Beautiful Assassins

Feminist solidarity rises to a whole new level of meaning in this darkly humorous take on the ultimate disposal method for the irredeemably awful husband.

Juno and Lulu, former drug-abusing teenage bad girls, have come a long way. They're older now, more focused and determined to stop thinking exclusively about themselves, start contributing to the greater good of their gender. And if they can make a bundle of money in the process, all the better. Welcome to the Grieving Widows' Club, ostensibly a support group for wives mourning the loss of a spouse; in reality, a highly personalized - and very expensive - murder service for the woman of means. It works like this: we'll dispose of your despicably cruel monster of a husband, permanently, while providing you with an unassailable alibi, all for a mutually agreeable percentage of said monster's estate.

With apparently no limit to the number of women seeking liberation from their wealthy mates, without having to sacrifice any of the luxury, it's the near-perfect business model. Unfortunately, perfection always comes with a built-in expiration date. The girls are reluctantly forced to acknowledge that it's only a matter of time before the system crashes. The challenge is whether they can pull off that last big score and get out of town before the SWAT team is breaking down the front door. 300 pages.