Scandal

When Kitty Fitzgerald decided to become the South Florida correspondent for the TV tabloid show Inside Copy, she thought the move from New York to Boca Raton might mean a better life for her son Jamie and a new life for her. And it did, at least until daytime talk show host Marina Dee Haley was found murdered in Palm Beach and a stalker began following Jamie. Soon the past Kitty would rather forget (and one she can't tell her fiance, detective Frank Maguire) is made present-with a vengeance. Kitty's a savvy, believable character, though the main suspect is pretty obvious early on and her blindness to that fact doesn't quite jibe. Also, there's a twin who isn't really necessary and smacks overmuch of literary device. But these are minor distractions. Elm, an Emmy Award-winning news writer and a onetime producer of A Current Affair, has a vivid writing style and solid narrative ability. 350,000 first printing. Major ad/promo. (Feb.)