Charade [Audio Cassette]

Sandra Brown (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1994

Leaving Hollywood for San Antonio, TV personality Cat Delaney never suspects her new life will be filled with danger and betrayal. 2 cassettes.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Soap opera star Cat Delaney gets a new heart--literally and figuratively speaking--in bestseller Brown's ( French Silk ; Where There's Smoke ) latest contemporary romance. The heart transplant that beautiful, arrogant Cat endures in the first chapter transforms her soul along with her cardiovascular system. If Brown had first established Cat's personality with some depth and credibility, that might have been the basis of an emotionally involving story. But since Cat is little more than a vessel for the concept, before we can blink, she is a good-hearted citizen who abandons stardom and Hollywood for San Antonio, Tex., where she hosts a local TV program featuring children up for adoption. Cat hardly has a chance to enjoy her change of heart and her new heartthrob, bad-boy crime novelist Alex Pierce, because a stalker is after her. Whatever suspense might have been activated by this scenario is immediately stymied as Brown rushes through events whereby three potential heart donors are knocked down like dominoes: obviously the stalker is a bereaved nut determined to kill all the transplant recipients who might have received his lover's heart. But Brown fails to develop even a modicum of tension, since the rushed pacing then slows to a crawl where nothing much happens except Cat's cliche-ridden romance with Alex. Too late in the novel, we finally get a more full and sympathetic characterization of Cat. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selections; major ad/promo; author tour.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Cat Delaney has it all: beauty, a glamorous career, and a man who cares for her. Unfortunately, Cat also has a bad heart and needs a transplant. After receiving her new heart Cat decides to give up her career and her boyfriend to move to Texas and start a program to help find adoptive parents for foster kids. Her life is complicated by her jealous secretary and a new man in her life. In addition, she is being stalked by someone who is killing all the people who received a heart transplant on the same day she did. This is a tale with many twists, turns, and blind alleys. The plot is slow to develop, perhaps due to the introduction of so many characters at the story's onset. Though the ending is compelling, some may find boredom where they expected to find mystery and adventure. Constance Towers is an adequate reader but adds little to the tale's drama. As Brown is one of the hottest romantic suspense writers around, most libraries will want this production based on demand; otherwise, this is not a necessary purchase.
Danna C. Bell-Russel, Dist. of Columbia P.L.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Dove Entertainment Inc (April 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787100153
• ISBN-13: 978-0787100155
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (45 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,111,057 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sandra Brown is the author of sixty New York Times bestsellers, including RAINWATER (2010), TOUGH CUSTOMER (2010), SMASH CUT (2009), SMOKE SCREEN (2008), PLAY DIRTY (2007), RICOCHET (2006), CHILL FACTOR (2005), WHITE HOT (2004), HELLO, DARKNESS (2003), THE CRUSH (2002), ENVY (2001), THE SWITCH (2000), THE ALIBI (1999), UNSPEAKABLE (1998) and FAT TUESDAY (1997), all of which have jumped onto the Times bestseller list in the number one to five spot.

Brown began her writing career in 1981 and since then has published over seventy novels, bringing the number of copies of her books in print worldwide to upwards of eighty million. Her work has been translated into thirty-three languages.

A lifelong Texan, Sandra Brown was born in Waco, grew up in Fort Worth and attended Texas Christian University, majoring in English. Before embarking on her writing career, she worked as a model at the Dallas Apparel Mart, and in television, including weathercasting for WFAA-TV in Dallas, and feature reporting on the nationally syndicated program "PM Magazine."

She is much in demand as a speaker and guest television hostess. Her episode on truTV's "Murder by the Book" premiered the series in 2008 and she was one of the launch authors for Investigation Discovery's new series, "Hardcover Mysteries."

In 2009 Brown detoured from her thrillers to write Rainwater, a much acclaimed, powerfully moving story about honor and sacrifice during the Great Depression.

Brown recently was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Texas Christian University. She was named Thriller Master for 2008, the top award given by the International Thriller Writer's Association. Other awards and commendations include the 2007 Texas Medal of Arts Award for Literature and the Romance Writers of America's Lifetime Achievement Award.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another nail biting romantic suspense!, December 27, 2005

By 

Tracy Vest (Northern California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Charade (Mass Market Paperback)

After receiving a heart transplant, soap actress Cath gets a job offer with a TV station owner in San Antonio, Texas, and decides to change the course of her life by hosting a news program to assist in the adoption of children. The night she was "re-born," four people became heart donors due to tragic incidents. Suddenly, three of the recipients are dead, and Cat, the remaining beneficiary, feels like she is being followed and is getting strange mail foreshadowing that she is being stalked by a killer.

She spurns the romantic interests of her LA heart surgeon (who still carries a torch for her), then Cat meets and falls for crime novelist Alex Pierce, a former police officer. Unbeknownst to Cat, Alex is up to something... but what exactly we are not sure (though it does not take a brain surgeon to figure out that he had a relationship with one of the donors).

In a plot reminiscent of the movie "Blink," Brown keeps the tension (both romantic and suspense) and pacing throughout the story. Just when the reader thinks that they have discovered the bad guy's identity, you get reeled back in and have to re-evaluate your theories about the character's motivations, which results in a truly surprising conclusion.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars It's hit or miss with Sandra Brown and this was a ............, May 13, 2006

By 

K. Rowland (Long Island, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Charade (Mass Market Paperback)

miss. This book would have been great if it was comprised of only the first and last 5 chapters. Everything in between was a drag.

The characters weren't the least bit appealing. Cat was Brown's classic independent-type woman and Alex was a cheesy portrayal of a "tough-guy." Their relationship wasn't believable beyond a one-night-stand.

If you're looking for a good book by Brown read WHITE HOT or LED ASTRAY.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Holds your attention from beginning to end!, November 8, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Charade (Mass Market Paperback)

Sandra Brown has outdone herself with this story. I enjoyed the events throughout the book and had no idea how it would end. It has everything from love and romance to hate and death. It also gives the reader a twist to the life of a transplantee and how they feel about their new chance at life and what the costs may be. I recommend this book for adults and look forward to Sandra's next book.