What do you think?
Rate this book
Look Closely
There is no statute of limitations on murder. Look Closely.
That's all the anonymous letter said, but attorney
Hailey Sutter understands the meaning behind the well-chosen words. Someone wants her to investigate what happened to her mother, who died when Hailey was only seven.
The death was ruled accidental, but Hailey begins having flashbacks that tell a different a pounding at the door...her mother struggling to stand...a man with a gold ring that flashed in the night as he held her mother's lifeless body.
Obsessed with uncovering the truth, Hailey can't trust anyone, especially her father, whose secrecy both unnerves and protects her. Desperate to remember that fatal night, she seeks out the brother and sister who left home after their mother's death. But they have disappeared. It's soon clear to Hailey that the answer is right in front of her--all she has to do is find the courage to look closely....
That's all the anonymous letter said, but attorney
Hailey Sutter understands the meaning behind the well-chosen words. Someone wants her to investigate what happened to her mother, who died when Hailey was only seven.
The death was ruled accidental, but Hailey begins having flashbacks that tell a different a pounding at the door...her mother struggling to stand...a man with a gold ring that flashed in the night as he held her mother's lifeless body.
Obsessed with uncovering the truth, Hailey can't trust anyone, especially her father, whose secrecy both unnerves and protects her. Desperate to remember that fatal night, she seeks out the brother and sister who left home after their mother's death. But they have disappeared. It's soon clear to Hailey that the answer is right in front of her--all she has to do is find the courage to look closely....
379 pages, Paperback
First published May 24, 2005
12 people are currently reading
319 people want to read
About the author
Laura Caldwell
32 books165 followersLaura Caldwell is a Chicago-based lawyer turned novelist. Her first book, Burning the Map, was selected by Barnes & Noble.com as one of The Best of 2002. Following that, A Clean Slate received a starred review from Booklist. The release of The Year of Living Famously and The Night I Got Lucky prompted Booklist to declare, “Caldwell is one of the most talented and inventive...writers around.”
Laura began publishing thrillers and suspense novels in 2005. Her debut mystery, Look Closely, received critical acclaim and The Chicago Sun-Times called The Rome Affair “Caldwell’s most exciting book yet…a summer must-read.” The Rome Affair, which centers around a Chicago society couple riding a roller coaster of infidelity, blackmail and murder, pulled Laura into a real-life, highly-profiled murder trial involving a 19-year old suspect forced into a confession and wrongfully jailed for a crime he did not commit. Laura became one of the attorneys who represented the suspect pro bono, resulting in a not-guilty verdict.
Laura's newest is an international thriller, The Good Liar. Bestselling author Ken Bruen calls it "a massive achievement." Publisher's Weekly lauds it as "a taut, enjoyable thriller." And New York Times bestselling author James Rollins said, "THE GOOD LIAR strikes like an assassin's bullet: sudden, swift, precise, deadly. Here is a taut international thriller certain to keep readers breathless and awake until the wee hours of the morning. Not to be missed." Her work has been translated into ten languages and published in over twenty countries.
Before beginning her writing career, Laura was a trial attorney, specializing in medical malpractice defense and entertainment law. She is published in the legal field and is currently an Adjunct Professor of Law at her alma mater, Loyola University Chicago, where she teaches Advanced Writing for Litigation. She recently received the St. Robert Bellarmine award for distinguished contributions to the profession and the Loyola School of Law. In the summer of 2008, she will be teaching International Criminal Law at Loyola's campus in Rome, Italy.
Laura is also a freelance magazine writer. Her work has been published in Chicago Magazine, Woman's Own, The Young Lawyer, Lake Magazine, Australia Woman's Weekly, Shore Magazine and others. Her work can also be seen in Everything I Needed to Know About Being A Girl I Learned From Judy Blume (Pocket Books, 2007), It's A Wonderful Lie: Truth About Life In Your Twenties (Warner, 2006), Girl's Night In II (Red Dress Ink, 2006) Flirting With Pride & Prejudice (BenBella Books, 2005) and Welcome to Wisteria Lane: On America's Favorite Desperate Housewives (BenBella Books, 2006).
Laura began publishing thrillers and suspense novels in 2005. Her debut mystery, Look Closely, received critical acclaim and The Chicago Sun-Times called The Rome Affair “Caldwell’s most exciting book yet…a summer must-read.” The Rome Affair, which centers around a Chicago society couple riding a roller coaster of infidelity, blackmail and murder, pulled Laura into a real-life, highly-profiled murder trial involving a 19-year old suspect forced into a confession and wrongfully jailed for a crime he did not commit. Laura became one of the attorneys who represented the suspect pro bono, resulting in a not-guilty verdict.
Laura's newest is an international thriller, The Good Liar. Bestselling author Ken Bruen calls it "a massive achievement." Publisher's Weekly lauds it as "a taut, enjoyable thriller." And New York Times bestselling author James Rollins said, "THE GOOD LIAR strikes like an assassin's bullet: sudden, swift, precise, deadly. Here is a taut international thriller certain to keep readers breathless and awake until the wee hours of the morning. Not to be missed." Her work has been translated into ten languages and published in over twenty countries.
Before beginning her writing career, Laura was a trial attorney, specializing in medical malpractice defense and entertainment law. She is published in the legal field and is currently an Adjunct Professor of Law at her alma mater, Loyola University Chicago, where she teaches Advanced Writing for Litigation. She recently received the St. Robert Bellarmine award for distinguished contributions to the profession and the Loyola School of Law. In the summer of 2008, she will be teaching International Criminal Law at Loyola's campus in Rome, Italy.
Laura is also a freelance magazine writer. Her work has been published in Chicago Magazine, Woman's Own, The Young Lawyer, Lake Magazine, Australia Woman's Weekly, Shore Magazine and others. Her work can also be seen in Everything I Needed to Know About Being A Girl I Learned From Judy Blume (Pocket Books, 2007), It's A Wonderful Lie: Truth About Life In Your Twenties (Warner, 2006), Girl's Night In II (Red Dress Ink, 2006) Flirting With Pride & Prejudice (BenBella Books, 2005) and Welcome to Wisteria Lane: On America's Favorite Desperate Housewives (BenBella Books, 2006).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
March 8, 2019
Easy to read, mostly enjoyable mystery, although it's largely predictable and has one of the more self-absorbed and willfully dense protagonists you're going to encounter. Although published back in 2005 by Harlequin, there is only a smidge of romance, and it would actually fit in quite well with the swath of domestic noir thrillers we get nowadays.
Hailey Sutter is a lawyer who receives the titular note, and it immediately conjures up memories of her mother's death when she was 7, which she barely remembers. When her latest case brings her close to her hometown, she decides to visit there and dig into the past. This is when she learns her older brother and sister, who she has never (!) spoken to since then, both disappeared on the same day. She also begins to suspect her father has been lying to her for twenty odd years.
While the final revelation took me mildly by surprise, everything else in this light suspense tale was comfortably predictable. Doesn't mean it's a bad read, but there's not really much within its pages to make you sit up and take notice, either. It contained one of my personal bugbears, which is too much excessive description. Don't have your main character go on a gratuitous stroll and describe everything they see! How on earth is that important?
My other big beef is with Hailey herself. For a supposedly smart lawyer, she's pretty dumb! She knows that she has an older brother and sister and has never once, NOT ONCE, tried to get in touch with them, despite not having a beef with either of them that she's aware of? Despite other events in the book explaining why the older siblings may have kept their distance, there is nothing to excuse Hailey's failure to reach out and connect. It made her come across as very self-absorbed. Then we have her doing the various dumb things that female protagonists in these books tend to do. For example, travelling to see her sister's doctor despite being a lawyer and knowing about doctor patient privilege, and then being shocked when he won't tell her anything. Lol. Really???
But like I say, it's a very cruisey read, and it's not boring. In about a week's time I likely will have forgotten everything about it!
Hailey Sutter is a lawyer who receives the titular note, and it immediately conjures up memories of her mother's death when she was 7, which she barely remembers. When her latest case brings her close to her hometown, she decides to visit there and dig into the past. This is when she learns her older brother and sister, who she has never (!) spoken to since then, both disappeared on the same day. She also begins to suspect her father has been lying to her for twenty odd years.
While the final revelation took me mildly by surprise, everything else in this light suspense tale was comfortably predictable. Doesn't mean it's a bad read, but there's not really much within its pages to make you sit up and take notice, either. It contained one of my personal bugbears, which is too much excessive description. Don't have your main character go on a gratuitous stroll and describe everything they see! How on earth is that important?
My other big beef is with Hailey herself. For a supposedly smart lawyer, she's pretty dumb! She knows that she has an older brother and sister and has never once, NOT ONCE, tried to get in touch with them, despite not having a beef with either of them that she's aware of? Despite other events in the book explaining why the older siblings may have kept their distance, there is nothing to excuse Hailey's failure to reach out and connect. It made her come across as very self-absorbed. Then we have her doing the various dumb things that female protagonists in these books tend to do. For example, travelling to see her sister's doctor despite being a lawyer and knowing about doctor patient privilege, and then being shocked when he won't tell her anything. Lol. Really???
But like I say, it's a very cruisey read, and it's not boring. In about a week's time I likely will have forgotten everything about it!
November 8, 2019
It took forever for me to read this. Wasn’t something that caught me and made me wanna keep turning. I kept waiting for something to happen but it wasn’t until the very end that it became something I didn’t wanna put down. But at the same time, I’m he ending wasn’t all that either
July 31, 2019
A disappointment - after reading several of Caldwell's other books and loving them, this one fell flat. It could have done with better editing (a lot of typos, mistakes in continuity, that sort of thing) and the story was weak at best. I was bummed.
July 20, 2011
plot had a lot of potential, so I kept reading, but was supremely disappointed by the ending. I feel like I could have taken this story down a few different twists and turns, but nothing really exciting or interesting happened. just completely BLAH. Characters were weak too. Boooooo
April 16, 2010
This was so predictable, had it figured out from the beginning.
December 19, 2011
Love, love Laura's Characters!
August 7, 2018
Love Laura Caldwell. After her Red Hot series, I keep looking for more, they always make good spring break reading. This one was no different. Lawyer, mystery, with the added bonus of being on my hometown turf of southwest Michigan. Enjoyed the mystery and wonder of where the story was gong. Did not like the finally or the solution of the book, but didn't diminish the enjoyment of the pure fluff.
January 2, 2019
Good read
This kept me guessing which is always a plus. Ambitious young attorney works in a high power firm but finds that events from her childhood are becoming increasingly distracting, but her memories are hazy. Things do get a bit unrealistic as the story unfolds! But overall a good read, though probably easily forgotten.
This kept me guessing which is always a plus. Ambitious young attorney works in a high power firm but finds that events from her childhood are becoming increasingly distracting, but her memories are hazy. Things do get a bit unrealistic as the story unfolds! But overall a good read, though probably easily forgotten.
June 4, 2017
The plot was good and had a lot of potential but kind of fizzled out towards the end. Still a great story though.
July 29, 2018
very readable! (& the last sentence brought tears to my eyes)
June 26, 2019
Not great but not bad either... meh!
November 16, 2024
Twist was obvious from the middle but it was an alright read
December 29, 2024
could not put it down!
I loved this book so much! I started it and read it straight through…I just could not put it down!
I loved this book so much! I started it and read it straight through…I just could not put it down!
October 14, 2014
"There is no statute of limitations on murder. Look Closely." That's all the anonymous letter said.
spoiler below.
And that is how this story starts. But it's a lie. Death is not always murder. But there was a death. And Hailey Sutter does not remember how her mother died when she was seven years old.
And she is being manipulated by people in her life. As she was when she was seven, by her family who did not want her to remember. But the manipulator is not part of her family.
I really like how the outcome explains why Hailey was manipulated.
Why do we do the things we do?
Because we want something and it is not coming as fast as we would wish? -That would be the policeman who investigated the death.
Because we want to protect someone with a lie that will harm as much as it protects? -That would be the family.
Because we hurt and we want everyone to hurt? -That would be the note writer.
Now, the note writer- I have not 'spoiled' that part. And the reasons for the note are much more complicated that just spreading bitterness.
Read the book.
---Warning--- Stay with it - it does start slow and you will be tempted to lay it down. It did not take me 21 months and 14 days to read 378 pages-- Well, it did. But it was gathering dust for all but a couple of days of that time. Once you get past the draggy part, you will want to stay up reading until 4 a.m. even though you need to get up at six and get ready for work.
spoiler below.
And that is how this story starts. But it's a lie. Death is not always murder. But there was a death. And Hailey Sutter does not remember how her mother died when she was seven years old.
And she is being manipulated by people in her life. As she was when she was seven, by her family who did not want her to remember. But the manipulator is not part of her family.
I really like how the outcome explains why Hailey was manipulated.
Why do we do the things we do?
Because we want something and it is not coming as fast as we would wish? -That would be the policeman who investigated the death.
Because we want to protect someone with a lie that will harm as much as it protects? -That would be the family.
Because we hurt and we want everyone to hurt? -That would be the note writer.
Now, the note writer- I have not 'spoiled' that part. And the reasons for the note are much more complicated that just spreading bitterness.
Read the book.
---Warning--- Stay with it - it does start slow and you will be tempted to lay it down. It did not take me 21 months and 14 days to read 378 pages-- Well, it did. But it was gathering dust for all but a couple of days of that time. Once you get past the draggy part, you will want to stay up reading until 4 a.m. even though you need to get up at six and get ready for work.
March 30, 2015
After Hailey, a NYC attorney receives a note saying “There is no statue of limitations on murder. Look closely.” She begins to investigate her mother’s death. Her mother died of a traumatic head injury when Hailey was seven, it was ruled accidental. Hailey was then raised by her father. Her search takes her to her hometown on the shores of Lake Michigan, hooks her up with spouses of her brother and sister, who disappeared shortly after her mother’s death (and who she hadn’t talked to/seen in over 20 years). While doing this, she is trying to deal with a case in Chicago and making partner in her NY law firm. The book was OK, moved along pretty well and had some suspense for a while, but well before the ending it was clear that Hailey had some role in the death, and then yes, she did. It turns out she had had forgotten everything about the event until the note prompted her to look into it. I don’t really care for the forgotten memory story line and so ended up not liking this book at the end as much as I did at the beginning.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 14, 2011
Manhattan attorney Hailey Sutter is headed to Chicago to represent the McKnight Corporation, whose Internet company has been accused of Web technology theft, when she receives a note saying, "There is no statute of limitations on murder. Look closely." The ominous statement catapults Hailey back to Woodland Dunes (a small seaside town on Lake Michigan), where her mother died from a head injury when Hailey was seven. Shortly afterward, her older brother and sister disappeared, and she was left in the care of her father, who refuses to discuss the incident. Between the McKnight arbitrations, Hailey flies from Manhattan to Chicago to Portland in search of her estranged siblings and answers that she hopes will shed some light on her mother's mysterious death. The smooth first-person narrative builds suspense and paints a fine picture of time and place. Unfortunately, the book loses steam in the final chapter, and the ending falls as flat as a day-old soufflé.
Decent read.
Decent read.
May 6, 2012
Book Review @ ai-books
Look Closely was a good mystery novel. I’m glad that the author decided to focus on the mystery itself rather than touching a bit on the mystery and focus on romance. Although the mystery was a bit predictable, I find that this book was an absolute page turner. I find myself wanting to know on what and how Hailey is going to find out what happen to her mother. Overall, it is a good chicklit-mystery! I would have given this book a five star if it is not for the flat ending.
Look Closely was a good mystery novel. I’m glad that the author decided to focus on the mystery itself rather than touching a bit on the mystery and focus on romance. Although the mystery was a bit predictable, I find that this book was an absolute page turner. I find myself wanting to know on what and how Hailey is going to find out what happen to her mother. Overall, it is a good chicklit-mystery! I would have given this book a five star if it is not for the flat ending.
April 17, 2008
This is a clever thriller by a Chicago author who started off writing "chick lit" and now writes mysteries. The characters keep the story compelling and there are plenty of plot twists. The main character is trying to figure out who killed her mother, who died when she was only 7 years old. Along the way she suspects her father, her siblings, and the man her mother was having an affair with. I really didn't guess the killer's identity until the very end. Exremely readable and good fun.
February 5, 2013
I read this book nearly straight through, so it definitely kept my attention. The ending was not a complete surprise...there were really only a couple of possibilities, and the juggling of the timing of events in the story was a bit unwieldy. Still, she gave a good feel for the characters and the places in the stories. I was intrigued by her way of telling the story more than the actual events themselves. Great as a beach book or a book to take on a trip.
November 14, 2013
A lot of characters making stupid decisions for bad reasons and sticking with them for twenty years, making their families suffer for nothing…and all the big reveals were no mystery at all and perfectly clear for the entire story. Lame, false drama the author should have done more to make believable. And she keeps talking about things being olive…olive skin, olive clothes…it comes up about four times. Way to be imaginative.
February 25, 2009
I found this book very hard to put down as I was always wanting to know more more more! Laura Caldwell is an amazing writer who can write a mystery novel like no other. I highly recommend for anyone who loves a good mystery.
December 1, 2012
The romance was a little clunky and unnecessary and it felt like it sped up toward the conclusion. I don't think I was very surprised about the who-done-it. I had already started to put two and two together.
January 17, 2008
I was disappointed in this book. The story was dark and predictable. Definitely not the best of her books.
February 3, 2008
It seems that most of the other people that have read this book think that the ending was predictable but I did not expect it. The only complaint that I have is that I do not like lawyer books.
February 8, 2008
So-so. Predictable easy murder/mystery.
Read it in one day on the train.
Read it in one day on the train.
May 20, 2009
The end of this book will blow your mind.
March 14, 2008
REALLY liked this. HAD to finish....started, read until far TOO late at night, & brought to work to finish at lunch. Yes, that good. Ending...was too fast for me but overall VERY, VERY good!
August 22, 2008
Not bad for a suspense-mystery, but I've read better.
Read
August 23, 20088/08 saw on Nicole's g/r w/l
March 19, 2009
An enjoyable read. Fast paced, credible and well written. It had me guessing until the end. Would definitely read the author's other books.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews