Margo’s Got Money Troubles gets a thrilling gothic twist in this delightful, darkly funny debut novel set in a castle in the Scottish Highlands.

When Emma Propeller’s unreliable and narcissistic husband, James, fails to return home to her and their new baby from a business trip, she fears the worst. But it turns out a scrape with the law has sent him straight to rehab—where, he bravely informs her, he’s fallen deeply in love with a fellow patient. Rather than wait for him to come crawling back, she seizes the opportunity to escape.

Emma bolts with her baby on a midnight train to a castle in the Scottish Highlands, as far away from James as possible. A job as a live-in driver for a mysterious marchioness promises safety and the chance to reinvent herself. At first, Emma celebrates her newfound independence; she’s landed herself a cozy cottage, a job paid in cash, and proximity to a glamorous employer. However, the castle is no sanctuary, and working for the aristocrat quickly becomes even more chaotic than the life she has just fled. After a threatening note, a suspicious fire, word that James has hired a private detective to track her down, and her employer’s increasing instability, she’s on high alert. Has Emma steered herself out of danger or driven straight into it?

Abigail Abbas’s debut novel is an emotional and frequently hilarious thrill ride that will have readers cheering for the woman in the driver’s seat.