Customer Reviews

Dead Ringer

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The morning after Christmas 2001, Charlotte Leone finds her husband is missing. Panicked, she calls the police and begs them to find her Dan, convinced that he has been injured in a car wreck. In all her imaginings of the worst, she never would have suspected that in truth he had left her, but days later, Charlotte discovers that he signed the business he started over to her as part of a divorce settlement. Not only that, but Dan was not at all who she thought, but according to the FBI, a terrorist for the IRA's more radical side.

Bitter and hurting, Charlotte begins life anew in another state, and nearly two years pass. Then, she is contacted again by the authorities, seeking her help in nabbing "Dan". She is unable to help, however that does not stop her kidnapping shortly thereafter. The Frenchman who takes her into "protective custody" spins a good tale, but Charlotte is still suspicious. Matters escalate, and she finds herself on the lam from the law, not sure who the enemy really is, or who her captor is or is not. All she is sure of is that she finds him too attractive.

***** In this complex thriller, Ms. Cresswell is elevated to the level of Sandra Brown's best work. The plot is one that is all too timely, and chilling. Though savy readers will doubtlessly figure out one or two of the surprises before their revelation, that does not lessen the spine tingling adventure or the mental challenge presented. The hero is an enigma, and Charlotte a truly gutsy, clever lady with resilence that can only be admired. You will be left breathless and cheering. *****

After a family celebration and a night of making love, architect Charlotte Gray rolls over to sleep as husband Dan takes out the garbage, only to not return. When she calls the police, the FBI shows up and informs her that her husband is an international terrorist Danny O'Toole, a master of disguises who is wanted in connection with several bombings and arms deals in Europe. Suddenly, Charlotte's life as she knows it is a complete fabrication. After intense questioning and scrutiny, she relocates to Florida to get away from Iowa winters and memories of Dan.

After 18 months in sunny Florida, the FBI is once again at her door asking for her help in nabbing Dan, who they erroneously reported killed months earlier. Charlotte cannot identify Dan's voice in a recording, and soon agent John Hunsaker is pursuing her romantically. When John is incapacitated at a nightclub, someone moves in and kidnaps Charlotte. Richard Villier, advises her that he is a French agent and that he was asked to take into protective custody to preclude the Armagh Army (a violent faction of the IRA with intentions of bombing the Kennedy Space Center) from kidnapping her. What she does not realize is that Richard is actually Dan, and he is not the monster she has been led to believe, and realizes that she has never really gotten over him.

With the Armagh Army, the FBI, and assorted bad guys moving in, Charlotte and Dan race against the clock to insure that the Armagh Army is not successful in its mission. Charlotte does not know who is wearing a white hat, and who is wearing black. This is a fast-paced thriller with just the right amount of sizzle that at times is predictable, but pulls the rug out from the reader in the end.

This is my first book by this author. I was pleasantly surprised. What a different take on a contemporary romance novel! How would you feel if the man you married and thought you were in love with disappeared one night while taking out the garbage? Would you believe he abandoned you, or was he hurt, kidnapped, etc.? What if, after worrying and thinking the worst, you find out you were actually married to an international terrorist? This is the basic premise of this book. Charlotte Gray's world gets turned upside down when first her husband disappears, and then to make matters worse, she finds out he is a terrorist. Finally, when Charlotte thinks things can't possibly get any worse, she is kidnapped because of her husband. I truly liked the main heroine Charlotte Gray. I found her a very believable and likeable character. I also liked the fact that she was a fighter. In this book Charlotte has to come to terms with her husband and his life, and how to not only learn to trust again but learn to love again. I would highly recommend this book.

I really am enjoying reading Jasmine Cresswell's books. They are fast paced and really interesting. The characters are well developed... the storyline just picks up speed as you turn the pages. I think this author has a lot of talent and I am glad I found her. I found more books by her and am planning on reading them all. If you like romantic suspense, you will like this author. Give her a try.. more than likely you will enjoy her books. I have.

This was at times a thriller and at times a heart breaker. I have read some of Ms. Cresswell's previous books and while they were OK I wasn't overly jazzed about them, but this one was definitely different!

I'm a long time J. Cresswell fan. No one does romantic suspense as well. Dead Ringer kept me up reading long after I should have been asleep. The characters are well developed and fascinating, the plot raced along. Cresswell taps into today's news and builds a plausable story that gripped me from page one! Readers are in for a treat with this book. I bought several copies to give to friends.

I had never read anything by this author before, but I am now trying to find them all. This was absorbing and even though it might be considered predictable, the story was so entertaining that this did not bother me. I plan to read everything she has written.

Charlotte Gray had found happiness with her husband of seven months, Dan. On Christmas night after spending the day with her family, Charlotte and Dan return to their home where they have found so much happiness. When Dan tells Charlotte he forgot to take the garbage out, Charlotte wakes up the next morning to find that Dan never returned. Insisting to the police that Dan is a victim of foul play, Charlotte is totally unprepared for the news that she has spent the last year in the company of one of the most wanted terrorists in the U.S.

Now, eighteen months later, Charlotte hasn't come to terms with the fact that she was married to such a monster. Moving from Iowa to Flordia, Charlotte has made a clean break from everyone she loves. When the FBI return to her life and tell her they need her help, Charlotte agrees, for there is nothing more that she wants than to see Dan in jail for the rest of his life.

Dan never expected to fall in love with Charlotte. When he took up the identity of Daniel O'Toole to help his country, he never expected to have Charlie sucked in the middle of it. Going against everything he wanted, Dan left Charlie in the middle of the night. Now, almost two years later, he's back to protect her.

Although the book starts out slow, it quickly picks up and hooks the reader. It had a lot more factual information than any other of Cresswell's books, but I still enjoyed it very much.

I really debated between 2 and 3 stars, but decided to be generous. Because I love books by James Patterson, a friend of mine loaned this book to me. I am very glad I did not actually pay money for it! It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't good either. The main plot was all right, but the book could have used some very serious editing; it just went on and on and on. I decided to give this 3 stars because of the basic story and the intrigue was there, but if the book would have been about 150 pages shorter, it would have been much better.

While reading, I often looked to see how many pages I had yet to go (never a good sign) and often found myself putting the book down to clean out the dishwasher and do laundry (again, never a good sign). With Patterson, I want to read until finished. This one I debated long and hard about even continuing.

On Christmas Day 2001 in Des Moines, Riordan "Dan" Michael Gray and his wife of seven months Charlotte come home from visiting family. Dan takes out the garbage, but fails to return. Charlotte calls the police who begin a search that fails. Dan owns the successful Panini coffee shops. When payroll is due to the employers, Charlotte's father calls Dan's lawyers to learn he gave the business to her as a divorce settlement. Later the FBI informs her that her missing husband is terrorist Daniel O'Toole of the IRA.

A couple of years later in Tampa Bay, FBI agent John Hanseck visits Charlotte to inform her that Dan is in the country and probably in the Tampa area. The Feds want to use her as bait to catch him, but she wants her past buried so declines participating. However, refusal fails to keep her from being kidnapped. One of her abductors, whom she finds attractive and somewhat familiar looking, keeps her safe.

This is an exciting romantic suspense that hooks the reader once Dan vanishes. The story line is fast-paced as the audience waits to see what will happen when Dan and Charlotte meet up and learn why he left. There is the question of who will end up with the girl as a potential romance between the heroine and the Fed as well as the abductor protecting her adds to the intrigue. Though the climax seems too pat, fans will appreciate this terse thriller.

Harriet Klausner