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When Hollywood moguls and stars want privacy, they head to an idyllic small town on the coast, where the exclusive Burning Cove Hotel caters to their every need. It's where reporter Irene Glasson finds herself staring down at a beautiful actress at the bottom of a pool. The dead woman had a red-hot secret about up-and-coming leading man Nick Tremayne, a scoop that Irene couldn't resist--especially since she's just a rookie at a third-rate gossip rag. But now Irene's investigation into the drowning threatens to tear down the wall of illusion that is so deftly built around the famous actor, and there are powerful men willing to do anything to protect their investment. Seeking the truth, Irene finds herself drawn to a master of deception. Oliver Ward was once a world-famous magician--until he was mysteriously injured during his last performance. Now the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, he can't let scandal threaten his livelihood, even if it means trusting Irene, a woman who seems to have appeared in Los Angeles out of nowhere four months ago. With Oliver's help, Irene soon learns that the glamorous paradise of Burning Cove hides dark and dangerous secrets. And that the past--always just out of sight--could drag them both under.… (more)
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Recommended.
Amazingly, this was the first book that I have read by this author, either by her real name or her pseudonym. I know I have several of hers on my shelf. Not sure how that could be true, but I checked it
I thought the writing at first for her to have so many books was a little awkward. However, I soon got used to her style and it started to flow. Midway, I was enjoying it. By the end, I couldn't put the book down. There was so much going with so many suspects and plots.
Very entertaining and I really liked it. I am deeply appreciative of Berkley Publishing for approving my request. And, I thank Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest unbiased review.
The Girl Who Knew Too Much grabbed my attention right away. This book is a departure from Amanda Quick’s normal historical paranormal novels. I found The Girl Who Knew Too Much to be nicely written and engaging. I thought the author did a good job at capturing the era and locale. The mysteries are complex (especially the one involving the brown notebook). I thought the Nick Tremayne storyline to be more intriguing and many readers will not be able to figure out the identity of the killer. I did think that the author tried to cram too much into one book (there was just one thing after another). I give The Girl Who Knew Too Much 4 out of 5 stars. There is, of course, the requisite romance (every book I read seems to have a romantic entanglement) between the main characters (a burning attraction). The story has a good ending and the author wrapped up all the various storylines (I especially loved a certain secretary’s ending). There are a couple of slow sections, but they are quickly gotten through. The Girl Who Knew Much is a good novel to read on a Saturday evening with a cool beverage.
The story hits the ground running; Anna Harris comes home to find her employer murdered. The dead
The two murder storylines run at the same time. A budding movie star who is a prime suspect, the owner/manager of the Burning Cove who was formerly a stage magician who was shot during his last act, the movie star’s gal Friday, an inventor/engineer, a sociopathic ‘fixer’ for his father’s firm; all interesting characters. As another reviewer has pointed out, Irene and the former magician make a sort of Nick and Nora couple who should be good for a series. This is not set in Hollywood but on the fringes of Hollywood life. The author is good at describing the clothing, the cars, and the settings of the early 30s.
I give this book four stars out of five; I enjoyed it a lot, but the characters could have been more fleshed out. I’m hoping that this will turn into a series and that we’ll get to know the people better. While the local murder mysteries were tied up neatly, the murder of Irene’s former employer has left an opening for further intrigue that should be interesting.
Something she hears at an autocamp gives her the idea to go to Los Angles to start a new life like so many others have. She could get lost in the shuffle. She changes her name to Irene Glasson and takes Route 66 west. This stumps the man who has been looking for her, Julian Enright from the law firm of Enright and Enright who are an old firm who do shady work. Julian is the cleanup man and the head of the firm's son. He also takes way too much enjoyment from his work. He has not given up on finding Anna. It's just a matter of time.
Four months later Irene has been hired by the scandal rag Whispers and she is hot on a story about the actor Nick Tremayne. Gloria Maitland who is supposed to have been his unofficial girlfriend called her to come to the Burning Cove Hotel in Burning Cove, California to meet by the pool. When Irene got there she found Gloria face down in the pool and could hear someone nearby and had to make a run for it herself.
Oliver Ward, the former famed magician whose last act ended with him crippled in one leg by bullets fired into it, is the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel and he knows that Irene will not let the story go so he wants her to work with him to try to find the killer. But Irene has trust issues especially after what happened to Helen. And Oliver himself has trust issues as well. But they both need to start trusting people again sometime. And with a killer on the loose as well as someone after Irene for the notebook which contains information about something complex and earth shattering, and the time is sooner rather than later. It will take some of Oliver's magic skills and Irene's quick thinking to get them out of this jam as the bodies start to pile up around them now and the trail of bodies from the past that led Irene to this story to begin with as she believes Tremayne is a murderer killing to hide something.
This is not your typical Amanda Quick novel. It was quite a refreshing read and a new take on the 1930s crime drama/film noir type of story. You can almost see the hazy cigarette smoke in the air, though none of the main characters smoke, of course. You can hear the jazzy music playing and see the dancers. Taste all of the unique drinks of the time, like a Pink Lady. She really places you there. This was such a wonderful read. It kept me up half the night trying to finish it. I highly recommend it.
Quotes
It’s only a mistake if it kills you or you fail to learn from it.
-Amanda Quick (The Girl Who Knew Too Much p 81)
She saw the silhouette of Oliver’s gun. She fumbled with the catch of her handbag. Her fingers closed around the grip of the small pistol she kept inside. “I’ve got one, too,” she said. “Of course you do,” Oliver said. He sounded resigned. “Ever fired it?” “No. How hard could it be?” “You’d be surprised.” “There are bullets in it,” she said offended by his tone. “That helps.”
-Amanda Quick (The Girl Who Knew Too Much p 158)
“I believe you.” “Do you?” “Yes.” “Why?” “I have no idea—except that in some ways you remind me of someone I knew a long time ago. If he made a promise, you knew he’d keep it or go down trying.” “Yeah? Who was he?” “My grandfather.” “I’m a few years older than you, Irene, but I’m not that much older.” “Oh, for pity’s sake, I didn’t mean to imply that I thought you were elderly—just…reliable. Dependable. Trustworthy.” “Like a good dog?”
-Amanda Quick (The Girl Who Knew Too Much p 138-9)
If you're looking for a quick, fun read with romance and suspense with a satisfying conclusion, this is the book for you. A murder mystery drives the plot and most the action, but the romance between Oliver and Irene provides a nice complement and
This well-written tale will transport you to the seedier aspects of life on the fast track of making it to the top in Hollywood.
Burning Cove Hotel is a great setting for Irene’s stubborn need to learn the whole truth while even putting her own life
The skills a good secretary has – efficient, organized, intelligent and determined to finish a project, help Irene surface to the top of a sinking ship. The same skills work well for Oliver Ward, owner of the Burning Cover Hotel and once world-renown magician. Irene’s association with Oliver proves to be exactly what she needs (as she is to him) to solve her latest mystery, and the very person who will save her neck—and surprisingly her heart.
The energy, pace, intrigue and sleazy characters you meet will give you hours of entertainment and plenty of who dun’ it theories. Delve into the seedier side of Hollywood -- glamour can be only skin deep!
Received an advanced copy from the publisher for a fair review
When Hollywood moguls and stars want privacy, they head to an idyllic small town on the coast, where the
The dead woman had a red-hot secret about up-and-coming leading man Nick Tremayne, a scoop that Irene couldn’t resist—especially since she’s just a rookie at a third-rate gossip rag. But now Irene’s investigation into the drowning threatens to tear down the wall of illusion that is so deftly built around the famous actor, and there are powerful men willing to do anything to protect their investment.
Seeking the truth, Irene finds herself drawn to a master of deception. Oliver Ward was once a world-famous magician—until he was mysteriously injured during his last performance. Now the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, he can’t let scandal threaten his livelihood, even if it means trusting Irene, a woman who seems to have appeared in Los Angeles out of nowhere four months ago…
With Oliver’s help, Irene soon learns that the glamorous paradise of Burning Cove hides dark and dangerous secrets. And that the past—always just out of sight—could drag them both under…
Private secretary Anna Harris, finds her employer, a vibrant, globe-trotting, upper-class Eastern woman, murdered. And when she reads the message, “Run,” written in the dead woman’s blood, Anna does precisely that: she drives her yellow Packard on Route 66 to Los
I liked Anna/Irene—she’s not intimidated by anyone, ever. She wears fashionable wide-legged trousers with filmy, feminine blouses, and carries a big purse containing among other things, her get-out-of-town money and a gun. I see Irene as Kathryn Hepburn-like: a smart, impudent, leggy woman who knows she only has herself to depend upon—and she’s good with that.
Following up on a lead about an L.A. murder, Irene lands in Burning Cove, a small California coastal town geared to privacy, rest, and recreation for the Hollywood crowd and the startlingly rich who want to rub elbows (among other things) with movie stars. In Burning Cove, a second murder happens involving a handsome, self-obsessed leading-man movie star and a reclusive hotel owner who used to be an up-and-coming magician before his tragic accident. Further complications include a mysterious notebook that comes with a Trust No One warning, yet another murder, a fire, an inventor, a movie studio fixer, and a nightclub owner with mob connections.
Oliver Ward is the ex-magician resort-hotel owner who protects the privacy and personal lives of his famous and wealthy guests. Oliver understands that his magic would never have been more than a carny act without the support of his assistants and the staff that organized his sets, his bookings, his costumes and props. When his life as a world-class magician abruptly ends, he offers his former staff opportunities to work at his new venture—an exclusive resort hotel north of Hollywood. Olive Ward respects people. He respects Irene. He’s the perfect hero for her.
The Girl Who Knew Too Much is a classic Amanda Quick—intriguing people populating a well-heeled world ripe with details and dialogue that bring a time and place and milieu to bustling life. Add in a complex plot that will keep you guessing right to the end, and you have a perfect reading experience. I get the feeling Ms. Quick enjoyed writing this book. There’s a lightness of spirit that energizes every page. Brava!
I received free access to the galley for this novel through the First to Read program.
A perfectly adequate mystery with a well-written 1930s setting. Amanda Quick (pen name of romance write Jayne Anne Krentz) gets the plot going with a bang and keeps everything churning along at a solid pace. While her characters have interesting backgrounds and careers, I finished the novel feeling like I got no insight into their internal emotional lives, why they really cared about each other, or why I should care much about their HEA. I didn't hate the novel but I won't be inclined to pick up other books in the series.
What I liked about this book was there were two interesting plots. The reveal of the killer had me guessing up until the end. I also enjoyed the story line of "Irene's" past as Anna Harris catching up to her all the way in California.
The author did a good job capturing "Old Hollywood" in the 1930s. Back when the studios had all the power to make or break you. If you like a good mystery and that time period than this book is definitely for you.
Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group for sending me an ARC of this book. This review contains my honest opinions.
She ends up at the Burning Cove Hotel, an exclusive resort-like spa in tiny Burning Cove, CA, where she's arrived to meet a source about a hot scoop. She's a reporter at a third rate gossip mag, chasing a hot lead on a huge scandal that may engulf the latest Hollywood it-boy. Unfortunately, she walks into a scene almost as grisly as the one she left in New York: her scoop is lying facedown in the swimming pool, surrounded by her own blood.
Thus begins Anna's adventures. Now going by the name Irene Glasson, she is determined to find out who killed her connection - and if said killer had anything to do with the mysterious "accident" suffered by a fellow reporter at her gossip rag. She's practically scenting a huge story that could blow the lid off a promising, rising star - a star whose studio will do anything to keep him out of trouble.
Oliver Ward is the manager of the Burning Cove hotel, and he isn't any happier to find out a guest has died than Irene is at discovering the body. They decide to pool their efforts to find the killer, and get sucked into a dark world of Hollywood scandal, espionage, and "cleanup crews." They are photographed together and splashed across the front page - Oliver being a former magician who quit the boards under mysterious circumstances - and attract the attention of the folks looking for that notebook, who are determined to take her out and abscond with the notebook themselves.
I really enjoyed this book. It's fast-paced and well-written, with a great suspenseful mystery at the core. The characters are fun and likeable, and it's not always a certainty that the protagonists will win, or that the antagonists won't get the last laugh. There's an omni POV from various main and side characters, all of whom push the plot forward. The climax of the notebook strand of the story was absolutely first rate; the murder mystery was a little less so.
The only downside was the romance. It was more or less instalust, spurred on by dangerous circumstances. It moved way too fast for my personal taste, and rang hollow in the end.
I really enjoyed the 1930s setting, and the main location of small town adjacent to LA and Hollywood - enough to feel cozy, but connected to the wider world. This is a small town full of people who are hiding secrets of every sort, which is delicious. I'm looking forward to exploring more of this world in this series, and have a couple of characters that I'm looking forward to seeing pop up again!
The Girl Who Knew Too Much by Amanda Quick is a delightfully clever mystery that is set during the glamorous Golden Age of Hollywood.
After her previous job abruptly comes to a dangerous and tragic end, Irene Glasson reinvents herself upon her arrival in Los Angeles. Now an up and coming
Irene is a spunky young woman who does not shy away from danger. She is resourceful, confident and determined to find the truth about Gloria's death. She is reluctant to completely trust Oliver, but once she realizes how far Nick's studio will go to protect their star, she has no choice but to work with him. Stubbornly convinced that Nick is connected to Gloria's death and her co-worker Peggy Hackett's eerily similar death, Irene ignores the danger surrounding her and doggedly pursues every lead she finds.
Despite his previous fame, Oliver now keeps a low profile and he is a little mysterious since he refuses to discuss the accident that ended his career. Since he is intensely protective of his guests, he is not at all pleased to discover that Irene somehow managed to find her way onto to the hotel grounds. It goes without saying he has a vested interest in learning the truth about what happened to Gloria since the negative publicity could harm his hotel's reputation. Oliver is stunned by the spark of interest he feels for Irene and the more time he spends in her company, the more vibrant and alive he feels. While he can be a little grumpy and close-mouthed, he is nothing but supportive of Irene throughout their investigation.
Irene's investigation takes many surprising twists and turns as Nick tries to downplay any involvement with her death. Although Irene is a little frightened by some of the strong arm tactics employed by the studio's hired goons, she refuses to give up digging for the truth. Will Irene and Oliver find the evidence they need to support her theory about that Nick is Gloria's killer?
Although there is plenty of danger surrounding them, Oliver and Irene find the time to explore their unexpected attraction for each other. While their romance is a delightful addition to unfolding story, the investigation into the suspicious deaths remains the main focus of the storyline.
The Girl Who Knew Too Much is a wonderful novel with a fantastic cast of characters and intriguing mysteries to solve. Amanda Quick deftly brings both the time period and setting vibrantly to life. Irene is a gutsy heroine who never lets anyone or anything deter her from finding the truth about the what happened to Gloria and Peggy. The killer's identity and motive for the murders are carefully concealed until the novel's dramatic conclusion. I thoroughly enjoyed this spellbinding novel and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical mysteries.
I enjoyed this story. I could not put it down. I liked Irene and her get the story at any cost philosophy. Along the way she runs afoul of the owner of the Burning Cove Hotel, Oliver Ward, former magician. He has his secrets also. His attraction to Irene causes him to break a few of his rules. The secondary characters are good. Some are pure evil. Some got what they deserved. And I was wrong on the whodunit part. I was shocked when the explanation came out.
I loved Irene and Oliver. The world building is excellent and I look forward to more in this series.
4 Stars
The exclusive Burning Cove resort caters to the whims of the rich and famous of Hollywood. Nevertheless, when tabloid journalist Irene Glasson stumbles across a body in the pool, she joins forces with the owner, former celebrity magician, Oliver Ward, who is as
In this first book of the Burning Cove series, Amanda Quick has left Victorian London behind and relocated to Hollywood in the 1930s. This is an uncommon setting in historical romance, yet Quick successfully incorporates the glitz, glamour, and corruption of the time period within her well-established writing style.
While readers familiar with Quick's works will easily recognize her quintessential character types in Irene and Oliver, it is nevertheless very interesting to see the changes in attitude and behavior that befit the early 20th century. Irene and Oliver have strong chemistry, but find it difficult to trust given their past experiences. They often rub each other the wrong way and it takes time and effort on both their parts to realize that they are better off together than apart.
In terms of the suspense plot, there are two mysteries. The first concerns Irene's past and the second revolves around the murder at the resort. Both are well developed and come to satisfying conclusions although one is rather anti-climactic given the buildup.
In sum, Quick's first foray into this new period is very entertaining and I look forward to continuing with the series.
Burning Cove series #1. Historical romantic mystery. 1930’s California.
The Burning Cove Hotel caters to the rich and famous. Reporter Irene Gleason discovers a once beautiful actress at the bottom of the pool. She and Oliver Ward, a once famous magician,
Intriguing visit down Route 66 to this hotel of secrets.
The beginning can be a bit confusing, especially if listening to the story in audiobook format. Lots of side characters and even Irene changes her name. The audiobook to me sounded “tin y” as if it were actually recorded in the 30’s. Maybe it was on purpose but it also gave the story a campy vaudeville feel.
Overall I liked the mystery and the very slow burn romance.