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Book Summary and Reviews of Helpless by Jessica Knoll

Helpless by Jessica Knoll

Helpless

A Novel

by Jessica Knoll

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  • Publishes:
  • Jul 7, 2026, 320 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

From the New York Times bestselling author of Luckiest Girl Alive and Bright Young Women comes a smoldering erotic thriller with a singular, mind-bending ending.

Now, Faye is one half of a power-producing duo with her Hollywood husband. Henry is a married father running the family business. On the surface, both of their lives have essentially gone to plan.

When a former and beloved college professor suddenly passes away, Faye and Henry find themselves back on campus for the funeral, circling something old and dangerous. Something, if Faye is honest with herself, she has been trying to duplicate for years. But Henry is one of a kind.

The kind who delivers a hypnotic apology for the way things ended. The kind who suggests they go back to the hotel for a drink. The kind who drugs and kidnaps her.

When Faye comes to Henry's remote mountain cabin, she's beside herself. Has Henry brought her here to punish her? She did, after all, write and star in a lauded episode of television based on their indelicate appetites and vicious breakup. As her week of captivity unfolds, Henry's wanton demands intensify, and Faye finds herself pulled back into his irresistible gravity. But as Faye and Henry spiral into their old dynamic, a sprawling, years-old mystery begins to take shape—one that will rewrite history as Faye remembers it and reveal an astounding, cataclysmic truth.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"[A] nuanced and unapologetic portrait of an unconventional relationship without judgment. Puts the 'erotic' back in 'erotic thriller.'" —Kirkus Reviews

"The whiplash-inducing twists are fun for a while, but the plot's uncomfortable sexual dynamics eventually become a liability, and Faye and Henry feel more like plot devices than three-dimensional characters. Readers will hope Knoll's next outing marks a return to form." —Publishers Weekly

"[A] taut contemporary tale of the explosive reunion of two former lovers…Knoll's twisty tale of psychological suspense, with its exploration of a nuanced relationship with elements of submission and control, will get readers talking." —Booklist

"A sexy new thriller." —New York Post

This information about Helpless was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

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Author Information

Jessica Knoll Author Biography

Photo: Sabrina Lantos

Jessica Knoll is the New York Times bestselling author of The Favorite Sister and Luckiest Girl Alive—now a major motion picture from Netflix starring Mila Kunis. She has been a senior editor at Cosmopolitan and the articles editor at Self. She grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia and graduated from the Shipley School in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, and from Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their bulldog, Beatrice.

Link to Jessica Knoll's Website

Name Pronunciation
Jessica Knoll: nole, like the word "knoll"

Other books by Jessica Knoll at BookBrowse
  • Bright Young Women jacket
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