Part of Alex Delaware, book 11
First published 2002
Dr. Alex Delaware returns to Los Angeles from the South Pacific to find his detective friend Milo Sturgis wrestling with a cold case. Hope Devane, a psychology professor turned bestselling author, was stabbed to death three months ago on a tree-lined street in an upscale neighborhood. Her anti-male pop psychology book and provocative talk show appearances created countless enemies. The killing appears deliberate, not random. Delaware digs into Devane's contradictory public personas: the inflammatory bestselling writer versus the quiet academic. As he examines her past, he discovers the childhood forces that shaped her into a polarizing figure. The investigation reveals troubling inconsistencies in her life story and exposes the complex web of relationships that surrounded her. Delaware must untangle these connections to understand who wanted Devane dead and why. The case forces him to confront the gap between public image and private reality, leading to a shocking betrayal that explains her murder.
Genres: mystery, crime, detective, psychological-thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-allies, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Los Angeles, South Pacific
11 pages · Audio Cassette · Random House Audio