In Deadly Company

Stratton (Do What Godmother Says) blends corporate power struggles, dysfunctional families, and a dash of Hollywood glamour in this winning murder mystery. For four years, executive assistant Nicole Underwood has been a faithful employee of the massive Altruist Corporation, but her latest assignment for petulant CEO Xander Chambers—the son of Altruist’s founder, Bridget Chambers—is testing her loyalty. A scant three months after taking over, Xander demands that Nicole plan his lavish three-day birthday bash with a 300-person guest list at his family estate in the Hudson Valley. Nicole obliges, but the party ends with several people, including Xander, dead. A year later, Nicole has left Altruist and sold the rights for her story to an L.A. production company, who are spinning Xander’s party into a lurid docudrama titled Murder in the Valley. The film’s producers have asked Nicole to consult on the project, but as production gets underway, Nicole begins to fear that someone on the crew is deliberately messing with her by telling a different story about the events of that fateful weekend. The novel’s premise doesn’t break much new ground, but Stratton fleshes it out with memorable characters and well-earned twists. It’s liable to keep readers up all night. (Sept.)