The lost summers of Newport A novel

Three stories elegantly intertwine in this clever and stylish tale of murder and family lies from Williams, Willig, and White (All the Ways We Said Goodbye). In 2019, Andie Figuero arrives at Sprague Hall, a crumbling Newport, R.I., summer home, to host an episode of Makeover Mansions, a TV reality show. An architectural historian, Andie has seen her job dwindle from dispensing information about authentic restoration techniques to doing kitchen makeovers "while keeping up a rambling stream of salacious details about the families." She must also contend with the demands of elderly heiress Lucky Sprague, who lives in the hall. Meanwhile, in 1899, Ellen Daniels teaches music to sweet and simple 17-year-old Maybelle Sprague, whose stepbrother is determined to marry her off to an Italian prince, and, in 1957, a young Lucky shows a penchant for choosing unsuitable men. The superbly paced plot reveals more than one violent death as it races along from period to period. As Joanie, Lucky's daughter, says, "We must banish all secrets, and all ghosts of the past from these walls. It is the most important part of any renovation." This crackerjack novel offers three mysteries for the price of one. Agents: Alexandra Machinist and Amy Berkower, Writers' House. (May)

The producer of a popular reality TV show, Mansion Makeover, Andie Figuero takes over falling-apart Sprague Hall in Newport, RI, and is told by Lucia "Lucky" Sprague, the reclusive heiress still living there, that the boathouse is off-limits. As the time-layered narrative unfolds, we learn that in 1899, Ellen Daniels came to the estate to teach singing to Maybelle Sprague, the new owner's stepsister, who's to be married off to an Italian prince. Later, in 1958, Maybelle arrived home from Italy with daughter Lucky, who discovered a terrible secret in the boathouse that haunts her still. With a 50,000-copy first printing.