On a muggy summer night, prosecutor Melanie Vargas takes her baby daughter out for a stroll and stumbles across a brutal crime unfolding in her tranquil neighborhood on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Jed Benson, a wealthy, charismatic former prosecutor in her office, has been viciously murdered, his luxurious townhouse set ablaze to cover up the crime. It's just the sort of high-profile, headline-grabbing case Melanie thinks she needs -- to satisfy her demanding boss who's always on her case, and to take her mind off her husband, whom she's just thrown out after learning he was cheating on her. Melanie sends her baby home with a friend, marches into the horrific crime scene and walks out with the plum assignment.

But she quickly comes to regret her boldness. The case turns out to be far more complicated -- and dangerous -- than she'd ever imagined. Everyone around her is convinced Benson was murdered by gang members in retaliation for prosecuting their leader years earlier. But terrifying events begin to cast doubt on this theory, as witness after witness is killed. Is the truth of Benson's death wrapped up in the sordid business scandal unfolding at his prestigious, white-shoe law firm? Does it lie at the door of his beautiful, calculating widow? Or does it strike even closer to home, implicating former colleagues of Benson's who are now part of Melanie's own team?

As she races to answer these questions before more witnesses die, Melanie struggles with her own complicated personal life. She fights a powerful attraction to the handsome FBI agent she works with, who may have secrets of his own. She's haunted by her difficult childhood in a tough Puerto Rican neighborhood. And in the midst of an impending divorce, with a relentlessly demanding job, she tries to be a good mother to her daughter. But these difficulties soon give way to an even greater challenge. As she draws closer to the truth, the vicious killer ultimately trains his sights on her, and Melanie finds herself fighting to escape with her own life.

Written by a former federal prosecutor, and widely praised by critics and readers alike as one of the most notable suspense debuts of 2005, Most Wanted. is the gripping and thought-provoking first novel from a thrilling new writer.