The answer is LIPS.
This book has been completely different to write than AUTOBODY. With AUTOBODY, I knew where I wanted to go almost from the beginning. LIPS has challenged me in a different way. Every chapter has forced me to stop, think, and ask myself, "Can I make this even darker? Can I make the reader question what they think they know?"
That's exactly what I've been doing.
The story follows Jennifer Glowski, a successful Toronto lawyer who appears to have everything going for her. She's intelligent, ambitious, respected... and hiding something that nobody sees coming.
I don't want to give too much away because this is one of those books that's better when you know as little as possible going in.
What I will say is this...
This isn't another police procedural.
It's not a courtroom drama.
It's a psychological thriller that gets under your skin.
I've been spending a lot of time tightening the pacing because I hate books that drag. If a chapter doesn't move the story forward or make me want to read the next one, it gets rewritten. Sometimes I've thrown out thousands of words because they just weren't good enough.
That's part of the process.
The goal has never been to simply finish another book. The goal is to write a better one than the last.
Right now I'm putting the finishing touches on the manuscript before it heads off to my editors. Once they've finished trying to find everything I've missed, it'll come back to me for one last pass before I start thinking about publication.
I've also been working on the cover, which I'm really excited about. I think it captures the feel of the story without giving anything away.
If everything stays on schedule, I'll be sharing more updates over the next few months, including the cover reveal, release plans, and maybe even a few sneak peeks from the book.
For everyone who's been following along since AUTOBODY, thank you. Every message, every review, and every email keeps me writing.
Now it's time to get back to work.
Jennifer isn't finished with me yet.
– Carter Vale