David Samuel Levinson

A Novel

Tell Me How This Ends Well

A literary thriller about a mysterious death and an ambitious young novelist, “full of delicious prose” (Entertainment Weekly). Following the death of her husband—which may have been an accident, a suicide, or perhaps even murder—Catherine Strayed is living a quiet life in a secluded upstate New York college town. But now her former mentor and onetime lover has arrived. A powerful literary critic who single-handedly destroyed her late husband’s promising writing career, he has an exotic young female protégé in tow. Her name is Antonia Lively, and her debut novel has made her a darling of the publishing world. Antonia likes to take real-life crimes and mysteries and turn them into fodder for fiction, with little concern about the lives she affects. Unbeknownst to Catherine, the rising star has targeted her for subject matter for the next book—and the fallout could be deadly. This “fast-paced page-turner” (The Denver Post) is filled with mystery and psychological suspense, and asks the provocative question: What does stealing another’s life do to your soul? “A sleepy town, charming on the surface, conceals a nest of vipers . . . Sharpened by plot swerves and an undercurrent of violence, this intelligent psychological thriller exudes the aplomb associated with Patricia Highsmith.” —Interview Magazine “It hooked me from the start.” —Gary Shteyngart, author of Super Sad True Love Story

Antonia Lively Breaks the Silence

In 2022, American Jews face an increasingly unsafe and anti-Semitic landscape at home. Against this backdrop, the Jacobson family gathers for Passover in Los Angeles. But their immediate problems are more personal than political, with the three adult children, Mo, Edith and Jacob, in various states of crisis; the result, each claims, of a lifetime of mistreatment by their father, Julian. The siblings have begun to suspect that Julian is hastening their mother Roz's demise, and years of resentment boil over as they debate whether to go through with the real reason for their reunion: an ill-considered plot to end their father's iron rule forever. That is, if they can put their bickering, grudges, festering relationships and distrust of one another aside long enough to act. And God help them if their mother finds out . . . Tell Me How This Ends Well presents a blistering vision of near-future America, turning the exploits of one very funny, very troubled family into a rare and compelling exploration of the state of America itself.

David Samuel Levinson

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