Paper Cut

“Darkly addictive with a blistering pace and puzzle-box structure” —Katy Hays, New York Times bestselling author of The Cloisters

A page-turning suspense debut about a woman infamous for escaping a cult as a teenager, who finds her future threatened when dangerous secrets come back to haunt her—perfect for fans of Jessica Knoll and The Girls.

Everybody knows the story. Nobody knows the truth…

Lucy Golden is a true-crime icon, infamous for the murder she committed while escaping a California cult twenty years ago. But as everyone in Los Angeles knows, fame is fleeting, and Lucy and her story are always just one news cycle away from obscurity. Not to mention, she’s fending off a stalker and moderating an icy feud between her acclaimed photographer mother and her scandalous rock star sister. Worst of all, online trolls are asking increasingly threatening questions about the legendary crime. Questions that could tear her life apart.

So when a hotshot documentarian makes her case the subject of his next film, Lucy sees a chance to silence any doubters once and for all. But as filming begins, she must return to the California desert and come face-to-face with a cast of players from her torrid history. Of course, the past is never what it seems, and long-buried secrets soon collide with present-day threats. Can Lucy stop her critics from digging up the truth before it’s too late? And how far will she go to protect the story she’s been telling—and selling—all along?

Told in a narrative split between the present day and Lucy’s hit memoir about her fated summer in the cult, Paper Cut combines psychological suspense with coming-of-age Californian cult noir and a sharp examination of the true-crime phenomenon. As incisive as it is propulsive, this mesmerizing debut will keep readers hooked until the last page.

Rachel Taff is an author and television producer. Her debut novel, Paper Cut, was called “a knockout” in a starred Publishers Weekly review and garnered acclaim from The Sunday Times, Daily Mail, and CrimeReads. Rachel spent over a decade in Hollywood developing television for FX, Showtime, and Amazon. Her credits include Snowfall, The Plot Against America, SMILF, American Dad, and Fresh Off the Boat. She earned a Media Arts & Entertainment degree at Elon University and now lives in Atlanta with her family.