Customer Reviews

Dead By Midnight

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I waited a long time for this novel to come out. This is once again, the Powell Agency. I love Ms. Barton and I am from Alabama, so that in itself is worth 3 stars. However, I did not think this one was as good as her previous novels. She did tie up some loose ends from her last novel and left some untied(?) The book did keep my interest, however,it seemed to get "Bogged Down" somewhat with so many characters. I would recommend reading her previous Powell Agency books first, but if you don't this one can stand alone. I know Ms. Barton will finish this series with a bang. I have faith in her and am looking forward to her next novel. This one was just not as good as I had anticipated. As I have said before, she has set the bar so high with her previous novels, it is going to be interesting to see what she comes up with next.

Lorie Hammonds and Mike Birkett were a High School
loving couple. Lorie decided she wanted to be an
actress. She tried to encourage Mike to go to
Hollywood with her. Mike had his own plans he
wanted to go into law enforcement.

Lorie left Dunmore, Alabama to California and tried
to make it into show business. To her astonishment,
she was unsuccessful after six years of trying to
get a big break. Lorie played a small role in a Porno
movie.

Lorie moved back home to Dunmore as a failure.
She made a mistake making one porno movie.
Most of the town's people had seen the porno
movie Midnight Masquerade. Nine years later,
Lorie received two death threats. She hired
Maleah Perdue from the Powell Agency. The FBI
believes there is a serial killer that's murdering
the cast in Midnight Masquerade. State, local
enforcement, and the FBI are working with Powell
Agency.

Dead By Midnight could stand alone. Although, I
recommend also reading The Murder Game. This is
the book where Nicole was an FBI agent and met
Griffin Powell. I would recommend reading the
Silent Killer. Most of the characters in The Murder
Game and Silent Killer are in Dead By Midnight.

Dead By Midnight has too many characters; too
many story lines going at once with two serial
killers. One serial killer, murdering the cast in
Midnight Masquerade. Then, the other serial killer,
killed two Griffin Powell Agency employees. Ms.
Barton left the Powell Agency for another series.

I like Maleah who works for Powell Agency as a
detective. She is intelligent and sassy. Derek
Lawrence is a retired FBI Agent who works for
Powell Agency as a consultant. Beverly Barton
will be writing a book about these two characters.
I am looking forward to their story.

DEAD BY MIDNIGHT is a beautifully written story with a compelling mystery. It's too bad the hero of DEAD BY MIDNIGHT is so unlikeable. If he wasn't, I would have loved the story more and bought into the romance between the hero and heroine.

Quick overview: Mike and Lorie were high school sweethearts. After high school, like many kids who live in a small town (and many who don't) the heroine wanted to break free, go to Hollywood, and become an actress. Naive perhaps but then so is pretty much every teenager who has those dreams of fame and fortune. She goes off to Hollywood and like nearly every other high school romance she and Mike drift apart.

Hollywood is not all it's cracked up to be, she ends up doing a Playboy spread and taking a bit part in a x-rated movie. Dissatisfied with the way her life is going Lorie returns to her small town and is treated worse than the heroine in the Scarlett Letter. Mike is now married and treats the heroine horribly.

Fast forward ten years. Mike still treats Lorie like crap, but now he's widowed. Heroine starts getting death threats. So she naturally reports the letters to the police. Unfortunately for her the police chief is Mike and he thinks she's lying to get close to him. Though nothing she's done in the last ten years has shown that she was trying to get back with him. Luckily, she has friends who work for a private security agency and gets them to look into the case.

Mike still acts like a jerk when people from the movie she had a bit part in start dying. Because apparently the heroine is a prostitute (in his mind) even though nothing she's done in all the years she's been back home suggests anything of the kind.

Sorry, I could go on and on and on about all the things Mike did in DEAD BY MIDNIGHT. I probably would've put the book down but it was so well written and the mystery was good. Although . . . despite the author's attempts to disguise it, I knew who the killer was from the moment they appeared on the page. But, I usually can, it's a talent I have. LOL.

I never warmed up to Mike, even when he sort of tried to make amends. It was too little to late for me and I felt annoyed with the heroine for feeling like she deserved to be treated like total crap. Despite the awesome writing, I can't recommend this book.

COURTESY OF LYNETTE'S TWO CENTS REVIEWS BLOGSPOT

Just what I've come to expect from this author -- too many characters to keep straight, an unlikable hero and heroine and a secondary plotline introduced but never resolved to get you to buy her next book. Take it for what it is or skip it.

What I found particularly refreshing about Dead by Midnight is that Lorie had left the man she loved to follow her dream of acting in Hollywood. It didn't work out, moving back home took a lot of fortitude. Mike at the beginning of this novel is judgmental and assumes much. The more time he spends with Lorie in his need to protect, the more feelings for her run a gamut culminating in the realization that regardless of the past, he still wants her.

Both the hero and heroine are flawed, making this a volatile and interesting mix. The author hasn't shied away from undesirable circumstances but worked them into the story, which I found refreshing. As the body count rises, the author skillfully keeps track of the FBI, Special Investigators and the local police as they race to find the killer. All the while adding continuity from previous novels and hinting at maybe future books.

Dead By Midnight is a first rate, riveting, thrilling suspense. Its pace, intrigue and genuine characters kept those pages turning. However, I immersed myself in to the story, drawn in trying to guess the killer. I found myself on more than one occasion talking to my computer screen as if the characters could hear me, receiving odd looks from my family.

This is romantic suspense at its best and it comes highly rated. It's the first in a new trilogy and linked to previous books featuring the Powell Private Security and Investigation Agency. I see my 'to buy list' growing every larger. - Abi

Besides the main characters there are so many other people in this story that it
is overwhelming and confusing. I also found it very vulgar and crude and really didn't think
it had to be so explicit. I was extremely disappointed with this book.
Mike and Lorie were childhood sweethearts and after graduation Lorrie decided to leave her hometown to become a star...well that backfired when she got into porn. She left that life to come back to her hometown which wasn't easy considering this small town looked down on her and made life miserable, including her old flame Mike, who is now the Sheriff and a widower with two children.
After nine years Lorrie feels like her life is going good and her previous life is in the past until
a serial killer starts killing of people that were in the one and only porn movie that Lorrie has made.
Mike of course hates Lorrie for hurting him and for what she did...anyway, to make a very long story short the hunt is on for the serial killer and Mike is worried about Lorrie and realizes he still has feelings for her. Too many other people added to this story and I personally am sick of the Powell agency. Need some fresh suspense without all the trash! Is that really necessary?? I don't think so.
Won't be buying anymore of this authors books!

Lorie Hammonds dreamed of making it in Hollywood so she left Dunmore, Alabama to pursue her dream. She left behind her boyfriend, now the town Sheriff Mike Birkett (see Silent Killer for the back story).

She came home after her fantasy failed and her BFF widow Cathy Cantrell needed her (also see Silent Killer). Mike remains angry with her to the point it impacts his job as he ignores death threats aimed at her. The widower tries not to be short with his kids, eleven years old M.J. and nine years old Hannah while not understanding why they reject caring Abby Sherman who reminds him of his late wife Molly. However, Powell Agency detective Maleah Perdue takes the threats to Lorie seriously as a serial killer is methodically murdering the cast who performed in the nude in an adult film that Lorie would prefer to not count on her credits list. She will show her inner strength when the two kids become the target.

The latest Dead By romantic suspense thriller tied to the Powell Detective Agency is a tense direct sequel to the Silent Killer. The story line is fast-paced from the onset as a serial killer methodically murders the cast of a porn film with Lorie listed as an actress. As she and Mike learn via Dead by Midnight that a person cannot run from their deeds as regret and remorse are powerful feelings that never quite leave. Fans will relish this strong sequel with a fascinating unexpected potentially deadly twist that does not require reading the previous novel, although that helps with the past that haunts the present.

Harriet Klausner

I want to give this book a 2.5 but will round up to 3. I decided on three because I can tell this author can write and this is a part of a series that I'd missed previous books. There were so many additional stories and characters that I felt I'd missed a lot and wondered why all of these characters were used in this book. It felt kind of like an introduction of this author's other series, perhaps? I really don't mind books with a lot of characters, but they should actually be needed for the book.

I found myself more interested in the other characters than the main couple (but not all in this book). So I will look into another of this author's books. Hopefully, they won't have this same issue.

This book was an ok read. There is too much going on between everyone. The mystery of the book was excellent, I had to keep ready to figure out the bad guy. The the rommance between Mike and Lorie never really came together for me. Its a good book and worth the read.

No matter how hard she tries to enjoy a normal life after returning to her hometown of Dunmore, Alabama, Lorie Hammonds cannot escape the mistakes she made while seeking fame, fortune and stardom in Hollywood. Almost a decade after fleeing California with her pride and reputation in shambles, the former Playboy centerfold and porn film actress starts receiving death threats warning her to say her prayers and ask forgiveness for her sins.

Because of her sordid and much-whispered-about past, Lorie is accustomed to being the object of gossip and scorn by some of the "good" citizens of Dunmore. After receiving the first threatening letter, she immediately dismisses it as a vicious prank and tosses it in the trash. Then a duplicate letter arrives with the same wording: "Midnight is coming. Say your prayers. Ask for forgiveness. Get your affairs in order. You're on the list. Be prepared. You don't know when it will be your turn. Will you be the next to die?"

This second letter convinces Lorie to take the threat seriously, but because of her past relationship with Sheriff Mike Birkett, she doesn't want to ask the Sheriff's Department for assistance. Normally, she would approach her best friend, Cathy Perdue, for help, but Cathy and her husband Jack are away on their honeymoon. So Lorie turns to Jack's sister, Maleah.

Maleah Perdue, a seasoned investigator with Powell Private Security and Investigation Agency, immediately recognizes the danger and agrees to help Lorie. It isn't long before another Powell investigator, former FBI profiler Derek Lawrence, gets on board with the case. Maleah and Derek, who mix together like fire and water, set aside their differences for their client's sake, and they coordinate their investigation with local Dunmore authorities.

Initially, Sheriff Birkett believes that Lorie has concocted the threat in a desperate attempt to get his attention. Because of their past relationship, he refuses to forgive the woman he once loved before marrying his late wife, Molly. As a widower with two children and a reputation to protect, he is reluctant to get involved in Lorie's case. But he joins the investigation once he realizes the threat is genuine and her life is in jeopardy.

Because of the Powell Agency's vast resources and law enforcement connections, it soon becomes apparent that a serial killer is on the loose. Investigators learn that murder victims in other states had received threatening letters with the exact wording as Lorie's prior to their deaths. In addition, the victims are also connected with the porn movie Midnight Masquerade. The clock ticks as investigators try to apprehend the murderer, protect Lorie and warn other potential victims before the killer strikes again.

Once the media learns about the contents of the letters, they dub the serial murderer the "Midnight Killer." With the barrage of unwanted media attention, Lorie's past becomes even more public. It seems no matter how hard she tries to overcome the mistakes she made in Hollywood, someone is ready to point them out to her and shame her for them. But the Midnight Killer, who has taken seeking retribution to a deadly level, is hell-bent on making Lorie pay for her sins --- with her life.

DEAD BY MIDNIGHT is a sizzling romantic suspense novel with a huge cast of characters and lots of surprises. New York Times bestselling author Beverly Barton's latest book has the right ingredients for a sex-charged thriller --- lovers torn apart by time and circumstances, a deranged killer on the loose, lurid sexual obsessions, graphic sex scenes, vicious gossips, shameful secrets, shocking scandal, and unexpected twists and turns. Barton's unflinching style and vivid writing are sure to please her fans and have them eager for more.