First published 2010
Pete Dizinoff has built what looks like a perfect life. The New Jersey internist runs a successful practice, lives in an beautiful home with his devoted wife, and enjoys close friendships that span decades. Above all, he takes pride in his nineteen-year-old son Alec, who represents everything Pete hopes for the future. Then his best friend's daughter enters the picture. This young woman carries troubles that Pete recognizes immediately, and when Alec becomes infatuated with her, Pete knows he must act. What starts as a father's protective instinct becomes something darker as Pete schemes to destroy the relationship. Each move he makes to save his son pushes his family further toward ruin. Grodstein constructs a story where good intentions twist into destructive obsession, showing how a man's desire to protect those he loves can become the very thing that destroys them.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: family-drama, obsession, protective-parent
Setting: New Jersey
336 pages · ebook · Workman Publishing
Content warnings: mental-illness