The Beautiful and the Wicked

Lila Day #2

by Liv Spector

In exclusive Star Island, Miami, blood isn’t always thicker than water . . . The second book in a thrilling time traveling mystery series featuring a former Miami PD who solves murders before they happen—by going back in time. The night of his fiftieth birthday, software billionaire Jack Warren went missing hundreds of miles out to sea, his blood spattered aboard his yacht, his body gone. His mistress, Ava Day, was charged with his murder—but she had already vanished without a trace. Now, ten years later, detective Lila Day still refuses to believe that her sister is a cold-blooded killer. To clear Ava’s name and solve this long-cold case, Lila asks her friend Teddy Hawkins to do what he has done before—send her back to time, to solve the crime before it takes place. And so she goes back to 2008, with only a month to prove her sister’s innocence and bring Warren’s real killer to justice. But as she dives ever deeper into the world of high-speed yachting and corporate intrigue, and the night of Warren’s birthday draws ever closer, the truth becomes murkier than ever. And then Lila discovers information that shocks her deeply—a terrible truth that changes everything she thought she knew about her sister, and herself.

Genres: Mystery, Time Travel, Contemporary, Mystery Thriller, Relationships, Marriage

352 pages, Paperback

First published December 2, 2014

About the author

Liv Spector was raised on Cape Cod and currently lives in Canada. She has worked as an oyster shucker, dancer, farmhand, journalist, and teacher. A graduate of McGill University in Montreal, she received her MFA from Brooklyn College.

Reviews

[Lyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was not as good as the first one. Lila does get herself into some truly unique situations which make the story entertaining. However, the people on the yacht were unbearable, vile humans.

[Jessica (Odd and Bookish) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book for free through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers.

This book was as enjoyable as the first one. Lots of rich people spending ridiculous amounts of money. Like the first one, it keeps you guessing until the end.

[Suzanne Morgis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an easy who done it novel. Was well written with fun story line. The characters are the richest and the setting on a yacht in keeping with the title, The Beautiful and The Wicked who are obnoxiously entitled. All good fun.

[Donnell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Much enjoyed the first book in this series, the RIch and the Dead. The idea about going back to a recent past is pretty cool. This second book was not as absorbing as the first, however. Perhaps because:

1. Most of the story takes place on a yacht--a luxury yacht, perhaps the most luxurious of yachts--but its still a limited location with narrow passages and a cell-size sleeping compartment (shared with a room mate) for the narrator.

2. The people with whom you are stuck on this yacht--are the most detestable of people, there is no one to like.

3. The narrator (through whose eyes the reader enters the story) is worked hard, sometimes nearly around the clock, under a tyrannical boss doing mundane labor (cleaning, washing, laundry etc.) while the rich people she is serving tend to treat her like an inferior species, perhaps even one that is not human.

4. When the dust settles Jack Warren's biggest crime appears to be that he stole Lila's sister's life--forcing her to be on the run for a murder she did not commit. Yet Lila does basically the same thing early on when she takes the identity of Nicky after Lila sets the real Nicky up as a snitch, forcing the real Nicky to be on the run--possibly for the rest of her life--from an angry drug cartel.

Finally, a tiny thing--but the book illustrates how hard it is to do historical fiction. Even when the historic time period is relatively recent--like 2008--its easy to get the facts wrong. For example, in September 2008
a character uses an iPad. Yet the iPad was not released until April 2010.

[PopcornReads - MkNoah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review & Giveaway: Last year I was approached about reading and potentially reviewing a contemporary detective novel that involved time travel. I like both kinds of novels but this one didn’t sound like a fantasy genre novel, aside from that pesky time travel thingy. The end of this little tale is that I loved Liv Spector’s novel, The Rich And The Dead, so when I learned Book #2, The Beautiful And The Wicked, was coming out, I could hardly wait.

This Miami-based series features a former police detective who uses a tech wunderkind’s machine to travel back to try to solve cold cases by getting right into the thick of things as they’re about to go down. Sound too simple? It’s not. Sound like fun? Yes, it is! And Book #2 can easily be read as a stand-alone novel so, if you like what you read in the rest of my review at http://popcornreads.com/?p=7946 be sure to enter our giveaway!

[Phillis · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was as good as the first book, "The Rich and the Dead". This time Lila had to go back 11 years to find out who killed a very hated, very arrogant, billionaire on the night of his 50th birthday party. This party takes place on a mega yacht. Lila must secure passage as a ships stewardess, working the job, and trying to find a killer among the many guests attending the party. All have a good reason to want to see him dead. The one hitch is that the original murder was pinned on her sister whom Lila is sure is innocent. Since she hasn't see or heard from her sister in over 11 years she has no way of asking her what happened that night. When things progress and its looking more and more like her sister did it, Lila finds herself doing things she isn't supposed to do in the past so as not to change the future.

[Karen Ress · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read!

This book was so entertaining that I couldn't put down. The time travel aspect drew me in to this thoroughly interesting mystery. I would recommend this anyone who likes whodunnits.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delicious garbage!

[Justus Joseph · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Review first published in Shelf Awareness)

Lila Day used to be a police officer. Now she solves cold cases for Teddy Hawkins, a billionaire who created a time machine. In order to preserve the past and not hurt their present, Lila has to obey Teddy's instructions. The only problem is Lila's not great at following rules. Her passion--the reason she excels at investigating murders--often leads her to make poor decisions and blinds her to the damage her meddling may cause. To avoid disaster, Teddy carefully chooses the cases she works, and any case with a personal connection is strictly prohibited.

Ten years ago, Lila's sister, Ava, was accused of murdering software tycoon Jack Warren, on the night of his 50th birthday. Certain of her sister's innocence, Lila convinces Teddy to send her back in time to find out what really happened the night Jack died. Arriving in the year 2008, she gains employment on Jack's luxury yacht by posing as a stewardess. Lila is quickly thrown into the dramatic and unpredictable world of the glitterati and self-important plutocrats, where she discovers that everyone aboard the ship has a reason to hate Jack and many also possess the means to murder.

From start to finish of Liv Spector's sophomore effort (after The Rich and the Dead), each new piece of information complicates both the plot and relations between characters. Set against the tantalizing backdrop of excess consumption and privilege beyond the scope of most people, The Beautiful and the Wicked is an entertaining whodunit.

[Water Moon · Rating 3 out of 5]

True guilty pleasure fiction. A detective goes undercover as the help on a luxury superyacht to clear her sister’s name as a murderer. With such a premise, you’d expect all the bells and whistles, and it certainly delivers: lavish dinner parties, horrid bosses, drunken debauchery and a cast of characters to rival Days of Our Lives. And if you can ignore the unnecessary sci-fi element when they travel in a time machine all the way back to 2008 of all years, Spector is actually a good writer. (Although if one more writer describes the ocean as cerulean, I might explode...) The ending, however, is not amazing and may leave you feeling a bit duped as it comes out of nowhere. Overall though, this is a book to read after back-to-back heavy novels, and I was satisfied that it entertained me without having to think too hard about it.

[Kelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lila Day sure keeps your attention and she travels back in time once again. This time she's set on trying to clear her sister's name. I found I kept wanting to read to find out what happened next. Could it really be? How? Who? And then, Wow!

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was pretty good. Not earth shattering or highly suspenseful, but entertaining nonetheless. I can tell the characters are building toward something; and I’m not sure how I feel about it. One thumb up.

[Ron · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good concept, but a little boring. Liked her first one better.

[Don Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Time travel to solve crimes ... ingenious

[Barbara Cryer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this more. But lila doesn't encourage sympathy.

[Carolyn Wilson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty far fetched but held my attention

[April Mayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Check out the Review that is up on Bookfoodies for this great read:
http://bookfoodies.com/the-beautiful-...#

If you like time travel, boats, and mystery you will love this great read!

Origins:

I received this book from a Goodreads Giveaway; Mr. William Morrow at HarperCollins.com was very kind to send it my way for an honest review.

About The Book:

The night of his fiftieth birthday, software billionaire Jack Warren went missing hundreds of miles out to sea, his blood spattered aboard his yacht. His mistress, Callie Day, was charged with his murder- but she had already vanished without a trace. Ten years later, detective Lila Day refuses to believe that her beloved sister, still hiding after all these years, is a killer. To clear Callie’s name and solve this long cold case, Lila asks her friend Teddy Hawkins to do what he has done before: send her back in time, to solve the crime before it takes place. And so she goes back to 2008, with only a month to prove her sister’s innocence and bring Warren’s real life killer to justice. Lila fakes her way into the city like yacht and learns everything there is to know about his inner circle and glamorous hangers-on. Even his family and the crew are her suspects. But as she dives deeper into the world of corporate intrigue, and the night of Warren’s birthday draws closer, the truth becomes murkier than ever. And then Lila makes a terrible discovery, one that changes everything she thought she knew about her sister and herself.



My Thoughts About The Book:

This was a phenomenal read. I found myself wanting to pick this book up all the time so that I could catch up with all the characters.

I have to be honest on a few things 1) I was totally unsure about the time travel in the book. I was scared it would be to Steam punkish, Lucky for me it was no where even close to that. With this time travel I envisioned a popular show called Fringe and the time travel we saw the character do in the water tank. 2) My husband was deployed and I was just coming off a TV SHOW watching binge; one of the main shows being Below Deck. This show was about a yacht crew. So needless to say I was itching to get my hands on this book.

I have to say this book read very well. I was scared of it not hitting off with a bang especially since I never read the first book in the Lila Day series. However, this book is a great stand alone and the beginning drug me right in. The time travel bit was great and easy to understand and envision. My favorite characters from this book besides Lila herself were: Teddy Hawkins and Mr. Warren’s daughter Josie. Let’s be honest I wished their was more in the terms of a deeper relationship for Teddy and Lila. The Author has a great knack for describing her characters, keeping them true to themselves, and making their actions jump out the book. We are talking everyone from Lila to say the chef aboard the yacht. This Author also has a great attention to detail. I could picture the whole yacht and cabins clear as day due to her detailed writing.

This book had a great mystery throughout which I loved. Usually when reading or watching movies within the first 15 minutes I could tell exactly who did it and why they did it. With this book I jumped around questioning three people and wondering did they or did they not do it. I can honestly tell you if Mrs. Liv Spector writes a third book in the Lila Day series I will be first in line to get it.

Oh and the Cover I loved it. In the book she kept looking at a photo and describing it. This made me want to keep closing my book. I would then keep looking over the cover trying to figure out if it was a bit from the picture.

Due to some of the content in this book I would consider this an adult read.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this mystery as an early reviewer. I have not read Spector's first book, "The Rich and the Dead," which got good reviews. This one is entertaining.The plot is interesting and the conclusion unexpected.

My copy is an uncorrected proof, so I'm confident "The Beautiful and the Dead" will undergo further editing before release. I'm sure typos and grammatical inconsistencies will be corrected, as well as noticeable multiple repetition of some words ("grabbed" and "sweet," for example, and, while someone's "mane" is used, I think, only twice, the instances are separated only by a couple of paragraphs).

I also hope author and editor will go through the book one last time to herd back into the fold occasional wandering points of view and to trim excess exposition. The latter in particular is problematic; the narrator a number of times draws back from what should be suspenseful action to talk about what the protagonist feels and why. Most of the time the extra is unnecessary—the dialogue and actions express it already. The extra description intrudes on the scene, protracts it, and to some degree derails the suspense.

Perhaps more is made of the character's use of time travel in the first of the series. Almost nothing was made of it here. No explanation of how it is possible, how the man who developed it was able to do so, and very little concern expressed about any problems or dangers in its use. Once in a while Lila thinks about not altering history, but there are few, if any, technical guidelines for her actions. The time machine is just accepted, hardly more startling or exciting than a helicopter.

Another problem was that I kept forgetting that Lila was a detective. Probably her background is developed a great deal more in the first book, but it did seem that, during the years since her sister had disappeared from the yacht, blamed for the murder of its owner, Lila would have researched the yacht and its layout as well as the duties of the staff. That she didn't know where the galley was, for instance, seemed unlikely. She might not have had actual experience on a boat—that she might be seasick at first was easy to accept—but surely her massive research over the years, and maybe more once she decided to go back in time to investigate, would have resulted in her knowing quite a bit, even if theoretical.

"The Beautiful and the Wicked" has a lot going for it, and hopefully Spector's editor will support one more revision before release to make it the exciting and unusual mystery it should be.

[Mandy Alexander · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received The Beautiful and the Wicked through first reads in exchange for an honest review. This was the second book in the Lila Day series and can be read as a stand alone. There is enough background information given for you to follow along.

I have to admit I really wanted to read this book based on the cover; I mean it's a really great one. I don't normally like time travel books and mystery books are great if they catch me quickly. That being said this one started a bit slow for me. Once it got through the background information it pulled me in and in the end I really liked it. A quarter of the book could have been taken out and you wouldn't have missed it. Especially, since everything really good happened in the last few chapters. It has a lot of twist and turns and a really great ending. I would definitely read another book in the Lila Day series.

[Susan Beamon · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, I don't usually read books that involve time travel. It usually doesn't work well. So I was a little hesitant to read this story, which I got free from LibraryThing. I am happy to say the time traveling was kept to a minimum, and handled very well. Beyond that, this is a very smart mystery. Can't say much about it because I don't want to spoil it for you. I can say that things are not what they seem. I was satisfied with the resolution of the mystery and with the way time travel was handled.

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5-3 stars

Falls apart... perhaps because Lila is too vested in the outcome. She's too close and has already made up her mind what happened. The truth us very different and very convoluted.

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an entertaining and quick read. It is about a time traveling former police detective. She goes back in time to solve a murder. The accused murdered was her sister, who disappeared following the incident.

[Alicia Gard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun, easy read.....you don't need to concentrate too much, just relax and enjoy. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series :-)

[Mikhael · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable summer book. Kinda weird, but somehow it's easy to ignore the absurdity that she is traveling back in time.

[Susie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not too bad. Lots of details, though. Could have been shorter.

[Rebecca L. Vallandingham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put it down

I love this book it is a page Turner so much action in it love that the author has a time machine in it I think that is what makes it

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Could not put this down!!! Inspector Lila Day travels to the past (just go with it) to prove her sister innocent of murders of a dot com billionaire.

[Linda Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lila Day goes back in time again this time though to solve a murder in which her sister has been accused of. This certainly was a fast paced thriller! Enjoy.

[Stormy Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just wished Teddy was featured more often.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder mystery, time travel, rich people, exotic location, what's not to like!