Award-winning journalist Katherine Faulkner combines a ripped-from-the-headlines plot with a searing commentary on motherhood in GREENWICH PARK, a tautly plotted domestic thriller.

After a series of devastating unsuccessful pregnancies, Helen Thorpe finally thinks she is on the road to motherhood. Betrayed by her own body one too many times, she becomes obsessed with preparation for pregnancy, birth and parenthood, reading all the how-to books, watching all the docuseries and, of course, attending prenatal classes. Although she is embarking on one of the most natural, universal journeys a woman can undertake, she finds (like so many mothers-to-be before her) that pregnancy can be an incredibly isolating experience.

Dismissed from work because of her high-risk status, Helen spends long days alone, waiting for her husband, Daniel, to come home from work and share in her excitement. A promising architect, Daniel works with Helen’s brother, Rory, in the family business started by their famous father. But while Rory carries the name, Daniel is the one with the real talent, and he is often forced to work late to compensate for Rory’s fecklessness. Beyond that, Daniel seems shell-shocked by their previous losses, and unable to draw up the excitement and eager preparedness that Helen needs him to reciprocate.

"Faulkner keeps the twists and turns perfectly paced and almost always surprising.... Even the sharpest readers will be shocked by some of the big reveals, which continue through the last chapter."

Lucky for Helen, Rory and his wife, Serena, are also expecting; Serena’s due date is only a few weeks out from hers. Helen feels certain that they will be mom friends, but her anxiety can prickle at carefree Serena, who trusts that her body will know what to do when. This is how Helen finds herself alone at her first prenatal class, where she meets Rachel, a purple nail polish-wearing, gold backpack-carrying rebel. Rachel immediately latches on to Helen, encouraging her to have a glass of wine or indulge in a decadent meat and cheese plate --- which every expectant mother knows to be off-limits. A rule follower, Helen is turned off by Rachel’s flippancy, but with no one else in her corner, she finds herself confiding in Rachel more and more.

But there are some things about Rachel that are just off. She has an uncanny ability to show up wherever Helen is; she never cares to shop for baby clothes or supplies; she never mentions her baby’s father; and she always seems to know things that Helen is sure she has not shared with her. Writing these coincidences off as “pregnancy brain,” she goes along with Rachel’s strangeness. After all, she has a lot on her mind already: pregnancy, Daniel, and the couple’s costly home renovations, which have resulted in strange men stomping through their home day and night and near-constant hammering and crashing.

In alternating chapters, we meet Helen’s good friend Katie, a childhood neighbor who once dated Helen and Rory’s younger brother, Charlie. Katie is a reporter covering a traumatic rape trial that is eerily reminiscent of another case that occurred 10 years earlier. Shifting perspectives among Helen, Katie and Serena, Faulkner pens a simmering, slowburn thriller in which nothing is as it seems. As Rachel forcibly inserts herself into Helen’s life, the tone turns threatening, with Faulkner expertly pulling the strings to make readers second-guess nearly every character and his or her motivations. With strange items and memories rising to the surface, Helen, already plagued by anxiety, turns downright fearful. It’s clear that Rachel wants something from Helen, Daniel, Rory and Serena. But what?

I love a good thriller with an emotionally resonant theme, and GREENWICH PARK, with its intimate look at pregnancy and motherhood, perfectly fits the bill. Faulkner makes Helen an instantly relatable character by fully immersing readers into her anxiety and sense of isolation. Without her job and her husband, she becomes obsessed with the rules of pregnancy. While there is of course a need for these guidelines, it is easy to see that Helen often does more harm to her mental state than good. In this way, Rachel, who “seems to believe the babies only exist in abstract, that adhering to the health guidelines is entirely a matter of personal taste,” is almost refreshing, even when she’s so totally outlandish that your jaw drops. Helen walks a fine line with Rachel, drawing comfort from her companionship while also feeling the hairs on her neck rise whenever Rachel mentions a detail that there is no way she could have known.

Of course, no thriller can draw its strengths from a poignant theme alone, and Faulkner clearly draws on her career as a journalist to infuse every chapter of this tense novel with a creeping sense of unease. Whether she is writing about Helen’s creepy friendship with Rachel, Daniel’s bizarre late nights or Katie’s sexual assault coverage, Faulkner keeps the twists and turns perfectly paced and almost always surprising. Those who frequently read thrillers may be able to guess some plot points, but the journey getting there is no less enjoyable, page-turning or gripping. Even the sharpest readers will be shocked by some of the big reveals, which continue through the last chapter.

Perfect for readers of Kaira Rouda, B.A. Paris and Sarah Vaughan, GREENWICH PARK announces the arrival of a strong, compelling new voice in domestic suspense.