Sometimes Quickly

by Anne Laughlin

Twenty years ago, Peg Ryan was a drunken, womanizing New York attorney who made a terrible mistake. Now 17 years sober, Peg thought she had put the past behind her. But as she is settling in a new position in Chicago, her past comes back to haunt her just as she falls in love with Allison, a real estate broker. Their friend Morgan, a police detective accustomed to one night stands, falls for Laura, the owner of a company on the brink of success. As Peg and Allison are dealing with Peg's past, Morgan and Laura question their future. The very different ways that each woman handles fear, values integrity, and cherishes and protects their loved one are revealed. Will their differences draw the women closer or drive them apart during this time of turmoil? Sometimes Quickly is a fast-paced tale about smart, capable women who don't always know the right thing to do, especially when making the wrong decision can cost them everything.

Genres: Lesbian, Romance, Mystery, LGBT, Lesbian Fiction

121 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2008

Reviews

[Dee · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

Just turned the last page. First thoughts - brilliant, loved it.

Wonderfully written, descriptive but not overly so, the story flowed and the plot moved at a great pace. There were twists and turns a plenty, keeping me in suspense, frantically turning the pages.

The characters were well fleshed out. I loved that the main characters were middle aged woman, beautifully drawn, imperfections and all. They each had their inner demons to battle, making them human. Being a woman who has battled similar issues, I felt an emotional connection to them.

This was near on a five star read for me, but for one aspect....sexy time! There were some yummy scenes but the minute the heat level went up, they ended. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem reading 'romantic suspense' which a good part of this story is. BUT when a story crosses over to erotic descriptions of sexual acts (as this one did) I want a fully fleshed out scene, pun intended! So yeah, that part left me wanting, lol.

That aside, this story is one of the best romantic suspense / lesbian romances I have ever had the pleasure of reading.

[Celina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really?

"She hated to leave a project unfinished." Well, that was subtle. Like seriously, how could a standalone end like that? I want jsutice

[MEC · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm wavering between thinking the book was too short and just long enough. At 120 pages there isn't alot to read, but in that page count you have quite a bit going on - romance, mystery, industrial espionage, blackmail and all the threads coming together and being tied up nicely.

Laughlin writes a good mystery but in 120 pages, there isn't alot of room to plant the red herrings - but she still has a few surprises. If the book had been longer, I would have liked to see a bit more development of the characters (main and secondary) and maybe draw out the romance just a little bit. The nice thing is, Laughlin doesn't play the angst card and her characters seem to be relatively well grounded (though they move pretty damned fast) when it comes to emotional issues.

There are four protaganists(two couples), a villian, and several supporting characters who actually got very little page time. Unfortunately Peg and Allison's characters overshadowed Morgan and Laura and each of their stories could have done with a bit more background and development.

I'm actually giving this between 3.5 and 3.75 stars ... rounded up to four because I really do like her writing style and I enjoyed reading the book. The lack of length keeps it from a full 4 stars.


And just before I sign off this review, I am going to take a moment to rant again about PD Publishing's abhorence of white space. Between small font and next to no margins, I dread ordering anything from this publisher and will be very grateful when they start publishing ebooks so I won't have the same knee-jerk reaction everytime I open up one of their books. Okay ... it's been said. Again. Regardless of the format, the book was still very good.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got an advance copy from netgalley for an honest review.

Camille is a piece of work, you really don’t want to get on her bad side or have her for an enemy. She will chew you up then swallow only so she can poop you out into the the trash where she thinks you belong. She has got some major problems and she just figured out that just because you're rich, doesn’t mean you get everything or anyone you want. Allison is a sweetheart and you can tell she likes her job. Meeting Peg after a car accident was kind of destined. Peg is everything Allison wants and more and it doesn’t hurt that she’s amazing in bed.

This was a really interesting read, when you think about there were really three stories in one here. Peg and Allison, Camille and all her problems and Peg’s friend Morgan and Laura. Even with that I had no problem keeping up and read it to the end. The ending is abrupt but it does give the allusion of a sequel, which I hope is true.

[Faith Reidenbach · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is genre fiction pas de deux: It’s a good mystery with a truly creepy lesbian villain, and it’s a good romance featuring two lesbians who have landed desirable women and need to change their ways enough to hang onto them.

The book also fits into a third genre, one I particularly enjoy: fiction about lesbians in recovery. In that category it’s unique, as far as I know, in not only presenting a character who’s attending 12-step meetings, but also depicting how she uses the steps to solve a Big Problem.

The first few chapters cover predictable action, but by page 27 the villain is in full swing and the story heats up. My favorite part was a delightful exchange between a lesbian attorney and a mobster she once represented, who’s a fan of Ellen DeGeneres.

The epilogue points to a sequel that will give us more about the villain, and I hope we’ll be seeing it soon.

[Musa · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's quite a lot packed into the 130 pages - Peg falling in love with Allison, obsessive ex of Allison's trying to remove Peg from the picture by digging up dirt and blackmailing her. There also comes a secondary story line with Peg's cop friend Morgan falling for a tech genius Laura. There's also a bit of mystery in between, and if you're paying attention to the dates written on top of the chapters - wow, it's everything just happened in a blast.

For me the book's close to a 4 star and I've decided to round it up to a 4. The story line is actually good, though it would have been better if there would be more pages in between either on the couples or more towards the action at the end.

Camille is definitely obsessive compulsive and certainly creepy as hell. From how the epilogue left things off, I'm hoping that there will be a sequel in the future where the villan gets caught!

P.S. - I got this review copy via NetGalley

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes Quickly was a short light read with a plot that has numerous good quality's to it. I found it very interesting how the characters lives were all intertwined together due to one sinister woman. I was definitely intrigued at what was going to happen next and the suspense will keep you on the edge of your seat. I was enjoying the book immensely when it just came to an abrupt end without really being finished. It appears as the author sets it up for there to be a second book, yet some major parts of the plot were left unfinished. Such as what became of peg's legal situation? That was a sizable part of the story. Up until the end of the book I was thrilled with what I was reading. I give it 3 1/2 stars wanting to give it more but the inadequacy of the ending was a big disappointment for this reader.

"Thank you NetGalley for letting me give an honest review"