Wicked Beauty

Susan Lewis, Arrow (IPG, dist.), $13.95 trade paper (752p) ISBN 978-0-09-953438-9

The fatal shooting of charismatic 38-year-old Tim Hendon, his political party's deputy leader and cabinet member, propels this enjoyable if overloaded romantic suspense follow-up to 2010's Silent Truths and Strange Allure. Tim's devastated wife, Rachel, a former investigative journalist, is horrified to learn that the chief murder suspect is her husband's missing lover and campaign manager, American Katherine Sumner. The discovery that Tim had $4 million in a Swiss bank account adds to her woes. Could Tim have been involved with Franz Koehler, the ruthless head of Phraxos, a private Swiss equity firm specializing in defense industry investment? Intrepid reporter Laurie Forbes assists Rachel in finding Katherine and digging out the truth. Spice is provided by an over-the-top erotic twist involving Rachel's sister, Anna, and Anna's film director husband. (Jan.)

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