Back before I learned how to read, I had an aversion to the idea of fiction written by co-authors. Surely writing was a solitary pursuit, the result of a singular vision, and not something done through consultation. I held onto that idea for a long time. Then last year, browsing through an airport bookstore before a flight, I decided to break my own reading rules. I bought a copy of The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. By the time I got to my destination, I was so hooked that I spent my weekend stealing away to read snippets of the story. These two women know how to keep the pages turning.
A year later, I have read all three of their books. They have become the equivalent of appointment television. So what is about these books that appeal? I have a few ideas.
- The Anonymous Ingenue. Each of the books feature an attractive single woman living in New York City. I don’t think any of these details is incidental. The authors create a central character with the kind of bland appeal of a print model. You would notice her on a subway platform or walking down the street with her yoga mat and wonder about her. (Or if you were James Blunt, you would write a song about her.)
- The Foreboding Surveillance. One underlying theme of the books is watching. There is an unsettling observation in every story, from outright stalking to creepy psychological research. The authors are pushing the reader’s comfort level in the age of social media.
- Woman Vs. Woman In middle school English we learned about three common themes in fiction: man vs. man, man vs. self, man vs. nature. It’s time to add a fourth category: woman vs. woman. The suspense category is full of women at each other’s throats, often in competition for men. This is my biggest concern about these authors. What does it say about them that they view women this way? And why is there such a market for it?
I don’t like to know too much about the authors I read. I rarely Google them and often don’t even read their bios. There is something to be said for letting the work stand for itself. What I would guess, though, is these are savvy women who understand something about subliminal fears underlying glossy exteriors. No matter what reservations I have about these types of books, I can’t resist them. The authors understand something about me that I don’t understand about myself. It’s why they are good at what they do.
Books Smitten 