Thrill

Rating:
Summary: A Sex Mess
Review: "Thrill" by Jackie Collins knit's a tangled web of lust versus love in this romance novel filled with intrigue, revenge and suspense. Lara Ivory, the focal point of the book, is a voluptuous movie star that shines amongst a dynamic interlocking supporting cast. Richard Barry, is Lara's ex-husband, who remarried a costume designer/producer Nikki, whom also has become Lara's best friend. Another facet to this strangely somewhat happy threesome is Nikki's emotionally unbalanced 15- year-old daughter, Summer, the puzzling, yet gloomy want-to-be actor, Joey Lorenzo, and lunatic stalker, Alison Sewall. Sewall, conceals his obsession throughout his life in bondage for Lara and now, out of prison, can not contain the yearning for revenge. Lara decides to accept a challenging role in Nikki's first film, a b-rated independent flick about a teacher who is gang-raped and then seeks revenge on her worthless attackers. Richard, thrown by his wife's friendship with his ex, for whom he still has undeniable feelings, and his wife's future success decides to upset the apple cart with a succession of infidelities throwing Nikki into the arms of her film's supporting actor, Aiden Sean, who plays the lead rapist. Collins manages to keep a captive audience however the plot of ever changing sex partners and unbelievable friendships preclude a conception of reality in this illusive drama.

Rating:
Summary: A fun read! Typical Jackie Collins!
Review: A good look into the workings of Hollywood movies and the life of a movie star. If you liked her other books you'll like this one.

Rating:
Summary: Jackie Collins's Write-by-Numbers latest is no "Thrill"
Review: Accusing Jackie Collins of not writing high literature may be a little like accusing a seal of not having a woolly coat, it is simply not that kind of animal. Indeed, in the sub-literary field of trashy romance novels the principles of literature are not nearly as applicable as those of marketing. Jackie Collins is more a brand than an author and her latest Hollywood film-set novel 'Thrill!' is merely product. The issue of good or bad writing is not as interesting nor important as the question of who on earth could be buying this stuff and why.
But, hey, why pass up an opportunity to say just how awful a Jackie Collins novel can be? Folks, this is a very bad book. Bad, bad, bad. We are not talking evil or pernicious or sinister here, just flat out bad. Bad the way bad country music songs are bad: formulaic, cliché-ridden and numbingly predictable. Worse yet, it is boring bad. Ms. Collins is apparently incapable of a single original thought. Her idea of character development is to cite which designer label a person is wearing and what actor they look like. And in an achievement worthy of either an award or a blow to the head, she has managed to write a 479 page novel almost entirely without the use of metaphor. Wow!
But the key to sales success here is consistency, not quality, and Ms. Collins is consistent. In this respect, reviewing a new Jackie Collins novel is like reviewing the opening of a new McDonald's restaurant. If you liked the last one, you're probably going like this one.
In fact, the marketing strategy for romance novels is probably not much different from that of fast food. It's my guess that there are a certain number of romance novels and a certain number of hamburgers that are going to be sold each year no matter who is writing the book or who is flipping the burger. It's all a matter of market share and brand identification. Do you go to Burger King or McDonald's today? Jackie Collins or Danielle Steel? The trick is not making a better burger, almost anyone can do that. Like McDonald's, Jackie Collins has market share and delivers a consistent, if unremarkable and fully reproducible product. Am I saying that there are a lot of people who could write this book? Yes, that's what I'm saying. But doesn't 100 million (!) copies sold make Jackie Collins a great writer? Let me put it this way; does 'Billions and Billions Served' make Ronald McDonald a great chef?
So who buys these books? Look, there are a lot of stupid people staggering around out there. And while it may not be fair to call someone who buys this book stupid, I have the sneaking suspicion that the bulk of Jackie Collins reading gets done during that slow programming period between the end of 'The Ricki Lake Show' and the start of 'Wheel of Fortune.'
Why people buy this may be slightly more interesting. I imagine it has something to do with the need to simplify complex human behavior. If nothing else, we are a society that needs to know exactly where things are. This is reflected not only in the above-mentioned allegiance to the 'Big Mac,' but also in our pathological love of sports. We want our goals and motivations clearly delineated. We need to know who the winners and losers are. Jackie Collins gives us characters with unambiguous motives and actions with unmistakable consequences. Like I said before, there are no metaphors here, only adjectives. And if you can't figure out who the winners and the losers are in a Jackie Collins novel, you might just want to pull that harpoon out of your forehead.
Unfortunately, while predictability and consistency may be good qualities in a hamburger, they are considerably less admirable in fiction.

Rating:
Summary: Thumbs up! Pulitzer material!
Review: Aces! Jackie's done it again! There is no longer any doubt as to who the wiliest Collins sister is! As per usual, Jackie Collins has crafted a weaving web of simmering, summer-hot fiction. The characterization, while flat from one perspective, is arguably a reflection of the shallowness of those depicted. Collins is our age's ultimate scribe for the ruling classes. Just as Dickens typified his era, history will reveal Jackie Collins as the literary Siegfried and Roy who captures and tames the zeitgeist of the late twentieth century. GRRRROWRRRR!!! If the Spice Girls need a feminist mentor on the Los Angeles side of this continent, then Jackie Collins...COME ON DOWN!!!! "Thrill"...DOES!!!

Rating:
Summary: Great Escapism
Review: For a Jackie Collins novel, Thrill! is actually of a lot of fun. If you can let yourself go and not concentrate too much on the less than good writing style you should enjoy this novel. The main problem with the novel is that the characters are a little wooden and a rehash of former, better written, characters from previous novels. That being said, if you like Hollywood sizzle and escapist fiction (and I do), then this novel, like many of Collins' novels, is a fun read. If there is one thing Collins can do it's give us an insiders view of Hollywood. While what she writes may seem far-fetched, all you have to do is watch Entertainment Tonight or E! to see that she's not too far off from the truth. As to character development, Collins does a good enough job with Lara Ivory and Joey Lorenzo that you want everything to work out for them; !!SPOILER!! and with all Jackie Collins novels, it does work out with the help of some improbable events. It's obvious that I liked this novel, so you might be wondering why I would give it only three stars. Well, Collins may be a fun novelist to read, but she can never be confused with a "great novelists," but that's OK. I don't read Collins for great fiction, I read it for fun, and fun only gets three stars in my book.

Rating:
Summary: The title says it all!
Review: For the past 2 years, I have read nothing BUT Jackie Collins, not in any particular order. This is my absolute favorite of the non-Santangelo novels! The characters, good or bad, are very interesting,the events are paced very well. Nothing is EVER boring here. Lara & Joey are loveable characters,the book twists and turns and is hard to predict. Wait until you see what the bad guys/girls get! Close to the end, you cannot put it down, the susspense will drive you nuts! excellent read, if you havn't read Jackie Collins, DO IT! You will always get a THRILL!

Rating:
Summary: GREAT JOB
Review: Great job jackie collins you are an artist at writing books and for the book thrill it was really hard to put down i would recommend it for any jackie collins fans..

Rating:
Summary: Good read!!
Review: I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't as good as some of her earlier books like Chances, Rock Star, Hollywood Wives, etc. But it was enjoyable, I would recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: captivating
Review: I had difficulty putting this book down. It was a real page turner. I especially found the ending exciting - I loved how things turned out. The author's writing style is lacking somewhat,and the story was rather drawn out, but those are my only two complaints about this book. I would definitely recommend it!!!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent, excellent, excellent
Review: I had never read a Jackie Collins book before, so I decided to start with her most recent work. By the first chapter I was hooked, and managed to finsih the book within three days. The reason for this being because it is such a brilliant read. There is mystery, suspension, desire, lust... everything you want in a book. What more could you ask for. It's just an excellent, excellent, excellent book. In fact probably the best book I have ever read. I decided to read another of her books after, and this seemed to be very similar to Thrill, but is also a very easy read. Keep up the good work Jackie, because never before have I read such an addicitive, clever, witty, and brilliant book as this one.