Tom Hunt (1)

Gary and Beth are happily married and happily pregnant after having tried so long for a baby that they had nearly given up hope. All seems to be going well until suddenly and unexpectedly Beth collapses. After a trip to the emergency room they are given devastating news. Beth has an inoperable tumor and may have less than a year to live. Her only hope of survival is a costly experimental treatment that they can not afford.

Meanwhile a shady character named Otto has caught the eye of a crooked cop and wants to be rid of him permanently. He hatches a plan to have the cop murdered by someone who has no connection to him so that he will never be a suspect. When Otto sees an article about Gary and Beth's dire situation he decides to take advantage of their desperate need for money.

This was a fast paced, suspenseful, action packed thriller with a lot of heart. There were a couple of things that irked me, having to do with police procedure and cash that I won't go into so as not to spoil the story but overall I enjoyed it.
3.75 out of 5 stars rounded up to 4

I received an advance copy for review.… (mehr)

I grew up watching B and C list action movies (or Z list maybe) - something bad happens (someone gets kidnapped more often than not or someone gets killed and our hero goes to save/revenge them). Most of them were essentially the same movie with changed names and faces (and the dubbing done by the same one voice made them look even more similar) but they had a lot of action, weapons and card chases (or running around) that they kinda worked. This novel reminded me of these - not because it was a carbon copy of other novels but because it seemed like a checklist extended into a novel.

Beth and Gary are finally going to have their baby - until she gets the devastating news that she has a brain tumor and the only cure is an experimental treatment - which they cannot afford. They start trying to get the money - from friends, via internet campaigns, via local campaigns but $200K are a lot of money and they are nowhere near that.

Meanwhile, in a bad part of the city, Otto is looking for way to eliminate a man - he has money to pay for it but noone wants to even try. One man needs money, another has money - a match made in heaven, right? Otto reaches out, makes an offer and Gary says yes.

And things go weird fast. There was a reason why noone wanted to touch the man - although not everything is what it looks like. Plus trusting Otto to pay up was not the most intelligent thing Gary had ever done. And Gary, who initially looked like a man you could almost admire, turns out to be anything but (even before he agreed to kill a man).

It is not a bad thriller - it is easy to ignore the exaggerated elements and the coincidences and just read through. There is enough action to carry the novel and the additional details that show up from all sides add to the speed of the action and keep your attention. I'd probably read the next book by Hunt (this is a debut novel so a lot of what felt weird is probably inexperience) - everyone needs a popcorn thriller now and then.… (mehr)

Joshua Mayo is a high school senior. 18 years old. Waiting for his acceptance letter to Clemson. He has his whole life ahead of him. Until a hit and run accident. Until he kills a man. Until he runs from the scene of the accident. Until his parents cover it up. Until......

One Fatal Mistake.

Wow...this book is one crazy ride! Vehicular homicide...then a cover up....and add in bank robbers on the run. Geez....the action and suspense never stopped. I loved the story line....it kept me reading. Total binge read. But....the characters....oh my....I hated them all. The Mayo family doesn't see anything wrong with covering up the death of an innocent person. Lie after lie after lie....because their kid's future is worth more than someone else's life, right? Major S-heads. And the bank robbers....well they are are completely screwed up too. And the universe is just F'd up enough to make them all meet in the middle. It makes for an awesome thriller....with the little voice in my head commenting about how horrid every single person in the story is. Every. Single. Person. Completely horrid. But insanely perfect for this story.

I love my kids. I would do just about anything for my kids. But.....I would NOT cover up a murder, hide bodies or lie to the police for my kids. Or anybody. No, no, no, no....and after that....NO. But....I will totally binge read an entire book in one afternoon that is about parents who will do just that....and more. Great story....twisted and traumatizing....but a great story. Any book that makes me totally binge read for an entire afternoon deserves full stars from me!

Well-written. Suspenseful. Twisted. Loved it! This book kept my attention from beginning to end. I'm definitely going to read more by this author. Tom Hunt has written one other book -- Killer Choice -- about a man so desperate for money to help his ill wife that he's willing to commit murder-for-hire to get it. Oh my.....another story with completely F'd up characters. I have to read it!!!!! So twisted! Book insta-added to my TBR list!

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Berkley via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**… (mehr)