Every Breath You Take: An Under Suspicion Novel

The death of 68-year-old socialite Virginia Wakeling, who took a fatal fall off the roof of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, propels bestseller Clark and Burke’s tepid fourth novel featuring Laurie Morgan (after 2016’s The Sleeping Beauty Killer). Three years after Virginia’s death, Laurie, the producer of Under Suspicion, a TV show that examines cold cases, is pushed by host Ryan Nichols and studio head Brett Young into exploring it as a possible subject. Laurie has doubts because the case isn’t really old enough to be considered cold, and Ryan, who pitches the idea, is friends with Ivan Gray, Virginia’s boyfriend and the primary suspect. After Laurie listens to Ivan, considers the venue where Virginia was killed (an A-list do at the Met featuring an exhibit of gowns worn by first ladies), and makes a list of other possible suspects, she becomes more interested in proceeding. As Laurie follows a formulaic path to the truth, a constant undercurrent is her fractured romance with the show’s former host, Alex Buckley, and the possibility of repairing it. Series fans will hope for a return to form next time. Agents: Bob Barnett and Deenen Howell, Williams & Connolly. (Nov.)