Your Life Is Mine
Nathan Ripley

Blanche, an up-and-coming filmmaker, has distanced herself in every way she can from her father, the notorious killer and cult leader, Chuck Varner. In 1996, when she was a small child, he went on a shooting spree before turning the gun on himself.
Now, Blanche learns that her mother has been murdered. She returns to her childhood home, where she soon discovers there's more to the death than police are willing to reveal. The officer who's handling the case is holding information back, and a journalist who's nosing around the investigation is taking an unusual interest in Blanche's family.
Blanche begins to suspect that Chuck Varner's cult has found a new life, and that her mother's murder was just the beginning of the cult's next chapter. (From Simon & Schuster)
- The CBC Books summer reading list: 33 books to check out this season
- 10 Canadian thrillers and mysteries to check out this summer
- 13 books for the mystery & thriller fan on your holiday gift list
- 14 Canadian mysteries and thrillers to check out this summer
- Candy Palmater recommends 3 great horror books to send chills up your spine
From the book
Before a shooter is a shooter, he's just a man in a room.
It's what follows that brings the background to the scene, to the way we remember it. The domestic dispute reports, the spotty employment record, the legal and illegal firearms history, the I-always-knew neighbours. Before all of that, he comes into the room with his gun, hidden or not, and he is just a man, and not the kind that anyone is used to noticing. Not remarkably handsome, and remarkably ugly only in retrospect. After what he's done.
On August 17, 1996, Chuck Varner walked into the Harlow Mall in Stilford California, with a Beretta 92FS in his waistband holster. I was there, too.
From Your Life is Mine by Nathan Ripley ©2019. Published by Simon & Schuster.
Interviews with Nathan Ripley

Comments
To encourage thoughtful and respectful conversations, first and last names will appear with each submission to CBC/Radio-Canada's online communities (except in children and youth-oriented communities). Pseudonyms will no longer be permitted.
By submitting a comment, you accept that CBC has the right to reproduce and publish that comment in whole or in part, in any manner CBC chooses. Please note that CBC does not endorse the opinions expressed in comments. Comments on this story are moderated according to our Submission Guidelines. Comments are welcome while open. We reserve the right to close comments at any time.
Become a CBC Member
Join the conversation Create account
Already have an account?