Kathleen Valenti

This one was hard for me to review since I really hate saying negative things about books and authors. It wasn’t that this book was horrible, it was fine, and had some good strengths. But I just couldn’t overlook some things.

The good first! I really liked the premise of the story. People at drug companies doing bad things are not hard to accept since we’ve all seen and read reports about this. And I love when a big, bad company gets taken down by the little guys. John Grisham, anyone?!?

And the science was well written. You could look at it deeper if you understand it or enjoy that type of writing or you could just read it and get on with the rest of the story.

As for the things that I couldn’t overlook it came down to the tech, an intelligent woman not acting it (or not being written as such to somehow progress the story), and blindly trusting a guy you just met over someone you’ve known for years and years.

When it comes to the tech, I had to look at the release date of the book to make sure it wasn’t published in 1997 instead of 2017. Some of the examples; an old id badge that still works (it would have been deactivated, especially in this sort of company), people in high ranking positions not having their computer password protected, files that are restricted just being there for any employee to look at. Either this company is still using protocols from the early 1990’s or something went wrong in the editing process. I could overlook one thing, but all of these, plus more, was just too much.

As for Maggie being an intelligent woman, which I believe she was meant to be, she was constantly contradicting herself. And although in many cozies the main character can be scattered, how else can you read a 250 page book if the sleuth didn’t constantly have questions and change her thoughts, I felt like this was meant to be more of a suspense then cozy, especially with the swearing and graphic crime scenes. I think if it was more of a cozy or more of a suspense, instead of something in between, I would have enjoyed it.

And finally, the whole trust factor between a guy she just met and a guy she’s known for years and has done nothing but be by her side… I just can’t. I realize the reason why, but to me that was sloppy storytelling.

With so many books and series out there, I don’t think I’ll be continuing the Maggie O’Malley Mysteries.… (plus d'informations)

If you enjoy a book that seems to have danger around every corner, with non-stop action, you sure don’t want to miss this one.
I have read the first book in this series, and love it, and now the third which is equally good, and am so glad that I chose to do so, they are very entertaining and page turning books, ones that you want to get to the end and know the answers, but at the same time you don’t want them to end.
Maggie is a tough cookie, but with all that is going on, including her upcoming wedding, will she make it to the end. I love that we add a new character to the family, along with Vanilla, and her beloved Lark, that made her really stand out.
Will justice prevail, innocents get hurt, people die, why? You won’t be disappointed picking this one up!

I received this book through Great Escapes Book Tours and the Publisher Henery Press, and was not required to give a positive review.… (plus d'informations)

Maggie O'Malley is an ex-pharmaceutical researcher who lost her job when the company she worked for imploded with murder and scandal. Now she's been given a new opportunity: she's working as a pharmacy technician while studying to obtain her pharmacist license. She's also knee-deep in wedding preparations to her best friend Constantine - mostly because her aunt Fiona and his aunt Polly are pushing them. While she thinks she can handle the pressure - eventually - she's determined to weather it through.

Unfortunately, all that is coming to an end when she finds the body of a customer in one of the aisles at the store where she works. This is bad in itself, but not so soon after she comes across two more people - a mother and daughter who are still alive, thank Heaven - and at first both she and her boss, Lev Petrosian, wonder if it wasn't a mistake in the medications. Then another pharmacy customer is discovered dead in her home, and suddenly the stakes have been raised higher still.

This is eventually ruled out by the police who discover another reason - poison - and Maggie is determined to discover how the customers were poisoned and why. She's hampered by the fact that a local reporter, Russ Brock, has been contacting her trying to get a story, and Maggie begins to wonder if Russ knows more than he's saying. She's also being stalked by Miles Montgomery, a man she sent to prison and is now out to get revenge.

But when Maggie starts digging for the truth and the reason for the poisonings, she finds out that there's something more sinister going on, and she's more than disturbed to discover it. When she resolves to do something about it, she doesn't realize how close she's gotten, or if she'll live long enough to get married anyway...

This is the third book in the series, begun with Protocol, and I have to say that Ms. Valenti has lost none of the fervor that made the first two books so good. Maggie is changing; going from just surviving life to being stronger. She's no wilted rose, stumbling into situations and then trying to figure out how to get back out without discovery. She's logical, strong, and can think on her feet. In other words, the type of protagonist I love to read about. Like Maggie, I'm more driven by logic than emotion, but unlike her, I have the great pleasure of not finding myself in life-threatening situations (Well, we can't have everything, can we?)

She begins thinking a man has died from a heart attack in one of the pharmacy aisles, but when two more people fall ill, she's sure something is wrong, even if no one pays much attention to her...and she's determined to figure out the truth. But Maggie's personal life is getting in the way: she's still having headaches, Constantine is pushing her to see a physician, she's being stalked and harassed, she has wedding plans that need attention, etc.

But it's the details that make up the gist of the story. While I won't go into the majority of them here, be aware that when you begin with a young girl who's a shoplifter, Maggie comes to her rescue. That is the beginning of a chain of events which keep you riveted to the story as you try to discover the truth along with Maggie.

It is a sad tale, indeed, and one, unfortunately, that not only is dark but all too realistic; once the circle begins it's easy to allow it to continue. The author has not only a way with words, but is able to weave this sadness along with hope and creates a narrative that is taut with suspense, intrigue, and excitement; building to a climax that is indeed worthy and almost chilling.

When the ending comes and the murderer is revealed, it is at once both believable and tragic; more than satisfactory, and I wish I could say more but in doing so I am afraid I would be giving away too much, and I don't wish to do that. All in all, I look forward to the next in the series. Highly recommended.… (plus d'informations)

Maggie O'Malley is an ex-pharmaceutical researcher who was basically forced out of her job after exposing a company scandal. She's now working for a high-end lingerie company as a sales clerk - that is, until she confronts the owner with a wrong and loses her job.

Things go from bad to worse when she receives a call from her boyfriend Constantine telling her that his aunt Polly has had a bad sleepwalking incident and found her husband murdered in the kitchen of their home. While Maggie doesn't want to get involved - she's had enough of murder, thank you very much - she really has nothing to prevent her from going to Polly and seeing if she can help.

But Maggie's 'help' only puts Polly in more danger and higher on the suspect list of a cop who already hates Polly for a perceived wrong done long ago. Now she has to find out who really killed Polly's husband because if she doesn't, Polly is going to be on the wrong side of a jail cell for a really long time...

Maggie O'Malley is back again trying to put some order in her life and figure things out. Unfortunately, before any of that can happen, she finds herself smack dab in the center of another murder. And this one, unfortunately, hits closer to home when it's her boyfriend Constantine's aunt. It's not long before Maggie's curiosity gets the better of her and she knows there's more to the death than what appears. Maggie's medical knowledge leads her to questioning why Polly has been sleepwalking, and the past of Polly's late husband.

Soon Maggie discovers that Polly's husband Howard had a previous life before Polly...a previous life with a different name. Once Maggie and Constantine start to dig into Howard's past, Maggie starts learning that Howard left his past behind for very unsavory reasons. And those reasons might be what got him killed. But proving it is something entirely different, especially when the detective in charge of the investigation hates Polly, and by extension, Maggie; and is determined to see Polly convicted of Howard's death.

The one light in the tunnel is that Maggie's ex-boyfriend Austin is also on the case and seems (sort of) willing to listen to her. But it's almost too late when Maggie discovers that what she knows might get her killed, too, if she doesn't get someone to believe her.

This is the second book in the series and just as suspenseful as the first. Maggie is an intelligent, independent woman who wants to do things her own way, and sometimes she doesn't realize that she just might need help to survive. But she never backs down, and through her own perseverance manages to find all the pieces she needs to complete the puzzle before it's too late.

I liked this fact most of all - that she wasn't a weak-willed woman who just 'happens' upon things but actively looks for answers; and while she at times can be a little too independent and put herself in danger, she never does so with others.

The plot was extremely well done, the story filled with subplots that while at first seemed to be separate from the death pulled together in a nicely woven tale of murder, fraud and revenge that left surprises right until the end. Ms. Valenti is a skilled writer who is able to keep her readers involved from the first right up until the end.

When the ending came and the murderer was revealed, it all came together nicely and made for an engrossing mystery that is well worth reading. There was plenty of suspense and intrigue, and even a revelation that shows how far some people will go to achieve their ends. Quite nicely done. I look forward to the next in the series. Highly recommended.… (plus d'informations)