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4th out of 12 books
—
14 voters
Turning Angel (Penn Cage #2)
by
Greg Iles
After winning the most dangerous case of his career, prosecutor Penn Cage decides to remain in his Southern hometown to raise his young daughter in a safe haven. But nowhere is truly safe -- not from long-buried secrets, or murder....When the nude body of prep school student Kate Townsend is found near the Mississippi River, Penn's best friend, Drew Elliott, is desperate f...more
Paperback, 672 pages
Published
November 21st 2006
by Pocket Books
(first published 2005)
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If you're just reading Greg Iles for the first time, here's his advice on the order in which to read his books:
If you have just read Turning Angel, you should next read The Quiet Game, the novel in which Penn Cage first appeared, and which many readers believe is my best book. Blood Memory was written before Turning Angel, and Penn’s father Tom Cage appears there in a supporting role, but I would read “Blood Memory” after “The Quiet Game,” not before. You will appreciate Tom much more then.
Of my...more
If you have just read Turning Angel, you should next read The Quiet Game, the novel in which Penn Cage first appeared, and which many readers believe is my best book. Blood Memory was written before Turning Angel, and Penn’s father Tom Cage appears there in a supporting role, but I would read “Blood Memory” after “The Quiet Game,” not before. You will appreciate Tom much more then.
Of my...more
Turning Angel is a damn good book.
"After winning the most dagerous case of his career, prosecutor Penn Cage decides to remain in his Southern hometown to raise his youg daughter in a safe haven. But nowhere is truly safe - from long-buried secrets, or murder... When the nude body of prep school student Kate Townsend is found ner the Mississippi River, Penn's besdt friend, Drew Elliott, is desperate for his counsel. An esteemed family physician, Drew makes a shocking confession tha could put him...more
"After winning the most dagerous case of his career, prosecutor Penn Cage decides to remain in his Southern hometown to raise his youg daughter in a safe haven. But nowhere is truly safe - from long-buried secrets, or murder... When the nude body of prep school student Kate Townsend is found ner the Mississippi River, Penn's besdt friend, Drew Elliott, is desperate for his counsel. An esteemed family physician, Drew makes a shocking confession tha could put him...more
This is easily the worst book I've ever read, and I've read Jewel's book of poetry. The story seems to exist only as a vehicle for Iles to create this ludicrous world in which sexy, teenage girls are unable to keep from flinging themselves at every middle-aged man that comes along. This might make for some great poker night b.s. stories for Iles and his buddies, but as a novel, it comes off as a pervert's collection of fantasties. Just creepy. Imagine if John Mark Karr rewrote Lolita, and you've...more
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A very intense, methodically-developed thriller about life in the declining town of Natchez, Mississippi. The story is told by the main character, ex-prosecutor, now author, Penn Cage. Penn moves back to Natchez, his home town, at the urging of one of his closest childhood friends, prominent town doctor, Drew Elliott. Now a widower, with 9-year old daughter, Annie, Penn settles in and develops a relationship with newspaper editor, Caitlin. While Caitlin is spending much of her time on a story, a...more
Don’t know what I’m doing in my dotage. I downloaded these guys virtually one after the other and hardly put them down till they were finished. Greg Iles is a master of the page turner, leaving you at the end of the page aching to find out what’s on the next. And he creates nice characters and super situations. Each book has a little message or group of messages to deliver. Blood Memory is about child abuse and recovered memory; Turning Angel is about high school drugs and sex and how ignorant a...more
After the body of a beautiful 17 year old high school student is found on the banks of the river, Penn Cage's best friend Dr. Drew Elliott confesses to him that he had had a relationship with the girl. Even though Cage is no longer a practicing lawyer, he tries to advise his friend, but things quickly spiral out of control. Revelations about drug abuse and promiscuity keep Cage spinning from one direction to another. To add to the difficulties, the DA wants to be mayor and he believes convicting...more
This is the second of the Penn Cage novels, but this was the first Greg Iles' book I ever read. The second I read the last page, I went to Amazon and ordered every other book he's ever written. This is still one of my favorite Greg Iles' novels and while I really enjoyed "The Devil's Punchbowl," the third book with Penn, I cannot wait for "Unwritten Laws" hopefully coming out in December.
(From B&N)
After winning the most dangerous case of his career, prosecutor Penn Cage decides to remain in...more
(From B&N)
After winning the most dangerous case of his career, prosecutor Penn Cage decides to remain in...more
Nov 13, 2011
Jane Stewart
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
mystery-suspense
There are so many unlikeable and unethical people in this book, on all sides of the law. It’s an ok mystery, long and complicated.
STORY BRIEF:
Drew is a medical doctor in his 40s. His wife is addicted to prescription pills. He falls in love with their babysitter Kate who is 17. They have frequent sex. Kate asks Drew to meet her. When he arrives he finds her dead, strangled, and raped. Drew moves the body. A blackmailer calls Drew wanting money. Drew is arrested for the murder of Kate. Drew’s long...more
STORY BRIEF:
Drew is a medical doctor in his 40s. His wife is addicted to prescription pills. He falls in love with their babysitter Kate who is 17. They have frequent sex. Kate asks Drew to meet her. When he arrives he finds her dead, strangled, and raped. Drew moves the body. A blackmailer calls Drew wanting money. Drew is arrested for the murder of Kate. Drew’s long...more
When I started reading Turning Angel, I found myself arguing about reasons why I should like it.
Synopsis: In a small American town in the South called Natchez, a high school girl called Kate Townsend is found dead. Beautiful, intelligent, and popular, her death sends the town reeling. Penn Cage, for whom this book is the second in his series, finds even more surprises. Namely, that his long-time friend, Drew Elliot, admits to having sex with the deceased girl. And by the way, this isn't a spoile...more
Synopsis: In a small American town in the South called Natchez, a high school girl called Kate Townsend is found dead. Beautiful, intelligent, and popular, her death sends the town reeling. Penn Cage, for whom this book is the second in his series, finds even more surprises. Namely, that his long-time friend, Drew Elliot, admits to having sex with the deceased girl. And by the way, this isn't a spoile...more
Apr 03, 2010
Nancy
rated it
1 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
A dumpster
Shelves:
murder-mystery,
fiction
I found this book disturbing on many levels not the least was the relationships between a high school girl and a doctor more than twice her age. Along with this, the doctor allows the girl to get into dangerous situations in helping him supply pain killers for his addicted wife.
Penn Cage, his friend whose life the doctor saved, is sexually tempted by his daughter's babysitter, Mia Burke. Cage also puts Mia, another high school student, in tremendous danger when she helps him unravel the myster...more
Penn Cage, his friend whose life the doctor saved, is sexually tempted by his daughter's babysitter, Mia Burke. Cage also puts Mia, another high school student, in tremendous danger when she helps him unravel the myster...more
Greg Iles has written a 500 page novel which would make any person's stomach turn when thinking of the corruption of Natchez, Mississippi or I guess Anytown USA. This was at the core a murder mystery with a fairly engaging lawyer/writer Penn Cage. He is a good core character, but what ruined it for me and I can bet lots of fans was the disgusting portrayal of the affair of the town's 40 year old physician and resident hottie with the town's 17 year old high school queen. I'm not naive I know the...more
There’s been a lot of buzz for Greg Iles’ latest novel “Turning Angel” and after reading it, all I can say is that it deserves every bit of it.
Dr Drew Elliot seems to have it all-he’s the trusted doctor in the small town of Nachez, Mississippi. He’s successful professionally, he’s married with a family, he’s got the big house and all the trappings. But he has a dark secret-he’s been carrying on an affair with a 17-year old cheerleader and tennis phenom, who is bound for Harvard. When the girl’s...more
Dr Drew Elliot seems to have it all-he’s the trusted doctor in the small town of Nachez, Mississippi. He’s successful professionally, he’s married with a family, he’s got the big house and all the trappings. But he has a dark secret-he’s been carrying on an affair with a 17-year old cheerleader and tennis phenom, who is bound for Harvard. When the girl’s...more
I read this book on CD on my trip from Virginia to Florida. It kept my interest, but I am increasingly distressed over the portrayal of supposedly intelligent, successful men who are pillars of the community falling hopelessly in love with high school girls who are beautiful, intelligent, amoral and so sexually sophisticated that they make hookers look like librarians. Real people just don't act this way unless they are deeply flawed and that is usually apparent by their lifestyle.
In reality, t...more
In reality, t...more
I recently finished Turning Angel by Greg Iles. It was a pick from my church book club, and I’m sad that I didn’t get to go. This is the third one in a row I have missed. I still try to follow along with all the books, and I finished this one yesterday.
I often love to read something different. You’ve heard me say before that the story comes first. Even if the writing is not up to snuff, the story always shines through for me. I felt that way about the Twilight Saga, and I even feel that way abou...more
I often love to read something different. You’ve heard me say before that the story comes first. Even if the writing is not up to snuff, the story always shines through for me. I felt that way about the Twilight Saga, and I even feel that way abou...more
I read Greg Iles' The Devil's Punchbowl before I discovered Goodreads, so I completed the third Penn Cage book, prior to reading Turning Angel (#2). It would have been better to begin with ****, the first in the series. I really like Penn Cage as a main character. He'a single parent dad (who lost his wife to cancer), and a trial lawyer, now making his living as a writer. He lives in Natchez, Miss., where he grew up. This book is about several major issues: A) the testing of a friendship when Pen...more
Iles is an author discovered through recommendations on Goodreads. This book was a real page-turner, despite the fact that this is a fairly lengthy book, I finished it in three days. The good news and bad news is that this book is in the middle of a series. I purchased the other books, but will be reading the next one as a 'prequel'.
The protagonist, Penn Cage, is an appealing character who is drawn well. He narrates the story and provides his thoughts. The book is set in Natchez, MS where Cage h...more
The protagonist, Penn Cage, is an appealing character who is drawn well. He narrates the story and provides his thoughts. The book is set in Natchez, MS where Cage h...more
Dec 23, 2010
Craig Meads
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Anyone that likes a good, satisfying read.
Recommended to Craig by:
Wal-Mart, it was an impulse purchase.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
The very idea of an affair between a 40-something Natchez, Mississippi physician,Drew Elliot, and his 17-year-old babysitter, Kate Townsend, is unsettling. The fact that the school valedictorian, tennis star, and soon-to-be Harvard freshman is mature beyond her years, has the hots for the good doctor, and comes on to him first is no excuse. The girl is found dead and the coroner determines that not only was her death caused by strangulation rather than drowning, there was also evidence of rape....more
WEEK 3
WORD: ZING
BONUS: LEAVES
MY LETTER: G - author Greg Iles
Book: Turning Angel by Greg Iles
Finished: March 25, 2013
Rating & Book Review: 4 stars - Really enjoyed this novel. It's been quite some time since I read the first of the series and I can't really remember it particularly well but based on this one, I'll keep reading. The story itself has been done before and was a bit overdramatic, but Iles writing kept me turning pages. Characters were likable (unless they weren't supposed to be)...more
WORD: ZING
BONUS: LEAVES
MY LETTER: G - author Greg Iles
Book: Turning Angel by Greg Iles
Finished: March 25, 2013
Rating & Book Review: 4 stars - Really enjoyed this novel. It's been quite some time since I read the first of the series and I can't really remember it particularly well but based on this one, I'll keep reading. The story itself has been done before and was a bit overdramatic, but Iles writing kept me turning pages. Characters were likable (unless they weren't supposed to be)...more
Greg Iles is a master and this book doesn't disappoint.
If you've read Iles before, you'd know Tom Cage and the town of Natchez. This book is set in Natchez too, but it stars Cage's son, Penn Cage, attorney/author, who re-locates to Natchez to find solace for himself and his 9 year old daughter after the death of his wife. Here ends the misty bit.
What follows is a deadly drama of violence, drugs, sex and all the dirty little secrets a nondescript town like Natchez hides. At the centre are Drew,...more
If you've read Iles before, you'd know Tom Cage and the town of Natchez. This book is set in Natchez too, but it stars Cage's son, Penn Cage, attorney/author, who re-locates to Natchez to find solace for himself and his 9 year old daughter after the death of his wife. Here ends the misty bit.
What follows is a deadly drama of violence, drugs, sex and all the dirty little secrets a nondescript town like Natchez hides. At the centre are Drew,...more
Turning Angel was a superb follow up to The Quiet Game, the first book in the Penn Cage series, which had me turning pages at a fever pitch to unravel the complex and riveting plot. It kept me guessing what would happen all the way through, and the outcome was a surprise, to say the least. Greg Iles has a profound mastery of the language that I find second to none. This story is set five years after the events of The Quiet Game. Once again, Penn Cage finds himself embroiled in a mind-bending mur...more
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The body of a popular high school girl? Girl? The girl in question (Kate) may well be a few weeks short of her 18th birthday but she, along with just about every other 'girl' in the book, certainly isn't like the girl I was or indeed like any of the girls I knew. Worryingly sexually experienced, at times the author went into a few too many details for my comfort.
Though mainly about the rape and murder of Kate and the subsequent arrest of Drew, side stories also looked at the issue of drugs and...more
Though mainly about the rape and murder of Kate and the subsequent arrest of Drew, side stories also looked at the issue of drugs and...more
The premise of the story is sound. The plot is good. The characters, with the exception of Penn Cage, were very unlikeable.I could not get invested in the story. I did not think this book was suspenseful or much of a mystery. It was a not good "detective" book. The question of "who-done-it" was apparent early on. Maybe if I had not "cut my teeth" on E.A. Poe,the Father of the Detective genre, in the 3rd grade and continued a 30+ year love of detective-mystery plots I would have found it more ent...more
So far I am loving it. I have a hard time putting it down. This is also the first time I am reading Greg Iles and I think I should read more from him.
What do I think? I was disappointed. This book was filled with an over-abundance of needless, unrealistic sex. I think the author was having a...um, well I won't say it, but there were parts of the book where I thought, "is he doing this because he has to have so many pages to fulfill his contract? And really, how many times does he think a woman can, um, in one night? He's just dreaming or someone's been lying to him about that." Anyway, all that ...um, wasn't needed and it got to the point whe...more
I really got into the feeling of being on the edge where a secret death shocks many where it takes it's place of events of so many lives in St. Stephen's Prep, who was involved in the death, many people of the little Mississippi town of how they were unprepared for all the secrets that they are going to have to reveal. St. Stephen's Prep is an ordinary school as far as the parents were concerned until Penn Cage, former student and recently returning to his native Natchez is found defending an ol...more
I just finished reading Turning Angel. I couldn't put it down. there was always a new twist in the story is often an expose on the use of sex and drugs by American adolescents and is very graphic in details of the sexual procility and promiscuity of the teens. There is a very strong comparison of values of older generations and current adolescents. Iles builds strong views of each character complete with their flaws. He also discusses race relations and politics of today, more so in the south. T...more
I disliked this book the more I read it ...I'm sure that the reason I, as a Black man, put it on my to read list is because some review must have said that it dealt with race relations in the Deep South, a murder mystery, and it had an abundance of Black characters. And it did. But I could not shake the feeling that all of the black folks were "others". None were drawn as real people but more like props...one central character..the ex-army drug dealer..hunh? was so cartoonishly drawn as to be lu...more
Much more than a thriller, Turning Angel is a portrait of a Southern town blighted by a poor economy, bad schools, drugs, racial tensions, and the contrast between this life and the one of privilege. Iles, who lives in Natchez, convincingly depicts how these tensions play out among high school students, who, as Gage repeatedly learns, are not the innocent babes of his youth. The lurid scenes of pornography, drugs, and sex will attract many readers, but so will Iles's portrayal of emotions and mo
...more
I hated this book. It's filled with completely unrealistic story lines, characters that are patently unbelievable in a small Southern town, and the dialogue is extremely preachy and contrived. Additionally, the relationships between the protaganist and his babysitter has got to be a joke, right? She's constantly having this sophisticated and ultra-intelligent, yet sensitive and seductive conversations with Penn Cage, and it literally had me rolling my eyes. Also, if you have any sort of opinions...more
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Greg Iles was born in Germany in 1960. He grew up in Natchez, Mississippi, and graduated from the University of Mississippi in 1983. He was active in a band called "Frankly Scarlet", but quit after realizing that the touring lifestyle was not conducive with his family life. Once no longer busy with the band, he turned his attention to writing.
Greg's novels have been translated into various languag...more
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“Just because you will not see the work completed does not mean you are free not to take it up.”
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