The Bitch

First published as an e-book in 2011, this sharp crime thriller from Edgerton (The Rapist) offers a plot as inevitable as an avalanche. Ex-con Jake Bishop, now gainfully employed, married with a child on the way, and on the verge of opening his own hair salon, has the problems of any law-abiding middle-class man, until the appearance of an old cellmate and friend from Indiana’s Pendleton Reformatory, Walker Joy. Desperate to pay off a looming $100,000 debt, Walker begs for Jake’s help on one last job, which he promises is “a piece of cake.” That Jake has a choice is an illusion. Walker’s crooked boss, Sydney Spencer, would happily destroy Jake and his family if denied and, thanks to Walker, knows just what leverage to use. What follows is an inexorable descent into hell, as Jake’s attempts to salvage the life he loves take him, step by step, farther away from salvation. (Jan.)