I Killed Zoe Spanos

Gr 9 Up–Riffing on an alternate time line to that of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Frick creates a convincing scenario for a summer of questions, murder, fresh starts, and false alarms. A summer nanny position in the storied Hamptons is the fresh start Anna needs. She hopes for a reset away from her old friends and partying ways before college starts in the fall. When she arrives in the small beach community of Herron Mills to work for the Bellamy family and care for their daughter, Paisley, Anna is instantly singled out for bearing a strong resemblance to a local girl, Zoe Spanos, who is missing. Two months later, Anna confesses to Zoe’s murder, but it’s a flawed story. Podcast host and budding journalist Martina Green begins to dig through clues, texts, and interviews to sort out what actually happened the night Zoe died. Strong heroines and an intriguing flip of whodunnit tropes will keep readers engaged to the surprising resolution.