5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another winner from Talley, Oct 29 2004
By Doris Ann Norris - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: In Death's Shadow (Mass Market Paperback)
It was a very happy day for mystery lovers when Marcia Talley's Hannah Ives series was picked up by Avon. It's certainly wonderful to have Hannah back, even though Marcia has kept busy editing serial novels and writing award-winning short stories. When a friend, with whom Hannah shared the indignities and the other effects of chemo appears to be cured or, at least in remission , Hannah is very happy to see her again. Then, not long after doing a "race for a cure", Valerie is found
dead in her bed by her small daughter. Hannah has her doubts about her friend's death. She was also curious how the family suddenly seemed to have so much money.
Hannah then runs into an insurance scheme in which brokers
buy insurance policies from the owners and then sell them to investors.
Old people and cancer patients seem to be the prime target of one
particularly aggressive broker. She then discovers that a number of old people in an assisted living/care facility have died not too long after selling their policies. Were the "investors" tired of waiting? So now I know about "viaticals" and the information was fascinating...as was
the plotting and characters. I thoroughly enjoyed IN DEATH'S SHADOW, which is now available. It's well worth the
paperback price. Heck, it would be worth a hardcover cost. Welcome back, Hannah.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A fan from Odenton, Sep 27 2004
By Ray in Odenton "Hannah Ives Fan" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: In Death's Shadow (Mass Market Paperback)
Who knew that "viatical" insurance policies could serve up so much mystery entertainment value? Perhaps in lesser hands it wouldn't, but Marcia Talley and her protaganist - Hannah Ives - are in fine form as they investigate how an insurance policy that pays dividends to others may have hastened the death of her good friend. Those of you with the Hannah Ives series will know that Hannah is a breat cancer survivor. As if life weren't hard enough, those kind of challenges can create difficulties making ends meet. A viatical seemed like the perfect choice for her Hannah's friend, but greed may have shortened her friend's life more than the cancer. A thought-provoking great read!
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Talley in peak form!, Oct 4 2004
By C. Williams - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: In Death's Shadow (Mass Market Paperback)
"Chemo brain," indeed! Hannah Ives is back again, sharp as ever and with her usual wry take on life. When a fellow breast cancer survivor who had been in radiant good health suddenly dies under mysterious circumstances, Hannah's internal radar sends her nosing around to find out how and why. In the process, she discovers a ghoulish potential for mayhem in the complex arena of viatical insurance settlements---a timely subject for senior citizens and people with terminal illnesses who may wish to cash in their insurance policies while they can still use the proceeds. Who knew?
Author Marcia Talley's lively powers of observation and knack for finding the `telling detail' make Hannah's trip into the murky morass of shady brokers and investors a lively and engaging process involving such now-familiar characters as author L.K. Bromley, and assorted family members who all contribute to the investigation. With each successive book, Talley's writing has grown more relaxed and confident. She has definitely hit full stride with In Death's Shadow.