Star Struck (Mass Market Paperback)

by Val McDermid (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review
'Combines wit and exuberant writing with a careful and clever plot and oodles of perceptive social observation' The Times 'McDermid is at her best when describing the petty crimes and scams that flourish in her Northern city! the book has considerable charm' Mail on Sunday 'Written with fluent ease, making use of Kate Brannigan's own distinctive voice, Star Struck is a clever novel as well as an entertaining one' TLS 'Contemporary feminist crime at its finest' Good Housekeeping

The Wire in the Blood was a breakthrough book for McDermid, and increased substantially the (already considerable) number of Kate Brannigan fans. This time around, Manchester's favourite female private eye is in the unenviable position of playing nursemaid to a paranoid television soap-opera star when a medium is brutally murdered, and Kate finds herself with more than a handful of disparate mysteries to unravel - not to mention considerable threats to life and limb. McDermid is able repeatedly to invigorate the reader's interest in her protagonist and her peers should be looking to their laurels after this. (Kirkus UK)

Product Description
Bodyguarding had never made it to Manchester PI Kate Brannigan's wish list. But somebody's got to pay the bills at Brannigan & Co. and if the only earner on offer is playing nursemaid to a paranoid soap star, the fast-talking compter-loving white-collar-crime expert has to swallow her pride and slip into something more glam than her Thai-boxing kit.

Soon. however offstage dramas overshadow the fictional storylines culminating in the unscripted murder of the self-styled ' Seer to the Stars'. and Kate finds herself with more questions than answers. What's more, her tame hacker has found virtual love, her process server keeps getting arrested, and the ever-reliable Dennis has had the temerity to get himself charged with murder.

Nobody told her there d be clays like these ...

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Harper (May 4, 1999)
• ISBN-10: 0006498329
• ISBN-13: 978-0006498322
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,484,730 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 6 in The Kate Brannigan Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars On of the better Brannigans, August 10, 2000

By	B. Jonsson "Literate Warlock" (falun, dalarna sweden) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Having read Mermaid Singing, I was disappointed when I read my first Brannigan, Kickback.

In Star Struck however, the characters come out more clearly, to form everyday persons with everyday feelings. One can almost feel what Brannigan feels, see what she sees. The plot is a simple one, which all the more makes it worth reading, not endless lists of characters and events. Just what I want for a rainy day, something to get me interested and intrigued. In this book, the end could be guessed, which is one of the essentials of crime stories, that you can actually be ahead of the sleuth, which Mc Dermid's shown in this novel.

When I need a good, short crime story I go for a Mc Dermid!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Star Quality, June 13, 2000

By	Helen (Highgate, South Australia, Australia) - See all my reviews

This is a great book and puts the author up there with Sue Grafton et al.

An interesting plot with great and believable characterisations. The author weaves social commentary throughout the story, including a dig at paparazzi journalism (post Princess Diana), racial profiling by British coppers, and mental illness, and this is done without the heavy hand of other novels, including by this author.

This book never gets too serious for its own good and there is plenty of lightheartedness thrown in. The plot wobbles a bit towards the end but by then it has been such a thoroughly good read it doesn't matter.