Triple Threat series

Book Review: “Eyes of Justice”

Thomas Nelson publishers was kind enough to provide me with a complimentary copy of the newest installment in Lis Wiehl’s “Triple Threat Series”–Eyes of Justice. I’ve been looking forward to reading this book since last spring, when the third book in the series came out. By now, I’ve become very invested in the professional and personal lives of reporter Cassidy, FBI agent Nicole, and federal prosecutor Allison. You can imagine my shock, then, when one of the Triple Threat Club had been murdered by chapter three!

When Nicole and Allison find their friend Cassidy murdered in her own condo, they’re determined to get justice for her. Their first thought is to pin the blame on Cassidy’s abusive ex-boyfriend, cop Rick McEwan. But Cassidy had angered a lot of criminals in the course of her reporting…could one of them have sought revenge? But when the killer starts targeting the rest of the Triple Threat Club, it becomes clear that the motive was bigger than Cassidy’s past relationship or reporting. Can PI Ophelia help Allison and Nicole before it’s too late? Or will the entire Triple Threat Club fall victim to a crazed killer?

I’m curious to see if this series will continue. Obviously, the original Triple Threat Club no longer exists. The author, however, did leave it open for a new Triple Threat Club to form, with a new member, which would allow for the series to continue on. I guess only time will tell, but I’m hopeful, because I really don’t want to say goodbye to Nicole and Allison yet. Like the earlier books in the series, I lovved this one, and I’m looking forward to (hopefully) reading more!

Quote of the Day

I’ve been enjoying the “Triple Threat” series by Lis Wiehl. I’ve especially been able to relate to it lately. When I was reading the second book, just after I learned I was pregnant, one of the main characters had a miscarriage. Even though I know it doesn’t work that way, part of me thought to myself as I read, “I wonder if it’s ‘bad luck’ to read about someone having a miscarriage when I just learned that I’m pregnant.” No, I don’t really believe in luck, but the mind works in weird ways.

Anyway, after I found out that our baby had been lost, I realized I could relate to the series even more, especially this quote from the third book, and especially the part about the imaginary club (because I’ve learned only through this experience how true it is)–it really captured my feelings on this whole thing:

“A few weeks ago, Allison had miscarried, joining the imaginary club of Mothers Without Children. Only there was no color-coded ribbon to wear, no walkathon or T-shirt. Nobody talked about it. It was the kind of secret that women whispered to each other–if they said anything at all.” Lis Wiehl’s Heart of Ice

Book Review–“Heart of Ice”

Thomas Nelson was kind enough to provide me with a copy of the newest installment in Lis Wiehl’s “Triple Threat” series, Heart of Ice, to read and review. I have been a big fan of this series since I read the first novel two years ago, and this book was the best one yet, the kind of book that you keep reading until the middle of the night, just to find out how it’s going to end!

As far as mystery novels go, this one was a little different, because the reader knows who the villain is right from the start. (She leaves a trail of death and destruction in her wake, leaving Portland wondering at what seem to be random and unrelated crimes.) The triple threat club, on the other hand, doesn’t have a clue, and they’ve unwittingly let the killer get close to them, and to their families.

Elizabeth Avery seems like someone you’d want to get to know–she has a glamorous, albeit mysterious, past, she’s beautiful, she’s fun, and she seems to be exactly what you want her to be. But she’s hiding the fact that she’s really Sissy Hewsom, a woman who won’t let anything get between her and what she wants. A cold-blooded killer at age 13, she’s managed to cover-up her past, but hasn’t changed a bit.

Identity theft and actual theft are just a game to her–and she’s so cold-hearted, she doesn’t even hesitate at the thought of killing an innocent child. She manages to trap unsuspecting people in her web, using them to commit crimes she doesn’t want to dirty her hands with, including arson, several murders, and even setting one man up to “commit suicide” to further hide evidence.

How will the triple threat club ever realize the truth about Elizabeth? Will Cassidy discover it trying to find out the motive behind the murder of her television station intern? Will Allison learn the truth when talking to her deadbeat sister who has come to live with her? Or will Nicole be able to step back from her personal problems long enough to put two and two together, before someone very close to her becomes Elizabeth’s next victim? Who will discover that the beautiful girl-next-door is really a vicious killer with a heart of ice?

Book Review–Hand of Fate

I recently finished Hand of Fate, (provided to me by Thomas Nelson publishers) the second novel in the “Triple Threat” series by Lis Wiehl. I’ve had the book for almost a year, but I wanted to wait until closer to the third book’s (Heart of Ice) publication–waiting a year between books one and two was awful, and I didn’t want to make that mistake again!

I really like this series. The first book, Face of Betrayal, was very exciting and suspenseful. I enjoyed being introduced to and getting to know the main characters in that book, and I was really looking forward to learning more of their back stories in future books. Because I enjoyed the first book so much, I had high hopes for Hand of Fate. I wasn’t disappointed!

The second book in the series focuses on the murder of radio personality Jim Fate, who also appeared in Face of Betrayal. As the “triple threat club”–FBI agent Nic Hedges, federal prosecutor Allison Pierce, and TV reporter Cassidy Shaw–begins to investigate Fate’s untimely death, they come across many people who had motive and opportunity for murder. But who really did it?

The reason I like this series so much is because I don’t know “whodunit” by the third chapter. Actually, I had no idea who the murderer was until he (or she) was actually revealed. I don’t find these to be typical suspense novels, because most are so very predictable. Instead, these books feel more like reading an episode of 24.

My only complaint about this book is that, also like 24, a whole lot of bad stuff seems to happen to all of the main characters in a very short amount of time. You have to wonder if three friends can all really go through that much trouble together. That seemed a bit far-fetched to me, but those were really side stories; the main story I found to be excellently written, with just enough suspense to keep me reading all night.

Book Review: “Face of Betrayal”

I knew within the first five pages that I was going to love Face of Betrayal by Lis Wiehl.  The characters are likable and easy to relate to, and suspense was built up right from the start.

Aside from the main plot–where did Katie Converse disappear to shortly before Christmas?–there were several sub-plots, which I’m guessing will be explored further in the next book.  A Federal Prosecutor who is dealing with pregnancy following infertility, as well as death threats; a reporter hoping to get her “big break,” and tangled in an abusive relationship; and an FBI agent who deals with the challenges of being a single mother, and of being a minority in law enforcement.  Some of these sub-plots were resolved, others were barely explored, so there is a good balance of both satisfaction, and the desire to know what happens next.

The main story about the disappearance of a young Senate page kept me wondering right up the end. Even as some of my questions began to be answered, more questions popped up, and I was continually guessing as to what happened, and re-evaluating the conclusions I thought I had come to, as I discovered that I was, on many occasions, quite wrong.

Excellent political mystery–I thoroughly enjoyed it, and can’t wait for Hand of Fate to be published.