Love You To Death (Red Dress Ink Novels) [Paperback]

Melissa Senate (Author)

Book Description

Series: Red Dress Ink Novels | Publication Date: January 1, 2007

When did Abby Foote's life becomes an episode of Law & Order?

First, a former boyfriend (who dumped Abby in the most humiliating way imaginable) is found murdered the day his engagement is announced. Then two other ex-boyfriends report attempts made on their lives right after breaking up with her. Coincidence? Detective Benjamin Orr, of the Portland Police Department (and Very Probing Questions and Incredibly Delicious Face), doesn't think so. Neither do Abby's friends, family, coworkers and other exes -- who are suddenly shaking in their shoes. Soon everyone is sucking up to her as though the Abby they know and supposedly love to death is capable of poisoning their drinks . . .

Is someone trying to frame her? Who? And why? She has to find out fast. Because by-the-book Ben is bound to break her heart. Which makes him next on someone's list . . .

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Abby Foote, "Best Of" editor at Maine Life magazine, has a history of choosing the wrong guy. But when one of the latest in her list of disasters, Ted Puck, turns up murdered the day his engagement to someone else is announced, she becomes the prime suspect in this lighthearted romp from Senate (See Jane Date). To complicate matters, Benjamin Orr, the lead detective investigating the case, also happens to be the guy Abby had a major crush on during her high school years. When two other ex-boyfriends report attempts on their lives and even Abby's co-workers and family are suspicious, she begins her own investigation. Readers will cheer Abby every step of the way as she tries to clear her name and find her prince for whom the glass slipper will finally fit. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Like that of many women, Abby Foote's love life seems cursed. Her latest boyfriend, the reliable Henry, dumps her via cell phone before her nephew's bris, causing her to yell in public that she wants to kill him. It proves to be an unfortunate choice of words when Ted Puck, an ex-boyfriend who cheated on Abby, turns up dead on Wharf Pier, leaving Abby as the prime suspect. Even more rattling is the lead detective on the case, the sexy Benjamin Orr, who happens to be Abby's high-school crush. Not helping her case is the fact that two other exes were attacked soon after breaking up with her. Abby has to clear her name, and grapple with her renewed attraction to the alluring Ben. Senate, author of the first Red Dress Ink title, See Jane Date (2001) and several subsequent titles, including The Solomon Sisters Wise Up (2003), has penned an enjoyable mystery with a couple easy to root for at its center. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 297 pages
• Publisher: Red Dress Ink (January 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373895461
• ISBN-13: 978-0373895465
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #682,284 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm the author of 10 novels, including my debut, SEE JANE DATE, which was made into a TV movie, and my latest, THE LOVE GODDESS' COOKING SCHOOL. My other novels are: The Solomon Sisters Wise Up; Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?; The Breakup Club; Theodora Twist (for teens); Love You To Death; Questions To Ask Before Marrying; The Secret of Joy; and The Mosts (YA).

Short stories can be found in American Girls About Town and Flirting With Pride and Prejudice: Fresh Perspectives On The Original Chick Lit Masterpiece. Essays in: It's A Wonderful Lie: 26 Truths About Life In Your Twenties and Everything I Needed To Know About Being A Girl I Learned from Judy Blume.

I'm a former book editor (romance and teen fiction) from New York City and now live on the beautiful coast of Maine, where I write full-time. Please come visit my website at MelissaSenate.com for more information.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting premise, August 12, 2007

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Tracy Vest (Northern California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Love You To Death (Red Dress Ink Novels) (Paperback)

Magazine columnist Abby Foote has never met a loser she didn't date. From the lothario that just wanted her virginity, to the CPA that wanted a write up in her magazine, she always manages to get her heart broken. But no one broke it more thoroughly than suave Ted Puck, who brought his "cousin" to Abby's birthday party, only to be caught in a compromising position. After getting abandoned at LL Bean when her new beau Henry discovers what a bris is, she's melancholy as she reads about Ted's engagement to his "cousin." When he winds up dead the next day, the police come knocking on her door. When two more of her former boyfriends report occurrences after having broken up with her, suspicion is cast on Abby, she receives apologies from every past misdeed cast against her over the last 25 years. Add to that a scorching crush on the investigating detective, Benjamin Orr (not to be confused with the lead singer of "the Cars"), and Abby is in more trouble than she bargained for. She decides that the only way to clear her name is to actively participate in the investigation, much to Ben's consternation.

Senate's latest is a laugh out loud funny story - every time Abby is sarcastic to someone they end up taking out an order of protection against her. But it's also sad - Abby was far too tolerant of a very disloyal family that doesn't deserve her - one sister even requiring her to wear a blond wig in her wedding so she could have a totally blond bridal party. The story did get a little redundant after awhile, with a pretty unlikely person revealed as the culprit. But Senate is such a good writer that I found myself reading into the night to see how it all turned out.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun whodunit chick-lit, October 23, 2007

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CoffeeGurl - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Love You To Death (Red Dress Ink Novels) (Paperback)

Abby Foote, Best Of columnist for The Maine Life magazine, is a living expert on being dumped. Almost every guy she's dated has dumped her in painful, humiliating ways. So when the guy she loved most becomes engaged to the woman he'd left her for, Abby is devastated. And when the same guy is found dead the day after his engagement is announced, Abby is shocked... and her world turns upside down when she becomes a murder suspect. To make matters worse, it appears that two of her ex-boyfriends report having had attempts made on their lives. So now Abby is THE murder suspect, which doesn't sit well with her friends and family. Add insult to injury, gorgeous Benjamin Orr, former high school crush turned police detective, is on the case. Who is killing Abby's boyfriends and why?

This is a fun and entertaining chick-lit. It is not deep, neither the story nor its characters is meant to have very much depth, so you take it as what it's meant to be: great escapism. I enjoyed it for what it was, and I gobbled it up in two sittings. I have always enjoyed Melissa Senate's novels. Her style is cute and sassy and her books are as lighthearted as an issue of Cosmopolitan magazine. I became a little frustrated with the characters here though. How could someone who has known Abby for years, some almost throughout her life, ever doubt that she is innocent? How could she take so much mistrust from everyone, including Ben? I know the guy was doing his job, but he was exasperating and for a long time I wondered why Abby was so hung up on him. Suspension of disbelief is required when reading this. But I did like the development of their relationship and I read through the whole thing, hoping to see what would transpire between them. I also like the backdrop of Portland, Maine. As a New Englander (Massachusetts), I had no trouble picturing Portland, and I'd love to pay a visit there some time. The mystery aspect is middling. I was able to figure out (or at least suspect) who the killer was about halfway through the story. The "least conspicuous one is the one" rule certainly applies here. Love You to Death is something you'd want to pick up if you're planning to travel this holiday. It'll keep you entertained from beginning to end. I will give another Red Dress Ink chick-mystery, The Key, a whirl. I've heard good things about it. In the meantime, I recommend this one.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars love you to death, January 26, 2007

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Sarah Banks "sarahlen1980" (Madison, MS) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Love You To Death (Red Dress Ink Novels) (Paperback)

This mystery got off to a slow start by taking a few chapters to even delve into the murders. However, after the first crime, the book was up and running. I enjoyed it a lot, and I loved Abby. I really didn't know who the murderer was until the end, and it was such a shocker. The author threw in some pretty convincing red herrings. The motive was also a suprise and very well done. I hope there is a sequel.