DECEMBER 2022 - AudioFile
Saskia Maarleveld narrates this thriller involving the murder of a fraternity member at the University of Georgia. People are keeping secrets about that murder. And Detective Marlitt Kaplan, who is determined to solve the crime, is also keeping secrets. The daughter of a UGA professor, she is assigned to investigate the case of the young man who was struck dead at a crosswalk by an oncoming car. Oddly, the driver looked just like the deceased. And it’s said he was smiling. Will Marlitt’s past hold the answers to the mystery that ensues? Maarleveld’s narration is perfectly paced for a thriller. Her emotional performance suggests that everyone involved is just a step away from danger. Maarleveld also makes the story’s periodic German dialogue believable. V.B. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
08/01/2022
Det. Marlitt Kaplan—the 29-year-old narrator of Nossett’s impassioned if overwrought debut—is tired of being sidelined by her paternalistic boss, so she’s elated to be first on the scene of a fatal hit-and-run at the University of Georgia in her hometown of Athens. According to witnesses, Kappa Phi Omicron member Jay Kemp was crossing the street when a car driven by his smiling doppelgänger accelerated in order to strike him. Marlitt despises fraternities for something that happened while she was in college, and suspects KPO is somehow responsible for Jay’s death—particularly after one of the brothers wipes Jay’s laptop before police can examine it. She begins obsessively investigating Jay’s fellow KPO members, despite doubts from coworkers, admonitions from her supervisor, and escalating threats against Marlitt and her police partner. Nossett delivers a scathing indictment of Greek life cloaked in a twisty mystery rife with red herrings. The plot is overly busy and a convoluted denouement strains credulity, but Marlitt’s fanatical first-person voice adds urgency and focus. Nossett is off to a solid start. Agent: Hillary Jacobson, ICM Partners. (Nov.)
From the Publisher
"A timely, expertly plotted mystery about power and privilege, The Resemblance will grab you from the first page and keep you guessing until the final twist. A captivating debut.” —Alafair Burke, bestselling author of Find Me
"At once a careful, nuanced dismantling of toxic masculinity and an exploration of academia's dark underbelly,The Resemblance is a powerhouse of a book that is as timely as it is terrifying. Perpetually twisty and full of chilling secrets, this masterful debut heralds Lauren Nossett as a fearless new voice in crime thrillers." —Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, author of The Girls Are All So Nice Here
"Twisty, dark and brilliant, The Resemblance is a chilling crime thriller that will keep you turning the pages faster than you can binge a true crime podcast." —Sally Hepworth, bestselling author of The Good Sister
"Lauren Nossett's The Resemblance is a fresh, haunting take on dark academia that brilliantly peels back the layers of genteel southern Greek life to reveal the horrors lurking underneath. A sinister, addictive blend of self-aware police procedural and campus novel, this is the kind of book that slips its fingers around your throat and doesn't let go, complete with a jaw-dropping twist. Nossett is a gutsy, sensational new voice in crime fiction." —Ashley Winstead, author of The Last Housewife
“The Resemblance is a taut campus mystery that grows bigger and dives deeper into the community as the crime unfolds. Twisty turns with an emotional punch deliver a captivating read.” —Wendy Walker, bestselling author of Don’t Look for Me
"A campus crime plunges a driven young detective into the shadowy depths of Greek life, where power and privilege hide sinister secrets. In The Resemblance, Nossett pushes the stakes ever higher, and the horrors of this hidden world feel all too real. A timely and compelling thriller, and a jagged new twist on dark academia." —Laura McHugh, award-winning author of What’s Done in Darkness
"The Resemblance is a menacing whodunnit that explores the importance of brothers, but the dangers of elite brotherhoods. You’ll never look at men in the corridors of power the same way again. Detective Marlitt Kaplan is a heroine for our times." —Justine Ford, author of The Good Cop
Library Journal
11/18/2022
DEBUT Nossett's debut, a campus crime story, hits hard against the power structure of university life. Marlitt Kaplan, daughter of University of Georgia faculty and a member of the Athens police force, is first on the scene when a student is killed by a hit-and-run driver on campus. The victim, Jay Kemp, is a golden boy, a member of Kappa Phi Omicron fraternity. Witnesses all agree the car sped up as it entered the intersection, and that the driver, who looked a lot like Jay, was laughing. Marlitt is eager to prove herself at work, where she's often put on "easy" cases and patronized by her boss. She is assigned the case and begins investigating, but soon her obsession with uncovering KPO's dirtiest secrets puts her, her colleagues, and even civilians in danger. VERDICT The fast pace is counterbalanced by paint-by-numbers characters, an overstuffed narrative, and an unbelievable finale. This debut is a bumpy ride.—Liz French
DECEMBER 2022 - AudioFile
Saskia Maarleveld narrates this thriller involving the murder of a fraternity member at the University of Georgia. People are keeping secrets about that murder. And Detective Marlitt Kaplan, who is determined to solve the crime, is also keeping secrets. The daughter of a UGA professor, she is assigned to investigate the case of the young man who was struck dead at a crosswalk by an oncoming car. Oddly, the driver looked just like the deceased. And it’s said he was smiling. Will Marlitt’s past hold the answers to the mystery that ensues? Maarleveld’s narration is perfectly paced for a thriller. Her emotional performance suggests that everyone involved is just a step away from danger. Maarleveld also makes the story’s periodic German dialogue believable. V.B. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2022-07-27
A homicide detective uncovers dark secrets about a local fraternity as she investigates a hit-and-run.
Detective Marlitt Kaplan happens to be on the University of Georgia campus when an unknown driver hits and kills a student. The victim, Jay Kemp, is a member of the Kappa Phi Omicron fraternity. While his fellow Kap-Os insist that they are shocked and grief-stricken, Marlitt is convinced they have something to hide. The ensuing story is part police procedural, part general critique of the Greek system. Marlitt has a long-standing grudge against fraternities and all the avoidable tragedies that happen under their watch. “I collect them,” Marlitt says early on, “these horrendously sad and never-ending accounts all across the nation, pile them up in my memory, so I can bury the thing at its core.” Her obsession keeps the investigation, and the plot, progressing at a fair clip even as her fellow police begin to discourage her persistence. This obsession can also, however, veer into didacticism. She has such a vendetta against the frat brothers, for example—from the “golden boy” chapter president, Tripp Holmes, to Michael Williams, the charming but ruthless son of the university’s president—that her narration tends to flatten them into caricatures. Still, suspense-filled scenes, like an ill-conceived undercover mission at a “Hawaiian nights” party, keep the pages turning, and there are many gripping questions that will keep readers glued to the page. Why did the driver look exactly like the victim? And why was he driving the victim’s car? Why, during the novel’s shocking midway point, does Marlitt wake in the night screaming a language she doesn’t speak? The answers are genuinely surprising, if at times unsatisfying. Overall, it’s a fun read with some surprising twists that will keep readers on their toes.
A competent detective thriller with an overly moralizing narrator.
