Pretty Little Wife

October 26, 2020
Early in Kane’s intriguing if uneven debut, Lila Ridgefield murders her abusive husband, popular teacher Aaron Payne, and leaves him overnight in his car at the Ithaca, N.Y., high school where he teaches, staging the scene to look like a suicide. The first hint that her plan may not unfold seamlessly is when his body disappears. Has Aaron survived, and is he returning for revenge? Or is someone else determined to take justice into their own hands? The answers are rooted in a shocking—and all-too-believable—evil hiding beneath the peaceful community. Despite the detailed scene-setting and gripping plot, some readers may find the constant cross-cutting across time frames and points of view feels forced. Those who prefer fair play may feel cheated by Kane’s withholding key characters and events only to introduce them deep in the book. Nonetheless, the detective on the case, Ginny Davis, is a nuanced character many will hope to meet again, and the plot twists reinforce the central moral ambiguity driving the story: How far will a woman go when she discovers she’s married to a monster? Kane is off to a promising start. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary.