Starred review from February 6, 2017
At the start of this madcap thriller full of hidden identities from Boylan (She’s Not There), a night of goofy postcollege mischief goes horribly amiss in Philadelphia’s shut-down Eastern State Penitentiary in 1980. When human remains surface at the site decades after the party, one of the six revelers, Jon Casey—now a top chef in Philadelphia—is charged, although the gumshoe assigned to review the cold case files senses more than a possible crime of passion has been covered up. In the interim, it appears that another party participant, a friend of Casey’s, may have faked his own death. In rural Maine, freelance writer Judith Carrigan, who knew both the victim and Casey back when, knows the latter to be innocent. But to help Casey would put her family and happiness on the line. Boylan’s bluff, witty prose (“my actual innocence got on his nerves”) charms away any impatience with more far-fetched aspects of her loopy plot. And embedded in the whodunit is a heartwarming midlife love story, in which hard-won candor, tenacity, and a generous sense of humor are the most saving of graces. Agent: Kris Dahl, ICM.
February 1, 2017
Best-selling memoirist (She's Not There) and novelist (Getting In) Boylan's latest work begins in 1980. A party of eight adventurous people, six of them friends united by a wedding the evening before, decide to explore Philadelphia's abandoned Eastern State Penitentiary. The visit starts off as a lark, but by the time the evening ends one person is missing and a mystery has been born--one that will follow the surviving friends through the next 35 years. The story line explores both the fallout from the crime and the impact on one survivor specifically. Judith Carrigan may hold the key to unraveling the puzzle and saving her friend Jon Casey, who has been accused of murder--but the price for her help could be the new life she has created for herself. VERDICT Boylan's twisty and entertaining thriller takes a hard look at questions of identity, love, and trust. Recommended for fans of Megan Abbott and Donna Tartt. [See Prepub Alert, 10/31/16.]--Amy Hoseth, Colorado State Univ. Lib., Fort Collins
Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
November 15, 2016
The inaugural Anna Quindlen Writer in Residence at Barnard College and author of the 100,000-copy best-selling She's Not There, Boylan chronicles Judith Carrigan's identity crisis when the body of a college friend is discovered 20 years after she disappeared. At the time, Judith was such a different person that testifying about the murder will be difficult. With a 60,000-copy first printing.
Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.