First published 2026
Augusta "Gus" Bird watches from the gallery as beloved TV star Anna Finbow faces off against therapist Jean Guest in a courtroom packed with reporters. Anna claims Jean brainwashed her daughter Mary for money. Jean argues that Mary's traumatic memories stem from her upbringing and her time at art school in Rome, memories that only therapy can address. The entire country follows every twist as mother and therapist battle over whose version of events to believe. But Gus, Anna's former employee, knows something neither side has revealed. She understands what really happened to Mary in Rome. As the trial intensifies and both women present their cases, Gus faces an impossible choice. Speaking up could destroy the lies choking this family. Staying silent means watching justice crumble. With Mary's fractured memories at the center of everything, Gus must decide whether to reveal the truth that could save or condemn them all.
Genres: drama, contemporary, adult-fiction, psychological-thriller, mystery-thriller, legal-thriller
Vibes: gripping, morally-complex, suspenseful, tense, thought-provoking
Tropes: hidden-truth, moral-ambiguity, unreliable-narrator, witness-to-crime
Setting: Rome, Courtroom
352 pages · Hardcover · Scribner
Content warnings: abuse, emotional-abuse, gaslighting