‘Prom Mom’ by Laura Lippman. Morrow. 320 pages, $30
Laura Lippman delivers provocative novels about ordinary people caught up in chaos, often of their own making but sometimes incidents over which they have little control seep into their lives. Crime is central to the plot — these are mysteries, after all — but often it is hiding in the shadows, ready to leap out when least expected, as in Lippman’s outstanding “Prom Mom.”
“Prom Mom” is a slow-burn novel, bubbling under the surface as Lippman looks at the characters’ past, present and future. No car chases, gun battles or overt violence, but Lippman invests heavy character studies in her 25th novel. “Prom Mom” is a story about forgiveness, revenge and marriage, as well as how one’s past, especially the worst thing a person has done, affects the present. “Prom Mom” also looks at how the pandemic and lockdown affected people — some relish the solitude and the opportunity not to have to interact with people, while others go stir-crazy and are prone to risky behavior — and the cost of these emotional reactions.
“Prom Mom” is Amber Glass, who at 16 gave birth to a baby in a hotel bathroom on the night of Baltimore’s Towson High School prom. The newborn was found dead next to the unconscious Amber. While it was unclear how the baby died, Amber was quickly convicted of manslaughter. She was labeled “Prom Mom,” a legend for her classmates who never seemed to like her.
The father was charming, popular Joe Simpson, who took her to the prom though Amber and Joe were never a couple. She was his French tutor and the two began having sex between lessons. “Cad Dad,” as Joe was called, was considered a victim of a scheming teenager he didn’t know was pregnant.
Amber and Joe went on to have separate lives. Amber became an expert in outsider art, living in New Orleans. Joe landed a lucrative career developing commercial real estate and married the brilliant plastic surgeon Meredith, who he loves deeply.
Returning to Baltimore for the first time in 20 years, Amber impulsively decides to open a gallery. Despite his love for Meredith, Joe is a serial cheater. He and Amber fall back into a secret relationship.
Lippman often takes insightful chances with her characters. Aside from a supporting character, her “Prom Mom” people aren’t completely likable, but Lippman makes us care about them and anxious to see what is going to happen. These are people who can justify almost any action, if it benefits themselves. Joe’s selfishness gradually emerges, revealing him to be a man with little soul, much like a James M. Cain character. As the novel moves into March 2020, the lockdown begins and Joe faces his own economic breakdown as he devises an appalling idea to save his luxurious lifestyle, pitting ethics against money.
Lippman, who keeps her novels Baltimore-centric, takes the reader on a tour through the city and surrounding area.
“Prom Mom” is another winner.
‘Burn the Negative’ by Josh Winning. Putnam, 368 pages, $28
Horror films — the superior ones that expound on intense psychological tension, not giant ants — carry a certain caché. Not that there’s anything wrong with behemoth bugs, but the mind can escalate the fright factor beyond reason. And there’s an added terror in believing that the dread so well captured on film carries over in real life with cursed movie sets and beyond.
The horror movie with tentacles that spread beyond the filming is the premise for “Burn the Negative,” film journalist Josh Winning’s second novel. Winning pulls out all the stops for an unnerving, spooky tale that combines mystery with bits of horror along the lines of Stephen King and Peter Straub. “Burn the Negative” has myriad jump-out-of-your-skin moments that produce pure dread.
Journalist Laura Warren’s work has taken her around the world, but she not only dreads her latest assignment, she’s desperately is trying to get out of the story. A Hollywood production company is filming the miniseries “It Feeds,” a “reinterpretation,” as the director says, of the “The Guesthouse,” the cult classic movie reputed to be cursed.
Laura knows too well the movie’s history. When she was 7 years old, she starred as the child who could predict when and how people would die. Eight cast and crew members died during and after filming, as depicted in the movie. After kidnapping scares, Laura’s parents moved the family to London, changed her name and tried to never mention “The Guesthouse,” though she was left with a lifetime of nightmares.
Few people know Laura’s connection to the film. But the first time she visits the set of “It Feeds,” Laura begins having visions of the film’s infamous monsters, unsettling memories flood her psyche, and cast and crew begin to die.
Winning ramps up the scares while also showing the lure of moviemaking, with frequent homages to famous horror films, their directors and well-known actors.
“Burn the Negative” feeds off Laura’s emotional health as she wonders if these events are really happening, if she is imagining them or if they are part of moviemaking fantasy. Since many of the deaths occur when Laura is nearby, her responsibility is in question.
“Burn the Negative” would make a terrific film. The plot is cinematic and the script is pretty much already written.
