A young woman must find her missing husband and prove her innocence in this twisty, unputdownable novel set in an ultrawealthy Florida community where looks can kill.
Intrigued? Well read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt for Happy Wife by Meredith Lavender and Kendall Shores, which is out now.
Nora Davies doesn’t exactly fit in to Winter Park, Florida, where old-guard Floridians mix with the tax-fleeing coastal elite. Twenty-eight and barely making ends meet working at a country club, Nora feels like she’s going nowhere fast. Enter Will Somerset: a prominent forty-six-year-old lawyer, father to a teenage daughter, and recently divorced. The two set Winter Park’s social scene agog when they fall in love and marry after a whirlwind Cinderella-style courtship.
But Winter Park is fully upended when Will disappears the morning after a birthday bash Nora throws for him. Going back and forth between Nora and Will’s romance and the search in the wake of Will’s mysterious disappearance, Nora must answer the question from all angles: Where. Is. Will?
Combining breathless suspense, glittering and juicy social dynamics, and an unforgettable cast of characters, Happy Wife is a clever and subversive novel that explores marriage, wealth, and the secrets that lurk behind closed doors.
I watch through the window as a police car turns up my driveway. And then another one. A squad car would usually be out of place on this upscale street, but with everything going on, they’ve been frequenting this neighborhood.
I should have known better. I should have seen this coming.
When exactly the fait accompli was set into motion, though, is harder to put my finger on.
“Uh . . . Nora . . . ,” Este says from somewhere behind me.
The tone of her voice drives home the certainty that something bad is about to happen.
I open the front door and step outside, the Florida heat hitting me about the same time the blood drains from my face. Three more cars follow behind the first two. An ominous processional.
“Nora, what is going on?” she calls from inside the house.
I try to answer, but my breath catches.
Detective Travis Ardell gets out of the lead car, followed by a cop from the shotgun seat. The other cars all have two, three, and four officers in them. They’re taking out kits, brown evidence bags, gloves, and booties. They’re preparing to descend on the property, and they’ve brought enough equipment to dismantle my life.
Ardell makes eye contact with me, a damning accusation behind his eyes, and I swear I can hear the thought inside his head. The one saying, I’ve got you now, Nora.
A memory of Will’s face momentarily eclipses the scene unfolding in front me. His piercing blue eyes twinkle—he’s almost in reach. I blink and he disappears. Again.
“Come inside,” Este calls to me.
But there’s no point. I stand there, waiting.
I know they are coming for me.
Excerpted from HAPPY WIFE by Meredith Lavender and Kendall Shores. Copyright © 2025 by Meredith Lavender and Kendall Shores. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.












