Cul-De-Sac

This gripping psychological thriller from Fielding (All the Wrong Places) focuses on the occupants of five identical two-story homes on a cul-de-sac in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., in the two months leading up to a Fourth of July weekend when simmering resentments finally boil over. Wife beating, alcoholism, PTSD, depression, and free-floating anxiety are all to be found in the cul-de-sac, where every household has at least one gun. (One troubled resident thinks to himself, “This is Florida, after all, where guns are as accessible as gummy bears.”) The fulcrum of the large ensemble cast is Maggie MacKay, who moved to Palm Beach Gardens with her husband and two children to escape a threat in L.A. Maggie’s husband recently moved out because he could no longer cope with what he calls her paranoia. Despite her fears, Maggie decides she must take action to help her neighbors in peril. As Fielding slowly reveals each character’s secrets, she nicely upsets readers’ perceptions and expectations as they try to figure out who will be the first to snap—and who will die. Suspense fans will be well rewarded. Agent: Tracy Fisher, WME. (Aug.)