When Lily stumbles upon the well-built corpse of a local body builder-his neck broken by a barbell-the town's underlying racial tension begins to b...
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Jan 30, 2012
Birgit
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Digging into my mystery book stacks, basically choosing the books by blindly picking a random one I came across this second part of a series by Charlaine Harris.
I must confess that the first couple of pages were everything but promising. Dead body in the local gym and the heroine Lily Bard is heavily into workout herself. Not exactly the kind of starting point I warm up to easily. But then, after more pages I simply couldn't put the book down. While Lily is far from being a likable person, More...
I must confess that the first couple of pages were everything but promising. Dead body in the local gym and the heroine Lily Bard is heavily into workout herself. Not exactly the kind of starting point I warm up to easily. But then, after more pages I simply couldn't put the book down. While Lily is far from being a likable person, More...
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Nov 22, 2011
Sarah
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Nov 02, 2011
Niki
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Aug 16, 2010
Shannon
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This was an entertaining little (and I mean little at only 214 pages) mystery, however I didn't like it as well as Harris' Sookie Sackhouse books or even her Harper Connelly books. The tone of the book felt more depressing. It wasn't as well balanced as her other series--she usually does a great job of mixing humor and lightness with angst and trauma.
The main character Lily Bard went through a torture and rape years ago, and moved to a small town Shakespeare in the aftermath. She le More...
The main character Lily Bard went through a torture and rape years ago, and moved to a small town Shakespeare in the aftermath. She le More...
May 14, 2010
Starling
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This is the second book in the Lily Bard series and the last of Charlaine Harris' series that I'm reading.
I like Lily Bard. Like all of Harris' heroines she is damaged. She is damaged much more than any of the others, but like all of them we meet her in the first book right at the point where she has licked her wounds just enough that she is ready to pick her head up and start looking at life again.
She has built stability. She has a business that is going well. She has begun More...
I like Lily Bard. Like all of Harris' heroines she is damaged. She is damaged much more than any of the others, but like all of them we meet her in the first book right at the point where she has licked her wounds just enough that she is ready to pick her head up and start looking at life again.
She has built stability. She has a business that is going well. She has begun More...
May 03, 2010
Aaron
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The usually quiet and quirky town of Shakespeare Arkansas is once again confronted with violence and it will be up to local cleaning lady Lily Bard to get to the root of the problem before more people end up heart or dead.
The trouble starts one morning when she arrives at the gym and finds one a fellow member dead, having had his throat crushed under some equipment. At first people believe it might have been an accident, but it quickly becomes clear that there is more going on as oth More...
The trouble starts one morning when she arrives at the gym and finds one a fellow member dead, having had his throat crushed under some equipment. At first people believe it might have been an accident, but it quickly becomes clear that there is more going on as oth More...
Aug 29, 2009
Kayeb
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Now I know how she meets Jack! Once more the heroine gets beat up a whole bunch more than I could tolerate. I know stories can be written without so much damage to humans... and are quite good. Or, at least the damage is less frequent, damaging etc. Wonder what goes on in the mind of someone who uses so much violence? Somehow, Harris does not look to be a major fighter....
Lily Bard was running from shattering memories when she moved to Shakespeare, Arkansas. Now cleaning ho More...
Lily Bard was running from shattering memories when she moved to Shakespeare, Arkansas. Now cleaning ho More...
Apr 06, 2008
Cherie
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This is the second book in the Lily Bard Mystery series. I'm really beginning to like Lily cuz she kicks ass! :P Granted, I may not always agree with her "need to be alone" attitude but I can understand where it comes from. Like the other reviewers, I liked this one a bit more than the first one as there was definitely more action here, and more setup there.
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Nov 17, 2009
Gerald
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Jan 18, 2011
Yolanda
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This is the second book in The Lily Bard Mysteries Omnibus, and I enjoyed it as much as the first one. It starts off with a pretty macabre murder, and things only get more dire from that point.
Lily Bard is a maid. She cleans the houses of a lot of the families around the small town of Shakespeare. She's content with her job, enjoys keeping other people's homes tidy and making money for herself. But more importantly, it's a job she can do on her own, without having to work with or for More...
Lily Bard is a maid. She cleans the houses of a lot of the families around the small town of Shakespeare. She's content with her job, enjoys keeping other people's homes tidy and making money for herself. But more importantly, it's a job she can do on her own, without having to work with or for More...
Apr 03, 2010
Stacie
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This is the second Lily Bard mystery by Charlaine Harris. This story takes place about six months after the first one. Lily is realizing that Marshal is not for her and that the Chief of Police was never going to accept being just friends with her. When she helps Marshal open his gym and finds a dead body everything changes. The complications that ensue throughout this story were very interesting, but make me wonder if there is a short story between the books. This mystery and murders deal
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May 25, 2011
Reading
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Review Written by Andrea @ Reading Lark
Going back to spend more time with Lily Bard and the other residents of Shakespeare was more enjoyable for me than the first time I met them. This book is much darker and tackles some pretty serious issues such as race and gender issues in the deep south. I personally preferred this over the run of the mill murder mystery from the first book. However, this one is certainly not for the faint of heart. There are many disturbing events and the violen More...
Going back to spend more time with Lily Bard and the other residents of Shakespeare was more enjoyable for me than the first time I met them. This book is much darker and tackles some pretty serious issues such as race and gender issues in the deep south. I personally preferred this over the run of the mill murder mystery from the first book. However, this one is certainly not for the faint of heart. There are many disturbing events and the violen More...
May 25, 2011
Andrea (Reading Lark)
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Review Posted on Reading Lark 5/25/11
Going back to spend more time with Lily Bard and the other residents of Shakespeare was more enjoyable for me than the first time I met them. This book is much darker and tackles some pretty serious issues such as race and gender issues in the deep south. I personally preferred this over the run of the mill murder mystery from the first book. However, this one is certainly not for the faint of heart. There are many disturbing events and the violence More...
Going back to spend more time with Lily Bard and the other residents of Shakespeare was more enjoyable for me than the first time I met them. This book is much darker and tackles some pretty serious issues such as race and gender issues in the deep south. I personally preferred this over the run of the mill murder mystery from the first book. However, this one is certainly not for the faint of heart. There are many disturbing events and the violence More...
Aug 12, 2011
Lane
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For more reviews check out my blog, Thoughts of a Fashionista!
Lily Bard thought moving to Shakespeare, Arkansas meant a quiet life--meaning no murder, please. But she's in for a rude awakening when two murders happen back to back. The awakening becomes even ruder when Lily stumbles upon the third dead body in her safe haven--the gym. A dark-haired man starts appearing everywhere and Lily needs to find out who the killer is before more people end up dead. Things are definitely gettin More...
Lily Bard thought moving to Shakespeare, Arkansas meant a quiet life--meaning no murder, please. But she's in for a rude awakening when two murders happen back to back. The awakening becomes even ruder when Lily stumbles upon the third dead body in her safe haven--the gym. A dark-haired man starts appearing everywhere and Lily needs to find out who the killer is before more people end up dead. Things are definitely gettin More...
Nov 12, 2009
Leslie
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I always stay away from books, that deal with war, racism , great human suffering (the holocaust,genocide..) So when I realized the second Lily Bard book would deal with racism in the south, I was not looking forward to reading it. I guess since most of Charlaine Harris books are based in the south , it was only a matter of time before the topic would come up. Lily Bard is such a strong female character , that's been through so much. Sometimes she seems to be rude and short with people, but bein
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Oct 31, 2011
Joie1M
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I really need to take some karate.
At least, this is what Lily Bard has me inspired to do now that I have two of her books under my white belt.
Shakespeare’s Champion was much better than Landlord. I want to say it’s because the characters are already well established, but I don’t think that is why.
The intrigue in Champion has more spider webs that feel less like entropy, and more like interlocking pieces. The hardest part for me was the very beginning, and how it tied into the More...
At least, this is what Lily Bard has me inspired to do now that I have two of her books under my white belt.
Shakespeare’s Champion was much better than Landlord. I want to say it’s because the characters are already well established, but I don’t think that is why.
The intrigue in Champion has more spider webs that feel less like entropy, and more like interlocking pieces. The hardest part for me was the very beginning, and how it tied into the More...
Jun 28, 2011
Kathy
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Aug 14, 2011
Trendhater73
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The Lily Bard series is not one of my favorites so far. They are ok books, but nothing spectacular. The first one was better, more organized. I finished reading this book about two minutes ago and figured I'd review it while it was fresh in my mind. For some reason, I forgot to review the first book in this series.
This second book was confusing and more complicated than necessary. Charlaine Harris seemed to be trying to fit an awful lot into one little book. In trying to cover her tr More...
This second book was confusing and more complicated than necessary. Charlaine Harris seemed to be trying to fit an awful lot into one little book. In trying to cover her tr More...
May 28, 2011
nurmawati
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Jul 23, 2009
Amanda
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Another great book in the Lily Bard Series. I truly enjoyed the creativity in the book and the overall tension created by the view of different races in Shakespeare. Lily Bard was a heroic figure who did not mind getting her hands dirty. I liked the fact that she had no fear of mingling with African American people in the community even during the tensions that were emerging.
It was a great mystery determining who was involved and their motives during the growing tension. Finding how More...
It was a great mystery determining who was involved and their motives during the growing tension. Finding how More...
Jun 30, 2011
Rhonda
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Lily Bard Mysteries are about a House cleaner and others odd jobs. Lily years ago was attacked raped and has scars physcal and mental. To cope she takes Karate classes, weight lifting and when she cant sleep long walks at night by herself. She does not get to close to others. Her family lives away from her by her choice.
Her karate and owner of the gym is sometime her lover. Is sick with flu and asks her to open the gym for him till he can get somone to work. while she is finding the right More...
Her karate and owner of the gym is sometime her lover. Is sick with flu and asks her to open the gym for him till he can get somone to work. while she is finding the right More...
Feb 05, 2011
Annie
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Let me start out by saying that Lily Bard is a bad a**! She's tough, determined, & doesn't take crap from anyone!
This book starts off with one mystery and ends up with about 5 or 6 by the end of it. Different from the first book in the series, which focused on only events surrounding one murder. I'll admit I got alittle confused with all the events going on, especially since Harris doesn't always explain who people are/they're background stories at first. I honestly thought the myster More...
This book starts off with one mystery and ends up with about 5 or 6 by the end of it. Different from the first book in the series, which focused on only events surrounding one murder. I'll admit I got alittle confused with all the events going on, especially since Harris doesn't always explain who people are/they're background stories at first. I honestly thought the myster More...
Jan 19, 2009
크리스티
rated it:
I know I can't blame the book it was me I think - but I just did not have any interest in the book. It was like a chore for me to read it through. I had to keep telling myself it was going to end soon just finish it. I do have to say I was horribly confused with the "incident" and then taking forever to finally revel what happened. I thought I was missing a book. I can't even count how many times I checked to make sure this was the second book. I think the book might have caught my int
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Aug 15, 2011
Yvonne
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Lily moved to Shakespeare after being raped and cut badly. She works as a cleaner because it is something she knows how to do and she is her own boss. She works out, a lot. The gym is one of the few places that she feels safe, that is until she goes in one morning and finds a body.
This book is quite dark with a fair amount of violence and racial tension. I like Lily, she is tough, sensible and independent. I think her response to people is very realistic after what she went through. I like More...
This book is quite dark with a fair amount of violence and racial tension. I like Lily, she is tough, sensible and independent. I think her response to people is very realistic after what she went through. I like More...
Dec 01, 2010
Rachel
rated it:
Well I do love Charlaine Harris books it's official! I've already read the Harper Connolly series and am half way through Sookie Stackhouse (trying to pace myself through that series) and now I'm loving Lily Bard too.
Lily makes me want to get super fit so I can fight and makes me want to clean everything in my house. Another enjoyable story with Lily at the centre despite her not wanting to be and some changes in her love life too (not going to spoil that!).
It's not high br More...
Lily makes me want to get super fit so I can fight and makes me want to clean everything in my house. Another enjoyable story with Lily at the centre despite her not wanting to be and some changes in her love life too (not going to spoil that!).
It's not high br More...
Dec 09, 2009
Tina
rated it:
Hmmm. I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first book.
It starts out promising enough. Lily discovers the dead body of a bodybuilder at the gym where she works out. Simple enough... but then we start hearing about Lily and her involvement in "the fight" and how it has brought some negative attention to her in the town. Now I'd read the first book and I couldn't remember anything about a fight. Turns out, as we learn in flashback, that recently Lily had intervened in More...
It starts out promising enough. Lily discovers the dead body of a bodybuilder at the gym where she works out. Simple enough... but then we start hearing about Lily and her involvement in "the fight" and how it has brought some negative attention to her in the town. Now I'd read the first book and I couldn't remember anything about a fight. Turns out, as we learn in flashback, that recently Lily had intervened in More...
Jun 22, 2011
Gemma (Passion for Novels)
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I loved the second Lily Bard mystery, it was so much more in depth than the first which made it not only a murder mystery like the first but unveiling a plot against racists.
Lily is back to cleaning after her last ordeal and ends it with Marshall, when someone is found dead at the fitness centre, Lily is ploughed back into a world of investigation. After this ordeal I'm suprised Lily has any area of her body which is not scared! She certainly isn't the damsel in distress which is why More...
Lily is back to cleaning after her last ordeal and ends it with Marshall, when someone is found dead at the fitness centre, Lily is ploughed back into a world of investigation. After this ordeal I'm suprised Lily has any area of her body which is not scared! She certainly isn't the damsel in distress which is why More...
Sep 24, 2009
chris
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Amazon.com Review
No steel magnolia, Lily Bart is one blunt, tough Southern woman--a tiny, karate-chopping, bodybuilding dynamo who's come to Shakespeare, Arkansas, to restart her life after a series of traumatic events just hinted at in this second novel in Charlaine Harris's series (after Shakespeare's Landlord). When she slips into her gym for an early morning workout and finds Del Packard with a barbell across his throat, she doesn't think for more than a second that it's an accident. N More...
No steel magnolia, Lily Bart is one blunt, tough Southern woman--a tiny, karate-chopping, bodybuilding dynamo who's come to Shakespeare, Arkansas, to restart her life after a series of traumatic events just hinted at in this second novel in Charlaine Harris's series (after Shakespeare's Landlord). When she slips into her gym for an early morning workout and finds Del Packard with a barbell across his throat, she doesn't think for more than a second that it's an accident. N More...
Nov 29, 2011
Ellie
rated it:
Things have taken on a darker edge in the second instalment of the Lily Bard Mysteries. The town's champion body builder is found dead at Marshall's gym and all signs point away from accident. With that and the deaths of two others, one a young black man Lily had recently saved in a fight, the racial tension in the town is reaching boiling point.
Shakespeare's Champion started off very much like the first book, with Lily going about her training and cleaning routines and keeping the l More...
Shakespeare's Champion started off very much like the first book, with Lily going about her training and cleaning routines and keeping the l More...
Nov 05, 2011
LateNiteReader
rated it:
This is my first Charlaine Harris, and I don't know why, but I was expecting more of a humor element to it. With that preconception, I found it to be a hard slog to the end. The plot was a little choppy, as Lily moves between increasingly grim events. I was also expecting Lily to be more of a detective, but its more like things just sort of happen to her until she adds it all up.
Still want to try Club Dead, but no more Lily Bard for me. More...
Still want to try Club Dead, but no more Lily Bard for me. More...
