Kildare Library Service

Title: To Die For

Author: Linda Howard

Genre: Romance novel. Fiction. Suspense. Mystery. 

Review: Chantelle, LCA Intern for Library HQ

Synopsis: After a painful divorce, Blair Mallory follows her dream and opens a health club. But Nicole Goodwin develops a strange fixation on Blair.

When Nicole is gunned down in the club’s parking lot, Blair is the only witness to the murder. Enter the love attraction, Lieutenant Wyatt Bloodsworth. He’s tall and handsome, in a dangerous, hard-edged kind of way. Unfortunately for Blair, he is also Blair’s ex-boyfriend who just may have ruined any chance of a future they could have had that night he walked away without so much as a second glance. 

Review: To Die For is book one in a two part series featuring the main character, Blair Mallory. She’s an all-American high school girl. She was head cheerleader and got a scholarship by the time she graduated high school. The middle child of three girls, Blair isn’t exactly outrageously smart as her sister, Siana, or as stunning as her youngest sister, Jennifer; Blair is ”somewhere in the middle.” Though she isn’t afraid to use the bimbo card when it gets her what she wants, and really, what’s the purpose of blond hair if you can’t play the card when it’s for a good cause?

The Blaire Mallory series is highly amusing and entertaining  with just the right amount of insanity to get your tummy muscles aching from ceaseless laughter, while still keeping you wondering, “who done it?”

This novel is written in the first person.  Everything we read is from Blair’s point of view.  Many times novels in this style are not all that notable, however, Linda Howard pulls off this writing style like a true pro. If you enjoy mystery and suspense entwined with romance, not to mention moments of absolute comedy, I’d recommend this book to you whether you be a young adult readers or an adult reader.

If you enjoy the first book in the series then the obvious step would be to read the second one, “Drop Dead Gorgeous”. A small extra bonus is the very tasty recipe for Blair’s special bread and butter pudding – you do not want to miss that.

And if you’ve discovered a love for this style of writing and are looking for another book to tickle your fancy, I would highly recommend Heartbreaker by Julie Garwood, as another perfect choice.

You can order some of Linda Howard’s titles by requesting them online from your local library and make an appointment to visit your local library and collect it when we notify you it has arrived.