Painted Ladies

NYPD detective Ben Tolliver tracks a killer with a taste for expensive call girls

When the escort service sends Caroline to the Plaza, she dreams of a handsome client with an open wallet. Instead, she is greeted by the businessman’s assistant, who insists on vetting the girl before she can start work. At her command, Caroline undresses, turns around, and feels something tighten around her throat.

Homicide detective Ben Tolliver is surprised to get called in for a murder at the Plaza. Though Midtown may not be his beat, sex crimes are, and this one is especially chilling. Caroline was strangled, her face and body coated with grotesque makeup. The murder is baffling enough, but when the dead girl’s millionaire father gets involved, Tolliver’s investigation threatens to erupt into a circus where the main attraction is a killer who paints women like clowns.