The Bad Daughter

This is the book chosen for my mystery book group's next read. I have not previously read anything by Joy Fielding but she is a prolific author, having written over 2 dozen suspense novels. The author says in her website bio that she focuses on character, even though thrillers are more typically plot driven.
In this book, two estranged sisters, Robin and Melanie Davis, are forced into a reunion when their father and his new family are shot in what appears to be a home invasion. Their father, Greg, was a highly successful developer and a serial philanderer;  his new wife, Tara, is Robin's former best friend and her brother's former fiancée. Tara's daughter from an earlier, abusive marriage was living with them in an ostentatious new house in the small town of Red Bluff, California. Melanie always tormented Robin, their mom's stated favorite child, and has a teenage son who is autistic; she has never left Red Bluff due to lack of education and the burden of caring for her son. Robin herself left home as soon as she could, got a college degree, became a therapist in Los Angeles, and is now engaged to a successful attorney, Blake, who is--she initially thinks--having an affair with his legal assistant. Robin has suffered from debilitating anxiety attacks in the past, which re-emerge when she gets the call from Melanie about the shooting. When Robin comes back to Red Bluff, she is confronted with all her old feelings of insecurity, guilt and anger. She still feels betrayed by Tara for dumping her brother, Alec, and marrying their father. Her perpetually angry sister still never misses an opportunity to criticize Robin's behavior and life choices. 
Robin is surprised to find that the sheriff is treating this as something other than a home invasion. Greg Davis had no end of enemies due to his extra-marital activities, and Tara may have had some deadly secrets as well. When both Melanie's 18-year-old autistic son, Landon, and the sisters' brother, Alec, become "persons of interest" in the sheriff's investigation, Robin feels she has to find the real killers or risk losing her brother. So just who is the bad daughter? Is it Robin, who left even though their mother was dying of cancer, or Melanie, who has the world's biggest chip on her shoulder and pisses off everyone she meets? The ending surprised me. 
I would describe the writing as very competent and the characters as well developed. The plot line dragged a bit in places but was sufficiently engaging to make me want to find out what really happened. That being said, I would not seek out her other books, nor would I turn one down if it came my way. Favorable review from Kirkus, and a more lukewarm review by Publishers Weekly.