Murder

Like Iris Johansen's books very much and this one does not disappoint. It has action, a bit of romance and a whole lot of suspense. ( )

So, started out pretty cheesy and a bit choppy, but got better. I've read it twice now, so that is a pretty good sign... I think? ( )

The plot involves Bess "falling in love" (my words) with an infant and risking her life (and the lives of others) for this random child. Yes, no civilized person wants innocent babies to die but Bess felt it was OK for others to die to save the baby. Is this what real women do, Iris? Is this what real caring human beings do? It was simply absurd. One scene made me laugh (so as not to cry) out loud. Bess, a prisoner in a hospital where she's been strapped to her bed, manages to find herself free from her bonds. Her evil captor is in the room. Bad guys lurk on every floor. What does she do? She jumps out of bed and smacks him with a bedpan (twice, for good measure). Of course, she doesn't kill him and of course, his minions grab her and strap her to the bed again. Wow. Awesome plan. Good thinking, Bess. I sneered and laughed and then realized Bess's solution had all the qualities of an impulsive toddler - uncontrolled emotions and very short range planning. I think that is when I lost all hope and started truly despising this character. Then, it got really bad...

Hope if you still want to suffer through this, that I didn't give away too much of the plot. I can't remember ever reading a book that I truely loathed, but this was it. ( )

Bess Grady is a photojournalist traveling in Mexico with her sister Emily. They reach the town on Tejano and find everyone except for an infant dead. The sisters are seperated and the mysterious figure of Kaldak appears to Bess. A decent thriller. There wasn't a ton of character development and Bess was really annoying at times. ( )