Hemlock Bay (FBI Series) [Mass Market Paperback]

Catherine Coulter (Author)

Book Description

Series: FBI Series | Publication Date: July 2, 2002

FBI Agent Dillon Savich and Lacey Sherlock must discover whether Savich's sister's car crash was a suicide attempt, or a murder conspiracy to gain her extremely valuable paintings.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

FBI agents Dillon and Lacey Sherlock Savich return (The Maze, etc.) in Coulter's latest romance thriller to take down the satanic child-killing Tuttle twins in a Maryland barn before rushing off to California to save Dillon's sister, Lily, from her in-laws. Once an accomplished cartoonist, Lily has battled depression since the death of her daughter despite, or perhaps because of, her husband, a psychiatrist more devoted to Lily's inheritance (her famous grandmother's paintings) than to Lily. After Dillon's friend, debonair art broker Simon Russo, reveals that four of the paintings are forgeries, Lily finds herself hypnotized, mugged, caught in a fire, chased onto a cliff and kidnapped as she and Simon fly from Washington to California to Sweden. Coulter creates such vivid characters and fast-moving plotlines that fans of her almost 50 novels will overlook her occasional leaps of logic (tiny Lily defeats a mugger with a few quick karate chops) and boilerplate dialogue (" `A young guy tried to murder me this morning.' `What? Oh, God, no!' "). In return, she spices up her story with a dash of gothic horror, a splash of romance and a steady determination not to take herself or her genres too seriously. When Lily is forced to don a chic Art Deco dress while imprisoned in a castle so she can be married against her will to a blind villain in a wheelchair, what's a reader to do but guess how long it will take the hero to climb out of the fjord to save her and calculate just how long it will take this cop confection to become a bestseller. (Aug.)Forecast: Coulter's genre-blending habits don't faze her loyal fans. Earlier Dillon and Lacey Sherlock adventures were all bestsellers, and most likely this one will be, too. Audio rights to Brilliance.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

FBI special agent Dillon Savich rescues two boys who were about to be dismembered by the Warlocks, a sibling pair of psychotic serial killers, in an eerie X-Files-type encounter. Killing Tommy and shooting off Timmy's arm, Dillon discovers that Timmy is really Tammy. Assuming that the case is closed, he and his wife, Sherlock, also an FBI agent, head home, where they get a phone call informing them that Dillon's sister, Lily, is in the hospital. Lily insists that her car crash was not a second attempt to take her life in the wake of the death of her six-year-old daughter. Dillon investigates and uncovers a possible motive for murder: Lily's husband and/or in-laws would have benefited from her death since she inherited some paintings worth millions of dollars. Dillon calls in his art expert friend, Simon, who discovers that half the paintings have been stolen and replaced with forgeries. Lily finds a friend and soulmate in Simon as they face danger in their quest for the paintings and the thieves. Meanwhile one-armed Tammy has escaped custody, and Dillon may be the only one who can stop her from killing again. Coulter's romantic suspense/thrillers, excellent beach reads, have a loyal following, and readers will applaud Sherlock and Savich as they make their sixth appearance. Diana Tixier Herald
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Jove (July 2, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0515133302
• ISBN-13: 978-0515133301
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (104 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #180,325 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Catherine Coulter is the author of the New York Times-bestselling FBI thrillers The Cove, The Maze, The Target, The Edge, Riptide, Hemlock Bay, Eleventh House, Blindside, Blowout, Point Blank, Double Take and TailSpin. She lives in northern California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I'd like my time back, June 2, 2004

By 

Paul (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hemlock Bay (FBI Series) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is possibly the worst book I've ever read. This had some of the worst dialogue I've ever read and most of the details in the book were used multiple times and were completely unnecessary. The story was completely implausable and offered no explanation as to any information behind the supernatural phenomenon. Not even the characters in the book are confident enough to state that the criminal had supernatural powers or if she was just some david Copperfield wanna-be. What was up with the cartoonist sister who drew some terrible comic strip. An androgenous computer, an androgenous criminal? Crazy swedes. Sure, I like to suspend my beliefs and enjoy out of this world stories, but this was just garbage. After 5 pages I knew that it was bad, but was compelled and perversely curious as to how bad the book could really get. I should've stopped after the five pages. How is that a NYT bestseller? No one in that books should be named sherlock unless it's someone looking for talents because Ms. Coulter doesn't have any.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Hemlock Bay, August 22, 2001

By 

Corinne Robbins (Miami, FL, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hemlock Bay (Hardcover)

Having read other books by Coulter, I looked forwqard to this, BUT was greatly disappointed. It was unbelievable..even as science fiction (which it should have been touted as). There wasn't any resolution, the characters did not ring true, and the F.B.I. depictions were unrealistic and oversimplified. In case you haven't guessed nt now, i thought this book was awful..and a waste of my time and money.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Madness, Murder and Mishaps, April 27, 2002

By 

Jill Clardy "So many books, so little time...." (Redwood City, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hemlock Bay (Random House Large Print) (Hardcover)

The latest in the series featuring FBI agent Dillon Savich and his wife Lacey Sherlock involves two subplots: a kidnapping of two teenage boys and the apparent suicide attempt of Dillon's younger sister Lily. Lily's daughter died in an accident 7 months ago, and she has been depressed and distraught since then, but her brother and sister-in-law believe that she is not suicidal and that someone is trying to kill her.

The complicated plot involves Lily's second husband, who apparently is not as sincere and loving as he pretends to be, Simon Russo, art broker, and the invaluable paintings, now worth millions, left to Lily by her grandmother.

The subplot involving the counterfeit paintings is interesting and believable, and the developing relationship between Lily and Simon is worked out to a satisfactory conclusion; however the plot involving the kidnappings and the bizarre, evil woman who ruthlessly preys on innocent victims is incredibly weird and contrived and not well integrated with the rest of the book.

The author should have developed one plot or the other, but not both in the same book. Some of the characters are not well developed, the dialogue is stiff and contrived, and some aspects of the plot just plain silly. Fortunately, I borrowed this book from the library, so it wasn't a waste of money as well as a waste of time!