In Death's Shadow: A Hannah Ives Mystery (Hannah Ives Mysteries) [Mass Market Paperback]

Marcia Talley (Author)

Book Description

Series: Hannah Ives Mysteries | Publication Date: August 31, 2004

Hannah Ives struggled bravely through the ravages of illness, and fellow patient Valerie Stone was at her side. As cancer survivors they have a lot to celebrate when they meet again, but their reunion is short-lived. Soon Valerie is dead, and a suspicious Hannah must sift through a mountain of clues trying to uncover the cause of her friend's untimely death. But there are those in the big business of living and dying who think she's becoming too curious ... and it's high time her questions were silenced.

Hannah Ives knows what it means to be a survivor. Now she's about to discover what it means to be a target.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Marcia Talley is the author of three previous books featuring Hannah Ives. A winner of the Malice Domestic writing grant and an Agatha Award nominee for Best First Novel, Ms. Talley won an Agatha and an Anthony Award for her short story "Too Many Cooks." She is the editor of two mystery collaborations and her short stories have been published in numerous magazines and anthologies. She lives with her husband in Annapolis, Maryland.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Avon (August 31, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060587385
• ISBN-13: 978-0060587383
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,177,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Marcia Talley is the Agatha and Anthony award-winning author of A QUIET DEATH and nine previous mystery novels featuring survivor and sleuth, Hannah Ives.

Marcia is author/editor of two star-studded collaborative novels, NAKED CAME THE PHOENIX and I'D KILL FOR THAT set in a fashionable health spa and an exclusive gated community, respectively. Her short stories appear in more than a dozen collections. A recent story, "Can You Hear Me Now?" is featured in TWO OF THE DEADLIEST: NEW TALES OF LUST, GREED AND MURDER FROM OUTSTANDING WOMEN OF MYSTERY, edited by New York Times best-selling author, Elizabeth George.

Marcia is immediate past President of Sisters in Crime International, serves on the board of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America and is a member of the Crime Writers' Association (UK) and the Authors' Guild of America. She lives in Annapolis, Maryland, with a husband who loves to sail and a cat who doesn't.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner from Talley, October 29, 2004

By 

Doris Ann Norris (Fostoria, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In Death's Shadow: A Hannah Ives Mystery (Hannah Ives Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

It was a very happy day for mystery lovers when Marcia Talley's Hannah Ives series was picked up by Avon. It's certainly wonderful to have Hannah back, even though Marcia has kept busy editing serial novels and writing award-winning short stories. When a friend, with whom Hannah shared the indignities and the other effects of chemo appears to be cured or, at least in remission , Hannah is very happy to see her again. Then, not long after doing a "race for a cure", Valerie is found
dead in her bed by her small daughter. Hannah has her doubts about her friend's death. She was also curious how the family suddenly seemed to have so much money.
Hannah then runs into an insurance scheme in which brokers
buy insurance policies from the owners and then sell them to investors.
Old people and cancer patients seem to be the prime target of one
particularly aggressive broker. She then discovers that a number of old people in an assisted living/care facility have died not too long after selling their policies. Were the "investors" tired of waiting? So now I know about "viaticals" and the information was fascinating...as was
the plotting and characters. I thoroughly enjoyed IN DEATH'S SHADOW, which is now available. It's well worth the
paperback price. Heck, it would be worth a hardcover cost. Welcome back, Hannah.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fan from Odenton, September 27, 2004

By 

Ray in Odenton "Hannah Ives Fan" - See all my reviews

This review is from: In Death's Shadow: A Hannah Ives Mystery (Hannah Ives Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

Who knew that "viatical" insurance policies could serve up so much mystery entertainment value? Perhaps in lesser hands it wouldn't, but Marcia Talley and her protaganist - Hannah Ives - are in fine form as they investigate how an insurance policy that pays dividends to others may have hastened the death of her good friend. Those of you with the Hannah Ives series will know that Hannah is a breat cancer survivor. As if life weren't hard enough, those kind of challenges can create difficulties making ends meet. A viatical seemed like the perfect choice for her Hannah's friend, but greed may have shortened her friend's life more than the cancer. A thought-provoking great read!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Talley in peak form!, October 4, 2004

By 

C. Williams (Hilton Head, SC, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In Death's Shadow: A Hannah Ives Mystery (Hannah Ives Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

"Chemo brain," indeed! Hannah Ives is back again, sharp as ever and with her usual wry take on life. When a fellow breast cancer survivor who had been in radiant good health suddenly dies under mysterious circumstances, Hannah's internal radar sends her nosing around to find out how and why. In the process, she discovers a ghoulish potential for mayhem in the complex arena of viatical insurance settlements---a timely subject for senior citizens and people with terminal illnesses who may wish to cash in their insurance policies while they can still use the proceeds. Who knew?

Author Marcia Talley's lively powers of observation and knack for finding the `telling detail' make Hannah's trip into the murky morass of shady brokers and investors a lively and engaging process involving such now-familiar characters as author L.K. Bromley, and assorted family members who all contribute to the investigation. With each successive book, Talley's writing has grown more relaxed and confident. She has definitely hit full stride with In Death's Shadow.