The Girl from Widow Hills

April 13, 2020
The hospital administrator who now calls herself Olivia Meyer, the narrator of this suspenseful but far-fetched page-turner from bestseller Miranda (The Last House Guest), has put as much distance as possible between her and the drama that riveted the country two decades earlier when, as sleepwalking six-year-old Arden Maynor, she was apparently swept away during a storm into the drain pipes of her hometown of Widow Hills, Ky., until a miracle rescue three days later. But despite the subsequent charitable outpouring, the future proved far from rosy for the traumatized child, who was unable to remember most of her ordeal, and her troubled single mother. The adult Liv seems finally to be starting fresh in Central Valley, N.C.—until one night, while sleepwalking, for a second time, outside, she stumbles over a dead body. As Liv tries to keep Det. Nina Rigby at bay while she investigates further herself, the author throws suspicion on a succession of suspects. The pace quickens with a second murder and the appearance of a stalker. Even though Miranda opts increasingly for surprise over plausibility, psychological thriller fans will enjoy the ride. Author tour. Agent: Sarah Davies, Greenhouse Literary.

April 15, 2020
Arden Maynor was only 6 when a traumatic event changed her life forever. Twenty years ago, Arden, who now goes by Olivia Meyer, was swept into Widow Hills, Kentucky's underground system of pipes during a deluge and was trapped for three days before she was miraculously rescued. The rescue effort was immense, as was the media coverage. Support, monetary and otherwise, for little Arden poured in. Not all of the publicity and attention were good, however, and Olivia, who remembers very little about those three days, has been trying to put the entire incident behind her for a decade. Now she's a hospital administrator in rural Central Valley, North Carolina, and is starting to feel that the worst is behind her, until she wakes up outside her home after a sleepwalking episode, the same thing that preceded her childhood ordeal. The sleepwalking incident sets her alarm bells clanging, but then she's approached, in public, by a man who seems to know exactly who she is. She hasn't even told her closest friend and co-worker, Bennett, about her past. When she awakens outside again one night, there's a man's body at her feet and blood covering her hands. The dead man turns out to be a blast from Olivia's past, and now the police are involved. But Olivia isn't about to let everything she's done to put her past behind her come crashing down, even it means opening a Pandora's box full of secrets that may have been better off left in the dark. Miranda nimbly mines underexplored terrain: the long-term aftermath of dramatic, highly publicized rescues. Olivia's desire to live a life undefined by that one event is relatable, and her amnesia about those three days lets Miranda flaunt her considerable talent for jaw-dropping, yet believable, twists. Even jaded readers might not see this one coming. An unusual heroine anchors this creepy, fast-paced chiller. This is Miranda's best book yet.

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May 1, 2020
As the twentieth anniversary of her childhood trauma nears, Olivia Meyer's life begins falling apart. She's the girl from Widow Hills, Kentucky, who, as six-year-old Arden Maynor, went sleepwalking in a record storm and was swept away into drainpipes, from which she was miraculously rescued three days later, becoming a national news story. Now with a legally changed name and a master's degree in health-care management, she keeps her past a secret while making a new life for herself as a hospital administrator in North Carolina. But then she starts sleepwalking again, stumbling one night over a murdered body between her yard and her neighbor's. When the victim is found to be the man who rescued her 20 years earlier, her past is likely to be revealed. Worse, she doesn't know whether she had a part in his death. Miranda, a best-selling author of thrillers for both adults and YAs, sprinkles the present-day narrative with transcripts and reports from Olivia's past, building suspense with startling plot twists that lead to a stunning climax. Another compulsive page-turner from an accomplished author.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

May 22, 2020

Twenty years ago, Arden Maynor's life dramatically changed. She was the six-year-old girl who went missing (while sleepwalking) for three days. Presumed dead after a flood, she was found, against all odds, clinging to a storm drain. The intense media attention threw her into the spotlight and enabled her mother to benefit financially. But after college, tired of the unwanted attention and wanting to put her past behind her, Arden changed her name to Olivia Meyer. She makes a new life for herself, becoming a hospital administrator. Now the 20th anniversary of her rescue is looming and Olivia feels like she's being watched. Her sleepwalking habits return, and one night she wakes up and is standing over a dead body. Did she kill the man? If she didn't, who did? Why doesn't she remember anything about her childhood disappearance? And who is stalking her? VERDICT This is a great whodunit, done well. Olivia/Arden narrates but Miranda (The Last House Guest) creatively uses media transcripts, newspaper reports, book excerpts, and voicemails to piece together her fragmented story that ends with a chilling twist. [See Prepub Alert, 12/9/19.]--Marianne Fitzgerald, Severna Park H.S., MD

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