First published 2022
Jeff Cook sits in a JFK first-class lounge, telling a former classmate about the morning that changed everything. Years ago, he pulled a drowning man from the ocean and performed CPR on the beach. The rescue haunted him. He felt tied to this stranger whose life he had saved. Jeff discovered the man was Francis Arsenault, a famous art dealer in Beverly Hills. He began visiting Arsenault's gallery without revealing his identity. Arsenault took notice of Jeff and invited him into his exclusive world of art collecting. In this realm, taste and connections matter more than money. Value shifts constantly. Nothing stays fixed. Jeff navigates between mentor and benefactor, never knowing if Arsenault recognizes him. Their relationship twists through unexpected turns as Jeff questions whether he controls his destiny or merely follows it. The story builds to a shocking conclusion that forces Jeff to confront how much he has deceived himself and others.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, mystery, contemporary, thriller
Vibes: emotional, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Beverly Hills, JFK
179 pages · Hardcover · Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster