V. I. Warshawski explores secrets and betrayals that stretch across four generations in this New York Times bestselling novel from one of the most compelling writers in American crime fiction..."A thoughtful, high-tension mystery."--The Washington Post Book World"A genuinely exciting and disturbing thriller."--Chicago TribuneAs a favor to her most important client, V. I. agrees to check up on an empty mansion. But instead of a mysterious intruder she discovers a dead man in the ornamental pond--a reporter for an African-American publication whom the suburban cops are quick to dismiss as a suicide.When the man's shattered family hires V. I. to investigate, she is sucked into a Gothic tale of sex, money, and power, leading her back to McCarthy-era blacklists and forward to some of the darker aspects of the Patriot Act. As V. I. finds herself penned in to a smaller and smaller space by an array of people trying to silence her, and before she can untangled the sordid truth, two more people will die--and V.I.'s own life will hang in the balance.