Cover Story: A Novel

Written by Susan Rigetti

Narrated by Carlotta Brentan

Netflix’s Inventing Anna and Hulu’s The Dropout meets Catch Me If You Can in this captivating novel about an ambitious young woman who gets trapped in a charismatic con artist’s scam.

A Most Anticipated Book by Entertainment Weekly, Marie Claire, Parade, New York Post, Shondaland, E!, Fortune, PopSugar, and more!

“It’s exciting, it’s surprising, it’s satisfying, it’s darkly funny, and it will keep you guessing.”—Linda Holmes for Today.com

After a rough year at NYU, aspiring writer Lora Ricci is thrilled to land a summer internship at ELLE magazine where she meets Cat Wolff, contributing editor and enigmatic daughter of a clean-energy mogul. Cat takes Lora under her wing, soliciting her help with side projects and encouraging her writing.

As a friendship emerges between the two women, Lora opens up to Cat about her financial struggles and lost scholarship. Cat’s solution: Drop out of NYU and become her ghostwriter. Lora agrees and, when the internship ends, she moves into Cat’s suite at the opulent Plaza Hotel. Writing during the day and accompanying Cat to extravagant parties at night, Lora’s life quickly shifts from looming nightmare to dream-come-true. But as Lora is drawn into Cat’s glamorous lifestyle, Cat’s perfect exterior cracks, exposing an illicit, shady world.

A whip-smart and delightfully inventive writer, Susan Rigetti brilliantly pieces together a perceptive, humorous caper full of sharp observations about scam culture. Composed of diary entries, emails, FBI correspondence, and more, Cover Story is a fresh, fun, and wholly original novel that takes readers deep into the codependency and deceit found in a relationship built on power imbalance and lies.

“[A] page-turner that’s hilarious in its dedication to vamping on viral news stories about real-life strivers and cons from Delvey to Instagram personality Caroline Calloway … a delicious read.”—TIME magazine

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Apr 5, 2022
• ISBN: 9780063072084

Susan Rigetti

Susan Rigetti is an author, screenwriter, and the former technology op-ed editor at the New York Times. She has been named a “Person of the Year” by TIME, The Financial Times, and the Webby Awards, and has appeared on Fortune’s “40 Under 40” list, Vanity Fair’s New Establishment List, Marie Claire’s New Guard list, the Bloomberg 50, the Upstart 50, the Recode 100, and more. She is the author of a book on computer programming that has been implemented by companies across Silicon Valley, and the critically acclaimed memoir, Whistleblower.

Reviews for Cover Story

[Robin Herbert · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I initially thought this was too much of a repeat of recent shows and books about real life female scam artists. I almost gave up on it, but kept going and am glad I did. The plot twists and surprises that developed as the book progressed were clever, original and kept me reading. I recommend it.

[Rebecca Byrne · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I found myself enjoying the ride, but I had it figured out about 3/4 of the way in. I wished I hadn’t read the synopsis

[Allison · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Twisty and perfect. I flew through it and had to look up other readers’ takes on what happened. So so fun. For fans of Who Is Maud Dixon.

[ShaTonya Wooley · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It was interesting and kept my interest but there was something missing.

[LynLe Hamstra · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

SPOILER ALERT
The main character Laura was whiny and lame.
I wish someone could explain this book to me because the ending made absolutely no sense...if she was in a coma the whole book, who TF was Cat talking to, hanging out with and writing with the whole time... How did Laura warn her to get out because the FBI was coming.... just completely confused about this plot.
Pass on this one

[Gina Johnson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great narrator and interesting book. Audio was hard to follow at first because of the email and diary entries, but I got used to it.

[StefanieRogers · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Funny pacing at times but interesting.
Very much in line with inventing Anna.

[LynneGauthier · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a good book, but I found the main character annoying. The ending was a bit abrupt.

[Mari Melting · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book. Could not stop listening - very clever .

[Sara Workman · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Inspired by the real and extraordinary story of Anna (Delvey) Sorokin, Cover Story is told through diary entries, emails, texts, and FBI memos. It’s fast-paced, compulsive, on trend, and a fantastically reinvented story about an imposter German Heiress who swindled and scammed her way into New York’s elite circles.

Twenty three year old Lora Ricci is a NYU student aspiring to be a writer. With poor grades she loses her scholarship and has landed on tough times. Lora is excited to find out she landed the perfect summer internship at ELLE Magazine. After a rough start she meets and befriends Cat Wolff, a contributing editor for the magazine. Cat is wealthy, stylish, confident, and the daughter of a clean-energy mogul. Or so Lora thought.

Learning of Lora’s struggles, Cat takes her under her wing and invites Lora to move into the Plaza Hotel and become her ghostwriter. Encouraging Lora to write, requesting her help with side projects, and ultimately wanting to get something published together, Cat being the face of the book and Lora being the writer.

Being completely dependent on Cat and isolated from her family, Lora gets caught up in Cat’s life and soon realizes she might not be who she thinks she is. Details of Cat’s schemes and deceptions quickly come to light through her correspondences, leaving naive and trusting (to a fault and it gets somewhat frustrating) Lora wondering who this woman really is.

Cover Story reads quickly with you questioning everyone through the entire book. Rigetti gives the reader personal insight to the story with the FBI Memos, something of which Lora doesn’t have. At first it was a little hard to keep track of all the different identities of Cat and how everyone was connected, but you’ll figure it out quickly. Cover Story is full of action, suspense, and so well written you will not want to put it down. Totally binge-worthy, I finished it in one day.

THE ENDING!! Y’all! Mind blown and had me reeling for days. One of the best “I didn’t see that coming” ending I’ve read in a long time. The last four pages are worth the ENTIRE read. I have so many questions. I can’t believe this is Rigetti’s debut novel.

My only piece of advice for this one…..go in with very little information as possible, avoiding spoilers. TRUST ME!!

A HUGE thanks and shout out to @williammorrow, @harpercollins, and @Rigetti for the gifted finished copy. This is one I will recommend to EVERYONE.

[Alice · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very entertaining! Easy to listen to. The characters are very well developed and the plot flows perfectly.

[cmdh5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Named Most Anticipated by Entertainment Weekly, Marie Claire, Parade, and PopSugar, Cover Story by Susan Rigetti is much deserved so grab your sunnies, a lounger, and clear some time book friends because this propulsive story is unputdownable and drops 4/5/22! Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow Books for the gifted ARC. After a difficult semester at NYU ambitious Lora Ricci lands an internship at Elle magazine. Coming from a modest background she finds she feels no different at Elle, she still doesn’t fit in with the trust fund kids. Determined to make the most of every opportunity she volunteers to help the magnetic Cat Wolff with a writing project on her days off. Slowly Lora finds herself drawn in to Cat, totally dependent and isolated from her family. Any doubts Lora has she quickly tamps down. What choice does she have if she wants to be a writer? I throughly enjoyed this inventive book told through a series of diary entries, texts messages, and news articles. The cast of characters is wide but deep, keeping me on my toes wondering how everyone fit together. Rigetti’s writing is whip-smart, sharp, and nuanced. Characters are flawed and multifaceted. While there should be good and bad guys here she offers up many shades of gray. It comes together in one of the most twisty ‘I did NOT see that coming’ endings I’ve experienced in a long time. My strongest suggestion is to go in with as little information as possible, avoiding spoilers. I recommend for your summer reading, buddy reads, and book clubs. There’s so much to unpack and discuss here!!