Don't Look Now

Look Trilogy #1

by Linda Lael Miller

Resisting the advances of an ex-lover, with whom she is investigating the murder of her boss, attorney Clare Westbrook learns that the man responsible for her sister's death is getting out of jail and faces a deadly game of cat-and-mouse in the wake of several attempts on her life, in compelling tal

Genres: Romance, Romantic Suspense, Mystery, Suspense, Contemporary, Fiction, Contemporary Romance

424 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published August 25, 2003

About the author

The daughter of a town marshal, Linda Lael Miller is a #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of more than 100 historical and contemporary novels, most of which reflect her love of the West. Raised in Northport, Washington, Linda pursued her wanderlust, living in London and Arizona and traveling the world before returning to the state of her birth to settle down on a spacious property outside Spokane.
Linda traces the birth of her writing career to the day when a Northport teacher told her that the stories she was writing were good, that she just might have a future in writing. Later, when she decided to write novels, she endured her share of rejection before she sold Fletcher’s Woman in 1983 to Pocket Books. Since then, Linda has successfully published historicals, contemporaries, paranormals, mysteries and thrillers before coming home, in a literal sense, and concentrating on novels with a Western flavor. For her devotion to her craft, the Romance Writers of America awarded her their prestigious Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007.
Long a passionate Civil War buff, Linda has studied the era avidly for almost thirty years. She has read literally hundreds of books on the subject, explored numerous battlegrounds and made many visits to her favorite, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where she has witnessed re-enactments of the legendary clash between North and South. Linda explores that turbulent time in The Yankee Widow, a May 7, 2019 MIRA Books hardcover, also available in digital and audiobook formats.
Dedicated to helping others, “The First Lady of the West” personally financed fifteen years of her Linda Lael Miller Scholarships for Women, which she awarded to women 25 years and older who were seeking to improve their lot in life through education. She anticipates that her next charitable endeavors will benefit four-legged critters.
More information about Linda and her novels is available at www.lindalaelmiller.com, on Facebook and from Nancy Berland Public Relations, nancy@nancyberland.com, 405-206-4748.

Reviews

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a decent suspenseful mystery and I usually enjoyed reading about the main character but it lacked the special something that would make me love it. But it was good

[Darin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I swear all these books are the same. The only thing good about this book was the smut.

[Connie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is #1 in Clare Westbrook series.

At first I didn't really care for this one as I felt it was a bit too sarcastic, but it seemed to settle down a bit after about the first 100 pages or so. The store was very good, I just didn't care for the writing style. Because it is the first in the series, possibly the next ones would not be so sarcastic. I felt that Clare would do things that most people wouldn't have done just because she wanted to figure things out on her own. As she was an attorney, I would have thought she would have had a detective with the firm that could have handled some of the tougher stuff.

I am giving this 4 out of 5 stars and would probably read the next in the series to see what happens next even though this first one seemed to be pretty tidy at the end.

[Maddy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I kinda liked this book in the beginning but then I feel like it dragged on and there was too many murders and crazy stuff happening for it to be enjoyable. I wanted Sonterra and Clare's relationship to progress more but I felt like that was not happening either.

[Sandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent!

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clare Westbrook has been working in the law firm of Kredd and Associates in order to pay off the debt owed to Harvey Kredd for helping pay her law school bills. Harvey's practices are less than ethical, and even though Clare doesn't believe in the way he conducts his business, he continues to hold the money she owes him over her head. When Harvey is killed, Clare thinks she may be out of the woods, but instead, she is coerced into taking the malpractice case of a multimillionaire plastic surgeon. Unfortunately, Harvey isn't the only death in Clare's life and suddenly it seems like she and her niece, Emma, may be in danger too, so reluctantly, Clare calls on Detective Tony Sonterra, her on-again, off-again lover, to help her figure out who might be after her.

Don't Look Now is the first book in the Look Trilogy and is a very layered romantic suspense/mystery. The book is written in first person POV, so the character of Clare is well developed, but the other characters in the story don't get nearly enough backstory. Although, at times, the number of characters and clues makes it difficult to follow, this mystery is filled with layer upon layer of twists and turns right up to the end of the story. Even though the book only contains 296 pages, it is jam-packed with plot and characters. Overall, Don't Look Now is a great beginning to this trilogy about the continuing lives and romance of Clare and Tony.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel is part will they or won't they romance and part mystery thriller with two mysteries rolled into one. I highly recommend it.

Clare Westbrook is a woman with a lot of problems. She is a lawyer, who represents rich and mostly sleezy clients because she is indebted to her boss for her education. She hates the job. Then, her boss is murdered in his home. Attempts are made on Clare's life, and she begins to receive death threats via email. She's raising her niece after her brother-in-law murdered her sister, or at least Clare thinks he did, but the charges were never proven because her sister's body was never found. The brother-in-law was imprisoned for larceny, but now he's getting out, and he wants to see his daughter. On top of all that, Clare is trying to figure out her on again / off again romance with sexy and snarky detective police detective Anthony Sonterra. Fortunately, Clare is smart and resourceful, but can she figure out who is after her before they find her and end her? The drama and romance are hotter than the Arizona weather in this novel by Linda Leal Miller. I highly recommend that everyone check it out.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clare cannot escape. She is a defense attorney defending scum and now there are killers out to get her. Luckily she has Tony, the hunky detective, to help her out. In this book, she is defending the plastic surgeon that botched too many operations. He is guilty and scum, but she must defend him to keep her job. Meanwhile, she is also looking into her sister's murder. Too many killers after her put her in a bad place. By the end, the killers are caught and she has become a millionaire. She and Emma are now starting a new life. She bought a storefront to start her own practice but her first clients may cause trouble.

[Jeannine Wickliffe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clare Westbrooks life is not easy. She is an attorney working for a scumbag attorney to pay of her loans, and raising her dead sisters daughter. Add to all this is the murder of her boss and her neices father is being released from prison. Add to this mix is the detective looking into the murder is her ex-lover. Can Clare survive this and someone out to kill her too. This is a great read with twists and turns.

[Lynette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Talk about a compiling read; I could not stop turning the pages; I had a feeling that Clare was right in believing that her sisters ex was the one who killed her but wow talk about a interesting and exciting ending!

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light mystery or double mystery. Semi-predictable, but entertaining. We learn about characters by their reactions to crimes, events around them. Know Toni and Clare are both strong, independent and intelligent people, but not much more.

[Gisela · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Good series.

[Shirley Yant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed this one very much.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the characters interactions. Had to read all 3 books

[Angela]

5

[Jean Girouard · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took a while to get into the book but I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. The storyline made it difficult to figure out who the killer was and the suspense was masterful.

[Darinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book in the Look trilogy. Entertaining romantic suspense.

[Linda H. Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn’t put this book down, the story is well written and keeps you in suspense page after page. I highly recommend reading this.

[Theresa Lange · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good mystery

[Rhonda Soukup · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read this author before and she got right down to business in the first few pages. I liked the combo of mystery/suspense/romance. It was a little gory (with not too much detail) but the characters were likeable. It always helps to have a hunk looking after you! I didn't know it was part of a trilogy.

[Kris (My Novelesque Life) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 STARS

"When hard-working attorney Clare Westbrook learns that her ambulance-chasing boss has been murdered, she's shocked -- but not exactly surprised. Harvey Kredd was known for his less-than-ethical business dealings, and even his acts of generosity were tinged with greed; Clare, working at Kredd and Associates to pay off the law school loan Harvey had granted her several years before, knows she's got no choice: indentured servitude, twenty-first-century style.

But Harvey's death doesn't let Clare out of her contract with the firm; instead it brings her a new, odious multimillionaire client, and Tony Sonterra, homicide detective and local heartthrob, who's not above using a murder investigation to get back into Clare's life. Jump-starting her affair with Tony is the last thing Clare needs -- she's got enough on her plate raising her niece, Emma, without throwing a bull-headed cop into the mix.

Then Clare gets the news that may convince her Tony is exactly what she needs: Emma's father has been released from prison, and he's intent on seeing his daughter. Though she could never persuade the police to believe her, Clare is convinced that James Arren murdered her sister.

Clare is determined to find evidence that will put James Arren away for good, but Tony is just as determined to keep her safe, after another murder -- clearly meant to target Clare -- rocks the law firm. With no real leads, too many suspects, and a growing chain of menacing violence, Clare finds that teaming up with the devil she knows is her only option -- one that's just too attractive to resist." (From Amazon)

I really enjoyed this romantic-suspense novel - and seeing the chemistry between Clare and Tony. I will definitely read the rest of the trilogy.

[rjp316 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting trilogy. I had not read anything by Linda Lael Miller in years (maybe a decade or more) but picked up this book at the library since I recognized the author. Was not what I was expecting at all but liked it – last time I read Miller it was all about the romance. Found it hard to read at first but then enjoyable that Miller wrote the books in the first person but past tense. The story lines was a bit farfetched in that I am sure all these events could never happen to one person in their whole lifetime, but I enjoyed the relationship between Clare and her boyfriend, Tony. I like that they both were very strong and independent but could still find middle ground, especially towards the end when it was not just in the bedroom. I did however find that the “mystery” part of the book was pretty predictable in some of the books, especially #2. But enjoyed the whole trilogy – thankfully I read them after they were all written so I did not have to wait to read them all. Will definitely be picking up more of Miller’s more recent book especially as they fall into the romantic suspense themes.

[Stacey Houllis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book not use reading romance thrillers took a while to read. It is about a lawyer Clare Westbrook who is raising her sister's daughter Emma after she was Murdered. Emma's father is in jail for crimes he committed. Clare thinks he murdered her. The story starts six years after the murder. When Emma dad is released from prison and wants to see his daughter and have visits with her and Clare is not happy with this Clare is working for a firm the deals with defending people. However her turns up dead at home.
Then a woman is found dead in Clare's and Janet that works with is murder all with the same M.O.
Tony Sonterra is police detective that Clare was in relationship with who still loves her and want her but Clare is not sure what she wants.
Clare has to defend a surgeon who did faulty breast implant surgery on women and she has to investigate back in her home town interview people she new one was a woman who new her sister and new about her life. However she did give Clare anything only that there was another man.
Clare receives death threats is attack at gun point.
Tony is there every step of the way.

[Mojca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not a big fan of 1st person POV, but my enjoyment of the narrative style mostly depends on the author. Some of them (Kristan Higgins and Karen Marie Moning are among those few) actually make me forget I'm reading a book written in such a "restrictive" style and enjoy the ride. Many don't succeed in that effort where I'm concerned...and some write a narrator as a emotionally-cowardly bitch (or worse), so even though I'd want to, I cannot enjoy the ride.
And LLM (and this book) was one of those.

Yes, there were other aspects of the story I actually liked—the supporting cast (Tony and Emma among them), the suspense sub-plot, and the mystery slowly unraveling throughout the story, but I couldn't get past the female lead narrating the story and her annoyingness, to be able to give this one a higher rating. Luckily she got better toward the end, thus earning her story a star more.

[Nolan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clare Westbrook got custody of her teenage niece shortly after Clare's sister was murdered. As the book opens, the guy whom Clare thinks killed her sister is about to be released from prison, and he has been communicating with Clare's niece, his daughter, in chat rooms. With his release from prison at hand, he naturally wants custody of the girl.

As if that's not enough, Clare's boss and a colleague are both murdered, and local law enforcement seems to be spinning its wheels where solving the murders are concerned. Clare is naturally scared, since the murder of a colleague was a case of a mistaken target. Clare, it appears, was the one the killer was after.

The book's dialogue is snappy and mostly fun to read. If descriptions of premarital sex aren't your thing, you'll either want to ignore this or be prepared to skip and skim. Clare has what grew into a tiresome craving for a local cop with whom she had done the sheet tango in the past. But the mystery is compelling, and the subplots are worth exploring.

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad for the first in the series.

I thought Clare was a strong, determined woman; in a world ruled mostly by men, she holds her own, while raising her 13-year-old niece. Stubborn to a fault, she does what she needs to do, regardless if that puts herself in harms way.

I liked how Miller wrote the character of Clare's niece. She acted like a 13-year-old would act, and I appreciated it.

And Tony... yeah, if I was single, I'd be going for a man like that myself. Tenacious, I loved the sarcasm, and the anger when he doesn't get his way or when Clare's being difficult.

I thought the plot was good, I liked the twists, and I'm not sure if it was just me, but I found that the synopsis of the book added a little more flavor to what was really there. Don't get me wrong, I thought the book was great, enough action of different kinds and enough twists that the book doesn't lose your attention, but I was expecting a little more 'oomph'.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay this one was a little odd for me. It wasn't what I expected, but I did like it and I will continue to read the series. The book is written in first person and has quite a bit of narration between dialogue, which I admit is not a favorite style of writing of mine. There were times I found myself having to go back a page to see what a character said because there was so much narration between the dialogue of two characters - that frustrated me. I also thought the whole premise of the book was bit far-fetched - I mean, come on, no way is all of the going to happen to one person at one time. With all that said, I did enjoy Clare's sarcastic and witty outlook on life. I also enjoyed her and Tony Sonterra's relationship and I admit, finding out what happens between them is my primary reason for continuing the series. Once I accepted the writing style (and I admit, skipped over a bit of the long narrative parts of the book), I enjoyed the book much better.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very enjoyable book. There are several "happenings" occurring at the same time which makes it interesting when trying to figure it out. My only issue is that there is no description as per say of the main character, Clare. We know she's tall and beautiful but is blonde, brunette, etc, eyes?? I like to visualize the characters and it was hard to do so for her. All others were described sufficiently. Clare has major independence issues. She cannot seem to bring herself to let others take care of her at times, she needs to prove, mostly to herself, that she can do it all. Which she can't. Her relationship with Tony is constantly sizzling and she seems blinded to the fact that there is more between them and that he cares for her more than she realizes. I am glad that this is a series, as the ending is nice but unfinished.

[Cami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spoilers****

This could be about 10% shorter. There is a constant backsliding in Claire's growth. She has all the answers and refuses to GO FORWARD. She is a lawyer who doesn't seem to let the law help her because past mistakes. She doesn't see the path of least resistance, which could still move the suspense on. Most of the suspense is Claire's arrogance and stupidity.
I'm a little put off by her lack of investment in the kid she desperately wants to protect and keep in her care. I get that keeping secrets and being independent are her thing: they are also what keeps the book going on. And on. An on some more. Maybe I wanted to like Claire as much as I loved Mojo Sheepshanks. I rooted for Sontara for the most part. However the book is centered around Claire. I don't think I'll finish the series.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A page turner from beginning to end....intelligent, with seat of your pants twists and turns.."I kept saying...don't open the curtain....don't go into the garage...etc"!!!
The humor and the sexual tension between Clare and Det. Sonterra was wonderful...all the time she was in the middle of one murder after another..including almost hers a few times!! Clare was still trying to defend the biggest sleaze of the century...and keep her teenage niece from her newly paroled father...who might be the reason this young girl is without a mother.
Great book and I love a great ending where all the loose ends tie up!