return to home  
Join   |  Gift   |  Member Login   |  Library Login
BookBrowse Mobile
Follow Us: 
   First Impressions: Book Reviews

Member Reviews of forthcoming books.

Book Jacket

 And When She Was Good:
A Novel
by Laura Lippman

Publisher: William Morrow
Publication date: 08/14/2012.
Mysteries, 384 pp.

Number of reader reviews: 33
Readers' Consensus: 4.0
More information
Buy This Book
First Impressions: Page 2 of 5
Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Marcia F. (Batavia, IL)

And When She Was Good
"And when she was good" is Laura Lippman at her best. She gives excellent, realistic descriptions of a woman living and surviving in the world of prostitution. How this woman survives the betrayals of those whom she is working for as well as maintaining the secret that she is a single working mom, knowing that at any time her world could be ending, will keep the reader turning the pages. I could not put the book down; it is a thrilling read with a thrilling ending. This makes for a wonderful summer read.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Brenda S. (Grand Rapids, MN)

I Didn't Want It to End
Few books are written that you actually want to take on vacation. Laura Lippman has given us books in the past that are quite good and this one is no exception. I was reading at a good pace, and then slowed down because I didn't want it to end. When you can read a story and feel the emotion from all sides, even anger at the protagonist at times, it is a good story. I was surprised that the story was as current as it was with events that seemed to have occurred just yesterday. Dear Laura: please keep these books coming.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Carol G. (Little Egg Harbor, NJ)

And When She Was Good
I love Laura L's books and this does not disapoint!

The book is well written and explores a subject that is often avoided.

I immediately bonded with the character which is important to me when reading a book; I was unable to put the book down and read it in 2 sittings.

I have read most of Laura's books and I highly recommend them to my book club and friends.

I look forward to her next book and am very grateful that I was chosen to read this book for review.

I hope the author comes to southern NJ in the near future as I would love to meet her.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Wendy H.

And When She Was Good
A thought-provoking stand alone from Laura Lippman. Helen/Heloise is a Starbucks swilling, Maryland suburban “Madam” who wants nothing more than for her young son to wake up every day knowing he is loved and safe, something she never had. The storyline jumps back and forth in time which builds the suspense of the novel, and Lippman does a good job of keeping the transitions smooth. The character of Helen/Heloise is very well drawn and quite complex.

This is a perfect book mystery club selection, especially with the very polarizing topics of should we decriminalize prostitution and is prostitution a victimless crime?

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Cathy W. (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA)

Great Summer Read
Laura Lippman’s intricately plotted crime stories delve into the psychological motivations of the characters. My favorite is What the Dead Know, but And When She Was Good is right up there with a menacing storyline that presents such flawed characters that you sometimes want to shake them to make them understand how foolishly they are behaving. This is another page-turner that will keep you up way past your bedtime.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Aleksandra E. (Alpharetta, GA)

An absolutely riveting read!
I thoroughly enjoyed every single minute of this book. It grips you from the very beginning & is a bonafide page-turner that I could not manage to put down. A thrilling and compelling read that'll hook you until the final pages. A definitely must read for anyone who enjoys a well done thriller.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Cheryl K. (East Aurora, NY)

Great Read!
Laura Lippman has given me so many pleasurable reading experiences, and this one was certainly as enjoyable. Although the main character, Heloise, at first glance appears weak and easily manipulated, she transcends all the negatives that have shaped her life and emerges intact. I love Ms. Lippman's characters....the good, the bad and the horrible. There would be many discussion points for a book club and I would definitely recommend this book to mine.

« prev   1 2 3 4 5   next »

Become a Member
Join Free Trial
Gift Certificate Gift Membership
Golden Boy
Editor's Choice
  •  May 21 
  •  May 20 
  •  May 18 
Helga's Diary
Helga Weiss

Helga's Diary Jacket

The remarkable diary of a young girl who survived the Holocaust—appearing in English for the first time.
Fever
Mary Beth Keane

Fever Jacket

A bold, mesmerizing novel about the woman known as "Typhoid Mary," the first known healthy carrier of typhoid fever in the burgeoning metropolis of early twentieth century New York.
The Woman Upstairs
Claire Messud

The Woman Upstairs Jacket

The riveting confession of a woman awakened, transformed, and betrayed by passion and desire for a world beyond her own.
Click Here
   Most Recent Blog Entries
Movies Based on Books: Summer 2013 (May - August)
Jewish Young Adult Books That Are Not About The Holocaust
Books to Give This Mother's Day
rss  RSS   rss  subscribe
Recent Reader Reviews
Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Fowler
Z, the novel about the life of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald is at points charming and; like another reviewer, I kept thinking of the movie, "Midnight... read more
Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver
Although heavy on the scientific details, which slowed down the story for me (OK, I admit, I was one of those liberal arts majors who skipped out on... read more
The House at the End of Hope Street by Menna van Praag
Loved this book. Magical, quirky, enchanting I could go on. All books do not have to be literary fiction, sometimes it is just so comforting to read... read more
RSS RSS feed More...  
Most Viewed This Week
1. Half the Sky
Nicholas D. Kristof, Sheryl WuDunn
2. A Child Called It
Dave Pelzer
3. And the Mountains Echoed
Khaled Hosseini
4. Defending Jacob
William Landay
5. Into The Wild
Jon Krakauer
More...
Book Club Recommendations
Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?
by Jeanette Winterson
Paperback (Mar/13)
Eleanor & Park
by Rainbow Rowell
Hardback (Feb/13)
The House Girl
by Tara Conklin
Paperback (Oct/13)
The Painted Girls
by Cathy Marie Buchanan
Hardback (Jan/13)
More...
First Impressions
Members read and review books often months before they're published. See what they think in First Impressions!
Golden Boy
by Abigail Tarttelin
4.5 Stars            (May/13)
The Last Girl
by Jane Casey
Four Stars            (May/13)
The Caretaker
by A .X. Ahmad
Four Stars            (May/13)
The Sisterhood
by Helen Bryan
Four Stars            (Apr/13)
More...
  Latest BookBrowse News
British Parliament asks Amazon to clarify why it pays $9 million in income tax on $23 billion of UK sales. (May 20 2013)
Amazon will be called back to give further evidence to members of the British Parliament "to clarify how its activities in the U.K. justify its low corporate... Full Story
rss RSS feed More...
 
BookBrowse Poll
Q: Which of these Summer movies based on books would you like to see? (Info on each movie here)
The Great Gatsby
Epic
Man of Steel
World War Z
The Lone Ranger
The Wolverine
R.I.P.D.
Percy Jackson
Paranoia
The Mortal Instruments
Select Any That Apply
Search: Title or Author
Free Newsletters
The Light Between Oceans

Online Book Club
More about
The Comfort of Lies
Join the discussion!


Win This Book!
On Sal Mal Lane

"Piercingly intelligent and shatter-your-heart profound."

Enter To Win Now!
wordplay
Solve this clue:
"I Y N P O T Solution, Y P O T P"
and be entered
to win....
frame top
New Author
Interviews
Menna van Praag
Erica Brown
Helga Weiss
Kate Morton
frame bottom
HOME Book Submissions | Advertising | Library Subscriptions | Reviewing for BookBrowse | Contact Us  
© BookBrowse LLC 1997-2013. All rights reserved. Information at BookBrowse.com is published with the permission of the copyright holder or their agent. It is forbidden to copy anything for publication elsewhere without written permission from the copyright holder.
privacy statement  |  terms of service  |  contact us