Customer Reviews

Controlling Interest

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Natalie Tubberville wants to be a detective. Matt Hogan owns his own struggling detective agency. When Natalie's father buys half of the company and leaves a twenty-five percent share to Natalie, Matt wants to hit the roof! Share partnership with a Barbie doll? Never! The two set out on there first assignment together--finding a missing Pakistani bride who doesn't want to be found. Natalie and Matt fall into one hilarious escapade after another.

Elizabeth White has crafted a wonderfully funny, entertaining mystery romance. You'll laugh as you turn each page.

I have read several books by this author, this one being the first. It was by far her best book thus far. The story moves quickly, the characters are interesting and it has a good storyline to boot. If you're looking at this author, so for this book! I love the fact that her characters are Christians with some flaws that we ALL have!

What happens when a Private Investigator and an ex-cop are forced to work together in order to save a struggling detective agency? What happens when both the attraction and animosity between them sparks on almost every page? You get Controlling Interest by Elizabeth White.

Natalie Tubberville has left the Tunica County Sheriff's Department to try her hand in the world of private investigating. Matt Hogan's detective agency suffered a major financial setback and he was forced to accept partnership with a wealthy investor. With the partnership comes a partner he never expected or wanted, Natalie. Natalie also has no interest in partnering with anyone. So, when a runaway bride is the case they must solve they agree to work together long enough to solve it, but whoever solves it first wins the agency. The sparks fly.

In an intriguing twist of plots and characters, Elizabeth has her readers hoping Natalie and Matt find the bride one second and rooting for the bride to get away the next. The runaway fiancé manages to remain one step ahead of them. And the situations they find themselves thrown into can be humorous and dangerous. Elizabeth keeps you turning the pages from start to finish. As the characters travel from Memphis, down the Mississippi River through Louisiana and Alabama, romance and faith weave an interesting story. While this was the first of Elizabeth White's books I have read it won't be the last. I plan to go back and read her others also. I highly recommend this book.

Natalie Tubberville is determined to make it on her own without her dad's money. After her dad buys an Memphis Detective Agency, Natalie is going to prove her investigative skills to all.
Matt Hogan hasn't had much luck with his clients lately. His last client turned out to be a crook which hurt his pride and his pocketbook. So, he feels that he has no other alternative than to accept Eddie Tubberville's offer to finance his detective Agency even with the stipulation that Eddie's naive, wanna be daughter is to be his partner.
When Natalie and Matt have their first case together it turns out o be anything but fun! Their first case, Yasmine Patel, has decided to run her own life and choose the man she will marry and now Yasmine is running for her life! Her fiance wasn't the upstanding man she thought him to be so now she is running scared. She has asked Natalie and Matt to help her get out of this mess.
This turns out to be a mess of an escapade for all involved!
This in a great, fast read! I love the story line! Toss in unusual relatives, Yasmine's disappearance and a romance of two unwilling.to.bend individuals. All the characters are well rounded and fun to read about!
*This book was provided for review by Zondervan*

Controlling Interest was a good relaxing read that made me smile. Just the kind I like. Natalie Tubberville, the heroine, is smart but trouble prone. Matt Hogan, the hero, is street semi-wise. Both have backgrounds they're ashamed of but have given their hearts to the Lord and are trying to live for Him.

I like the Bible verses/discussions sprinkled throughout, the details added in like his vintage ties and her cleaning out her clothes. I also enjoyed the sub-stories of the mission, and her parents. She included a bunch of info about Alabama as the runaway travels with some people in an RV. Fun local color. There's even a touch of secret service included.

Maybe I should admit that I enjoyed Elizabeth White's Texas Gatekeepers previously. I'd definitely like to hear more about the characters in this book, and I'm going to find Off the Recordto read because now that I've learned a little bit about the McGaughan's I want to read more.

I read once that people think Christian works of today are all low key. This was not the case with Controlling Interest. I probably read this book in under 8 hours because I could not set it down. I loved the romance; it was well played out. The Christian factor was intersting throughout the novel. The plotline was very well thought out.
The only reason this book did not get 5 stars instead of 4 was that the author did have some very forced similes and sometimes I was unsure about the build up of the relationship between the main characters. There was also a single typo, but that did not bother me as it was only one and it did not bother my reading.

Elizabeth White has written another funny, entertaining, and at times very poignant novel, sprinkled with a bit of suspense. I enjoyed reading Controlling Interest. The characters were realistically flawed, which made their story more compelling. I highly recommend reading this book!

Controlling Interest tickles your funny bone and your romantic one too. The interaction between Matt Hogan and Natalie Tubberville is priceless. Every time they got close enough you thought they would kiss, someone or something would spoil it. Despite fumbling through the investigation into the disappearance of a Pakistan bride-to-be, Natalie seems to stumble on the right information. The little twist of suspense into why the Pakistan woman disappeared is nice touch to the story. I loved how Elizabeth pulled us into her POV and showed us the fear and bravery this woman had to strike out on her own.

In true romance genre fashion, something has kept Matt and Natalie from ending up together. After solving the case of the runaway bride, they go their separate ways. Or so they think, 'cause God has other plans for them.

A great read and a nice change from the books I normally read that are loaded with suspense.

Controlling Interest was a really fun story. We first met Matt Hogan in Off the Record. Now he is a changed man but in need of money to keep his agency afloat. Natalie's father buys in and tells Matt that Natalie is his new partner. There first assignment is to find Yasmine(a pakistani woman) who is on the run from her fiance. Her family has issued a reward for her return. Matt and Natalie make a bet that whoever finds Yasmine first gets the reward and the agency. But as they both move closer to finding her, they discover they have feelings for one another. Where will those feelings lead? Who will find Yasmine first...Matt or Natalie? Or...will it be her dreaded fiance? Join Matt and Natalie on their adventures filled with many twists and turns!

The characters in Controlling Interest were delightful! My interest was held from page one to the close of the book. You get a chance to see Cole and Laural from Off the Record and find out what's going on in their lives.

I loved the book and highly recommend it! I think it's one of Elizabeth White's best.

When Matt Hogan needed money to bail out his floundering detective agency, he had no idea it would come with more than a silent partner. So when Eddie Tubberville's daughter Natalie arrives, believing she is now his partner, Matt is more than a little unhappy. And Natalie doesn't help matters when she "loses" Yasmine Patel, a wealthy Pakistani's daughter sent to the U.S. to marry a Pakistani man Yasmine has never met. What follows is a romp through Memphis and the South - with surprises around every corner - that you'll not soon forget.