The New Girl

March 2, 2020
British author Walker’s searing debut follows the intertwined lives of three women. High-powered London fashion editor Margot Jones is headed for maternity leave, her pregnancy a few months behind her best friend Winnie Clough’s. Maggie Beecher, Margot’s handpicked temporary successor, proves far more adept at Margot’s job than either imagined. When one character suffers a personal tragedy, Margot finds herself adrift and terrified of the future, Winnie refuses to see or speak to her for reasons related to the tragedy, and Maggie emerges as the darling of the fashion world. As Margot becomes increasingly jealous and paranoid, Winnie sets her sights on revenge, and Maggie schemes to make her temporary job permanent. Each woman’s alternating narrative offers her own perspective on the unfolding events, from which no one escapes unscathed. The author, the fashion editor for The Times of London, movingly portrays the fragility of friendship and the corrosive effect of mistrust and recriminations in a wickedly funny psychological thriller that’s in turn brutal and tender. Walker is off to a fine start. Agent: Laura MacDougall, United Agents (U.K.).

March 1, 2020
Margot and Winnie's friendship experienced a rebirth when they realized that they were going to become mothers within months of each other. When Winnie's pregnancy ends in tragedy, she pushes Margot away, unable to deal with her friend's joy in the face of her own heartbreak. Margot is devastated, and she is also dealing with being replaced at work by young, energetic Maggie, who takes her place during her maternity leave. Margot's fears slowly unravel into paranoia, as trauma and tragedy from the past threaten to make their way into the present. The first novel from fashion editor Walker is a tense look at female friendships that bloom during the torment of the high-school years. Complex relationships that are equal parts sabotaging and caring, painful and joyful, are woven in, as well as other characters who seek to destroy the bond between Margot and Winnie. Set in the competitive world of fashion journalism, this novel mixes suspense and motherhood with a little dash of schadenfreude.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

May 1, 2020

DEBUT Margot Jones, fashion editor at Haute magazine (think Vogue), is taking maternity leave. But before she goes, she must find her replacement. Enter Maggie, young, cute, and just naive enough of the industry to steal the spotlight. Maggie is starstruck as she takes on the glitzy role of a fashion editor, while Margot enters motherhood unceremoniously. Margot gives birth to a healthy daughter, while at the same time her best friend Winnie loses her baby. Walker's debut is told in alternating parts between the main characters, as well as alternating chapters within each part, which creates pacing that is a little off, with some sections dragging while others move at a quicker clip. However, each character has a distinct voice and strong emotions, and Walker nimbly digs into the inner workings of female friendships as they go from good to bad. Furthermore, she aces the spiral of paranoia that can come along when bad memories collide with present day. VERDICT Great for those looking for a women's fiction title with a psychological thriller tilt.--Erin Holt, formerly at Williamson Cty. P.L., Franklin, TN

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