by A. J. Finn
First published 2024
Sebastián Trapp sends an urgent message to Nicky Hunter, a mystery expert he knows only through letters. He has three months to live and wants her to document his life story at his San Francisco mansion. Nicky arrives to find herself among his family: beautiful second wife Diana, rebellious nephew Freddy, and protective daughter Madeleine. Trapp hints they might solve old mysteries together. Twenty years earlier, on New Year's Eve 1999, his first wife and teenage son vanished from separate locations and never returned. Nicky becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth about that night. Did the crime novelist commit the perfect murder? Madeleine begins questioning what her father really knows about the disappearances. When a body surfaces in the family's koi pond, both women realize the past refuses to stay buried. The deadly secrets are still very much alive.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, contemporary
Vibes: dark, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: San Francisco
Period: 1999, 20 Years Ago
512 pages · Paperback · Grijalbo
Content warnings: death, murder