Identity (A Fina Ludlow Novel)
Fina Ludlow, investigator for her family’s prestigious law firm, wields battle-tested radar for detecting lies and manipulations, but her latest case will challenge her resilience as she juggles her own high-stakes family drama and unravels an investigation that reaches a new level of dysfunction. Crusading community activist Renata Sanchez wants to sue the cryobank that supplied the sperm for her daughter’s conception. She asserts that her daughter should have the right to know her father’s identity, even though Renata signed a contract guaranteeing his anonymity. Incomprehensibly, Fina’s firm takes the case, and Fina identifies the donor as millionaire entrepreneur Hank Reardon, but her task quickly switches to finding a killer when he’s murdered just after offering a settlement in the case. Thoft skillfully balances the array of business, family, and cryobank-related motives, and she crafts a great climax. Scrappy Fina’s character is uncommonly fully realized, and, although readers will find plenty to love about her, her survival skills have instilled a realistic layer of self-absorption and insensitivity (e.g., constant referrals to “cryokids”) that’s sometimes off-putting. --Christine Tran