cover image A Girl Like Us

A Girl Like Us

Anna Sophia McLoughlin. Sourcebooks Landmark, $27.99 (432p) ISBN 978-1-7282-9613-5

McLoughlin, a pseudonym for YA author Anna Godbersen (the Luxe series), delivers an uneven thriller about a reality TV star who marries into a Murdoch-like family. Maya Miller ditches her dissolute reputation when she meets and falls for Colin Sterling, an heir to the powerful Sterling media empire. The pair quickly get married, but their Mexico honeymoon is interrupted by a summons to England, where Colin learns that his cousin, Arianna, who controls the family fortune, has been murdered. Like all the Sterling spouses, Maya is excluded from initial discussions about the fate of the funds—until the Sterlings learn that Arianna’s will inexplicably leaves control of all assets to Maya. Shocked, Colin’s parents and siblings struggle to find a way forward, while Maya tries to uncover the reason behind Arianna’s bequest and guard certain secrets of her own. It's a tantalizing setup, but Maya’s motivations grow increasingly nonsensical as the narrative wears on, and a series of late-stage revelations feel more like desperate hail Marys than well-motivated twists. There’s a certain amount of fun to be had with the Sterling family’s squabbling, but for the most part, this squanders its potential. Agent: Stephen Barbara, InkWell Management. (Feb.)