Sample
  • Lavender House

  • A Novel
  • By: Lev AC Rosen
  • Narrated by: Vikas Adam
  • Length: 10 hrs and 11 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (148 ratings)

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Lavender House

By: Lev AC Rosen
Narrated by: Vikas Adam
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Publisher's summary

A delicious story from an new voice in suspense, Lev AC Rosen's Lavender House is Knives Out with a queer historical twist.

Lavender House, 1952: the family seat of recently deceased matriarch Irene Lamontaine, head of the famous Lamontaine soap empire. Irene’s recipes for her signature scents are a well guarded secret—but it's not the only one behind these gates. This estate offers a unique freedom, where none of the residents or staff hide who they are. But to keep their secret, they've needed to keep others out. And now they're worried they're keeping a murderer in.

Irene’s widow hires Evander Mills to uncover the truth behind her mysterious death. Andy, recently fired from the San Francisco police after being caught in a raid on a gay bar, is happy to accept—his calendar is wide open. And his secret is the kind of secret the Lamontaines understand.

Andy had never imagined a world like Lavender House. He's seduced by the safety and freedom found behind its gates, where a queer family lives honestly and openly. But that honesty doesn't extend to everything, and he quickly finds himself a pawn in a family game of old money, subterfuge, and jealousy—and Irene’s death is only the beginning.

When your existence is a crime, everything you do is criminal, and the gates of Lavender House can’t lock out the real world forever. Running a soap empire can be a dirty business.

A Macmillan Audio production from Forge Books.

©2022 Lev AC Rosen (P)2022 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

2022, Library Journal Best Books of the Year, Long-listed

2022, Amazon.com Best Books of the Year, Long-listed

"This is a beautiful, satisfying listen." –AudioFile

"Lev AC Rosen’s lushly rendered mystery, Lavender House, sets the detective novel on its head. There's the dishonored policeman sitting on a barstool in 1950's San Francisco and the elegant woman who slides in next to him with a job. But this femme's wife has been murdered, and the day-drinking cop has been brutally ousted from his job for being gay. Rosen’s smart, bittersweet tale plays with the oldest truth of all: the price we pay for our identity in America." –Walter Mosley

"Rosen’s deftly clued, noir-tinged plot successfully walks the line between hope and heartbreak, all while thoughtfully exploring the role of family in our lives. This fresh take on the classic private investigator begs to be brought to the big screen." –Library Journal, starred review