Blood orchid (original 2002; edition 2002)

maybe this should be a short story. it was enjoyable but padded with sex and so many murders. like another reviewer i knew who the bad guy was. there wasn't anyone else.
the reader's were good ( )

In Blood Orchid, police chief Holly Barker is at the house of retired real estate developer Ed Shine's house when a gunman shoots up the place. Meanwhile, Shine purchases the former mafia owned estate Palmetto Gardens, which he is renaming Blood Orchid. Holly finds her house being bugged as she undertakes this investigation. The investigation takes her to Miami and has mafia ties all over it.

Although I found the novel to be entertaining and an easy read, I also found it to be a little predictable. It became obvious very early on that real estate developer Ed Shine was involved in whatever was going on because Holly kept saying over and over again that he was such a nice guy and could not be involved. Some more subtle misdirection would have gone a long way in making the mystery aspect of this story stronger. The other thing that rubbed me the wrong way was that Holly was all into her new love interest despite the fact that her ex had just died. It made her less sympathetic and seemed forced. When the big reveal came at the end, it was hardly a shocker. Still, this novel was entertaining and worth reading.
Carl Alves - author of Two For Eternity ( )

The third in the Holly Barker series is an excellent mystery. Well worth reading. ( )

Palmetto Gardens has been purchased by a man that Holly likes very much; Ed Shine. While other land developers have been murdered, the shooter misses Ed (while Holly and Ham are visiting him). Meanwhile Harry has sent an undercover FBI agent to Orchid Beach. He will only tell Holly that the man is undercover. His mistake in not telling Holly the truth and all of the truth will wind up biting him in the end.

This wasn't as well written as the first two Holly Barker books and I could have done without the sex scenes. Unlike the other two books, I knew who was involved and what was going on from the start. Nothing took me by surprise in the end. That said, it was still a good read. ( )

HB, ex-library