DUPED In AMERICA: A novel that dives from page one into our tattered beliefs and values

Young Indiana cop Holly Bagley battles personal tragedy, social tension, and a complex partnership in a high-stakes hate crime investigation. Their quest for justice spirals into a shocking climax. A timely novel inspired by Ballard, a Michael Connelly creation.

Duped in America unfolds in 2017, and we meet Holly Bagley, a 23-year-old rookie cop in a tranquil Midwest Southern Indiana college town. Her uncomplicated life belies the longing she harbors for her Marine sweetheart, deployed in Afghanistan. Dealing with the sudden loss of her mother, she finds little solace in her father, a fellow officer on the force whose political beliefs starkly contrast with hers.

The tranquility of Farmington shatters when a chase involving a stolen car leads to a fatal accident, tragically claiming the life of Detective Garry Henderson’s teen son, Denny. Amidst his grief, Henderson is faced with the shocking revelation of his son fathering a child out of wedlock. Chief Karl Jacobs tasks Holly and Henderson to work together on a chilling case involving a potential hate crime against Black students.