The Quickening by Michelle Hoover

I loved the author's writing. So good, read it in one and a half days.
Two farm women living on neighboring farms in the early 1900's become friends of necessity. The story tells how their lives and families intertwined and the resulting tragedy and results.

Background on the book from the author (includes inspiration for the novel, reading guide for book groups):
http://www.michellehoover.net/real-life-story.html

Blog post by author about book groups who've read the boook:
http://www.michellehoover.net/blog/2011/01/why-i-love-reading-groups.html

The Shooting in the Shop by Simon Brett

Cute little mystery with two middle-aged women who are neighbors acting as sleuths.
In thinking about a party Jude was hosting...

"But Carole was worried about the ones she hadn't met. Worried about the kind of people they might be-positive, relaxed people like Jude herself. People for whom being alive seemed part of a natural process rather than, as it often felt to Carole, a challenging imposition."

"With that perverse vanity of the shy, she was much more worried about what people might think of her than she was inclined to show any interest in them."