Night Night, Sleep Tight

Old Hollywood glamour, scandals, and lies infuse this captivating thriller set in 1985 from Mary Higgins Clark Award–finalist Ephron (There Was an Old Woman). Screenwriters Arthur Unger and his ex-wife, Gloria, used to work in the movies, but the film industry moved on without them. Gloria now lives in a Buddhist retreat, and financial strains force Arthur to sell his Beverly Hills home. When their grown daughter, Deirdre, arrives from San Diego to help prepare the house to go on the market, she finds her father floating dead in the swimming pool. Meanwhile, Deirdre’s childhood best friend, Joelen Nichol, resurfaces. Back in 1963, when Joelen was 15 years old, she confessed to fatally stabbing the abusive boyfriend of her actress mother. But what happened the night of the stabbing isn’t completely clear, nor are the circumstances of a car accident in which Deirdre was crippled years before. Ephron deftly links all the story lines en route to the surprise ending. Agent: Gail Hochman, Brandt & Hochman Literary Agents (Apr.)