βI felt fairly confident that I would take this information to my graveβeven though it was the juiciest thing to happen in Aberdeen Mists in about eight years.β
Paige Atwell appears to have a fulfilling life in the cozy community of Aberdeen Mistsβa nice house, a great husband, and two young kids. But behind the faΓ§ade of neighborhood coffee klatches and carpools, Paige is growing restless with her increasingly busy spouse, the early onset of her ten-year-old daughterβs teenage hostility, and her young sonβs alarming preoccupation with bodily functions.
When her friend and neighbor, Karen, looking even more vibrant and gorgeous than usual, confesses to a passionate affair with a sizzling Latin lover, Paige assesses her own state of domestic ecstasy: not good. But Paigeβs attempts to βre-sexualizeβ her marriage produce comically calamitous consequences.
Just when Paige begins to wonder whether an extramarital remedy may be the key to happiness, Karen is found dead in her garage, lying in a pool of blood. The residents of Aberdeen Mists may be satisfied with the freak accident theoryβthat Karen fell and hit her head on a metal toolboxβbut Paige knows the adulterous secret that could blow the closed case wide open.
With sleuthing skills acquired from her favorite TV crime dramas, Paige vows to find out the truth. Her list of potential perps (thatβs what Law & Order calls them, right?) includes Karenβs aggrieved husband, Doug, and sexy Spanish lothario Javier. As Paigeβs Miss Marpleβesque adventure winds through her allegedly quiet enclave to the boundaries of her own fidelity, what she uncovers may prove more shocking than she ever imagined.
In this outrageously entertaining gem, Robyn Harding shines a light on the plight of suburban housewivesβthe sacrifices, the secrets, and the desperate lengths theyβll go to to keep up appearances. With a sharp wit and a delightfully unpredictable story line, Hardingβs darkly funny novel examines whether the grass really is greener on the other side of the white picket fence . . . or if itβs just a good place to bury a body.
© 2003-2026