GREENWICH PARK BY KATHERINE FAULKNER
Gallery Books; Available January 25, 2022
It’s hard to believe it, but a new year is almost upon us—and it’s promising to deliver some outstanding crime and suspense novels! In the lead up to the new year, I’m resurrecting my “Buzzworthy Books” series—a series of “preview” posts dedicated to highlighting a couple of early-2022 releases that I’m particularly excited about! For my first Buzzworthy 2022 Book, I’m so excited to recommend Katherine Faulkner’s outstanding domestic thriller GREENWICH PARK, which will hit US bookstores on January 25th.
If you’ve been around Crime by the Book for a little while, you’ll already know what a picky reader I am when it comes to the domestic suspense genre. Of all the crime fiction subgenres out there, domestic suspense is the one that I’ve become most particular about over my years blogging. It’s such a saturated space that it can feel overwhelming and a bit tricky to pick out the truly fresh and unique domestic suspense from the pack. Whether you’re a die-hard, will-read-no-matter what devotee of domestic thrillers or a reader who feels a bit more cautious about this very popular subgenre, Katherine Faulkner’s outstanding debut thriller GREENWICH PARK is well worth adding to your TBR list. This exceptional domestic suspense novel delivers a delicious blend of paranoia-inducing plotting and engaging, entertaining interpersonal secrets and drama. Pick this book up for its stunning cover, stay for its wildly addictive and seriously unsettling cat-and-mouse plot.
Read on for three reasons you should add GREENWICH PARK by Katherine Faulkner to your 2022 reading list!
Plot Details: GREENWICH PARK
A twisty, whip-smart debut thriller, as electrifying as the #1 New York Times bestseller The Girl on the Train, about impending motherhood, unreliable friendship, and the high price of keeping secrets.
Helen’s idyllic life—handsome architect husband, gorgeous Victorian house, and cherished baby on the way (after years of trying)—begins to change the day she attends her first prenatal class and meets Rachel, an unpredictable single mother-to-be. Rachel doesn’t seem very maternal: she smokes, drinks, and professes little interest in parenthood. Still, Helen is drawn to her. Maybe Rachel just needs a friend. And to be honest, Helen’s a bit lonely herself. At least Rachel is fun to be with. She makes Helen laugh, invites her confidences, and distracts her from her fears.
But her increasingly erratic behavior is unsettling. And Helen’s not the only one who’s noticed. Her friends and family begin to suspect that her strange new friend may be linked to their shared history in unexpected ways. When Rachel threatens to expose a past crime that could destroy all of their lives, it becomes clear that there are more than a few secrets laying beneath the broad-leaved trees and warm lamplight of Greenwich Park.
THREE REASONS TO ADD GREENWICH PARK TO YOUR 2022 READING LIST:
Peeling back the curtain on picture-perfect lives. What is it about books that reveal the dark side of lives that look perfect from the outside that is just so entertaining? I can’t get enough of books that explore the darkness and tensions lurking underneath picture-perfect exteriors, and if that appeals to you too, you’ll love GREENWICH PARK. Set in the desirable and posh neighborhood of Greenwich Park, this domestic thriller delves into the (very dark, very sinister) secrets that people whose lives we all could so easily envy are keeping. Yes, this kind of concept has been written about plenty of times, but it’s been a long time since I was as truly unsettled by the darkness lurking in such a picture-perfect world as I was while reading GREENWICH PARK. If you love books like Lisa Jewell’s THEN SHE WAS GONE and/or WATCHING YOU, books which similarly expose the terrible secrets of seemingly “perfect” people, you will absolutely love this element of GREENWICH PARK. This book’s stunning cover perfectly captures the idyllic nature of the world readers will believe they are entering when they crack open this book… and just wait until you uncover all the darkness hiding within its pages.
A story of obsession and cat-and-mouse tension. GREENWICH PARK centers around two women, Helen and Rachel, who find their lives entangled when they meet at a prenatal class. Helen, our protagonist, is an instantly-sympathetic and relatable character: when we meet her, we immediately feel a sense of protectiveness towards her. Helen is a soon-to-be mother still reeling from the traumatic experience of suffering multiple miscarriages prior to her current pregnancy. Helen’s deep desire to build a perfect life for her, her husband, and her baby makes her highly endearing to the reader. And when Helen meets Rachel, the reader will quickly begin to fear that Helen might never see that dream come true. The primary tension in GREENWICH PARK is found in the increasingly fraught and volatile friendship between protagonist Helen and Rachel, another soon-to-be mother whom Helen meets at a local prenatal class. What begins as a casual friendship soon becomes something that seems much darker. Are there nefarious motives behind Rachel’s attempt at befriending Helen? Or is Helen’s fear and anxiety causing her to imagine a sinister motive when Rachel is just trying to be nice? Author Katherine Faulkner expertly crafts a truly unsettling cat-and-mouse game between these two women. The deeper readers venture into this story alongside Helen, the less they will know who they can trust. I was completely hooked on the author’s expert portrayal of Helen’s increasingly unhinged mindset, and the book’s shocking finale delivers major payoff on the suspicion and tension ratcheted up over the course of the book.
An intricate story effortlessly told. GREENWICH PARK features an intricate plot with many moving parts—but it’s entirely to the author’s credit that this story never feels convoluted or confusing. While I was reading GREENWICH PARK, I was reminded over and over again of the effortless, just-one-more-page feeling of reading a Lisa Jewell thriller. Similar to Jewell, Faulkner expertly develops multiple distinct narrators who act as readers’ guides through this twisty story. Also similar to Jewell, Faulkner has a knack for crafting characters whose contributions to the story are equally significant and engaging. This is not a book where you’ll find yourself wishing you could “fast forward” through one point of view to get back to another, more entertaining narrator; every narrator Faulkner develops in GREENWICH PARK is equally engaging, intriguing, and significant to our story’s plot.. Helen remains our story’s central point of view throughout, but over the course of the novel, readers hear from two other women in Helen’s life as well—and their perspectives are crucial to understanding what’s really going on in Greenwich Park. Through the unique perspectives of the women who guide us through this book, readers slowly but surely piece together the dark tapestry of secrets that underpin this entire story.
GREENWICH PARK is a must-read for fans of Lisa Jewell. Written seamlessly through multiple points of view, and peeling back the picture-perfect façade of individuals with terrible secrets in their past, GREENWICH PARK is sure to be one of 2022’s most buzzed-about domestic thrillers. Pre-order this one now and your future self will thank you when it lands in your mailbox in January!
Book Details:
Publisher : Gallery Books (January 25, 2022)
Language : English
Hardcover : 384 pages
ISBN-10 : 1982150319
ISBN-13 : 978-1982150310
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