side to her mother and returns to America unexpectedly changed and irrevocably touched.

Some people will stop at nothing to get what they want… Formerly homeless hustler Bianca Thomson-Wingarden had it all planned out. She found a rich man to get her pregnant and marry so she could give her child a lavish life of financial security she'd carefully prepared for. She and her new husband Elvin Wingarden III, heir to the Wingarden billion-dollar dynasty, have the perfect life. They split their time between their upscale condo in the city and their lavish 17-bedroom mansion in the country. They drive the latest luxury vehicles. They don't have to worry about money and she can shower their daughter Evie, their little dog, and their friends with everything they desire. The trouble is, their perfect life is about to fall apart. Elvin is no longer the charming man she married. And when Elvin's mother decides to hire the mysterious Penny as a live-in nanny to help take care of little Evie, everything starts going wrong in Bianca's life. She gets a terrible suspicion that the new nanny is there to replace her. And why does that nanny look so familiar? A thrilling suspense filled with dark family secrets, popularity contests, and deception.

A nostalgic look at what it was like to be a housewife in the 1950sBeing a housewife in the 1950s was quite different than today. Women were expected to create a spotless home, delicious meals, and an inviting bedroom. From the perils of "courting" to the inevitable list of wedding gifts to the household tips that any self-respecting new wife should know, this book collects heartwarming personal anecdotes from women who embarked on married life during this fascinating post-war period, providing a trip down memory lane for any wife or child of the 1950s.