Blame is a spellbinding novel of guilt and love, family and shame, sobriety and the lack of it, and the moral ambiguities that ensnare us all.

Patsy MacLemoore, a history professor in her late twenties, has a brand-new PhD from Berkeley and a wild streak. She wakes up in jail after an epic alcoholic blackout. "Okay, what'd I do?" she asks her lawyer and jailers. In fact, two Jehovah's Witnesses, a mother and daughter, are dead, run over in

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After her celebrity chef ex-husband dies in a car accident, Joanna reaches out to the young, pregnant woman who was his passenger and offers her the privacy and respite of a cozy beach house away from paparazzi.

When Abby Kaplan investigates a suspicious accident that left a visiting professor dead and senior Tara Beckley a prisoner of locked-in-syndrome, she becomes the target of a mysterious hit man.

"Chase Tyler has been the object of Marcie John's desire since grade school...when it came time to settle down, Chase chose another woman to be his bride. But things have a way of taking a tragic turn for the Tylers. In an instant, Chase's life is changed -- abruptly and irreparably. Ravaged by grief ...Chase abandons the family business, wanders aimlessly on the rodeo circuit and tries to drown his troubles in an endless succession of whiskey bottles....