Alison Gaylin’s 2021 psychological thriller *The Collective* follows Camille Gardener, a grieving mother who joins a secret network of women seeking vigilante justice after the man accused of killing her daughter escapes meaningful consequences. Recommended by bestselling thriller writer Harlan Coben, who called it Gaylin’s “best book yet”, the novel matters for presenting revenge as morally disturbing and psychologically costly rather than simple or satisfying.

Camille is drawn into the group after publicly confronting the accused killer at a university awards ceremony, an incident that spreads online and leads her to an anonymous dark-web chatroom. The collective, named Niobe after the Greek figure associated with enduring maternal grief, offers its members practical means of retaliation but makes withdrawal difficult. Although the book was optioned for a television adaptation by Yellow Bird UK before publication, no further updates have been announced.