February 20, 2023
In the summer of 2008, friends Evangeline, Bess, and Joni from upscale Calabasas, Calif., go to Greece as a high school graduation present, in this twisty psychological thriller from Berman (The Comeback). At a party on Mykonos, Evangeline has a heated argument with Bess; after walking away, Evangeline takes a fatal fall off a cliff while trying to reach the beach. Bess, who was nearby, becomes a murder suspect, and Joni makes up a story for the police, she says, to protect Bess. The two surviving girls wind up spending six months in a Greek prison before being released. Back in California, Joni turns her tragic experience into a multimillion-dollar self-growth business, while Bess, who believes she was responsible for Evangeline’s death, becomes a recluse. In 2018, Joni suddenly shows up at Bess’s door. Joni may be implicated in a crime, and she needs Bess to lie and provide an alibi for her. The suspense rises as Berman skillfully doles out long-held secrets that lead to the truth behind what happened 10 years earlier on Mykonos. This tale of how the emotional bonds forged in youth can define people’s lives long afterward will resonate with many. Agent: David Forrer, InkWell Management.
March 1, 2023
In 2008, Bess, Joni, and Evangeline are 18 and have the entire world before them. To celebrate graduation and the end of their high-school selves, Evangeline invites Bess and Joni to spend the summer at her family's estate on the island of Tinos. The summer is easy breezy for the privileged trio . . . until Evangeline ends up dead. Ten years later, Bess and Joni, no longer close friends, have both used the tragedy of Evangeline's death to shape their lives, albeit in different ways. Bess has retreated from the world, hiding out in her cabin in the San Jacinto Mountains; Joni has put herself front and center, creating her motivational Joni Le Bon brand off of that one summer. When Joni shows up at Bess' door asking for help, Bess becomes involved in something that is dangerously reminiscent of the night that changed their lives. With evocative and astute prose, Berman's sophomore effort (after The Comeback, 2020) is a slow but searing portrayal of the intoxicating power of privilege, youth, and female friendship.
COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.