With Malice

by Rachel Lee

Tampa homicide detective Karen Sweeney is plunged into a deadly world of sex, political intrigue, and greed when she discovers that the link between two murder victims - an exotic dancer and an elderly nanny - is actually Senator Grant Lawrence, a man with dark secrets and dangerous enemies. Original.

Genres: Romantic Suspense, Harlequin, Mystery, Crime

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Rachel Lee is a New York Times best-selling author and the winner of Six Romantic Times magazine Reviewers' Choice Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and is a five-time finalist for the Romance Writers of America's RITA® Award. She has penned a wide variety of novels in several genres including fantasy, romantic suspense, and romantic comedy. She resides in Tampa, Florida.

Reviews

[Scot · Rating 2 out of 5]

I try to read across a lot of categories, and sometimes I read a book, such as this one, which is clearly targeting female readers, not so much for the enjoyment of the genre formula being followed as to get a sense of how that formula is being marketed to that particular audience. What inventions are being added to traditional formula conventions; what values, fears, and dreams are evoked; what can I make of how hero, heroine, foils, and secondary characters are portrayed? I read the book some for the dramatic storyline, but also to evaluate it as a cultural artifact targeting certain people in a particular time and place.

So when I found this in a discard pile and had nothing to read at hand, and I saw the first sentence was "Abigail Reese was dreaming of passionate sex," (!) and then a few paragraphs later learned that Abigail (who happens to be a kindly old African American woman in her 70s) gets violently murdered, I thought, "okay, let's give this a go."

This book offers a blending of the suspense thriller with the traditional female romance novel. This is a category I never paid any attention to, in fact, I had never really thought about mixing the two genres, but as I can surmise from all the ads in the back, it must have a sizeable following. (Plus, the front cover trumpets Rachel Lee as a "USA Today bestselling author." Does that mean USA Today has used the term "bestselling" to describe her, or that she won a competion with other formula fiction writers as to who could get the most new subscriptions to USA Today in a week?)

The dialogues were often stilted and unrealistic, the exposition could get repetitive, and there were plenty of cliches. I did find the suspense story line interesting, but because it was written in omniscient voice, I was irritated how the male characters would not think, speak, or react the way I might expect them to, but rather the way they should to fulfill a woman's romantic fantasy. Where the suspense and romance components overlap, such as in the big coupling scene in the swimming pool between the brilliant lady cop (the heroine) and the John F. Kennedy clone senator (the hero), the author totally lost me, as it just didn't seem realistic, or interesting, and I started skimming--but then again, I'm not the target audience, clearly.

The senator is a widower with two kidnapped darling daughters he adores. Gee, do you think the traditional nuclear family will be reconfigured and restored at the end of the book, and the bad guys all nabbed? And how about the secondary characters who have an unspoken love they have never acknowledged for years--any guesses what happens to them in the end? Some exciting scenes in DC made me homesick for that wonderful city, and the action (such as brutal murders, political scandals, assassination attempts, and the forementioned kidnapping) did keep the plot moving. It reads as if it was written fairly quickly, which I suspect it was, and sometimes the allusions and analogies seem off kilter to me, the sudden bursts of insight and sensitivity unbelievable, but then again, I'm not the targeted audience, so making it believable for someone like me is not really as important as making it meaningful in sustaining certain beliefs about romantic love and the right kind of husband material for the target audience.

[Galen Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tampa Detective Karen Sweeney investigates the death of an exotic dancer and an elderly black woman, both tied to Senator Grant Lawrence. As Karen’s investigation progresses she travels to DC, where she begins a romance with the Senator which complicates the case.

Well written, but leans more towards romance than I enjoy during a mystery novel/thriller. Not anything new in terms of plotting. Okay.

[Kay Townsend · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not read any books by this author before but I will definitely be reading more of her books now.

I thought this book was really well written and although I wasn't so sure about it in the first few pages I got past that and in the end thoroughly enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend it as a really good read.

[Erotic Horizon]

With Malice by Rachel Lee (2003)

[Tom Tischler · Rating 4 out of 5]

An older book by Rachael lee and for those who don't know her
she writes murder mysteries and she is very good at it. Another
good read for the summer

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

How far does the staff go to make the politician shine? It is an age old question and done in the form of romance/suspense. Will you guess who done it? I didn't.

[Darlene Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice change of pace - well written - good action, suspense - enjoyable!

[Sara Herring · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good book! did not want to put down****

[Samantha · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got half way and could not get into it