Fade to Black

by Wendy Corsi Staub

Sometimes secrets can kill . . .

I know who you are. When Elizabeth Baxter reads these words, her world crashes. Five years ago, she was Hollywood superstar Mallory Eden—until a mysterious stalker turned her life into a nightmare. Now she hides in the small town of Windmere Cove, Rhode Island, living in fear, constantly looking over her shoulder . . .

Then her house is ransacked. The phone rings, and no one is on the other end … And very soon Elizabeth realizes she's being hunted again. Her only peace is the solace she's found in the arms of Harper Smith. She longs to tell him the truth—and then she learns of his own secret past … a past that connects to Mallory Eden's.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Audiobook, Suspense, Mystery Thriller, Thriller Suspense, Thriller

368 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 18, 2012

About the author

New York Times bestseller Wendy Corsi Staub is the award-winning author of more than ninety novels, best known for the single title psychological suspense novels she writes under her own name. Those books and the women’s fiction written under the pseudonym Wendy Markham have also appeared on the USA Today, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookscan bestseller lists.

Her current standalone suspense novel, THE OTHER FAMILY, is about a picture-perfect family that that moves into a picture-perfect house. But not everything is as it seems, and the page-turner concludes “with a wallop of a twist,” according to #1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben.

Her critically acclaimed Lily Dale traditional mystery series centers around a widowed single mom—and skeptic—who moves to a town populated by spiritualists who talk to the dead. Titles include NINE LIVES; SOMETHING BURIED, SOMETHING BLUE; DEAD OF WINTER; and PROSE AND CONS, with a fifth book under contract.

Wendy has written five suspense trilogies for HarperCollins/William Morrow. The most recent, The Foundlings (LITTLE GIRL LOST, DEAD SILENCE, and THE BUTCHER’S DAUGHTER), spans fifty years in the life of a woman left as a newborn in a Harlem church, now an investigative genealogist helping others uncover their biological roots while still searching for her own.

Written as Wendy Markham, Wendy’s novel HELLO, IT’S ME was a recent Hallmark television movie starring Kellie Martin. Her short story “Cat Got Your Tongue” appeared in R.L. Stine’s MWA middle grade anthology SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN and her short story “The Elephant in the Room” is included in the Anthony Award-nominated inaugural anthology SHATTERING GLASS.

A three-time finalist for the Simon and Schuster Mary Higgins Clark Award, she’s won an RWA Rita Award, an RT Award for Career Achievement in Suspense, the 2007 RWA-NYC Golden Apple Award for Lifetime Achievement, and five WLA Washington Irving Prizes for Fiction.

She previously published a dozen adult suspense novels with Kensington Books and the critically-acclaimed young adult paranormal series “Lily Dale” (Walker/Bloomsbury). Earlier in her career, she published a broad range of genres under her own name and pseudonyms, and was a co-author/ghostwriter for several celebrities.

Raised in Dunkirk, NY, Wendy graduated from SUNY Fredonia and launched a publishing career in New York City. She was Associate Editor at Silhouette Books before selling her first novel in 1992. Married with two sons, she lives in the NYC suburbs. An active supporter of the American Cancer Society, she was a featured speaker at Northern Westchester’s 2015 Relay for Life and 2012 National Spokesperson for the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation. She has fostered for various animal rescue organizations.

Reviews

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me 2 months to finish this book! My life has been a bit crazy these last two months but I finally finished it :)

Staub is a great author and I've always enjoyed her books. Didn't know who the killer/stalker was until the end and the book really kept me wondering. Would definitely recommend!

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

PLEASE, PLEASE do not post who the bad guy/woman is unless you tag it with a SPOILER ALERT here on Goodreads. I've had three Staub books ruined by readers revealing who the killer is while I'm still reading the book. I do enjoy reading others' reviews to help me get a better feel for the book...just don't give away the important stuff without warning first.

[Taryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was obsessed with this book as a kid. As an adult I remembered none of it, so I dusted off the cover and gave it another go. Easy read with different character pov. I was able to guess the ending but it was still entertaining all these years later.

[Paula R C R. C. Readman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the twist and turns of this book. My only disappointment was the repetitive information dumping which broke the flow of the story.i.e. the mothers who weren't going to give up their children, etc and the neediness of others who all felt they were entitled to some of the star's money.

[Melinda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wtf did I listen to and why? This was filled with addict shaming, fat shaming, evil women, and frankly I knew exactly who did it within the first 50 pages and I never know! I can only say I stuck with it because I listened and didn't read with my eyeballs.

[Tgordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this writer! She has a great well? What happens next!

[Kristeen Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Round up to 4.5 stars.

[MissAliceM · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think this book is supposed to be campy, but it's so campy. Like a bad-in-a-good way Lifetime movie. Such melodrama! Highly entertaining.

[Amy Phelps · Rating 4 out of 5]

the story line was a good one. Elizabeth shitting herself off from everyone was unrelatabie but i guess most books are meant to be that way. i liked the confusion caused by the male characters. Not sure what part Msnny actually served in the book other than space filler. Flynn deserved better than he got but atleast he only hurt himself. Didn’t take me long to figure out the bad guy was once she hit back to LA. over all a quick read. I did feel sorry for Pamela but she was right. her daughter is a brat

[Myste · Rating 1 out of 5]

I felt like this was extremely cookie cutter in every way... like maybe the author just tries to pump out as many books as possible, as fast as possible, without giving any thought to foreshadowing, character depth, originality, or substance. Sorry if that seems mean, but... I'm a quality > quantity sort of reader and this just wasn't it.

[Kayla Sehein · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall the plot idea was very good but not perfectly executed. I found it hard to empathize with the main character bc I disagreed with her actions sometimes. A good thriller though, once the plot picked up (about half way through the book) I was much more interested and it ended up being pretty good with a surprise ending.

[Crystal · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't get very far because of the content; an explicit sexual reference and profanity. I will not finish this book. This author's writing is promoted as being similar to Mary Higgins Clark but I haven't encountered profanity in Higgins Clark books.

[Diane · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just ok. Didn’t finish

[Deborah Chapman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this book but the editing, spelling, grammar errors in this book are driving me crazy. I’m not sure if it’s because I have a digital copy but I assume the hardcopy book is the same way.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good escape!

[Kelley Ferraro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't know why the stars aren't showing up. Once again, it only has 1 star, but I give this book 4!

[Jreader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not saying it wasn't a well written mystery but it was too much like a lifetime movie for women.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook/Suspense/Elizabeth Baxter moves to fictional Windermere Cove, Rhode Island because she was a stalked actress.

[Megan Long · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure if it was me, but the sentence flow seemed off to me sometimes. Loved the plot though

[Sgbowman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent book but seemed a tad too long and drawn out in some areas of the book and not enough written about other areas. Will check another book from this author in hopes written is better.

[Leah · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5
By the middle middle of the story, I wanted to crawl out of the main character's mind, a very small space indeed. All in all, nothing notable to recommend.

[Kristin Danko · Rating 4 out of 5]

An actress who had faked her death fears that she has been discovered, after relocating to New England using another identity.

[Lauren Lyons · Rating 2 out of 5]

Long. I wanted to know how it ended but oh my gosh it took so long to get there. It probably could've been cut down by about 50% and it would've still been enough.

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

3+ Stars. A solid, well crafted, thriller. The characters are interesting, particularly when they do something stupid (which happens often).

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot of potential but kind of fell flat near the end. A bit cliche but a nice quick read. It did keep me wondering till about 3/4 and then I figured out the ending

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent read!

From the back cover:

"No one in the sleepy village of Windmere Cove, Rhode Island knows Elizabeth Baxter. She doesn't socialize, has no friends, and when she's outside, she constantly looks over her shoulder. That's because Elizabeth's living in fear. Keeping her past a secret.

And sometimes secrets can kill...

It begins with the arrival of a pink envelope: the postmark reads Windmere Cove, and there's no return address. Elizabeth's world crashes when she reads the message inside: I KNOW WHO YOU ARE. Five years ago, she was Mallory Eden...until a mysterious stalker turned her life into a nightmare and left her with no other choice but to make everyone think she was dead and begin a new life.

As the days progress, the tension escalates as an old pattern repeats itself: when the phone rings, no one's on the other end, her house is broken into and ransacked. Frightened, Elizabeth finds solace in the arms of Harper Smith, the only person she has befriended in town. As their relationship deepens, Elizabeth wants to tell Harper the truth-until she learns of his unspoken past-a past that connects to Mallory Eden's..."

[Kathy · Rating 1 out of 5]

My response is to the audio version of this book, Yuck! Are the characters supposed to be this nauseating? If so, then the narrator is doing her job. I did not get very far because the details of a whiny toddler yelling "poopie" all the time was a total turn off. And the "voice" of the mother of this obnoxious child was also a turn off. i didn't stick around long enough to know if these characters were indeed as obnoxious as they sounded on the CD. If that is the case, then kudos to the narrator. But to me the first 45 minutes or so that I listened to were like nails on a chalkboard. And there was not enough of a story line for me at this point to consider seeking out a text copy of this book. Audiophiles beware!

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Famous Hollywood actress Mallory Eden had it all, until a relentless stalker forced her to go into hiding and move to a small town on the east coast under a new name. After five years, she still trusts no one and has no friends, but is hopeful that she will never be found by the stalker again. Then she receives a letter in the mail with a message inside stating "I know who you are", and just like that, her nightmare returns.

This was a slow paced suspense; however, the last few chapters were fairly engrossing. I also appreciated the epilogue.

[Karen Hufman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cindy/Mallory/Elizabeth lives in fear in the sleepy little village of Windmere Cove in Rhode Island. Five years ago she was Hollywood's latest sweetheart but her life and career were derailed by a stalker. The author tries to introduce a number of characters who could be the stalker. The book is really melodramatic, the character's relationship with her love interest and a young boy are really superficial. The main character is annoying.

[Rita · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was well written with a great story line; however, it was very frustrating to read because throughtout the book there were misspelled words or the wrong words, like "me" for "the" or "men" for "then" to just name two. I had to re-read sentences several times to see what the sentence was supposed to say.