Radio Blues

New York, N.Y.: St. Martin's Press, 1988. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Good. Amanda Wilson (Jacket illustration). [10], 309, [1] pages. DJ has some wear and soiling. Inscribed by the author on the free end paper. Inscription reads Dear Michael, Loved our talk, hope we'll continue in person someday soon. Warmest regards. Gloria. The sibling rivalry between identical twins Aroma and Amora Sweet takes a deadly turn when Aroma becomes the prime suspect in her sister's death, and she begins a cross country investigation to find the true killer. The Sweet sisters began life as identical twins, but thanks to the miracles of Jane Fonda and plastic surgery, on the eve of their fortieth birthday, they hardly resemble one another. Amora has become a glamorous, egocentric radio shrink with her own nationally broadcast program and a huge following, while Aroma leads a much quieter life as a psychologist in a halfway house for teenagers. The relative calm of Aroma's life is shattered when her sister's perfectly coiffed head is delivered to her desk one morning along with The New York Times. Aroma is now thrust into the limelight as the next likely victim and as the lead suspect. She escapes New York and her "police protection" to begin her own search to find the killer. The result is a hilariously funny and suspenseful murder mystery that is also a touching, contemporary story of sibling rivalry and self-discovery. In what is probably her funniest book to date, Gloria Nagy creates unforgettable characters and draws a picture of life in New York and the Midwest that is so real, and so funny, you will find yourself laughing out loud. Gloria Nagy is a novelist and screenwriter. She is the author of eleven novels including the best selling, "A House In The Hamptons." Her critically acclaimed novel, "Looking for Leo," has been adapted as a mini-series for CBS. Her novel, "The Beauty" is set in Newport and Cape Cod and has been called "a terrific fable about the futility of escape, the inevitability of evil and the power of redemption." She has completed work on an independent film adaptation of her novel, "Virgin Kisses," and on a musical review for women entitled, "Where Do I Go Now?" Gloria Nagy is a member in good standing of the Authors Guild, Author League and the Screenwriters Guild of America. She has been a frequent speaker at the TED Conference in Monterey, California (Technology, Entertainment & Design) and has been interviewed on social issues by Nightline. She has appeared frequently on television and has done over fifty radio interviews on subjects relating to her work and how her themes intersect the zeitgeist. Critics have called her "the social chronicler of her time" and "The female Tom Wolfe" for her ability to "stick pins in all the hot air balloons." Her opinions and observations have been expressed in reviews and articles for national magazines such as Lears, Traveler, Self and Cosmopolitan, as well as in speeches and writing seminars. Her novels have been published around the world and translated into numerous languages including German, Japanese, Hebrew, Russian and Dutch. Derived from a Publishers Weekly article: Nagy makes a comic mystery here. The narrator, Aroma Sweet, is the humble twin of glamorous Amora, a psychotherapist who offers advice on New York radio station KNRD, owned by her lover, Jimmy Bob Mackay. To avoid his jealous wife, Amora and Mackay take a trip abroad after they persuade Aroma to pretend she's her sister, broadcasting words of wisdom to troubled callers. The impersonation works and Aroma enjoys her success, especially as she becomes more popular than her twin, but the triumph ends abruptly when Amora's severed head arrives at the station. Fearing for her own life and determined to find Amora's killer, Aroma drives across the country to New Mexico, with a list of suspects that include people in Amora's past. In towns along the way, Aroma adds to the book's observations on sexually twisted, physically or otherwise maimed people. A clash by night in the desert provides the ending.