Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
New York social set, July 18, 2005
This is a romance novel with a murder mystery added in. The romance part dominates the story. The main setting is a beachfront estate in the Hamptons owned by a family with moderately old money - not an old family in terms of the Mayflower, or a nouveau riche family, but one with money several generations old; long enough to breed good manners. The main story takes place during a weekend house party which includes a lot of name dropping status seekers trying to be in the right place with the right people. To quote an expression I remember, "You can put a saddle on a cart horse, but..." The author, like some other authors, has apparently included her personal fantasies in the story. The graphic sexual content gives the novel an R rating or, in the alternate system, an AO rating for adults only.
Maggie Harding, an interior decorator, has accompanied her friend Lucy to the party. Lucy works for a PR firm and had made arrangements for the party, the purpose being to screen a new film starring the man engaged to the house owner's daughter. The Friday night dinner turns into a disaster, more like a redneck affair than a chic social gathering. This is interpersed with Maggie's discovery of an old acquaintance at the party, the male half of a weekend affair several years earlier in Florida; Tyler Brody, someone she had hoped never to see again. Action switches to the bedroom and a long scene on the renewal of the affair.
On page 80, the story introduces the murder mystery when Maggie is awakened to the screams of a woman house guest who has just found the dead body of a male house guest on the back lawn. The action from that point switches back and forth between the murder investigation, and activity between Maggie and Ty, who can't seem to keep their pants on when the victim's body is barely cold. Ty seems to have a one track mind, and Maggie offers little resistance.
It was my personal opinion that the heavy sexual content detracted from the murder mystery, to the point of being a little unrealistic, i.e., the main characters seem to have a cold attitude towards the victim, even though they help solve the case.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
fun amateur sleuth romance , April 27, 2005
Manhattan designer Maggie Harding accompanies her friend Lucy at a Hollywood stars gala at Paige Redmond's Hampton Estate. However, her stomach turns upside down when she sees Tyler at the event. Five years following her boyfriend "Terrible Tom" ending their relationship via voice mail she met Tyler in the Keys; they exchanged first names and had three incredible one-night-stands before Maggie fled in the morning light. Tyler has looked for her ever since.
Maggie hopes to sneak away as she fears how deep Tyler touched her then and how much she wants him now. Tyler plans to never let her go as he knows she is the one. She tries to slip back to Manhattan, but a corpse on the lawn has led to the proverbial don't leave town by the police. While Maggie concludes she must uncover the killer to escape from Tyler, he mounts a campaign to win her heart.
This is a fun amateur sleuth romance starring a likable hero who knows who he wants for life and a confused chick lit like individual who sees solving the case as her escape from her heart. Converging on Maggie, the two subplots keep the reader entertained as Tyler pursues a running away Maggie while she chases after the killer. MURDER IN THE HAMPTONS is a fine tale.
Harriet Klausner
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3.0 out of 5 stars
A Story With Potential..., October 2, 2005
Ms. Garvey is an author that shows very good promise with her first full length novel. What she lacked in depth and development I'm sure she will gain with future efforts.
Maggie Harding is a planner from the word go. There is a reason why day planners have been created. The concept of "fly by the seat of you pants" is beyond her realm of thinking. Who does that??? The fact that she did something totally out of character five years earlier was not setting a precedence...no, it was a fluke thing. So when she shows up in the Hamptons with her friend Lucy, who just so happens to be in charge of a comeback party in the form of PR for an actor that has just left rehab. Oh, and the fact that her three day stand from five years earlier also seems to be in attendance should matter not at all...right!!! Maggie though can't get past the fact that Tyler still brings out the wild woman in her and when she tries to put distance between herself and temptation, Tyler won't stay away from her! Oh, but that's not the worst, the worst is when they wake up the next morning only to find Mr. Comback, Drew is found dead on the lawn, and now Maggie is trapped with the rest of "Hollywood" as well as Tyler on the grounds of Spindrift until the murder is caught. It's going to be a long weekend. Especially when Maggie starts acting impulsive and dayplanners are the last thing on her mind when it comes to Yummy Tyler!
The storyline seemed a bit simple and Maggie was an unusual character. Tyler on the other hand was quite fun and this balanced out the "conflict" between them. This read put me in the mind of "Clue" the board game and at times I admit to doing some "eye rolling" as the plot plodded along. Still, this was a decent debut effort and Ms. Garvey is probably an author that you will want to keep on your radar in the future.
Official Reviewer for Romance Designs
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