A malicious killer set free. An innocent victim in prison. A corrupt company with a sinister plan. And anxiety-prone Josh Harrison, a sought-after event planner for the high-profile media company Élan International, is caught in the middle of it all.

After his ex-lover is brutally killed on the night of his biggest event so far, Josh's best friend is mistakenly arrested for the murder. He teams up with the real killer's lawyer to solve the puzzle, honing in on the devious plan masterminded by his own employer.

The more he discovers, the deeper he gets. Following a mysterious ally's clues in a classic spy game of cloak and daggers, he takes control of his fate. Working with the FBI to infiltrate a secret organization buried within the walls of Élan, he methodically brings his collected information to light, culminating in an explosive grand opening celebration for his company's brand new state-of-the-art headquarters.

In his naiveté, Josh thinks he has the upper hand. But things are seldom as transparent as they seem.

WOULD YOU LIKE THIS BOOK?

Fans of Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton) will hopefully relish in the intricate contemporary tale of corporate manipulation and naiveté, propelled by a strong protagonist on a hero's journey of discovery. Similarly, fans of Roderick Thorp (Nothing Lasts Forever, the novel on which Die Hard was based) and John Carreyrou (Bad Blood) will enjoy the explosive corporate scandal that propels this second in the Naive trilogy to its climactic conclusion.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born Charles (Chuck) Royce Hargett, Royce's own life experience reminds him that the characters in this trilogy inhabit a world he knows all too well-where superficiality meets authenticity, where shadow meets light. For example, he's written double-platinum, Dove Award nominated, #1 songs for the Christian music industry, then began drowning his demons in alcohol and drugs (sober now since 2006).

He's worked as creative director for entertainment's most iconic business magazine, eventually opening his own ad agency in NYC, then left it all behind to start a small southern bakery in his hometown. Most recently he's studied mental health diagnosis and counseling in a master's degree program, then wrote his debut thriller series Naïve, three novels where the protagonist may or may not be a sociopath. Currently he's a freelance creative director residing in Nashville with his partner of 5 years, who used to love him unconditionally. Then he read Naïve. Now he sleeps with one eye open.

Like Patricia Highsmith, he enjoys creating contemporary intrigue and suspense by examining extraordinary circumstances in ordinary lives, not by exploiting an LGBTQ angle, but by offering situations where some protagonists or antagonists just happen to be gay.

With The Naïve Series, Royce has created a world where entertainment, fashion and publishing collide with criminal justice, mental health and modern corruption to entwine readers in a cascading trilogy of three novels, immersing them in a multi-continent, decade-long tale of murder, betrayal, corporate scandal and revenge.

EXISTING TITLES IN THIS SERIES:

Naive

Transparency

Sync