Customer Reviews

Shakespeare's Champion (Lily Bard Mysteries, Book 2)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When housecleaner Lily Bard discovers a body in her gym, Body Time, she sees a connection to earlier murders that have taken place in her adopted town, Shakespeare, Arkansas. Lily Bard moved to Shakespeare several years before to restart her life after a personal tragedy received national media attention, but her life since then has been anything but quiet. After stopping an interracial fight at a local drive-in Lily becomes the focus of unwanted attention by some of the town residents. She decides not to move, but instead to stay and try to solve the murders that have made living in Shakespeare difficult for many of its citizens.
Charlaine Harris has a more complex plot structure in "Shakespeare's Champion". Events go back and forth in time and details are revealed from Lily's former life. And Lily really develops as a character in this book: when big things go down in Shakespeare Lily is forced to make crucial decisions that show what she's made of. This is also the book where she meets Jack Leeds. ; )
This is my favorite Lily Bard installment yet. Charlaine Harris uses an economy of words that makes every narrative detail important. I love the names she chooses for characters and businesses, but for all those whimsical details her stories are streamlined and focused.
If you've started the Lily Bard series that begins with "Shakespeare's Landlord", be sure to read "Shakespeare's Champion". Harris' other series are also a lot of fun.
And if you like Harris' writing be sure to try Elizabeth Peters' and Laurie R. King's mystery series.

Shakespeare's Champion is the second book in the Lily Bard series, but can be read as stand alone if you should be so lucky to find this book first. This book finds Lily still cleaning away and uncovering more secrets about the residents of Shakespeare than she ever really wanted to know. However, Lily has quite a few secrets of her own so she knows how to keep her mouth shut. When she isn't cleaning, Lily is busy going to the gym where she works on bodybuilding and karate. One morning, on her way to an early workout, she discovers a fellow gym member, dead, with a barbell across his throat. Lily desperately wants to believe that it was an accident, but there are too many other suspicious "accidents" including a young black man's unsolved murder, the bombing of a church, and many others. It appears that most of the crimes are racially motivated, but Del is a white bodybuilder who works in the sporting goods store. How does his death fit in with the others? Lily unwillingly involves herself in investigating the crime and uses her unique vantage point and circumstances to collect information. She quickly discovers that there is something fishy in Shakespeare. Lily doesn't want to suspect one of the longtime residents, but there are only so many newcomers to town. So when Lily discovers one dark stranger showing up at the most unlikely places, such as her client's closet, it is only natural that her suspicions would fall on him...

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone who likes mysteries and/or tough female characters. Charlaine Harris' characters are wonderful. They are quixotic combinations of practicality, spotenaity, weaknesses and strengths. I felt that I could identify with most of the characters immediately upon meeting them. It was also wonderful to get the start of a love story for Lily. True, she dabbled in a little romance in Shakespeare's Landlord (book #1 in the series), but she has a serious shot at a relationship in this book. The plot was well drawn and, I must admit, the final chapter of the book was a surprise. If you enjoyed the first one, you will love the second one. Just be aware that this is by far the most expensive book to own in the set. It isn't hard to find - just expensive!

A man is found dead in the gym where Lily regularly works out. At first it's written of as an accident (the body found suffocated under the weight of a barbell), but later it appears to be a part of a larger series of racially motivated crimes.

This is by far the worst of Charlaine Harris's books I've read. The beginning of the book feels true to the first book in Lily Bard series, but gradually the story just gets simply out of control. Church bombing, torture, hate crimes, way too much crime to suddenly descend on a tiny town of Shakespeare. The racial element although compelling just comes out of nowhere and is way overdone. The introduction of a new "love interest" is messy. I even had to get back to check if I missed a few pages. Lily in a matter of days becomes a sex kitten every man in town lusts after. The mystery itself isn't that mysterious at all. What's the point, if we know that all crimes are committed by a group of white racists by the middle of the book? Finally, too many plot holes and loose ends.

I will give this series another chance, but if this is the direction it's going to take throughout all 5 books, I am definitely done with it after book 3.

This is the second book in the Lily Bard Mystery series.

The small town of Shakespeare Arkansas is experiencing some severe race related issues. Flyers of a white supremacy theme are being placed on the windshields of the citizens and three unsolved murders seem to be connected.

Lily Bard, the town maid, happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and is gaining quiet admiration from one racial group, while at the same time getting some hostility from the other. When things get more dangerous and Lily and some of her friends are hurt, she begins to try to piece together the bizarre happenings in Shakespeare.

There were a few issues I had with this story. From the very beginning Ms. Harris introduces comments and references to a fight Lily had been in. Well, I busted out book one thinking I had missed something, I had no clue what she was talking about. Then finally at about page 62 or so she describes what went down.

Then she hints to a certain familiarity between Lily and a newcomer to the town. Little remarks here and there making me wonder what the heck I was missing, then finally on page 149 she clears that up. It really drove me nuts being on the outside of these little secrets and I think it was unnecessary. I don't understand why we had to be in the dark so long waiting to be let in on the important background facts of the story.

Also, there is an unresolved story regarding a piece of jewelry, I really didn't get what that was about. Maybe I am dense, but I read and reread that part of the story and I still don't get it. If anyone can enlighten me I would be most grateful!

Despite the few flaws, which are probably due to my lack of patience more than anything else, I really enjoyed this book. Charlaine Harris wrote another gripping mystery that is filled to the brim with entertainment. She created a complex tale involving racial tensions and hate crimes, small town secrets and plenty of twists and turns. With the introduction of some new characters, the personal life of Lily was enhanced. Enjoy!

Shakespeare's Landlord (Lily Bard Mysteries, Book 1)
Shakespeare's Christmas (Lily Bard Mysteries, Book 3)

Cherise Everhard, January 2008

This was an entertaining little (and I mean little at only 214 pages) mystery, however I didn't like it as well as Harris' Sookie Sackhouse books or even her Harper Connelly books. The tone of the book felt more depressing. It wasn't as well balanced as her other series--she usually does a great job of mixing humor and lightness with angst and trauma.

The main character Lily Bard went through a torture and rape years ago, and moved to a small town Shakespeare in the aftermath. She left her old life and family, and became a housecleaner. In her spare time, she lifts weights and trains in Karate. She is hard to connect with--she didn't display much emotion, even in her interactions with men and friends. That is probably a result of the trauma she went through before we met her. The mysteries surround a series of racially motivated fights and murders, which were depressing and difficult to read about.

If you want to give this author a try, I highly recommend her Sookie Sackhouse series (4-5 stars) and also recommend the Harper Connelly books after book 1 (3-4 stars). Book 1 in that series I didn't care for, but it can easily be skipped because book two gives a good syopsis.

I've read all four books in this series, and am looking forward to the fifth. This is one of the best. Lily's actions and attitudes ring true with her past, and it's fascinating watching her guard go down in small ways as she starts to let people into her life. The mysteries are intruging, and the characters (Jack is a solid addition) fit the setting.

Its a day like any other. Lily Bard wakes and heads to Body Time to get in her daily workout, but as a favor to her friend Marshall(who is sick with the flu)Lily arrives early with the Gyms key to open for the day....when she walks in she is shocked to find a dead man. The 3rd dead man in Shakespeare in as many months....who was stalking the people of Shakespeare??

Coming to the conclusion of this mytery was wild fun and filled with twists and turns all over the place..not to mention more of your fave characters and a steamy hot new one :o)
I liked this installment even better than the first and I intend to devour the 3rd the moment it hits my mailbox. Charlaine Harris can write. Her dialogue flows fresh and natural and she has a real knack for mixing the serious and the scandalous with the fun and the flirty. I just adore her work. If you have not yet read this series, I wholeheartedly recommend it. It is soooo entertaining!

Shakespeare's Champion (1997) is the second mystery novel in the Lily Bard series, following Shakespeare's Landlord. In the previous volume, Lily solved the murder, but was surprised by the killer as she opened a door. Lily fought back, but was pinned under his body. Then Claude appeared and together they overcame the murderer.

In this novel, Lily Bard cleans houses and does other housekeeping chores for her clients. She has lived in Shakespeare for about four years. She has been taking karate from a local sensei for over two years.

Claude Friedrich is Chief of Police in Shakespeare. He was born in Shakespeare, but worked in the Little Rock police force for many years. Then he came back to a less stressful ambiance, but things have not been peaceful lately in Shakespeare.

Bobo Winthrop is the eldest child of Howard and Beatrice. His father runs all the Winthrop businesses, but his grandfather owns these companies.

Mookie Preston is a genealogy researcher. She has recently moved to Shakespeare and has asked to be placed on Lily's waiting list.

Tom David Meicklejohn is a Shakespeare policeman. He and Lily have not got along very well.

In this story, Lily and Bobo are asked by the sick owner to open Body Time in the morning. Del Packard's car is outside when they arrive, but he was given a key to the place so that he could practice his body building. As they turn on the lights, they find Del's body lying on a pressing bench in a corner.

At first they believe that his throat had been crushed by the weight of the bar, but the lights were all off when they arrived. Besides, he had said that a spotter was to meet him the previous evening. Had he been murdered?

Del is the third death in Shakespeare within a month or so. First the young black boy Darnell Glass was beaten to death. Then the white Len Elgin was shot. Now Del is dead. Racial tensions are rising again for the first time in thirty years.

It all started with a minor auto accident. A local boy hit Darnell's car and refused to admit that he was at fault. An argument ensued and all four white boys accosted Darnell.

Darnell got in the first punch, but the other three white boys started swinging at him. Two policemen -- one off duty and the other on patrol -- were present, but stayed back from the fight. Lily and a black Marine separated the boys, but Lily got blindsided and fell down, knocking her head against a table.

Lily has lost several clients, so she goes down her waiting list for a new one. After several failures, she makes arrangements to spend a couple of hours cleaning Mookie's house. They are both surprised when they first meet, since Lily had been expecting a white and Mookie had expected a black. Yet Lily's only complaint is that Mookie can't sit still and talks everytime she walks by.

Then blue fliers with white supremacist jargon start appearing under wiper blades. The local blacks have a meeting at Golgotha AME to discuss the situation. Claude and the county sheriff attend, but reluctantly admit that the fliers are not illegal.

After the meeting adjourns, a bomb goes off and shreds the pews into deadly splinters. Lily is injured in the blast and drenched with blood from a woman decapitated by an offering plate. She is thrown through the air and lands on a young girl.

As Lily fuzzily rights herself, she discovers that the girl is dead. Then she notices that her hearing is gone. As she wanders through the wreckage helping survivors, she finds Claude pinned down under a fallen light fixture.

The ambulances start carting off wounded to the local hospital. As she is lying in the corridor waiting for medical attention, Lily blearily notices a familiar face. It belongs to the man who replaced Del at Winthrop Sporting Goods.

This tale involves Lily with a group of black hating good old boys. They aren't very smart or well educated, but they know how to make bombs by following instructions in a book. Lily also finally meets Jared Fletcher -- Del's replacement -- after seeing him various places.

This story lands Lily in a lot of trouble. The next installment -- Shakespeare's Christmas -- finds her in more hot water. Read and enjoy!

Highly recommended for Harris fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of martial arts, hate crimes, and stubborn women.

-Bill Jordin

Shakespeare's Lily Bard is uncomfortable again, and she doesn't like it. The small town has become her home, her comfort zone, and now there are people disturbing that equilibrium. Two people have been murdered. One, a black teenager, was almost certainly racially motivated. The other may or may not have been in response to the first killing. The latest victim, Del Packard, seems an unlikely candidate: he's a weight lifter trying to win a competition. Whoever killed him let 300 pounds sit on his neck. Not pretty.

Lily does eventually figure out who is behind the white supremacy group, but not before more people die and some of her good friends are seriously injured. In CHAMPION, Lily finds herself having to choose between staying out of the limelight, which she abhors, or confronting evil. Being the strong woman that she is, Lily does not walk away from the fight. Anyone who has read the first in the series, SHAKESPEARE'S LANDLORD, will not be surprised. Ms. Bard doesn't go looking for fights, but she doesn't back down worth a damn.

I love Charlaine Harris. There are so many people that say none of her series are as good as her Southern Vampire Mysteries. Well duh! It would be impossible for CH to top Sookie Stackhouse but let's not be fooled. Ms. Harris writes some great characters and her books are never boring. I started Lily Bard this month and book 2 now got me hooked and committed to the rest of the series. CH is an amazing writer and her characters are not glamourous hollywood types and you love navigating through their stories and lives. Thanks Charlaine, you are my favorite author! Oh and Harper Connelly is a great series too.