A Patricia Highsmith-inspired novel about motherhood, madness, murder—and the high price of getting what you want

Sixty-year-old crime writer Pat is at her wits' end. Her mother has ruined her life with her unceasing cruelty and self-obsession, and it looks like she is never going to stop. At an event in Paris to celebrate Pat's literary achievements, Mother can't resist bringing about another humiliation, and so Pat decides to take drastic action – but Mother’s sudden death brings about a surprise reprieve. 

Soon afterwards, Graham, Pat's devoted former lover, returns. But what is he hiding? And what of the mysterious Cynthia, who appears out of the blue claiming to be Pat's half-sister? 

Inspired by the new turn her life has taken, Pat decides to write a memoir—a book about Mother, exploring the toll her cruelty took upon her. But as Pat struggles to understand the truth about her past, she is forced to reckon with a terrible question that will determine her future: what really happened that night in Paris, and who is protecting whom to keep it secret?