White Picket Liars: A Novel

Summary

A sizzling summer thriller set on the iconic island of Nantucket, a playground for America’s rich, where sex, lies, and secrets simmer murderously below the surface.

Beneath Nantucket’s wholesome façade of rose-covered cottages, all-American families, and glittering, beachfront estates lies a darker truth. Treachery and betrayal run deep: from the working families who call the island home, to the wealthy summer people whose money is the town’s life blood, everyone has a secret. But some secrets are deadlier than others.

New to the island are transplanted Londoners Sir William and Lady Hannah Pemberton who—with their two teenage children, Tom and Violet—have their own incentives for summering in this picturesque haven. Social climber Will dreams of landing a large donation for the Royal Opera House from American private equity legend Jack Graham, while hopeless romantic Hannah believes an idyllic vacation on this quintessentially American island might help her resurrect her writing career and repair her fractured marriage. But everything changes when Jack Graham’s business partner, the brilliant and “saintly” David Helmsley, is murdered during his annual 4th of July party.

While the police scramble to find Helmsley’s killer, other, older betrayals begin to bubble to the surface. Both Jack Graham and David Helmsley have been keeping secrets that have made them and others obscenely rich. But at what cost? The rising tensions strain the Pemberton’s tenuous marriage, pushing them to the brink, as Hannah discovers that Olympic level adultery appears to be Nantucket’s favorite sport. While their parents try to keep their lives from falling apart, Tom and Violet are learning to navigate newfound friendships and teenage romantic interests amid a tight-knit clique of entitled nepo babies every bit as corrupt as their doting parents.

Set over one life-changing, sun-drenched summer, this sharply entertaining novel of betrayal, loss, love, and family is a delicious peek at how the other half lives … and lies.