Instant national bestseller Nathan Ripley follows up the success of Find You in the Dark with another suspenseful page-turner—this time about a woman whose notorious father died when she was a child, but whose legacy comes back to haunt her.

Blanche Potter never expected to face her past again—but she can’t escape it.

Blanche, an up-and-coming filmmaker, has distanced herself in every way she can from her father, the notorious killer and cult leader, Chuck Varner. In 1996, when she was a small child, he went on a shooting spree before turning the gun on himself.

Now, Blanche learns that her mother has been murdered. She returns to her childhood home, where she soon discovers there’s more to the death than police are willing to reveal. The officer who’s handling the case is holding information back, and a journalist who’s nosing around the investigation is taking an unusual interest in Blanche’s family.

Blanche begins to suspect that Chuck Varner’s cult has found a new life, and that her mother’s murder was just the beginning of the cult’s next chapter.

Then another killing occurs.

Nathan Ripley, the pen name of Naben Ruthnum, also writes literary fiction and journalism. His stories and essays have appeared in The Walrus, Hazlitt, Sight & Sound, and Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, among other places. He lives in Toronto. Visit him at www.nabenruthnum.com or follow him on Twitter @NabenRuthnum.

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“A story of gun violence and radicalization that is deeply relevant today. This bone-chilling tale of the victims abandoned in the aftermath is told with clear-eyed grace and has a reveal I almost couldn’t process, and the voice throughout is perfect.”
— AUSMA ZEHANAT KHAN, author of A Deadly Divide

“A page-turning thriller.”
— CBC Books

“Artfully stretches the conventions of the police procedural without denying readers any of their rewards. The pace is brisk and engaging, and [Ripley] makes the wise choice of fleshing out the complex web of human relationships shredded by Reese’s obsession.”

— Canadian Notes and Queries

“A wickedly smart thriller that manages to be both chilling and wry. The page-turning plot . . . is thickened by a great cast of characters and Nathan Ripley’s fantastic eye for detail and dialogue. Just when you think you’ve got a grasp on it, the story twists to new and darker places.”

— AMY STUART, bestselling author of Still Mine

“[A] gripping debut thriller. . . . Dexter fans will enjoy the creepy vibe.”

— Publishers Weekly

“Crafty and dark, Nathan Ripley’s novel toys with the lines between predator and prey, his sentences as careful and considered as the crimes he depicts. Ripley is a truly exciting new voice in the thriller world.”

— ROZ NAY, bestselling author of Our Little Secret

“A meticulous thriller, a powerful immersion in paranoia and peril. . . . The narrative moves with incremental acceleration, high stakes, and genuine peril. But at its heart, the novel is a character study—a taut, suspenseful exploration not only of Chuck’s madness but also of the darkness in Blanche’s past and in society at large.”
— Quill & Quire

“[A] well-wrought characterization of a woman who can’t seem to escape her past or the future creeping up on her.”
— Booklist

“A fast-paced book . . . akin to dark British crime TV dramas such as Broadchurch or Luther, satisfyingly sinister and unsettling in their explorations of the violent possibilities of humanity.”

— The Globe and Mail

“It’s not always easy diving into the mind of an obsessive protagonist, but Martin Reese’s fixation on finding dead bodies makes for one heck of an addictive thriller. Find You in the Dark by Nathan Ripley is an original, inventive take on what happens when you go looking where you shouldn’t. Start reading early in the day, or you’ll be up all night like I was! A standout debut novel.”

— JENNIFER HILLIER, author of Jar of Hearts and Wonderland

“Engrossing. . . . This debut thriller by the pseudonymous Ripley (Journey Prize winner Naben Ruthnum) is highly recommended for fans of Lee Child and C.J. Box.”

— Library Journal

“Ripley . . . has come up with a fresh angle to the serial murder game. . . . Clever and diabolical . . . this unusual debut thriller has a lot going for it.”

— Kirkus Reviews

“Ripley’s debut offers a twist on the typical serial-killer story. . . . A unique spin with just enough creepy details to keep suspense readers interested.”

— Booklist

“A fast-paced, morbidly addictive novel of chilling infatuation. Ripley’s impressive debut is a rich and innovative thriller.”

— IAIN REID, bestselling author of I'm Thinking of Ending Things

“Ripley’s second novel promises all the page-turning compulsion of his bestselling 2018 debut, Find You in the Dark.”
—The Globe and Mail

Praise for Your Life is Mine

“[Ripley’s] first mystery, Find You in the Dark, was excellent and this follow-up is even better. . . . a terrific weekend book.”
—The Globe and Mail

“[An] engrossing novel . . . tension builds as the action drives to the dramatic climax. Fans of dark thrillers will be satisfied.”
— Publishers Weekly

Praise for Find You in the Dark

“A well-crafted crime novel that proves utterly absorbing. . . . with vivid scenes and complex psychology, Find You in the Dark lingers long after the last page has been devoured. And Ripley proves a stellar addition to the Canadian crime novel scene. An addictive debut.”

— Toronto Star

“An unsettling exploration of obsession you won’t soon forget. Nathan Ripley delivers a first novel that fans of Patricia Highsmith psychological thrills and Thomas Harris cat-and-mouse suspense will devour. I certainly did.”

— ANDREW PYPER, author of The Demonologist and The Only Child