Double Exposure: A Novel [Hardcover]

Stephen Collins (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 22, 1998

In Double Exposure, Collins plunges readers into a world he knows intimately -- broadcast television. We meet top TV critic Joe McBride, who's doing fine professionally, but whose private life is a mess, what with a five-year-old daughter, an angry ex-wife, and a very-soon-to-be-ex-fiancie, not to mention a come-hither co-anchor, and a beautiful brand-new neighbor who's alluring, available . . . and much, much more than meets the eye.Savvy, sexy, and edge-of-the-seat suspenseful, Double Exposure is the kind of thriller only an industry insider could create, a star turn from a man who knows that when people talk about a role to kill for, sometimes they mean exactly that.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Well-drawn bit players steal focus from annoying, self-centered leads in this media-centered psychosexual thriller from film and TV (7th Heaven) actor Collins (Eye Contact). Neurotic media critic Joe McBride, a hunk of putty in the hands of attractive women, is easily snared by his new neighbor, psychotic beauty Amy Goode, on the same day that he is dumped by his fiancee (his ex-wife's former best friend). After several sessions of window-to-window voyeurism, they consummate their attraction at Amy's place, where Joe meets her spooky sister, Loree, and unwittingly comes into close contact with Amy's vengeful, nuttily religious boyfriend, Dean. Joe's life gets chaotic as his job (he's a host on an all-critics cable channel) goes bust and as he starts to doubt Amy's stories about herself. Fearing but still craving Amy, he dodges her by visiting his mother, then planning a sleepover for his preschool-age daughter, Mollie, which goes awry as she disappears on a trip to the park. The cops play minor roles as Joe and ex-wife Gayle take a major gamble on Mollie's life in a surprise finale that sets up a sequel. The reader figures out the major gimmick early on, and the unappealing leads defy empathy, but the story skims over the New York scenery with the slick flash of the local news. Cable mogul Brutus Clay, his intern-earnest staff, Joe's T&A co-host Sandy Moss and his mother all cry out for further development; had Collins done so, the book might have been far more interesting. Author tour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Second suspenser, all quite plausible until the end, by actor/novelist Collins (Eye Contact, 1994), who plays Ashley Wilkes in the TV miniseries Scarlett. Journalist Joseph McBride, a syndicated TV critic, finds himself alone in his new condo after his fiance, Mary Beth, dumps him for an editor at Simon & Schuster. Joe, a deeply attentive father, has a five-year old daughter, Mollie, with his divorced wife Gayle. Meanwhile, his tenth-floor apartment looks down on the kitchen of an adjoining ninth-floor apartment, and he becomes obsessed with the beautiful woman who lingers at the window, at times with little on. Joe is supposed to be watching cassettes of advance TV shows and meeting deadlines, but the window proves too alluring. Then the woman--knowing that he's been watching her--invites him down for hot milk and honey; just as they are having serious foreplay, her twin sister walks in drunk and passes out fully dressed. The energetic couple ignore her. When an exhausted Joe goes back to his condo, he discovers a half-clothed Mary Beth, who has changed her mind and returned to him. What to do? Then he learns that ``Amy Goode'' is not really his neighbor's name, as she says, but rather is that of a female cop in Queens, whom she pretends to be. Joe's suddenly complex life gets more complicated when Brutus Clay, a multimillionaire who wants to start up a new TV channel devoted entirely to critics, begins courting Joe. Will Joe go along with having sexpot Sandy Moss as his cohost? Will he stay with Mary Beth? Before he can decide, Mollie is kidnapped during his weekend custody, and its soon evident who has her. Thrilling this is not, but it is richly entertaining, especially in its wry portrait of broadcast television. Only that forcibly twisted climax rings false. (Author tour) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (April 22, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688158935
• ISBN-13: 978-0688158934
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,446,862 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exciting!, January 12, 2000

By 

Jennifer A Smith (Tampa, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Double Exposure (Mass Market Paperback)

Thrilling and alluring! There is a new twist with every turn of the page. This book is even better than his last one! I can't wait for his next book.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Page turner., July 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Double Exposure (Mass Market Paperback)

I thought I might be bias to give this book a good review because I enjoy Stephen Collins as an actor but I must give it a good review based on the story itself. This was truly a fast paced, sexy, suspensful read that kept me turning the pages. The character of Joe McBride is realistic and flawed but not an idiot which makes his actions in the story plausible. A recommended read.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderfully sexy, exciting psychological thriller, April 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Double Exposure: A Novel (Hardcover)

Stephen Collins' new novel "Double Exposure" is a superbly written page turner. With perfect aim Collins goes straight to the heart of the varied characters he introduces throughout the story. The emotional core lies in Joe McBride, a rather seasoned TV critic and his relationships with everyone from past and present lovers to his co-workers, to his mother and then some. With eroticism and suspense, Collins excels with his carefully crafted details. The writer also maintains a firm grasp of the characters psyches, many of whom intersect in an intriguing and often nail biting manner.

It isn't only the suspense that keeps the reader captivated, but Collins' display of the lurking and complex psychology of the characters. What sets "Double Exposure" apart from other suspense novels and what makes it most memorable is Collins' understanding of people and the underlying traits of human nature that many of us all too often deny. Stephen Collins offers us a mirror of the mind---a reflection that is not something we expect. All in all, there is an eager vitality in Collins' writing which makes for a thoroughly satisfying read.