Still Lives

Starred review from April 23, 2018
When artist Kim Lord fails to show up at Los Angeles’s Rocque Museum for the gala opening of her show of self-portraits in the guises of famous murdered women such as Nicole Brown Simpson, museum staff editor Maggie Richter, the narrator of this exceptional suspense novel from Hummel (Motherland), gets involved in the subsequent investigation, in which Kim’s boyfriend, gallerist Greg Shaw Ferguson—Maggie’s ex—becomes the primary suspect in her disappearance. In her quest for the truth, Maggie must navigate the social and emotional edges of her own relationships, unsure of whom to trust. The careful characterizations of the players in the Rocque’s sphere of influence mean that, as the mystery unfolds to reveal them as suspects or victims, the reader feels deep empathy that comes from perceiving them as real people, not plot devices. Hummel builds visceral intimacy around “women’s oppressive anxiety about ultimate vulnerability” in this often uncomfortable tale about the media’s fetishistic fascination with the violent murders of beautiful women. Agent: Gail Hochman, Brandt & Hochman Literary.

Narrator Tavia Gilbert masterfully lures listeners into the flashy, sinister Los Angeles art world and keeps them on the edge of their seats throughout Hummel's provocative thriller. Gilbert uses her carefully articulated, sometimes breathless voice to tell the story of Maggie, a young museum publicity writer who is suddenly thrust into the search for artist Kim Lord, who has gone missing on the night of her big opening. Shady characters abound as Maggie tries to unravel the artist's last known movements and begins to fear that Kim's gruesome subject matter (photographic reenactments of the murder scenes of notorious female victims) may be a clue to her fate. Gilbert's nimble narration will keep the listener guessing to the end. D.G.P. � AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine