Rating: 
Summary: Wicked, not Wild
Review: Ms. Quick's lastest is an interesting re-work of some of her favorite themes. Enjoyable, but nothing new for a die-hard fan. Enjoy the good read, but don't expect to find any new quirks to grab a hold of your interest.
Rating: 
Summary: It was somewhat predictable but
Review: I enjoyed it and read it in a day. I have now read all of her books and enjoyed them all. I know I'll have to wait a long time to get my "Quick fix" but she's always worth the wait.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Up to Snuff
Review: Having just finished re-reading Scandal, Desire, and Deception, I settled down with Wicked Widow with anticipation. Before the end of the first 100 pages, I was wondering if Amanda Quick was on sabbatical and a high school creative writing student had taken her place. Where, I wondered, is the richness and fun of her previous books? Reading Wicked Widow was like a eating a TV dinner when I expected at least a respectable repast. Compared to Quick's previous works, Widow is flaccid, catchpenny and slipshod. Where are her usually wonderfully developed characters? The satisfyingly thick plots with lots to chew on? By the time I finished it, I wanted to call up Jayne Krentz (the real Amanda Quick) and ask her "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?"As for the Wicked Widow, the Quick fan is better served going back to her previous novels, which are funny, romantic and fulfulling. Wicked Widow is not up to the Quick standard.
Rating:
Summary: Vanza Again!
Review: This book suffers from too much Vanza, and not enough character development of the herione. I've read every Amanda Quick and this one seems like a re-hash of one of her prior books.
Rating: 
Summary: She's such a good writer, why is she recycling?
Review: Amanda Quick can write such wonderful books, but sheesh! I am DONE reading about ancient civilizations and spunky Regency misses. I liked about ten of her books, loved three but lately it's the same old thing with different names. If this is your first Quick book, hurrah! you'll like it, just be warned that the last three or four are exactly the same story.
Rating:
Summary: Not quite classic Quick
Review: This latest Quick novel is heavier on intrigue/plot. I was pulled along by the uncertainty of the real identity of the villain, but like other readers, I had seen this plot in action before. The intrigue plot forms the backbone of this book more than other Quick books. The heroine's dead husband's ghost is supposedly haunting her, she seeks help from the hero for this and other issues. The hero is pursuing a vengeance of his own. Most of the book is spent on one of these two aspects. The romance aspect of Wicked Widow was curiously played down, I'm not sure why. Their relationship was beleivable, but lacked the 'one true love' feeling I expect from a romance novel. They seemed to be two nice people with awful pasts who make a nice relationship. The Vanza aspect will probably turn off some people. I found it less annoying in this book than in I Thee Wed, but certainly not as well done as in Deep Waters (writing as Jayne Ann Krentz). In Deep Waters, the psuedo-martial art formed a major part of the hero's character-it gave him an identity and workable approach to life. Although the hero in Wicked Widow is a master of Vanza, and the heroine studied it under her father (and strangly associates every Vanza practicioner with her insane dead husband instead of with her beloved, deceased father), the philosophy seems more a plot devce than a character philosophy. That said, this Quick book was much better written in my opinion, than the past several. It was beleivable for the most part (except the demises of the hero's revenge plot, which was dropped rather abruptly) and I found myself caught up, wanting to know what happened next. Also, Quick has supplied some fun secondary characters-she's excellent at them. These characters are as good and fun as early, classic Quick. The new plot had enough twists to it that I still wasn't sure how it would turn out, and the dialogue was snappy. I wish she would consider trying out a new angle though. I wasn't as frustrated with this book ( I was with her last couple). Wicked Widow provided me with a comfortable and enjoyable couple of hours. I hope she makes some changes though, especially with her character types (maybe the hero could be quirky, spunky, and fun and the heroine could be stoically bent on revenge and honor). It's not that I don't like them so much-it's that she seems bored with them. I recommend this book to those who enjoy comfortable reads. There are no surprises here, but instead a steady (if not spectacular) enjoyment.
Rating:
Summary: Vanza, Vanza, Vanza!
Review: I completely agree with the reader who said the incessant references to Vanza got on her nerves. I noticed that immediately and thought it was one of the biggest flaws in the book. This was my first Amanda Quick, so I can't compare it to her other works. I found the dialog very uneven: at times Quick approximated a Regency tone very well, and then in the next sentence she'd switch to 20th century American idioms. The book as a whole was just okay--nothing to indicate to me why the author is so popular, but on the other hand the novel had a certain charm, so I didn't hate it. Unfortunately, though, it never lived up to the promise of the first few pages, the ones that are excerpted by the on-line booksellers.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully WICKED!
Review: Madeline Deveridge, better know as the Wicked Widow, has been rumored to have murdered her husband. Now one year later she is supposedly 'haunted' by her dead husbands ghost and she seeks out Artemis Hunt, owner of the Dream Pavilions and a master in the art of Vaanza; an ancient society of illusions and self-mastery, to help her find he truth behind his 'death'. They both become involved in a mystery of ancient beliefs and books from an arcane society that someone wants to have to themselves and use for evil doings. Because Madeline's dead husband was insane with his beliefs in this society, she thinks that he has come back from the dead to seek revenge and kill everyone in her family. What they find is suprising and they also find love between them that they didn't think could be possible. Madeline and Artemis are very storng and complicated people, but they are made for each other. This is a definite keeper. If you can, get all of Ms. Quick's books. Wicked Widow is number 16 in her regency-romance mysteries. They are all well worth the reading! Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: An absolute dead BORE!
Review: I have read all of the Quick novels. Each had a certain flair with a touch of humor. The heroines are sharp and spunky, the hero's are always running from some painful past. While her plots are not always original, they are an engagingly light read. Wicked Widow, however, has no sparks between the main characters. I was hard pressed to believe that they ever could become friends. Nothing in their behavior or dialog truly led to their relationship. Neither are sympathetic characters. They are cold and flat. Less than 2-dimensional, if there is such a thing. Artemis and Madeline do not come alive in this story at all. His revenge plot only ends because his relationship with Madeline has begun. Another reviewer pointed to his very calm discussions with his lover's murderers. This is not the action of an upset man. Madeline's ghost problems were clearly started after other events, yet she talks about it starting 6 months prior to the story's beginning! The biggest irritation was the constant reference to Vanza. It's on every page! This is a poor mixture of Zen Buddhism, Martial Arts and herbalism and frankly, it gets on the nerves. I had hoped not to see anymore of it after "I Thee Wed". It is also annoying to see references to her other books. I personally prefer to think of each book as its own entity, existing in a vacuum. Amanda Quick novels should not be a series, the characters do not warrant it. For a better Quick experience, I strongly suggest "Ravished" or "Deception".
Rating:
Summary: Check it out in the library!
Review: I was very diappointed with this book. Usually I can't put an Amanda Quick book down, and I read them over and over. Not so with this one. The characters are not as sharp and witty as in other Quick books. Vanza is WAY overdone here. There is very little sexual chemistry between the main characters.. and the "scenes" are not worth the pages they're written on.
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