I'm a big fan of LH's earlier romantic suspense novels, but her latest releases have failed to catch my interest. Kill and Tell is one of her oldies and, IMHO, a very good one.The story starts with Dexter Whitlaw, a Vietnam veteran, sending a "mysterious" package to his estranged wife. Unbeknown to him, she died a few weeks ago and it's their daughter, Karen, who receives the package. Still grieving for her mother's death and resentfull of her father, who left them when she was only a teenager to never come back, Karen doesn't give the package any importance, sends it to a storage house along with her deceased mother's belongings, and forgets about it.Fast foward 6 months, and Dex is killed in a New Orleans street. Homicide Detective Marc Chastain is assigned to the case, and he soon suspects that there's more to it than the "simple" murder of a homeless John Doe. But solving the murder of a homeless man isn't top priority for the police, so as soon as the body is identified as belonging to Dexter Whitlaw, all Marc is left to do is contact his family (aka Karen) and get her to take care of his funeral.Karen works as a nurse at the surgical floor of a hospital in Ohio, and she's still not fully recovered from the loss of her mother. When Marc tells her her father is dead, she doesn't know how to feel about it. He's been a virtual stranger to her but, out of duty and respect for her mother who never stopped loving him, Karen flies to New Orleans to identify and claim her father's body.Marc doesn't really like Karen at first - he finds her too cold and unfeeling - but it doesn't take long until he realizes that's just a facade and, in fact, she feels too much behind her controlled behavior. That's when he falls hard and fast for her and, knowing time isn't on his side, begins an intense courtship. Oh boy, I wish I had a man like Marc to help me whenever I'm facing a difficult time! ;)Things get complicated when a 2nd body is discovered in Mississipi. Even though there are no visible links, Marc feels the two murders are connected and starts investigating. This calls the attention of the CIA, the bad guys get antsy and, suddenly, Karen has the killer after her. But why? What do they want with her? What was in the package sent by her father?If I didn't make it clear before, let me tell you again: I loved Marc! He was protective, caring, and totally devoted to Karen. Some readers thought he was a bit manipulative, taking advantage of her distress to seduce her, but I really didn't see it that way. Was she feeling vulnerable and needy? Yes, but it wasn't like anyone would do. No, she wanted Marc as much as he wanted her. And he wasn't after a one-night stand, he just felt the need to speed up his intense courtship because she was leaving in 3 days and he wanted to hook her on a relationship with him before she left and put him behind her. Desperate times call for drastic measures, LOL.It took me longer to like Karen. I thought she was too cold and passive at first, but then I understood she was basically on the verge of depression and I could definitely relate to that. Been there, done that. She won me over when she managed to escape a near-death situation all by herself. Gotta love an intelligent heroine who doesn't have a single TSTL bone in her body!I have one small complaint about this book: it's somewhat short and could have used 50 or so more pages to develop Marc and Karen's relationship, IMHO. Other than that, I really enjoyed this book and look forward to read All the Queen's Men, the next book in this miniseries loosely connected through John Medina's character.
Let me just say that Linda Howard knows how to tease the reader before pulling her/him in. KILL AND TELL begins, with what appears to be, a demented veteran bent on killing someone. Instead, he is killed.Dexter Whitlaw was at one time a young husband and father. Then he joined the Vietnam war and became a sniper; he was good at it, but something happened. Years passed and his wife remained faithful but Dexter rarely returned home. When he does he is not the same man.Karen Whitlaw, a nurse, had been notified by the New Orleans police department that her father had died. She had recently lost her mother and the pain was still constant. What little memories she had of this man were, at best, bittersweet. But she knows her mother would want her to claim his body so she left Ohio for the south. Before long, she has entered into a world of intrigue and danger unlike she has ever known. Ms. Howard's first story in the 'CIA's Spies' series builds slowly with the backdrop: a not-so-innocent package, paid assassins and politics. Several characters are introduced that will continue on in ALL THE QUEEN'S MEN. The suspense remained steady and there was plenty of action. The downside was that it took awhile for our hero, detective Marc Chastain, to surface but when he does: watch out! An uber-alpha male, he was not afraid to take on anyone and everyone to keep Karen safe. The ongoing question was just who could Marc and Karen trust? There was some dated material but the story never suffered from it. The chemistry was good and somewhat edgy; Marc had a caveman mentality. At times, I was just shaking my head. If you enjoyed the earlier-written Kell Sabin series or any of her older books, you should enjoy this group of stories. This was just what I needed after recently reading some duds.
What do You think about Kill And Tell (2003)?
"Dance with me," he said softly, standing up and holding out his hand to her. She stood and went silently into his arms. She closed her eyes, and her head found her personal resting place on his shoulder. There couldn't be anything more perfect, she thought, than slow dancing, barefoot, on a balcony in New Orleans, while the rain poured down and twilight wrapped around them. This was the part of the book that had me hooked, and I couldn't put it down until the mystery solved (which just happened to be the end of the book). Marc was so smooth, strong, gallant, and oh SO alpha... and just exactly what Karen needed.I LOVED Marc & Karen together, and I loved their story!The story, characters, and writing are amazing! Another great story (I just recently discovered this Author, but was written awhile ago) by Linda Howard!
—Lady Heather
An excellent ‘why are people trying to kill me’ mystery.I understood how Karen Whitlaw was feeling. While never been in a situation like that, it was close. To lose someone so close to you so quickly, then to lose someone who is supposed to be close to you soon afterwards would have anyone feeling as she felt. A brave woman, she uses her head, her instincts, and her fight for survival to get herself out of whatever situation she finds herself in.Marc Chastain is one hell of a detective. It’s very rare to read about a detective that uses and trusts his intincts so implicitly in everything he does, from interviewing a victim, a witness, to questioning a perp. I love his smooth charm, and the way his inner self becomes so primitive in protecting Karen. While I think the ‘I love you’s came out a little fast, they knew they were perfect for each other really quickly. And the reader knows it - they balance each other beautifully.The plot could maybe have been a little more inventive, but I liked it. While the reader knows what’s what and who’s who, the characters in the book don’t and they fight for their lives while trying to figure it out. The action scenes are great, especially with Karen. I thing the love scenes were great in their basicness - primitive and no fanfare - completely raw. The suspense is eased a little since the reader knows what’s going on, but it in no way takes away from the story.Excellent! Now I need to get my hands on All The Queen’s Men!
—Gina
The best part about this audiobook was the narrator. I usually love Ms. Howards work, but this one was way below most of her others.While I enjoyed the characters main characters, the story seemed a little too rushed and it lackec the excitement of some of her other mysteries. The dialog between the "bad guys" was uninteresting and didn't have you asking why about anything other than what they were after. The romance between the two main characters was alright, but the book was very slow to start and everything else was just too flat. The linkage with Rick Medina from the other book in this series was pretty weak as well. A pretty dull read compared to some of Ms. Howards other works. (and she's the author of several of my favorite mysteries).
—Kath
