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Clytemnestra Stone #1
Bleeding Heart
“I was never charged with my father's murder.” My voice echoed around the bare room.
“Well, lightning ain't gonna strike you twice.”
Did Ness Stone get away with murdering her father to inherit his billions? According to the media she's the 'girl with the face of an angel, but the heart of a killer'. It's always in inverted commas, an accumulation of fabrications, rumors and innuendo that follow her everywhere. So when she is found hiding near the blood-soaked body of her ex-lover she knows that no-one will believe in her innocence. Her lawyer, Benjamin Christ doesn't believe that there's such a thing as innocence. He knows how to win a case with a guilty client. Trouble is, Ness cares more about the truth than she does about her reputation. Her thirst for the truth is going to lead her to a lot of suffering...
“Well, lightning ain't gonna strike you twice.”
Did Ness Stone get away with murdering her father to inherit his billions? According to the media she's the 'girl with the face of an angel, but the heart of a killer'. It's always in inverted commas, an accumulation of fabrications, rumors and innuendo that follow her everywhere. So when she is found hiding near the blood-soaked body of her ex-lover she knows that no-one will believe in her innocence. Her lawyer, Benjamin Christ doesn't believe that there's such a thing as innocence. He knows how to win a case with a guilty client. Trouble is, Ness cares more about the truth than she does about her reputation. Her thirst for the truth is going to lead her to a lot of suffering...
287 pages, ebook
First published September 1, 2013
2 people want to read
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January 21, 2014I can't review my own book :-)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 10, 2014
Bleeding Heart follows the story of Clytemnestra Stone (Ness), whose mission in life is to find her fathers murderer. Along the way she becomes the main suspect and witness to the murder of a movie star on a Hawaii beach. This complicates things, as the press already believe that she got away with killing her father. Her single minded attempts to prove her innocence and catch the real culprit for both murders, land her in some sticky and often dangerous situations.
The story grabs you from the beginning, Ness is introduced to the reader covered in blood and fleeing the scene of a murder. The plot unfolds rapidly from this point on at a pace typical of the thriller genre. The story is easy to follow and well explained, but not without its twists and turns and not at all predictable. I was kept guessing until the end which of the character/s had committed the murders.
The characters are well developed and the reader is always wondering whether they can be trusted or if yet another revelation is going to make them seem even more suspicious. Benjamin Christ, the lawyer I particularly liked, his exasperated exchanges with Ness brought some humour to the book and he was the only character who seemed to really understand the heroine.
The prose is very evocative of the Hawaiian setting, but is mostly passive and generally lacks the sophistication required for a place on the Awesome Indies. Apart from this, I really only have one problem with this book and it was largely a personal reaction. I found Ness herself to be incredibly annoying. She was a Cambridge graduate and training for the ironwoman competition yet her decisions and actions often seemed like those of an impulsive child not a disciplined intelligent athlete. Towards the end of the book she sneaks past two protective police guards and tells no one where she is going, in order to meet a man who wishes to blackmail and possibly kill her. Often her stupidity is used as a blatant and, frankly, lazy plot device, such as when instead of going to her lawyers hotel room for safety she runs from an attacker out of the hotel which begins a chain of action involving a car chase, a shoot out and an encounter with a tiger shark, which is very thrilling, but based on her stupid initial decision.
If unsophisticated writing and these traits in a main character don’t bother you then you may well enjoy this book.
3 stars.
The story grabs you from the beginning, Ness is introduced to the reader covered in blood and fleeing the scene of a murder. The plot unfolds rapidly from this point on at a pace typical of the thriller genre. The story is easy to follow and well explained, but not without its twists and turns and not at all predictable. I was kept guessing until the end which of the character/s had committed the murders.
The characters are well developed and the reader is always wondering whether they can be trusted or if yet another revelation is going to make them seem even more suspicious. Benjamin Christ, the lawyer I particularly liked, his exasperated exchanges with Ness brought some humour to the book and he was the only character who seemed to really understand the heroine.
The prose is very evocative of the Hawaiian setting, but is mostly passive and generally lacks the sophistication required for a place on the Awesome Indies. Apart from this, I really only have one problem with this book and it was largely a personal reaction. I found Ness herself to be incredibly annoying. She was a Cambridge graduate and training for the ironwoman competition yet her decisions and actions often seemed like those of an impulsive child not a disciplined intelligent athlete. Towards the end of the book she sneaks past two protective police guards and tells no one where she is going, in order to meet a man who wishes to blackmail and possibly kill her. Often her stupidity is used as a blatant and, frankly, lazy plot device, such as when instead of going to her lawyers hotel room for safety she runs from an attacker out of the hotel which begins a chain of action involving a car chase, a shoot out and an encounter with a tiger shark, which is very thrilling, but based on her stupid initial decision.
If unsophisticated writing and these traits in a main character don’t bother you then you may well enjoy this book.
3 stars.
September 24, 2014
This is a fast-paced thriller that combines a dark undercurrent with a sassy attitude. At its centre is Ness - a kick-ass, feisty heroine. Ness has impressive physical strength and tenacity, and a pig-headed attitude. You'll meet quirky, likeable characters- although you'll never really know who can be trusted. There's plenty to keep you guessing in this story of murder in paradise.
May 3, 2017
A great follow up to Don't Look Back. The pace picks up even more and there are surprises at every turn. Great quick read.
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