The Inheritance Thief

A Novel

A young woman investigating a decades-old disappearance in the French Alps becomes entangled in a web of privilege and lies—and realizes that even buried secrets can have deadly consequences, from the bestselling author of the Reese’s Book Club pick Society of Lies.

How much of who we are is inherited, and can we ever truly break free?

At twenty-two, after graduating with a film degree from NYU, Zoe Li never imagined she would be back home, working at a country club café in Malibu and helping her mother. 

But one day, everything changes when a handsome stranger comes into the café. During the course of their conversation, Zoe learns that he works for her favorite director, Simone Rothwell.

When Simone offers Zoe a job as her assistant, it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. But Zoe soon learns that Simone had another reason for hiring her: When Zoe’s mother was eighteen, she and Simone traveled to the French Alps with a group of friends, and one of the friends never returned.

While investigating the mystery in her mother’s past, Zoe uncovers secrets that force her to question everything she thought she knew about her mother, the Rothwells, and herself.

And as tensions in the house reach a breaking point, Zoe realizes the greatest danger isn’t what happened that winter—it’s what they will do to keep the truth buried.
© Katerina Hung
Lauren Ling Brown is the USA Today bestselling author of Society of Lies. She graduated from Princeton and USC School of Cinematic Arts with a BA in English literature and an MFA in film production with a focus in screenwriting. She currently resides in Los Angeles, California, where she works as a film editor. View titles by Lauren Ling Brown

About

A young woman investigating a decades-old disappearance in the French Alps becomes entangled in a web of privilege and lies—and realizes that even buried secrets can have deadly consequences, from the bestselling author of the Reese’s Book Club pick Society of Lies.

How much of who we are is inherited, and can we ever truly break free?

At twenty-two, after graduating with a film degree from NYU, Zoe Li never imagined she would be back home, working at a country club café in Malibu and helping her mother. 

But one day, everything changes when a handsome stranger comes into the café. During the course of their conversation, Zoe learns that he works for her favorite director, Simone Rothwell.

When Simone offers Zoe a job as her assistant, it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. But Zoe soon learns that Simone had another reason for hiring her: When Zoe’s mother was eighteen, she and Simone traveled to the French Alps with a group of friends, and one of the friends never returned.

While investigating the mystery in her mother’s past, Zoe uncovers secrets that force her to question everything she thought she knew about her mother, the Rothwells, and herself.

And as tensions in the house reach a breaking point, Zoe realizes the greatest danger isn’t what happened that winter—it’s what they will do to keep the truth buried.

Author

© Katerina Hung
Lauren Ling Brown is the USA Today bestselling author of Society of Lies. She graduated from Princeton and USC School of Cinematic Arts with a BA in English literature and an MFA in film production with a focus in screenwriting. She currently resides in Los Angeles, California, where she works as a film editor. View titles by Lauren Ling Brown
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