The Hunting Wives

The Hunting Wives (2021) is a psychological suspense novel by American writer May Cobb. The novel is set in a small Texas town and follows the secret lives of a group of affluent women through the perspective of a newcomer. Cobb explores themes such as The Danger of Emotion-Based Misperceptions, Self-Destruction Masked as Escapism, and the Threat of Repressed and Unsatisfied Desire. In 2025, the novel was adapted into a television series starring Brittany Snow and Malin Akerman.

This guide refers to the Penguin Random House 2021 edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of graphic violence, death, suicidal ideation, pregnancy termination, antigay bias, sexual content, substance use, and cursing.

Plot Summary

The novel takes place in the town of Mapleton, Texas, over the span of several months in 2017 and 2018. In late 2017, Sophie O’Neill moves to Mapleton with her husband, Graham, and their young son. Sophie had previously lived in the town for several years when she was a teenager, and she believes that it will be an ideal place for her to raise her son. However, she quickly feels bored and stifled by her new life as a stay-at-home mother, so she reconnects with her friend Erin. In December, on Erin’s social media, she catches a glimpse of a beautiful and wealthy local woman named Margot Banks. Over the next few months, Sophie becomes obsessed with learning about Margot’s seemingly perfect life via social media. She also tries to seek out opportunities to meet Margot. Finally, in mid-March of 2018, Sophie manages to secure an invitation to a charity fundraiser hosted by Margot’s family.

At the party, Sophie meets Margot and Margot’s close circle of friends: Callie, Tina, and Jill. The other women are also very wealthy and influential within the town. Margot takes a liking to Sophie and invites her to join the group for their regular shooting parties at Margot’s lake house on Friday evenings. Sophie is delighted to be included, but when she attends her first shooting party on March 23, 2018, she is startled to realize that the women do not simply shoot. Instead, the married women typically go out afterward to drink heavily, flirt, and potentially even have sex with strangers. Sophie is uncomfortable with this behavior, but she does not want to be ostracized from the group because she is secretly infatuated with Margot.

Sophie quickly learns that Margot is having a sexual relationship with Jill’s teenage son, Brad. Jill is vaguely aware of the relationship, which has caused tension between the two women before. Margot often invites Sophie to spend time with herself, Brad, and Brad’s friend Jamie. Sophie has several sexual encounters with Jamie, a fact that Margot is aware of. This knowledge gives Margot power over Sophie, who does not want her husband or anyone else to learn that she has engaged in sexual activity with Jamie. Sophie learns that Margot is very jealous of Brad’s girlfriend, a teenage girl named Abby.

On the night of Friday, April 13, the women meet for shooting at Margot’s lake house, but everyone leaves early except for Sophie. She lingers with Margot, and they are joined by Brad and Jamie. Sophie becomes very drunk and passes out for a portion of the evening; she then leaves hurriedly in the middle of the night.

The next day, Sophie discovers that Abby has been reported missing. Brad and Abby had dinner earlier on Friday evening, but they got into an argument, and he left her in the driveway to her house; she hasn’t been seen since. Sophie is very alarmed because while she was at the lake house with Brad, Margot, and Jamie, she saw incriminating text messages between Brad and Margot and now fears that the two of them might have harmed Abby. A few days later, Abby’s body is found on Margot’s property, near the lake house. Abby has been killed by a shotgun. An autopsy reveals that Abby was pregnant when she died.

During the murder investigation, Brad becomes a prime suspect, although he insists that he is innocent. Margot pressures Sophie to conceal all information about her relationship with Brad, and the two women also lie about having been with Brad and Jamie on the night of the murder. Sophie is questioned repeatedly by a police officer named Detective Flynn; he eventually reveals that the shotgun used to kill Abby has been found in the woods nearby and has Sophie’s fingerprints on it. Sophie is adamant that she is being framed and explains that the murderer must have specifically used the same gun that she shot with earlier that night. She reveals all the information about Margot’s relationship with Brad, but Margot has already come forward with this information. Margot has also implied that Sophie and Jamie had a sexual relationship. When Sophie’s husband, Graham, learns of this, he throws Sophie out of the house.

Furious, Sophie confronts Margot at her lake house on Wednesday, April 25, 2018. Margot tells Sophie that she now thinks Callie may have been the one who murdered Abby and framed Sophie. Sophie concedes that this could be possible since Callie has always had an intense bond with Margot and has been jealous of Sophie. Margot and Sophie have sex, after which Sophie passes out. When she awakens, she is confused and disoriented because Brad is now at the lake house. She hurriedly leaves without seeing Margot. On Saturday, April 28, Sophie learns that Margot drowned in the lake at some point on Wednesday night; Sophie is once again incriminated because she was at the lake house on that day. Sophie believes that either Callie (who also spent some time at Margot’s lake house on Wednesday) or Brad must have killed Margot.

Sophie questions Jamie, who confides that Brad knew Abby was pregnant and was pressuring her to get an abortion, which Abby was reluctant to do. Margot also wanted Abby to terminate the pregnancy, and Sophie is now more convinced than ever that Margot and Brad are responsible for Abby’s death. She goes to the nearby city of Dallas and questions staff at several abortion clinics. Staff at one clinic recognize Abby from the photos that Sophie shows them and reveal that Abby was accompanied to her appointment by two older women. The staff member notes that Abby was distressed and that the women seemed to be pressuring her; Abby eventually left without undergoing the procedure. Sophie is convinced that the two women were Margot and Callie; in her mind, this evidence confirms that Margot tried to coerce Abby into having an abortion and then killed her when Abby refused. Sophie alerts police, telling them to review footage from the clinic so that her theory can be confirmed.

Sophie also arranges to meet with Jill, eager to tell her friend information that she believes will clear Brad’s name. Jill and Sophie go for a boat ride, and once they are isolated together, Sophie gets word from the police that the women who accompanied Abby to the clinic were actually Jill and Callie. Jill reveals that she is obsessively jealous of her son and hated both Abby and Margot for having relationships with Brad and interfering in his life. When Abby refused to terminate her pregnancy, Jill killed Abby. She intended to frame Margot for the crime, which is why she killed Abby on Margot’s property; she also meant to use a gun with Margot’s fingerprints on it, but she accidentally used one with Sophie’s prints instead. After Abby’s murder, when Margot and Brad continued their relationship, Jill came to the lake and drowned Margot.

Having revealed her crimes, Jill now intends to kill Sophie as well. Sophie has sent word to the police, but they are slow to arrive, and she is only saved when Callie encounters them and hears some of Jill’s confession. Furious that Jill killed Margot, Callie intervenes and holds Jill at gunpoint until the police arrive. Sophie is cleared of all wrongdoing, but her marriage remains precarious. She cautiously looks forward to a brighter future and hopes to learn from her mistakes.