Customer Reviews

The Model Man (Zebra Debut)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I didn't know quite what to expect from this book, but it blew my mind, honestly. It's so well written and has a real edge to it. It's like a female Elmore Leonard only with a stronger romantic hook. Part comic thriller, part romantic suspense, part - I don't know. The characters really ring true and it's just a blast from start to finish. Definitely not just genre. It's funny, sexy, gritty, yet stays kind and true to the characters.

Funny, ironic, slightly whacky view of LA lifestyle

mated with an appealingly hot romance. The fat

ex-model is an hilarious, sad, and believable villian.

The con-artist/Hollywood setting manages to put a

fresh spin on a scene that's been done before. And

lurking beneath the surface there's a sense of

heartbreak and hope that you don't often find in

bright adventures like this. Read it!

Christy Harris is a scam artist. She came to California years ago as an aspiring actress, but she soon found that she wasn't making money waiting on tables. She and friend Louie figured out that together they were able to make money a much faster way, setting up all sorts of scams and not getting caught. Christy's forte is the psychic route, but she's also good at stealing things, with Louie's help.

Joe, a good-looking cop from Texas, seeks out Christy the fortune-teller to help him with a case. Christy of course gets nervous that she's even talking to a cop, as she knows that eventually she is destined for some jail time. But she helps him out nevertheless, faking a psychic event when they go to house where a murder had occurred. Joe seems to buy her psychic act, which shocks Christy. She doesn't think she's that good, and besides, Joe is a policeman. At the same time, she feels a huge attraction for him, as he does for her. Not a good thing!

The two fall for each other and eventually have amazing sex in a cheesy motel. Louie is beside himself to think Christy is sleeping with a cop but Christy claims it will be just a one-time deal. She intentionally does not keep his phone number (she throws it in the trash) so she has no temptation whatsoever to call him back. What she doesn't know is that it is not the last time she'll see him.

Christy soon learns that she's now part of a big plot involving the mystery of the death of a once successful male model, Ricky LittleJohn, whose death Joe is so obsessed about solving. What Christy does not pick up on right away is that Joe's story is not exactly the truth, which is ironic since it's Christy's job to scam nearly everyone she meets. So she's in lust (or is it love?) with a man that is conning her to find information on a murder, and it is quite possible he's as good a con man as Christy.

THE MODEL MAN is a contemporary romance with lots of humor, and takes place in the world of Hollywood and wanna be actors. This book is filled with bigger than life characters who have a lot of wild and wacky adventures, definitely stuff that is over the top and not necessarily true to life. It's a great beach read, perfect for those lazy summer months. The reader will love Christy, although at times she can make one angry because of the way she lived. She was a true con-artist. Readers will also love her relationship with her best friend Louie, her gay neighbor who is very flamboyant and just as talented as she was in terms of running a good scam. This reviewer, however, had a hard time with the character of Joe. There was something about him that rubbed this reader the wrong way. He came across as a sleaze, despite the fact that there were other characters around him that were no better than he, but it was the fact that he was posing as a cop that felt all wrong. This is not saying anything against the book, but just a comment that this character could have been a more "goody two shoes" that helps save the day, but instead turns out to be not so perfect.

The book reads like a Hollywood movie script, in that the reader will be able to easily imagine all the scenes and characters as if watching it on the big screen. This reviewer was able to picture the palm tree lined streets of Hollywood where Christy and Louie hung out, as well as envision the many Hollywood parties the two would attend (uninvited) where they would be able to steal whatever they could sell later on.

This reviewer recommends THE MODEL MAN for those looking for a fun read with a lot of over the top adventures. The only real flaw could be the ending, and although the author didn't rush it, it felt somewhat forced and almost unbelievable. (No plot spoilers here! It's up to the reader to discover it for herself). This reviewer gives THE MODEL MAN 3 ½ stars. - courtesy of Love Romances

Christy is just trying to make a living in LA by being a con woman. She cons people by being a psychic, stealing booze from Hollywood parties, or any other way to separate people from their money so she can pay her rent and eat. On this particular day, she is Christina the psychic and she's waiting for her mark to come commune with her deceased husband. While waiting, Christy picks up a discarded newspaper and reads the story of Ricky Littlejohn's murder. She soon forgets all about what she has read and concentrates on talking with the dead and making herself some much needed money. Several days later as she is waiting on another mark to buy her stolen booze, a very handsome man approaches Christy asking for help. He introduces himself as Joe and tells her that he is a homicide detective and was referred to her by one of her satisfied customers. He explains that he needs help in a case that he is working on and offers her four hundred dollars just to try. Christy agrees mainly just to get him out of the way so he wouldn't run off her buyer, but is tempted by the money. The next day Christy meets Joe back at the office she sometimes uses, intending to turn him down, but she cannot resist spending time with such a charming man.

When Christy and Joe arrive at the house he wants her to look at she realizes that it is the home of Ricky Littlejohn, that she read about in the paper, and is able to give Joe some little details in order to sound convincing. Soon after spending the night together in a motel, Christy and Joe are thrown together with lies and danger surrounding them. Will trusting each other keep them alive or get them killed?

The Model Man is a rollercoaster ride of an adventure that will keep you guessing until the very end. I thoroughly enjoyed all the twists and turns that this book took and was surprised at the unexpected ending! I wasn't sure if I liked Christy at the beginning, but was soon absorbed with trying to figure her out. Christy and Joe made a great team and the passion between them was hot and steamy. Genie Davis keeps up a fast-paced story line that moves smoothly throughout the book while keeping you on the edge of your seat waiting for what will happen next. The Model Man is a sure to please with its array of fascinating characters and non-stop action.

Reviewed by: Tammy

For Fallen Angel Reviews

30-yr-old wanna-be actress works as a psychic & steals expensive alcoholic beverages at posh Hollywood parties she crashes to make ends meet. She's approached by an attractive Texan cop for paid help in solving a case about a murdered former male model & his missing $14 million. They give in to their magnetic physical attraction much easier than they do their secrets. But their secrets are eventually revealed as they get closer to solving the case.

This Davis book was a tightly-written, funny romance-suspense. Her description of characters & events & dialogue made me laugh. Yet it wasn't trite. The character development gave the book depth & I liked that their flaws were not resolved at the end. They were instead accepted. I didn't even mind that the main characters straddled the fence on moral integrity. The romance was sweet & sexy. Love scenes were not detailed but yet passionate.

Recommended.

The Model Man by Genie Davis is a quirky romance mystery novel. Christy is out of work address in LA who uses her acting skills in multiple cons to pay her rent. Joe a LAPD cop with a Texas Drawl wants her use her `psychic abilities' (that she doesn't have) to solve a murder. When you think you have figured out all the twist then it goes off roading, Enjoy!

If you enjoy this genre, I would also suggest Wedding Survivor by Julia London, Glory Days by Irene Peterson and Squeeze Play by Kate Angell.

From page one through the denouement, The Model Man will mesmerize you with its well conceived, suspenseful plot and its captivating characters. Ms. Davis' characters lived and breathed on every page, with a vibrancy so genuine that to call them well rounded does not seem sufficient. Surely a new term should be invented for characterizations such as these, for when I reached the final page of the book, I found myself saddened to have to say good-bye to Christy, Joe, and Louie, the way one would feel saddened to say good-bye to intimate friends. I will particularly miss The Model Man's protagonist, Christy, and hope to encounter her again in one of Ms. Davis' upcoming novels, perhaps in a sequel. Diane DesRoches, editorial and creative writing consultant-Word Factory

You can't judge this book by its pink cover. Flip it open and turn to page 1 so that you can be introduced to Ricky, doubly blessed with tanned good looks and a dearth of brains. By the middle of page 2, twenty-five years have passed and Ricky is apparently and mysteriously dead; at the bottom of page 2 we meet Madame Christina, otherwise known as Cee Cee, or Christy, our protagonist. Her mission: to scrape by as a con artist/psychic who specializes in speaking with the dead.

Christy knows she's faking her "talent"--until she meets up with Joe, a Texas cop...or perhaps he's an L.A. detective...maybe he murdered Ricky...or maybe none of the above. As she evades random killers, saves several lives herself, and breaks more than a few eggs, Christy's psychic powers acquire a verisimilitude they never possessed in the past.

Model Man is a romance noir, populated with likeable losers and held together with a fast-paced plot that keeps the reader deliciously off balance from page 2 all the way to the unexpected denouement. Though it's a fast read, Christy and Joe will stay with you for days after you finish the book, reminding you to stay alert, trust almost no one, and keep your eye on the (crystal) ball.

This is a very fun read. It's light, it's breezy, its funny, its sexy...it's just plain fun. This would make such a fun movie...and be a nice change from the bazillion remakes being endlessly pumped out by Hollywood.

and I didn't want to put it down. I've read other work by Genie Davis, and she never disappoints. A real page turner.