Rating: 
Summary: Lack of substance and interest
Review: I've read one other Stone Barrington book and enjoyed it, so I was looking forward to Cold Paradise - what a waste of time. This book read like an Archie McNally novel - light, fluffy, no "thrill factor" at all. I knew from the beginning how it was all going to turn out. If you enjoy reading fluff, you'll love it. If you're looking for a story with some substance, however, skip this one. It's not worth your time.
Rating:
Summary: Lack of substance and interest
Review: I've read one other Stone Barrington book and enjoyed it, so I was looking forward to Cold Paradise - what a waste of time. This book read like an Archie McNally novel - light, fluffy, no "thrill factor" at all. I knew from the beginning how it was all going to turn out. If you enjoy reading fluff, you'll love it. If you're looking for a story with some substance, however, skip this one. It's not worth your time.
Rating:
Summary: Same Old, Same Old
Review: If you have read previous Books in the Stone Barrington series, don't pay much to read this one. It's the same old story; rich clients, gourmet food, fast cars, hot broads. On the other hand, what's wrong with that story? Barrington, who eats incessantly, never exercises but never gains weight, is in Palm Beach cavorting with characters from previous Woods' novels. Woods even brings back some dead characters rather than bother writing something new. Unless you are new to the series, pass on the rehash.
Rating: 
Summary: ANOTHER GREAT STONE BARRINGTON MYSTERY!
Review: In "Cold Paradise," New York private lawyer and ex-cop, Stone Barrington, is back and is in Palm Beach, Florida! He has been sent there by technology millionaire, Thad Shames. Stone's job is to try and find a gorgeous woman who Thad saw a couple weeks earlier. She told Thad her name was Liz, but left no number or address. Stone finds Thad's mystery woman coincidentally. Her real name is Allison Manning! For all you Barrington fans you'll recognize that name from "Dead In The Water," previous Stuart Woods novel. Stone had a relationship with her in St. Marks and she was found guilty of a crime and sentenced to be hung. Somehow Allison got off and has returned to the states. Stone is shocked to see her and is even more shocked to hear that her husband Paul Manning, who was presumed dead in St. Marks is stalking her! Paul was have thought to have been killed and thrown overboard on the Manning's private yacht in St. Marks. Both Mannings participated in an insurance scam, which Allison ended up getting. Weird, huh? Anyway, while Stone is trying to protect Allison from crazy Paul, he also has to keep control of his hormones. Callie, a striking beautiful woman, who works for Shames, is totally infactuated by Barrington and good old Arrington, (Stone's ex-wife), also shows up in the picture, like she always does. If that isn't confusing enough, our favorite little lady, Dolce Bianchi, returns. Dolce is Stone's other ex-wife, who is extremely psychotic. The ending of this novel was very exciting and very well written. The only reason I gave "Cold Paradise" four stars instead of five was because I thought that the way Stone met up with Allison was extremely too coincidental. I thought Mr. Woods could have made that part more believeable. Overall, this is a fun, worthwile read!
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good...
Review: It took me a bit to read this book. I am not one to sit and read books in one sitting, like some people. But anyway, this book was good. I enjoyed the plot, the characters blended great! The climax was what I expected...at the end of your seat kinda ending...I have read a lot of Woods work, and I will continue to do so in the future.
Rating:
Summary: COLD PARADISE - Strong chilly mystery
Review: Legal investigator and confirmed bachelor Stone Barrington heads for Palm Beach to help his ultra wealthy client find the woman of his dreams. Stone, a lawyer by day and a lady's man by night, has to balance this investigation with the sudden appearance of two former girlfriends, an ex-wife, and of course, a new female companion. One of his former flames, Allison Manning, also hires Stone to find the man of her dreadful dreams, her estranged husband whom she thinks is stalking her. Stone enlists the help of his former partner, New York City cop Dino Bacchetti, who jets to the Gold Coast with his golf clubs in tow. With his sidekick, Stone goes about solving the murderous mysteries lurking around Lake Worth. Palm Beach and COLD PARADISE becomes ground zero for the appearance of several former book series characters, from girlfriends to villains, both alive and from the dead. For series aficionados, its delightful to have them back for a culminating gala event on the intercostal waterways of paradise. But you don't have to read all of Stone Barrington's former cases and conquests to enjoy the warm mysteries of COLD PARADISE. Its clever story, with charismatic and endearing characters, stands tall on its own.
Rating:
Summary: Fun read
Review: Like all Stone Barrington novels this was an enjoyable read for a day at the beach. Also like all Stone Barrington novels it is very superficial and not very deep. The characters, including Stone, are all one dimensonal and the plot is fairly flimsy with a predictable ending. Yet despite these flaws it is still an enjoyable book. I guess the secret to his success is that the reader gets to live vicariously through Stone who basically has it all. Basically it is a "trashy" mystery novel, but a fun and easy read.
Rating:
Summary: Cold Decadence
Review: Meet Stone Barrington, a Bond-like attorney/investigator/playboy with exquisite taste and dangerous habits. In Cold Paradise by Stuart Woods, Barrington suffers through another New York winter, but his outlook improves dramatically upon meeting billionaire software tycoon Thad Shames. Shames has fallen hopelessly in love with a mysterious woman named Liz after meeting her only once, and hires Barrington to find her. The only lead Barrington has is that she lives in exotic Palm Beach, so Barrington takes up residence on Shames' 240-foot yacht off the Florida coast, where he is soon ensnared in a web of conspiracy and murder. Cold Paradise is the seventh novel in the Stone Barrington series, first introduced with 1992's New York Dead. Woods is an amazingly prolific writer, having already published dozens of novels and two books of non-fiction. One of his previous novels, Dead in the Water, provides the back-story for Cold Paradise. The first seventy pages of Cold Paradise moves well, as Dead in the Water's Allison Manning reappears after swindling twelve million dollars in an insurance scam. The book is peppered with clever dialogue between Barrington and his sidekick Bachetti, and the setting is vivid, for Woods has an uncanny gift of making the wealthy decadence of Palm Beach come alive. There are plot and character problems, however, starting with an inexplicable coincidence: Allison Manning is Shames's Liz. She is also Barrington's former client and lover, so things get complicated; Allison still lusts for Barrington, but so does every other woman in Cold Paradise. Before long Palm Beach is crawling with Barrington's girlfriends, past and present, and one needs a libretto to keep them straight. This leads to another problem--the author's inability to develop female characters. The two female leads, Allison and Callie, seem incapable of doing anything meaningful, their lives limited to shopping, cooking, and bed hopping. Barrington's ex-wife Dolce (Italian for 'sweet') wants to kill him for reasons unknown, yet readers can safely assume that her psychotic state was induced by Barrington's sexual persona. Midway through the novel, there is a second case of mistaken identity that has no real function in the story except to distract the reader and waste a hundred pages. One wonders if Woods has been influenced by filmmaker David Lynch with his constant manipulation of identity, yet where Lynch dazzles his audience with a unique vision, Woods merely irritates his readers with trivial nonsense. The discriminating reader may soon tire of the crass materialism in the book; conspicuous consumption abounds, with many references to luxury cars (Shames orders three Mercedes convertibles for his house guests), jewelry (Allison impulsively buys a $30,000 necklace) and designer wardrobes (the working-class Bachetti inexplicably goes shopping for an Armani suit). Woods's style in Cold Paradise is infected with narcissism, and readers may feel little empathy for these characters. One can argue that books like Cold Paradise shouldn't be held to the same critical standard as more 'serious' fiction. If the author's intention is 'fiction light' (the argument goes), then critical standards must be adjusted or even ignored. Cold Paradise thrives in that curious realm of books targeted for beachcombers and frequent flyers. Undoubtedly Woods is mining this market.... Cold Paradise will appeal to past readers of the Barrington series; there is a formula at work here that is undeniably successful. In addition to the faithful, the book will attract the Wish-I-Were-Rich crowd, who can, at least vicariously, live the good life between the pages of this novel.
Rating: 
Summary: STONE IS BACK IN A WEAK NOVEL
Review: Millionaire Thad Shames needs the help of ex-cop - turned lawyer Stone Barrington. After meeting the woman of his dreams a party, Thad is immediately infatuated, but after she disappears, Thad enlists the help of Stone to find the mysterious woman known only as 'Liz'. Stone looks at his new assigment as a vacation, go to the ritzy Palm Beach; look for this woman named 'Liz', get paid, and go home. But shortly after arriving in Palm Beach, his vacation is turned into a nightmare, when a client from his past appears. Allison Manning was a client of Stone's (Dead In The Water), being accused of murdering her husband Paul, and insurance fraud, Allison had Stone defend her, and unfortunately she was found guilty and sentenced to death, but fortunately she got off, only to disappear...and then re-appear (a few years later) in Palm Beach, this time around she goes by the name 'Liz'. Shocked by seeing Allison, Stone is about to enter into a maze of deception. It seems Allison needs Stone's help, once again, to settle some old business, business that comes in the form of her supposed LATE husband Paul, who also happens to be in Palm Beach. Stone must help Allison settle the score with Paul, and this will prove to be a difficult task, for Paul is a three time murderer, and he has attempted to kill Stone in the past. Stone must use his razor sharp wit, and with the help of his detective friend Dino, he has to stay one step ahead of everyone, because one wrong move could be his last. 'Cold Paradise' is a weak entry in the bestselling Stone Barrington series. Combining too many characters, and plot themes from previous novels, 'Cold Paradise' becomes hard to follow, and the plot twists are so transparent you can see them coming a mile away. Stuart Woods, being one of my favorite authors, has written much better novels; where most of his novels are suspenseful, this one is silly; with characters, and plot twists that are too conveniently connected. 'Cold Paradise' will disappoint fans of Mr. Woods previous thrillers. Nick Gonnella
Rating:
Summary: Predictable!
Review: Not his best work but an enjoyable,quick read. This is one of those books that you figure out very early. You continue to read to see how the author actually brings it all together.
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