The Death of a Difficult Woman [Paperback]

Carole Berry (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1995

Seeking a fulfilling job and promising relationship, Bonnie Indermill accepts a temporary assignment helping a law firm move to a new Park Avenue address, and stress levels peak when a nagging partner is killed. Reprint. K. AB. PW.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Strapped for cash, Bonnie Indermill, the eternal temp, signs on to help a Wall Street law firm relocate to its new offices and ends up in the center of a mediocre mystery. Bonnie, a walking target for everything that goes awry on the move, just manages to cope with the long work days, her useless boss and a strange man with a "hideous laugh" who is lurking around the new building. And then she meets Kate Hamilton, termagant attorney. Kate had complaints aplenty even before the disappearance of a carton of her confidential papers triggers the venting of her considerable anger on Bonnie and the movers, particularly Billy Finkelstein and his attractive father, Sam (to whom Bonnie takes a shine). Though otherwise likable, Bonnie will seem willfully obtuse to those who will have no problem guessing (before the murder) who the victim will be, where the body will be found, or (well before the finale) who the villain is. Berry's crime thriller, Nightmare Point, appeared last year.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

It isn't enough that Bonnie Indermill, signing on as a temporary assistant to the coordinator of relocation operations for Nutley, Eggers, Rivers, and Davis (NERD), is suddenly catapulted into the hot seat when her boss takes a hike and leaves her holding the moving boxes. Or that her first trip to the law firm's new office on Manhattan's Park Avenue is enlivened by her catching sight of a mysterious stalker who seems to be on the tail of senior litigation partner Kate Hamilton. Or even that a greenhorn mover can't account for the contents of Kate's precious desk drawer, and Bonnie takes the heat. No, the crowning blow comes when Kate is killed, and the police refuse to concentrate on the stalker, who meantime has turned his attention--phone calls, quickie personal visits, uncensored and increasingly accurate drawings of her in the naked arms of head mover Sam Finkelstein--to Bonnie. The cops decide that a much better suspect would be Sam's son Billy, whose delinquent past, weak alibi, and poor relations with the deceased would make him a natural to anybody who hasn't met the other slimy NERDs--the imperious senior partner, the two nervous associates teetering on the edge of partnership, Bonnie's craven new boss--or who isn't being stalked herself by somebody else. Berry (Good Night, Sweet Prince, 1990, etc.) writes like an omnidextrous octopus, dishing the dirt on NERD, following Bonnie's earthy romance, plotting a pristine whodunit, and leavening it all with Bonnie's trademark light patter--though tracking down the killer, stalker or no, never becomes as threatening as moving all those lawyers. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 265 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (October 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425150089
• ISBN-13: 978-0425150085
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,940,915 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An entertaining look at the workings of a large law firm, February 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Death of a Difficult Woman (Paperback)

If you think the words "obnoxious" and "lawyer" become redundant when used in the same sentence, you'll especially enjoy Death of a Difficult Woman. Carole Berry has succeeded in presenting an amusing insider's look at the trials and tribulations of working in a large law firm. Bonnie I.'s adventure as a move coordinator will entertain new and experienced readers.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not just for mystery lovers!, December 19, 1997

By 

[e-mail] (Bakersfield, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Death of a Difficult Woman (Paperback)

Carole Berry's _The Death of a Difficult Woman_ is not just for those fond of the mystery genre. This book is for anyone who ever worked as a temp, worked in a law firm, or wondered how they were going to pay the rent. Berry takes the ordinary--a temp (her series character Bonnie Indermill) hired to help with the move of large law firm--and turns it into an often hilarious mystery about murder, envy, and how to convince your mother that your own "Mr. Right" is just around the corner. Berry also manages to make the mundane, like color-coding moving boxes, a downright engaging part of the story. _The Death of a Difficult Woman_ will keep you guessing and remind you of the intrigue to be found in the wide world of office jobs.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A NEW AND VERY GOOD STORY, January 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Death of a Difficult Woman (Paperback)

I think CAROLE BERRY is an up and coming mystery writer. I have read everything she has wrote and can't wait for more.