Small-town lies. Big-time twists... What's a jaded bartender to do when her imprisoned brother begs her to delve into their father's old murder conviction? How about peel back the lies, upend the fairy tales, and roil the populace of Lavitte-a sweet apple of a town with a wormy, festering core? That's what Allison Fennimore chooses. Despite her infamous surname and people's wilted memories, Allison sinks her teeth in and refuses to let go. She can practically taste the bitterness of that long-ago, twisted night when two teenagers-linked to her father by bad luck and a few strands of rope-wound up dead. Ignoring the aggrieved local atmosphere, Allison stirs the pot, but every exposed lie makes the truth more elusive. Soon, a key source of information dies under questionable circumstances, and the dark edges of resentment coil around Allison like a slowly tightening noose. As revelations get ugly, she may wish she'd never ventured toward the forbidden fruit of truth.