Under the Boardwalk

by Carly Phillips

Book Overview

riana Costas may be a college professor in Vermont, but she's still a Jersey girl at heart-at least according to her lovable, eccentric Greek family. Then her twin sister, Zoe disappears an dher Jersey roots tug hard. Soon Ari is back home, ducking bullets and, to her chagrin, getting rescued by a hunk in a black leather jacket. Detective Quinn Donovan takes one look at the windblown beauty-and then looks again. If this lady isn't Zoe Costas, it's...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0446615803
• ISBN13: 9780446615808
• Release Date: July 2005
• Publisher: Vision
• Length: 289 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.0" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

ATTENTION GRABBING

This book kept my interest from the first chapter on...no skipping forward or cheating by looking to the back. I liked the inter-woven messages of finding new love, but of family and how important family is to each of us. I also enjoy the underlying message the author put in the story of how we often times don't appreciate our families, or the people in our lives, until something happens. This was a great book...steamy love scenes and attention getting...I can't wait to get the follow up to this one.

A Fun, Light Romp and a Great Beach Read

Carly Phillips's latest novel, UNDER THE BOARDWALK, takes the reader to New Jersey and inside the world of casinos, the Mafia, and a crazy Greek family not unlike that from the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding. A great beach read, this book has it all --- comedy, danger and, of course, romance --- the perfect book to take with you on vacation or read on a lazy summer afternoon.Ariana Costas left New Jersey years ago to escape her crazy Greek family. She grew up being embarrassed by this insane group of con artists, and she did her best to be everything they weren't: conservative, proper and stable. She left behind parents, grandparents, cousins and her twin sister, all of whom seemed destined to live out their lives tied to one another by family loyalty and, quite possibly, by a jail cell. Her family was quite proud that they were all very good at making money the unconventional way. For the Costas family, there was no shame in pickpocketing or conning someone out of their money. It was all in a day's work!When Ari returns home to try to find her missing twin sister, she accidentally runs into a very good-looking man who thinks she's her twin, Zoë. Ari finds it hard to believe that anyone can confuse her with Zoë, because Zoë is as unconventional as the rest of the family. Zoë is known as the exciting sexy sister, while Ari is the very conventional, boring one. It doesn't take too long for Quinn Donovan, undercover detective, to figure out who Ari really is. According to Quinn, Zoë is nowhere to be found, but Ari has a feeling that he knows how to help her find her sister.Quinn and Ari's first meeting happens to occur while someone is taking a shot at Ari out on the beach, and Quinn saves her life. Once Quinn figures out who she is, he tells Ari to go home. What he doesn't tell her is that she is endangering a secret undercover surveillance, and her actions could very well get her killed if the wrong people saw her, which they already have. But Ari still does not understand why her sister is missing. All she knows is that Quinn and Zoë worked together at the Casino, and now Zoë has disappeared.When Ari lies to Quinn and says she is returning home to Vermont and her teaching job at the University, she reappears vamped-up and hot-to-trot, and gets a job at the casino so she can do some detective work of her own to find her missing sister. In the meantime, Quinn and Ari find themselves attracted to each other, which makes matters worse. Ari thinks he is attracted to her because she is starting to dress and behave like her sister, and Quinn is worried that Ari's life is in danger. He knows that if Ari is not careful, her life could be on the line.While their adventures at the casino is a major plot line, the action surrounding the Costas family would make a great book on its own. They are constantly up to no good. Add a pet monkey named Spank into the mix, and one has a regular circus. The subplot involving a young teenage foster child named Sam, who Q

A fun beach read

Under the Boardwalk by Carly PhilipsCourtesy of WWW.Loveromances.ComHere's a great beach read to pass the time away on a long lazy summer afternoon: Carly Phillip's UNDER THE BOARDWALK. It's the story of an identical twin that returns home after years of living apart from her family, to find her twin sister that has gone missing. The novel is funny with a little bit of intrigue and adventure and some romance as well, as Ariana Costas, the main character, does her best to find her sister.Ari has never felt that she belonged with her crazy family. Her parents, cousins, aunts and uncles are all a bunch of crazy Greeks who enjoy a good con job to make some instant cash. They don't see their actions as doing anything wrong. They are just trying to earn a living the only way they know how. In addition, as the reader gets involved with the hi-jinks of the Costas family, it is not difficult to fall in love with this zany family. However, Ari always felt she had to be straight-laced and clean, and could not stand living with them. She was embarrassed to be a part of this family. Years ago, she had made a decision to be different from the rest of them, and left home to become a professor at a college in Vermont. Her only reason to return home to New Jersey was because of her sister. Although the two were not as close as they once where, blood is thicker than water.Upon her arrival back in town, Ari runs into a good looking man that thinks Ari is her sister Zoe, and although there is some confusion at first, Quinn Donovan realizes it has to be the other twin. Their meeting occurs while Ari becomes a target as live bullets are firing upon her. Quinn saves her life and makes his introduction. Ari finds out that Zoe and Quinn worked together at the local Casino, and Ari feels that the casino holds the clues to her missing sister. While Quinn tells Ari to go home, because she is putting herself in danger by staying, Ari does the opposite and gets herself a job at the casino. She soon finds her life on the line, as she gets closer to the truth about Zoe.In the mean time, there are sparks flying between Ari and Quinn, but Ari thinks it's because she has dressed herself up to look more like Zoe, who was always been the more glamorous of the two. Quinn, who unknown to Ari is an undercover detective, finds himself drawn to Ari. There are a number of steamy scenes between the two, amidst the action at the casino. The book ends with a climactic scene at the casino, Ari learns the truth about her sister and as with all romances, there is a happy ending.This reviewer enjoyed UNDER THE BOARDWALK for what it was, a beach read. While it wasn't the perfect book, as a casual read it fit the bill. The mix between the mystery behind Zoe's disappearance, the adventures in the casino and the romance between Ari and Quinn did not work well for this reviewer. The book may have been better if there was more emphasis on comedy, especially the Costas family (including their

Another fantastic Carly Phillips story!!!

Under the Boardwalk continues to show off the talent of writer Carly Phillips. Ari Costas and Quinn Donovan, both assuming "undercover" roles, give the book many angles. I thought I was reading 2 books at once sometimes. These characters are extremely well rounded and flawed just like the rest of us. I read this book in a day and a half and enjoyed every word. Thank you, Ms. Phillips for another great story and amazing characters.

exciting police procedural romance

When Vermont based psychology college professor Ariana Costas learns that her twin Zoe is missing and probably dead, she takes a leave of absence and returns to her family home in Ocean Isle, New Jersey. She does not believe Zoe is dead because she has a certain affinity for her sister though they have been estranged for five years since Ariana fled her family of con artists.Quinn Donovan is stunned to see Zoe's sister walking on the beach as Zoe promised that Ariana would never come home. Someone fires a shot at Ariana, but Quinn reacts and knocks her down. After he reluctantly gets off her, they talk. He tells her he worked with her mother and her sister at Damon's Casino, but hides his instant attraction to her and that Special Agent Zoe is safe. Ariana informs him she will stay until Zoe comes home. Quinn worries she will destroy his undercover work at the casino trying to prove illegal happenings. As Ariana and Quinn fall in love, he breaks the rules of undercover work for her while worrying about her safety and their future together.This exciting police procedural romance works on several levels but readers will especially feel the attraction between the two lead protagonists as well as that of a secondary couple. The vast cast adds depth as Ariana learns what family means through the reactions of a street teen to her likable con artist kin though her constant insistence that she does not belong amongst loved ones becomes irritating. Romantic suspense readers will take immense pleasure with this fine suspense laden tale starring a lovable You Can't take It With You cast.Harriet Klausner