Best Boy – Deborah Goodrich Royce (1)

In the end, she looked exactly like herself with the addition of a little eyeliner. “Seriously though, Ingrid,” Em continued. “I don’t know why you want to start drinking now. It seems really stupid to me.” “Well, you’re not me,” snapped Ingrid, yanking off her jeans and sweater and pulling the dress over her head. She turned to look at herself in the mirror. It was perfect. Shiny black satin with the tiniest straps. And short. “Anyway, don’t worry. A little vodka here and a beer or two at the party.”

“I guess so,” said Em, not sounding convinced. Emilia’s parents were in the living room reading when the girls bolted down the stairs. Ingrid stumbled, feeling lightheaded from the vodka. It was only her hands clenched on the banister that kept her from falling the rest of the way down. “Oopsie daisy,” she said loudly for the benefit of the Waldrons. “Are you okay?” Mrs. Waldron asked, standing up to get a better look at her. Ingrid wondered if she suspected anything. “Fine!” Ingrid shouted as she adjusted her skimpy dress and grabbed the door handle.

“Good night Mom and Dad,” said Em. “Good night girls. Remember, The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.” Emilia shut the door behind them and laughed. “What was that?” Ingrid asked as they walked down the straight cement walkway. “It’s from As You Like It. It’s my mom’s way of telling me to be smart.” “I’m the smart one,” Ingrid said as she tripped over the uneven sidewalk.

“Yeah, Ing, I’m not so sure about that.” Together, they crossed the street that was, by now, devoid of trick-or- treaters. It was very dark and getting colder by the minute. Ingrid wished she’d brought the coat her mother had tried to foist on her. The girls rounded the corner onto Shenandoah Drive when, all at once, two teenage boys jumped from the bushes in front of them.

Ingrid and Em screamed in unison and took off running. Ingrid felt the straps of her gladiator sandals slipping down her legs as she ran, which made her mad. She’d paid good money for these sandals— for the whole outfit—and she didn’t intend to ruin it before the party. Precipitously she stopped and turned to face the boys.

She waved her arms around, howling like an injured wolf. The boys came to a screeching halt. “Freak,” one of them muttered before they spun off in the opposite direction.

“Richly layered and elegantly told, Best Boy is a twisty thriller that dives deep into questions of memory, identity, and the ties that bind. Weaving classic mystery elements with the best of modern psychological suspense, the talented Deborah Goodrich Royce deftly draws her reader in, and turns up the tension page by gripping page. This is a breathless and engrossing must-read about the lies we tell each other—and ourselves.

Don’t miss it!” —Lisa Unger, New York Times Bestselling Author of Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 “Deborah Goodrich Royce writes with the cutting clarity of a glittering diamond. Bringing readers deep into the mind and voice of leading lady Viveca Anders, Royce delivers a nuanced drama over multiple timelines and wrestles with the weight of secrets—those we keep from others, but especially those we keep from ourselves.

At times dark, at times laugh-out-loud funny, this is a dishy and deeply textured read that will have you racing through the pages to figure out what happened, and what happens next.” —Allison Pataki, New York Times Bestselling Author of Finding Margaret Fuller “Once again, Deborah Goodrich Royce hits a home run with a suspenseful novel that flip-flops seamlessly as the story unwinds. Ingrid Lind has escaped the past and her humble Detroit origins by transforming herself (literally) into a Hollywood actress, wife, and mother.

But while trying to escape what happened one long ago, horrible night she is blind to the present dangers lurking all around. This latest read from the mistress of suspense deftly peels back the onion until the final truth is revealed.” —Lee Woodruff, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of In an Instant “This novel is electric—a low pulse that builds and builds, then explodes in a devastating lightning strike. I felt this way right from the beginning, all the way through—I could NOT stop turning the pages.”

—Luanne Rice, New York Times Bestselling Author “Can you outrun, overcome, outlive a tragic mistake of youth? In Deborah Goodrich Royce’s novel Best Boy, Ingrid/Viveca tries, but the past lives inside her and haunts her and ultimately manifests in a chilling confrontation, spinning Best Boy into another Deborah Goodrich Royce intelligent psychological thriller that the reader is compelled to keep turning pages to finish.”

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

Book Information

• Unique ID: d6d4dc6e18d48994
• File Extension: .pdf
• File Size: 3,871,754 bytes (3.692 MB)
• Title: –
• Author: Unknown
• ISBN: 9798895653340, 9798895653357
• Pages: 297
• Language: English (en)

Reading & Word Statistics

• Estimated Reading Time: 403.88 minutes
• Total Words: 80,775
• Total Characters: 447,386
• Average Words per Page: 271.97
• Average Characters per Page: 1506.35

Most Frequent Words

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