When therapist agreed to take on her newest clients, Marissa and Matthew Bishop, she knew exactly what she was getting into. They came to her office in the evening, the best time for Matthew, who worked long hours as a partner in a D.C. law firm. Marissa had told him that it was about their son Bennett, but she really wanted to confess her infidelity and see if her marriage can be saved.
Avery knows how this will go. She has perfected her 10-session counseling system. No longer bound by the American Psychological Association’s rules for their licensed therapists, Avery has become popular for going rogue and creating results for her clients however she needs to. She only meets her clients 10 times, and walks them through her steps without them even realizing what’s happening to them.
She starts with Confession (Marissa’s confession in their first session about her infidelity gets the ball rolling), and Avery proceeds to move them through Disruption, Escalation, Revelation, and Devastation, heading towards eventual Reconciliation and Promises. But as she’s working with Marissa and Mathew, something starts to seem off.
Avery does some digging into their lives, and she finds the lies that Marissa had told her (and Matthew) about her affair. She finds out about Marissa’s shop assistant with boundary issues. She finds Matthew’s ex-girlfriend who is still hanging around, making Marissa uncomfortable. She finds the guy from Marissa’s past who is obsessively watching her. And while these things are unusual and are certainly adding some tension to the marriage, Avery can’t figure out why her foolproof steps aren’t working for them.
But when Avery realizes that there was an overlap between Marissa’s life and her own, she thinks that maybe she is in more danger than she realized. Avery is usually the puppet master when it comes to her clients, but is it possible that in this situation, someone else is pulling the strings? And if so, how far will they go to manipulate them?
The Golden Couple is a compelling dance of a thriller, with layers of secrets and lies, and lots of surprises throughout. Powerhouse author duo Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen have sculpted another flawless novel of suspense and intrigue, filled with realistic details of the ups and downs of a privileged couple. These women have the ability to create characters and stories that take the usual tropes and turn them on their heads, weaving novels that keep you up at night, until you get to the end, and can finally try to recover for the novel that you hope is coming from them the next year.
I have been a fan of this writing due since I first met them, back with their first novel. I love good thrillers, and Hendricks and Pekkanen have consistently written some of the finest ones on my shelves. The Golden Couple is no exception. With the twist of the unlicensed therapist, this novel takes the domestic thriller to a new level, and you will find yourself questioning everything you think you know about every character you meet in this book, except for Romeo, who is always exactly who you think he is (he’s the dog). Make sure to set aside some time for this one, because once you start reading it, you won’t want to stop until you get to that very last page, that very last secret.
Egalleys for The Golden Couple were provided by St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley, with many thanks.
