The Resemblance
A Novel
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4.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $2.99
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- $2.99
Publisher Description
Lauren Nossett’s artfully written debut, The Resemblance is an exhilarating, atmospheric campus thriller reminiscent of If We Were Villains and The Likeness.
Never betray the brotherhood
On a chilly November morning at the University of Georgia, a fraternity brother steps off a busy crosswalk and is struck dead by an oncoming car. More than a dozen witnesses all agree on two things: the driver looked identical to the victim, and he was smiling.
Detective Marlitt Kaplan is first on the scene. An Athens native and the daughter of a UGA professor, she knows all its shameful histories, from the skull discovered under the foundations of Baldwin Hall to the hushed-up murder-suicide in Waddel. But in the course of investigating this hit-and-run, she will uncover more chilling secrets as she explores the sprawling, interconnected Greek system that entertains and delights the university’s most elite and connected students.
The lines between Marlitt’s police work and her own past increasingly blur as Marlitt seeks to bring to justice an institution that took something precious from her many years ago. When threats against her escalate, and some long-buried secrets threaten to come to the surface, she can’t help questioning whether the corruption in Athens has run off campus and into the force and how far these brotherhoods will go to protect their own.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
In Lauren Nossett’s wickedly sharp debut, hazing rituals, privilege, and power run amok in a picturesque college town. Plenty of witnesses saw a car hit fraternity brother Jay Kemp before speeding away—and they all noticed a disturbing smile on the driver’s face. The daughter of a professor, police detective Marlitt Kaplan grew up among lecture halls and frat houses, but even she is shocked by the dark hometown secrets she unearths. Nossett captures her setting perfectly, from the way a big college takes over every aspect of a small town to the surprising amount of clout wielded by fraternities and sororities. With its winning heroine and thrilling, fast-paced plot, The Resemblance is a very entertaining read.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Det. Marlitt Kaplan—the 29-year-old narrator of Nossett's impassioned if overwrought debut—is tired of being sidelined by her paternalistic boss, so she's elated to be first on the scene of a fatal hit-and-run at the University of Georgia in her hometown of Athens. According to witnesses, Kappa Phi Omicron member Jay Kemp was crossing the street when a car driven by his smiling doppelgänger accelerated in order to strike him. Marlitt despises fraternities for something that happened while she was in college, and suspects KPO is somehow responsible for Jay's death—particularly after one of the brothers wipes Jay's laptop before police can examine it. She begins obsessively investigating Jay's fellow KPO members, despite doubts from coworkers, admonitions from her supervisor, and escalating threats against Marlitt and her police partner. Nossett delivers a scathing indictment of Greek life cloaked in a twisty mystery rife with red herrings. The plot is overly busy and a convoluted denouement strains credulity, but Marlitt's fanatical first-person voice adds urgency and focus. Nossett is off to a solid start.
