Once More from the Top

By: Emily Layden

Narrated by: Sophie Amoss

A propulsive novel about music, coming of age and the cost of fame, for fans of Megan Abbott and Daisy Jones and the Six.

'The secrets simmer in this atmospheric, powerful novel' KATIE BISHOP

'You won't be able to put it down' RUFI THORPE

THIS IS MY STORY. NOT MY DEAD BEST FRIEND'S STORY.

Dylan Read, the legendary country pop star, has spent fifteen years learning to craft the perfect good-girl image. But Dylan is privately haunted by the loss of her best friend Kelsey, who went missing the year before Dylan’s meteoric rise to fame.

When Kelsey’s body is found at the bottom of a New England lake, Dylan is drawn back to her hometown where she must revisit their ill-fated teenage friendship and reckon with secrets that have stayed hidden for decades…

‘A beautifully written, nuanced thriller, and an unflinching look at a celebrity culture and a loneliness of superstardom’ RED MAGAZINE

©2024 Emily Layden (P)2024 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

'Lyrical, graceful, utterly propulsive' Ellie Eaton, author of The Divines

'A perfect, lyrical gut-punch, this novel propels the reader to an incredible conclusion that is at once unexpected and inevitable. Fast-paced, richly textured and impossible to put down' Rachel Kapelke-Dale, author of The Ballerinas

‘A Taylor Swift–esque pop star is blindsided by the discovery of her high school best friend’s corpse in this powerhouse sophomore effort from Layden. Authentic characters and lyrical first-person narration bestow the proceedings with dimension, drama, and drive. Megan Abbott fans will devour this’ Starred review in Publisher’s Weekly