As Husbands Go
By Susan Isaacs
352 pages; Scribner
A social satire about a plastic surgeon's violent demise, from a master of the genre.
Get the reader's guide

Following Polly
By Karen Bergreen
320 pages; St. Martin's
A young woman stalks a "popular" onetime classmate to learn her secrets. When the golden girl ends up dead, guess who's the likeliest suspect?

Red Hook Road
By Ayelet Waldman
352 pages; Doubleday
This engagingly complex examination of two close families is a leap ahead for the essayist and author.
Get the reader's guide

Fly Away Home
By Jennifer Weiner
416 pages; Atria
This tale of a politician's sex scandal is witty and smart, as expected from the author of In Her Shoes.
Get the reader's guide

Other People's Rejection Letters
Edited by Bill Shapiro
192 pages; Clarkson Potter
A look at how some famous and not so famous people deal with saying and hearing "no." A stunt book, but an amusing one.
Get the reader's guide

• See the rest of this month's reviews