Diamond Revelation

Copeland’s problematic fifth novel offers an insider’s view of the music industry, replete with money, materialism, jealousy, deception, sex and coldhearted ambition. As singer Topaz’s comeback CD shoots up the charts, there’s a terrible secret at the heart of her success that could destroy her career and family. And although her secret is barely concealed, it takes the confluence of two random events and the machinations of the jealous Sabre Cruz before everything hits the fan. Unfortunately, the novel has a host of flaws. The characters are hard to root for (or against) and feel like crudely sketched representations of semifamous people who might surface on low-end reality TV shows. Few of the big scenes—Topaz’s comeback concert, the melodramatic scene in which her secret is revealed, her tribute performance at the Grammy Awards with Eric Clapton—are even vaguely believable, and the ending will surely disappoint. (Nov.)