num_pages: 271
description: In Deep Water, set in the quiet, small town of Little Wesley, Patricia Highsmith has created a vicious and suspenseful tale of love gone sour. Vic and Melinda Van Allen's loveless marriage is held together only by a precarious arrangement whereby, in order to avoid the messiness of divorce, Melinda is allowed to take any number of lovers as long as she does not desert her family. Eventually, Vic can no longer suppress his jealousy and tries to win back his wife by asserting himself through a tall tale of murder — one that soon comes true. In this complex portrayal of a dangerous psychosis emerging in the most unlikely of places, Highsmith examines the chilling reality behind the idyllic facade of American suburban life.
language: English
title: Deep Water
titlecomplete: Deep Water
characters: Tony Cameron, Ralph Gosden, Don Wilson, Trixie Van Allen, Melinda Van Allen, Vic Van Allen, Charley De Lisle
genres: 20th Century, Audiobook, Crime, Suspense, Classics, Thriller, Noir, Mystery Thriller, Fiction, Mystery
ratings_count: 8298
places: New England
publisher: W. W. Norton & Company