Pinky Swear

by Danielle Girard

From Danielle Girard, the USA TODAY bestselling author who “effortlessly ratchets up the tension” (J.T. Ellison, New York Times bestselling author), comes a pulse-pounding thriller about a young woman whose surrogate disappears just days before the baby’s due date, leading to a frantic search that uncovers dark truths and the power of a mother’s love.

Lexi thought she knew everything about Mara Vannatta. Best friends since middle school, they drifted apart after a tragedy derailed their senior year. But when Mara shows up on Lexi’s doorstep sixteen years later fleeing an abusive husband, Lexi takes her in without question. Lexi’s own marriage has been strained by her desire to have a baby, and when Mara offers to become her surrogate, their friendship feels stronger than ever.

But four days before the due date, Mara disappears.

Lexi is shocked but certain there must be something wrong—Mara would never willingly leave with her unborn child. Or would she? As she embarks on a perilous cross-country hunt for the truth, Lexi is forced to reconsider a friendship she thought she knew—and what really happened that terrible night their senior year. How many secrets lie in their shared past, waiting to be uncovered? And just how far will Lexi go to bring her child safely home?

Genres: Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Mystery, Adult, Fiction, Suspense, Contemporary

288 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication February 24, 2026

About the author

Danielle Girard is the USA Today and Amazon #1 bestselling author of sixteen novels, including the Annabelle Schwartzman Series, Chasing Darkness, and The Rookie Club series.

Her books have won the Barry Award, the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, and White Out was in the top 100 bestselling e-books of 2020. In addition, two of her titles have been optioned for screen. Her next thriller, Pinky Swear, will be out from the Emily Bestler Imprint of Atria books February 24, 2026.


Danielle is also the creator and host of the Killer Women Podcast where she interviews the women who write today’s best crime fiction. A graduate of Cornell University, Danielle received her MFA in Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte, North Carolina. When she’s not traveling, Danielle lives in the mountains of Montana.

Reviews

[Linzie (suspenseisthrillingme) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A white-knuckle ride of explosive dark secrets, Pinky Swear was as gripping and tense as it was thought-provoking in the extreme. You see, between the character-driven deep dive into the bonds of friendship and the emotionally resonant look at motherhood, it had all of the hallmarks of a poignant tear-jerking read. At the same time, it was the definition of a high-stakes game of cat-and-mouse as Lexie raced to find her best friend before the very worst happened. Along the way, I was delighted at the found family vibe and strong character development. A one-sitting read that I quite literally couldn’t put down, I was absolutely mesmerized be this bingeable tale of how far one will go for friends, family, and one’s own child. Lifting a car to save your daughter or son? That’s nothing compared to the events of this novel. Bravo, Ms. Girard!

All said and done, despite a climax that felt distinctly over-the-top in a very Grey’s Anatomy way, I was beyond absorbed by the twisty, heart-stopping plot from beginning to end. Told via dual timelines and dual POVs, I was easily sucked in by the mysterious long-buried secrets within this tight-knit group of friends. What was most stunning of all, though, was how well I got to know them all despite only really meeting Lexie “in person.” Through a story that managed to show instead of tell, these characters worked themselves into my heart all while the adrenaline-soaked scenes hit fast and hard. The best part of all, though? That I didn’t know who to trust the entire time I was reading. After all, with both epic cliffhangers and breathtaking twists, it was all I could do to hold on for dear life as I waited for the truth to be revealed. Rating of 4.5 stars.

SYNOPSIS:

Lexi thought she knew everything about Mara Vannatta. Best friends since middle school, they drifted apart after a tragedy derailed their senior year. But when Mara shows up on Lexi’s doorstep sixteen years later fleeing an abusive husband, Lexi takes her in without question. Lexi’s own marriage has been strained by her desire to have a baby, and when Mara offers to become her surrogate, their friendship feels stronger than ever.

But four days before the due date, Mara disappears.

Lexi is shocked but certain there must be something wrong—Mara would never willingly leave with her unborn child. Or would she? As she embarks on a perilous cross-country hunt for the truth, Lexi is forced to reconsider a friendship she thought she knew—and what really happened that terrible night their senior year. How many secrets lie in their shared past, waiting to be uncovered? And just how far will Lexi go to bring her child safely home?

Thank you to Danielle Girard, Atria Books, and Book Around for my complimentary copy and including me in the traveling ARC program. All opinions are my own.

PUB DATE: February 24, 2026

Content warning: knife violence, infertility, pregnancy, missing person, anxiety, rape, blood, mention of: domestic abuse, school shooting, abortion, gun violence

[Kimberly Belle · Rating 5 out of 5]

When childhood best friends reunite under desperate circumstances, promises are tested—and loyalties fractured. In PINKY SWEAR, Girard delivers a daring, twist-laden plot that barrels toward an electric, heart-stopping climax with chilling precision. Girard outdid herself with this one, a white-knuckle tale of friendship, betrayal, and the true meaning of family.

[Kira · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am willing to suspend a lot of belief when it comes to my thriller summer 2k25 however, I can't suspend it all!!!

Unfortunately, the plot of this, the characters, the relationships were either too out there, or too unbelievable to make sense of. I did want to find out what happened, so I did read until the end however it was all kinda...whatever; too silly and not in a fun way.

Thank you to the publishers for the arc.

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this if you enjoy: domestic thrillers and past/present timelines - This was such an original concept and was a quick read with a lot of suspense, I felt like a lot was going on and the pacing was off (slow start with a very fast finish)

[Kaileigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had me hooked from the start!
Very eerie and suspenseful with plot twists I didn’t see coming. I enjoyed the dual timelines as well as the characters!
A great quick read 😁

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you think you know your best friend, think again—Pinky Swear proves that some promises are meant to be broken. Pinky Swear was a thrilling blend of suspense and emotion that had me racing through the pages. The twists and intense domestic drama pulled me in right away, making it nearly impossible to put down.

This domestic thriller centered on estranged childhood friends Lexi and Mara. When Mara fled an abusive marriage and reappeared in Lexi’s life, she offered to be a surrogate for the child Lexi longed for. But just days before the baby was due, Mara disappeared, sending Lexi on a desperate search. As she hunted for her missing friend and unborn child, long-buried secrets from their shared past resurface, forcing Lexi to question how well she ever really knew Mara.

This was my first time reading Danielle Girard, and she delivered a fast-paced, emotionally charged thriller that seamlessly wove together past and present. Her taut, urgent writing captured the themes of friendship, motherhood, and betrayal, while building an atmosphere of unease that made even everyday moments feel tense and dangerous.

The strength of Pinky Swear lied within its emotional pull and suspenseful pacing. I liked how Girard explored friendship, motherhood, and buried secrets in a way that kept me invested, and the dual timelines added depth to the story. On the downside, some parts felt a little confusing with the shifts between past and present, and a few of the twists stretched believability. Still, the tension and emotional stakes made it an engaging read all together.

Overall, Pinky Swear was a gripping, emotionally charged thriller that blended suspense with heartfelt themes of friendship and motherhood. Danielle Girard’s taut writing balanced urgency with depth, pulling me into the twists and emotional stakes from start to finish. I’d highly recommend this to anyone who loves fast-paced domestic thrillers packed with secrets, drama, and plenty of surprises.

Once again, thanks to Net Galley and Atria Books for an ARC in return for my review.

[Leah Wingenroth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pros: Pinky Swear was suspenseful, heartfelt, and compelling. Girard is an excellent, decisive writer.

Cons: The pacing wasn't quite right and I just wanted a bit more – more story, more character development, and more drawn-out suspense. I think this book would have benefitted from an extra 50-100 pages of fleshing out characters and conflicts.

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for the ARC!

[crystal niche · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lexi’s best friend from childhood shows up on her doorstep out of the blue.. months later, said friend becomes her surrogate. A few days before the baby is due, the friend disappears.

A wild ride for sure! Thanks Netgalley for the advance copy.

[Tessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Friendship, motherhood, secrets, and loss anchor this engrossing and affecting novel about a woman’s desperate yearning for a child and her pursuit of the truth about a past she thought she knew. Girard mines her characters’ emotions with precision and skill, demonstrating a keen instinct for introspection. This is high-stakes storytelling delivered with heart, and one of the most powerful books I’ve read in a long time.

[Tessa Pacelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Net Galley and Atria Books for this ARC.

Friendship, trauma, and motherhood collide in this latest addition from a *master* of domestic suspense. From the first couple of chapters of Pinky Swear, I knew I was in the hands of a talented, capable, and enigmatic author, wondering what exactly she'd be serving up, curious and apprehensive at the same time as to what big feelings she'd pull out of me :). Premise: Lexi and Mara were best friends in high school, but tragedy pushed them apart. Sixteen years later, Mara reappears, fleeing an abusive husband—and agrees to be Lexi’s surrogate on the spot. Everything seems perfect until Mara disappears just days before her due date. Lexi embarks on a frantic cross-country hunt to find her & the baby.

So let me start by saying that I have a *very* high bar for emotional hooks in domestic suspense. It’s everything in this genre, at least to me. The emotional hooks in Pinky Swear were highly effective– childhood friendship, maternal desperation, past unresolved trauma. Wow. These were on point. As a result, I white-knuckled my iPad, hoping everyone would be ok especially the baby. Girard’s prose is really lovely and evocative and kept me interested. Overall, I’d highly recommend this to readers who love fast-paced domestic thrillers packed with secrets, drama, and plenty of surprises.

[Witch-at-Heart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pinky Swear is a very suspenseful thriller that takes us on a journey to find Mara our MC’s best friend who after 16 years of lost contact (after the tragic death of their other best friend Cate) shows up battered and seemingly broken in desperate need of help. This eventually leads to her becoming Lexi’s surrogate. They are very close friends so this is mostly a plausible leap but I feel a deeper more connected bind should have been conveyed in the book added conversations, concerns, all the things leading to such a serious commitment along with bit filling out legal paperwork even if Mara was a best friend in the past seemed unwise. In any case 4 days before birth Mara vanishes without a trace and Lexi with nothing more than a googled bus schedule and a few old receipts left behind throws herself into a cross country chase to find Mara at any cost. I loved the intuitive leaps and Lexi’s unwavering tenacity. Although I do find that there is much to the story that seems implausible especially at the end. But if you set that aside and look at it from an unwavering friend and desperate mother the story itself is riveting and at times quite touching. Despite its flaws I really enjoyed this book and I do recommend it as this is one of my favorite authors and it’s definitely still a solid story with great characters.

[Bria Martinez · Rating 4 out of 5]

My review: As soon as I read it, I had so many questions. I couldn’t wait to find out why Mara would do this. Is she selling it on the black market for money? Is she hiding from Lexi because it’s not really her baby? Is she changing her mind and wanting to keep it for herself? Trust me, the questions are something you won't expect! In the middle of the chapter, it was a little slow burn, but wait until you read the end of the story. Oh my! 🤯 It got me emotional. This author got me really good!

Lexi and Mara had been best friends since middle school, but they drifted apart after senior year. Sixteen years later, Mara reappeared in Lexi's life. Fleeing her abusive husband, Mara was welcomed in by Lexi. Desperate to have a baby, Lexi was thrilled when Mara offered to become her surrogate. Their friendship became stronger than ever. However, four days before the due date, Mara vanished. Lexi was shocked, thinking Mara would never willingly leave her with their unborn child. Seeking the truth on her own, Lexi wondered: would Mara really do this to her? She thought she knew Mara very well.

Thank you, NetGalley and Atria publisher, for exchanging for an honest review. E-ARC.

[shannon (books by the glass) · Rating 3 out of 5]

hi what the heck happened this entire book 👀 every chapter had me questioning everything I knew about these characters (and not in a fun way) and how the living HECK mara managed to get herself deeper into trouble…

I loved the original concept of childhood best friends lexi, mara, and cate telling their stories through journal entries, mixed with present day POV lexi in her journey to track down mara once again… and again, I really want to know what the heck these characters were thinking…

usually in thrillers, I’m all for suspending a bit of disbelief, but this one required way too much of that. everything that absolutely could have gone wrong in the girls’ childhood did, and don’t even get me started about mara’s adult life 🙄 at this point, drama was being created just for funsies

I did really love the secondary characters that lexi met on her quest to locate mara!! I would read a separate story about daemon and torrence’s adventures for sure!!

overall, a bingeable unique thriller that lost a few points to the anticlimactic ending, predictable twists, and pacing issues… thank you to atria books for the advanced copy!

rating: 3 stars
wine pairing: virginia sauvignon blanc

[Stacy40pages · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pinky Swear by Danielle Girard. Thanks to @atria for the gifted Arc ⭐️⭐️⭐️

All Lexi wants is a child of her own. Her dreams come true when her childhood friend, Mara, comes back in her life and offers to act as surrogate. Then Mara disappears four days before the due date.

I love the plot and concept of this one but it was a much more slow burn than I was expecting. I stuck with it and the ending got super exciting and the pacing picked up drastically. I did love the end and how it turned out but prepare for a slow pace until then.”

“Motherhood is the trickiest of gifts. Whether we dream about it for a decade or it happens accidentally, it changed us. It’s irrevocable. And it is the very definition of joy and also the ultimate heartache - mother or child.”

Pinky Swear comes out 2/24.

[Melissa Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Lexi’s friend and surrogate disappears just days before her due date, Lexi is beside herself and goes on a mission to find Mara. Lexi knows something must be wrong because Mara would never leave willingly, would she?

The whole premise of this book grabbed me from the beginning. Teenage friendships, a missing surrogate and now an investigation to find the truth of Mara’s disappearance! This one definitely kept me turning the pages!

[Dolores · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Atria books for an ARC of this book. It is told in dual timelines. The past takes place in 2008 dealing with three high school friends and s tragedy that happens to one of the girls. The present timeline involves Mara and Lexi, the high school friends who have not seen each other for quite a few years. Mara agrees to be a surrogate for Lexi but disappears four days before the due date. Lexi then goes on a quest to find out where Mara id and why she disappeared. It was a good story but I felt it dragged a little in the middle for me. I would certainly read other books by this author. I enjoyed her writing style.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this one as it features high school friends, Lexi and Mara as Mara is carrying Lexi's baby for her. But the past mistakes will soon catch up to them as there are break-ins, stolen journals, secrets, and lies. It's both hopeful and tragic so get the tissues ready!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

[Bevany · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up. a twisty mystery. the story goes back and forth in time before the story comes full circle. I didn't feel too invested in the characters but the storyline was interesting.

[Trigger Warning Database]

Trigger & Content Warnings

Rape
Domestic abuse mentioned
Anxiety
Infertility & pregnancy
Abortion mentioned
Knife violence
School shooting & gun violence mentioned
Missing person

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this in a Goodreads giveaway. It's an ARC edition. ⁸This was a great story. Lexi was a bit of a flake in the beginning but she finally got herself together. There were parts that dragged for me but overall this was a good read. I hope the author experiences a lot of success once it's released.

[Jamie R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this new stand alone book by Danielle Girard. It has all the thrills and suspense I’ve come to expect from this author. Having read all others in her catalog, Pinky Swear did not disappoint!
Mara and Lexi are childhood friends that hadn’t seen each other in 16 years when Mara shows up on Lexi’s door after escaping an abusive relationship. Lexi has long wanted a child, but it hasn’t happened. Mara becomes her surrogate and suddenly disappears just before the baby is due. Knowing her friend would never just dumpster with her baby, Lexi begins to search for her.
The story has twists and turns and keeps the reader riveted throughout. Secrets emerge and those that were thought trustworthy are not. The author keeps us guessing throughout.
The MC’s are easy to like as are some of the side characters. I’m excited to experience this story on audio!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the arc. I leave my review voluntarily.

[Igor DelRey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lexi, Cate and Mara were best friends in high school. Each one with their big dreams and that thirst for adventure and curiosity about life in general.
Due to a very unfortunate accident, Cate dies right before their graduation, and Lexi and Mara carried on with their lives in grief (each one of them dealing differently with it). Years have passed and now Lexi, in their mid-30s, married but on the verge of getting a divorce, reunites with Mara. Lexi has tried multiple times to get pregnant and have not succeeded. So she asks Mara to be her surrogate, wich she happily accepts. 9 months later, Mara and Lexi have been living together for 6 months and things seem to be great, they are closer than ever, very excited and making huge plans for when the baby is born - who Lexi keeps calling 'goose' - because she hasn't picked a name yet. Suddenly, 4 days due date birth, Mara disappears without a trace. So we follow Lexi in a desperate chase to looking for Mara and her unborn baby before Mara gives birth.

Pinky Swear is a (mostly) fast-paced thriller with empathetic main characters, engaging writing (in my opinion), same twists and turns here and there, a quite unsettling narrative, honestly. It's tough to read the desperation acts of a soon-to-be mother in persuit of her friend and unborn child. I'd assume that this book can be a little triggering to readers who are mothers, or about to become one.
The conclusion was satisfactory enough for my taste. Especially because I tend to enjoy bittersweet endings in thrillers (or horror novels).

This book also brings some chapters in a past timeline, when the three friends were still in high school and that timeline was, also, told by entries of a journey they would write for one another.
There's a lot of suspense and drama, too. And some heavy triggering topics concerning what happened to Cate when she was still alive.
I personally liked it a lot. I would prefer to see, or witness, more of the friendship between Mara and Lexi after they have lost Cate, though.

I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading thrillers with the tropes I discussed here.
Thank you, NetGalley and Atria Books, for providing me with a free eARC of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

[Suesyn Zellmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lexi has taken in her old school friend Mara, who’s fled a bad domestic situation. They haven’t seen each other in about sixteen years, but Lexi doesn’t even hesitate. They have the kind of friendship where they can just pick up right where they left off, or so Lexi believes. As they regain their close bond, Mara agrees to become Lexi’s surrogate, since Lexi will not be able to physically have a baby of her own. But now Mara has vanished, just days before the due date. Lexi can’t believe it and at first believes someone took Mara. But it soon becomes clear that Mara kept a lot of secrets from Lexi, and now she fears she’ll never see her baby.

So she takes off to Philadelphia after her only lead, hoping to persuade Mara to come back, or at least find her before she gives birth so Lexi can bring her child home. But she has no idea what danger she might be putting herself in. Clearly, she didn’t know Mara as well as she thought. And the more she learns, the more perilous her situation is. She’s willing to risk her life for her baby, but will Mara let her go?

The reader can tell right away that Mara’s full of it, and luckily, it doesn’t take Lexi too long to catch on. So often in these types of stories, it takes the main character forever to realize she’s been conned, manipulated, etc. But part of the reason may be because of what happened to their other best friend when they were in high school. In a contrived turn of events, she discovers an old diary that clues her in to just how long Mara’s been deceiving her. It’s always an old journal or diary!

I did appreciate that Mara’s situation wasn’t as cut and dry as it seemed. There wouldn’t have been too much suspense otherwise. My favorite characters were Terrance, Damon, and of course, Ms. Gladys Knight! They really brought the story to life, and their scenes were some of the best in the entire book. If you’re looking for a heartfelt story of friendship, survival, and love of the most unexpected kind, this is the book you need to read.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good book, centered on Lexi and Mara, childhood friends who lost touch and are reunited in adulthood. Lexi is thrilled when Mara shows up out of the blue after years of being disconnected- Mara fits easily into her life and even agrees to be a surrogate for the child Lexi is desperate to have. Everything is going well until Mara disappears just days before the due date. Lexi feels that Mara would never purposely do anything like that to her, but she also isn't sure what exactly Mara has been up to the last few years. You also get flashback chapters from when the girls were in high school along with another close friend named Cate, which also presents a mystery.

Lexi was easy to root for, even though she did put herself in potentially risky positions; this goes to show you what a mother will do for a child even if it's a child she hasn't met yet! I could really empathize with her thoughts on whether Mara is really who she thought she was or not- I felt like she acted the way someone really would if put in that situation. I also thought that her relationship with her family felt very real and realistically complicated. The book was very fast-paced, with lots of things happening in the course of just a few days. The ending was super intense and definitely unexpected- if I had any nit it did feel like I could have used a few more breadcrumbs to help me confirm who the villain was, though once it did all come out, it made sense to me.

Overall, this was a fast-paced and enjoyable read with relatable characters and a lot of suspense. I'd recommend to those who like mysteries and psychological thrillers. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Lisa Ahlstedt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lexi, Cate and Mara are inseparable in high school. The three friends all have problems of various degrees at home, so they bond over their issues. They even share notebooks where they leave messages about what's going on in their lives as well as their hopes and dreams. Just before graduation a terrible accident happens and Cate dies. Lexi and Mara then grow apart as Lexi leaves for college and Mara takes off to travel the world. Sixteen years late, Mara shows up on Lexi's doorstep, beaten and scared. Lexi is married to Henry and stepmother to his nearly grown children but has always longed for a child of her own. Since Henry doesn't want more children, they have separated as Lexi tries to get pregnant with IVF and sperm donors. After Mara moves into a small guesthouse on Lexi's property, the two friends begin to grow closer. Mara shares bits and pieces of her past, including the fact that she has fled from her abusive boyfriend and is terrified he'll track her down. Lexi shares her pregnancy difficulties and is shocked yet grateful when Mara agrees to serve as a surrogate for one of Lexi's embryos. Everything is going well until a few days before the baby's due date when Mara disappears. Lexi is frantic and must track down her friend, unsure if Mara is in danger or has been conning her for some unknown reason. With the help of a detective, Lexi sets out to track down Mara before the baby is born.

The set-up of the book is very interesting and enjoyed it until Lexi went off on her own in something of a frenzy in her attempt to track down Mara. She repeatedly put herself in danger and harassed and harangued anyone who might have had any contact with Mara in the past. That part of the book felt very tedious as she attempted to get one shady character after another to tell her what they knew about Mara. It also didn't make sense, if Mara was fleeing an abusive ex, why everyone was so hostile and cagey in answering Lexi's questions. Even at the end there are a lot of questions about Mara and what was really going on with her, so I didn't really feel as if all the loose ends were tied up.

I received a copy of this book from a GoodReads giveaway.

[S. Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pinky Swear by Danielle Girard centers on Lexi, whose surrogate and childhood friend Mara disappears just days before her due date. When Mara shows up after sixteen years fleeing an abusive husband, their rekindled friendship leads to Mara offering to carry Lexi's child. The premise immediately drew me in, and I finished it in two days because I genuinely wanted to know why/how/etc. the person carrying the child of their best friend would just up and vanish. But...the execution proved frustrating in several ways. The character relationships felt unclear; Lexi's husband exists in some undefined separated-but-not-really state that made their relationship hard to parse and their interactions hard to follow. The backstory involving their three-person friend group (including Cate, who died young) unfolds across different timelines and POVs in ways that became confusing. I was more than halfway through before I realized the traumatic event I thought had happened to one character actually happened to another. The ending ultimately broke my suspension of disbelief entirely. Without giving anything away, the resolution relies on the protagonist's self-taught expertise in a highly specialized field, transforming what could have been a compelling thriller into something that felt implausible. While I'm willing to overlook plenty of dramatic license in summer thrillers, this particular narrative choice pushed beyond what I could accept. The bones of an engaging story were present, but the muddled plotting and strained finale undermined the whole thing.

[Carol Orange · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pinky Swear by Danielle Girard

Danielle Girard’s nail biting, immersive thriller is about two lifelong female friends who are polar opposites. Mara Vannatta, the more adventurous of the two, offers to be a surrogate for Lexi’s baby. And Lexi McNeil is grateful for Mara’s generous gift. The unborn baby girl is referred to as Goose, but after she is delivered her name will be Cate, in honor of Mara and Lexi’s other high school friend who died in a tragic accident. When they were in high school the girls were inseparable. “Mara, Cate and I used to be able to communicate without a word – a raised brow, a tiny twitch at the corner of the mouth.”
In her ninth month Mara goes missing and Lexi is hell bent on finding her. Her search brings her to Philadelphia where Mara once lived, working as a stripper at the Lotus, a shady nightclub.
All the characters are richly drawn, from the chameleon Detective Maxwell to the heroic Terrence and Damon who help Lexi talk her way into a nursing home to see Mara’s former friend and fellow stripper, Dottie Rosen. Dottie is wonderfully colorful. But it is Mara and Lexi who win our hearts.
Girard’s lyrical prose and fast pacing are superb. In the expert hands of this super talented writer, I empathized with Mara and Lexi as past secrets are revealed and their friendship is tested. I couldn’t put the novel down. Its ending still haunts me.

I received an ARC from the publisher and am very grateful.

[Mark Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pinky Swear delivers a tense thriller that kept me guessing and glued. The story involves two high school friends who reunite as adults. Mara comes back into Lexi’s life and agrees to be her surrogate. But she disappears days before the due date, leaving Lexi to pick up the trail. I might have scoffed at some of the things she was willing to do as she tried to find Mara. But I kept reminding myself that she was a momma chasing after her baby, really. I’ve seen the lengths a mother will go to for their child.

The flashbacks to their friendship (which included another girl, Cate, who had died) were perfectly inserted to leave clues about their lives before they went their separate ways. Their history felt plausible and all three likable.

One thing that set this book apart for me was the ancillary characters. Lexi’s husband and stepsons, the three girls’ families, and the people she met during the chase are all distinct and craft a well-constructed story.

The last hundred pages come with a relentless pace. I give her big points for creating something new. I don’t think there has been a book where a woman pursues her lifelong friend who is the surrogate mother of her child while she’s 9 months pregnant. I also appreciate her ability to keep me guessing – I had no clue what was going to happen. This was my first book by Danielle Girard, but won’t be my last. I highly recommend this one.

Thanks to Net Galley and Atria Books for an ARC in return for an honest review.

[Jaci Kunz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of Pink Swear and I was OVER THE MOON excited. I’ve read every one of Danielle’s books (I like to think we’re on a first name basis). Although this is an ARC review, it contains no spoilers.

Another superb Danielle Girard book! The tale of Lexi’s desire to have a baby grips you from the book’s blurb!!! The character development is effortless, you feel like you’re getting to know a friend. And before you know it, you’re besties. The fluidity of the storyline is so smooth it’s easy to get lost in page turning from the laid back while lounging around bits, to the edge of your seat moments.

On its surface, Pinky Swear is a mother-to-be’s worst nightmare. Then you fall through layers as you discover the deep roots of childhood friendship, the power of love between two people with a huge difference of opinion, the kindness of strangers, and the cruelty of those we think we trust.

Cover to cover there is no downtime in the story telling. One thread in this weaving was so visceral I realized my whole body was clenched! Danielle has a way of making the reader feel as if they are the main character of a scene and experiencing the story first hand. I was so satisfied with the ending of this book, while still longing for more!

[JJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one took a little while to get going for me, but once the groundwork was set, it accelerated at an unstoppable pace.
The underlying set up is in and of itself fraught. A woman desperate for a baby (Lexi), and a best friend (Mara) willing to be her surrogate. There’s so much tension in that, and I was excited to see where it went.
Mara’s colorful past is layered with all sorts of sketchy people – strippers and drug dealers and violent men. When she goes missing, we’re not sure if she herself was a criminal, or the victim of the ruthless people in her circle.
The narrative is interwoven with flashbacks from the two girls’ teenage years. There’s a third friend, Cate, who died under mysterious circumstances. It felt like the mystery of Mara’s disappearance and the mystery of what happened to Cate would be intertwined, but their connection was only tangentially related, which made the ending feel less satisfying than it otherwise could have been.
But the writing was sharp, and there was a scene toward the end that was so intense my jaw was on the floor. I don’t want to spoil it, but you’ll know it when you get there.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me an advanced read.