Need To Know
- Jennifer van der Kleut’s debut novel The Better Mother is hitting shelves in February 2026
- The psychological thriller, likened to Gone Girl and Fatal Attraction, tells the story of a woman who finds out that she’s pregnant after a one-night stand and realizes that someone might be out to get her
- Speaking exclusively with PEOPLE, the author says, “This book is inspired by decades spent reading amazing authors like Agatha Christie, Carol Goodman,” and more
Thriller fans and readers of Gone Girl have got a book to add to their reading lists, as Jennifer van der Kleut’s debut novel The Better Mother is hitting shelves soon!
PEOPLE can exclusively share the cover for van der Kleut’s brand-new psychological thriller. From publisher Crooked Lane, The Better Mother is a psychological thriller likened to Fatal Attraction (which celebrates its 38th anniversary this year), Kaira Rouda’s Best Day Ever and more. The book explores motherhood, toxicity and entitlement — with a “messy but relatable female” protagonist as its foundation.
“In The Better Mother, 34-year-old Savannah Mitchell is recovering from a devastating breakup when she finally puts herself out there and has a fun but casual fling with the handsome Max, whom she met at a bar,” a synopsis reads.
Just a few weeks later, things take a turn for Mitchell when she discovers that she’s pregnant — only to find out that Max just got back together with his ex, “the beautiful Madison, who swears she only wants to help support the both of them as they become new parents.”
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“But as scary things start happening in Savannah’s life, she starts to think Madison isn’t as supportive as she’s making herself out to be, and she may have a sinister ulterior motive — but can Savannah prove it, before her and her unborn child’s lives are in danger?”
Speaking exclusively with PEOPLE, van der Kleut shared that she’s been a devoted reader of fiction her entire life — as well as PEOPLE, she teases — “so this is a dream come true for me, to know that soon my book will be in bookstores, and to know my picture was once in PEOPLE!”
For the author, who grew up backstage in theaters, supporting her father, an actor and set designer in the San Francisco Bay Area, having a “wild imagination” came naturally.
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“You almost never saw me without a book in my hand – everything from Sweet Valley High to The Secrets of the Unicorn Queen to all the Nancy Drew mysteries,” she shares.
“Perhaps ironically, instead of creative writing, I pursued journalism as my career, which deals in concrete facts,” she adds. “But I still loved using my imagination to know how to spice up a story and pinpoint the most interesting details to make readers want to read it.”
After years in journalism, van der Kleut says she’s beyond excited to release her debut novel — and says that the book features a special dedication to her father.
“It was my father who kept encouraging me to take a stab at writing a novel in my spare time, even as I continued my career. That’s why this book is dedicated to him,” she tells PEOPLE. “Sadly he passed away in April, before he could see the finished product, but he did read the draft that ended up earning me my book deal with Crooked Lane Books.”
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As forThe Better Mother, van der Kleut hopes to attract readers of beloved thrillers — including everything from classics like Agatha Christie novels to modern stories like this summer’s Don’t Open Your Eyes.
“Thrillers and suspense novels have always been my favorite genre. So this book is inspired by decades spent reading amazing authors like Agatha Christie, Carol Goodman, Robyn Harding, Kaira Rouda, Liv Constantine and Shari Lapena,” van der Kleut shares.
“I just can’t wait for people to see it in a bookstore one day soon, and hopefully pick it up and read it.”
The Better Mother hits shelves in February 2026, and is available for preorder from Amazon and Bookshop now.