The Day Before Midnight

Customer Reviews:

Good read, just not the GREAT read we now expect from Hunter.......2007-05-16

From anyone but Stephen Hunter this would be considered as good as it gets, but if you've been along on the many adventures of the Swagger family this may seem kinda average. That doesn't mean it's bad, it isn't. Fact is, it's hard to put down even if it is rather unbelievable in places. Sure not on a par with "Point of Impact" however!

Still my favorite Stephen Hunter book........2006-07-14

When I talk to other Stephen Hunter fans, it's surprising to see how many of them don't know about this book. Probably because it's not a Swagger book.

That said, even after Pale Horse Coming and Havana, "Day Before Midnight" is still my favorite Stephen Hunter book. It should be mandatory reading for everyone in the National Guard. I've read this book three times.

An unidentified military force overtakes a U.S. nuclear missile silo. The hostile troops fortify their position outside the silo. Untested National Guard troops are closest to the scene, so they are sent in first. The U.S. commander has to make a lot of tough choices, because some of our guys are going to get killed, but they have to get into the silo before the bad guys can launch the missile. (Hunter creates plausible technical reasons why we can't just bomb them to smithereens.)

Hunter did a great job keeping the tension going, all while giving us great action scenes of small unit military combat. Unlike the Swagger books, where Hunter keeps the action close to the main character, this book follows many different characters and storylines, all headed toward the same place and time.

Fast and Furious.......2006-05-24

Great book, plenty of action and suspense! Reads fast and very hard to put down (like Hunter's Bob Lee Swagger novels). The plot is rather contrived, but overall believable. My main beef is with the COL Dick Puller character, who I thought was the weakest character in the book (the Army should have left him retired-- he was, after all, retired in disgrace for a reason!). COL Puller never impressed me as being the great tactician the author intended. Instead, he seemed rigid and outdated in his tactical approach to the battle scenario presented. COL Puller simply "wasted" the Maryland guardsmen in a poorly planned and executed frontal assault against an entrenched enemy force without even trying to obtain basic pre-op intelligence (such as what might be under that "tarp" in front of the silo entrance). Puller even implied the guardsmen were expendible at that stage of the operation, though better planning on his part might have achieved a more favorable outcome for them and the mission. Also, seems that Puller could have simply planned (even if only as his backup contingency) to blow up the MX missle when it exited the silo (missles aren't going very fast at that point of the launch sequence). Better yet, he could have dismantled/destroyed the silo hangers directly to prevent a missle launching through them. Destroying the missle or silo directly would have been easier than trying to fight his way to the launch capsule at the end of the elevator shaft, or trying to infiltrate a small team through an uncertain (erosion-created) tunnel network at the base of the mountain. As it was, he never did have any such backup plan, should his "race against time" not succeed. But Puller-quibbling aside, The Day Before Midnight was still a very suspenseful book, one well worth the read.

Action thriller with kick.......2006-05-21

I really enjoy well done action stories like this one. Hunter creates great, complex action plots in this very gripping story. I listened attentively though the whole thing and loved it. Excellent story. The book has depth and the characters are real and believable, even the bad guys. There is suspense and violence, but you feel it as part of the plot, not a separate thing thrown in after the fact to whip things up. If you like technological action thrillers involving the military strategy and intellectual types trying to solve puzzles, you'll like it.

The countdown drags. . . . . ........2006-02-28

I'm probably the only one who will say this but when it comes to this novel, which I give props to the author for creating suspense, it is just too long and drawn out. I think I was at page 350 when I finally couldn't take it anymore and threw the book at the wall. It is good to build up suspense in anovel but, after reading this one, now I know that there is such a thing as too much suspense. As a writer's gimmack, you have to gradually give little hints and problematic, somewhat unescapable events, to the reader giving them just enough to feed off of. That's what drives the reader to progress foward, naturally, because he/she wants to see what happens next. But in this book there are just, dare I say, too many subplots. It almost feels that, when you're reading it, the author piles on different problems and events every ten pages. It just gets plain old tiring. It got me frustrated and I wasn't even in a bad mood. Okay, I can believe that someone was kidnapped and brought out of their house and forced into cutting a thick steel wall that leads to a doomsday machine but does there have to be so much stuff in it. Sure, I could imagine it becoming a movie but I couldn't even finish the book. I even cheated and just read the last page just to satisfy myself. But this is only my opinion. It is probably a really great book. If you have the patience for this author. I'm sure a lot of you out there will. Enjoy!

Before Midnight: A Retelling of "Cinderella" (Once Upon a Time)

Average customer rating:

before midnight
Entaining, just a little slow to get pulled in
before minight
Dokey's Best in the Once Upon a Time Series
Cinderella as we have never seen her before

Before Midnight: A Retelling of "Cinderella" (Once Upon a Time)
Cameron Dokey
Manufacturer: Simon Pulse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1416934715

Book Description

"ONCE UPON A TIME"
IS TIMELESS

Etienne de Brabant is brokenhearted. His wife has died in childbirth, leaving him alone with an infant daughter he cannot bear to name. But before he abandons her for king and court, he brings a second child to be raised alongside her, a boy whose identity he does not reveal.

The girl, La Cendrillon, and the boy, Raoul, pass sixteen years in the servants' care until one day a very fine lady arrives with her two daughters. The lady has married La Cendrillon's father, and her arrival changes their lives.

When an invitation to a great ball reaches the family, La Cendrillon's new stepmother will make a decision with far-reaching effects. Her choice will lead La Cendrillon and Raoul toward their destiny -- a choice that will challenge their understanding of family, test their loyalty and courage, and, ultimately, teach them who they are.

Customer Reviews:

before midnight.......2007-10-09

Before Midnight

Before Midnight is a wonderful retelling of Cinderella. Constanze or Cendrillon was born at midnight and her mother, Constanze died. Her father was away and when he found that his wife was dead. He was very sad.When he got to the big stone house he had a baby boy with him the same age as Cendrillon. He was so sad he didn't come back for a long time.
I found this a very good book! The ending you would never expect but if I told you it wouldn't be a surprise. READ THE BOOK!!!!!!!!

Entaining, just a little slow to get pulled in.......2007-09-28

I am a huge Cinderella fan, and so this book seemed a perfect fit. But the first part of the book was slow reading, and it could have lost slower less dedicated readers. In the end it was worthwhile as a retelling of the classic fairytale, I just doubt that this will become a classic on its own.

before minight.......2007-08-30

i am currently almost finished with this book and love every page! this is kind of a new twist on "Cinderella". the stepmother and stepsisters, upon realizing who she really is, welcome her with open arms. Cendrillon (main chacter) is as gorgous as her mother was. her mother died in childbirth and her father cannot bear to look at her, let alone name her. her real name is Constaze, after her mother, but she was named Cindrillon "child of cinders" by Mathilde, the woman who delievered her.

this book was awsome and i couldn't put it down, which is pretty much the way with all of cameron dokey's other books, although i have to go back and re-read some due to the fact that i could not even get 1/3 of the way through them due to school and work. i am looking forward to her next release.

Dokey's Best in the Once Upon a Time Series.......2007-04-17

I definitely enjoyed reading this book. The descriptions are very elegant, and the entire feeling is moody. The way the author choose to retell Cinderella I have never seen done before, and it was an interesting take. The characters are likable and believable, and you even come to like the evil stepsister. On the down side, the heroin's relationship with the prince is unrealistic and shallow, but I will say that is somewhat typical of this series. In my opinion Snow by Tracy Lynn was better.

Cinderella as we have never seen her before.......2007-03-26

This tale has always been one of my favorite fairy tales and I have loved some of the different renditions of it like "Ever After" and "Diary of an Ugly Stepsister". "Before Midnight" is another great addition to the retellings of Cinderella. In this revision, Constanze de Brabant, or Cendrillion has been abandoned by her father Etienne because of the death of her mother. She is raised in obscurity with a mysterious boy Raoul by Old Mathilde until a noblewoman, Chantal de Saint-Andre, with her two daughters Amelie and Anastasia arrive. Chantal has married Etienne and she is now Cendrillion's stepmother, but Chantal is never told until secrets are discovered. I love the scene where they open Cendrillion's mother's room and see her portrait. Here Chantal exclaims it is so wicked of Etienne to throw away the most precious gift of all, Love. It is also in this scene that Cendrillion gets her wish of having a family at last.
I will not add too many spoilers and explain who Raoul really is and what happens at the "ball" but this tale which emphasizes the importance of embracing love and all the other feelings that come with it; is so lovingly rendered that both young and old romantics will love it.

Average customer rating:

A good Rex Stout
Pick Your Victim
Familiar but delightful!
One of Nero's Best
A firm as client, and a deadline for the case

Before Midnight
Rex Stout
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0553763040
Release Date: 1995-11-01

Customer Reviews:

A good Rex Stout.......2007-01-05

A good Rex Stout. Lots of intrigue. Archie and Nero are up to good stuff here.

Pick Your Victim.......2005-09-13

BEFORE MIDNIGHT

Rex Stout never wrote a dull book in his life, but to love his books you have to really love irascible old Nero Wolfe. Stout's corpus depends on personality to a damaging extent and, granted, while the chemistry between Wolfe and Archie Goodwin is well done (especially in this book, where Archie makes a sizable number of funny wisecracks), it wears thin, now, finally, after seventy years or whatever it is. I know that's sacrilegious to say, but I never got it and now it just seems lame. Why is he so disagreeable? Why is it so hard to pry him out of his apartment? The orchids, the fat, the acerbic wit-are these the decorations an aspiring author hung on his creation to differentiate him from a mass of other sleuths (a la Ariadne Oliver's vegetarian Finn detective, Sven Hjerson) or do they amount to a recognizable personality? For me, no; for millions of other Stout fans, yes indeed.

Heterosexual horndog Archie Goodwin's always hot after the prettiest woman on every case, while Nero Wolfe looks on his progress with a ill-concealed leer. He's into it, but he disguises his lust with a "Pfui!" exclamation. BEFORE MIDNIGHT, from 1955, is the 18th Nero Wolfe novel and, incidentally, the first Wolfe novel that Stout wrote as a follow-up, or maybe a corrective, to his famous "origin story, " THE BLACK MOUNTAIN, in which we found out much more than ever before about Nero Wolfe's Serbian or Montenegro past. The world of advertising into which Stout plunges us in BEFORE MIDNIGHT is almost ludicrously "contemporary," Madison Avenue satire that was so popular in the 1950s, it's almost as though Stout was afraid he had offended his audience with his previous, brooding, "serious" revenge novel and then wanted to make amends by making BEFORE MIDNIGHT more lightweight or at any rate jokey than usual. One million dollars in prizes is a pretty hefty sum, and what it must have been like in 1955 money I don't even like to think! No wonder there are five major suspects and a short list of a few more.

The fact that the victim had all the answers in his wallet, and only in his wallet, and everyone knew it, tweaks the plausibility meter but face it, if it wasn't for this far-fetched circumstance we wouldn't have much of a book now, would we? In fact we love these plots, especially the ones that real life wouldn't countenance. BEFORE MIDNIGHT is one of the best of the bunch. It reminds me of a story that might have been written by another favorite bygone author, Patricia McGerr.

Familiar but delightful!.......2005-08-03

The plot is ingenious, surrounding an advertising agent and its perfume contest. This scenario gives Stout ample opportunity to present greed and jealousy as a motive from suspect to suspect to suspect, and I did find myself wondering "whodunit" and how until the murderer's identity was finally revealed. There's also a wonderfully witty plot twist at the end that made me smile. And I also came away thinking that Robert Parker should curl up with a few Wolfe mysteries. I used to love his Spenser books, but now the banter between Spenser and Hawk and Spenser and Susan has become tired, old, and often childish. Rex Stout manages to take the familiar characters and remain both true to the interpersonal relationships (Wolfe/Archie, Archie/Stebbins, Wolfe/Cramer, etc.) and consistently entertaining and readable. Stout is a master of this genre and perhaps it's unreasonable to expect another author to reach such heights.

One of Nero's Best.......2004-10-06

It would be great to see this one brought to life by A&E (if they had not abandoned one of the classiest TV productions of the last five years). The greatness that was old New York was so deftly portrayed by Rex Stout and, I guess, he could be forgiven for romanticizing it a wee bit.

Live in the ethereal world of orchids, brownstones, fine food and - ahem - no women in his literature.

A firm as client, and a deadline for the case.......2002-02-04

If you're interested in an audio edition, the unabridged recording narrated by Michael Pritchard is good. I look forward to the day A&E adapts it for the TV series.

The advertising firm Lippert, Buff, and Assa (LBA) lost the creativity that made them successful when Lippert died some years ago. Their best hope was a rising young star, Louis Dahlmann, who named a new perfume for Heery Products, Inc., one of their best clients: Pour Amour. He also came up "the biggest prize contest in history": each week for 20 weeks, a new 4-line verse appeared in newspapers and magazines, describing a woman in history known to have used cosmetics. He also wrote the verses to break the first tie (72 people) and now the 2nd and last tie (5 people, who were brought to New York to receive the verses from Dahlmann personally). Unfortunately, along with his creativity, Dahlmann had a wild streak; after handing out the verses, he brandished a paper from his wallet, saying it had the answers, and he mustn't accidentally give it to anyone. Within twelve hours, he was found shot dead in his apartment, the wallet and paper both gone.

The next morning, the members of the firm arrive at Wolfe's office, and they don't care who killed Dahlmann. They want Wolfe to extract them from the wreckage this will make of the contest, by finding out what happened to the paper before midnight, April 20th (the last contestant's deadline), so they can scrap the existing questions and come up with new ones.

But of course, as Inspector Cramer points out soon afterward, it'll be difficult to catch the thief without exposing the murderer.

Amazon.com

Like homemade eggnog with a bite of something stronger, this Christmas-themed thriller by William Bernhardt (best known for his legal thrillers set in Oklahoma City) introduces several thoroughly miserable characters destined to run afoul on Christmas Eve. Carl, an alcoholic ex-cop and ex-husband, rages against his former wife Bonnie and threatens to kill his 7-year-old son Tommy. The police still regard Carl as one of their own, and they won't listen to Bonnie's complaints of violence. Meanwhile, Megan McGee, a lawyer and ex-Episcopalian priest, is delivering Christmas cookies to the elderly, accompanied only by her unwanted roommate, a smelly and drooling bulldog named Jasper. By the time Bonnie catches up with Megan to get a restraining order on Carl, he has abducted Tommy and disappeared. Now, it's up to Megan to track Tommy down before Carl's bloody rantings become reality. The characters reveal more depth than anticipated from a holiday novel, and the chase is especially disturbing set against the backdrop of a quiet city celebrating peace on earth. For those who enjoy seasonal fiction, this fast-paced dose of Christmas thrills will provide a delicious escape after a busy shopping frenzy.

Book Description

Thirtysomething lawyer Megan McGee is facing a quiet Christmas with her bulldog when Bonnie Cantrell, a battered wife, comes looking for legal protection from her violent ex-cop husband, Carl. In a recent bout of rage, Carl vowed to kill their seven-year-old son, Tommy, rather than be separated from the boy. It's no idle threat, either--as Bonnie assures Megan: "He's tried before."

And when Tommy's school unwittingly allows him to leave with his father, Carl gets his chance to try again. Now, with the town all but shut down for the holiday, Megan races against time--and terror--to keep Carl's Christmas Eve jaunt from turning into a slay ride.

Customer Reviews:

The Midnight Before Christmas.......2003-05-06

This story is about a man named Carl. He wanted to see Tommy, his son, for Chritmas Eve but he can't because his ex-wife, Bonnie, got total custody of Tommy. Carl had to find out a way to see his son, so when Bonnie wasn't at the daycare center, Carl got Tommy. Bonnie wasn't there because she had to get a restraining order for Carl not to go by Tommy. When Bonnie found out that Carl had taken Tommy, Bonnie and her lawyer, Megan, went out looking for them and they found them. So Carl took off so the cops didn't get them but he had to go to the hospital because he broke his arm. So when he was an explosion and he ran out of the hospital. When the lawyer found out that Bonnie was trying to kill Carl she was on Carl's side. When Bonnie called Carl on the cell phone she was prentending to be Tommy and she said that he was getting hurt so Carl went to the house with the lawyer and Bonnie had a gun in her hand so Megan knocked it out of her hand and the cops came and got Bonnie. So Carl went home with the lawyer and his son for Christmas.

I would say that the book was okay but there could be more exciting.

A GREAT BOOK!!!!.......2002-05-01

Have read several of Bernhardt's book and I think this is one of his best. Megan McGee is approached by Bonnie Cantrell who wants protection from her ex-husband, Carl Cantrell. She says that Carl has beaten her before and is afraid he will kill their seven year old son. Megan does what she can but she begins to wonder if Bonnie is telling her the truth. The story takes many twist and turns. It will hold your attention, it is short and a quick easy read. Carl tries to get his boy back, he is shot, but by whom? The ending is great and makes you think. A good book.

Fast & Full of Suspense.......2001-11-28

This is a short book that only takes a couple of hours to read, because you just want to keep reading it. It is full of suspense and also a little tear may come at the ending. It is centered around Christmas Eve and the happenings of an Attorney, Mom, Son & Ex Husband. The outside says Holiday Thriller and I would have to agree with this description. This was published in 1998 so should be easy to find at the libary or used book store. Mr. Bernhardt is an attorney, so I am sure that the items about the law are pretty true.

This book gave me hope.......2001-08-25

I love this book it made me believe in the miracle of Christmas! The main character was strong and fascinating and really and angel of mercy! Just when you think you know where this book is going it changes it course. I think this man is an excellent writer and hope to read more books by him!

Short and pleasant.......2001-07-13

All I can say is that this short pleasant story focus the intrigue on the behavior of the characters, (the different members of a typical family) and its plot, fast paced and plenty of action also gives room for some reflections about the meaning of Christmas and the relationship between parents and their children. Finally, after a sudden turn of events disclosing the nature of the mystery, the suspiciously obvious ending comes naturally.

Average customer rating:

Great Author!
Stacey Wyatt Earp?
A Very Forgettable book
An A-Team Gone Bad
Mafia games in Sicily

In The Hour Before Midnight
Jack Higgins
Manufacturer: Books on Tape, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette

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ASIN: 0736604812

Book Description

Stacey Wyatt is a gifted pianist. He is also a competent mercenary soldier. But at the moment, he is sojourning in an Egyptian prison.

Sean Burke has plans to rescue him. Charity is not his motive. He merely needs Stacey for what becomes a deadly intrigue. There is just one hitch.

"An astonishing story of high-action and foreign intrigue. The developing play of confidences leads to an explosive climax unrivaled in the genre." (Reviewer's Weekly)

Download Description

After being out of print for many years, this classic Mafia thriller returns in a new package. When Stacy Wyatt is broken out of prison and brought to Sicily, his only choice is to enter the mob. He is assigned to rescue a wealthy businessman's daughter from a bandit kidnapper. It's only when he's in too deep that he realizes the tables have turned, the job was a setup, and the only person left to trust is himself.

Customer Reviews:

Great Author!.......2006-08-29

We have read about 25 of Jack Higgin's books and love every one of them! We recommend this, and all, of his books for suspense and intrigue!

Stacey Wyatt Earp?.......2004-10-20

Yes, it's a little strange reading a first-person account from an individual who resembles Superman more than Wyatt Earp. Of course, since Wyatt's telling the tale in the first person, he's going to be there standing proudly at the end of the story. The only question is, what happens in the meanwhile. Truly, very little happens.

What was positive about this book was its setting: mostly in Sicily. The author does a good job of describing the geography and people of that island. I read it with an atlas nearby and looked the places up as they were cited. I've never been to Italy, much less Sicily, so this part was interesting.

Otherwise, this novel is entirely "formulaic." Good guy bests all his bad adversaries and runs off into the sunset with the pretty girl.

Do "Higgins fans" enjoy this kind of a formula? Well, I'd say they certainly must, since Higgins is as prolific as a spider monkey and apparently has a large readership.

Me, I think I would get bored reading about "vengeance is mine," saith the hero. In fact, I did get bored reading this book, but I finished it (because I'm not a "quitter," you know, "quitters never win" etc.). Is that formulaic or what?

Well, quitters may never win but they might occasionally find a more interesting book to read than this one by Jack Higgins. However, I'm not giving up on Higgins. I'm going to try another book and see how closely it follows the formula. Diximus.

A Very Forgettable book.......2004-08-16

Having come across this book, I thought I would give it a try. Bad choice on my part. The characters are unbelievable, and the reader continues to think of them as someone in the author's imagination rather than real characters during the story. The author needs to 'know' his subject. With statements such as; "... I learned that I acted instinctively like a real professional who always aims for the shooting hand with his first bullet, knowing that a dying man can still get off a shot at him." Really! Give me a break. A 'professional' is not some John Wayne. A professional shoots for body mass and lots of it. The author has seen too many cowboy movies and totally spoiled this book from page 22 onwards. The characters are totally unbelievable. Not worth the read.

An A-Team Gone Bad.......2001-12-31

Stacey Wyatt had earned his living as a member of a small band of mercenaries who hired out their services. Branching out on his own as a smuggler, he was captured and imprisoned. His old pals show up to break him out for a new assignment, rescuing a kidnapped young woman. The mission takes him back into contact with his Mafia family in Sicily he has not seen for years. Then things get interesting.

Stacey finds himself involved in a high stakes game where it is hard to tell who your friends are and where loyalties lie. There is double dealing from many directions. A string of bodies is left scattered about the landscape as the plot works towards a surprising conclusion.

Mafia games in Sicily.......2001-06-17

This book is supposed to be an oldie and a goodie. Well, it's an oldie. Goodie? OK, it's pretty good, but not spectacular. We enter the lives of an international gang of mercenaries on a special mission to rescue a kidnapped daughter of a multi-millionaire on the island of Sicily. Soon we find out one of our heroes has mafia connections, and the story changes character. This book is a very quick read. The ending was predictable and I never figured out the significance of the title. Several times I cannot figure out what causes our hero to act the way he did.

Before Midnight: A Nero Wolfe Mystery (Stout, Rex)

Average customer rating:

Another Winner
Another Great Stout-Pritchard Collaboration

Before Midnight: A Nero Wolfe Mystery (Stout, Rex)
Rex Stout
Manufacturer: The Audio Partners, Mystery Masters
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: 1572704128

Book Description

In this ingenious whodunit, a perfume company offers a million dollars for correctly identifying certain women in history who used cosmetics. When the advertising genius behind the campaign is murdered and the answers stolen, Nero Wolfe is called in to find both. Archie Goodwin tries bravely to keep Wolfe away from the irritating women involved and focused on the case. But with puzzling phone calls and conflicting instructions from the ad company, it's anybody's guess when — or even if — Wolfe will find the killer.

Customer Reviews:

Another Winner.......2005-10-20

I haven't found a Nero Wolfe mystery that I didn't love. You are totally lost in the story unfolding...

Another Great Stout-Pritchard Collaboration.......2005-09-07

I've wondered whether Michael Pritchard and Rex Stout ever met.

He interprets Stout's work with such insight and feeling. In this book, Stout confronts another of the 1950s institutions: the advertising business and the "big contest" approach to promoting products.

An advertising firm runs a million-dollar contest to promote perfume. The finalists have been asked to determine which perfume-using historical figure is depicted in some rhymes. The writer of the rhymes teases the finalists by flashing the answers, and is later found dead.

It's historically interesting to note that, strictly speaking, Stout anticipated the quiz show scandals a few years after this story's time (1955). To learn more about this, get the wonderful DVD "Quiz Show," which deconstructs this era with great insight and empathy.

But man, that Michael Pritchard. I have some Nero Wolfes read by others, but Pritchard got it right for sure.

Average customer rating:

Before Midnight

Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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ASIN: 0553028316

Product Description

Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Nero Wolfe

Just Before Midnight (Meet Me at Midnight)

Average customer rating:

Don't be misled
Robinson writes great romances

Just Before Midnight (Meet Me at Midnight)
Suzanne Robinson
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Romance | Subjects | Books

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Midnight Mistress (Meet Me at Midnight)

ASIN: 0553579614
Release Date: 2000-02-29

Book Description

It's 1899, and American heiress Mattie Bright is too modern for her own good. Mattie would love to spend her days racing through town in her motorcar. Instead she's in London looking for a husband whose lineage will make her fortune respectable. The only interesting man Mattie has encountered is the handsome Lord Cheyne Tennant--and they've been at war from the moment they met!

No one knows that Cheyne is working with Scotland Yard to catch a blackmailer plaguing London's wealthiest aristocrats. He'll need a daring young woman to help capture the culprit--but no gilded English lily will do. Mattie, with hair black as midnight and a fearless soul to match, is just perfect. But Cheyne doesn't know just how far Mattie will go to find the adventure she craves. And when he finally realizes how much she means to him, it may be too late to protect her....

Look for the other sensational romances in the Meet Me at Midnight series:

Midnight Mistress
by Ruth Owen

A Kiss At Midnight
by Shana Abé

Customer Reviews:

Don't be misled.......2004-02-03

I've spent the afternoon reading reviews of Suzanne Robinson's books around the net and Just Before Midnight is averaging a 'D' or 3/5 or 61/100. It's just not as good as her eralier books.

Robinson writes great romances.......2000-03-01

In 1899 London, Texan Mattie Bright wonders why she ever made that deathbed promise to her father that she would marry an English aristocrat. She knows how much he wanted to break into high society, but the doors remained shut to him. Still, Marriage is the last thing on her mind as she seeks reform such as women's suffrage and would rather enjoy the new inventions that have modernized life (at least for males).

While driving through the city, Mattie almost hits Cheyne Tennant while he is out riding a horse. He thinks she is one of those "New Women" and should take her horrid accent home. She believes he is a stuffy Regency-type aristocrat who would never soil his shirt. However, he turns out to be more than just a nobleman. Cheyne is also a private investigator trying to uncover the identity of the person blackmailing the folks of the upper class. They soon start working together on his case, putting in motion a plan that places Mattie in peril from a dangerous scoundrel.

JUST BEFORE MIDNIGHT is a wonderful historical romantic intrigue that brings the end of the nineteenth century resplendently alive. The story line is fast-paced, filled with action, while providing insight into the waning influence of the English aristocracy to the growing nouveau riche, including expatriate Americans. The lead charcaters are an intrepid couple who seems at first to be opposites, but soon learn they share more than just a deep attraction to one another. Suzanne Robinson rescues readers from the recent wintry weather with this engaging treasure.

Customer Reviews:

Great Suspense.......2007-02-23

Bailey Wells is the personal assistant to bestselling true crime author Paul Ellis. She left her small town behind to go work for him, but now his work is taking her right back home. When Bailey finds Paul's wife murdered in their new home, suspicions arise.

Police detective Steve Burke is called in to investigate the case. Bailey makes an easy suspect. She found the body, and there are those who say her relationship with her boss isn't so professional. Steve isn't sure what to believe just yet, but he knows that he needs to curb his attraction to her before it clouds his judgement.

Clues start falling into Steve's lap, a little too easily. It soon becomes apparent that someone is setting Bailey up for the fall. Trying to find the reason behind Mrs. Ellis' murder will drudge up a mystery from the past and someone who's willing to kill to keep the secret safe.

HOME BEFORE MIDNIGHT is wonderful work of romantic suspense from author Virginia Kantra. I love the edge-of-your-seat action as you're trying to figure out who did it and why. The sexual tension between Bailey and Steve is excellent. They're drawn to each other, but they know they must keep their distance. The double mystery aspect of this mystery makes it all the more exciting. Be sure to get a copy of this one today.

This review was originally posted on The Internet Book Database. [...]

WOW!.......2006-08-09

Virginia Kantra is definitely an author to watch!

Bailey Wells left her hometown of Stokesville, North Carolina to hit it big in the literary world. She returns several years later, not as a successful author, but as an assistant to a true crime writer. Paul Ellis has returned to his wife's hometown to write a book about a gruesome crime that happened over 20 years ago when a 16 year old boy killed his grandmother, his mother, and his sister. They never could have guessed the lengths someone would go to keep the secret of what really happened that night.

When Paul's wife, Helen, turns up dead in their pool, Detective Steve Burke immediately suspects Bailey. He can see that there is something going on between Bailey and Paul and he is surprised by the dissapointment he feels. The more Burke interviews Bailey and Paul, the more he likes Bailey and the less he likes Paul. Soon it becomes clear that there is more at play than just the murder of Helen Stokes-Ellis.

While I absolutely loved the book, the reason I gave it four stars was because it was never made clear who actually killed Helen. I felt like the author killed Helen off specifically so Burke and Bailey could meet, then just let that storyline dribble away with no real resolution to what happened. Aside from that, the relationship between Bailey and Burke and Burke and his daughter, Gabrielle was fabulous.

I definitely recommend this book!

up past midnight.......2006-08-07

Virginia Kantra's HOME BEFORE MIDNIGHT kept me up past midnight. It is a can't-put-down novel--smart, sexy, suspenseful and satisfying. Kantra skillfully intertwines a decades-old mystery with a shocking present-day murder in a small Southern town and creates an appealing, multi-dimensional hero and heroine to lead the reader through the twists and turns. Definitely one of her best.

entertaining small town police procedural amateur sleuth tale .......2006-08-02

Bailey Wells left her small hometown of Stokesville, North Carolina hoping to become a success in the literary world, but for the past two years she has served as the research and editorial assistant to renowned mystery author Paul Ellis. Now her boss is leaving New York City to relocate in the hometown of his wife Helen, also Stokesville. Half in love with her employer, Bailey agrees to accompany them when they move to the south.

However, instead of a welcome homecoming, Bailey finds the murdered body of Helen floating in the pool of their new home. Local police detective, widower and single father of a preadolescent daughter Gabrielle, Steve Burke heads the investigation, but he immediately notices that Bailey is attracted to her employer as she tries to protect him. Though he wants Bailey, Steven remains professional as she is one of the two prime suspects, the spouse being the other, in what looks increasingly like a crime of passion. Unbeknownst to either of the pair someone wants the truth involving a 1987 homicide to remain buried and if more must die so be it.

HOME BEFORE MIDNIGHT is an entertaining small town police procedural amateur sleuth tale though some might quiver that Bailey is a pro with her research into criminology. The story line is filled with action, but is driven by the triangular relationship between the author, the cop, and the researcher. The whodunit is cleverly developed to insure that Bailey and Paul are the prime suspects, which leads to Steve struggling to control his desire for the woman. Fans will enjoy Virginia Kantra's fine regional romantic mystery.

Harriet Klausner

Average customer rating:

Home Before Midnight
Bobby Lewis
Manufacturer: William Morrow & Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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