Three seemingly unrelated deaths -- the apparent murder- suicide of Vince Madrigal, a PI with several celebrity clients, and his young lover, Trendi Talbot, and the drowning of wealthy widow Catherine "Tink" Engleford -- have a disturbing connection for Detective Nan Vining.

Vince had recently been seeing Vining's mother, Patsy, who was also an old friend of Tink's. Trendi and Tink also seem to be linked by their devotion to the books and methods of the popular self-help maven Georgia Berryhill (who seems to draw as many critics as she does followers). Vining and her partner and lover, Jim Kissick, find themselves moving in the elite circles of wealth and celebrity as they search for the killer. In a world where so much is pretense, the truth will be hard to find.

Nan Vining, a tough, driven cop, is also raising a teenage girl and dealing with her own flighty, irresponsible mother, not to mention trying to keep her romantic relationship with Kissick low key. The personal drama does not detract from the suspense, however, but adds a layer of emotional depth to the story. The plot moves briskly along a twisted path with a few surprises along the way, suspects abound, and there's enough humor to keep things from becoming too grim. I recommend this book to readers who like character-driven mysteries (and there are some real characters in this book!).