The Alibi Man
by Tami Hoag
List Price:
Our Price: $1.75
You Save: $6.24 (78%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Tami HoagEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2008-02-26
ISBN: 0553583603
Number of pages: 448
Publisher: Bantam
Book Reviews of The Alibi Man
Book Review: A Gutsy Heroine Maneuvers Between a Rock and Several Hard Places
Summary: 4 Stars
The original formula that many thriller writers favored was to have young, beautiful, enviable, and pleasant heroines who needed help from handsome, aggressive action heroes. Fortunately, we've learned to expect more from the characters in genre since then.
Of all the tough, no-prisoners-taken heroines I've read about since then, Elena Estes is very special. Adopted by a rich family, she found they really didn't care about her except for what benefits she might bring them. An early potential benefit was marriage into the influential, wealthy Walker family. That value blew up when Walker raped another woman and tried to use Elena for an alibi. Elena had the good judgment to not stand behind this man, and she paid a big price. Elena's father became Bennett Walker's defense attorney and proceeded to make her look bad. Elena hasn't been on speaking terms with the family since then. First, she was a cop and later chose to do some investigating privately while exercising horses for a friend on the edges of the Palm Beach society she once was part of.
Twenty years later, fate steps in again when Elena spots an arm dangling from the water at the end of an unexpected gallop on a fast horse. The arm turns out to belong to her co-worker and slight friend, Irina. The autopsy shows that Irina has been busy with several men. Elena decides that she will find the killer. That search soon leads to the doorstep of Bennett Walker who is again represented by her father. Elena has another prod. Irina was the "niece" of a vicious Russian mobster, Alexi Kulak; Kulak wants Irina's murderer found so Alexi can mete out "justice."
In the course of her investigation, Elena finds that many of the rich, powerful men in the polo crowd have formed an alibi club to cover for one another's' crimes. Who's covering for whom this time?
In a scene that's reminiscent of the opening for Sunset Boulevard, the book's first chapter powerfully sets the stage for that premise with these words:
"She floated on the face of the pool like an exotic water lily . . . She was dead."
"He opened his cell phone and punched in a number."
"'I need an alibi.'"
Elena finds herself at odds with almost everyone involved. But she trudges on, despite the discomfort of having to rely on help from her secret boyfriend (whom she has just dumped), Detective James Landry. The bright surprise is the irresistibly handsome and charming polo player, Juan Barbaro, who seems taken with her. Why her?
As you can see, the book has an amazing background for the heroine/detective and a fascinating premise that seems fresh from the headlines of powerful people who've gotten away with sexual assaults.
But what makes the book special is the racing pulse of momentum towards raw confrontations from which many are likely not to survive. The danger is palpable. The excitement continuously rises. Your disgust with the bad guys will make you want to shout at someone. It's great.
The book has only a few flaws that keep it from being one of the best thrillers I've ever read. First, the coincidence of Elena finding Irina's body so quickly after the murder seems like one in a billion. It's hard to swallow. Second, the good ole polo boys are painted a little too negatively. It seems overdone. Third, Kulak's misconception late in the book seems hard to understand. It didn't seem credible. Fourth, Barbaro's interest in Elena doesn't quite ring true. If minor points like those don't bother you, The Alibi Man could be one of your favorite suspense stores of 2007.
Mystery & Thrillers Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in THRILLING Horror & HORRIFYING Thrillers
Hold Tightby Harlan Coben
Dutton Adult; Published: 2008-04-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.74
Price in other shops:
The Woodsby Harlan Coben
Signet; Published: 2008-04-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.45
Price in other shops:
Midnight Rambler: A Novel of Suspenseby James Swain
Ballantine Books; Published: 2007-09-25; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.75
Price in other shops:
Silenceby Thomas Perry
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; Published: 2007-06-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.83
Price in other shops:
Odd Hoursby Dean Koontz
Bantam; Published: 2008-05-20; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $3.90
Price in other shops:
The Savage Gardenby Mark Mills
Berkley Trade; Published: 2008-05-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.95
Price in other shops:
The Alibi Manby Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 2008-02-26; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.90
Price in other shops:
The Watchman: A Joe Pike Novel (Joe Pike Novels)by Robert Crais
Pocket Star; Published: 2008-01-29; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.77
Price in other shops:
Hideby Lisa Gardner
Bantam; Published: 2007-01-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.74
Price in other shops:
Killer Weekendby Ridley Pearson
Jove; Published: 2008-06-24; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.44
Price in other shops:
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
Dark Paradiseby Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 1994-04-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.90
Price in other shops:
Taken by Storm (Loveswept)by Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 2007-10-30; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.48
Price in other shops:
Obsession (Alex Delaware, No. 21)by Jonathan Kellerman
Ballantine Books; Published: 2008-02-26; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.19
Price in other shops:
Kill the Messengerby Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 2006-02-28; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.00
Price in other shops:
A Thin Dark Lineby Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 1998-04-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
Dark Horseby Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 2004-06-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.45
Price in other shops:
Dust to Dustby Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 2002-03-26; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.49
Price in other shops:
Hideby Lisa Gardner
Bantam; Published: 2008-05-20; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.95
Price in other shops:
Straight from the Heart (Loveswept)by Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 2007-07-31; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.89
Price in other shops:
Prior Bad Actsby Tami Hoag
Bantam; Published: 2007-02-27; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.35
Price in other shops: