Killer Look

Bestseller Fairstein’s lackluster 18th novel featuring ADA Alexandra “Coop” Cooper finds Coop traumatized by her recent kidnapping (in 2015’s Devil’s Bridge), jumping at every noise and self-medicating with alcohol. When a newly identified body of a young woman requires her lover, NYPD homicide detective Mike Chapman, to return to work, Coop pushes her way into the investigation despite the doubts—from her and those around her—of her readiness to deal with the aftermath of violent crimes. The apparent suicide of a high-fashion designer, Wolf Savage, interrupts the first case until the two victims are tied to each other. When the suicide starts to look like murder, Mike reluctantly allows Coop to help on the two cases. Shaky and unsure of herself, Coop navigates her way through the world of high fashion, scheming family members, and Wolf’s complicated past as she deals with her own personal and professional issues. Fairstein is coasting in this entry, whose ending sets up the plot for the next installment, in which she’ll hopefully return to form. [em]Author tour. Agent: Esther Newberg, ICM. (July) [/em]