Getaway

Brackmann follows up her debut, Rock Paper Tiger, an Amazon Best Book of 2010, with a sinister tale of a vacation gone bad. After Michelle Mason’s L.A. real estate husband dies suddenly and leaves her in the financial lurch, Michelle travels to Puerto Vallarta to unwind and take a break from her stateside woes. There she meets Daniel, a handsome private pilot who’s part of Puerto Vallarta’s thriving ex-pat community. Danny appears to be the perfect candidate for a vacation fling, until Michelle and Danny are attacked in her hotel room. When she tries to leave Mexico a few days later, she’s stopped by police, who conveniently find cocaine in her bag. Bailed out by Gary, a fellow American and a so-called friend of Danny’s, Michelle finds herself stuck in Mexico without a passport—and forced to spy on Danny as she’s drawn into a labyrinth of drug dealers and power struggles that crisscross borders. Puerto Vallarta provides a lush backdrop for Brackmann’s richly drawn ex-pat world, which is as eccentric as it is dangerous. Agent: Katherine Fausset, Curtis Brown. (May)