When Joanne Shreve’s former student, Val Masluk, writes the biography of acclaimed novelist, Steven Brooks, Val once again becomes part of Joanne’s life. The biography is already raising troubling questions about Brooks’s past, and the wedding of Brooks’s daughter, Joanne’s son, is scheduled the day before the biography is published.
Both Joanne and her former student are haunted by memories of the seminar that led to the deaths of two people and the murder conviction of a third. The publication of the Brooks biography poses a threat not only to the future of the man and woman about to be married, but also to the futures of those who love them. Joanne is certain that the threat is rooted in either her past or in that of Steven Brooks. The collateral damage caused by exposing that link will bring pain to both families, but life has taught Joanne that the only thing worse than knowing is not knowing.
Gail Bowen is an author, playwright, and teacher. Among her numerous writing awards are a lifetime achievement award from the Crime Writers of Canada and the Distinguished Canadian Award from the University of Regina. Reader’s Digest called her Canada’s Best Mystery Novelist. In 2018, she was awarded the Saskatchewan Order of Merit and Crime Writers of Canada’s Grand Master Award. She lives in Regina, SK, with her husband, Ted.