The Second Time Around

Rating:
Summary: Mary Higgins Clark Excels With Novel Of Medical Fraud
Review: I am a huge Mary Higgins Clark fan, and although this book was most enjoyable, I may have reached the end of my fascination for the "young girl in jeopardy" plot MHC has so successfully mastered. After more than twenty novels following the same basic pattern, the plots have become a little too familiar, the ending a bit too predictable.

With that being said, I still enjoyed this one. The deception and suspense were first-rate as always and the idea of corporate fraud very timely. The charismatic Nicholas Spencer who is determined to develop his vaccine that cures cancer is larger-than-life. Readers are drawn to him as we learn about his first wife's ill-fated battle with cancer and his concern for his own son and the millions of children he wants to save from the heartbreak of losing a parent to cancer.

Investigative reporter Carley DeCarlo is the heroine who has not only a professional interest in the disappearance of Nicholas Spencer but also a personal one. She is the stepsister of his second wife and wants to either clear his name of the fraud he is accused of or be satisfied that he did indeed loot the company and offer false hope to patients.

Carley is led on a hot trail of clues as she tries to establish Spencer's guilt or innocence while a disturbed killer who lost money on the vaccine methodically kills every person he feels has committed an injustice against him.

Watching the threads come together and uncovering the a world of medical fraud and financial manipulation is interesting, but it is the cancer patients themselves who make this book tug at your heartstrings. A young girl and a grown man find new life thanks to Spencer's vaccine, but others will fall hard as the truth comes to light.

Meanwhile, Carley's own tragic past is revealed and a new love gives her support and hope as she discovers love the second time around.

Rating:
Summary: Slightly disappointing...but a great beach or airplane book!
Review: OK -it was much better than "Daddy's Little Girl", which I found totally disappointing but it did not measure up to some of Mary Higgin's Clark earlier mysteries (such as "All around the Town" and "Loves Music, Loves to Dance").

This is the story of Carly DeCarlo, a financial advice columnist turned investigative reporter, and her quest for the truth about the suspicious disappearance of Nicholas Spencer, the head of medical research company "Gen-stone". Nicholas Spencer, who also happens to be her stepsister's husband, has claimed to develop a revolutionary vaccine that could cure cancer as well as other genetic abnormalities. His company was built on this premise and many stockholders were attracted with hopes of curing family members. Even Carly was convinced to invest $25,000 in memoriam to her son Patrick, who died from birth defects as a baby. So when evidence of embezzlement surfaced with the alleged death of Nicholas Spencer, the stockholders were in an outrage and even speculated that Spencer's disappearance was staged. Carly's reporting assignment led her to investigate the truth behind these allegations.

On a positive note, I must admit that the writing style was fascinating and led to a fast read (I finished the book in 1 ½ days!). Mary Higgins Clark intermingled the well-crafted first-person narrative that she attempted in DADDY'S LITTLE GIRL with sporadic chapters of 3rd-person narrative which were more in line with her earlier novels. The prose kept me on my toes and engrossed throughout the story. I just found Carly's character a bit unbelievable - how does one go from financial advice columnist to brilliant investigative reporter so quickly? The plot and the isssues the story dealt with (i.e. medical research, corporate sabotage, etc.) were interesting enough, but...I don't know - the characters and even the ending kind of left me flat!

However, if you need an intriguing book to bring on an airplane or to read at the beach or by the pool, this book might be for you. It goes by fast and, if you don't have any interruptions, you could probably finish it in one gulp!

Rating:
Summary: It was good but....
Review: Not one of her best. It has the usual MHC twists and turns but just not as many as I am used to from her. I still read it in less then a week and is worth the time if you do choose to read it.

Rating:
Summary: Good Read
Review: ISBN: 0743206061
Title: The Second Time Around
Author: Mary Higgins Clark
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Clark Pens another bestseller with her novel "The Second Time Around." Suspense builds as investigative reporter Carley DeCarlo delves into the mysterious events surrounding the reported disappearance and possible death of Nicholas Spencer, head of prominent medical research company. Diligent digging into rumors of the failure of Gen-Stone's cancer cure convince Carley that the rumors are false and that something sinister is afloat. Mary Higgins Clark is a master at creating page turners, and "The Second Time Around" is no exception.
Beverly J Scott author of "Righteous Revenge" and "Ruth Fever." Reviewer for Intriguing Authors and Their Books at http://www.funeralassociates.com/authors.htm

Rating:
Summary: Back to her old style of writing!!!
Review: I was so glad to get this book and to see that my favorite author is back to writing in the style I have come to love. The last two novels by her have deviated from that style a bit, and while they were good, they were not as riveting and outstanding as all the others are.

This one will keep you guessing. That is the Mary Higgins Clark I have come to love. I am fortunate, her schedule of putting new books out the last 5 or so years, has been right around Christmas and right around my Birthday! :0)

Mary is truly a nice lady (I had the priveledge to meet her once) and is one of the best authors of our time, in my opinion. Suspense/mystery lovers will enjoy this read, but I warn you, it is hard to put down once you start.

Rating:
Summary: Not a typical MHC story
Review: This book was very boring and predictable. I have read many MHC books and will not read another for a while. One thing that may have helped this story was to develop the love relationship more than an occasional dinner or phone call. I usually cannot predict the outcome of her stories, but this one I new early on.

Rating:
Summary: She's written better.
Review: I am an avid Mary Higgins Clark fan, but was some what disappointed with this novel. She writes it in 1st and 3rd person, which is confusing to say the least. Although the twist at the end is typical MHC, I just really cannot say that this is her best work, because I have read much better from her. However, I still LOVE Mary Higgins Clark.

Rating:
Summary: Mary's a good writer
Review: I just finished reading this suspensful story. I couldn't put this book down. Carley figures out the plot to scam people out of their hard earned money. She then encounters a man stalking her. She comes in contact with a mad man. Will she live or die? Does she get along with her STEP sister?

Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing
Review: I have read all of MHC's books and I would swear on a stack of them that she did not write this book. It just isn't her style at all. It was sporadic, poorly written, the characters lacked the usual development, and the plot was boring. I am so disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: She's lost it
Review: I used to enjoy Mary Higgins Clark immensely and rushed for every new book as soon as it came out, but it seems Ms. Higgins Clark has lost her "bite". The past few (for instance, the one I'm reading now "The Second Time Around") has none of the her "page turner, edge-of-your-seat" thrills that her past books have had. In fact, I can't remember the last book I read that I really enjoyed.