Part of Alexandra Cooper, book 6
First published 2005
Manhattan sex crimes prosecutor Alexandra Cooper prepares for a difficult trial. Her client Paige Vallis claims investment banker Andrew Tripping attacked her after she accompanied him to his apartment following their fourth dinner together. But Paige's story contains gaps that worry Alex. Why didn't Paige leave when Tripping began acting strangely? What happened to Tripping's young son Dulles that night? Who is the mysterious man whose courtroom appearance terrifies Paige? Meanwhile, detective Mike Chapman investigates the brutal murder of eighty-two-year-old McQueen Ransome in her ransacked Harlem brownstone. The impoverished elderly woman seems an unlikely target, yet old photographs reveal she was once beautiful and well-traveled. As more murders follow, the Vallis rape case and the Ransome killing begin to intersect. Alex discovers that two women from different worlds share an unexpected connection. She must navigate treacherous personal and professional decisions while learning that nothing appears as it seems.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Manhattan, Harlem
Period: Contemporary
512 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Pocket Star
Content warnings: sexual-assault, violence