The libraries around here are running low on audiobooks that appeal to me, so I picked one up by Laura Lippman. I didn't really know anything about her going into this, except that her books seem to be mystery/thriller based and I thought I'd go for it. I might never go for it again. I'm embarrassed I read this, and I'm embarrassed that she wrote it. I didn't even want to add it here, but I figured I would rate it on here because I did not shut it off and listened to the whole damn thing start t...

See full review here!Laura Lippman's Tess series is one I've read in the past. I've never tried her stand-alone work, and I'm always game for a good stand-alone. Especially an adult one. I read a lot of YA fiction, but this is a GREAT adult novel to pick up! I might say that this would make a great book club novel. It has great themes and discussion elements. It's addicting and curious. It wasn't predictable in the way that I knew how it would all play out, though I did guess at a couple things

Along with Elizabeth George and Michael Connelly, Laura Lippman is mystery writer whose usual who-done-its transcend the genre. So it's interesting that for her latest novel, Lippman steps outside the familiar ground of a straight-forward mystery novel and gives us a character study of a suburban madam. Alternating between the past and the present, Lippman lays out the circumstances that led to Helen changing her name to Heloise and trying to escape her past. Fathered by a man cheating on his wi...

“It is one of the oddities of life in Maryland that no single supermarket can serve a household’s entire needs.” ― Laura Lippman, And When She Was GoodI am curious as to whether supermarkets in Maryland are really like what this character describes.“And when she was good” was an interesting pick. I really wasn’t sure what I was getting here. I was nervous reading this book because I’d been let down by other books similiar to this and was not really sure what to expect. It was on my TBR list for

Well, people definitely reviewed this book pretty harshly, I don't think it was necessarily deserve though....This definitely was not the most thrilling of thrillers I've ever read.... however, I did find it interesting, definitely an interesting perspective on prostitution.... Heloise while not always likable was sympathetic, and I did find myself wanting the best for her and her son... maybe part of the problem with this book was expectations? It is labeled as a thriller, and I really would no...

This should fill the sweet spot that's craving another Gone Girl. It is both clever and marvelously prosaic, so that the reader fully enters into the story of Heloise, a hard-working suburban single mom who runs an escort service to provide her with the time and money to raise her child.I had the weirdest feeling throughout the first two-thirds or so that I had already read this, even though I couldn't recall any of the plot. Turns out I've read some other stories about Heloise. And now I can't

4/5The discrepancy between Lippman’s critical recognition and her Goodreads ratings makes her one of the underappreciated crime authors on this site. I love her character driven thrillers starring ambitious women who don’t apologize for being selfish. Heloise is using the façade of just another regular suburban single mother to run one of the most profitable prostitution rings. The book opens with the death of a similar madam, Heloise’s starts feeling the pressure and starts considering exit opt...

Although it felt that nothing happened for long stretches of this novel, when things did happen they were executed perfectly. You may think this would lead to a boring read, but And When She Was Good is far from boring.The main character, Helen/Heloise (Hel?) seems so sure of herself for the majority of this book, and i'd be lying if I didn't admit that the ending was the best part - but that's because Hel stopped being so superior and aloof and putting everyone down. It took her being out-smart...

Maybe I’m guilty. Okay. LL could write spit and I’d call it transcendent. That said, I have to admit, re AWSWG, there are one or two little nagging elements about several characters that bothered me, badass pimp Val and his previously undisclosed Filipino common-law wife living upstate with whom he has three children. She is—we are asked to believe without question—an incredibly unsophisticated foreign-born woman who believes for over ten years, that her very bad husband is trapped overseas beca...

A quick read, but not one I loved. I've read a handful of Lippman books because I enjoy the way she works Baltimore into her books as a character of its own. This one tipped a line into something I didn't like. The character was somewhat sympathetic, but there were asides that seemed more like authorial interjections than things the character would notice. She ended up reminding me of a group of women at my gym who talk loudly about vacations and their teenagers' cars and their husbands' careers...

Kept me listening, Don't think it would have been as good if I had read it with my eyes.

Honestly, I never know how to rate a book when I don't like the main character. If the story is interesting (it was...) and it keeps my interest (it did....), I should probably give it 4 or 5 stars. But I find Heloise to be just unlikable. She comes across as aloof, unsympathetic and self-pitying. She seems to think she's smarter than everyone else. While Helen/Heloise is in high school, her verbally abusive jerk of a father insists she go get a job. This job leads her down a twisted and ugly pa...

I listened to this book on audio, thanks to a job change and a one hour commute.This is my first Lippman book. It takes place in Annapolis, which just happens to be close to where I live.Aside from being a competent albeit unconventional pseudo mystery, I felt as if it offered some interesting commentary on a controversial topic, the sex industry, specifically high-end prostitution. And by the end of the book, I have to admit, I was hard pressed to come up with a valid argument against the legal...

I found this a very interesting storyline. What happens to someone when they think they don't deserve much and end up down the road of drugs and prostitution. How do they turn their life around when that is all they know? I always enjoy a Laura Lippman story. She does a great job of entertaining the reader and keeping them interested in the characters and what is happening. Well worth my time.

I just couldn't seem to drum up any real feelings for the characters in this book. I neither liked them nor disliked them, and that made the story less enjoyable to read. The story was alright, the writing was fine, it simply did not do anything for me except keep me reading to the end. That is something, I suppose, in a lukewarm sort of a way.This was a first-reads giveaway, thank you.

This is the three-stariest book I have ever read. My engagement in reading it was so perfectly mediocre. I don't mean it's badly written (neither the plot nor the grammar), and I don't mean I was bored. I wasn't. I kind of idly felt mild interest in finding out what happens next most of the time I was reading it, and I didn't really like any of the characters and I didn't really hate any of them, and it was interesting to read about the prostitution version of Weeds or Breaking Bad, and the myst...

Hmm. I really don’t have a whole lot to say about this book. First of all, I did not read the synopsis when I checked this book out at the library so I had no idea what the premise of the book was so I was surprised when I learned that Heloise was not a lobbyist but actually a madam. This is learned early on in the book. Heloise Lewis, previously Helen Lewis, grew up in an abusive household and was eventually forced to get a job to get contribute to the household bills. She eventually leaves her...

I don't usually read crime novels, not because I have some feeling of superiority over this genre, but more that my "scare" bar is very, very low.This book is about a suburban madam whose seedy past threatens to destroy the near-perfect life she's created. The book moves at an even clip, alternating between Heloise Lewis' past and present lives and the dangers therein. I enjoyed this book thoroughly. The mood, pacing, etc were perfect. I'd say this is the perfect beach read but I haven't been to...

Laura Lippman is one of my favorite authors; I can always count on her to deliver a solid thriller with a special combination of ordinary setting (Baltimore and its surroundings), superficially ordinary characters with extraordinary pasts, challenging and interesting perspectives, great pacing, and terrific writing. I enjoyed this book for all of those ingredients, but not as much as I normally do. I found Helen/Heloise a difficult character to warm up to - not because I didn't like her or under...

A riveting, engrossing, and at times, sordid story. 'Hel' is one of the most complicated characters I've read, and so are my reactions - my heart ached for her, I pitied her. I feared her choices. Feared for her life. She fascinated me, she appalled me. She's ruthless, with a heart of gold. The mental and physical abuse she endured was heart wrenching. And throughout the story, my admiration of her only grew.Sophisticated, multilayered plot and characters. Masterful storytelling. Many profound,