Stevie
Book: Four
Book: Five
VICTORIA FOX lives in London. She was born in 1983 and grew up in Northamptonshire with her parents, sister and cat Thomas. At thirteen she went to boarding school in Bristol, where she learned what you can get up to when your parents aren’t around, liked English best and avoided games lessons at all costs.
From there she went on to study English and Media at Sussex University, where she made her first attempt at writing a bonkbuster novel. It was titled The Hardest Part and was truly dreadful.
Victoria worked as an editor in publishing before leaving to write full-time. Hollywood Sinners is her first novel.
Thanks to my agent, Madeleine Buston, for her commitment, faith and brilliance. To the fabulous team at HQ, especially Kim Young, Maddie West and Bethan Ferguson. To Sophie Ransom and Tory Lyne-Pirkis at Midas PR. To Emma Rose for her excellent notes. Special thanks to Rebecca Saunders for her early advice and encouragement.
For friendship, support and ideas, thanks to Victoria Stonex, Chloe Setter, Sarah Thomas, Laura Balfour, Kate Wilde, Jo Oakley, Caroline Hogg, Emily Plosker, Suzanne Fowler and Penelope Skinner. Thanks to Simon Oxley for helping me with industry-related queries: any inaccuracies are my own.
Finally, to my parents for giving me every opportunity; and to Mark Oakley, for living every day of this book with me, thank you for everything.
For Toria
The Parthenon Hotel, Las Vegas, Summer 2011
The woman studied her reflection in the bathroom mirror. To an onlooker she was flawless, but close, much closer, there was an uncertainty in her eyes that gave her away. Fear was a dangerous thing. However hard you pushed it down, it always found a way back.
Turning her head to one side, she attempted a practised smile and almost convinced herself. She was a professional–it was her job to make people believe.
In a white toga-style dress amid the stylised opulence of one of Vegas’s most
