Deadly Blessings: An Alex St. James Mystery

by Julie Hyzy

Book Overview

It's not often Alex St. James has a story like this fall into her lap, only to have it snatched away again. As news researcher at Midwest Focus Television in Chicago, she'd been set to interview a... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• ISBN: 0373268955
• ISBN13: 9780373268955
• Release Date: May 2014
• Publisher: Worldwide Library Worldwide Mystery
• Length: 346 Pages
• Weight: 0.43 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Another great read.....

from Ms. Hyzy, whom I've just discovered thru "State of the Onion". Although I have to say this wasn't a surprise ending for me, especially given the book's title, I greatly appreciated the writing, the development of the plot, the heroine's personality, and her "life". I am looking forward to the second in the Alex St. James series, Deadly Interest, while awaiting the arrival of Ms. Hyzy's "Artistic License", which hopefully arrives soon....and the second in her White House Chef series starring Olivia Paras.

A Great Read by a Great Writer

Ms. Hyzy kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end. Unlike other mystery novels where the reader has suspicions as to the outcome, I didn't have a clue. "Deadly Blessings" is well written, very clever, fast paced, and an enjoyable read for anyone who is looking for a great mystery.

Page Turner by Jules Hyzy

I found the book, Deadly Blessings, to be timely and a good read. The dialogue is crisp; the subject matter thought provoking; and the writing excellent. A winner!

Great New Series By a Great New Writer

With the debut of her first novel, Artistic License, readers knew Julie A. Hyzy was something special. Now, with her second, Deadly Blessings, she's on her way to becoming a new superstar. The first in a series featuring Chicago-based news researcher, Alex St. James, Hyzy has created a modern-girl heroine whom we can't help but adore. She's smart and sassy, she has a Napoleonic boss and an unfulfilled love life; she's got family burdens, pesky relatives, and an interesting supporting cast to round things out. In the spirit of Sue Grafton's Kinsey Milhone, Alex is a joy as she narrates the first person account of tracing down a story of the exploitation of Eastern European women by powerful forces. It's a theme ripped from today's headlines, and told with an expert and unrelenting pace as well as some very fabulous writing. All of the characters are so real that they practically leap off the page with crisp dialogue, humanistic foibles, and real-life problems. There isn't a cardboard one in the bunch. This is mystery-suspense at its finest. Hyzy is a polished stylist who knows how to write one hell of a story. It'll keep you turning the pages long into the night. Don't dare miss it.

solid journalist investigative tale

In Chicago Alexandrine "Alex" St. James has a story that can make her TV journalist career revolving around a twenty-two year old Polish immigrant Milla Voight impregnated by Father Carlos de los Santos. However, someone kills Milla while Carlos flees to his native Brazil. To Alex's chagrin her boss at Midwest Focus Television newsmagazine Philip "Bass" Bassett takes her off the follow-up story replacing her with newcomer Fenton Foss, nephew of a management big cheese. She is assigned to investigate beauty salons that have failed its clients with poor perms. Since Milla worked Hair to Die For salon, Alex starts there figuring she can meet the assignment, but also investigate the homicide. DEADLY BLESSINGS is a solid journalist investigative tale starring a delightful heroine who needs future appearances. Alex makes the tale work as she plays with the cards that her boss and her boyfriend provide to her in a game that the two men rig. The twists are shrewdly used to provide insight into the heroine as much as into the case except for an eye opening final spin in which professional ethics is discarded for career enhancement. Julie Hyzy provides a tense tale that showcases a darker side to Chicago and the church that comes across badly using the flock for personal gain. Harriet Klausner