Identity

The world of sperm donation provides the backdrop for Thoft’s gripping sequel to 2013’s Loyalty. Renata Sanchez, a housing advocate for the poor in Boston, believes that she and her 17-year-old daughter, Rosie, deserve to know the identity of Rosie’s anonymous donor father, despite Renata’s having signed a confidentiality agreement. Lawyer Carl Ludlow agrees to bring suit against the Heritage Cryobank on Renata’s behalf. Fina Ludlow, who works as a PI for her father’s law firm, discovers the father of Rosie, as well as of several other children, to be a prominent entrepreneur, Hank Reardon. When Hank dies under suspicious circumstances after his paternity of sperm donor offspring is exposed to the media, Fina investigates, though she’s handicapped by complicated dysfunctional family issues manifested both at home and at the office. Two romantic entanglements add spice. A quirky and empathetic heroine, a fast-moving plot, and a surprise ending make this a winner. Agent: Helen Brann, Helen Brann Agency. (June)