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Chasing Victoria
Victoria just got a wakeup call and her life will never be the same. Murder, corruption, deceit, and infidelities devastate her world. She flees the city to Martha Vineyard, during a dangerous nor’easter. In seclusion for two days, she dives into her mother’s steamy diaries; unaware danger followed her to the island.
At one o’clock in the morning, Victoria Powell wakes to a distressing phone call from her friend Kayla, beseeching her to meet in the park. Wrapped in the arms of a new lover, Victoria reluctantly leaves her bed, heads to Central Park, only to find Kayla missing. Nothing can prepare Victoria for what she’s about to experience—the gruesome murder of her best friend and her near escape from death.
A month earlier, at the prominent hedge fund, Wheaton Asset Management, a file containing incriminating evidence mysteriously disappears. In her quest to find it, Kayla stumbles upon years of unethical activity and a twenty-five-year-old secret that will change Victoria’s life.
Fearing danger, Victoria escapes to Martha’s Vineyard. Arriving during a dangerous nor’easter, she hides in seclusion, delving into her deceased mother’s steamy diaries; unaware of looming danger outside her safe haven.
At one o’clock in the morning, Victoria Powell wakes to a distressing phone call from her friend Kayla, beseeching her to meet in the park. Wrapped in the arms of a new lover, Victoria reluctantly leaves her bed, heads to Central Park, only to find Kayla missing. Nothing can prepare Victoria for what she’s about to experience—the gruesome murder of her best friend and her near escape from death.
A month earlier, at the prominent hedge fund, Wheaton Asset Management, a file containing incriminating evidence mysteriously disappears. In her quest to find it, Kayla stumbles upon years of unethical activity and a twenty-five-year-old secret that will change Victoria’s life.
Fearing danger, Victoria escapes to Martha’s Vineyard. Arriving during a dangerous nor’easter, she hides in seclusion, delving into her deceased mother’s steamy diaries; unaware of looming danger outside her safe haven.
Unknown Binding
First published August 1, 2015
About the author
E. Denise Billups
15 books131 followersE. Denise Billups is an American author born in rural Alabama, raised in New York City, formed by a multicultural environment. Previously a Wall Street Portfolio Analyst, Denise now writes haunting paranormal mysteries, suspense, and thrillers. The rigors of ballet shaped her childhood and earlier years — a discipline she carried into her writing. Today, Denise lives in New York City, where she’s a fitness fanatic by morning, a writer by day, and an avid reader during her free time. When she’s not penning her next thriller, she’s lost in the pages of a book, indulging her passion for literature or surrounding herself with friends and family. For more insight into Denise’s world of fiction, visit her website at edenisebillups.com.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 8, 2020
Chasing Victoria is a thriller novel by author E. Denise Billups. It was published just a few years ago, and I've previously read many books or short stories by this author. When I selected the book, I had one impression of what I thought it would be, but reading it was a whole different ballgame (in a very positive way). Elements of suspense, mystery, romance, and so much more are at play, and the story had me from the beginning.
Vicky, almost never Victoria, has 3 close girlfriends who have become like a second family to her. Her mother passed away years ago, and they had a complicated relationship. She adores her father, but that's all she has left in her small family. She's works at a financial firm, enthusiastically runs, and prefers her solitude. One day, she meets a sexy guy named Chase while on a run, and he insists on calling her Victoria. She's leery about trusting him. While at work, her colleague and bestie, Kayla, discovers a secret about the firm. At first, it seems somewhat harmless, but it grows... to the point of murder and theft. When Kayla dies and leaves key information in Vicky's hands about the embezzlement and/or money laundering scheme at the firm, Vicky is compelled to discover the truth. Only... it's gonna hit a lot closer to home than she realized.
To start with, Billups is the queen of hypnotic and lyrical language. I've mentioned this before in regard to her writing, but she has a fantastic way of describing a scene or character such that you are physically there while the action is happening. The word choice, syntax, style, and structure are often so brilliant, I can easily get lost in her imagination. The plot in this one was a perfect match for me -- so many angles and secrets, yet it all felt like it was plausible. Between the chase scenes and the climax, my heart pounded many times. I love that a majority of it takes place in NYC, and I've been to many of the places in midtown or Central Park... so it was easy to connect.
Her approach to telling the story was multi-dimensional. Although we follow in present tense Vicky's actions, we jump in a few chapters to Kayla's thoughts and POV, as well as read journal entries from Vicky's mother who passed away years ago. Everything is just a bit vague to keep us guessing, and when it begins to gel as reality, it's shocking and intense. I enjoyed the character hop, but I think it was the plot and the timing which made this a super good book for me. The ending was fair, tying things up and answering most of the questions in my mind. I like epilogues that tell us a few cool tidbits about the main character's future. It's a perfect way to get closure and leave a book without wondering too much about what else could happen.
I believe this is the first book Billups wrote, definitely of what I've read, and I have seen major growth with each successive novel. This one was quite strong, and there are so many wonderful elements in it. I really look forward to future books from this author, as I'm confident they will have a superb story and thoroughly draw me in. I recommend this one for readers who like a little bit of everything from light erotica (minor) to romance to murder to secrets to chase scenes to girl bonding and more. Kudos to the author for showing her talent across multiple genres.
Vicky, almost never Victoria, has 3 close girlfriends who have become like a second family to her. Her mother passed away years ago, and they had a complicated relationship. She adores her father, but that's all she has left in her small family. She's works at a financial firm, enthusiastically runs, and prefers her solitude. One day, she meets a sexy guy named Chase while on a run, and he insists on calling her Victoria. She's leery about trusting him. While at work, her colleague and bestie, Kayla, discovers a secret about the firm. At first, it seems somewhat harmless, but it grows... to the point of murder and theft. When Kayla dies and leaves key information in Vicky's hands about the embezzlement and/or money laundering scheme at the firm, Vicky is compelled to discover the truth. Only... it's gonna hit a lot closer to home than she realized.
To start with, Billups is the queen of hypnotic and lyrical language. I've mentioned this before in regard to her writing, but she has a fantastic way of describing a scene or character such that you are physically there while the action is happening. The word choice, syntax, style, and structure are often so brilliant, I can easily get lost in her imagination. The plot in this one was a perfect match for me -- so many angles and secrets, yet it all felt like it was plausible. Between the chase scenes and the climax, my heart pounded many times. I love that a majority of it takes place in NYC, and I've been to many of the places in midtown or Central Park... so it was easy to connect.
Her approach to telling the story was multi-dimensional. Although we follow in present tense Vicky's actions, we jump in a few chapters to Kayla's thoughts and POV, as well as read journal entries from Vicky's mother who passed away years ago. Everything is just a bit vague to keep us guessing, and when it begins to gel as reality, it's shocking and intense. I enjoyed the character hop, but I think it was the plot and the timing which made this a super good book for me. The ending was fair, tying things up and answering most of the questions in my mind. I like epilogues that tell us a few cool tidbits about the main character's future. It's a perfect way to get closure and leave a book without wondering too much about what else could happen.
I believe this is the first book Billups wrote, definitely of what I've read, and I have seen major growth with each successive novel. This one was quite strong, and there are so many wonderful elements in it. I really look forward to future books from this author, as I'm confident they will have a superb story and thoroughly draw me in. I recommend this one for readers who like a little bit of everything from light erotica (minor) to romance to murder to secrets to chase scenes to girl bonding and more. Kudos to the author for showing her talent across multiple genres.
September 14, 2018
Absolutely breathtaking in every way: story, writing, and character. Chasing Victory is a genre-defying journey of discovery, a literary tour de force that overwhelms almost every emotion. It’s a story of deception, murder, mystery, and suspense with a dash of the supernatural. At the heart of it all are love, love between family, love between friends, and unparalleled love between man and woman. From prologue to epilogue, E. Denise Billups covers every base it seems, leaving no stone left unturned, and drawing the reader in from the very first page.
Billups’ writing borders on literary fiction as her passages sing with masterful descriptions that combine the elements of craft and style. “Yesterday vanished, and today, I’m sweaty, breathless, and eager to catch a new sunrise over the floating city. I race up the Rialto Bridge just in time to witness night surrender dominance. A glorious orange magenta halo streaks Venetian skies, as the sun climbs the horizon. For several minutes, I watch multicolored ribbons disperse to navy-blue skies.” Billups’ research is also evident by the depth and breadth of the setting and story, and If you’re of the traditional persuasion, Chasing Victoria with have you seeing relationships and sexuality from a totally different perspective.
Billups creates a magnetic, beautiful protagonist in Victoria Powell and then plants you firmly inside her head. You feel what she feels, see what she sees, and yes, hear what she hears. The pacing of the novel is a pure delight. We meet love-interest, Chase early on but the suspense that Billups creates is such that when sparks finally fly between him and Victoria, I promise it’s a sequence that will suck you in, guaranteed. But Billups doesn’t quit there. She combines the unmatched sensuality of diary excerpts with the metaphor of a raging storm and being on the run from ominous villains to have your heart racing long after the final page. I can’t say enough about Chasing Victoria and Billups, so I’ll just say high five.
Billups’ writing borders on literary fiction as her passages sing with masterful descriptions that combine the elements of craft and style. “Yesterday vanished, and today, I’m sweaty, breathless, and eager to catch a new sunrise over the floating city. I race up the Rialto Bridge just in time to witness night surrender dominance. A glorious orange magenta halo streaks Venetian skies, as the sun climbs the horizon. For several minutes, I watch multicolored ribbons disperse to navy-blue skies.” Billups’ research is also evident by the depth and breadth of the setting and story, and If you’re of the traditional persuasion, Chasing Victoria with have you seeing relationships and sexuality from a totally different perspective.
Billups creates a magnetic, beautiful protagonist in Victoria Powell and then plants you firmly inside her head. You feel what she feels, see what she sees, and yes, hear what she hears. The pacing of the novel is a pure delight. We meet love-interest, Chase early on but the suspense that Billups creates is such that when sparks finally fly between him and Victoria, I promise it’s a sequence that will suck you in, guaranteed. But Billups doesn’t quit there. She combines the unmatched sensuality of diary excerpts with the metaphor of a raging storm and being on the run from ominous villains to have your heart racing long after the final page. I can’t say enough about Chasing Victoria and Billups, so I’ll just say high five.
May 8, 2020
Is the beginning of May right now, and I think it's safe to say that the main character in Chasing Victoria is my favorite female protagonist to read thus far in 2020. This book has been out for a while, and for some reason it’s taken me far too long to read it! I wish I wouldn’t have put it off for so long, I enjoyed it so very much.
First let's talk about Victoria Powell and the way that Denise Billups wrote her to be such a realistic powerhouse character. She’s smart as a whip! I really love that she’s so down to earth, brave, and despite the sexy doctor love interest, who’s character I also loved BTW, she manages to put herself and her own dangerous reality first. There’s such great balance and twists there, it’s like a perfectly proportioned dish of something salty and sweet.
Victoria comes from a prominent background, and fresh out of college she landed a very prestigious job in the fast paced finance world. Wheaten Firm took in both her, and Kayla - her best friend… but everything isn’t quite as it seems. After some time on the inside, Kayla gets in over her head when she begins to dig around in places that she shouldn’t.
One thing leads to another, and before you know it twisty secrets are surfaced, betrayal runs rampid, murder consumes the innocent, and Victoria finds herself tucked away on an island by means to escape and dig deeper into her own family disfuction. Only, she isn’t as safe and isolated as she thinks she is.
I’ve enjoyed everything that I’ve read by Denise so far, and this book is no different. Kudos on another amazing book Denise Billups, it’s a 5 star win for me!! I look forward to reading more of your work!
First let's talk about Victoria Powell and the way that Denise Billups wrote her to be such a realistic powerhouse character. She’s smart as a whip! I really love that she’s so down to earth, brave, and despite the sexy doctor love interest, who’s character I also loved BTW, she manages to put herself and her own dangerous reality first. There’s such great balance and twists there, it’s like a perfectly proportioned dish of something salty and sweet.
Victoria comes from a prominent background, and fresh out of college she landed a very prestigious job in the fast paced finance world. Wheaten Firm took in both her, and Kayla - her best friend… but everything isn’t quite as it seems. After some time on the inside, Kayla gets in over her head when she begins to dig around in places that she shouldn’t.
One thing leads to another, and before you know it twisty secrets are surfaced, betrayal runs rampid, murder consumes the innocent, and Victoria finds herself tucked away on an island by means to escape and dig deeper into her own family disfuction. Only, she isn’t as safe and isolated as she thinks she is.
I’ve enjoyed everything that I’ve read by Denise so far, and this book is no different. Kudos on another amazing book Denise Billups, it’s a 5 star win for me!! I look forward to reading more of your work!
July 15, 2018
Leaving Victoria is a contemporary, women’s fiction novel that opens with a brutal scene in which Victoria is an unwilling witness, as her best friend Kayla is caught up in a dangerous chase through the park where someone ends up dead.
To know the inner workings of life as a woman working on Wall Street was extremely interesting to me. Victoria the protagonist is brilliant, savvy and genuinely cares about her career. But something isn’t quite right at Wheaton, a private investment firm she works for along with Kayla her best friend from college who is too nosy for her own good.
The boss, Bruce Wheaton cuts a masculine picture of the double-martini lunch crowd, but he’s hiding a few secrets that will surprise you. I enjoyed how his character grew and changed for the better.
In many ways, life for an attractive and intelligent woman in finance was as lonely and tough as I expected. But when I related to the dedication and heart that the female characters brought to the story in this male dominated profession, I became engrossed in the struggle and wanted to know more.
Victoria’s mother is deceased, but was once a famous opera singer. There is a tie to Venice that comes up in the story often, an invisible thread that connects the past with the present and the future. Aiden, Victoria’s father still pines for his true love. This relationship initially seemed pretty straightforward, but as the story goes on, it’s anything but.
There is a discernable distance between mother and daughter that doesn’t explain itself until later and boy! It’s a doozy. I had to read it twice to be sure.
The secrets involving private family and external relationships, a discussion about open and arranged marriage and perhaps even the lengths some people will go to protect their fortunes made for a well-paced plot. Corruption is never pretty, but once more we are given a twist and a surprise at the end when we find out who is holding all the power.
Needless to say the love interest Chase was a sexy addition. Strawberries! Swoon!
My favorite part of this story was learning about Victoria and her mother’s charmed life as an artist, and how in the end the past was finally revealed. The truth may not have set her mother free, but it certainly seems that Victoria finally got the peace and the love she deserved.
“We spoke as if we’d been friends forever. I answered as naturally as our encounter. “A career I'm damn good at, a man I love, perhaps a child or two, and good friends to share life.” In return, I asked, “What does your ideal future look like?” And she’d answered, “Nothing grand; just to make a difference in other peoples' lives.” Her comment was as remarkable as our effortless friendship.”
If you enjoy reading fiction that shows women as capable, smart and brave, don’t miss this one.
To know the inner workings of life as a woman working on Wall Street was extremely interesting to me. Victoria the protagonist is brilliant, savvy and genuinely cares about her career. But something isn’t quite right at Wheaton, a private investment firm she works for along with Kayla her best friend from college who is too nosy for her own good.
The boss, Bruce Wheaton cuts a masculine picture of the double-martini lunch crowd, but he’s hiding a few secrets that will surprise you. I enjoyed how his character grew and changed for the better.
In many ways, life for an attractive and intelligent woman in finance was as lonely and tough as I expected. But when I related to the dedication and heart that the female characters brought to the story in this male dominated profession, I became engrossed in the struggle and wanted to know more.
Victoria’s mother is deceased, but was once a famous opera singer. There is a tie to Venice that comes up in the story often, an invisible thread that connects the past with the present and the future. Aiden, Victoria’s father still pines for his true love. This relationship initially seemed pretty straightforward, but as the story goes on, it’s anything but.
There is a discernable distance between mother and daughter that doesn’t explain itself until later and boy! It’s a doozy. I had to read it twice to be sure.
The secrets involving private family and external relationships, a discussion about open and arranged marriage and perhaps even the lengths some people will go to protect their fortunes made for a well-paced plot. Corruption is never pretty, but once more we are given a twist and a surprise at the end when we find out who is holding all the power.
Needless to say the love interest Chase was a sexy addition. Strawberries! Swoon!
My favorite part of this story was learning about Victoria and her mother’s charmed life as an artist, and how in the end the past was finally revealed. The truth may not have set her mother free, but it certainly seems that Victoria finally got the peace and the love she deserved.
“We spoke as if we’d been friends forever. I answered as naturally as our encounter. “A career I'm damn good at, a man I love, perhaps a child or two, and good friends to share life.” In return, I asked, “What does your ideal future look like?” And she’d answered, “Nothing grand; just to make a difference in other peoples' lives.” Her comment was as remarkable as our effortless friendship.”
If you enjoy reading fiction that shows women as capable, smart and brave, don’t miss this one.
December 10, 2020
Chasing Victoria: By Denise E. Billups
This is a well-written thriller with great characters, twists and turns that keep you guessing to the very last page. Victoria and her best friend Kayla work together in the same firm. When Kayla sticks her nose into something and is killed. Victoria is left to pick up the pieces and find out what is going on before she becomes the next target.
The plot becomes more and more convoluted as the story progresses. The read becomes drawn to each character and feels wholeheartedly for Victoria’s struggles as she discovers things about her parents that puts everything she once believed in doubt. She is forced to reassess her entire existence to get to the bottom of the strange goings-on inside the firm and in her personal life. When things turn sour, she doesn’t know who she can trust when her bonds between family and friends all hang in the balance.
A gripping read. Excellent word building and well worth the time to read it.
This is a well-written thriller with great characters, twists and turns that keep you guessing to the very last page. Victoria and her best friend Kayla work together in the same firm. When Kayla sticks her nose into something and is killed. Victoria is left to pick up the pieces and find out what is going on before she becomes the next target.
The plot becomes more and more convoluted as the story progresses. The read becomes drawn to each character and feels wholeheartedly for Victoria’s struggles as she discovers things about her parents that puts everything she once believed in doubt. She is forced to reassess her entire existence to get to the bottom of the strange goings-on inside the firm and in her personal life. When things turn sour, she doesn’t know who she can trust when her bonds between family and friends all hang in the balance.
A gripping read. Excellent word building and well worth the time to read it.
October 13, 2020
An intricately woven story
Chasing Victoria is an engaging story of a young professional woman, Victoria, who is thrust into a tangle of mysteries which are brought to her attention by her snooping best friend. As a web of secrets begins to unravel, people are being permanently silenced, and Victoria is discovering her own family secrets as well as unexpected romance.
This is a well written story full of mystery and intrique. Billups is a talented storyteller with a smooth narrative 'voice'. In other words, this is a pleasant read which drew me in with ease. Ms Billups does an excellent job of setting the scenes with exquisite detail to envelop the reader and bring us fully into the story by filling the senses with sights, sounds and scents. The characters are well developed, believable and interesting. Overall, Chasing Victoria is an excellent read that I highly recommend.
Chasing Victoria is an engaging story of a young professional woman, Victoria, who is thrust into a tangle of mysteries which are brought to her attention by her snooping best friend. As a web of secrets begins to unravel, people are being permanently silenced, and Victoria is discovering her own family secrets as well as unexpected romance.
This is a well written story full of mystery and intrique. Billups is a talented storyteller with a smooth narrative 'voice'. In other words, this is a pleasant read which drew me in with ease. Ms Billups does an excellent job of setting the scenes with exquisite detail to envelop the reader and bring us fully into the story by filling the senses with sights, sounds and scents. The characters are well developed, believable and interesting. Overall, Chasing Victoria is an excellent read that I highly recommend.
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April 21, 2020Not a fan of this one. Went too far astray with Mothers life.
April 28, 2020
Interesting read.
A very interesting book with many twists and turns great insight into her mother and her behaviour with her father. A good read.
A very interesting book with many twists and turns great insight into her mother and her behaviour with her father. A good read.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews