Slow Squeeze [Hardcover]

Dianne G. Pugh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1994

In the sequel to Cold Call, Iris Thorne, now her firm's senior investment counselor, takes on the portfolio of Barbie Stringfellow, a brash and bawdy Atlanta widow, only to find herself framed for her client's murder.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As a guest on a TV talk show, L.A. investment counselor Iris Thorne, introduced in Cold Call, reiterates events of her first adventure, including the embezzlement of a still-missing $1 million. Soon she is approached by potential investor Barbie Stringfellow. Initially wary of the older woman who dresses in signature purple and speaks in a honey-toned Southern accent, Iris finds her suspicions dispelled when Barbie gives her money to invest and begins to act like a friend. Meanwhile, Iris's fellow investment counselor Art Silva, longing to own his own nightclub and seeing Barbie, in addition to his uncle, as a source of revenue, begins to wine and dine the woman. Wily Barbie gets Iris drunk and finds out where the embezzled funds are; she has Art give her his uncle's earnest money in the nightclub venture-and vanishes. Days later, her body is found at a posh California coast resort. Who is the killer and who has the loot? While the answers may surprise some readers, an unfocused and unnecessarily complicated plot confuse the story so much that few will care, despite Pugh's first-rate prose and characterizations.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

More tightly written than Cold Call (Pocket Bks., 1993), Pugh's second title looks once again at L.A. investment manager Iris Thorne, whose televised reference to unrecovered embezzled funds attracts a masterful female con artist. "Barbara" presents herself as a wealthy widow with money to invest. She catches Iris's attention and that of a Latino co-worker who wants to open his own nightclub. As in her previous work, the author gives subplot space to sexual harassment, racism, and failed relationships. A relatively easy and straightforward plot, then, told with verve. For most fiction collections.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books; 1St Edition edition (October 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671778439
• ISBN-13: 978-0671778439
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,848,291 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Smart and inventive, January 23, 2006

By 

UK reader - See all my reviews

This review is from: Slow Squeeze (Hardcover)

This is an expertly paced thriller, off-beat and intelligent, with healthy dollops of sweaty-palmed suspense. Iris Thorne makes for a most engaging protagonist, and the other books in her series are just as smart.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars An insult to financial thrillers!!!!!, July 14, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Slow Squeeze (Hardcover)

To classify this book as a "financial thriller" is an insult to thrillers. This is probably by far the worst book I have read in many years. I can't believe that such a badly written book can be published! The characters aren't developed at all, there is no thrill, it has very little to do with finance and the story is predictable. The whole thing seems like a hodge-podge of different styles, plots and characters. The main character, Iris, is annoying at best and is unable to garner an ounce of sympathy or respect from the reader. A total waste of time.