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Damage Control
Trouble comes in threes, beginning when Dana's brother is murdered apparently during an attempted burglary. As she seeks the truth Dana must cope with a diagnosis of breast cancer & a cheating husband, and as she begins to make progress in her investigation people connected to her brother's death begin to turn up dead themselves.
401 pages, Hardcover
First published February 14, 2007
1821 people are currently reading
2378 people want to read
About the author
Robert Dugoni
75 books32.9k followersRobert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, and #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 11 million books worldwide. He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and The Keera Duggan legal thriller series. He has written several stand-alone novels including the historical novels A Killing on the Hill and Hold Strong, as well as the suspense novel The 7th Canon, and Damage Control. He has written the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell - one of Newsweek Magazine's Best Books of All-Time and Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award. He has also written the critically acclaimed novel, The World Played Chess; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. His novels have been optioned for movies and television series. Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and a four-time winner of the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.
Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than thirty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.
Visit his website at www.robertdugoni.com, and follow him on twitter @robertdugoni and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AuthorRobertDugoni
Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than thirty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.
Visit his website at www.robertdugoni.com, and follow him on twitter @robertdugoni and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AuthorRobertDugoni
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 496 reviews
May 25, 2021
When a young law professor named James Hill is viciously murdered during a home robbery in Seattle, Washington his twin sister Dana is devastated.
Dana, also a lawyer, finds an expensive earring in James' apartment and sets off to help Detective Mike Logan investigate James' death.
This requires interviewing people, traveling, and skipping work - which is difficult since Dana has a vengeful boss, a toddler daughter named Molly, and a neglectful self-centered husband. Nevertheless intrepid Dana carries on and discovers that James had a hideaway cabin and that the earring belonged to a beautiful woman in the public eye.
Dana's interference creates trouble, however, since someone knows her every move and murder follows in her wake. Moreover the two thugs who robbed and killed James also become targets of a killer. Detective Logan and Dana realize that a huge cover-up is in the works - but what is being covered up?
During all this Dana has serious health concerns and deep-seated marital problems. It helps though, that warm-hearted Detective Logan provides support and sympathy. Dana's mom assists also, by caring for Molly while Dana pursues the case. There are plenty of other characters in the story, including a fey jewelry maker who seems to have psychic powers; a presidential candidate; security personnel; a witness to one of the killings; and so on. This helps round out the story.
Though somewhat predictable this is an enjoyable fast-paced thriller, good for a plane ride or beach read.
You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot....
March 10, 2024
This will be the first book I have reviewed here, chosen because it is the book I am currently reading, and for no other reason.
It is superficially a tale of a strong independent career woman who triumphs over everything - a murdered twin brother, a skunk of a husband, breast cancer - oh and by the way she's superintelligent and attractive to boot. Stock characters for post-feminist women who like to have their prejudices confirmed - all the women are damaged in some way, but rise above their circumstances. The men have slightly more variations in their characters but would still happily fit into the slots "evil bastard" or "knight in shining armour".
And don't get me started on the "poor little rich girl" syndrome, where a privileged rich heiress is at the mercy of her lack of education and the beasts of men around her. Or the black maid. Per-lease! Where are we now? In the 1950's?
The writing is slightly schizophrenic. At one point I became convinced that the book was written by 2 people - one slanted firmly towards the "modern woman" market and the other, writing rather unpleasant scenes depicting the perpetrators of the crime, geared towards those who prefer a gritty, tough-guy tale. The moronic criminals in the tale - predictably from the underclass (in the USA'S "classless" society) - are rather dimwitted and white.
But the story hangs together OK.
Two minor quibbles. Tanzanite (blue zoisite) is a mineral mined exclusively in one region of Tanzania (from which, selfevidently, it gets its name) at the foot of the Merelani Hills. The production and exportation of this "one location" gemstone is strictly controlled. It is extremely unlikely that it would be "imported from the Grand Cayman."
Second Quibble. At the beginning of the novel there is a fairly well researched piece about the main character's discovery that she has breast cancer. Are we expected to believe that she never then gives this another thought until approaching the end of the book, when it conveniently serves as a plot device to enable her to get closer to her mother, who has been a fellow sufferer?
Reading this book has confirmed my suspicions that the tag of "bestselling author" tells you nothing about the quality of the book. It merely means that it has had extremely good PR. In the end it left a rather nasty taste in my mouth. But I'm a sucker for mystery stories, and as such it works, and is a reasonable page-turner. Hence the 2 stars.
I would suggest that you impose your own "Damage Control" and don't read it, but it's up to you.
It is superficially a tale of a strong independent career woman who triumphs over everything - a murdered twin brother, a skunk of a husband, breast cancer - oh and by the way she's superintelligent and attractive to boot. Stock characters for post-feminist women who like to have their prejudices confirmed - all the women are damaged in some way, but rise above their circumstances. The men have slightly more variations in their characters but would still happily fit into the slots "evil bastard" or "knight in shining armour".
And don't get me started on the "poor little rich girl" syndrome, where a privileged rich heiress is at the mercy of her lack of education and the beasts of men around her. Or the black maid. Per-lease! Where are we now? In the 1950's?
The writing is slightly schizophrenic. At one point I became convinced that the book was written by 2 people - one slanted firmly towards the "modern woman" market and the other, writing rather unpleasant scenes depicting the perpetrators of the crime, geared towards those who prefer a gritty, tough-guy tale. The moronic criminals in the tale - predictably from the underclass (in the USA'S "classless" society) - are rather dimwitted and white.
But the story hangs together OK.
Two minor quibbles. Tanzanite (blue zoisite) is a mineral mined exclusively in one region of Tanzania (from which, selfevidently, it gets its name) at the foot of the Merelani Hills. The production and exportation of this "one location" gemstone is strictly controlled. It is extremely unlikely that it would be "imported from the Grand Cayman."
Second Quibble. At the beginning of the novel there is a fairly well researched piece about the main character's discovery that she has breast cancer. Are we expected to believe that she never then gives this another thought until approaching the end of the book, when it conveniently serves as a plot device to enable her to get closer to her mother, who has been a fellow sufferer?
Reading this book has confirmed my suspicions that the tag of "bestselling author" tells you nothing about the quality of the book. It merely means that it has had extremely good PR. In the end it left a rather nasty taste in my mouth. But I'm a sucker for mystery stories, and as such it works, and is a reasonable page-turner. Hence the 2 stars.
I would suggest that you impose your own "Damage Control" and don't read it, but it's up to you.
August 31, 2023
What a phenomenal storyteller.
This author continues to bring characters to life through short chapters and interesting plots.
This is one of his older stories, but I wanted to read it because lately I am interested in mysteries with twists – and this one certainly does not disappoint.
Will we get to the truth?
Will justice eventually prevail?
P.S. - my only criticism - what happened to the dogs?
This author continues to bring characters to life through short chapters and interesting plots.
This is one of his older stories, but I wanted to read it because lately I am interested in mysteries with twists – and this one certainly does not disappoint.
Will we get to the truth?
Will justice eventually prevail?
P.S. - my only criticism - what happened to the dogs?
August 15, 2024
A promising start, but nothing special afterwards. The earrings story is hardly believable, as Elizabeth didn't notice their absence?!? Killing for a medical file is not an usual (and simple!) method. Meyers, Grant and Crocket are far too bad, the others have not enough depth.
Too many books about US presidency candidates...
Too many books about US presidency candidates...
October 24, 2021
Another great Robert Dugoni novel. I have read every one of his books and cannot praise them enough. You can get many on Kindle Unlimited--a very rare treat.
October 20, 2021
A standalone mystery thriller from Robert Dugoni an author I have read a lot of this year. I really enjoy his writing and the research he puts into each novel shows out. Good characters although one particular one in this novel had me cursing. Well paced plots and lots of twists make his books great reads.
Attorney Dana Hill is one of the most successful lawyers at Strong & Thurmond but her life is not all happiness and roses, With a young daughter and an husband who made me scream with his unreasonable behaviour her life proves to be very stressful. As if things weren’t bad enough, she is diagnosed with breast cancer and her twin brother is murdered in an apparent robbery.
Dana feels sure that her brothers death is not as simple as a robbery gone wrong and starts to try and unravel the truth. As she starts digging she begins to realise she didn’t know her brother as well as she thought. Life is about to get even worse for Dana when she discovers her husband is having an affair so decides to delay her cancer treatment and throws herself into the investigation.
She teams with an helpful detective and together they try to find the link between a one-of-a-kind earring found in her brother’s bedroom and a mysterious girlfriend no one seems to be able to identify. Further murders occur making it harder to uncover the truth and a race against the clock
Exciting read, well written as I have got to expect from Robert Dugoni.
Attorney Dana Hill is one of the most successful lawyers at Strong & Thurmond but her life is not all happiness and roses, With a young daughter and an husband who made me scream with his unreasonable behaviour her life proves to be very stressful. As if things weren’t bad enough, she is diagnosed with breast cancer and her twin brother is murdered in an apparent robbery.
Dana feels sure that her brothers death is not as simple as a robbery gone wrong and starts to try and unravel the truth. As she starts digging she begins to realise she didn’t know her brother as well as she thought. Life is about to get even worse for Dana when she discovers her husband is having an affair so decides to delay her cancer treatment and throws herself into the investigation.
She teams with an helpful detective and together they try to find the link between a one-of-a-kind earring found in her brother’s bedroom and a mysterious girlfriend no one seems to be able to identify. Further murders occur making it harder to uncover the truth and a race against the clock
Exciting read, well written as I have got to expect from Robert Dugoni.
June 2, 2015
This stand alone book started off so well and went slowly downhill. The beginning was well written, when the protagonist is introduced, and I was interested in her. The author put me on a slippery slope when he had her go to Maui alone. He lost me a little more when he showed a mystical, magical jeweler. Then things got very boring because there was just too much description of settings and that slowed down the action to a crawl. The author tried to use symbolism that, for me, just didn't work. I also question how the killer was able to find his victims; it was never explained for any of them. There was so much promise in the beginning, but really the plot and the ending were predictable.
March 26, 2019
4.5 stars
I liked the main characters of Logan and Dana, I liked the supporting characters and it felt good to dislike the "bad guys".
Great plot and pacing. I'm a Dugoni fan and it was nice to read a stand alone book of his.
I liked the main characters of Logan and Dana, I liked the supporting characters and it felt good to dislike the "bad guys".
Great plot and pacing. I'm a Dugoni fan and it was nice to read a stand alone book of his.
February 24, 2012
If Robert Dugoni's novel Damage Control were a painting, it would be a stark landscape done in bold blacks and whites with splashes of blood red and portraits made difficult to look at by their lack of shading.
He'd also force his viewers to re-evaluate their definitions of success based on the colors he chose to paint that particular holy grail.
But Dugoni didn't choose a landscape to tell his story. Instead, the novelist who stormed the New York Times bestseller list with his first novel The Jury Master returns to the thriller genre to ask his questions about the cost of success and how much of our soul and blood we must sacrifice to attain it.
Damage Control opens in a doctor's waiting room with attorney Dana Hill counting the billable minutes she is wasting while waiting for her diagnosis. It's quickly apparent, though, that her calculations are only a thin veil hiding her fears about the irregular breast exam results.
From there, we find that Dana is a woman with few compassionate people in her life. The one nurturing relationship she has is one she has found little time for of late—perhaps because he is the only one unwilling to place unreasonable demands on her. So when this understanding twin brother is murdered, Dana's world is shaken. With the help of detective Michael Logan, she hunts his killer while re-evaluating the emotionally abusive work and home relationships she is steeped in.
Poor Dana attracts tragedy like a blood does a shark. In less than a week's time she has to face alone the diagnosis of breast cancer, the murder of her brother, the discovery that her husband is cheating on her, and threats upon her own life.
Dugoni creates a black and white world in which it is easy for readers to identify the actors worthy of cheers and those who should elicit boos. The characters smack of melodrama in that they are either completely likeable or totally despicable. The only well-rounded characters in the novel are Dana's mother Kathy and Elizabeth Meyer. Not that the presence of flawed vulnerabilities in either of those characters make them ambiguous in reader sympathies.
Perhaps it is the nature of a thriller, though, that bad guys must be bad and good guys good. Certainly the looks we get into the soul of the serial killer is chilling. His creepiness as he hunts and taunts his prey truly inspires goosebumps. Dugoni expertly weaves in plenty of foreshadowing to produce a frightening climax.
As the detective, Michael Logan is almost background noise. He provides Dana with one of the few compassionate voices in her life and offers her a look at what the alternative to her life could be. His role in this thriller isn't so much to solve the crime as it is to force Dana to realize it is possible to have a spouse who can see past disease and with whom a life of beauty can be created. He forces her to look beyond the allure of materialism.
Far more interesting is the artist William Welles who functions as a sort of fortune teller, moving Damage Control from traditional thrillerdom into more mystical realms. It is through this character that Dugoni injects an undefined spiritualism into his story, crossing over from natural realism into a more impressionistic work.
Blended into the work is a frightening look at spousal abuse and an exploration into why women put up with abusive behaviors from their husbands. The answers are different for each of the women in the book and perhaps the flimsiest reasons are presented by the woman who suffers the greatest abuse. Whereas each of the other women have an inner strength that allows them to choose what they will and will not tolerate, the victim of the most severe abuse has had most of her spirit battered from her.
There are moments in this book that are political, but while one of the more smarmy and despicable characters is a Democrat, it isn't his politics that make him offensive. Rather, it was simply necessary to place him in one party or another and the comparisons to Kennedy's Camelot provided for several strong parallels to Jackie O.
Dugoni's Damage Control is an easy read in part because the villains are villains and the heroes are loveable. No mental stretching is necessary. Instead, Damage Control is simply a well-written book with a fast-paced plot and a few surprises along the way.
It's a painting that trades subtle shadings for bright, stark contrasts, leaving the reader with few doubts.
This review was originally published at Epinions.co http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_D...
He'd also force his viewers to re-evaluate their definitions of success based on the colors he chose to paint that particular holy grail.
But Dugoni didn't choose a landscape to tell his story. Instead, the novelist who stormed the New York Times bestseller list with his first novel The Jury Master returns to the thriller genre to ask his questions about the cost of success and how much of our soul and blood we must sacrifice to attain it.
Damage Control opens in a doctor's waiting room with attorney Dana Hill counting the billable minutes she is wasting while waiting for her diagnosis. It's quickly apparent, though, that her calculations are only a thin veil hiding her fears about the irregular breast exam results.
From there, we find that Dana is a woman with few compassionate people in her life. The one nurturing relationship she has is one she has found little time for of late—perhaps because he is the only one unwilling to place unreasonable demands on her. So when this understanding twin brother is murdered, Dana's world is shaken. With the help of detective Michael Logan, she hunts his killer while re-evaluating the emotionally abusive work and home relationships she is steeped in.
Poor Dana attracts tragedy like a blood does a shark. In less than a week's time she has to face alone the diagnosis of breast cancer, the murder of her brother, the discovery that her husband is cheating on her, and threats upon her own life.
Dugoni creates a black and white world in which it is easy for readers to identify the actors worthy of cheers and those who should elicit boos. The characters smack of melodrama in that they are either completely likeable or totally despicable. The only well-rounded characters in the novel are Dana's mother Kathy and Elizabeth Meyer. Not that the presence of flawed vulnerabilities in either of those characters make them ambiguous in reader sympathies.
Perhaps it is the nature of a thriller, though, that bad guys must be bad and good guys good. Certainly the looks we get into the soul of the serial killer is chilling. His creepiness as he hunts and taunts his prey truly inspires goosebumps. Dugoni expertly weaves in plenty of foreshadowing to produce a frightening climax.
As the detective, Michael Logan is almost background noise. He provides Dana with one of the few compassionate voices in her life and offers her a look at what the alternative to her life could be. His role in this thriller isn't so much to solve the crime as it is to force Dana to realize it is possible to have a spouse who can see past disease and with whom a life of beauty can be created. He forces her to look beyond the allure of materialism.
Far more interesting is the artist William Welles who functions as a sort of fortune teller, moving Damage Control from traditional thrillerdom into more mystical realms. It is through this character that Dugoni injects an undefined spiritualism into his story, crossing over from natural realism into a more impressionistic work.
Blended into the work is a frightening look at spousal abuse and an exploration into why women put up with abusive behaviors from their husbands. The answers are different for each of the women in the book and perhaps the flimsiest reasons are presented by the woman who suffers the greatest abuse. Whereas each of the other women have an inner strength that allows them to choose what they will and will not tolerate, the victim of the most severe abuse has had most of her spirit battered from her.
There are moments in this book that are political, but while one of the more smarmy and despicable characters is a Democrat, it isn't his politics that make him offensive. Rather, it was simply necessary to place him in one party or another and the comparisons to Kennedy's Camelot provided for several strong parallels to Jackie O.
Dugoni's Damage Control is an easy read in part because the villains are villains and the heroes are loveable. No mental stretching is necessary. Instead, Damage Control is simply a well-written book with a fast-paced plot and a few surprises along the way.
It's a painting that trades subtle shadings for bright, stark contrasts, leaving the reader with few doubts.
This review was originally published at Epinions.co http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_D...
January 15, 2020
Puedes encontrar esta reseña en español al final.
It had been neither an easy nor a light read. The issues addressed in this story are brutal so, the fact that the relationship (to put it somehow, because there were not even kisses involved) between the MC´s has been a bit cheesy is a plus here.
Breast cancer, abusive marriages, atrocious crimes, powerful men using their means to be abusive and the law which not always is fair roughly sum up the plot. It was too realistic for my peace of mind but interesting too and well written and the author gave us some room to breathe and to regain our faith in our fellow human beings.
There are a few points of view in the story (not all of them necessary, IMHO), action, a good suspense (although I have been left with some questions without answer) and interesting and realistic relationships. The combo works.
I wouldn´t call it a romance (not even a romantic suspense) but rather a suspense in which its MC´s are going to end together. This is one of those credible and authentic HEA´s, that´s for sure.
Heartbreaking both the dedication and the author´s notes at the end. It makes you read the story in a different light.
***
No ha sido una lectura ni fácil ni ligera. Los temas que trata me parecen brutales, así que el hecho de que la relación (por llamarla de algún modo porque ni siquiera hay besos de por medio) entre los protagonistas haya sido un pelín empalagosa ha sido un plus más que lo contrario.
Cáncer de pecho, relaciones abusivas, crímenes atroces, hombres poderosos que usan todos sus recursos para hacer el mal y justicia que no siempre es “justa” resumen básicamente esta historia. Para mí, demasiado parecido a la realidad, pero ha sido interesante, está bien escrita y el autor nos da algunos respiros (y nos devuelve la confianza en el ser humano) que me han permitido disfrutarla.
Varios puntos de vista dentro de la narración (no todos ellos necesarios, la verdad), mucha acción, buen suspense (aunque se me han quedado dudas sin resolver) y relaciones personales interesantes y realistas. El combo funciona.
No lo catalogaría como romance, sino más bien un suspense en el que la pareja protagonista acabará junta. Esta es una de esas veces en la que el final feliz es creíble y merecido.
Tremendas tanto la dedicatoria como las notas personales del autor al final del libro. Eso siempre me da otra perspectiva de lo que acabo de leer.
It had been neither an easy nor a light read. The issues addressed in this story are brutal so, the fact that the relationship (to put it somehow, because there were not even kisses involved) between the MC´s has been a bit cheesy is a plus here.
Breast cancer, abusive marriages, atrocious crimes, powerful men using their means to be abusive and the law which not always is fair roughly sum up the plot. It was too realistic for my peace of mind but interesting too and well written and the author gave us some room to breathe and to regain our faith in our fellow human beings.
There are a few points of view in the story (not all of them necessary, IMHO), action, a good suspense (although I have been left with some questions without answer) and interesting and realistic relationships. The combo works.
I wouldn´t call it a romance (not even a romantic suspense) but rather a suspense in which its MC´s are going to end together. This is one of those credible and authentic HEA´s, that´s for sure.
Heartbreaking both the dedication and the author´s notes at the end. It makes you read the story in a different light.
***
No ha sido una lectura ni fácil ni ligera. Los temas que trata me parecen brutales, así que el hecho de que la relación (por llamarla de algún modo porque ni siquiera hay besos de por medio) entre los protagonistas haya sido un pelín empalagosa ha sido un plus más que lo contrario.
Cáncer de pecho, relaciones abusivas, crímenes atroces, hombres poderosos que usan todos sus recursos para hacer el mal y justicia que no siempre es “justa” resumen básicamente esta historia. Para mí, demasiado parecido a la realidad, pero ha sido interesante, está bien escrita y el autor nos da algunos respiros (y nos devuelve la confianza en el ser humano) que me han permitido disfrutarla.
Varios puntos de vista dentro de la narración (no todos ellos necesarios, la verdad), mucha acción, buen suspense (aunque se me han quedado dudas sin resolver) y relaciones personales interesantes y realistas. El combo funciona.
No lo catalogaría como romance, sino más bien un suspense en el que la pareja protagonista acabará junta. Esta es una de esas veces en la que el final feliz es creíble y merecido.
Tremendas tanto la dedicatoria como las notas personales del autor al final del libro. Eso siempre me da otra perspectiva de lo que acabo de leer.
October 28, 2011
This is my second Dugoni book. I first read "murder One' and was so impressed, I requested all the other novels he has written. I could not put this book down and stayed up late reading it last night.What a fabulous writer.
The major protagonist Dana Hill is a rising star at her Seattle law firm. The novel starts off with Dana getting a seies of bad news: her twin brother has been brutually murdered,she receives a very frightening diagnosis of possible breast cancer and also discovers her envious husband is having an affair.Things always happen in three's.
But with the help of detective Michael Logan, Dana decides to do her own investigation of what appears, on the surface, to be nothing more than a botched robbery. Dana uncovers a diamond earring on the window sill of of her twin's trashed and becomes convinced it is the one clue that will help her get justice for her brother.
The trail leads to an extremely powerful man whose career and reputation is threatened. Dana is in extreme danger but is determined to find the truth and, with Logan's help, bring the killer and his cohorts to justice.
The characters are well drawn and realistic. I look forward to reading more of Dugoni's books.Very enjoyable read.
The major protagonist Dana Hill is a rising star at her Seattle law firm. The novel starts off with Dana getting a seies of bad news: her twin brother has been brutually murdered,she receives a very frightening diagnosis of possible breast cancer and also discovers her envious husband is having an affair.Things always happen in three's.
But with the help of detective Michael Logan, Dana decides to do her own investigation of what appears, on the surface, to be nothing more than a botched robbery. Dana uncovers a diamond earring on the window sill of of her twin's trashed and becomes convinced it is the one clue that will help her get justice for her brother.
The trail leads to an extremely powerful man whose career and reputation is threatened. Dana is in extreme danger but is determined to find the truth and, with Logan's help, bring the killer and his cohorts to justice.
The characters are well drawn and realistic. I look forward to reading more of Dugoni's books.Very enjoyable read.
July 24, 2021
Cannot Praise Dugoni Enough!
I have been enjoying the Tracy Crosswhite series and always wait impatiently for each one. I hope they never end! But I have neglected this brilliant author's earlier works. I decided to try this one, and I am so glad I did. Part of Dugoni's gift is to be able to write realistic female main characters, and this considerable skill is on display in Damage Control for sure! I cared so much for Dana and, later, for Elizabeth that I could barely remember that they are not, in fact, real women. Villains likewise come to life under this author's talented pen. Throughout the entire second half of this story I could hardly stand to put my Kindle down. So, lesson learned! I will now seek out and read everything this genius has written. You may decide to do the same.
I have been enjoying the Tracy Crosswhite series and always wait impatiently for each one. I hope they never end! But I have neglected this brilliant author's earlier works. I decided to try this one, and I am so glad I did. Part of Dugoni's gift is to be able to write realistic female main characters, and this considerable skill is on display in Damage Control for sure! I cared so much for Dana and, later, for Elizabeth that I could barely remember that they are not, in fact, real women. Villains likewise come to life under this author's talented pen. Throughout the entire second half of this story I could hardly stand to put my Kindle down. So, lesson learned! I will now seek out and read everything this genius has written. You may decide to do the same.
December 28, 2023
TWs: brutal death, murder, rape and suicide
This plot was a bit of a leap and you had to suspend disbelief several times and remind yourself that this is FICTION 😆😆
I loved the chemistry between Dana and Mike. I wish there were more books with him as a police detective.
Dana is put to the test in this book. Lots of tragedy but she makes it out
The end was hopeful and most everything was resolved.
This plot was a bit of a leap and you had to suspend disbelief several times and remind yourself that this is FICTION 😆😆
I loved the chemistry between Dana and Mike. I wish there were more books with him as a police detective.
Dana is put to the test in this book. Lots of tragedy but she makes it out
The end was hopeful and most everything was resolved.
June 14, 2024
Харесвам как пише Робърт Дугони (или Дъгони) и тази негова книга не ме разочарова.
Крайна оценка 3.5
Крайна оценка 3.5
November 12, 2018
Warning: Spoilers follow
I found this offering by Robert Dugoni to be exceptionally long, containing a briefly good story surrounded by exasperatingly long narratives that clutter the first one-third of the book. On several occasions, I almost abandoned the reading. But I persevered. I am not sure that was a good decision. The climax and epilogue are marred by first, melodrama and then, at the end, almost pure fantasy. The protagonist’s cancer, we are told, so deadly (and not directly involved in the overall plot), magically disappears. I assume as payment from above for her being such a good and righteous person.
Look at the characters. All the men, save one, are underhanded, selfish villains. Of course, the one who isn’t, the detective, is the love interest. He throws the sister of the victim into the investigation, employing her to help him flush out and destroy the bad guys (all men) while he ineptly rushes to her aid.
The antagonist, a career politician vying for the presidency, is selfish and controlling. A wife beater. Do anything to be elected.
The heroine’s husband, a selfish and self-centered bad man.
The security expert, thoroughly one-dimensional and evil.
The robbers, scoundrels through and through.
And then, the artist who designs earrings and fortune-telling sculptures. He is more like Yoda, speaking in riddles, foretelling the future while understanding the past. And above all, he has the cure for cancer in tea bags, but doesn’t seem to want the notoriety that would accompany giving it to the world.
The women, each one, are above reproach, good in every way. But we are to ignore the fact that the politician’s wife is the main impetus for the murder that drives the entire story. However, she was in love, so that infraction seems to warrant it to be overlooked. But I wonder, she lived on the government teat for so many years, had anything she wanted, was lavished with every luxury. But she wouldn’t stand tall and divorce her bad man, abusive, murdering husband, telling the world about his cruelty. Instead, she lurked in the shadows in an illicit love affair. Even in the end, she did not divulge her entanglement with another man to the public, while rightly vilifying her husband. This bothered me.
Dugoni has serious talents. He can put the reader into a scene with extreme clarity. He can weave a complicated tale while not confusing the reader. His dialogue is spot on. But as for this story, I’ve heard it many times before, with different names and places. The tale grows tiring.
I found this offering by Robert Dugoni to be exceptionally long, containing a briefly good story surrounded by exasperatingly long narratives that clutter the first one-third of the book. On several occasions, I almost abandoned the reading. But I persevered. I am not sure that was a good decision. The climax and epilogue are marred by first, melodrama and then, at the end, almost pure fantasy. The protagonist’s cancer, we are told, so deadly (and not directly involved in the overall plot), magically disappears. I assume as payment from above for her being such a good and righteous person.
Look at the characters. All the men, save one, are underhanded, selfish villains. Of course, the one who isn’t, the detective, is the love interest. He throws the sister of the victim into the investigation, employing her to help him flush out and destroy the bad guys (all men) while he ineptly rushes to her aid.
The antagonist, a career politician vying for the presidency, is selfish and controlling. A wife beater. Do anything to be elected.
The heroine’s husband, a selfish and self-centered bad man.
The security expert, thoroughly one-dimensional and evil.
The robbers, scoundrels through and through.
And then, the artist who designs earrings and fortune-telling sculptures. He is more like Yoda, speaking in riddles, foretelling the future while understanding the past. And above all, he has the cure for cancer in tea bags, but doesn’t seem to want the notoriety that would accompany giving it to the world.
The women, each one, are above reproach, good in every way. But we are to ignore the fact that the politician’s wife is the main impetus for the murder that drives the entire story. However, she was in love, so that infraction seems to warrant it to be overlooked. But I wonder, she lived on the government teat for so many years, had anything she wanted, was lavished with every luxury. But she wouldn’t stand tall and divorce her bad man, abusive, murdering husband, telling the world about his cruelty. Instead, she lurked in the shadows in an illicit love affair. Even in the end, she did not divulge her entanglement with another man to the public, while rightly vilifying her husband. This bothered me.
Dugoni has serious talents. He can put the reader into a scene with extreme clarity. He can weave a complicated tale while not confusing the reader. His dialogue is spot on. But as for this story, I’ve heard it many times before, with different names and places. The tale grows tiring.
January 14, 2011
The title 'Damage Control' is spot on for this book. Hardworking big firm attorney Dana Hill is smitten by tyrant boss, her husband's infidelity, an aloof mother, and then; her brother's seemingly arbitrary murder. She tracks down the bad guys with easy-talking, Alfa-Romeo-driving detective Michael Logan. The trail winds through absolutely extremem country! Quite literate, the characters are well drawn.
June 13, 2025
Damage Control, a stand alone novel by Robert Dugoni, is a book that quickly catches your attention and grabs it until the end. It is full of action, well written, almost movie like, and the characters, although mostly stereotype, make the story interesting.
The book has a few goofs but the whole thriller comes nicely together. Dugoni is very talented at depicting complicated scenarios and making the reader go easily through all of them.
Damage Control makes for a good summer read. Perhaps it is the weakest of all the authors' books that I have read.
The book has a few goofs but the whole thriller comes nicely together. Dugoni is very talented at depicting complicated scenarios and making the reader go easily through all of them.
Damage Control makes for a good summer read. Perhaps it is the weakest of all the authors' books that I have read.
September 9, 2024
Още един добър автор!
September 17, 2025
Another Robert Dugoni thriller, fast paced, interesting characters. Just right for an end of summer read.
December 2, 2020
Narrated by Christopher Lane, this Robert Dugoni stand alone delved into breast cancer, spousal abuse, and grief. Dugoni's mysteries always keep me turning the pages and this book did not disappoint with Dana whose twin brother is murdered, her marriage is falling apart, who just gets better and better as the book evolves. She becomes a kick ass heroine who is not afraid to find out who killed her brother. And I loved just as much, Michael Logan who is the smart detective investigating Dana's brother's murder. Logan is a good, honest detective who is able to talk Dana into being a hero without getting herself killed. I could not stop listening to this awesome audiobook!
November 28, 2017
Started out as an interesting thriller with an amazing "cold open." By the time I got to the end I was really disappointed. The book went from interesting to just silly (a Yoda jeweler??). It took a sideways jump to astonishingly sexist (what century is this again) meme using a woman embarrassed that she was enjoying being brutally raped and finally fell down irretrievably into an offensive racist hole with the "plucky Black maid" who settles for the kindness of her white employer rather than her children!
May 9, 2023
I love Robert Dugoni’s writing. I think I’ve read all of his books now. This one was published in 2007 and was heavily laced with extreme profanity and crude sexual content. Yes all of that went along with the characters——but do we need all that to know they are scumbags???? Thankfully, his more recent books are not like this one. If this had been my first Dugoni book, I would never have picked up another.
August 21, 2017
This was not a great "mystery" and the ending was totally lame. The heroes ride off into a happily ever after life. I don't things often happen that way in real criminal situations, and certainly not in good mystery novels. I read this book to try Dugoni, but won''t read another.
January 14, 2018
Your basic good crime thriller novel to curl up with on a winter night, and not in a bad way.
February 24, 2019
Lots going on in this one! Fast paced, interesting story line and characters. My first Robert Dugoni read, but not my last.
March 10, 2020
Dugoni does it again, he's right up there with James Patterson.. This story had some twist and turns that kept you reading till it was done. the ENDING ********** :-)
May 23, 2020
Even though I was a children's librarian for years, I have a cynical streak a mile wide. My first critical note in this book, which I read on my Kindle, was on page 1, where the author writes, "Now he could barely make out the cabinets, even with prescription help. His cataracts were getting worse."
Poor guy, doomed to poor eyesight and probably future blindness by cataracts. What? Cataract surgery, an easy and almost always successful procedure, was well-known in 2007, when this book was copyrighted.
So many notes, all but a couple scathing, dot the pages of this ebook. I used different-colored highlights to denote different things: dark pink denotes repetition -- at least 10 "apple pie"s, probably 7 "slate"s; the rare blue for a phrase I liked; and yellow for phrases or notes which were critical, or more often, incredulous.
All this note-taking was not easy, as I used the "index finger hunt & peck" system, but I was having such fun doing it, I didn't mind. This book is right up there with "The Woman in Cabin 10" for being a book I've read that's so bad it's good.
Poor guy, doomed to poor eyesight and probably future blindness by cataracts. What? Cataract surgery, an easy and almost always successful procedure, was well-known in 2007, when this book was copyrighted.
So many notes, all but a couple scathing, dot the pages of this ebook. I used different-colored highlights to denote different things: dark pink denotes repetition -- at least 10 "apple pie"s, probably 7 "slate"s; the rare blue for a phrase I liked; and yellow for phrases or notes which were critical, or more often, incredulous.
All this note-taking was not easy, as I used the "index finger hunt & peck" system, but I was having such fun doing it, I didn't mind. This book is right up there with "The Woman in Cabin 10" for being a book I've read that's so bad it's good.
February 23, 2022
'Damage Control' was an early entry into Robert Dugoni's crime/mystery catalog. It's a well-crafted, unremarkable, but solid political thriller that was a step forward for the author.
Damage Control is the story of youngish female attorney Dana Hill whose twin brother, an ex-lawyer who turned toward teaching law, was murdered in what appeared to be an attempted burglary. After his burial, Dana notices some anomalies in his records, begins to look into them, and discovers a thread that, when pulled, leads to a powerful man near the pinnacle of American politics.
Although Damage Control was only Dugoni's 3rd novel (I think he's on #20 or so now), he showed a good grasp of storytelling and dialogue. I did think that for a thriller it was a bit slow-moving at times, but the secondary storylines (Dana's medical condition, her brother's backstory, the detective leading the police investigation) were necessary for character development and not a big negative. Dugoni has since progressed to bigger and better things, most notably his Tracy Crosswhite series.
Damage Control is the story of youngish female attorney Dana Hill whose twin brother, an ex-lawyer who turned toward teaching law, was murdered in what appeared to be an attempted burglary. After his burial, Dana notices some anomalies in his records, begins to look into them, and discovers a thread that, when pulled, leads to a powerful man near the pinnacle of American politics.
Although Damage Control was only Dugoni's 3rd novel (I think he's on #20 or so now), he showed a good grasp of storytelling and dialogue. I did think that for a thriller it was a bit slow-moving at times, but the secondary storylines (Dana's medical condition, her brother's backstory, the detective leading the police investigation) were necessary for character development and not a big negative. Dugoni has since progressed to bigger and better things, most notably his Tracy Crosswhite series.
October 8, 2025
I might be one of those readers that it doesn't matter what the book is going to be about, I can be 100% sure that I'm going to enjoy Dugoni's books. There's just something in his writing that makes me feel that I'm reading a movie (even picture what's happening) and need to grab popcorn because I can't put the book down!
Attorney Dana Hill was just having a normal life and a normal day, but things are going to spiral so fast and messy after her twin brother is murdered that you need to stay sharp to keep track of things. There's a lot of characters to follow, secrets and hints of who is the actual mastermind under this massive cleanup to avoid a scandal.
Detective Mike Logan charm didn't work on me, but I can see why Dana fell for him. Besides his detective work started strong and by the end Dana did all the heavy work (literally) for him.
Attorney Dana Hill was just having a normal life and a normal day, but things are going to spiral so fast and messy after her twin brother is murdered that you need to stay sharp to keep track of things. There's a lot of characters to follow, secrets and hints of who is the actual mastermind under this massive cleanup to avoid a scandal.
Detective Mike Logan charm didn't work on me, but I can see why Dana fell for him. Besides his detective work started strong and by the end Dana did all the heavy work (literally) for him.
February 22, 2023
This is the first Robert Dugoni book I have read but it won’t be the last. This is a multifaceted story that starts with a death but then becomes more involved. I felt the author portrayed some difficult family situations very realistically. This is a compelling story that moves at a good pace. The mystery was well maintained throughout the story. The various storylines were all brought together to a satisfactory conclusion.
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