Sun Damage

This entertaining psychological thriller from Durant (Finders, Keepers) deploys a delicious arsenal of unexpected plot twists. Ali and Sean have made their way across India, posing as siblings and honing their skills as con artists. Now they’ve landed in the South of France for the busy summer season. It doesn’t take them long to spot Lulu Fletcher Davies, with her first-day-of-holiday sunburn and her “sub-schoolgirl French.” Lulu’s dual surname makes it easy to track her down on Facebook, which provides all the information Sean and Ali need to scam the wealthy young Brit. Their plan goes terribly wrong, however, and after Lulu dies, Ali hastily packs up and runs away to Provence, fearing Sean’s retaliation even more than the police’s. She takes a job and a assumes a new identity in hopes of slipping under the radar, but the longer she’s away, the more she begins to wonder about her former accomplice. Ali’s keenly observant narration (“It’s not true you can’t con an honest person, but it’s easier emotionally when they’re not”) keeps the plot moving briskly along its circuitous route, and Durrant takes witty jabs at the behavior of wealthy vacationers. This is good, Patricia Highsmith–style fun. Agent: Grainne Fox, Fletcher & Co. (Aug.)