In this novel by "one of the greats of American noir," a starlet comes to Reno to start a new life—and end her old one forever ( The Guardian). Sylvia Shoreham's Hollywood dreams came true long ago. Critically beloved for her beauty, talent, and style, she was on her way to international stardom when a bad contract committed her to seven years of trashy comedies and half-baked melodramas. Her marriage to her producer husband has become a rotten, loveless sham, so Sylvia's silver screen life is now a nightmare. To escape her celluloid hell, she has only one option: Forget Hollywood. Instead, it's time for a Reno vacation. She arrives in Nevada hoping for a divorce from her husband and an end to her contract, but the ugly side of the business follows her. To protect herself, she enlists Nevada's biggest Sylvia Shoreham fan. He's six feet tall, strong as a mule, and just happens to be Reno's sheriff. And when her divorce turns into a war, this Hollywood icon will be glad to have him on her side. Praise for James M. Cain's fiction "Cleverly plotted." — The New York Times "Swift and absorbing." — The Wall Street Journal