Roughan, Howard

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ROUGHAN, Howard

PERSONAL: Married; wife's name, Christine; children: Trevor. Education: Dartmouth College, graduated, 1988.

ADDRESSES: Home—Weston, CT. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Warner Books, 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

CAREER: Writer. Former advertising executive, New York, NY.

WRITINGS:

NOVELS

The Up and Comer, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2001.

The Promise of a Lie, Warner Books (New York, NY), 2004.

(With James Patterson) Honeymoon, Little, Brown and Co. (New York, NY), 2005.

ADAPTATIONS: The Up and Comer was adapted for audio, read by Frank Whaley, Time Warner, 2001, and as an electronic book.

SIDELIGHTS: Howard Roughan's debut novel, The Up and Comer, features Philip Randall, an attorney who is destined for partnership in a prestigious Manhattan firm and whose wife, Tracy, comes from a wealthy Greenwich, Connecticut family. Philip spends most of his time defending criminals and some of his time sleeping with Jessica, his mistress. Philip's "perfect" life is strained, however, when old prep school chum Tyler Mills comes to town and, after spying on Philip, decides to blackmail his former friend over the affair. However, Philip will do anything to ward off threat to his lifestyle.

Harriet Klausner wrote in an AllReaders.com review that The Up and Comer "is a forceful thriller that succeeds because the key characters come across as human" and "Roughan is clearly an up and coming author worth following." Publishers Weekly contributor Jeff Zaleski also praised Roughan's characterizations, writing that "auxiliary characters, particularly Philip's robust boss, Jack Devine, and Jack's kind, innocuous wife, Sally, are well-drawn and convincing, adding the depth and humanity necessary to counteract Philip's almost robotic duplicity." Booklist critic Mary Frances Wilkens considered the story "fast moving and involving; mercifully, Philip emerges as at least partially sympathetic in the end."

The protagonist of The Promise of a Lie is psychologist David Remler, author of a book that explains why people commit unexpected crimes. David's book was propelled up the best-seller lists when he gave expert testimony in the case of a rabbi accused of murder that resulted in the rabbi's conviction. David's new patient, Samantha Kent, tells him she is so afraid of her Wall Street businessman husband that she has thoughts of killing him. After their second session, she calls David and tells him she has done just that. David rushes to their apartment, where he finds the body, but no Samantha. The police discover a knife missing from the victim's kitchen in David's apartment, a match to one found at the murder scene. David has no alibi, and since he failed to notify the police before going to the apartment, he becomes the main suspect. He is shocked when he discovers that the woman claiming to be Samantha is actually an imposter. David, who is being framed by the woman impersonating the real Samantha Kent, then goes on trial.

Library Journal critic Ronnie H. Terpening felt that the courtroom scenes in The Promise of a Lie are responsible for developing the story into "an engrossing read that's hard to put down." A Publishers Weekly contributor called Roughan's novel "smoothly written, briskly paced and nicely constructed, with surprises that are genuinely startling," while Booklist critic David Pitt dubbed it "compulsively readable…. A smart, thoroughly engaging thriller."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, May 1, 2001, Mary Frances Wilkens, review of The Up and Comer, p. 1640; March 1, 2004, David Pitt, review of The Promise of a Lie, p. 1143.

Entertainment Weekly, June 8, 2001, Thom Geier, review of The Up and Comer, p. 71.

Library Journal, March 1, 2004, Ronnie H. Terpening, review of The Promise of a Lie, p. 109.

Publishers Weekly, April 30, 2001, Jeff Zaleski, review of The Up and Comer, p. 50; February 9, 2004, review of The Promise of a Lie, p. 57.