If you have been following Laura Lippman’s career from the early days of her terrific Tess Monaghan series, then you understand why a new release from her instantly becomes a must-read. Her reputation has continued to grow worldwide thanks to her top-notch psychological thrillers and noir-like crime stories. However, I can safely say that Lippman has never created a character quite like Amber Glass.

PROM MOM kicks off with a violent episode at a Baltimore hotel in May 1997. Sixteen-year-old Amber wakes up on the bathroom floor on the night of her prom covered in blood. All is revealed when a pair of detectives show up at her house the next day to take her to the station for further questioning. They explain to her mother that it appears Amber had given birth the previous night and killed the baby immediately afterwards.

"What ensues is a whirlwind of twists and turns that speak to the book’s unpredictability and will make Amber an antihero unlike any you have come across in previous psychological thrillers."

This case and the national media attention given to the cruelly nicknamed “Prom Mom” will stain not only Amber and her family but also her date, Joe Simpson, who left the prom with another girl after Amber complained of stomach cramps.

When we jump ahead to 2019, we learn that Joe is still in the Baltimore area. He is a successful commercial real estate developer and is married to a plastic surgeon named Meredith. The last thing he would expect to see is a new art gallery opening up in the name of Amber Glass.

Amber spent decades away from Baltimore in places like New Orleans and Paris, but has now inherited a nice sum of money and wants to come back home in spite of those who still remember her as the infamous Prom Mom. But the COVID-19 pandemic is right around the corner, which will quickly supplant any gossip that might be stirred up by her return. Joe cannot resist the opportunity to visit the Amber Glass Gallery. He actually strikes up a civil conversation with Amber and ends up purchasing a $450 painting for his wife.

But Meredith never receives this artwork as a Christmas gift. It is instead given to Jordan Altman, one of Joe’s colleagues with whom he is having an affair. Jordan begins to get a little too serious about their relationship, and Joe needs an out. Being someone of questionable character who is obviously selfish, he confides in Amber. It won’t take long for their interactions to become physical, and soon Joe will have three women in his orbit, none of whom know of each other. Or so he thinks.

What ensues is a whirlwind of twists and turns that speak to the book’s unpredictability and will make Amber an antihero unlike any you have come across in previous psychological thrillers. PROM MOM is a winner on every level and deserves to be talked about as a standout novel of 2023.