The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen

St. Martin’s Press (August 5, 2025)

Domestic Thriller/Psychological Thriller

Was it…

Bitter, all-consuming jealousy?
Pathological sibling rivalry?
Pure insanity?

Whatever the cause—and everyone has a theory—it’s the Crime of the Decade when glamorous Georgia Cartwright, who was adopted as a newborn, is accused of killing the biological daughter of her wealthy, Southern family.

Georgia is locked in a psychiatric institution where the most violent offenders are held while she awaits trial. The only words she whispers when her estranged twin sister Amanda visits are, “I didn’t do it. You’ve got to get me out of here.”

Amanda doesn’t trust Georgia, but she can’t abandon her in a place so eerie and menacing that it seems to exist in another dimension. Is Georgia the victim of a powerful family that’s so depraved murder is the least of their crimes? Or is Amanda being led down a path of madness into the web of a master manipulator?

Nothing is as it seems in Sarah Pekkanen’s The Locked Ward, a shocking psychological thriller about the complex bonds of sisterhood—and what happens when they are stretched to the breaking point.

Some doors in the Locked Ward should never be opened.

REVIEW

Written in the two sisters’ perspective. This author is an auto-read for me. I love her thrillers and find them intriguing. The story was fast paced, had twists throughout, and I never guessed the killer. I liked the short, action-packed chapters. Well written psychological thriller that I recommend.

Reviewed by Comfy Chair Books/Lisa Reigel (June 22, 2025)

eARC provided by publisher via Netgalley

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sarah Pekkanen is the #1 New York Times bestselling co-author of four novels of suspense including THE GOLDEN COUPLE and THE WIFE BETWEEN US, and the solo author of the thriller GONE TONIGHT, will be published Aug. 1, 2023. Colleen Hoover says it is “Riveting, original and powerful. I’m a huge fan of Sarah Pekkanen’s books, and GONE TONIGHT is her best yet!”

Sarah is also the author of eight USA Today and internationally-bestselling solo novels: THE OPPOSITE OF ME, SKIPPING A BEAT, THESE GIRLS, THE BEST OF US, CATCHING AIR, THINGS YOU DON’T SAY, THE PERFECT NEIGHBORS and THE EVER AFTER. Her books have been translated into dozens of languages.

In her free time, Sarah is a dedicated volunteer for rescue animals and serves as Ambassador for RRSA India, working hands-on to vaccinate and heal street dogs in Anand, India. She also volunteers weekly for a horse rescue group in Maryland, mucking stalls and helping mistreated horses heal.

Sarah lives just outside of Washington, D.C. with her family. Please follow Sarah on Facebook and Instagram @sarahpekkanen and visit www.sarahpekkanen.com