Book Review: Damage Control

By Sandy Amazeen Mar 12, 2007, 22:36 GMT

Dana Hill, a successful lawyer in a Seattle law office is a modern woman meaning she has to balance the demands of a profession, motherhood, homemaker and wife. There is little time or energy left to maintain a close relationship with her brother and even less ability to cope with the discovery of a breast lump. Her husband Grant, a lawyer at another firm is no help at all as he struggles with an enormous case that he hopes will secure his future in the company. When Dana is informed of the brutal beating death of her twin brother James, support comes not from her emotionally distant husband but from detective Michael Logan. By the time Dana uncovers her husband’s infidelity and their marriage collapses, she’s too drained to feel much of anything beyond relief.

Logan begins the investigation thinking it’s a clear-cut case of a burglary gone bad but Dana’s discovery of a custom-made earring worth thousands of dollars in James’s bedroom quickly sends the investigation in a different direction. As the body count rises in the wake of James death, Dana finds herself in grave danger as the precious earring may hold the key to a ruthless presidential candidate’s idea of damage control.

Dugoni delivers a smartly paced contemporary murder mystery featuring strong protagonists and a straightforward plot. One of the subplots revolving around a con’s girlfriend is left in question and Dana’s prognosis at the end is hardly credible yet these are minor flaws in an otherwise enjoyable read. Dana’s sleuthing skills combined with Logan’s experience makes one hope for more from this team.