And Now She's Gone

Starred review from July 13, 2020
Newbie L.A. PI Gray Sykes, the 39-year-old heroine of this smart, razor-sharp novel from Thriller Award finalist Hall (They All Fall Down), reluctantly accepts her first independent assignment from her boss, Nick Rader, a friend of hers since she was 15 and on whom she now has a crush: to locate physician Ian O’Donnell’s missing girlfriend, Isabel Lincoln, who may not want to be found. As Gray searches for Isabel, she discovers that self-professed nice guy Ian abused Isabel, and that Isabel even attempted suicide, revelations that resonate with Gray, who was abused as a child growing up in the foster care system. Then Isabel herself starts to text Gray, who eight years earlier went under another name, to tell her to stop investigating, and it becomes clear that Isabel’s own strange history mirrors Gray’s in the way Isabel has shifted identities. A final plot twist puts Gray’s life in peril just as she’s getting closer to Nick. Full of wry, dark humor, this nuanced tale of two extraordinary women is un-put-downable. Agent: Jill Marsal, Marsal Lyon Literary.

August 1, 2020
African American Grayson Sykes has worked for her friend Dom Rader's PI firm, Rader Consulting, since he helped her escape her abusive husband and relocate to L.A. with a new identity. Now, she's on her first solo case, and it begins with Dr. Ian O'Donnell hiring Rader to find his missing girlfriend, Isabel, who he claims has disappeared with his dog, Kenny G. The case's attraction wears off quickly. O'Donnell oozes smug entitlement, and, later, Isabel's friends and coworkers paint him in the center of an ugly picture of domestic violence. But, when Dom reveals that O'Donnell is part of his underground relocation network for domestic-violence survivors, Gray takes a closer look at Isabel and finds a web of cons, stolen identities, and serial murder. While Gray hunts Isabel, she also becomes hunted; her ex has somehow found her, and she's finished running. Gray's survival story is interwoven with her driven unraveling of Isabel's secrets, adding compelling weight in a confidential tone. A page-turner with heart.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)