The Game She Plays

Heading to Paris for a much-needed vacation after a bad break-up, Nicola Harris meets Englishman James Shuttleworth on the flight and the two fall madly in love. They vacation in the south of France and move to his flat in London, while Nicola practically forgets about her life back in Buffalo. And why not, when they probably have ten feet of snow to shovel? All is going swimmingly until James suggests they spend the weekend at a house party, complete with shooting pheasants and lots of Barbour, where Nicola will finally have a chance to meet his friends. The book is set in 1980, so we don’t yet have the term social anxiety, but that’s exactly what Nicola is experiencing. And rightfully so. This lot of private-schooled, Cambridge-educated, alcoholic aristocrats, with their insider language and weird nicknames, is terrifying. Nicola gives it the old college try—she does love James—but just when she thinks she’s broken through, Juliet arrives. James’ ex-fiancée. Beautiful and seductive. And a genius at undermining Nicola, especially when no one else is around. But what Juliet’s after may be far greater than just destroying Nicola, and we slowly come to realize that everyone is in danger from Juliet. A slow simmer that’s full of great characterization, this should appeal to fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.