Thirty-two year old, high-end wedding planner and Charlotte socialite Georgia Cartwright normally wakes up in her affluent city apartment surrounded by luxuries, but today, she’s facing accusations of bludgeoning her younger sister to death at her birthday party, and her new accommodations are in THE LOCKED WARD. This new psychological thriller by Sarah Pekkanen delves into family dysfunction and unbreakable sister bonds as Georgia contacts her unknowing twin sister to help her prove her innocence.

Amanda Ravenel lives ninety minutes from Charlotte, NC, and manages her late parents’ bar, Sweetbay’s. News of the crime has spread statewide, but Amanda has no connection until she receives a call from Georgia’s public defender, who reveals to Amanda that she is Georgia’s twin sister. Amanda never even knew she had a twin, but the desire to meet Georgia and hear her side is overwhelming. Amanda travels to Charlotte, NC, to help her sister prove her innocence. This involves infiltrating Georgia’s world, finding the guilty party, and getting Georgia released from the locked ward. As Amanda slides into Georgia’s carefully constructed life, she meets the players, learns the family dynamics, and unearths the scandals plaguing Georgia’s prominent family and inner circle. Will Amanda reveal the truth, and will Georgia escape the locked ward before she becomes a murder victim herself?

THE LOCKED WARD is an intense psychological thriller surrounding a woman accused of killing her younger sister and the twin tasked with proving her innocence. There are a lot of family dynamics in play in this novel, from cheating spouses to parental favoritism, jealousy, manipulation, and gaslighting. The novel alternates between Mandy and Georgia’s viewpoints, which gives a harrowing picture of Georgia’s institutionalization and Mandy’s plight to find the truth. Both sisters have secrets, and although they share a twin bond, neither knows what each is capable of doing. The plot moves quickly with Mandy insinuating herself into Georgia’s life, and as the clues twist and turn, readers will wonder how Georgia ever survived her awful family. With good, solid writing, elevated suspense, and spot-on pacing, this novel entertains as readers realize not all is what it seems in the palatial Southern family estate, with elaborate gardens, fancy parties, and influential friends. It’s a place of secrets and scandals, and when you step out of line, you could find yourself taking up residence in THE LOCKED WARD.