Husbands and Lovers

My favorite historical fiction author, Beatriz Williams, is back with her 16th book (not counting her collaborations with fellow authors Karen White and Lauren Willig), all but one of which have interconnected storylines (although you don’t have to have read any of her other books to read this one). A minor character in one book will become a main character in a later book; settings may pop up more than once but separated by decades. Husbands & Lovers is the third book set on New York’s Winthrop Island, this time focusing on Mallory and her teenage son, who needs a new kidney. Mallory reconnects with her former best friend Monk, now a world-famous musician, after ghosting him years before. Alternating chapters introduce us to Hannah, a Hungarian immigrant with a tragic past who becomes a British diplomat's wife in 1950s Cairo. As the connective threads between the two timelines slowly unfurl, we understand how both Mallory and Hannah did what they felt they had to do to save the people they loved the most.