Share The Thrill of It All: Page-turning winter books you won't be able to put down The weather outside isn't the only thing that's frightful: The season's most heart-pounding novels are a riveting mix of murder, mayhem, and mystery Mommies Dearest Parenting — the good, the bad, and the criminally insane — takes center stage in two of the new year's most hyped literary debuts, both already slated for major screen adaptations. By Leah Greenblatt Credit: Penguin Random House (2) Whatever the sins of the father, society seems to save a particular, heinous place for bad mothering. What kind of storybook monster or malignant narcissist must a woman be, to so debase her own biology? That's the infinitely messy subject a high-profile pair of new novels can only begin to explore — though they find a lot of smart, discomfiting things to say along the way.