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Hush

by Kate White

Hush by Kate White

Review: A marketing executive becomes embroiled in a murder investigation that puts her life in jeopardy in Hush, a non-series thriller by Kate White.

Lake Warren's life was already in turmoil. She has recently begun a challenging assignment with a Park Avenue fertility clinic just as her husband moves out, seeking a divorce plus full custody of their two children. At a company dinner, she meets the handsome and sexy Dr. Mark Keaton, newly hired by the clinic, with whom she leaves at the end of the evening. They have a romantic interlude in his apartment after which they both fall asleep. She awakens in the middle of the night and goes out onto the terrace for some fresh air. Dozing off on one of the chaise lounges she wakes up sometime later, and returns to the bedroom to find that Keaton has been murdered, his throat slashed from one end to the other. She knows she should call the police, but her thoughts run to her children and the upcoming custody hearing. Gathering her belongings, she leaves. When the police come to question all who had known Keaton, Lake lies, saying she met him at the dinner the previous night but hadn't seen him since. But like many lies, Lake soon becomes entangled within them, and doesn't think she can maintain her charade much longer. Along with the police, she wonders who killed Keaton. But the question only Lake can ask herself: Did the killer know she was asleep on the terrace at the time of the murder?

The answer must be yes … but maybe not. In the days following the murder, Lake receives suspicious phone calls late at night and her cat is taken, but returned completely shaved. These events could be related to her work with the clinic itself, which is having its own image problems (hence her employment). Unsure who she can trust, she begins her own investigation in an effort to identify the killer before she becomes a suspect — or victim — herself.

Hush is an electrifying thriller, with Lake Warren a compelling lead character, smart and resourceful. The anguish she feels is palpable, the fear for her safety balanced by the concern for her family. The narrative is well-paced, the subplots both relevant to the main storyline and contributing to the overall suspense. Readers will be hard-pressed not to complete this tensely written novel in one setting.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Hush.

Acknowledgment: Authors on the Web provided a copy of Hush for this review.

Review Copyright © 2010 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved

Selected reviews of other mysteries by this author …

Mystery Book Review: Lethally Blond by Kate WhiteLethally Blond
Grand Central (Hardcover), May 2007
ISBN-13: 9780446577953; ISBN-10: 0446577952

Mystery Book Review: The Sixes by Kate WhiteThe Sixes
Harper (Hardcover), August 2011
ISBN-13: 9780061576621; ISBN-10: 006157662X

Location(s) referenced in Hush: Manhattan, New York City

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Hush by Kate White

Hush by

Publisher: Harper
Format: Hardcover
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-157661-4
Publication Date:
List Price: $24.99

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