All the Dark Places

An inexplicable murder kicks off Parlato’s gripping debut. The day after psychologist Jay Bradley celebrates his 40th birthday with his wife, Molly, and three other couples at their home in Graybridge, Mass., Molly finds Jay dead on his garage office floor with his throat slit, the beginnings of a new book, Abnormal Psychology and the Criminal Mind, open on his computer. Det. Rita Meyers of the Graybridge PD focuses her search for answers on the three couples, as well as Molly, who fears that someone has learned of a terrible secret from her past and her real identity. When the police discover that a young woman went missing six months earlier near the vacation home belonging to Jay’s family in Mountclair, N.H., they suspect her disappearance may be tied to Jay’s murder and his new book. Tension builds as the action alternates between the first-person narratives of Rita and Molly, who winds up kidnapped and held hostage. Assured pacing matches accomplished characterizations. Parlato is off to a strong start. Agent: Marlene Stringer, Stringer Literary. (Jan.)