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A Good Marriage

A Novel

Audiobook
3 of 3 copies available
3 of 3 copies available

COMING SOON FROM AMAZON AND NICOLE KIDMAN'S BLOSSOM FILMS

A New York Times Summer Reads Selection | A People Best Book of the Summer | A Library Reads Pick | A Book Riot Addictive New Thriller to Add to Your TBR Pile | A Book of the Month Selection | A Publishers Weekly Summer Reads Pick | A Bookish Most-Anticipated Novel | A Good Morning America ""Binge This!"" Pick

Big Little Lies meets Presumed Innocent in this "irresistible domestic drama" (Washington Post) from the New York Times bestselling author of Reconstructing Amelia, in which a woman's brutal murder reveals the perilous compromises some couples make—and the secrets they keep—in order to stay together.

Lizzie Kitsakis is working late when she gets the call. Grueling hours are standard at elite law firms like Young & Crane, but they'd be easier to swallow if Lizzie was there voluntarily. Until recently, she'd been a happily underpaid federal prosecutor. That job and her brilliant, devoted husband Sam—she had everything she'd ever wanted. And then, suddenly, it all fell apart.

No. That's a lie. It wasn't sudden, was it? Long ago the cracks in Lizzie's marriage had started to show. She was just good at averting her eyes.

The last thing Lizzie needs right now is a call from an inmate at Rikers asking for help—even if Zach Grayson is an old friend. But Zach is desperate: his wife, Amanda, has been found dead at the bottom of the stairs in their Brooklyn brownstone. And Zach's the primary suspect.

As Lizzie is drawn into the dark heart of idyllic Park Slope, she learns that Zach and Amanda weren't what they seemed—and that their friends, a close-knit group of fellow parents at the exclusive Brooklyn Country Day school, might be protecting troubling secrets of their own. In the end, she's left wondering not only whether her own marriage can be saved, but what it means to have a good marriage in the first place.

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    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from March 23, 2020
      Bestseller McCreight (Reconstructing Amelia) expertly blends domestic drama with a gripping murder mystery. Lizzie Kitsakis, a senior associate at a prestigious Manhattan law firm, receives a phone call while working late one night from Zach Grayson, an old law school friend who’s being held at Rikers for assaulting a police officer. Zach reveals that he’s also the prime suspect in the murder of his wife, Amanda, in their swanky Brooklyn brownstone. Insisting that he’s innocent, Zach begs Lizzie to represent him as his defense attorney. Reluctantly, Lizzie takes on the case and soon unravels secrets of childhood abuse found in Amanda’s journals and of a loveless marriage after speaking to Amanda’s circle of neighborhood friends. Meanwhile, Lizzie’s alcoholic husband, Sam, recently had a car accident and must pay a large settlement. The two plots intertwine when Lizzie discovers a missing earring in Sam’s messenger bag that belongs to Amanda. Filled with credible plot twists and realistically flawed characters, McCreight’s page-turner presses readers to question everything they think makes a “good” marriage. This will stay with the reader long after the finish. Agent: Dorian Karchmar, WME.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Sarah Zimmerman, Karissa Vacker, and George Newbern combine forces to narrate a thriller that asks what makes a good marriage. The trio delivers the story's three timelines seamlessly, making it more accessible for listeners. Zach is in Rikers for assaulting a police officer after finding his wife, Amanda, dead at the bottom of their stairs. He persuades his friend Lizzie, a corporate lawyer, to take his case. Zimmerman adjusts her pacing and expressive tone to enhance her portrayal of Lizzie. In the second timeline, Vacker joins the story as Amanda, a young woman who is full of awe at the rich world she has lucked into--until her fall down the stairs. Vacker heightens the character's fascination and shock with a tone of youthful introspection. Newbern delivers the court proceedings with a stately tone and steady pacing. S.K.G. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine
    • Kirkus

      March 15, 2020
      A white-collar criminal defense attorney takes on the case of a millionaire accused of the brutal murder of his wife in McCreight's new thriller. It's only been a few months since Lizzie Kitsakis joined the prestigious New York law firm Young & Crane. It's not her dream job, but her husband Sam's alcoholism has put them in a precarious financial position, and she can't afford to be picky. When her college friend Zach Grayson, now a millionaire, calls her from Rikers, he tells her he's the prime suspect in the gruesome murder of his wife, Amanda, and is being held on an assault charge with no bail while awaiting indictment. He wants Lizzie, and no one else, to represent him, and she's surprised when her boss tells her to take the case. Lizzie believes Zach is innocent, and by all accounts, Amanda was a devoted wife and a wonderful mother to their son, Case, who is away at camp. No one can think of a motive for her murder. However, the events leading up to the case are fodder for a gossip-obsessed press: Zach and Amanda reportedly attended a party the night of her death, at which parents of students from the upscale Brooklyn Country Day school let loose while the kids were away at various summer activities. The hostess even encouraged couples to use her upstairs rooms for a bit of partner swapping. Meanwhile, someone has hacked into the records of Brooklyn Country Day families, digging up dirt and threatening blackmail. Then Lizzie discovers Amanda's journals, and it becomes clear that her life and marriage may have been darker and more complex than they appeared. Lizzie knows a bit about keeping secrets, and as she gets closer to the truth, she wonders if Zach might not be so innocent after all. McCreight's law credentials lend authenticity to the legal proceedings and to Lizzie's high-stakes tango with a formidable assistant district attorney eager to put her in her place. Lizzie's narrative alternates with one that details Amanda's movements for a few days before her murder, and McCreight expertly weaves multiple plot threads with a few sly red herrings, paving the way to a series of surprising, and satisfying, reveals. A smartly plotted and altogether successful union of legal thriller and domestic suspense.

      COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Booklist

      April 1, 2020
      While she contemplates the precarious future of her marriage, the last thing attorney Lizzie Kitsakis needs is a desperate plea for help from a prisoner. A car accident caused by her alcoholic husband, Sam, landed the couple in financial distress, causing Lizzie to give up her dream job as a federal prosecutor to join a corporate law firm for more money. When her old law-school friend Zach Grayson calls from Rikers Island asking to Lizzie to defend him for assaulting an officer and for the probable future charge of killing his wife, Lizzie believes her firm will say no. But she gets permission to defend Zach, who found his wife, Amanda, dead in their Brooklyn home after a raucous party held when kids were away at summer camps. So Lizzie digs for information in the upscale Park Slope neighborhood, calling on old contacts for help and uncovering secrets pertinent to Amanda's death and to her own marriage. McCreight fashions a plot with so many twists and turns that little is what it originally seemed, combining psychological suspense, murder investigation, and a legal thriller.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

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