Scan barcode
novelesque_life's review against another edition
3.0
3 STARS
"A betrayed wife and dedicated mother suddenly forced to raise her six-month-old daughter alone, Melanie Vargas is also an ambitious, hard-working professional who has had to bite and claw for recognition in the federal prosecutor's office. Then, while strolling with her baby girl on a steamy New York night, Melanie stumbles onto the kind of high-profile case that could make a career: the burning townhouse of a wealthy former prosecutor, its owner's tortured, murdered corpse smoldering within. Melanie Vargas wants this chance -- she needs it -- and she'll do whatever it takes to get it.
But a headline-grabbing opportunity of a lifetime could cost Melanie more than she ever imagined, as it pulls her closer to a dangerous affair with a secretive, enigmatic FBI agent -- and closer still to a sadistic human monster moving expertly through the city's darkest shadows." (From Amazon)
An okay suspense novel. I would read more books by Martinez.
"A betrayed wife and dedicated mother suddenly forced to raise her six-month-old daughter alone, Melanie Vargas is also an ambitious, hard-working professional who has had to bite and claw for recognition in the federal prosecutor's office. Then, while strolling with her baby girl on a steamy New York night, Melanie stumbles onto the kind of high-profile case that could make a career: the burning townhouse of a wealthy former prosecutor, its owner's tortured, murdered corpse smoldering within. Melanie Vargas wants this chance -- she needs it -- and she'll do whatever it takes to get it.
But a headline-grabbing opportunity of a lifetime could cost Melanie more than she ever imagined, as it pulls her closer to a dangerous affair with a secretive, enigmatic FBI agent -- and closer still to a sadistic human monster moving expertly through the city's darkest shadows." (From Amazon)
An okay suspense novel. I would read more books by Martinez.
ncrabb's review against another edition
3.0
It’s already been a long day at work, and the child won’t sleep. Melanie Vargas is at her wit’s end. Earlier in the week, she threw her husband out for cheating on her, and she’s raising six-month-old Maya, sleepless nights and all. It’s the age-old solution: If the kid won’t sleep, bundle it into something that moves and vibrates, and the child will drop off ere long. Into the stroller goes Maya, and out into the steamy New York night goes mom and the little girl. But what’s all the commotion down the block? Looks like someone’s house is on fire, and if Melanie’s right, it’s the house of a well-known former federal prosecutor. A fictional current federal prosecutor herself, Melanie realizes if she can snag this case, she’ll have a high-profile case that could launch her career upward. She gets the case, and she gets in over her head soon enough.
His name is Slice. They call him that because of the way he mutilates his victims when he kills them. He had a good time carving up that former prosecutor and burning the house down around him. And best of all, he has a mole in the clanking bureaucracy of the prosecutor’s office who can keep him a step ahead of local and federal law-enforcement officials.
As Melanie digs further into the case, her best intentions of raising her daughter responsibly seem to get threadbare. She’s all eaten up by the guilt of not being home with the kid, but that didn’t garner much sympathy here. She came across as a woman with a rather thin moral compass—eagerly wrapping her legs around the waist of her almost-out-of-her life husband one minute and making out with a mysterious FBI agent for whom she clearly has feelings despite the ongoing nature of a faltering marriage.
It’s a race against time as Slice finds more witnesses who could have testified at a trial regarding the dead prosecutor and now never will. Melanie must figure out who the mole is in her department before Slice works on her.
I’ll read the next book in this series at some point, just not immediately. For those of you who care, note that the profanity index runs high throughout this. It’s a fast-paced mystery that seems realistic in many ways.
His name is Slice. They call him that because of the way he mutilates his victims when he kills them. He had a good time carving up that former prosecutor and burning the house down around him. And best of all, he has a mole in the clanking bureaucracy of the prosecutor’s office who can keep him a step ahead of local and federal law-enforcement officials.
As Melanie digs further into the case, her best intentions of raising her daughter responsibly seem to get threadbare. She’s all eaten up by the guilt of not being home with the kid, but that didn’t garner much sympathy here. She came across as a woman with a rather thin moral compass—eagerly wrapping her legs around the waist of her almost-out-of-her life husband one minute and making out with a mysterious FBI agent for whom she clearly has feelings despite the ongoing nature of a faltering marriage.
It’s a race against time as Slice finds more witnesses who could have testified at a trial regarding the dead prosecutor and now never will. Melanie must figure out who the mole is in her department before Slice works on her.
I’ll read the next book in this series at some point, just not immediately. For those of you who care, note that the profanity index runs high throughout this. It’s a fast-paced mystery that seems realistic in many ways.
literaryfeline's review against another edition
4.0
U.S. Attorney Melanie Vargas maneuvers her way to being assigned a career making or breaking case, the murder of a former prosecutor. Teamed up with a sexy and charming FBI agent, Melanie soon realizes that she may be in over her head. Lies, conspiracy, gangs, and witnesses dying right and left, Melanie must uncover the truth before it hits too close to home.
Debut author Michele Martinez presents readers with a heart racing suspenseful novel. I was selected to preview this book by the HarperCollins Publishing through its First Look program. The book was overflowing with twists and turns on nearly every page. Ms. Martinez seemed to throw everything into her novel except the kitchen sink, and yet she was able to wrap it up nicely into an entertaining book. Melanie proves to be a gutsy and motivated character. She is likeable and interesting, however, where she excels in her career, she struggles on the home front. Faced to deal with a cheating husband and being a fairly new mother, Melanie has a lot to juggle with her career on the line.
Debut author Michele Martinez presents readers with a heart racing suspenseful novel. I was selected to preview this book by the HarperCollins Publishing through its First Look program. The book was overflowing with twists and turns on nearly every page. Ms. Martinez seemed to throw everything into her novel except the kitchen sink, and yet she was able to wrap it up nicely into an entertaining book. Melanie proves to be a gutsy and motivated character. She is likeable and interesting, however, where she excels in her career, she struggles on the home front. Faced to deal with a cheating husband and being a fairly new mother, Melanie has a lot to juggle with her career on the line.
More...