It is the fall of 1995 at Rocky Barrens University, hidden amidst the pine trees and starry skies of Northern Ontario. Aurelle Taylor, daughter of a world-famous fashion designer becomes the closest friend of burgeoning painter Diana Martin; they have bonded over a mutual desire to escape their wealthy families and personal tragedies and begin new lives as students at RBU.

 

They are closer than lovers, they are like one thing, intoxicated by their own bond, falling into the hedonistic seduction of the woods and the water at a university that is more summer camp than campus. Diana, who has lived her life under the shadow of her sadistic older brother, rockets to fame with a series of scandalous portraits of Aurelle, whose response is to tumble further into a drug-fuelled escapism.  Diana must choose whether to rescue her kindred spirit from destruction, or to abandon Aurelle for the fame she has forever thirsted after.

The lines between love, envy and obsession blur in Laurie Petrou’s utterly enthralling, unceasingly tense second novel. A darkly compelling coming-of-age story, perfect for fans of Donna Tartt’s The Secret History, or Liane Moriarty’s Big Little Lies.

Early praise for Stargazer:

"Stargazer is a galaxy of a novel: At once a story of friendship, a coming of age, and a dark and utterly captivating tale of family, lust, loss, fame, art and the ever competing hope and destructiveness of youth. In her very best work yet, Laurie Petrou makes the absolute most of her setting and her two protagonists, Diana and Aurelle, to build a page-turner almost dreamlike in its plotting. I loved everything about this novel, from the characters, to the wild and atmospheric campus setting, to the pulsing 1990s era, to the portrayal of young womanhood that feels both too familiar and completely original. A darkly thrilling novel that warns us all: even the most kindred of friendships can burn you."

- Amy Stuart, bestselling author of the Still series

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“Laurie Petrou has crafted a chilling look at the fine line between love and obsession, longing and desperation, ambition and mania. It’s a look at the cusp of adulthood, when all things—beautiful and terrible—are possible. These women will haunt you."

- Gin Phillips, bestselling author of The Well and The Mine

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“Stargazer is a slow-burn literary thriller in the best possible way: Eerie, beautiful, and impossible to put down. I loved it.”

 - Robyn Harding, International Bestselling Author, The Perfect Family

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"Laurie Petrou’s Stargazer is a sinuous, captivating exploration of the mysterious depths of female friendship that had me hooked from its first pages. The vivid, finely wrought  setting — a prestigious, remote college campus — was a delicious reminder of another favourite novel, Donna Tartt’s A Secret History.  Petrou’s dreamlike, note-perfect prose simmers toward a shattering conclusion. This unforgettable novel from a truly talented novelist is perfect for fans of Celeste Ng."

- Marissa Stapley, bestselling author of The Last Resort and Lucky

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"Obsession, loneliness, and insecurity are at the center of Laurie Petrou's astonishing Stargazer. This exceptional novel, set in the 90s in the tony town of Muskoka, is about the bonds and breaks of female friendship. Petrou's writing is so powerful that I could smell the pines and feel the snow on my skin. The story gradually unfurls, transfixing the reader on the characters' heartbreaking journeys, and we become absorbed in their struggles and triumphs. It's an outstanding book with some of the most beautiful lines I've ever read."

- Samantha M. Bailey, USA Today and #1 national bestselling author of Woman on the Edge

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'LOVE, HEATHER'

"An engaging, emotionally raw tale of social torment and explosive reactions." Kirkus Reviews, 'Love, Heather'

What you see isn't always what you get.

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Stevie never meant for things to go this far. When she and Dee—defiant, bold, indestructible Dee—started all this, there was a purpose to their acts of vengeance: to put the bullies of Woepine High School back in their place. And three months ago, Stevie believed they deserved it. Once her best friend turned on her, the rest of the school followed. Stevie was alone and unprotected with a target on her back. Online, it was worse.

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It was Dee’s idea to get them all back with a few clever pranks, signing each act Love, Heather—an homage to her favorite 80’s revenge flick. Despite herself, Stevie can’t help getting caught up in the payback, reveling in every minute of suffering. And for a while, it works: it seems the meek have inherited the school.

But when anonymous students begin joining in, punishing perceived slights with increasingly violent ferocity, the line between villain and vigilante begins to blur. As friends turn on each other and the administration scrambles to regain control, it becomes clear: whatever Dee and Stevie started has gained a mind—and teeth—of its own. And when it finally swallows them whole, one will reemerge changed, with a plan for one final, terrifying act of revenge.

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Praise for Love, Heather:

"I devoured this book! Laurie Petrou truly understands the darkness of the high school experience. This fast-paced thriller is a must for any fans of the genre." 
—Ben Philippe, author of The Field Guide to the North American Teenager

"Laurie Petrou understands the darkness and light that coexists within all of us, and she carefully unearths it with well-crafted prose, sharp pacing—and absolutely no fear.  This is a book that readers of many ages will want to devour, delivered by a daring, talented novelist to watch."    
—Marissa Stapley, bestselling author of The Last Resort 

"Carefully crafted, dark and disturbing, Love, Heather is a page-turner that will keep you up all night and stay with you long after you read the last page."
—Chantel Guertin, TV personality and bestselling author of the Pippa Greene series.

"Love, Heather is a haunting love letter to the power of movies, the complexity and heartbreak of friendship, and the things we need to get us through the toughest times . . . I couldn't stop turning the pages all the way to the astonishing finale."
—Peter Bognanni, author of This Book is Not Yet Rated 

 

'SISTER OF MINE'
Globe and Mail Top 100 Book of 2018
Winner of the International Half the World Global Literati Award, 2017

A debut novel of domestic suspense in the vein of Liane Moriarty, Shari Lapena and Claire Douglas about two sisters bound together by a murder. 

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When is a debt ever fully paid?

Penny and Hattie are sisters in a small town, bound tight to the point of knots. They share a secret they cannot escape, even while it pulls them apart.

One night, a match is lit, and Penny’s terrible husband is killed – a marriage going up in flames, and offering the potential of a new life. The sisters retreat into their family home – a house of secrets and memories – and try to live in the shadow of what they put in motion.

But Penny’s husband is not the only thing they are hiding, from the outside world and from each other. Under a cloud of long-held resentments, sibling rivalry, and debts unpaid, the bonds of sisterhood begin to crack. How long will Penny and Hattie demand the unthinkable of each other? How often will they say, “You owe me,” and when will it ever be enough? 

'BETWEEN'

Globe and Mail Top 100 Book, 2007; Top 5 First Fiction

Between is a collection of stories about people on the edge of change. They are people for whom family is a love, an embarrassment, a burden and a relief. They are witty and fumbling and they are trying their best, caught between memory and dreams.