The Last Lie

In White's winning 18th Alan Gregory thriller (after The Siege), the Boulder, Colo., psychologist gets off on the wrong foot with his new neighbor, TV-star lawyer Mattin Snow, by walking his dogs on Snow's property. In the wake of Snow's housewarming party, to which Alan wasn't invited, an unnamed female guest claims Snow raped her. Before the case can hit the press, the lawyers for both Snow and the victim close ranks and begin to work out a private financial settlement with the victim agreeing not to testify (a parallel to the real-life Kobe Bryant case a few years back, also in Colorado). Gregory becomes entangled in the case ethically when he learns that the victim is the client of a psychologist-in-training whom he's supervising. Series fans will enjoy catching up with the domestic doings of Alan and his wife, Lauren, who are beginning to patch up their marriage following recent infidelities, and their two children. (Aug.)