A psychologically rich, intricately plotted thriller.
In Sharpe’s gripping psychological mystery, buried childhood memories propel a psychologist on a relentless search for the truth behind her father’s death. After a terrifying elevator incident triggers memories of being locked inside a box beneath New York’s Metropolitan Opera House as a child, Kate O’Dade becomes determined to uncover the events surrounding her famous opera singer father’s death decades earlier. As fragmented memories emerge, the disappearance of a troubled client draws Kate and private investigator Francisco Flynn into a dangerous investigation spanning the worlds of art, psychology, and murder.
Sharpe deftly balances psychological suspense with an intricate mystery, weaving Kate’s search for the truth about her past into a present-day investigation without either thread losing momentum. Kate is a sympathetic, capable protagonist whose expertise in trauma psychology adds credibility to her struggle with fractured memories. Her partnership with private investigator Francisco Flynn develops naturally, with his practical instincts complementing her more reflective approach. Sharpe’s background in psychology gives the emotional conflicts convincing depth, treating trauma and memory with sensitivity instead of relying on them merely to drive the plot.
The art world provides an appealing backdrop, where questions of authenticity and deception echo the novel’s larger themes. Steady pacing keeps the tension building as the various storylines gradually intersect, while settings that range from coastal Southern California to the Metropolitan Opera lend the mystery a vivid sense of place. Though the sizeable cast of suspects occasionally requires readers to keep track of numerous connections, the result is a rewarding psychological thriller that combines emotional insight with satisfying suspense.
Fans of psychological mysteries, art-crime fiction, and emotionally layered suspense will eagerly anticipate Kate O’Dade’s next investigation.
***
Redwood Publishing, LLC
Pub date June 16, 2026
ISBN 978-1966333333
Price $22.99 Hardcover, $16.99 Paperback, $0.00 Kindle edition
