The Perfect Mistress

June 1, 2016
As a girl, Lauren Robinson kept her daddy's mistresses secret from her mother, Joyce. When Joyce became depressed after a miscarriage, Lauren became friendly with one mistress, Miss Callie, and then was present when Miss Callie finally killedher father and herself. As an adult, Lauren dates married men and manages the care for her terminally ill, very bitter mother. Occasionally the wives of her boyfriends will accost her in public, but she avoids too much drama until she falls in love with her old college sweetheart. In her latest novel, the always-popular Billingsley (What's Done in the Dark, 2014) tells a story that moves from the past to the present as the lasting impact of Lauren's dad's infidelity reverberates throughout the family's lives. Billingsley is skilled at making flawed characters sympathetic, even as they meet painful justice. Here, no one emerges unscathed, though the ending does offer hope. Billingsley fans may also enjoy Mary Monroe and Tiffany L. Warren.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)