Title: Judgment Day
Author: Wanda L. Dyson
Publisher: WaterBrook Multnomah
ISBN: 9781400074754
Summary from Publisher's Website:
The weekly cable news show Judgment Day with Suzanne Kidwell promises to expose businessmen, religious leaders, and politicians for the lies they tell. Suzanne positions herself as a champion of ethics and morality with a backbone of steel—until a revelation of her shoddy investigation tactics and creative fact embellishing put her in hot water with her employers, putting her credibility in question and threatening her professional ambitions..
Bitter and angry, Suzanne returns home one day to find an entrepreneur she is investigating, John Edward Sterling, unconscious on her living room floor. Before the night is over, Sterling is dead, she has his blood on her hands, and the police are arresting her for murder. She needs help to prove her innocence, but her only hope, private investigator Marcus Crisp, is also her ex-fiancé–the man she betrayed in college.
Marcus and his partner Alexandria Fisher-Hawthorne reluctantly agree to take the case, but they won’t cut Suzanne any slack. Exposing her lack of ethics and the lives she’s destroyed in her fight for ratings does little to make them think Suzanne is innocent. But as Marcus digs into the mire of secrets surrounding her enemies, he unveils an alliance well-worth killing for. Now all he has to do is keep Suzanne and Alex alive long enough to prove it.
My Review:
First, let me start by saying that the summary from the publisher's site as well as that printed on the rear book jacket aren't exactly accurate. The storyline, yes, but the character found in Suzanne's living room isn't Sterling, entrepreneur. (Sterling is a character, but he's a senator instead.) A different character crosses into the mix, and I quite like the difference! Still, this is a little bit annoying and will hopefully be rectified on subsequent printings.
Now that I have that out of the way...
This story is a fantastic read! From the very beginning the author throws you straight into the action. The method of character development also helps give the reader very strong opinions of the characters from the get go. You'll dislike arrogant Suzanne. You'll fall for root for lovable Marcus. And Alex... she's just the kind of girl we all want to be. Strong, smart, and capable yet vulnerable. Character and action: these two pieces add up to a great read that sucks you in, turns you about, and keeps you coming back until you finish. (I finished in 2.5 days... and I'm a mom with limited reading time. A car trip and late night did help, but I just couldn't stand it until I finished!)
This book is most definitely a thriller, but I appreciated the tact used by the author when delivering difficult details or when turning up the action a notch. It was moving and thrilling, yet I would feel comfortable with my teen reading this book. You'll quickly have your suspicions about the characters involved but keep reading, but it doesn't deter your interest. The story goes deeper. There is enough mystery to get you thinking, but the focus is on the action and the details of decisions, moves, counter moves, and discoveries.
Despite all of the glowing I can say that I would have liked a few more characters, such as Razz, to have a little more development. Maybe I was just drawn to him because my husband is a techie guy. Still, all in all, great read!
Rating: 4 Stars! I really enjoyed this book, and I will be passing it on to one (or two) family members. I didn't rate it as a 5 star read simply because I won't read it again after discovering the ending. But, I am planning to read more of Ms. Dyson's books though... :)
*Disclaimer: I was given a free copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah in exchange for my review. (Check out the Blogging for Books link to join me!)
No comments:
Post a Comment