This propulsive, breakout novel follows a family on the run, a restless teenage daughter hungry for the truth, and a simple DNA test that could threaten their carefully crafted world.
THIS GOLDEN STATE
by Marit Weisenberg
Flatiron Books, March 2022
Seventeen-year-old Poppy Winslow doesn’t know why her family has been running her entire life. Her beautiful, caring, mysterious parents won’t tell Poppy and her younger sister why they won’t disclose their true identities or why they move every few years. Poppy’s family is everything to her, but with each passing year, her curiosity has only grown, and she is beginning to wonder how she can have her own future when staying with her parents means giving up a normal life. When the family lands in San Francisco, Poppy comes across a DNA testing kit at school and seizes the chance to try and find out more about her family’s history. But she may not be ready for the shocking truth of her parents’ real identities or the fallout from her actions as the net tightens around the Winslow family. And now she must ask herself: how much of herself does she owe her family? And is it a betrayal to find her own place in the world?
Exploring themes of identity and privacy, love and loyalty, and the bittersweet truth that growing up means growing apart, this is an exciting new thriller.
Marit Weisenberg has a master’s degree from UCLA in Cinema and Media Studies and worked as a film and television executive for a number of years. She currently lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and two daughters. Her previous titles include Select, Select Few, and The Insomniacs.
Jennifer Barnes never expected the shocking news she received at a routine doctor’s appointment: she has a terminal brain tumor—and only six weeks left to live. While stunned by the diagnosis, the forty-eight-year-old mother decides to spend what little time she has left with her family—her adult triplets and twin grandsons—close by her side. But when she realizes she was possibly poisoned a year earlier, she’s determined to discover who might have tried to get rid of her before she’s gone for good. Separated from her husband and with a contentious divorce in progress, Jennifer focuses her suspicions on her soon-to-be ex. Meanwhile, her daughters are each processing the news differently. Calm medical student Emily is there for whatever Jennifer needs. Moody scientist Aline, who keeps her mother at arm’s length, nonetheless agrees to help with the investigation. Even imprudent Miranda, who has recently had to move back home, is being unusually solicitous. But with her daughters doubting her campaign against their father, Jennifer can’t help but wonder if the poisoning is all in her head—or if there’s someone else who wanted her dead.
Shade and Jadis are everything to each other. They share clothes, toothbrushes, and even matching stick-and-poke tattoos. So when Shade unexpectedly joins the cheerleading team, Jadis can hardly recognize who her best friend is becoming. Shade loves the idea of falling into a group of girls; she loves the discipline it takes to push her body to the limits alongside these athletes. Most of all, Shade finds herself drawn to The Three Chloes—the insufferable trio that rules the squad—including the enigmatic cheer captain whose dark side is as compelling as it is alarming. Jadis won’t give Shade up so easily, though, and the pull between her old best friend and her new teammates takes a toll on Shade as she tries to forge her own path. So when one of the cheerleaders dies under mysterious circumstances, Shade is determined to get to the bottom of her death. Because she knows Jadis—and if her friend is responsible, doesn’t that mean she is, too?
Finch Chamberlain is the newest transfer student to the ultra-competitive Ulalume Academy…but she’s also not what she seems. Months before school started, Finch and her parents got into an accident that should have left her dead at the bottom of the ocean. But something monstrous, ancient, and terrifying wouldn’t let her drown. Selena St. Claire sees right through Finch, and she knows something is seriously wrong with her newest classmate. But despite Selena’s suspicion, she feels inexplicably drawn to Finch, leaving her with a sinking feeling that from now on, the two will be unnaturally linked to each other. Then one night, Finch, Selena, and her friends accidentally summon a carnivorous creature of immense power from the depths of the school. Can Finch and Selena learn to work together to stop the horror they unleashed before it consumes them and the entire island?
None of these people care about Piper. All they’re really doing is forcing me to replay everything I did—everything I didn’t do—to push my sister to her breaking point. Piper Sullivan never should have been at Suicide Point the day she fell. Her older sister, Savannah, knows this with all her heart—just as she knows that Piper’s “accident” was entirely her fault. Savannah did something awful, something she can barely stand to think about, and now Piper is in a coma. But just as Savannah’s guilt threatens to swallow her whole, she finds something strange in Piper’s locker: a note inviting Piper to a meeting of their school’s wilderness club…at the very place and on the very day she fell. Which means that there’s a chance Piper wasn’t alone. Maybe it isn’t Savannah’s fault, after all. Someone in the club might know what really happened. Someone might have done something. But why? If Savannah wants to find out the truth about that tragic day, she’ll have to join the club on their weekend long camping trip…on the very same mountain where her sister fell. And with everyone in the club a suspect, she’ll need to be careful or she might follow her sister into the dark.