Allison Brennan
Author of Speak No Evil
About the Author
Allison Brennan was born in 1969 in California. She is an American bestselling writer of romantic thriller novels. Her writing includes the Lucy Kincaid series, the F. B. I. Trilogy and the Predator Series. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, Mystery Writers of America, and International show more Thiller Writers. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Works by Allison Brennan
No title 1 copy
Allison Brennan, Prison Break Series 3 pack: #1 Killing Fear, #2 Tempting Evil, #3 Playing Dead (2008) 1 copy
Her Lucky Day (short story) 1 copy
Body Bags and Toe Tags (2007 RWA Session/Panel) — Presenter — 1 copy
No Plotters Allowed 1 copy
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1969-09-29
- Gender
- female
- Education
- University of Santa Cruz
- Occupations
- political campaigns
bartender
country club hostess
administrative assistant
legislative consultant
mother (show all 8)
writer
public policy career with California State Legislature - Organizations
- Romance Writers of America
International Thriller Writers
Mystery Writers of America
Novelists, Inc.
Horror Writers Association - Agent
- Kimberly Whalen (Trident Media Group)
Dan Conaway (Writer's House) - Short biography
- Allison Brennan (born September 29, 1969) is an American best-selling writer of romantic thriller novels. Her first book was published in 2005.
Brennan was born in San Carlos, California. In 1987, she graduated from Menlo School in Atherton, California, and attended college at UC Santa Cruz from 1987 to 1989, working as a legislative consultant in the California State Legislature from 1992 to 2005. In 1993, she married Dan Brennan, and they had five children. She currently resides in Elk Grove, California.
As of 2012, Brennan has published numerous novels, five of which are found in over 1000 libraries and have been translated into Japanese, Norwegian, German, Spanish, French and Italian. Most of her books have been New York Times best-sellers. - Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Elk Grove, California, USA
- Places of residence
- San Carlos, California, USA
Chatsworth, California, USA
Sacramento, California, USA
Elk Grove, California, USA - Associated Place (for map)
- California, USA
Members
Reviews
As I mentioned in my review of the first novel, Max can be annoying. She's very rigid in her moral code - to the point where she's willing to destroy everything for the truth and while I agree, truth is good - bulldozing through everyone and everything to get it is tiring. But I do love her fierceness in wanting to do what's right, not what's easy. She is vicious in her determination to uncover wrongdoing and it's fascinating to read. The mystery in Compulsion was intense and had a lot of show more twists I didn't see coming. I liked that we saw more of the male characters - Nick and David in particular. I liked seeing them working together and forming the whole love hate relationship with Marco. I also enjoyed seeing a more vulnerable side to Max - it made her more human. I can't wait to read more of the series. show less
Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds had a lot of potential, and I really enjoyed the setting as it made me want to hop on a plane and head somewhere warm and tropical, but honestly, what ruined this book for me was the heroine. She was insufferable. For a book that was supposed to empower women, she had probably the worst personality for this as all she did was compare herself to other women and constantly critique and criticize and put them all down. And I mean EVERYONE. And the number of times show more she refers to herself by name, just give it a rest already.
So, let's start with Miss Mia Crawford. From the first page we meet this woman, I couldn't stand her. We see her on a ferry heading to tropical paradise and all we hear are her criticisms with regards to other women. I almost DNF this book within the first two chapters because of her attitude, and honestly, I should have. And unfortunately, she didn't grow on me like other characters have because she didn't actually develop and change throughout the book. When the big 'reveal' happened, and only anyone blind couldn't see that one coming, she acted like a petulant child, had a big fit, and went running. I would have dumped her sorry ass in the sea at that point.
What did keep me reading were the other characters as I found them so much more likable than Mia. They were such an eclectic group with such interesting backgrounds, I really wished the author had focused more on their stories.
This author is quite well know for her mysteries and I really love her Costa & Quinn mystery series, so it's no surprise the actual mystery was actually intriguing and was the most interesting part of this book. The mystery did have its twists and turns and I did rather enjoy it which is what kept me going. But, I just couldn't get past Mia and her attitude, something that threw me out of the story quite a bit. It's unfortunate as the other guests do a lot of shady things and the tension was quite high when it came to the mystery elements, so it's too bad Mia's obnoxious attitude destroyed all of that for me. And don't even get me started on the 'romance'. I just can't go there. Ugh!
Verdict
Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds had a lot of potential, but the main character and her obnoxious attitude was such a huge flaw that it ruined a lot of the story for me. I did think the mystery was intriguing and I absolutely loved the setting as it reminded me of my own beach trips, but Mia's snobbishness and her way of making everything about her destroyed so much of the story. Luckily, I have read enough of this author's work to know how good her thrillers can be, so I think I will stick with those in the future. show less
So, let's start with Miss Mia Crawford. From the first page we meet this woman, I couldn't stand her. We see her on a ferry heading to tropical paradise and all we hear are her criticisms with regards to other women. I almost DNF this book within the first two chapters because of her attitude, and honestly, I should have. And unfortunately, she didn't grow on me like other characters have because she didn't actually develop and change throughout the book. When the big 'reveal' happened, and only anyone blind couldn't see that one coming, she acted like a petulant child, had a big fit, and went running. I would have dumped her sorry ass in the sea at that point.
What did keep me reading were the other characters as I found them so much more likable than Mia. They were such an eclectic group with such interesting backgrounds, I really wished the author had focused more on their stories.
This author is quite well know for her mysteries and I really love her Costa & Quinn mystery series, so it's no surprise the actual mystery was actually intriguing and was the most interesting part of this book. The mystery did have its twists and turns and I did rather enjoy it which is what kept me going. But, I just couldn't get past Mia and her attitude, something that threw me out of the story quite a bit. It's unfortunate as the other guests do a lot of shady things and the tension was quite high when it came to the mystery elements, so it's too bad Mia's obnoxious attitude destroyed all of that for me. And don't even get me started on the 'romance'. I just can't go there. Ugh!
Verdict
Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds had a lot of potential, but the main character and her obnoxious attitude was such a huge flaw that it ruined a lot of the story for me. I did think the mystery was intriguing and I absolutely loved the setting as it reminded me of my own beach trips, but Mia's snobbishness and her way of making everything about her destroyed so much of the story. Luckily, I have read enough of this author's work to know how good her thrillers can be, so I think I will stick with those in the future. show less
Killing Fear by Allison Brennan
4.5 Stars
Synopsis:
Seven years ago, Theodore Lawrence Glenn was convicted of murdering four exotic dancers and swore revenge against those responsible for his imprisonment. Now he has escaped and Robin McKenna, the main prosecution witness, and Will Hooper, the detective who put Glenn away, are reunited and must get past their personal issues if they are to survive the machinations of this sadistic killer.
Review:
Wow! This book is incredibly gritty and show more realistic. The plot has several intertwined threads that come together to form a strong and cohesive whole. Some of the past events are told in flashback, which reinforces characterization and does not distract the reader from the progression of the present day storyline.
The author does not shy away from portraying both the personal and professional weaknesses of her characters. Robin and Will’s relationship, past and present, is intensely emotional and engrossing. She is a strong and independent heroine whose success is even more significant given the adversity she has faced while he is prototypical ladies’ man who has finally met his match.
The sociopathic Glenn is also a phenomenal character and one of the most diabolical villains I have ever encountered. Nevertheless, some of the secondary characters could have been better developed, as the lack of sufficient detail regarding their backgrounds makes it difficult to fully grasp the import of certain developments within the investigative subplot.
In sum, a fast-paced and exciting read with riveting twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat. Be warned, once you pick it up it will be very difficult to put it down again. show less
4.5 Stars
Synopsis:
Seven years ago, Theodore Lawrence Glenn was convicted of murdering four exotic dancers and swore revenge against those responsible for his imprisonment. Now he has escaped and Robin McKenna, the main prosecution witness, and Will Hooper, the detective who put Glenn away, are reunited and must get past their personal issues if they are to survive the machinations of this sadistic killer.
Review:
Wow! This book is incredibly gritty and show more realistic. The plot has several intertwined threads that come together to form a strong and cohesive whole. Some of the past events are told in flashback, which reinforces characterization and does not distract the reader from the progression of the present day storyline.
The author does not shy away from portraying both the personal and professional weaknesses of her characters. Robin and Will’s relationship, past and present, is intensely emotional and engrossing. She is a strong and independent heroine whose success is even more significant given the adversity she has faced while he is prototypical ladies’ man who has finally met his match.
The sociopathic Glenn is also a phenomenal character and one of the most diabolical villains I have ever encountered. Nevertheless, some of the secondary characters could have been better developed, as the lack of sufficient detail regarding their backgrounds makes it difficult to fully grasp the import of certain developments within the investigative subplot.
In sum, a fast-paced and exciting read with riveting twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat. Be warned, once you pick it up it will be very difficult to put it down again. show less
First in the Angelhart Investigations series is an intriguing crime thriller that was hard to put down.
Margo Angelhart is a private investigator working solo after a falling out with her family’s similar company when they disagreed about an issue with her father. She’s concentrating on two cases — one involving a possible cheating spouse and the other is helping a female victim of domestic violence escape her abusive husband. Even though they are estranged, Margo is forced to work with show more her family’s company when her infidelity case intersects with a corporate espionage investigation that her brother and sister are looking into.
This was fast paced and I really enjoyed the writing style and the family interaction. I liked the Angelhart family members and even Margo who is headstrong, stubborn, impetuous, and who doesn’t mind bending or breaking the rules. The disparate plots that wove together were interesting as were the family’s methods of tracking, tracking, and figuring things out. I’ll definitely want to check out future installments in this series as there were a lot of unresolved family problems that will need to be dealt with. Also look forward to more character development and I did like the setting of Phoenix, Arizona.
I was able to listen to the audiobook while also following along in the e-book ARC provided by the publisher. The narrator, Hillary Huber, did an excellent job of voicing all the characters though a male voice would have made it even better. The pacing was good and her performance definitely enhanced my appreciation of the book. show less
Margo Angelhart is a private investigator working solo after a falling out with her family’s similar company when they disagreed about an issue with her father. She’s concentrating on two cases — one involving a possible cheating spouse and the other is helping a female victim of domestic violence escape her abusive husband. Even though they are estranged, Margo is forced to work with show more her family’s company when her infidelity case intersects with a corporate espionage investigation that her brother and sister are looking into.
This was fast paced and I really enjoyed the writing style and the family interaction. I liked the Angelhart family members and even Margo who is headstrong, stubborn, impetuous, and who doesn’t mind bending or breaking the rules. The disparate plots that wove together were interesting as were the family’s methods of tracking, tracking, and figuring things out. I’ll definitely want to check out future installments in this series as there were a lot of unresolved family problems that will need to be dealt with. Also look forward to more character development and I did like the setting of Phoenix, Arizona.
I was able to listen to the audiobook while also following along in the e-book ARC provided by the publisher. The narrator, Hillary Huber, did an excellent job of voicing all the characters though a male voice would have made it even better. The pacing was good and her performance definitely enhanced my appreciation of the book. show less
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- Works
- 89
- Also by
- 9
- Members
- 12,754
- Popularity
- #1,837
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 487
- ISBNs
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- Favorited
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