AIA Publishing is delighted to announce the publication of Identical Misfortune by Richard Zappa. This is another of our top quality titles of 2020, highly recommended reading for anyone who likes something hard to put down.
Separated at Birth; Reunited in Murder
Separated at birth, thirty-three-year-old identical twins Ann Livingston and Veronica Westbrook couldn’t be more different: Ann, a loving wife and mother battling depression over the stillborn death of a daughter and infertility from a hysterectomy; Veronica, a heartless sociopath who would commit any crime—and any sin—to make her next big score.
When Veronica learns that Ann has married into a wealthy family, she hatches a plan to become Ann. Cool, calm and clever, Veronica manipulates family members and the police into believing she’s Ann, and then stages Ann’s suicide, making off with millions under a new identity as she prepares to realize her high-school-yearbook dream of living abroad as a wealthy socialite.
Identical Misfortune chronicles the thoughts and actions of a cold-blooded killer as she schemes, lies and murders her way in and out of families on both sides of the Atlantic. The story also follows her pursuer, a New Orleans homicide detective, whose investigation uncovers one shocking revelation after another. But can she stop Veronica without turning her back on the law she’s sworn to uphold?
What readers are saying:
‘Veronica Westbrook is a psychopathic con artist, who thinks she’s hit the jackpot when she discovers that she has a very wealthy identical twin, separated from her at birth. She hatches a diabolical plan to kill her and take over her life. But a brilliant, tough-as-nails detective is on the case.
‘Identical Misfortune has its action scenes, plenty of them, but it is primarily a duel of wits between two brilliant women—a con artist and a cop. … The duel of wits at the heart of the book is a lively, energetic, and intelligent one, and readers who enjoy watching a clever cop piece together a plot laid for them by an equally-clever criminal will find this book a pleasant diversion.’— Indie Reader
‘A convict takes over her identical twin sister’s life in New Orleans, only to arouse the suspicions of a clever, intuitive detective in Zappa’s debut thriller … an energetic tale with wonderfully complex characters; Veronica isn’t a one-note villain; she’s a sociopath who doesn’t experience a normal range of emotion … Crowder isn’t a squeaky clean hero … A grim and engrossing procedural with a stellar cast.’ — Kirkus Reviews
‘The role of genetics in antisocial personality disorder is explored in this utterly spellbinding crime drama/thriller… From the compelling plot and the writing to the dialogue to the impressive character development, everything was top notch … a well-imagined and outstanding work of fiction … 4 out of 4 stars.’ — Online Book Club
‘Zappa takes the reader on a winding roller-coaster ride of betrayal and intrigue, and the aching feeling that evil will triumph in the end. Like life, this story raises as many questions as it answers, and will disturb many, but in the end, as harrowing as the journey is, it’s worth the effort.’ — Charles Ray, Awesome Indies Book Award Assessor
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About the Author
Richard Zappa is a trial lawyer turned novelist. A graduate of the Washington College of Law of the American University in Washington, DC, he was an editor of the Law Review and Dean’s Fellow to Adjunct Professor of Law and former Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, Arthur Goldberg. During the course of a distinguished career as a top personal injury and medical malpractice lawyer, he has litigated and tried numerous cases in state and federal courts, many of which resulted in multimillion-dollar recoveries for his clients. He retired in 2018 to write novels full time. A black-belt martial artist and self-taught pianist, he writes from his homes in Wilmington and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware and St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.
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