In the fifth book of Ellis’ Matt Jones thriller series, the 30-year-old LA homicide detective is called to the Brentwood home of A-list entertainment attorney Eli Stone and his partner, Dana Thatcher. Both Stone and Thatcher have been murdered but curiously met their demise in different ways: Thatcher was strangled, and Stone was shot three times in the back, with the killer being so close that Stone’s “jacket caught fire from the muzzle flash.” Lab work indicates that Thatcher’s killer was a woman: Bruises around the victim’s neck were made by someone with small hands wearing perfumed lotion. Jones learns that 10 years prior, the now-deceased couple were looking into the disappearance of social media star Faye Norwood, who mysteriously vanished on the night of the 18th birthday party she shared with her twin sister, Kelly. The party was held at the Hollywood estate of the girls’ billionaire father, James Norwood. Even though Faye’s corpse was found a month after her disappearance—turning up in a kelp forest off Morro Bay, California, her legs caught in fishing line—rumor had it that her quieter twin had killed her in a fit of jealousy. Jones suspects Kelly is the murderer and that her father is paying off a lot of people to keep things quiet. As Jones investigates further, murders in the area suddenly spike, putting added pressure on the detective to probe deeper—and more dangerously—into this roller-coaster case. Overall, this is a racy, enjoyable read; the author weaves a taut atmosphere, with unexpected but reasonably plausible twists and turns. Jones is not perfect, but that’s a strength here. He has a knack for getting into trouble and has fiery run-ins with the press and his supervisor, all of which makes for some good minor conflict to back up the main action.