Safe Houses by Dan Fesperman

In the late 1970's Helen Abell is in charge of maintaining CIA safe houses in Berlin, where, one evening, she overhears and records two conversations which will have repercussions over thirty years later. In the present, her daughter, Anna, is stunned when Helen and her husband are killed by their son, Willard. She ends up hiring investigator Henry Mattick to help her uncover if Willard is really a murderer. In the process, Anna learns of Helen's past. Henry, however, has secrets of his own that might compromise his ability to aid Anna. Their inquiries uncover details of Helen's life with the CIA, which they slowly realize probably caused the disintegration of Helen's family. Safe Houses is a spy novel that reminded me of the books of Laura Lippman. I really enjoyed the descriptions of the characters and how the plot unfolded.