The Talented Mr Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
Tom Ripley is struggling to stay afloat, financially and socially, in 1950s New York. Having failed at several jobs, he is dabbling in small-time fraud and living on the charity of friends. One day, a chance encounter results in him travelling to Italy, supposedly to persuade Dickie Greenleaf, the playboy son of a shipping magnate, to come home. Dickie's charm and lifestyle prove irresistible to Ripley and he embarks on a path from which there is no going back . . .
The ...