Born to Be Wild [Abridged, Audiobook, CD] [Audio CD]

Catherine Coulter (Author), Susanna Burney (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 25, 2006

Dear Reader: Get yourself ready for Mary Lisa Beverly - a soap-opera phenom who’s just won her third Daytime Emmy for her role as Sunday Cavendish on Born to Be Wild. She’s fun and lovable and has lots of crazy friends, most of whom hang out at her house in the Colony, the famous gated community in Malibu. Unfortunately, there is one bad thing to poleax her champagne life - someone is trying to kill her. You’ll meet Mary Lisa’s family in Goddard Bay, Oregon. She’s blessed with her father, cursed with her mother, and betwixt and between with her two nutzoid sisters. And how about guys? There aren’t any hotties in L.A. of interest to Mary Lisa, but in Goddard Bay - there are District Attorney John Goddard and Chief of Police Jack Wolf. And guess what? Even in the boondocks, bad stuff can happen. Mary Lisa’s best friends, Lou Lou Bollinger and Elizabeth Fargas, become embroiled in the baffling attempts on Mary Lisa’s life in L.A., with unexpected results. I hope you laugh a lot with Born to Be Wild, root for Mary Lisa in all of her roles, and all in all, have a fine time with this book. Do let me know what you think. Write me at P.O. Box 17, Mill Valley, CA 94942, or e-mail me at [e-mail]. Visit my website at www.catherinecoulter.com. Enjoy, Catherine Coulter

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Catherine Coulter is the author of the New York Times-bestselling FBI thrillers The Cove, The Maze, The Target, The Edge, Riptide, Hemlock Bay, Eleventh Hour, Blindside, Blowout, Point Blank, Double Take, TailSpin, KnockOut, and Whiplash. She lives in northern California.

From AudioFile

"Born To Be Wild," a popular soap opera, stars Mary Lisa Beverly as bad girl Sunday Cavendish. When Mary Lisa, who is really a perfectly nice person, is nearly run down by a car, she quickly realizes the incident was a murder attempt. During the ensuing investigation, Mary Lisa falls in love, nearly dies, wisecracks, finds a corpse or two, and staves off an obnoxious paparazzo. Susanna Burney has an appropriate vocal personality for such a light romance/mystery. She sounds likable, good humored, and smart. Largely stinting the laugh lines, she treats the novel's other elements with a bit too much understatement. Her infrequent bursts of sparkle add brief gusts of freshness. Would that there were more of them! Y.R. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD; Abridged edition (July 25, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596008881
• ISBN-13: 978-1596008885
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,195,976 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Catherine Coulter is the author of the New York Times-bestselling FBI thrillers The Cove, The Maze, The Target, The Edge, Riptide, Hemlock Bay, Eleventh House, Blindside, Blowout, Point Blank, Double Take and TailSpin. She lives in northern California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A serious mystery/romance with a fun side!, July 27, 2006

By 

Valerie Matteson "Bookaholic" (Ann Arbor, Michigan) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Born To Be Wild (Mass Market Paperback)

I love Catherine Coulter's FBI series with Savich and Sherlock but this is a whole different type of novel and shows a more playful side to her writing.

The story opens at the Daytime Emmys where Mary Lisa Beverly who is the lead actress on the soap "Born to Be Wild" is waiting to hear who has won Best Actress. She is sure it isn't her as she has won it the two previous years but, of course, she wins. She is so excited and in shock!! She knows her costars, Margie, Jeff and Betsey are sincere in their wishes and that Bernie, the head writer, and the producers are all excited too!!

The next chapter has Mary Lisa in disguise in Malibu where she lives in the Colony - a secure and gated community -- out to shop and stroll. Mary Lisa is also intent on avoiding a paparazzi named Poker Hodges who she had to get a restraining order against. She is almost home and crossing a road when a dark sedan comes right at her and despite her best efforts she is struck on her hip and knocked down. While down a would-be actress's little dog called Honey Boy keeps licking her -- hilarious!!

Mary Lisa's friends are very worried about her. Lou Lou is quick at her side along with an old surfer guy named Carlo. Detective Daniel Vasquez who gets the case gets a long list of associates and friends and coworkers from Mary Lisa to investigate -- although he is somewhat distracted by an attraction to her friend Lou Lou. After finishing her scenes for the week on her soap, Mary Lisa decides to visit home where she hasn't been for 3 years. Her hometown is Goddard Bay, Oregon where she is close to her dad but not close to her mom or sisters. Her one sister Monica she found in bed with her at-the-time fiance, Mark. Monica married Mark and is now running for the State Senate in Oregon. Her younger sister Kelly is jealous of her and her mom, Kathleen, seems to resent her.

Just as Mary Lisa arrives in town a man is killed and his wife, father-in-law and mother-in-law are among the suspects. His mother-in-law is bests friends with Mary Lisa's mother. To top it off the Chief of Police in Goddard, Jack Wolf, put Mary Lisa in jail overnight the last time she was in town!!

The story just goes on from here getting both more dangerous and scary as well as hilarious!!

If you're interested in reading something a bit lighter by Ms. Coulter and enjoy some fun with the serious, you will enjoy this book!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Will the Space Aliens Please Give Catherine Coulter Back to Us..., November 16, 2006

By 

Little Bear "booklover, cook, gardener, friend" (Tri-Cities, WA USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Born To Be Wild (Mass Market Paperback)

Many, many years ago I read Catherine Coulter, read her avidly, eagerly looking forward to her next book. Well, this is the first one of hers that I have read in about a decade and WHAT HAPPENED? Three times I set this book down in disgust, only to come back to it out of sheer stubbornness.

There is not enough room to write about just how bad this book was. From generally poor writing (Mary Lisa said, Jack said, Lou Lou said... until you want to yell "I KNOW who is involved in this conversation!), silly plot, unneccessary side stepping.

WHO CARES that the hero digs a chunky chip into guacamole? OH WOW, we get to know the different flavors of potato chips being devoured by three woman while they talk about the big case. WHEN have any of us heard of investigating cops asking "why is she wearing those pajamas when you are wearing those"? YEAH sure, an agent involved in a case is going to let endangered person call the shots in even the tiniest part of the investigation. And the names! Mary Lisa? Lou Lou? Puker? Gimme a freaking break! Aaaarrrrggggg!!!

Ms. Coulter, I used to love your books. PLEASE get back to what you used to do so well. If you cannot write the "FBI style" books that are so popular now, then don't. STOP feeding the bestseller beast anything less than your best. Cease. Desist. Please go back to what you are great at.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars How disappointing!, November 4, 2006

By 

E. Leung "Miharu Sama" (Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Born To Be Wild (Mass Market Paperback)

I usually read through one of Coulter's novel in a few days, exspecially her FBI/intrigue plots. I bought this as soon has it was released in paperback and still haven't finished it. The plot was slow and the main heroine a little too likable. Spoiler: Neighborhood teenagers diving on her body to protect her from bullets?! Talk about a work of fiction. No one expects a romance to be on our plane of reality, but in the same solar system would be nice.