Hello, Darkness

Rating:
Summary: Very Disappointed
Review: I was very disappointed with this book. I have dearly loved most of Sandra Brown's books so I couldn't believe it when this one was a clunker. I felt like I was reading a Mary Higgins Clark book because of the way it skipped around to so many different characters. And then it wasn't nearly as good as Mary Higgins Clark's mysteries. I would rather read a book from the viewpoint of one or two people so that I can really get to know them and feel their emotions. The way this was written, I didn't care about any of the characters at all. I just hope her next book is back to her regular standards.

Rating:
Summary: Thank Goodness
Review: I was shocked at how much I disliked Brown's last book, "The Crush." I was afraid she'd lost her edge. With "Hello, Darkness," she was redeemed in my eyes. Is it the best she's ever written? No, but it was classic Sandra Brown. The ending was the best...It bounces you back and forth between suspects like a ping-pong ball until you're not sure WHO did it. I have no problem recommending this one.

Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Read
Review: Paris Gibson, a popular radio personality, receives a call on her show by a man known only as Valentino, who tells her that he has kidnapped his girlfriend (who called previously on her show for advice about their dysfunctional relationship) and will kill her in 72 hours. He then threatens to come after Paris herself. She reports the call to the police and they race to beat the clock in order to find the identity of the victim and catch the psycho before it is too late. During her search, Paris is reunited with a former lover, Dean Malloy, who is now a psychologist working for the police department. Paris is also haunted by disturbing events from her past, a past she'd like to forget. As events unfold, the identity of the victim in revealed, as well as many of her secrets, such as an internet Sex Club, of which she is one of the founding members. Among the suspects-- a sex-crazed dentist with a taste for high school girls; Dean's son Gavin, who had a relationship with the victim who unexpectedly dumped her for an older man, and who is also an active member of the Sex Club; a janitor working for the radio station who suddenly splits before he can be questioned; the nephew of the radio station's owner, who has a history of sexually harassing women; and a young cop working for the computer crimes unit who, after work, likes to indulge at Sex Club meetings.
This book is sure to hit the bestseller lists, an excellent novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout. Although the characters, especially Paris, don't seem to be fully realized, the fast-paced, suspenseful twists will keep your mind off of the book's weaknesses. You'll be up all night, anxious to reach the end and find out who has been committing the crimes. Mrs. Brown is a master of romantic suspense-- just when you think you have finally figured it out, something else is revealed that makes you reassess your decision. I recommend this book with all my heart and anxiously await Mrs. Brown's next masterpiece of suspense.

Rating:
Summary: More Mystery than Romance
Review: This is my 6th Sandra Brown book I've read and I loved it. Envy was my first and I thought if all SB books are like this one I'm gonna read them all. It seems that the first one you read always ends up being your favorite..so far nothing has surpassed by opinion of Envy. Hello, Darkness has a very addictive plot and I could hardly put it down. Much more mystery than passion. I was slightly disappointed that the romance was so sparce because these characters had such a connection but I think the storyline and the fact that Dean and Paris had a history made it necessary. Each book has a uniqueness I admire. Overall worth every penny for a hardcover.

Rating:
Summary: Better than usual
Review: I thought this book was much better than all of Sandra Brown's other books. I almost didn't read it because she doesn't thrill me much anymore but the library had it so I thought "why not" It was one the best books I have read awhile.

Rating:
Summary: Maybe not Brown's best but still worth 4 stars!
Review: I am a huge fan of Sandra Brown and I freely admit that I enjoy all of her books. Hello Darkness is no exception altho not a 5 star story it is most surely worth 4 stars make no mistake about it! Buy it and judge for yourself.

Rating:
Summary: Not Sandra's Best Work
Review: I had read some of the reviews here on Amazon before I purchased the book and so I wasn't totally surprised when the book did not deliver. I agree that the characters were not fully developed. The story was interesting and there were lots of suspects up into the end, but the end was anti-climatical in my opinion. By the time we got to the killer I'd lost interest. I love Sandra Brown's work and will continue to read her books but this one was just a so-so read.

Rating:
Summary: Did Sandra even write this?
Review: Like most of the people who have reviewed this book I am a huge Sandra Brown fan. I have all of her books and love her writing style. Having said that, I refuse to believe that Sandra Brown wrote Hello, Darkness. The book is an absymal disaster with horrible character development and a plot that is neither romantic nor suspenseful.
As a heroine, Paris is not up to the standards of Brown's past female leads. Jade in Breathe of Scandal, Lara in Where There's Smoke, and Claire in French Silk were all heroines with dimension, substance and plausibility. As a character, Paris seemed stiff, one-dimensional, and fake. I did, however, like Dean. Dean was a character with good qualities and great potential, but it was never realized or explored. The other characters were all sterotypes: The rich party girl, kindly sergeant, teenage boy with an attitude, ex-con trying to reform, etc. The secondary characters in a Brown novel are usually as well-crafted as the leads, yet that is not so in this novel. I hardly knew the characters and had no reason to care about them.
The way that the book was written was the provocation for this review. Sandra Brown has never written in this style before. The book is written almost condesendingly; as if the audience is not intellegent enough to read between the lines and catch the nuances in the dialogue. The reasons for every character action are spelled out and the emotions of every character are described, not shown. The style of this book does not sound like Brown's unique style. It sounds like something a college freshman in a writing course could have written. Brown's older books are written with more romance, suspense and character development. This book was not up to par. Bring back books like Envy, Slow Heat in Heaven, and Fat Tuesday!

Rating:
Summary: A Great Romantic Suspense
Review: This novel is written at an excellent pace that held my attention from page one. Kept me guessing who the killer was. Just when I thought I'd figured it out, I was wrong. Really enjoyable read and highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Romantic suspense novel
Review: Paris Gibson is a late-night DJ who works hard to forget her unhappy past. Her fiance was injured in an unfortunate car accident and Paris faithfully visited him in a nursing home until his death. She dispenses friendly advice to her listeners when they call in, but her advice backfires when a girl she talks to decides to break up with her boyfriend. The boyfriend, calling himself Valentino, calls Paris and threatens to kill both the girlfriend and Paris. The police are called in on the case and one of them, Dean Malloy, proves to be a man from Paris's past. Adding to the complications, Dean's rebellious son Gavin has come to live with him and he is soon in trouble with the police. Brown manages to untangle the web she has woven and throws out a lot of red herrings before the eventual murderer is identified. This is not as scarey as some books of this genre, but it's still a pretty good read.