Part of Alex Delaware, book 37
First published 2022
Psychologist Alex Delaware and Detective Milo Sturgis arrive at a crime scene in suburban Los Angeles to find a naked man dead in the street and a trail of blood leading to a nearby house. Inside, they discover the butchered body of Cordelia Gannett, a woman Alex knows from a child custody case. Gannett had been posing as a psychologist online, offering relationship advice to build her following as an internet influencer. Despite legal troubles forcing her to stop, she found ways to continue her digital counseling practice. As Alex and Delaware dig deeper, they uncover Gannett's troubled family background and questionable personal history. The identity of the dead man remains a mystery, raising questions about whether he was random collateral damage or central to the murders. The investigation takes them through Los Angeles's darker neighborhoods as they peel away layers of deception. What emerges is a twisted psychological motive that connects the victims in ways neither detective initially imagined.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, psychological-thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, psychological-motive, twisted
Setting: Los Angeles, Suburban Los Angeles
336 pages · Hardcover · Ballantine Books
Content warnings: death, graphic-violence, murder