Hush Little Baby

Ob-gyn doctor Jillian Marsh, the narrator of this harrowing if flawed psychological thriller from Herron (Stolen Things), realized she had a problem when she showed up drunk one day in the ER and said the wrong thing to an emotionally vulnerable patient, who subsequently tried to kill herself. In the seven years since, Jillian has sobered up and married her girlfriend, Rochelle, but Rochelle has recently left the pregnant Jillian for someone else. Jillian and Rochelle are at odds over the baby’s future, but Jillian can turn to three pregnant friends she met through AA who have formed their own little support group. When someone starts to stalk a frazzled Jillian, Rochelle is suspect. The other mothers-to-be, however, each have a secret and, as these secrets come out, Jillian realizes her stalker could be any one of them. Readers should be prepared for underdeveloped characters defined chiefly by a few personality quirks, as well as a graphic childbirthing scene. Still, this fraught tale of what a mother will do to protect her child will resonate with many. Agent: Susana Einstein, Einstein Literary Management. (May)