In the summer of 1974 a heatwave blankets Boston and Mary Pat Fennessey is trying to stay one step ahead of the bill collectors. Mary Pat has lived her entire life in the housing projects of “Southie,” the Irish American enclave that stubbornly adheres to old tradition and stands proudly apart.

One night Mary Pat’s teenage daughter Jules stays out late and doesn’t come home. That same evening, a young Black man is found dead, struck by a subway train under mysterious circumstances.

Dennis Lehane is the author of thirteen previous novels—including the New York Times bestsellers Live by Night; Moonlight Mile; Gone, Baby, Gone; Mystic River; Shutter Island; and The Given Day—as well as Coronado, a collection of short stories and a play. He grew up in Boston, Massachusetts and now lives in California with his family. He is also the creator of Black Bird, the critically acclaimed limited series from Apple TV +.

GILLIAN FLYNN is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Gone Girl, for which she wrote the Golden Globe-nominated screenplay, and the New York Times bestsellers Dark Places and Sharp Objects. She was the showrunner for Amazon's Utopia, and co-wrote Widows with director Steve McQueen. Her latest project is Gillian Flynn Books in partnership with Zando, which is committed to publishing books across genres that are propulsive, culturally incisive, and unexpected. A former critic for Entertainment Weekly, she lives in Chicago with her husband and children.