Based on a true story : a novel / Sarah Vaughan.

By:

Vaughan, Sarah, 1972- [author.]

Material type: Text

TextPublisher: New York, NY : Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2026]Edition: First US editionDescription: 407 pages ; 24 cmContent type:

text

Media type:

unmediated

Carrier type:

volume

ISBN:

9780063457713

Subject(s):

Genre/Form:

LOC classification:

PR6122.A85 B37 2026

Summary: Publisher Annotation: All families have secrets. But it's the lies that can kill. A lavish seventieth birthday party. A body found on a storm-lashed beach. And a secret that someone is dying to tell. . . . Famed children’s author Dame Eleanor Kingman has summoned her family and friends to her exquisite manor house on the cliffs. They're celebrating her birthday—and her latest number one bestseller in her series of books based on a mother fox and her cubs. But the night before the party, Eleanor receives an email that threatens to expose the lie she’s kept up for over half a century. Someone knows her secret. Is it her estranged literary agent? Is it her ex-husband, to whom she no longer speaks? Is it the nanny she fired all those years ago, who always did have a knack for storytelling? Or is it one of her three daughters, all of whom have a stake in the publishing empire she has built... With a television crew arriving to film a documentary of her life, Eleanor needs to find out who sent the email—and preserve her legacy and multimillion-pound career. But when push comes to shove, and it's time to tell the truth will anyone actually believe her? 416pp., 25K.

List(s) this item appears in: New Adult Fiction Fiction notes: Click to open in new window

Average rating: 0.0 (0 votes)

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Collection	Shelving location	Call number	Status	Date due	Barcode	Item holds
Adult Book	Phillipsburg Free Public Library	Adult Fiction	New Books	FIC VAUGHAN	On hold		36748002656108	1

Total holds: 1

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

"Vaughan is simply a genius at immersing you in simmering tensions and turning up the heat."--Ellery Lloyd

"A stunning novel."--Gilly Macmillan

"A flawlessly constructed thriller, perfectly paced and filled with smart reveals. This is a read-in-one-sitting delight of a novel!"--Lucy Clarke

A compelling novel about power, money and lies from the author of Anatomy of a Scandal.

All families have secrets. But it's the lies that can kill.

A lavish seventieth birthday party. A body found on a storm-lashed beach. And a secret that someone is dying to tell. . . .

Famed children's author Dame Eleanor Kingman has summoned her family and friends to her exquisite manor house on the cliffs. They're celebrating her birthday--and her latest number one bestseller in her series of books based on a mother fox and her cubs.

But the night before the party, Eleanor receives an email that threatens to expose the lie she's kept up for over half a century.

Someone knows her secret. Is it her estranged literary agent? Is it her ex-husband, to whom she no longer speaks? Is it the nanny she fired all those years ago, who always did have a knack for storytelling? Or is it one of her three daughters, all of whom have a stake in the publishing empire she has built...

With a television crew arriving to film a documentary of her life, Eleanor needs to find out who sent the email--and preserve her legacy and multimillion-pound career.

But when push comes to shove, and it's time to tell the truth will anyone actually believe her?

Publisher Annotation: All families have secrets. But it's the lies that can kill. A lavish seventieth birthday party. A body found on a storm-lashed beach. And a secret that someone is dying to tell. . . . Famed children’s author Dame Eleanor Kingman has summoned her family and friends to her exquisite manor house on the cliffs. They're celebrating her birthday—and her latest number one bestseller in her series of books based on a mother fox and her cubs. But the night before the party, Eleanor receives an email that threatens to expose the lie she’s kept up for over half a century. Someone knows her secret. Is it her estranged literary agent? Is it her ex-husband, to whom she no longer speaks? Is it the nanny she fired all those years ago, who always did have a knack for storytelling? Or is it one of her three daughters, all of whom have a stake in the publishing empire she has built... With a television crew arriving to film a documentary of her life, Eleanor needs to find out who sent the email—and preserve her legacy and multimillion-pound career. But when push comes to shove, and it's time to tell the truth will anyone actually believe her? 416pp., 25K.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

A celebrated children's author contends with ghosts from her past in this enthralling thriller from Vaughan (Reputation). Dame Eleanor Kingman writes a popular series about a mother fox and her cubs; the books, their licensed merchandise, and a splashy Netflix deal have made Eleanor fabulously wealthy. For her 70th birthday, more than 100 guests are scheduled to descend on her Cornwall estate to drink champagne and celebrate her success, and a film crew has been hired to capture the proceedings for a documentary on Eleanor's life. Shortly before the big day, Eleanor receives threatening emails hinting that the sender knows an explosive secret that could shatter her reputation. A shocking death during the party foments questions about who is targeting Eleanor, and whether they plan to take more lives. Vaughan elegantly toys with readers' expectations as she parcels out details about Eleanor's family and relationships and explores themes of class, power, and the magpie-like nature of authorship. The result is a canny, suspenseful tale with more on its mind than entertainment. (June)

Booklist Review

At her luxurious Cornwall estate, juvenile fiction queen Dame Eleanor Kingman's lavish seventieth birthday party devolves into a maelstrom of resentments, secrets, and threats. Meanwhile, star reporter Ned is filming a documentary on Eleanor's rise from downtrodden single mother to iconic author of the Fox Hole and Jess the Detective stories. But Ned's clearly uninterested in a glow-up; his interviews determinedly stoke resentment of Eleanor. Gilly, Eleanor's assistant and oldest child, knows that she's vastly undercompensated. Rachel, Eleanor's accountant and middle child, is devastated when Eleanor refuses to rescue her from a loan shark's threats. And favorite child Delia, a viral lifestyle influencer, ruminates that her childhood was stolen by Jess, the character that Eleanor based on her. When a trio of unexpected guests implicates Eleanor in murder, her daughters' resentments are whipped into dangerous rage. Vaughan, who has centered top-notch thrillers on the dark sides of fame (e.g., Anatomy of a Scandal, 2018) cleverly weaves elements of King Lear and Golden Age mysteries into this dysfunctional family exposé.