I'd Kill for That

Rating:
Summary: Great summer read!
Review: Gryphon Gate is an affluent gated community in the rich part of Maryland. This waterfront property of mini-mansions is home to senators, industrialists and pop icons and all of them have secrets they would kill to keep. One night at least four of the residents receive a fax telling them to be on the sixth tee of the golf course. Embedded in the messages is the name of a person that frightens each recipient so they are forced to comply.

When one of the ladies arrives she finds the body of one of the residents, a harmless nerdy sociology professor who was the confidant of many of the residents but also wrote down whenever he was told or observed. Three other murders quickly follow and the police don't have a clue as to who did it because almost every resident had a motive and the opportunity to do the deed. The only fact that the police are sure of is one person did the killings.

I'D KILL FOR THAT is a collaborative serial novel in which one writer pens a chapter and another author crafts the next chapter. This police procedural is written by twelve female mystery and suspense notables that include Rita Mae Brown, Kathy Reichs, Anne Perry and Kay Hooper. The community of Gryphon Gate is a miniature Peyton Place complete with bed-hopping, criminal activity and a man who thinks and behaves like a werewolf at the time of the full moon. Each chapter flows smoothly into the next so that it feels like one author wrote this tale. Marcia Talley and her dozen cohorts deserve kudos for this successful project.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: engaging collaborative police procedural
Review: Gryphon Gate is an affluent gated community in the rich part of Maryland. This waterfront property of mini-mansions is home to senators, industrialists and pop icons and all of them have secrets they would kill to keep. One night at least four of the residents receive a fax telling them to be on the sixth tee of the golf course. Embedded in the messages is the name of a person that frightens each recipient so they are forced to comply.

When one of the ladies arrives she finds the body of one of the residents, a harmless nerdy sociology professor who was the confidant of many of the residents but also wrote down whenever he was told or observed. Three other murders quickly follow and the police don't have a clue as to who did it because almost every resident had a motive and the opportunity to do the deed. The only fact that the police are sure of is one person did the killings.

I'D KILL FOR THAT is a collaborative serial novel in which one writer pens a chapter and another author crafts the next chapter. This police procedural is written by twelve female mystery and suspense notables that include Rita Mae Brown, Kathy Reichs, Anne Perry and Kay Hooper. The community of Gryphon Gate is a miniature Peyton Place complete with bed-hopping, criminal activity and a man who thinks and behaves like a werewolf at the time of the full moon. Each chapter flows smoothly into the next so that it feels like one author wrote this tale. Marcia Talley and her dozen cohorts deserve kudos for this successful project.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Something for everybody
Review: Okay, I admit it. I'm a guy and I only picked up this book because one of my favorite thriller writers, Gayle Lynds, wrote the first chapter. But after that, I was hooked. This zany send-up of modern suburban life will appeal to everyone, not just those of us who live in gated communities like (well, not exactly like, thank goodness!) Gryphon Gate, the setting for this novel. You won't be able to get some of the characters out of your mind -- Col. McClintock (self-appointed organizer of the managed deer hunt), the widow Toni and her daughter, Miranda (who want to save Bambi's mother), ruthless developer Vanessa, tortured Roman Gervase, the sex-starved Rev. Peter Armbruster and his pinch-faced wife, Laura ... And the book also features one of the most unusual murder methods I've ever heard of. Buy the book, fix yourself a tall glass of iced tea, settle down in that beach chair by the pool and ENJOY!

Rating:
Summary: Something for everybody
Review: Okay, I admit it. I'm a guy and I only picked up this book because one of my favorite thriller writers, Gayle Lynds, wrote the first chapter. But after that, I was hooked. This zany send-up of modern suburban life will appeal to everyone, not just those of us who live in gated communities like (well, not exactly like, thank goodness!) Gryphon Gate, the setting for this novel. You won't be able to get some of the characters out of your mind -- Col. McClintock (self-appointed organizer of the managed deer hunt), the widow Toni and her daughter, Miranda (who want to save Bambi's mother), ruthless developer Vanessa, tortured Roman Gervase, the sex-starved Rev. Peter Armbruster and his pinch-faced wife, Laura ... And the book also features one of the most unusual murder methods I've ever heard of. Buy the book, fix yourself a tall glass of iced tea, settle down in that beach chair by the pool and ENJOY!

Rating:
Summary: Too Smooth
Review: This book was created under a great idea, all these different writers working together. But, unfortunately, to make the story run smoothly, each writer had to suppress their regular writing style to create a generic style. Nice effort, though. Wouldn't recommend buying it . . . get it from the library.

Rating:
Summary: Too Smooth
Review: This book was created under a great idea, all these different writers working together. But, unfortunately, to make the story run smoothly, each writer had to suppress their regular writing style to create a generic style. Nice effort, though. Wouldn't recommend buying it . . . get it from the library.

Rating:
Summary: I laughed my head off!
Review: This is a really good book! I laughed from beginning to end. Even though it was written by 13 different women with 13 different writing styles, it flows smoothly, but you still get tantalizing hints of each author's individuality -- Kathy Reich's forensics expertise(of course!), Heather Graham's background writing romance novels, Julie Smith's knowledge of Santeria, Jennifer Crusie's trademark wit, Anne Perry's psychological insights, and so on. Gayle Lynds sets the plot in motion -- Gryphon Gate residents are receiving threatening faxes -- and the story gallops along from there. Katherine Neville, best known for her sprawling historical novels, wraps everything up in a most entertaining and satisfying way. I wasn't familiar with some of the authors, but will definitely be looking for their books in the future.

Rating:
Summary: I laughed my head off!
Review: This is a really good book! I laughed from beginning to end. Even though it was written by 13 different women with 13 different writing styles, it flows smoothly, but you still get tantalizing hints of each author's individuality -- Kathy Reich's forensics expertise(of course!), Heather Graham's background writing romance novels, Julie Smith's knowledge of Santeria, Jennifer Crusie's trademark wit, Anne Perry's psychological insights, and so on. Gayle Lynds sets the plot in motion -- Gryphon Gate residents are receiving threatening faxes -- and the story gallops along from there. Katherine Neville, best known for her sprawling historical novels, wraps everything up in a most entertaining and satisfying way. I wasn't familiar with some of the authors, but will definitely be looking for their books in the future.

Rating:
Summary: Gated Twits Get Theirs
Review: This is the latest of a series of group-authored murder mysteries pennned by famous authors who donate the profits to a worthy cause (this time, Breast Cancer Research). It takes place in a suburban D.C. gated community filled with rich folk you just love to hate. Their foibles range from simple larceny to lust (really a lot of lust), blackmail and bizzare eccentricities (the handsome expatriate European nobleman who's convinced he's a werewolf). As an unknown member of their community murders them and their servants one by one, you follow the beleaguered female police detective, laugh at the hilarious plot-twists and turns, and assemble the clues. Plus, the ending is really satisfying to those of us living in housing that will never end up in an Architectural Digest photo spread. P.S. Read the 2 introductions, they're eye-openers.