THE LION’S DEN
By Katherine St. John
353 pp. Grand Central. $28.

“The Lion’s Den” is classic escapist reading, in every sense of the word. On the one hand, the story whisks pasty, vitamin D-deprived readers onto a luxury yacht cruising the French Riviera. We stow away with Belle, an aspiring actress and gimlet-eyed observer, and a gaggle of pals eager to bask in the wealth of their frenemy’s much older billionaire boyfriend. There is limoncello. There are breathtaking views and onboard pedicures.

On the other hand, there are also bodyguards, surveillance cameras and cabin doors that lock from the outside. Turns out, this is not your average pleasure cruise. Something fishy is happening — and it’s not just the toxic dynamic of the women along for the ride.

Subtlety is not St. John’s strong point. She lays a trail of Wonder Bread-size bread crumbs from Belle’s complicated childhood in Georgia to the marina where she meets her fellow travelers. But the journey is as entertaining as it is obvious. St. John wraps a fun yarn around a sinister mystery complete with confiscated passports, drugs slipped into drinks and — my personal worst nightmare — tightly controlled meals and sightseeing itineraries. Toss in a dysfunctional family dynamic (the host has her sister and mother in tow) and you’re off to the regatta. After all, a vacation gone wrong is great fun, as long as you’re not on it.

28 SUMMERS
By Elin Hilderbrand
422 pp. Little, Brown. $28.

“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.” All right, that’s Camus — but it might just as well be Hilderbrand. Pick up any one of her books on a grim, cold, what-do-I-have-to-look-forward-to kind of day, and you will be transported to a land of perpetual sunshine, afternoon sails and well-appointed beachfront homes. Her latest, “28 Summers,” is no exception. In fact, this sweeping love story is Hilderbrand’s best ever. She is the rare writer who can produce more than one book a year without sacrificing quality.

We’re back on Nantucket, where Hilderbrand fans feel like locals even if they’ve never had the pleasure of visiting in person. Mallory Blessing, a beloved local schoolteacher, is dying, and her son, Link, obeys her instructions to notify Jake McCloud — a man he doesn’t know, whose wife is the front-runner in an upcoming presidential election. (I worried this character was going to feel like someone I’ve spent enough time thinking about; she does not, and this is not a political book.)

It turns out, Mallory and Jake have had a yearly secret rendezvous over Labor Day weekend, beginning in their 20s and continuing through life’s many twists and turns: marriage (his), a surprise pregnancy (hers) and a tragedy that almost forces their hand. As readers follow along, summer after summer, Hilderbrand summons spot on timely references — name the year and she knows the music, the current events and the cringe-worthy dance trends — while also describing the picnics and cookouts in mouthwatering detail. What Nancy Meyers does for design junkies in her movies, Hilderbrand does for foodies in her books, down to the salt-and-pepper cashews Mallory tosses together for peckish and problematic friends. Her stories are relatable in an aspirational way, but her attention to detail is what makes her characters feel like living, breathing people you want to know. They would never skimp on citronella candles; they would save the least creaky rocking chair for you.

IF I HAD YOUR FACE
By Frances Cha
274 pp. Ballantine. $27.

In Cha’s debut, “If I Had Your Face,” we meet another group of women — a more serious bunch, all living in the same apartment building in Seoul. Don’t get your hopes up: It’s nothing like “Friends.” Kyuri and Miho are roommates; Kyuri works at a “room salon,” where she entertains wealthy businessmen who pay her to pour their liquor, and Miho is an orphan who landed a scholarship to art school in New York City and is now back on her home turf, in thrall to the heir to one of Korea’s biggest companies. There’s also Ara, who lives down the hall and is in love with a K-pop singer; and their downstairs neighbor Wonna, who is trying to get pregnant.

The chapters alternate among the women, each one breathing new life into the old chestnut, “You never know what goes on behind closed doors.” At first you might make the mistake of thinking Cha’s story is all about wealth and plastic surgery and the pursuit of an impossible standard of beauty. But take a closer look and you’ll find the sisterhood at the heart of this ambitious book. It’s the scaffolding — and also, occasionally, the wrecking ball.