Envy (Hardcover)

by Sandra Brown (Author) "Saltines and sardines..." (more)
Key Phrases: Matherly Press, Mary Catherine, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
The prologue of a novel arrives in the Manhattan offices of a book editor, who's intrigued enough to chase its mysterious author, identified only by his initials, to his decrepit plantation on an island off the Georgia Coast. That's the first clue that fiction is stranger than fact; few publishers (if any) would go to that sort of trouble for anything less than a new J.D. Salinger novel. But bestselling author Sandra Brown makes the most of her far-fetched premise, setting up a convoluted plot that keeps the reader engrossed despite its flaws and foibles.

Maris Matherly-Reed is more than an editor. She's also the beloved daughter of the publishing house's highly respected and successful leader, and the wife of Matherly Press's second-in-command, the smooth, suave, double-dealing Noah Reed. Reed, it develops, is the real target of the literary scam set up by the reclusive writer of the novel whose opening pages so captivate Reed's spouse. P.M.E., the writer, has a score to settle with Maris's husband, and he doesn't care whom he hurts as long as he brings Noah down. At least, not until he meets Maris, who has an unfortunate habit of falling in love with her authors (see above; that's the second clue). Brown is a master at romantic suspense, and Envy displays the talents that have won her a devoted following: a deft hand at evoking the vulnerability and humanity of her protagonists, a sure command of narrative tension, and a nice sense of place. This is a terrific hammock read, just right for a summer day as sultry and humid as Envy's Low Country setting. --Jane Adams

From Publishers Weekly
Style and form are usually the least of prolific bestselling romance/thriller writer Brown's concerns, but in her latest effort she takes on an unusual challenge, setting out to craft a novel within a novel within a novel. The onion begins to peel when editor Maris Matherly-Reed plucks a prologue from the slush pile and finds herself hooked by the steamy prose. The author has furthermore titillated her by breaking the rules: no SASE, no cover letter. Maris knows only that his initials are P.M.E. and he lives on St. Anne Island in Georgia. (How does she know P.M.E. is a man? She... knows.) Gutsy, idealistic, deliciously sexy, Maris is married to philandering sociopath Noah Reed, who runs Matherly Press with Maris and her father, Daniel, last of the silver-maned gentleman publishers. As for P(arker) M(ackensie) E(vans), he's a bitter, wheelchair-bound, first-time novelist or is he? Is he using Maris to avenge himself against Noah, or does he love her madly or can the answer be all of the above? Cutting back and forth between the bernovel and Parker's autobiographical novel about a purloined novel, Brown stages one dramatic scene after another. The narrative voices don't change much (although the typefaces do), but Brown's loyal legions frankly won't give a damn. (Aug. 28) Forecast: Brown could probably write a novel in blank verse and still hit the bestseller lists, so her experimentation here (mild, in any case) won't throw readers. The book is a Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club main selection and a BOMC alternate, and major TV, radio and print media ad campaigns (plus New York transit ads) will blanket the country. Expect the expected: a blockbuster.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books; First Edition, First Printing edition (August 28, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446527130
• ISBN-13: 978-0803719040
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (227 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #545,480 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WHEN PAST AND PRESENT COLLIDE..., March 1, 2003

By	Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

This review is from: Envy (Mass Market Paperback)

This book was a most pleasant surprise. It is well-written with just the right infusion of tension to keep the reader turning its pages. While many of its twists and turns are predictable, not all are. There are enough surprises for even the most jaded of readers. It is a wonderful story-within-a-story of friendship, envy, betrayal, greed, revenge, love, and redemption.

Maris Matherly-Reed, an editor at prestigious Matherly Press, and scion of the head of this prestigious New York publishing house, Daniel Matherly, receives an unsolicited, anonymous manuscript entitled "Envy". Pulling it out of the slush pile, this manuscript consists only of a prologue, but one so riveting and beautifully written, that Maris is intrigued enough to want to speak to its unknown but supremely talented author. Leaving her husband, acclaimed author and fellow Matherly Press editor, Noah Reed, to mind the store, Maris decides to follow up on this mysterious, but intriguing, newcomer.

Having only an address for an Island off the Georgia coast, she goes there and encounters the crude and rude Parker Evans, the author of this potential literary gem. Marist makes allowances for his behavior, attributing it to what she assumes to be bitterness over his being confined to a wheelchair. As she gets to know Parker and discuss his book with him, more and more is revealed to her about his novel. It is a story of two friends who, in the late nineteen eighties, go on a boat for a celebratory jaunt with a young woman, only to have it end tragically. As Maris begins to find herself attracted to Parker, little does she know that she is about to go on a voyage of personal self-discovery.

Meanwhile back in New York, unbeknownst to both his wife and father-in-law, or so he thinks, Noah Reed is plotting and planning a takeover of Matherly Reed by a corporate giant. He is also not behaving as a faithful husband would. When Maris returns to New York, her old world appears to be falling apart. As the veil is torn from her eyes, she no longer sees her husband through rose colored glasses. She begins to wonder to whom she is really married, as Noah reveals more of himself than she cares to know.

When Maris reads additional chapters in Parker's book, she gets a strong sense that the book may be a work of non-fiction rather than fiction. She also suspects that there may be a connection between herself and Parker that she had not before realized. As the story of the three young people on the boat develops, it becomes painfully clear that the past and present are on a collision course. The only question is whether Maris will realize it before it is too late, and the past collides with the present.

This is an ingeniously plotted novel, and Parker Evans is a very interesting character. The other characters are also fairly well fleshed out for such a plot driven book. Only the character of Noah Reed seems to be a cookie cutter character. As the book, however, is primarily plot driven, it does not unduly detract from such an otherwise engrossing novel of suspense. Moreover, the literary contrivance of a story-within-a-story is very well done. The two parallel stories are both dramatic and interesting. Each serves to propel the book towards its climactic ending. All in all, it is very well done.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A page-turning blockbuster, August 28, 2001

By	Nick Gonnella - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Maris Matherly-Reed is a New York book editor, the daughter of Daniel Matherly, owner of an established publishing house, and the wife of best-selling author Noah Reed. Much against company policy, Maris receives the prologue to a manuscript entitled ENVY, with no address or name on it, and immediately she is captivated by it. The prologue tells the story of two young men, and a woman out for a night of fun on a boat, only to have it end in tragedy as only one of them returns. Intrigued by this opener, Maris wants to get in touch with the author, but the submission is signed only by the initials P.M.E. Desperately trying to find any info at all about P.M.E, Maris begins a little investigating and eventually she does find the author, Parker Evans, a wheelchair bound recluse intent on keeping his identity, as well as his past, a secret. Venturing off to Georgia, Maris plans to meet with Parker, and work with him, chapter by chapter to complete his potential blockbuster, but this proves to be a difficult task as Parker is a bitter man harboring a dark secret, and his reason for writing the novel ENVY may not be what it appears on the surface. As Parker's story of ENVY unfolds, Maris starts to question the identity of the book's characters, and if in fact it is fiction. Wanting answers, Maris begins probing into a crime committed decades ago, and at the same time, an evil man is following her every move, and when the time is right, he will unleash his plan to destroy everything Maris has worked so hard for, even if it means killing those close to her. As the past and the present collide, what is fact, and what is fiction will blur, and the lives of Maris, and all those she loves will change, as they are faced with the ultimate deception. ENVY is a gripping suspense novel that grabs hold from the start and doesn't let go. The intricate plot unfolds at a fast pace, and Sandra Brown expertly weaves two stories together with twists and turns, and shocks at every bend. Well written, and perfectly executed, this tale of lies and deception will keep readers guessing all the way up to the shocking climax. As any reader of Ms. Brown's novels should know, when buying one of her books they are going to get an un-put-down-able, entertaining read, and ENVY is no exception, even though parts of the book get a bit silly, it will keep you turning the pages long into the night. No author has, as successfully, jumped from romance writing to the thriller arena, as Sandra Brown has, and I don't think anyone will. As with her previous novels, Sandra Brown has penned another blockbuster destined for the number one spot on all the charts! A MUST read! Nick Gonnella

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Very Best of Sandra Brown, September 15, 2001

By	Suzanne Vitale "jackeroophillip" (Bowling Green, Kentucky USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The characters are worth knowning (most of them) and the ones that are not make the story the terrific suspense that it becomes. Maris Matherly-Reed is a successful editor. Her father is the owner, as was his family before him, of the publishing house that Maris works for. Her husband is the No. 2 man in the publishing house having ingratiated himself with Maris' father and then having married Marris. Marris has only begun to suspect that her husband might not be all that he seems to be when she receives a prologue to a manuscript from a writer who identifies himself only as P.M.E.

Marris becomes intrigued with the prologue and sets off to find the author and as she becomes involved with the story of the book we find that "Envy" is a book within a book within another book. There is a relationship between the mysterious author and her husband Noah. The plot of both "books" is beautifully crafted and a must read from cover to cover.