Blonde, beautiful Haley Lambert's carefree, slightly irresponsible life comes crashing down when two cops appear on her doorstep with word that her sister, Monica, has been brutally murdered in her Kansas City home. The only witness to the crime is Monica's eight-year-old daughter, Molly, who is so traumatized by the event, she hasn't spoken a word. In a rush, Haley packs her belongings and heads back to her childhood home to take care of Molly, and find the person behind her sister's death.

With mounting pressure from the two police detectives working the case, she turns to psychologist Dr. Grey Banes in an effort to get Molly to break her silence. And Haley needs all the support she can get right now because taking care of Molly -- and herself -- is far more difficult than she thought. Even with the help of Monica's neighbor and friend, Angela, it does little to suffuse her doubts about being a good caregiver. To complicate matters, there is the electric attraction she feels for Grey Banes.

Angela's husband, Frank, is a good person to have around too. As one of the detectives working on Monica's case, he's first on the scene when things take a turn for the worse. The day of her sister's funeral, Haley is targeted with a threatening phone call, with only a single word spoken: "whore." She catches a peeping tom looking through the window, and a mysterious break-in leads to a fire in the kitchen. Is she the target? She's a dead ringer for her sister, and living in her house. Is Molly the real target because of what she knows? The mystery deepens when Molly's teacher is found beaten and stabbed -- yet another blonde, beautiful victim.

At best, this cast of characters is annoying. Haley doesn't grow a spine until the very last chapter. Until then, the reader must endure Haley's selfish whining, guilty conscience, and hand-wringing over her child rearing capabilities...with a side order of What Would Monica Do for added spice. Molly witnessed her mother's murder, and you'd think that would warrant more than an eight-year-old version of a cardboard cutout. Grey spends a majority of his time spewing insightful, therapeutic platitudes. Let's all hold hands and sing Kumbaya and please pass the Valium because you're getting on my last fucking nerve.

When the big "reveal" came, it was nothing more than a muddled mess. Ordinarily I would see a lack of clues to the killer's identity as an asset. Make me work for it. In this case, don't expect a smart ending with any sort of explanation of the killer's motivation, or even a vague past. Angela is simply batshit crazy with blonde issues and a driving desire to keep her house immaculate. That, and amassing an impressive collection of aprons.

And no one noticed! Especially her husband, the homicide detective. In this author's world, if you can make a mean batch of chocolate chip cookies, nary a soul will suspect you're a killer.

Hmmm...where did I leave that cookbook...

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Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher: Signet (December 5, 2006)
ISBN: 0451220021