Laura Lippman, “Wilde Lake“

While Lippman makes most readers think “Tess Monaghan,” the Baltimore crime novelist has been extending her dramatis personae with standalone mysteries every bit as complex and beguiling as those in the Monaghan series. Her latest book follows Luisa Brant, the first woman state’s attorney in Howard County, Maryland, as she prosecutes a drifter accused of beating a woman to death. Luisa’s investigation triggers memories of a death in her own past, and as she relives the incident, seeing details she missed as a child, she comes to new ideas of heroism, memory, and the limits of the legal system. Founded by Carla Cohen and Barbara Meade in 1984, Politics & Prose Bookstore is Washington, D.C.’s premier independent bookstore and cultural hub, a gathering place for people interested in reading and discussing books. Politics & Prose offers superior service, unusual book choices, and a haven for book lovers in the store and online. Visit them