The Fact of a Body

A Murder and a Memoir

Formats and Prices

Format

Hardcover

Format:

Hardcover

This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around May 16, 2017. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.

“Complex and challenging… push[es] the boundaries of writing about trauma.” —The New York Times
“A True Crime Masterpiece” –Vogue
Entertainment Weekly“Must” List and Best Books of the Year So Far
Real Simple’s Best New Books
Guardian Best Book of the Year
Lambda Literary Award Winner
Chautauqua Prize Winner


The Fact of a Body is one of the best books I’ve read this year. It’s just astounding.”
— Paula Hawkins, author ofInto the WaterandThe Girl on the Train

“This book is a marvel.The Fact of a Body is equal parts gripping and haunting and will leave you questioning whether any one story can hold the full truth.” —Celeste Ng, author of theNew York Times bestsellingEverything I Never Told YouandLittle Fires Everywhere


Before Alex Marzano-Lesnevich begins a summer job at a law firm in Louisiana, working to help defend men accused of murder, they think their position is clear. The child of two lawyers, they are staunchly anti-death penalty. But the moment convicted murderer Ricky Langley’s face flashes on the screen as they review old tapes–the moment they hear him speak of his crimes — they are overcome with the feeling of wanting him to die. Shocked by their reaction, they dig deeper and deeper intothe case. Despite their vastly different circumstances, something in his story is unsettlingly, uncannily familiar.

Crime, even the darkest and most unsayable acts, can happen to any one of us. As Alex pores over the facts of the murder, they find themself thrust into the complicated narrative of Ricky’s childhood. And by examining the details of Ricky’s case, they are forced to face their own story, to unearth long-buried family secrets, and reckon with a past that colors their view of Ricky’s crime.

But another surprise awaits: They weren’t the only one who saw their life in Ricky’s.

An intellectual and emotional thriller that is also a different kind of murder mystery, THE FACT OF A BODY is a book not only about how the story of one crime was constructed — but about how we grapple with our own personal histories. Along the way it tackles questions about the nature of forgiveness, and if a single narrative can ever really contain something as definitive as the truth. This groundbreaking, heart-stopping work, ten years in the making, shows how the law is more personal than we would like to believe — and the truth more complicated, and powerful, than we could ever imagine.

On Sale
May 16, 2017
Page Count
336 pages
Publisher
Flatiron Books
ISBN-13
9781250080547