Give It Back by Danielle Esplin

REVIEW

As a debut novel this book has all the elements of a perfect mystery.  Although it contained all the elements thereof, it also introduced a different approach to the typical American suspense thriller. Nobody in the saga is perfect!  That's the first bonus point for this book.

Three women's lives get entangled in Seattle, when the main character needs help from her somewhat estranged, self-centered sister. The nanny from London forms the third leg of the table laid with mysterious intent, hidden agendas and dark histories.  A tangled web of unfinished emotional issues ensues, leaving a trail of broken lives behind. However, one of them will survive to pick up the pieces and continue ...

CHARACTERS: as introduced in the official blurp:


Lorraine:

Not long ago, Lorraine lost her husband to another woman. She thought that was the worst thing that could happen to her, but soon she realizes it’s just the beginning of an everlasting nightmare. 

Lexy:

Lexy, an au pair from London, moves to Seattle to help Lorraine with her infant son. But she didn’t come for the child…she came for something else. 

Ella:

When Ella receives a call from her sister, Lorraine, who begs her to leave San Diego to spend time with her, she decides to take a few days off from work to visit her ...

But on her way to the airport, she learns that something shocking has happened since she last spoke with Lorraine. To make matters worse, once Ella arrives in Seattle, Lorraine’s story keeps changing, making Ella question how reliable her sister really is ...

From the very first page a line of deceit and lies is drawn which leaves the reader sleepless and totally unwilling to put the book down.  Trying to only read...well...just another chapter... did not help. Each chapter had a dramatic ending.... yes... it simply would not go away.  The ending was mind blowing, yelling out for another fix, a follow up and hopefully soon!  The suspense is unbearable!

Fast paced, short (dated) chapters; three protagonists telling their stories;  strong story line; riveting reading.

Danielle Esplin started off on a high note with this novel and can become one of the greats of suspense thrillers. The proof is in the pudding!   Excellent debut for this author!  

RECOMMENDED for readers who enjoyed The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins. 

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BOOK INFORMATION

Genres: Suspense thrillerFormats: Kindle, Paperback
Number of pages:  304
Edition language: English
Publication date: April 07, 2016
ASIN: B01A1HMOSM
Purchase links: Amazon USA | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Danielle Esplin studied Food Science with Chemistry at the University of Stellenbosch. She had a full-ride scholarship and was one of the top students. After three years of sleepless nights in the library and endless experiments in the laboratory, she realized that something was missing.

And that was writing fiction.

Without telling anyone, she packed her bags, waved her twin sister good-bye, trudged down the street and got on a bus to leave the country. When she crossed the border and entered Namibia, she switched her phone on and sent her mother a text. "I dropped out of University," she wrote and never looked back.

In Namibia, among the countless dunes that appeared like a half-closed girdle nestling the everlasting sea, her desire to write surfaced. Ever since she has been pursuing her dream to become a full-time writer. Danielle also loves to travel, and she writes about her adventures on her blog www.exploringmyplanet.com.

Today she lives with her husband in Seattle with her two pet rats, Skippy and Milo. In her spare time, she likes to sing, read or spend time with family and friends.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danielleesp...

Twitter:
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Facebook Page:
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Booktube:
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Time Of Death by James Craig

MY REVIEW
Inspector Carlyle investigates the murder of Agatha Mills, which took place in her apartment across the street from the British museum. Her husband is arrested for the murder as all evidence point to Henry Mills's guilt. But he refuses to admit it was him and commits suicide.

What started out as an open-and-shut-case becomes something totally different soon, although nobody, except Inspector Carlyle, is convinced. The ripple effect across London, diplomatic offices, and international companies, forces the laid-back detective to work longer hours than he hoped for. After all, life is pretty mediocre in his quarters and he doesn't appreciate his feathers being ruffled too much. He loves his walks around town, since he never learnt to drive, doesn't even possess a license to do so. He enjoys his elongated breaks away from the office, his slow breakfasts and lunches in quaint little restaurants, and a personal mobile phone which he seldom answers. Off and on he remembers to visit the gym. He needs to stay in shape, right? Yes, he is a slow mover, a relaxed person, a quiet operator. However, his mannerisms are making a lot of people nervous. Very nervous. Especially when he refuses to close the case and hand in the report. 

REVIEW:
I don't want to go into the complicated plot, developing after the first murder, and spoil the surprise. The drama keeps the reader hooked way more hours than was planned as it is. Losing-sleep-hooked. Nothing spectacularly dramatic hammers away at the heart muscles, or causes severe headaches, but below the seemingly suave exterior an angry river is pulsing through the story. Manipulation, corruption, back-stabbing, greed and danger: it's all there and it's very real. 

The protagonist is brought alive in all his splendor. Everything about the detective's life is painted in multiple colors. He becomes important to the reader. The dangers facing him becomes our concerns. His enemies shake up our core much more than the inspector's. He is not a nice man in every sense. The reader might not even like his attitude at all. And yet, we are rooting for him in getting his job done. A constant sense of foreboding is keeping the reader at it, come time or social objections to the opposite! The suspense is heightened by John Carlyle's 'casual' encounters with the antagonists. A joke and a laugh neutralize many volatile situations. But he is also a man who does not steer away from raising the stakes and getting people jittery and drinking away their concerns about his slow but steady approach into their lives and secrets. They know he is coming for them in his own way. 

The story is multifaceted. In fact, it is rich in British textures and hues. I was pleasantly surprised with the content of the plot. There is a constant hanging knife suspended over the characters'lives. The suspense becomes intense, unbearable! The ending....mmmm....no comment. It might be a cliffhanger, for all I know, since this book forms part of a series. But it was good enough for now, anyway.

A wonderful, relaxing, yet intriguing read. I haven't read the author before, but will certainly consider his other books. I enjoy his writing style. You don't need any other relaxers with this kind of book in hand.

The book was provided by Witness Impulse through edelweissabovethetreeline.com for review. Thank you for this excellent opportunity.

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BOOK BLURB
The worst murders occur closest to home . . .

When Agatha Mills is killed in her own apartment in the shadow of the British Museum, there is only one suspect--her husband, Henry. For Inspector Carlyle, it seems like an open-and-shut case. But much to Carlyle's chagrin, Henry refuses to confess. Worse, he comes up with an alternative version of events that is nearly impossible to investigate.

Carlyle just wants to put the murder to bed, but when a distraught Henry kills himself on the way to prison, doubts begin to surface. The mounting evidence indicates he may have been telling the truth. In which case, the murderer is still at large . . 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Craig has lived in London for more than thirty years, working as a journalist and consultant. 

He lives in Bloomsbury with his wife and daughter.

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BOOK INFORMATION

Genres: 2014 release, Drama, Murder, Mystery, Suspense, British author, London,
Formats:  Paperback
Number of pages:  336
Publishing date: November 01, 2014
Publisher: Witness Impulse
Edition language: English

• ISBN-10: 0062365320
• ISBN-13: 978-0062365323

Purchase links: Amazon USA | Amazon UK |


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Not A Chance In Helen (River Road, #3) by Susan McBride

MY REVIEW
Wealthy widow, eighty-one year old Eleanora Duncan, lived alone in her Victorian mansions after her husband Marvin died and she lost her only son in a car accident, caused by her daughter-in-law. 

She was a member of every imaginable club and associatioin in River Bend, Illinois, not because she was wanted or popular. On the contrary, if she wasn't so wealthy and a benefactor to all of them, nobody would have cared to even speak one word to her. She never had a good thought about anyone; she blamed Jean, her daughter-in-law, for her son's death and refused to talk to her. Her cat, Lady Godiva and Zelma, her house assistant, were the only two souls sharing her life. 

Zelma dedicated her whole life to Eleanora. She worked for her since she was sixteen years old. Mrs. Duncan told Zelma she did not need anyone else in her life. Zelma did not have family, never got married, and therefore had no children. Eleonora was her whole life.

Seventy-five-year-old Helen Evans saved Eleanora's life one sunny day when a car almost ran her over. The surprised Mrs. Duncan told Helen that someone was trying to kill her. And then she did die. 

The town had to answer to the death and had a lot to say in return. Three people visited Eleonora that day. There was Stan, her down-and-out brother-in-law who couldn't keep his inheritance intact. She constantly had to send him cheques for survival. He stood to inherit if she died. Then there was Floyd Baskin, the eco-terrorist who relied heavily on her husband's contributions to his cause. She was trying to get him cut off from her husband's beneficiary list in his will and Baskin was aware of it. Jemima Winthrop accused Eleonora all these years that her family stole the Winthrop inheritance and tried to wiggle a piece of land out of Eleonora to build a library. Eleonora ignored her. Jean, her daughter-in-law heard of the incident that morning and brought her some gourmet snacks, trying to mend relationships with her. It did not work.

Who needed to get rid of the heiress? Sheriff Biddle had his hands full with evidence that let nowhere and everywhere at the same time. Emotions ran high, accusations and insinuations rocked the Mississippi town of River Bend, home for several generations of families. Things did not look good.

Who better than Helen Evans, an insider, a force de majeur in town history and gossip, to read everyone's thoughts - from their invisible DNA strings, all the way down their family trees to Adam and Eve? Nothing escapes her scrutiny. Not that sheriff Biddle was mighty impressed or appreciative at all with her observations. He had forensics behind him. But Helen had an insider's view. Things heated up. Enough to set fire to a few facts.

Not a Chance in Helen is the third book in the River Road series. Like all the previous books, this one maintains the fast suspense line with the same charm and style of the author's other books. It's a light read full of southern goodness. It is the one element that I adore about this author's books. It is the main reason why I love to read her relaxing murder mystery series.

This is an Advance Reader’s e-proof copy provided, through edelweiss.abovethetreeline, courtesy of Harper Collins Publishers (Witness Impulse). Thank you for the opportunity.

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BOOK BLURB (Amazon)

In the third River Road Mystery from USA Today bestselling author Susan McBride, Helen Evans knows her friend is not guilty of murder … she just has to prove it!

When 80-year-old Eleanora Duncan is found dead on her kitchen floor, Sheriff Frank Biddle suspects it isn't from natural causes. Eleanora wasn't exactly your average senior citizen. She was a widow worth millions, although all her money couldn't buy her happiness—not after losing both her husband and son.

Eleanora's bitterness alienated those around her, but did that bitterness make her the victim of foul play? Soon Jean Duncan, Eleanora's daughter-in-law, becomes the prime suspect. But the sheriff gets more than he bargained for when Helen Evans comes to the aid of her friend.

Helen knows that Jean didn't murder Eleanora, despite the very bad blood between them. So she uses every means at her disposal in order to clear Jean's name and track down Eleanora's killer.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan McBride is the author of Very Bad Things, a young adult thriller out from Delacorte in October of 2014. She also writes women's fiction, including The Truth About Love & Lightning (William Morrow, 02/13), Little Black Dress (09/11), and The Cougar Club (02/10). She has a short memoir called In the Pink: How I Met the Perfect (Younger) Man, Survived Breast Cancer, and Found True Happiness After 40 (06/12), about becoming an "accidental Cougar" at 41, marrying a younger man, being diagnosed with breast cancer at 42, and having her first child at 47. Susan was named "Survivor of the Year" by the St. Louis chapter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure in 2012 and was dubbed one of St. Louis's "Most Dynamic" in 2012 by the Ladue News.

Susan previously wrote the award-winning Debutante Dropout Mysteries (Avon Paperbacks), including Blue Blood, The Good Girl's Guide To Murder, The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club, Night Of The Living Deb, and Too Pretty To Die. She has authored several YA series books for Random House about debutantes in Houston, the debut in 2008 appropriately titled The Debs and followed by Love, Lies, And Texas Dips in 2009. Gloves Off, the third book, has not yet been released.

Visit Susan's web site at http://SusanMcBride.com for more info.

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BOOK INFORMATION
Genres: Murder, Mystery,
Formats: Paperback | Kindle | Nook
Number of pages: 200 
Publishers: Witness Impulse
Publishing Date: September, 30th, 2014
Edition language: English
ASIN: B00IRCZJWM

Purchase Links:  Amazon USA | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble 

The Truth Will Out by Jane Isaac

MY REVIEW
Detective Chief Inspector Helen Lavery learnt a valuable lesson from her late father, James, a well-respected detective in his own right, when he said: Don't get upset or afraid with the death threats of an acrimonious criminal on trial. It is only the ‘shallow thoughts of a condemned man.’ But was he right? 

She became as successful as he in her profession, while raising her two sons, Matthew and Robert, on her own, after her husband's death ten years earlier. Life was busy, but uncomplicated for her. She was well-known as an assiduous detective in the Hampton Branch of the Homicide and Serious Crime Squad. Her colleagues were trustworthy and hardworking: Superintendent Jenkins, Sergeant Sean Pemberton. However, the same could not be said of Detective Inspector Dean Fitzpatrick. He knew how to play her like a violin and she could not resist falling in love with his melodies. That was a few years ago, and she never forgave him. And now he was back to solve a case in which they would collide as well as corroborate and things are not going well at all. 

So much changed insidiously for all of them. The past, instead of the present, was now more relevant than ever before. It predicted the future and everyone is caught off guard, so to speak.

Eva Carradine and Naomi Spence were best friends since early childhood. There was no reason for either one of them to ever distrust the other. They had a bond stronger than family. But then Eva witnessed an assault on her best friend and sharing a dangerous secret with her friend, she took off, trying to get as far away as possible. Some people were in hot pursuit, with the police not quite on par with her involvement yet. 

For those of you who enjoy the different British detective series on television and love murder mysteries, like I do, will appreciate this fast-moving, entertaining, light-read. However, it is serious enough to be noted, but not hitting the horror- or nightmare zones in any way. 

The story revolves around two murders, with every person related to it having to deal with unresolved issues from their past before the case could be solved. Even the criminals had their stories to tell. Relationships would be tested, between family, friends and work colleagues. The situation demanded of everyone to personally reconsider their motives, action as well as decisions to end the tragedy. I am not giving away any clues!

Like all books, the beginning is slow, introducing all the characters, the scenario, and the plot. But then it picks up pace and before you know it, you're zoning in on Hampton, England and growl for any interference, such as a ringing telephone, or even the cat jumping through the window! I felt like hanging a 'for heaven's sake, do not disturb!'-sign on my closed door, even though I had a strong suspicion of the outcome! 

Legend Press has never disappointed in their choice of new authors. I received this book through NetGalley for review. And enjoyed it. It is a well-written murder mystery for female readers. Definitely not chic-lit.

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BOOK BLURB
"Everything's going to be okay." 
"What if it's not?"

Suddenly, she turned. For a split second she halted, her head inclined.

"Naomi, what is it?"

She whisked back to face Eva.

"There's somebody in the house..."

Eva is horrified when she witnesses an attack on her best friend. She calls an ambulance and forces herself to flee Hampton, fearing for her own safety. DCI Helen Lavery leads the investigation into the murder. With no leads, no further witnesses and no sign of forced entry, the murder enquiry begins.

Slowly, the pieces of the puzzle start to come together. But as Helen inches towards solving the case, her past becomes caught up in her present.


Someone is after them both. Someone who will stop at nothing to get what they want. And as the net starts to close around them, can Helen escape her own demons as well as helping Eva to escape hers?


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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jane Isaac studied creative writing with The Writers Bureau and the London School of Journalism. She lives in rural Northamptonshire, UK with her husband, daughter and dog, Bollo.

Jane was runner up 'Writer of the Year 2013' with The Writers Bureau and her short stories have appeared in several crime fiction anthologies. The Truth Will Out is the long awaited sequel to her debut, An Unfamiliar Murder, which was nominated as best mystery in the 'eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook awards'. The Truth Will Out will be released by Legend Press on 1st April 2014. The paperback version is available to pre-order here.

Jane loves to meet readers and writers and is always happy to visit bookshops, libraries and books clubs. Write to her through the website contact page if you are interested. Over the last 12 months Jane has meet some very interesting people and visited some great places. Photo source


Author's website
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BOOK INFORMATION

Genres: Britain, Detective Drama, suspense, murder, mystery,
Formats: Paperback, Kindle, Nook
Number of Pages: 288

Publishing date:  April 1st, 2014
Publishers: Legend Press 

• ASIN: B00HWQ19ZU

Edition Language: English

Purchase links: Amazon | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | 

Night of the Living Deb (Debutante Dropout Mystery, #4) by Susan McBride

Add caption

REVIEW
Andrea Kendricks thought she new pretty much enough of her boyfriend of four months, Brian Malone, and even thought she might be in love with this lawyer beau of hers. Brian walked the straight and narrow and was even carefully chosen by her ever-interfering mother, Cissy.

He was so clean-cut, such a straight-arrow, not the kind of guy I was normally attracted to, which, in the past, had translated into mostly unemployed artists-cum-bartenders. Definitely not lawyers who went to work in suits, collected regular paychecks, and paid their own rent.
So, in an odd way, Brian Malone was a breath of fresh air."

Andrea even trusted him to take a colleague to a white-collar strip-joint for a bachelor treat. But then Brian disappears and the hot mama of the strip club is found dead in the trunk of his car. The police, and basically everyone else believe he is the murderer.

The only clue she has is that Brian missed her mother's cabbage soup, which everyone in their inner circle knows Chrissy Kendricks was allergic to. What did the message spell?

With only one or two friends believing in Brian's impeccable character, Andrea sets out to find him. But she will have to enter the underworld of the Dallas night life and the police is after her for aiding and abetting her suspect boyfriend. Time is running out fast to find him alive and try to prove his innocence. But it does not look possible.

A really great relaxing, fast-moving, no frills, no fuzz thriller from beginning to end.

It is the fourth book in the Debutante Dropout Mystery Series. A bonus point is that this book, like all the others in the series, has a free-standing ending, which makes it a delight to read. The characters are lovable, often annoying in their imperfection, but endearing to spend time with. I loved the experience.

ARC received from edelweiss.abovethetreeline.com

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AMAZON BOOK BLURB

Renegade rich girl Andy Kendricks isn't the belle of any Dallas ball—and that's just the way the debutante dropout likes it! She's got a good life and a great man: her defense attorney boyfriend, Brian Malone. Brian's such a straight arrow that he had to be dragged kicking and screaming to a close friend's bachelor party at a sleazy local "gentleman's club."

So why is the groom-to-be saying that Brian left the bacchanal arm-in-arm with "the hottest body in the Lone Star State?" And what was that hot body doing stone-cold dead in the trunk of Brian's car? And where is Brian anyway? The cops are looking for Andy's allegedly unfaithful/possibly homicidal beau who hasn't been seen since the party. But Andy can't believe her upstanding lover is a murdering fool, and she's determined to prove it—though she might end up with a lot more broken than just her heart.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan McBride is the author of Very Bad Things, a young adult thriller out from Delacorte in October of 2014. She also writes women's fiction, including The Truth About Love & Lightning (William Morrow, 02/13), Little Black Dress (09/11), and The Cougar Club (02/10). She has a short memoir called In the Pink: How I Met the Perfect (Younger) Man, Survived Breast Cancer, and Found True Happiness After 40 (06/12), about becoming an "accidental Cougar" at 41, marrying a younger man, being diagnosed with breast cancer at 42, and having her first child at 47. Susan was named "Survivor of the Year" by the St. Louis chapter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure in 2012 and was dubbed one of St. Louis's "Most Dynamic" in 2012 by the Ladue News.

Susan previously wrote the award-winning Debutante Dropout Mysteries (Avon Paperbacks), including Blue Blood, The Good Girl's Guide To Murder, The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club, Night Of The Living Deb, and Too Pretty To Die. She has authored several YA series books for Random House about debutantes in Houston, the debut in 2008 appropriately titled The Debs and followed by Love, Lies, And Texas Dips in 2009. Gloves Off, the third book, has not yet been released.

Visit Susan's web site at http://SusanMcBride.com for more info.
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BOOK INFORMATION 
Genres: Murder, Mystery, Suspense, Dallas Texas, Satire, Romance, Young adult
Formats: Mass Market PB, Avon / eBook,
Number of pages: 336
Publishing date: Original: January 2007 / New: January 2014 Witness Impulse (HarperCollins)
Edition language: English
ISBN-10: 0-06-084555-4
ISBN-13: 978-0060845551 
Purchase links: Buy the book:Indie Bound | Barnes & Noble | Amazon.com  
                         Buy the eBook: Barnes & Noble | Amazon.com | Kobo

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Books in the Debutante Dropout Mystery Series

MY REVIEWS FOR THE SERIES
#1 Blue Blood
#2 The Good Girl's Guide to Murder
#3 The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club
#4 Night of the Living Deb

#5 Too Pretty to Die

I value you comments, please feel free to leave one. 

The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club (Debutante Dropout Mystery, #3) by Susan McBride

REVIEW
Sarah Lee Sewell still believed in romance, even in her seventies. Discreetly  being a member of the Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club, an exclusive online service for the wealthy, she was enjoying discreet meetings with the carefully selected male members. A woman still needed to be touched by a man, no matter what.

Before she could leave for yet another new date, she is found dead in her luxury apartment in the Belle Meade Retirement Community. Cissy Blevins Kendricks is in shock, losing one of her oldest, dearest and best bridge club friends. Natural causes, as declared by the coroner, did not stick with the mourning Cissy. With her usual skillful manipulation she got her rebellious daughter, Andrea, involved. It is soon obvious that something is heating up, and it wasn't love, when another friend of Cissy's are found dead. Again 'natural causes'.

Romance, however, was not completely lost. It was just encountered in a totally surprising way. Andrea did not find it comfortable. There were issues she needed to deal with before she could accept the inevitable.

This is the third book in the <i>Debutante Dropout Mystery Series</i>. Old and new characters, new challenges and new friendships make this another satisfying, relaxing read. All the books in the series are really great reads on their own. Never a dull moment so far!

ARC received from  edelweiss.abovethetreeline.com


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AMAZON BOOK BLURB

Andy Kendricks is back in the third sassy and irresistible installment in Susan McBride's Debutante Dropout series … and this time she's teaming up with her high-society mama to catch a killer who's targeting rich, lonely widows.

Wealthy Texas widows need loving too … which is why Bebe Kent joined a dating service for "discriminating" seniors soon after relocating to the swanky Belle Meade retirement community. Unfortunately, Bebe didn't even live long enough to meet "Mr. Right." And though doctors declared her death totally natural, extravagant blue-blooded Dallas socialite Cissy Blevins Kendricks believes her old friend's demise was hastened—and she's ready to check herself into Belle Meade incognito to prove it.

Cissy's rebellious, sometimes-sleuthing daughter, Andrea, wants no part of her mother's crazy schemes—yet she's anything but pleased that Cissy is going off on her own, playing a highbrow Miss Marple. So she has no choice but to join her mom in search of the truth—especially when more well-heeled widows start turning up dead …

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan McBride is the author of Very Bad Things, a young adult thriller out from Delacorte in October of 2014. She also writes women's fiction, including The Truth About Love & Lightning (William Morrow, 02/13), Little Black Dress (09/11), and The Cougar Club (02/10). She has a short memoir called In the Pink: How I Met the Perfect (Younger) Man, Survived Breast Cancer, and Found True Happiness After 40 (06/12), about becoming an "accidental Cougar" at 41, marrying a younger man, being diagnosed with breast cancer at 42, and having her first child at 47. Susan was named "Survivor of the Year" by the St. Louis chapter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure in 2012 and was dubbed one of St. Louis's "Most Dynamic" in 2012 by the Ladue News.

Susan previously wrote the award-winning Debutante Dropout Mysteries (Avon Paperbacks), including Blue Blood, The Good Girl's Guide To Murder, The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club, Night Of The Living Deb, and Too Pretty To Die. She has authored several YA series books for Random House about debutantes in Houston, the debut in 2008 appropriately titled The Debs and followed by Love, Lies, And Texas Dips in 2009. Gloves Off, the third book, has not yet been released.

Visit Susan's web site at http://SusanMcBride.com for more info.
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BOOK INFORMATION 
Genres: Murder, Mystery, Suspense, Dallas Texas, Satire, Romance, Young adult
Formats: Mass Market PB, Avon / eBook, 
Mass Market Paperback: 332 pages
Publisher: Witness Impulse (Harper & Collins) ; 
Publishing date: January 2006 / December 2013
Edition Language: English
ISBN-10: 0-06-056408-3 
ISBN-13: 978-0060564087 
Series: Debutante Dropout Mysteries
Language: English
Awards: William Rockhill Nelson Award Finalist
Purchase links: Buy the book:: Indie Bound | Barnes & Noble | Amazon.com  
                        Buy the eBook: Barnes & Noble | Amazon.com | Kobo
______________________________________________________
Books in the Debutante Dropout Mystery Series

MY REVIEWS FOR THE SERIES
#1 Blue Blood
#2 The Good Girl's Guide to Murder
#3 The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club
#4 Night of the Living Deb
#5 Too Pretty to Die

I value you comments, please feel free to leave one. 

The Good Girl's Guide to Murder (Debutante Dropout Mystery, #2) by Susan McBride

REVIEW:
Marilee Mabry got it made. Her skeletons in her closet was safe here in Dallas.She finally could afford the poshy house in the affluent Dallas high society. Finally her own tv show, The Sweet Life, which was anyone's dream to die for was , well, waiting to be launched... Finally another super star would be born.

Life did not come easy for Marilee. A fissure of excitement dashed up her spine, and she shivered, still amazed at how far she’d come. From a ramshackle chicken farm in the middle of Nowhere, Texas, to a mansion in Preston Hollow a hop, skip, and a jump away from Ross Perot’s. And she did it all on her own after divorcing her two-timing husband who left her with a kid to raise on her own in the unmentionable backyards of society. It was 10% dedication and 90% perspiration that got her where she was.

This was her dream. She deserved to be indulged, and she’d already made up her mind that there would be no more skimping. A bottle of reserve stock Dom Perignon was already in the ice bucket. Waiting.

What more could she ask for? Nothing could go wrong tonight. However, everything was not as it seemed at all at the evening of glits and glamour which was life-streamed on the internet by Andrea Kendricks, the on-short-noticed appointed web designer. Marilee was not the easiest person in the world to work for, or live with. She believed in perfection to be successful and not everyone appreciated her attitude. There were already a few minor incidences which nearly got people killed in preparing for the big gala evening. If things did not go well, people's dreams could go up in flames. The guest list included Cissy and Andrea Kendricks as well as her ex husband and his new trophy wife.

Well-executed and wonderfully plotted. This book is a fast read, a thriller from beginning to end. It is the second book the in the Debutante Dropout Mystery Series.

ARC received from edelweiss.abovethetreeline.com
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AMAZON BOOK BLURB

In the second installment of Susan McBride’s Debutante Dropout mystery series, Dallas heiress Andrea Kendricks must expose a high-society assassin … before she becomes the killer’s next target.

Website designer and high-society rebel Andrea Kendricks would never have gotten involved with ego-in-pumps lifestyle hostess Marilee Mabry if it weren’t for the underhanded machinations of Andy’s upper-crust mama. But thanks to Mother Cissy, Andy’s donning designer duds to attend a launch party at the intolerable domestic diva’s new Dallas TV studio—and she’s on hand to witness the celebration site go up in flames!

Then Andy finds Marilee’s daughter, seemingly lifeless. Even though iron-willed Cissy isn’t about to let her social calendar be upset by minor inconveniences like arson and possibly murder, her sometime-sleuthing daughter’s got a more pressing engagement—namely, hunting down the culprit behind some very foul play.

But there are more than a few nasty messes tucked away in the Mabry closet—and a craven assassin who has the Big D elite quaking in their cowboy boots may soon be burying Andy in hers!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan McBride is the author of Very Bad Things, a young adult thriller out from Delacorte in October of 2014. She also writes women's fiction, including The Truth About Love & Lightning (William Morrow, 02/13), Little Black Dress (09/11), and The Cougar Club (02/10). She has a short memoir called In the Pink: How I Met the Perfect (Younger) Man, Survived Breast Cancer, and Found True Happiness After 40 (06/12), about becoming an "accidental Cougar" at 41, marrying a younger man, being diagnosed with breast cancer at 42, and having her first child at 47. Susan was named "Survivor of the Year" by the St. Louis chapter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure in 2012 and was dubbed one of St. Louis's "Most Dynamic" in 2012 by the Ladue News.

Susan previously wrote the award-winning Debutante Dropout Mysteries (Avon Paperbacks), including Blue Blood, The Good Girl's Guide To Murder, The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club, Night Of The Living Deb, and Too Pretty To Die. She has authored several YA series books for Random House about debutantes in Houston, the debut in 2008 appropriately titled The Debs and followed by Love, Lies, And Texas Dips in 2009. Gloves Off, the third book, has not yet been released.

Visit Susan's web site at http://SusanMcBride.com for more info.
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BOOK INFORMATION
Genres: Murder, Mystery, Suspense, Dallas Texas, Satire, Romance, Young adult
Formats: Paperback , E-book
Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Witness Impulse (Harper & Collins) ; 
Publishing date: Original February, 2005; Reissue edition January 7, 2014
Edition Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062326023
ISBN-13: 978-0062326027
Series: Debutante Dropout Mysteries
Language: English
Awards: IMBA Bestseller |Anthony Award Finalist | BookSense Also-Recommended Title
Purchase links: Buy the book: Barnes & Noble | Amazon.com  | 

•                                    Buy the eBook:: Barnes & Noble | Amazon.com | Kobo

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Books in the Debutante Dropout Mystery Series

MY REVIEWS FOR THE SERIES
#1 Blue Blood
#2 The Good Girl's Guide to Murder
#3 The Lone Star Lonely Hearts Club
#4 Night of the Living Deb
#5 Too Pretty to Die

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