Ruth Sawtell Wallis Boeken

The Peckhams and the Wests keep their loves and hates strictly in the family. Mattie Peckham, the keeper of secrets, delights in tormenting everyone with them. Her brother Virgil West and his wife Charlotte live next door with their daughter Louise and her husband, Ralph Ogden, who harbors a dark secret involving the suicide of his first wife twelve years prior. Duncan West, recently returned from Europe, carries a hidden secret tied to a letter he wrote to Mattie long ago, potentially connected to a mysterious blonde who moves in next door. When second cousin Janet visits, she becomes a target of Mattie's cruel games, but Mattie's reign of torment is about to come to an end. In another story, Audrey Adriance and her husband Don relocate to a university town where he has secured a job. They are welcomed by their neighbors, including Professor Dexter and his wife Rachel, as well as the formidable Clifford Cox and his wife Beulah, the Grays, and Detective Eric Lund. At a party, Audrey senses an undercurrent of tension, possibly stemming from her immediate attraction to Thornton Gray. Secrets linger among the neighbors, with Audrey and Don hiding a significant one that ultimately leads to sudden death.