Cold Hearted [Mass Market Paperback]

Beverly Barton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2008

They all loved her. That was their mistake. Two husbands, her college fiance, an influential boss -- every man who gets close to Jordan Price is made to pay in blood. And the list is growing. The more investigator Rick Carson delves into the string of deaths from which Jordan has profited handsomely, the more convinced he becomes that he is dealing with a cunning, Cold Hearted, unstoppable killer.

--This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Private investigator Rick Carson has been hired to find out who murdered Georgia Sen. Dan Price and finds himself falling for Price's trophy widow, Jordan, even though she's his prime suspect. Gorgeous, steely Jordan stands to inherit a substantial estate and has a history of losing husbands and boyfriends to questionable fatalities, and Price was killed with Jordan's gun. But a sizable cast of quirky hangers-on who rely upon Jordan for room and board complicate matters: any one of them could be responsible for not just the senator's death but also the string of corpses that litter Jordan's past. The more Rick investigates, the more certain he is that the woman he's in love with could be a coldhearted killer. His two minds drive some refreshing twists that leave readers guessing to the end and making the latest from suspense artist Barton a satisfying read. (Sept.)
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About the Author

New York Times bestselling author Beverly Barton wrote over fifty contemporary romance novels and created the popular Protectors series. She was a two-time Maggie Award winner, a two-time National Reader's Choice Award winner, and a recipient of the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Series Romantic Adventure. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Zebra (September 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1420100491
• ISBN-13: 978-1420100495
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #239,461 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

An avid reader since childhood, Beverly Barton wrote her first book at the age of nine. Since then, she has gone on to write well over seventy novels and is a New York Times bestselling author. Beverly lives in Alabama in the U.S.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another page-turner from Barton, September 2, 2008

By 

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

This review is from: Cold Hearted (Mass Market Paperback)

A senator apparently has committed suicide after learning he has early onset Alzheimer's but in reality, someone close to him helped him pull the trigger. Hired by the senator's brother, PI Rick Carson thinks that the unemotional widow Jordan Price might be the culprit. As Rick delves deeper into Jordan's background, he discovers that many men have met an untimely death after getting involved with Jordan including a fiancé, a first husband, a colleague, and her former boss. After losing the love of her life in a car accident, Jordan gave up ever loving another and entered into a marriage of convenience with the senator and guards his privacy and legacy closely. When the senator's angry first wife blackmails Jordan then ends up dead, suspicion is further cast her way and Rick can't help but wonder whether Jordan will be his lover or his murderer or both.

Barton weaves an intriguing tale of a potential black widow and the gaggle of non-blood related family members that surround her. She effectively has readers pondering over who could be behind the deaths, as well as the motive. Savvy readers may find many plot similarities in common with Sandra Brown's "Where There's Smoke" right down to the senator's "secret" (that many might see coming). Barton manages to create a sympathetic heroine scarred by loss yet who isn't a doormat and pair her with an engaging and charismatic equal in a page-turning romantic mystery.

© Tracy Vest, September 2008

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Love a good mix of romance and suspense? Read this., August 28, 2008

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cold Hearted (Mass Market Paperback)

It is suspected that Senator Price's suicide was actually murder. The most likely suspect is his young widow, Jordan Price. Jordan remained stoic at the funeral and has a past that labels her a black widow: a dead fiancé and the deaths of her first and second husbands.

Rick Carson, investigator for the Powell Agency, takes the case. Everyone around Jordan seems to love her and can't believe she is capable of murder. But Rick has his doubts. Jordan has secrets and it is his job to discover the truth. The more he observes, the more he wonders if Jordan really is innocent. His suspect list is growing. Could it be a jealous family member, a bitter ex-wife, or an admirer who will stop at nothing?

I enjoyed reading this book. Barton does a wonderful job of balancing the romance and the suspense. The plot and pacing are great and the events and dialogue add to the overall tension and suspense. I guessed some of the twists and had to keep reading to find out what happened next. It was fun to guess motive, intentions and the identity of the culprit.

Cold Hearted will appeal to readers who enjoy suspense mixed with some romance. The attraction between the characters doesn't distract from the main story. There are enough clues for readers who want to try to figure out the identity of the murderer. I was three quarters of the way through and had narrowed my suspects down to three people. Reading the killer's creepy thoughts I had to decide if this person was cool and calculated or just plain delusional. This book is also great if you just want to be entertained.

Armchair Interviews says: Cold Hearted is a fast-paced romantic suspense.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Great!, October 12, 2008

By 

D. Klein "Born to read" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cold Hearted (Mass Market Paperback)

All I can say is that considering her previous books this one seemed like it was written by someone else or by an amateur author...not up to her standards at all. I recommend you skip this book and pick out any of her previous ones which are really good.