The Perfect Witness

September 15, 2014
At the start of this thrilling novel of paranormal suspense from bestseller Johansen (Shadow Zone), 16-year-old Teresa Casali, the daughter of the head of the New Jersey Mafia, who was gunned down three weeks earlier, is running for her life through a forest after being shot. A mysterious man, Andre Mandak, comes to her rescue. Teresa reluctantly agrees to let Mandak provide her with a new life and identity as Allie Girard. While Allie realizes that Mandak wants something in return for saving her, she also knows that he understands her ability to read people's memories, a skill that her late father often exploited. Fast forward seven years when Allie is living with a new family and enjoying a relatively normal life as a college student. When disaster strikes and her cover is blown, Allie must once again rely on Mandak, who reveals the task for which he needs her special talents. This page-turner builds to a breathless conclusion. Agent: Andrea Cirillo, Jane Rotrosen Agency.

October 15, 2014
Sixteen-year-old Teresa has a gift: she can read people's memories when she is near them, and it makes her feel like a freak, especially when her father, a New Jersey crime-family boss, uses her. Her mother is a trophy wife extraordinaire; when her husband is killed, she immediately ingratiates herself with the new crime boss, despite the fact that he's trying to kill her daughter. Teresa takes off and is rescued by Andre Mandak, who kills the three men who are chasing her. She is very distrustful, but Mandak convinces her that he can help her learn to control her gift. In the process, he changes her name to Allie and places her with an older couple, with whom she lives the relatively normal life of a college student. Then her cover is blown. Mandak will help her flee, but, in return, he needs her to use her gift to get him out of his own jam. Their mutual attraction adds another layer of appeal to this fast-moving stand-alone thriller, which combines suspense, romance, and the paranormal into one whirlwind read. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: For anyone needing a short course in how best-sellers-to-be are marketed in the modern world, read the back of this ARC. These words pop up prominently: national, television, online, blog, and that old favorite, one-day laydown.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)