The Mysterious Death of a Woman
A psychological thriller novella
Malibu, 2000. When expert surfer Liana Edwards dies surfing the notorious barrels of Supertubes, the Coast Guard rules it a tragic accident. Her husband, Carter, inventor of a breakthrough fentanyl drug, refuses to accept it—Liana has world-class abilities and intimate knowledge of these breaks, the waves don’t claim surfers with her skill. Intense devastation drives him to immerse himself in past footage of their perfect life.
Dr. Carter Edwards had wired their mansion with turn-of-the-millennium surveillance technology—advanced systems that track every movement, record every whisper. Consumed by grief, he begins obsessively reviewing years of footage of his beautiful wife. What he discovers is a chilling truth that transforms grief into fixation: someone else has been performing for his cameras with practiced deception. The desperate husband must now discover who in Liana’s intimate circle has been playing a part in this elaborate ruse. Her half-sisters from her father’s serial conquests, each bearing Liana’s same alluring silhouette? Eve, the youngest and most volatile, who hated his camera system and threatened to burn his house down? The persistent ex-fiancé Sebastian who refuses to let her go? The young British surfer Stephen who works for Carter’s company while carrying the intense, innocent devotion for Liana that only a twenty-something heart can hold?
Combining methodical investigation with ruthless focus, Carter systematically seduces each sister. He bends Grace over her car hood, zips Madeleine into Liana’s dress, watches Mona in her shower through doorways like the voyeur he’s always been. The widowed husband becomes the hunter, replacing sorrow with calculated manipulation, while Liana’s own story slowly reveals itself—uncovering the corporate conspiracy and secrets that led to her death.
A literary, noir psychological thriller for readers who crave the twisted psychology of Gone Girl with the voyeuristic obsession of Rear Window. But in a world where cameras capture everything, how does the truth stay hidden?
