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After graduating from high school, seventeen-year-old Thea Irene Kailani Riggs is enjoying a California summer of freedom before starting college in the fall. Her schedule consists of carefree mornings playing cribbage, tutoring calculus, and standing movie nights with her surfer bestie, Fergus Wilde. But a summons from her friend Lise Fenning brings an abrupt end to Thea’s leisurely post-graduation summer vacation. Suddenly, Thea is embroiled in a mystery involving multiple suspicious deaths, a disappearing corpse, and an adult internet game of intrigue that draws her further and further into a sinister world of danger. Uncovering clues while struggling with her sexuality, mixed-race heritage, and unresolved emotional baggage, Thea emerges as a strong, confident young woman secure in her power and ready to take on the evils of the world.
Award-winning crime novelist Towles returns with a fast-paced thriller that leads readers on a tour of the densely packed, activity-laden streets of San Francisco. She paints a vivid picture of the city’s mismatched architecture and diverse culture. The characters embark on an action-packed adventure filled with mystery and intrigue that takes them from billionaire Sea Cliff estates to the magical hanging lanterns of Chinatown and the fog-enshrouded majesty of the Golden Gate Bridge. Opening with a ghastly scene guaranteed to produce a visceral reaction, Towles spins an intricately elaborate web of alarming technology, medicine, global conspiracies, and international corruption so pervasive that it permeates every level of government, law enforcement, and the corporate world. Towles somehow manages to deliver a thriller that is also a coming-of-age story of female self-discovery and empowerment. A polished writing style, well-developed characters, a fast-moving storyline, and jaw-dropping plot twists make for an entertaining and compelling tale that readers will not be able to put down until the last scintillating reveal.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review