The Cousins

Chapter One

 Milly

 

I m late for dinner again, but this time it s not my fault. There s a mansplainer in my way.

 

Mildred? That s a grandmother s name. But not even a cool grandmother. He says it like he thinks he s being clever. Like in all my seventeen years, no one else has ever noticed that my name isn t the fashionable kind of classic. It took a Wall Street investment banker with slicked-back hair and a pinkie ring to render that particular bit of social commentary.

 

I sip the dregs of my seltzer. I was, in fact, named after my grandmother, I say.

 

I m at a steak house in midtown at six o clock on a rainy April evening, doing my best to blend with the happy hour crowd. It s a game my friends and I play sometimes; we go to restaurant bars so we don t have to worry about getting carded at the door. We wear our simplest dresses and extra makeup. We order seltzer water with lime-- in a small glass, please, I m not that thirsty --and gulp it down until there s almost nothing left. Then we wait to see if anyone offers to buy us a drink.

 

Somebody always does.

 

Pinkie Ring smiles, his teeth almost fluorescent in the dim light. He must take his whitening regimen very seriously. I like it. Quite a contrast for such a beautiful young woman. He edges closer, and I catch a headache-inducing whiff of strong cologne. You have a very interesting look. Where are you from?

 

Ugh. That s marginally better than the What are you? question I get sometimes, but still gross. New York, I say pointedly. You?

 

I mean originally, he clarifies, and that s it. I m done.

 

New York, I repeat, and stand up from my stool. It s just as well he didn t talk to me until I was about to leave, because a cocktail before dinner wasn t one of my better ideas. I catch my friend

Karen M. McManus is a #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of young adult thrillers. Her books include the One of Us Is Lying series, which has been turned into a television show on Peacock, as well as the standalone novels Two Can Keep a Secret, The Cousins, You ll Be the Death of Me, and Nothing More to Tell. Karen s critically acclaimed, award-winning work has been translated into more than forty-two languages.

Every twist is gasp-inducing . Another McManus novel worth pulling an all-nighter for. Kirkus Reviews

"The twists come fast and furious."  SLJ

"McManus (One of Us Is Lying) once again crafts a taut, multilayered mystery.... [She] weaves past and present to take readers on a well-paced, twisty ride that will hold readers rapt till the last page. Publishers Weekly
 
"Masterfully plotted and packed with her trademark twists, fans will be utterly hooked." The Bookseller
 
A slow-burn, uneasy beginning ultimately makes way for a frantically paced end peppered with twists that genre fans will happily take in stride. . . . Fans of McManus's previous offerings and of mysteries steeped in family dramatics will be eager for this."  Booklist