Hush

Marketing consultant Lake Warren faces a custody battle with her ex and a fight for her life when a client shows signs of criminal intent. Aimee Jolson presents this thriller in a matter-of-fact tone that manages to convey Lake's mind-boggling na•veté and poor judgment while at the same time capturing her colleagues' solicitousness, scorn, and sagacity in turn. Jolson's calm has the effect of removing the narrator from the story in the reader's ear, allowing the plot and characters to carry themselves. Aural texture appears throughout the novel in the form of a delightfully light Irish accent from a nurse and slightly grating Brooklyn twang from a former client. These add the perfect spice to an already flavorful performance. R.L.L. (c) AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine

November 30, 2009
Bestseller White, Cosmo
's editor-in-chief, takes a break from her Bailey Weggins series (Lethally Blond
, etc.) with this stand-alone thriller that generates a real sense of jeopardy while avoiding clichés. Newly divorced 44-year-old marketing consultant Lake Warren finds her latest job devising a marketing plan for a Manhattan fertility clinic rewarding until her ex-husband, Jack, sues for full custody of their two young children. While her lawyer warns her not even to date so Jack won't have leverage against her, Lake gives in to a one-night stand with the clinic's flirtatious Dr. Keaton. After falling asleep on his penthouse terrace, Lake wakes to find Keaton murdered. Worried that the police will accuse her of the murder, Lake begins her own investigation until she learns that someone is stalking her. A subplot about the clinic's questionable practices adds to the tension, but doesn't detract from the main plot with its myriad twists.