Very exciting book, kind of a cross between a thriller/cozy mystery/police procedural. The main character is a tough but compassionate newspaper reporter who handles the police beat with skill. Britt Montero is a part Cuban, native Miamian, who only ever wanted to be a journalist despite her mother's attempts to get her to join her in the fashion world. Britt is very likeable, developing relationships with various cops (one in particular, a female cop working the midnight shift), other news people (photographer Lottie), and having a negative relationship with editor Gretchen. The secondary characters are enjoyable and add depth to the story. In this book, Britt follows the death of a famous football player, caught up in a situation beyond his control. I was completely surprised by the murderer, but it made sense. Britt's investigation was natural, of course, as a journalist with contacts in all the right places to discover the answers. I look forward to many more stories in this series. I think it's going to be a good one, if this first book is any indication.Some fun descriptions in this book, for instance, "She [Lottie] looked great, her red hair ruly for a change, and swept up."From a cop who had just returned from entering a riot zone, "I was shot in Vietnam, he whispered, "but I never saw anything like this." He shook the tears out of his eyes, gulped, and looked away. "We needed air support," he said shakily.
This is the first book in the ‘Britt Montero’ mysteries. Britt is the heroine, who is an extremely dedicated reporter covering the police beat for her Miami newspaper. She investigates a story about a black football star. Unfortunately, he died after a police car chase. Britt chases all the clues looking for facts to get to the truth of his death, which appears not to align with the police reports. The plot and the characters are an intriguing mixture. Her tenacity to find the truth behind the stories and share them with the world gives the reader a greater sense of admiration for the job she does.
What do You think about Contents Under Pressure (1999)?
This book was a gift to me from someone who knows I like the Kinsey Milhone ABC series. I did completely enjoy the main character, Britt Montero, and her spunk and attitude did remind me of Kinsey. I thought the "climax" was about 80 pages before the actual end of the book. It dragged a bit for me after that, but there was also a lot of interesting stuff that happened in those pages too. So, I guess it was a just a long wrap up. I was disappointed with some bad language (which didn't start until I was like on page 83 or something). Policemen and "bad guys" use bad language sometimes. That's always a bummer. I will definitely read another in this series and hope it doesn't get worse.
—Beth Pearson
First in the Britt Montoya mysteries. As a journalist covering the police beat for her Miami newspaper, Britt has a different perspective than either a policeman or a private investigator. Author Edna Buchanan has "been there and one that" and her expertise shines through. The story is beginning to show a bit of wear with age (published originally in 1992) technologically which does impact somewhat on the story but doesn't really detract from it. Though this is the first, I suspect it is not necessary to read these stories in absolute order.
—Pr Latta
