Risky Business (Bisnis Berbahaya) (2015) - Plot & Excerpts
When Liz Palmer was a young student in college, she became pregnant. The father, a law student, suddenly did not love her anymore, and when his wealthy family threatens her, she flees the country to make a new life for herself in the Caribbean. Somehow they convinced her that her own family would not want her either. So now her daughter is 10, and is living with her parents as she goes to a good school in Boston. Liz lives for the holidays, when her daughter is home with her. For the rest of the year, she is working very hard to make her small diving business a success. But when she finds latest employee dead on the bottom of the sea, her life is turned upside down. Jonas Sharpe, a very successful corporate lawyer, is convinced that Liz knew more about his brother Jerry than she thinks she does. He also doesn’t believe that they were not lovers. He is determined to get to the bottom of it all, especially when the local police can find no leads. Liz doesn’t want to get involved, but when someone breaks into her home and almost kills her, she has no choice but to let Jonas stay with her as protection, and show him around the island, meeting his brothers’ acquaintances. She needs this situation solved before her daughter comes home in a few weeks.A mysterious key on her key ring leads them to a safety deposit box in Acapulco, and a lot of money. And when Liz is contacted to take over Jerry’s illegal diving job, things become more and more dangerous, especially when Jonas steps in and does not follow the plan. Another Nora Roberts oldie I enjoyed. Yes, Jonas sure has the irritating hero habit of the 80’s of not listening to the heroine saying no, and grabbing her whenever he wants, but he grew on me. He could not understand why she did not jump in his arms either, or wanted to marry him and give up her own life and business to become his arm candy. He sure had to change his way of thinking. So yes I rooted for Liz of course. She was totally independent and always thinking of her daughter’s future first. The mystery was kind of predictable, and the bad guy obvious from the first time he appeared on the page. Still, I enjoyed the story and the adventure.7 stars.
Risky Business is another one of Nora Roberts earlier books,circa 1986. And she combines mystery and romance very well.Her focus character, Liz Palmer,was easy to relate to. Single mom, jilted by rich boyfriend while pregnant, starts over in Cozumel.Works her way up from hotel maid to owning her own business. Fiercely independent and determined not to expose herself to the hurt of romantic involvement again. I liked her. A murder mystery begins almost immediately, so this is a page turner for that reason alone. The love interest, twin brother to the murder victim, comes on the scene.Jonas Sharpe is the responsible twin,who has played the straight man for his adventurous, womanizing brother all his adult life. A lawyer(of course) he is determined to find his brother's killer and mete out his own brand of justice. While not the most likable man, he and Liz do the romance dance as the mystery unfolds and eventually find themselves having an island romance. When the mystery is solved and Liz decides to send Jonas on his way, it gets creepy.Having been told no thank you by Liz and sent packing back to the States, he takes it upon himself to contact her parents and said parents allow an unaccompanied visit to Liz's ten year old daughter to the local zoo! And when the daughter and parents come for their summer visit with Mr Creepy tagging along with an engagement rock, Liz is flabbergasted and says yes! I don't care what decade this was written in, that kind of creepazoid behavior would not fly with any mother I know of! Fortunately, the mystery was engaging enough to keep me interested. The romance was controlling b.s. and I was sorry that Liz fell for it.
What do You think about Risky Business (Bisnis Berbahaya) (2015)?
NatalieMay 16, 2012Natalie rated it 5 of 5 stars false · review of another editionI've read so many Nora Roberts books over the years, I'm really out of compliments on her work. However, I'll give it a shot. *LOL*This is a typical Nora Roberts book. A little different in my opinion than her usual stuff, but nevertheless excellent. You have a heroine who became pregnant in college and for reasons explained in the book, she leaves her home and even her country to start a new life with her daughter. She winds up creating a successful business and a comfortable life for her and her child.The book starts when the glass-bottomed boat she is captaining comes across a horrrific scene. The passengers spy through the bottom of the boat a man with an anchor around his neck, obviously murdered.Police investigations and the arrival of the murdered man's brother causes the heroine's life to be temporarily chaotic.********************************characters-Jerry (jerimah)Erica- nice looking gf of Jerry Jonas -twin brotherMr and Mrs. Ambuckle-nice clients?Capt Maralas nice family man COP Scott trident-american cust
—Chris
I decided to read Risky Business because I was drawn in by the promise of SCUBA diving and a grisly murder mystery. I can't say no to a goodmurder mystery and Liz, the leading lady, actually finds her missing dive master by seeing his body through the bottom of her glass bottom boat. I was hooked with that scene! What can I say? I guess I'm morbid.Unfortunitely, that is where my enjoyment of the story also died a grisly death. I'm still going to start with the few positive notes. I loved the mystery of Risky Business. The drug smuggling storyline was interesting and I was kept guessing throughout the story. I also enjoyed the SCUBA diving scenes. Cozumel Mexico is one of my favorite dive sites and these passages brought back some wonderful memories of crystal clear waters and vibrant sea life. It had me ready to jump on a plane and head out on a dive trip.That's it though. I'm sad to say that finishing this book was akin to pulling teeth thanks to the romantic relationship between Liz and Jonas. It. was. so. annoying. To sum it up: Liz is damaged and stubbornly refuses to allow herself to be happy. Jonas is spoiled and pushy and goes way out of line to seduce Liz (like going to Texas to secretly meet her daughter). Liz gets mad. Jonas gets mad. But they are sooooo in love with each other. Major eyeroll and gag me moments. Every moment just seemed so forced.I realized, half way through the book, that Risky Business was originally published in the 1980s. This could explain why the romance is so forced, but still...nope. The majority of the book was dedicated to this romance and the mystery was just a side note instead of a major plot line. Risky Business just wasn't my type of mystery.What do you think about romance in your mysteries? I prefer it to stay a subplot. What is your favorite Nora Roberts novel?LindsayCheck out more reviews at sandbetweenthepages.wordpress.com
—Lindsay Boitnott
If you like romance stories with a hint of mystery and danger then this might be for you. The vacation setting was a nice treat as well. Plus, the narrator did a wonderful job at performing this novel. She gave distinct feel to the characters. As far as storyline, it had its good and not so good. The concept was interesting but the nine lives of Liz and the not so smart villains made the read a bit "unrisky". In other words, the mystery part wasn't so intriguing. However, the romance part was nice to hear since I'm a sucker for second chances. But oddly enough, I wasn't crazy about these particular couple. Overall, a decent read. Jinky is Reading
—Jinky
