One dark morning, a fisherman spots a boat a ways off and waves, but no one waves back--what he saw moving was not another boater, but a golden retriever. The fisherman gets closer and, seeing no one, boards the boat--where he finds the deck covered in blood, but no body. The boat belongs to Nina Garrity's husband, Glen; after a months-long search, he's presumed dead. During that search, Nina discovers that not only was Glen having an affair, he didn't have a job and had drained their investments. "It wasn't a perfect marriage by any stretch," she explains, "but I guess it was enough for me." Until this.
Months later, Nina falls in love with Simon Fitch, the local history teacher. From the first, she is amazed at how well Simon fits into her life: he's perfectly aligned with her tastes--from comfort food to jewelry--and almost uncannily senses her feelings. But blending Simon and her two teenage children is a problem, at least for her daughter, Maggie. Everyone likes Simon; why does Maggie dislike him so? One time she glimpsed a "flicker of a super-disturbing, dark look" on his face, "full of hate, but somehow also empty, as cold as an ice storm." He scares her.
A grieving widow. A perfect savior. A suspicious child. Clever gaslighting. A familiar plot, and well done, but D.J. Palmer (Saving Meghan), in The New Husband, gives the familiar a shocking twist that is a stunner. --Marilyn Dahl