From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. An innocent yard sale jump-starts this stunning stand-alone thriller from Ephron, author of Amnesia and four other mysteries written with Donald Davidoff under the name G.H. Ephron (and one of the Ephron writing sisters), as well as two nonfiction books. Ivy and David Rose, happily married high school sweethearts, are trying to clear out the junk the previous owner left in their glorious Victorian in Brush Hills, Mass., before the birth of their first child. Among the bargain hunters is Melinda White, a high school classmate who's also pregnant. Considered an oddball in school, Melinda worries about more bad luck after nearly knocking over a large mirror. When Melinda disappears and no one can remember seeing her leave the sale, the evidence suggests the couple murdered her. Ephron doesn't miss a searing beat as she plunges the Roses into an abyss of suspicion. A surprise toward the end provides the perfect twist to this deliciously creepy tale of obsession. (Jan.)
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From
The award-winning mystery reviewer for the Boston Globe makes her debut with a light suspense novel featuring a hugely pregnant 33-year-old suburbanite. Ivy Rose and her husband, David, have just put the finishing touches on their newly rehabbed Victorian, and Ivy, intent on clearing out the junk left by the previous owner, decides to throw a yard sale. She is somewhat taken aback when a woman she has not seen since high school turns up. Melinda White is also pregnant and eager to bond with Ivy, who senses in Melindaβs increasingly intrusive questions vestiges of the lonely outcast she had been in high school. Ivy is immensely relieved when her husband rescues her, taking Melinda into the house for a tour. Days later, the police show up looking for Melinda. As evidence mounts that Melinda has been murdered, seemingly by David, Ivy is forced to do some detective work of her own. Despite the sinister undertones, Ephron never delves too deeply, instead offering a briskly moving plot and an entertaining portrait of a suburban community. --Joanne Wilkinson