Black Label

by James L'Etoile

A pharmaceutical executive wakes up in a strange apartment and finds herself suspected of the murder of her company's CEO. Believing she's insane, or a murderer, Jillian Cooper finds herself on the run from not only the police but also gang enforcers.
Life-sustaining prescription drugs are a trillion-dollar industry, but who really knows what's hidden inside those pills and capsules? Big Pharma has a secret and it's costing thousands of lives. Prison gangs and corporate board members make strange bedfellows, but where there's money to be had, peace exists through an off-the-books Black Label drug lab. Jillian is left to unravel the company's secrets before she lands in jail or becomes another victim.

Genres: Thriller

270 pages, Paperback

Published July 20, 2021

About the author

James L’Etoile uses his twenty-nine years behind bars as an influence in his novels, short stories, and screenplays. He is a former associate warden in a maximum-security prison, a hostage negotiator, facility captain, and director of California’s state parole system. He is a nationally recognized expert witness on prison and jail operations. He is a two-time Silver Falchion Award nominee and shortlisted for the Bill Crider Award for short fiction. His published novels include: Dead Drop( Lefty Award nominee), Black Label (Silver Falchion winner), At What Cost, Bury the Past, and Little River -The Other Side of Paradise. You can find out more at www.jamesletoile.com

Reviews

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Black Label, author James L'Etoile transports the reader to San Francisco, for an intriguing thriller that will keep the reader guessing and turning the pages.

The story centers around Jillian Cooper, VP of Marketing for Dynalife Pharmaceuticals, who finds herself setup to take the fall for the murders of her Dynalife bosses, Jonathon Mattson, CEO, and David Paulson, COO. Suffering from a blackout and losing two days of her life, Jillian is confronted with evidence that she committed the murders, and to make it worse, she fears that she has inherited her mother's history of mental illness. Jillian is determined to find out who is setting her up to take the fall, especially as her investigation uncovers shady black market drug dealings between the Mexican Mafia and Dynalife Pharmaceuticals. Can Jillian uncover the truth and prove her innocence, or is she guilty of the murders, and descending into the murky world of mental illness?

Author James L'Etoile weaves a fast-paced and suspenseful tale written in the third person narrative that follows Jillian as she tries to make sense of what has unexpectedly gone wrong in her life, all the while dealing with anxiety and paranoia, wondering if she has inherited her mother's mental illness. As Jillian investigates the murders of her bosses at Dynalife Pharmaceuticals, she uncovers the shady black market dealings between the Mexican Mafia and Dynalife, and these revelations make her an easy target as threats of danger are around every corner, and someone is determined to silence Jillian for good.

The reader is easily drawn into this well written story with its richly descriptive plot and setting. It is filled with enough action, drama, secrets, motives, betrayals, deception, and intriguing twists and turns that definitely keeps the reader guessing until the surprising conclusion.

The author does a wonderful job of providing enough intrigue to engage the reader, and I found myself so caught up on trying to figure out how Jillian was going to prove her innocence when there was so much evidence pointing at her guilt. You can't help but wonder how much of her mother's mental illiness she may have inherited, as her actions / reactions during the investigation makes the reader definitely think twice. I really enjoyed how Jillian's investigation leads her into the dark undercover world of big Pharma dealings with the interconnection between the Mexican Mafia and Dynalife Pharmaceuticals. As Jillian puts all the pieces of the puzzle together, the reader will be stunned by the conclusion!

Black Label will definitely take the readers on one heck of a thrilling roller coaster ride.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author / publisher in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours.

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[Helaine Mario · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pharma Exec Jillian Cooper’s worst fears come true when she awakens in a strange room with no memory of the last two days – and finds herself accused of two brutal murders. Is she innocent? Or a murderer? On the run, chased by both the police and chilling, vicious criminals, she has no one to trust – and nowhere to turn. But in spite of her self-doubt and terror, this strong female character refuses to give up, descending into the dark world of black market drugs as she fights for her freedom, and the truth. Former warden, negotiator and prison consultant James L’Etoile tells a fast-moving, complex story that rings with authenticity, touches us with his empathy for the victims, and asks important moral questions – are greed and great wealth worth lives lost? And how far will we go to make things right?

[Meredith Lyons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suspense!

I love a smart female heroine and Jillian is super smart. If I had ended up in some of the situations she was in, I would be dead, and I am not dumb. Once I got to the last third of the book, I basically just had to sit there and read until I was finished. It's nonstop. Jillian does not sleep, so neither did I.

I did not see anything coming. Like, nothing. I'm not generally the person who tries to figure out the book ahead of time, I just enjoy the ride, but this was more of a rollercoaster. If you enjoy being overly concerned about fictional people, this is your jam.

[Angie Blocker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Review & Giveaway 
Black Label by James L’Etoile
About the Book: Sanity is something you don’t miss until it’s gone. Hard charging pharmaceutical executive Jillian Cooper fears she’d destined to inherit her mother’s history of mental illness when she finds herself accused of murdering her boss. All the evidence tells her she’s either a murderer, or insane. When Jillian struggles to find the truth, she uncovers a web of black market pharmaceuticals, prison gangs, and greed. She begins to believe she may have killed to cover up the off-the-books drug operation.
Can she discover the truth before she’s condemned to life in prison, or a mental hospital?
My Review: Holy moly guys! Can you say Psychological Thriller??? Wow! I can only imagine what poor Jillian was going through! CRAZY!!! I really really loved this book. It was extremely hard for me to put down. I was so back and forth on what I thought was going to happen. I love that!!! I am always afraid I'm going to spoil the book by saying too much. So, I'm not going to give any details. I couldn't stop talking about this book with my husband who is not a reader. He kept telling me to hurry up and finish because he was curious about what was going to happen next! He and I both think this would be a pretty great movie!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars! If you like a book that makes you question your own sanity (ok, maybe I'm taking the whole Psychological Thriller a little far 🤣)... Just read this book! Seriously! It's gonna keep you on the edge of your seat! 
#blacklabel #partnersincrimetours #booklover #booktour #giveaway #honestreviews #gifted #5starsfromme #cantputmybookdown #bookworm #booktour #bookstagram #getyoursnow #goinginmylfl #thriller 

[Betty · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an incredibly frustrating book. If you had asked me to rate it at about the midpoint, I would have easily given it a 4 or 4.5. The first half of the book was a manic-paced, tightly crafted thriller. My one complaint was the constant characterization of Jillian's mental health. Telling the reader incessantly that she's unstable when there's nothing in her behavior that demonstrates it beyond being understandably confused by her lack of memory (possibly women readers find that easier to explain than male writers do) and the situation in which she found herself.

The book went noticeably downhill from there. No more showing the reader what's going on. Lengthy monologues by Jillian or another character telling the reader what's happening. What I suppose were plot twists added nothing but needless complications. It was almost as if L'Etoile had story ideas for three or four books and used the second half of Black Label as a place to dump them all. It was almost like he realized that he needed to pad his otherwise solid plot in order to reach an adequate page count.

And I cannot fail to mention the myriad proofreading issues. This was not a noticeable problem in the first half of the book. But after that midpoint, the errors were constant and in virtually every paragraph, ranging from homonym abuse to punctuation mistakes to subject-verb disagreement, to incomplete sentences to syntactical errors. It was so constant that it regularly took me out of the story.

This gets 2.5 stars. But I'll be generous and round that up to 3 on the strength of what was a compelling and readable breakneck thriller in the first half. I just wish the second half of the book had lived up to the promise of the first.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This first half of this novel is a tightly crafted nightmare. Imagine being accused of murder and all the evidence points to you and you have no alibi because you had blacked out. Imagine every attempt to prove your innocence and find the real killer is thwarted. The action is continuous and intense in this first part of the plot. It is an engaging psychological thriller. The last part of the novel develops at a much slower pace. There is less action and much more discussion and contemplation and explanation. The plot is quite complex and working it out takes a great deal of conniving and explaining, uncovering the many layers in the end.

Jillian is a good amateur sleuth, desperate to figure out what is going on. I like how she continues to dig for the truth. There is interesting information about a pharmaceutical company, stirring up the social issue of concentrating on profits verses business for the good of mankind.

This is a good novel for those who like an intense psychological thriller.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours. My comments are an independent and honest review.

[Grace Koshida · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jillian Cooper, a pharmaceutical marketing executive for Dynalife Pharmaceuticals, wakes up in a strange bed in San Francisco with no memory of the past two days. She is shocked to learn that Dyna;life's CEO Jonathon Mattson has been murdered and that she is the prime suspect. Jillian goes on the run from the police while trying to find evidence of her innocence. Life-saving prescription drugs are a huge money making industry and the big pharmaceutical companies, including Dynalife may have secrets that lead to thousands of deaths for huge profits.

Jillian learns of an off-the-books Black Label drug lab run by Dynalife. It's a race against time for Jillian to find proof of the company's wrongdoings before she is arrested or killed by the perpetrators.

This was a thrilling read and is highly recommended.

I received a digital ARC from Netgalley and Level Best Books with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.

[Tricia LaRochelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Jillian Cooper wakes up in a stranger’s house, her life becomes a roller coaster ride that has suddenly gone off the rails. Before she can grasp what is happening, she discovers that her boss has been murdered and that she’s the number one suspect. If only she could remember the past forty-eight hours or why her boss’s blood is on her shirt, she could try to make sense of her chaotic life. With the cops on her heels and no one to turn to for help, Jillian must blend into a city full of danger and an assassin who is set on destroying not only her reputation but her very life. Jim L’Etoile’s book Black Label has you captivated from the very start. The story is tight, the circumstances plausible, and the tension, off the charts. I was glued to the page until the very end. If you like crime novels or even if you don’t, this is a fun read with plenty of nail-biting suspense.

[Kate Vale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loss of memory can be a problem, particularly when Jillian's mother died of dementia and she fears she may die similarly. But what causes her loss of memory has nothing to do with her genes and everything to do with the pharmaceutical firm where she's been working for years.

What she learns after she wakes up is almost enough to make her wish she was insane: her CEO boss is dead and she's accused of having killed him; then the second-in-command also turns up dead and someone's after her.

Where will all this end as she hides in the dens of the homeless in San Francisco? Who can she trust and should she? After all, she trusted those men at the company where she'd worked so hard and they'd tossed her away and into prison, if they have their way. But will they succeed or will she?

[Richard Schneider · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well done, Mr. L'Etoile!

The story of Jillian, who wakes up with short term amnesia in the midst of a murder investigation, comes at the reader at breakneck pace. The isolation Jillian feels informs her actions and adds to the "feel" of the book.

There are plenty of twists, keeping the reader--and Jillian--guessing along the way. I found the plot well-layered and the surprises revealed at just the right pace. The underlying message is one of right over wrong, people over profits, truth over lies. How can you argue with that!

The author adds a number of well-turned phrases, enhancing the reading experience with them.

[Cathi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Psychological suspense at its best!
Greed and betrayal propel this fast-paced novel by James L’Etoile. When pharmaceutical executive, Jillian Cooper wakes up in a strange bed with blood all over her she has no memory of what’s happened over the last two days. Accused of two murders, that of her bosses, Jonathon Mattson, CEO, and David Paulson, COO, she goes on the run, determined to prove to herself that she’s not crazy. As she outwits both the detective and criminals pursuing her, she uncovers the truth about who’s set her up and what they’ve been hiding at Dynalife Pharmaceuticals.

[JMM · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pharmaceutical executive finds herself on the run, a suspect in the murder of her company’s CEO. All the evidence suggests it could be true, though she doesn’t recall anything that occurred during the days surrounding the crime. She finds herself doubting her own sanity and, as she tries to uncover the truth, finds danger at every turn. There’s lots of suspense as well as great character- and plot-building in this exciting thriller.

[Jane Pettitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Wow! What twisted psychological read. A pharmaceutical executive wanted fir murder, has lost days. Did she black out? She is wanted fir murder , money missing and her name on a company that doesn’t exist. Nothing is what it seems. Dark, witty, gritty read. You will love it.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-crafted thriller! I liked Jillian right from the start. It almost seemed impossible that she would be able to clear her name before being arrested. Inspector DiManno was a great character as well, and I'm hoping he will make an appearance in other books.

[Brynn Stephens · Rating 1 out of 5]

It felt like the author couldn't decide what kind of shocking twist to go with, so they threw in everything at once... leaving the story cluttered and ultimately forgettable.
Started out with an interesting idea but it just wasn't done well

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intrigue. Betrayal. Things are not what they seem. Black Label grabbed me on the first page and didn't release me until the very last.

[Tawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an excellent read! Not a dull moment, through to the end! I could not put it down! I will recommend this one to other readers close to me. Brilliant!

[Darlene Dziomba · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book offers a heart-pounding pace and a cleverly interwoven plot. It showcases the lengths a person can go to to cover up their misdeeds and the lies they will tell to misdirect the harmed.

[Carmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author James L'Etoile hooked me from the first chapter of Black Label. It has been a long time since I have read a book that I could not put down, a real page turner, with steady tension throughout and a surprise ending. Skillfully told with authenticity and authority. A real find and I look forward to reading more from this author.

[Pat Fayo Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

For me, this is a good book to take a factual look at what can be happening behind the scenes of the big pharmaceutical companies. Legalized drug pushers marking huge profits dealing the synthetic drugs and getting away with it. This book finds a pharmaceutical executive waking up in the same apartment as her CEO....only he is dead! Without a single memory of how she got there, the book turns her into a very strong protagonist trying to pick up the pieces of her life, stay alive and figure out what is going on. With big bucks behind this part of legalized mafia, she finds secrets detrimental to the company that you would not think of. This book gives you great insight and vision as to what really happens behind closed doors at big pharmaceutical companies. It has lots of twists and turns that will keep your eye on the “who, what, why, when and where” to keep it together. Will Jillian clear her name and if so, at what cost? Or will she feel she can’t beat them and survive, so does she become “one of them”? You can only find out by reading it!

#patfayoreviews