I just finished Gone Girl, and it really lived up to the hype. Amy and Nick Dunne were living a glittering dream–writing jobs, Brooklyn brownstone, Amy’s trust fund–that was quickly and mercilessly liquidated by the Great Recession. Their marriage unravels when they move to Missouri to care for Nick’s ailing parents, and Amy disappears on their fifth anniversary. It may sound like another episode of Law and Order, but Flynn’s potent storytelling, spiky observations, and a delectable menagerie of unhinged characters elevate the book into an exercise in psychological jujutsu. I’m officially hooked on her writing, as I’m currently reading Dark Places and awaiting Sharp Objects from SWAN.