Desperate

Palmer (Stolen) burnishes his status as one of today’s best thriller writers with this emotionally gripping and steel-trap plotted standalone. Gage Dekker works at Lithio Systems, a maker of lithium-ion batteries in Waltham, Mass., doing quality assurance for a revolutionary new product. The loss of his seven-year-old son and first wife to a drunk driver still haunts him, but he’s tried to move on with a new spouse, Anna Miller, who also lost her son. Having failed to produce a baby of their own, Gage and Anna, a management consultant, have begun looking into adoption. One day at a bus stop, they encounter a crying pregnant woman, Lily, sitting on the curb. Anna gives Lily her card in case she needs help. Two weeks later, Lily turns up at their apartment to say she’s willing to let them adopt her baby. Lily moves into a spare room, but Gage soon gets bad vibes from her after a number of creepy incidents. The truth behind Lily’s offer is both complex and logical, and Palmer is so successful at getting readers to invest in Gage that his travails are almost too painful to read about. Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (May)