Gillian Flynn’s “Gone Girl” was far from being the first psychological thriller, but it was one of the most successful in recent years, widening the door for outstanding writers including Megan Abbott, Angie Kim, Kathleen Barber, Jennifer Hillier and Tara Laskowski. Lindsay Hunter should be considered in those lofty ranks.
Hunter’s new book, “Hot Springs Drive,” tells the story of two women — Jackie Stinson and Theresa Linden — and the events that lead to Theresa’s being killed in the garage of her suburban home. Their story, although one not uncommon in the genre, is told through lovely prose, relentless character study, and a twisting combination of lust and tension. Hunter, whose previous books include the novels “Ugly Girls” and “Eat Only When You’re Hungry,” ensures that the characters and the crime alike are richly explored.
She uses a variety of viewpoints to give readers an encompassing look at the circumstances surrounding Theresa’s death. Some readers may find the shifts in viewpoint off-putting at first, but once the tale begins to unfold, the structure feels more natural, even helpful to escalating the mystery at its core.
Jackie and Theresa first bond in the maternity ward, as new mothers, but the connection is fraught from the start. “She had a window, and I didn’t,” Jackie observes of Theresa’s hospital room, “and it bothered me, but it drew me to her as well. Motherhood is an eternity of noticing, a prison of noticing.” The two become fast friends, especially when Jackie buys the house next door to Theresa’s. They raise their children together — Jackie’s four and Theresa’s one — growing closer over the years, although an undercurrent of envy remains.
Tensions escalate when the pair decide to join a diet group together. Theresa’s “ideal body was within reach,” Jackie admits. “Mine was a dozen flights up and hiding in the shadows.” Theresa loses a few pounds and quits the program; Jackie loses more and can’t stop, revealing more of her obsessive nature. “Every waking moment, I plotted and planned and avoided and starved,” Hunter writes. “My body was something I had made out of the rubble of four pregnancies and a twilight consciousness, everything low-lit and muffled. Now I was sharp-edged, brightly colored, the world loud and vibrant and mine.” A darker side of her emerges, as she flirts with strange men — and does more. “I realized, or remembered, that we are one way to certain people and another way to certain other people. … It doesn’t mean we are disingenuous or deceitful or bad. It is simply the bald truth.”
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With Jackie Stinson, Hunter has created that rare character, one who is both unforgivable and understandable. She is selfish yet deserving of more, determined but cruel in her determination, exhausted but continually finding hidden power. She is driven by relentless appetites — hunger, starvation, sex, relationships. And no relationship is more important to Jackie than the one with Theresa, or more complicated. “I loved her immediately,” Jackie says, recalling their first conversation. “Isn’t that how all the great hatreds begin?”
Hunter writes beautifully and masterfully ratchets up the tension. Still, there are instances where the novel’s psychological insight is lacking, particularly with the men. To an extent, this isn’t a novel about men, but the thinness of the male characters makes it hard to understand their motivation. Why are these husbands so lonely and bored and helplessly horny, aside from simply living in suburban America? Readers are unlikely to find the answer in these pages.
Nonetheless, “Hot Springs Drive” is filled with memorable prose and fascinating characters — men and women desperately searching for happiness in their lives and in each other — penned by a fearless writer with an enviable eye for detail.
E.A. Aymar’s next novel, “When She Left,” will be published in February.
Hot Springs Drive
By Lindsay Hunter
Roxane Gay Books. 320 pp. $27
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