Review by Booklist Review
Richter follows up her debut The Divide (2024) with another gripping noir, this one set in the cutthroat world of Manhattan opera. Kit Margolis is thrilled when the star of the new opera Barbarella (based on the cult classic sixties film) has a scheduling conflict, promoting Kit to the lead role. But then her new understudy walks through the door: Yolanda Archambeau--sultry, sexy, and conniving--and wanting Kit's role. Kit is floored when she learns the lengths Yolanda will go to, which start with poisoning Kit's tea with eye drops, escalate to leaving a slain rat at her door, and peak at an attempt to push her onto the subway tracks. When Yolanda extends an unexpected olive branch, Kit wonders if there's hope for bridging the gap between them, until a night out leads to a murder that puts Kit's role and freedom in jeopardy, leaving her no choice but to uncover the truth about her frenemy. Richter peels back the curtains on the world of professional opera in a second outing that's tense, taut, and compulsively readable.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Richter follows The Divide with a razor-edged thriller set amid the rarefied world of opera performers. Kit Margolis has been cast as space adventurer Barbarella in a new production by experimental Manhattan opera company Brio. From the moment Kit meets her understudy, Yolanda Archambeau, she senses trouble. Brio's director obviously prefers Yolanda's electric-if-sloppy performance over Kit's sealed-off, note-perfect take on the cult-film heroine, and Yolanda, having slept and blackmailed her way into the understudy position, makes no secret of her intention to supplant Kit before the show opens. As the pair's All About Eve antics heat up, they settle into an unsteady frenemy dynamic, until Yolanda is murdered while Kit is asleep in the same room, possibly under the influence of sedatives administered by Yolanda herself. A frightened Kit digs into Yolanda's past, and soon learns that she was living under an assumed name and has plenty of enemies who may want her dead--and who might come after Kit next. The plot starts slowly, but once things kick into gear, Richter delivers soapy backstage dynamics and gasp-worthy twists. It's a satisfying nail-biter. Agent: Kerry Sparks, Levine Greenberg Rostan. (Aug.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
For opera singers like Kit, rules and hierarchy provide a sense of order in the otherwise chaotic world of diva-driven drama, but when untrained Yolanda arrives on the scene as Kit's understudy for a new opera based on the campy cult-classic movie Barbarella, all of that changes. Kit begins questioning her ability to compete for the spotlight with Yolanda, who seems ready to do anything to be the leading lady. As the story unfolds, readers will see murder far less elegantly orchestrated than any scene in an opera, and they'll learn about Yolanda's storied past, Kit's insecurities, and the relationships that make both women crave something more for themselves. Some of the character development remains superficial, and feminist critiques are only addressed with quick nudges (like the character of the self-important composer who claims their opera will dismantle the patriarchy) rather than deliberate satiric unfolding, but Richter (The Divide) delivers plenty of show-stopping moments. VERDICT From dress rehearsals and deaths through final flowers, feathers, and fanaticism, Richter's novel stays mostly at fever pitch in a way that will intrigue even readers who don't give a fig about opera's theatrics.--Emily Bowles
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
An opera singer who has finally gotten her big break is tormented by an understudy who might be trying to kill her. You don't need to be an opera fan to follow the plot of Richter's new suspense novel, which is set in the New York opera world, but you do need to suspend more than a little disbelief. The story follows Kit Margolis, an aspiring singer, who has finally landed the title role in a new and adventurous adaptation of the 1960s Jane Fonda filmBarbarella (actually kind of a fun idea) with a chamber opera company. Originally an understudy, Kit secured the part when the original star was cast inLa Traviata at the Met. Not everyone in the company is sure Kit can play the part, but she's determined. Unfortunately, her sexy new understudy, Yolanda Archambeau, is equally set on ousting Kit from the role by any means necessary, starting with but not limited to poisoning her tea and--maybe?--leaving a dead rat with a knife stuck through its body on Kit's doorstep. As their rivalry escalates, Kit finds herself inexplicably drawn to Yolanda and pulled into her life. Then a murder rocks the opera company, and Kit takes on the role of crusading detective trying to unlock too many dangerous secrets. A character who refuses to go to the cops when she's sure someone is trying to kill her is required for this particular plot to play out, and Kit's unlikely behavior is almost certain to try the reader's patience. What's even harder to accept is that a struggling opera singer would jump into full detective mode for no particular reason or why she would feel compelled to help someone who has probably been trying to injure or murder her. The book is best early on, when Richter leaves you guessing about Yolanda's actions, but as motivations become clear, the novel ends on a ridiculous note that falls sadly flat. An interesting premise that relies too heavily on the reader's ability to accept the preposterous. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
