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Title: Do You Want to Know a Secret? by Mary Jane Clark ISBN: 0-312-96924-4 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: July, 1999 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.07
Rating: 4
Summary: ...
Comment: Do You Want To Know a Secret is a well-written book that entertained me throughout the whole novel. It was about a few newscasters who all had secrets that could ruin their reputations. However, their secrets get out. Unfortunately, they don't know how or who told. There are characters in this book who aren't the people that everyone thought they all knew. This book has many twists and turns that keeps you on the edge. I enjoyed this book very much. If you are looking for an exciting and wonderful book then read this.
Rating: 3
Summary: Good Venue, Satisfying Plot, But Lots of Clutter
Comment: By now y'all know Mary Higgins Clark is the ex-mother-in-law of our author here, Mary Jane Clark. Many speak to the similarities of style -- a dashing (and gorgeous wholesome single mom, young widow, and accomplished professional) leading lady who overcomes all odds; enough violence and suspense to entertain and befuddle; and a nice clean ending we can all feel good about. Well hopefully that could be said about many a good book. The differences I see are more interesting. First the venue -- set mostly in the surrounds of a major news network, midst the tribulations of the early morning shows and anchor broadcasts at night, we certainly get (ala the movie "Network News") plenty of up close looks at the pressured lives on the news set. In the best tradition of write about what you know about, MJ speaks from personal experience as a producer and writer for CBS News. Indeed, Dan Rather gets a cameo mention in the story, as he does in the acknowledgments up front for his encouragement to the author. I just hope the romances reported among many co-workers aren't quite that prevalent, although as we know, propinquity is a powerful force (said Zelda to Dobie...).
Second, we get a pretty good story line. The first shocker is the apparent suicide of a famous anchor, followed thereafter (but paced well) by the murders of his doctor and his secretary. Even the most dense of us realize the connections, though the trained newshounds seemed to miss it. A big surprise at the end serves up a murderer I dare say few suspected more than a page or two before the unveiling, so high marks for suspense.
Third, and of course not as welcome, we do get an awful lot of characters, relationships, AIDS pleas, disease causes, snippets of events, changes in scenery, etc.; to me, all that clutter gets a little tiresome. Certain loose ends never do get wrapped up, and I'm not even sure that a major subplot, the campaign machinations of a presidential candidate, really advanced the basic story line that well. I also personally disliked chopping the book up into 141 (!) chapters - do the math, they span 302 pages, so that's like two pages each. And the last 35 span only 25 pages, so we're down to barely more than the "sound bites" so lovingly quoted throughout.
So - for her first outing (of four to date), not bad. Clean things up, simplify a little, give us a little longer reading stretch with out raising and lowering the curtain a hundred times, and we might have something here. I'll at least move on to number 2 - "Do you promise not to tell?". And you?
Rating: 2
Summary: Tries hard but can't go full steam ahead
Comment: I have a few positive statements regarding this novel. The book is an easy read over a weekend or while waiting at airports. It will not scholastically exhaust you nor keep you awake at night pondering some esoteric message. Unfortunately it will not excite, enthuse, or tantalize you. It's plot was trite, its "twists" predictable, and its characters one dimensional. The story line is detracted by the author's seeming adolescent obsession with physical appearance ("with looks that got her chosen college homecoming queen"). There are too many other great mysteries to read. Don't waste your time here.
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Title: Let Me Whisper In Your Ear by Mary Jane Clark ISBN: 0312977433 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: July, 2001 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Close to You by Mary Jane Clark ISBN: 0312981961 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: August, 2002 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Nobody Knows: Mary Jane Clark by Mary Jane Clark ISBN: 0312288662 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: August, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Nowhere to Run by Mary Jane Clark, Mary Clark ISBN: 0312288778 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: August, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: The Second Time Around : A Novel by Mary Higgins Clark ISBN: 0743206061 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Pub. Date: 15 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $26.00 |
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