As they say in advertisements for “LA Law,” this story was “ripped from the headlines.” FACE OF BETRAYAL by Lis Wiehl (one of the Fox News commentators) and April Henry sounds like the Chandra Levy case.

In this book a Senate page, last seen as she was setting out to walk her sister's dog, is now missing. The case is receiving national attention and, maybe because of all the 24-hour cable news coverage, it has even gone worldwide. People speculate on the relationship the page had with the senator who sponsored her, their affair is uncovered, and the senator is then accused of attempting to hide the facts by murdering her.

Sound familiar? It should unless you were living in a tunnel when Chandra Levy dominated the news.

I was reminded so much of the Chandra Levy case, I found the story in FACE OF BETRAYAL tiresome. News coverage of Chandra's case, although not unjustified, became so repetitious I wasn’t interested in hearing it all over again.

To be honest, the two cases aren’t identical. In FACE OF BETRAYAL the 17-year-old page was a little curly haired blond, and the story ends differently.

Most of all, the cases differ because of the “Triple Threat” in this novel: Cassidy, Nicole, and Allison. Cassidy is a local TV news reporter, Nicole is an FBI agent, and Allison is a federal prosecutor. Together, they work to find the missing page. But I didn't exactly find them threatening.

I read this book out of curiosity because I love Fox News and I love Lis Wiehl on Fox News. But I have to admit my suspicion about that station: they seem to have a publish-or-perish rule; it looks like all Fox News regulars write books.

At least this book was fiction. The nonfiction books written by others, such as Bill O’Reilly and Dick Morris, on Fox News are like reading transcripts of the shows I already watched.

I give this book only three stars because of its predictability. The best mysteries/thrillers build anticipation throughout and surprise the reader. I don't think I should be able to guess the end when I'm only halfway through the book. Nothing surprised me.