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Tough Customer (Mitchell & Associates #2)

by Sandra Brown (Goodreads Author)

3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 · rating details · 4,636 ratings · 421 reviews

Colleagues, friends, and lovers know Dodge Hanley as a private investigator who doesn’t let rules get in his way—in his private life as well as his professional one. If he breaks a heart, or bends the law in order to catch a criminal, he does so without hesitation or apology.That’s why he’s the first person Caroline King—who after a thirty-year separation continues to haun...more

ebook, 288 pages

Published August 10th 2010 by Simon & Schuster (first published 2010)

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Jan 13, 2013 Lea's Audiobooks Hensley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Narrated by Victor Slezak
During my Sandra Brown audio glom last year, I met the hero of Tough Customer, Dodge Hanley, in Smash Cut. He’s a middle aged hard-talking, chain-smoking investigator. I can’t say I saw hero potential in Dodge but I didn’t know that’s what Brown had in mind either. It’s been thirty years since his divorce from the love of his life, Caroline, but at her call for help he travels to Houston to assist in finding the madman stalking her daughter Berry. A fourth character, Ski...more

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Jul 26, 2011 Joanne rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

WOW!!!!!!! This author is fantastic!!!!! "Tough Customer". A movie should be made of it. A true page turner and I didn't want it to end.......great suspense, a true who done it!!! Finding one's true love again after 30 yrs........finding that love is even stronger then ever!! Dodge Hanley getting to know his daughter that he has not seen since her birth, 30 yrs ago.......a deranged stalker bent on killing his daughter Berry....and he must protect the love of his life Caroline and his daughter Be...more

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Oct 03, 2012 Britt rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own, sandra-brown, romantic-suspense

If anyone had read my review of Smash Cut I spent many sentences describing just how much I loved Dodge in that book and wished that perhaps we had seen more into them. I was definitely pleasantly surprised to start this book (I've been collecting Brown books and tend to just randomly pick one off my shelf and go for it) and realise that my favourite man was there again!

I really liked this book, particularly how it slowly told us Caroline and Dodge's story from the past and how everything went s...more If anyone had read my review of Smash Cut I spent many sentences describing just how much I loved Dodge in that book and wished that perhaps we had seen more into them. I was definitely pleasantly surprised to start this book (I've been collecting Brown books and tend to just randomly pick one off my shelf and go for it) and realise that my favourite man was there again!

I really liked this book, particularly how it slowly told us Caroline and Dodge's story from the past and how everything went so wrong. I've read Brown books where they start in the past and tell the story (such as Breath of a Scandal) before going on to the present, but I found I really liked how we just got sneak peeks throughout the book. What unfolds is a story where ideals and love went horribly wrong and two people who should have been together never got that chance, well untill now.

At the same time this story is juxtaposed against the present as Dodge helps Caroline protect their daughter (who he has not seen in 30 years, since the day she was born). I particularly liked the side story that was Berry and Ski's developing attraction. Again Sandra Brown has proved she can continue to surprise me, she just loves a twist and I think if I read a book where I didn't find one I would be sadly dissapointed. Even though they are always there its very hard to predict them. In this book I knew something was up when it seemed like the story had come to a head but I still had over 100 pages left, but I didnt predict until the very last moment what the actual twist would be.

However more so than the turnpaging plot, the thing I liked most about this story was the characters, particularly Dodge. There is just something about him that I can't help but smile. He is one of those timeless characters that is so many shades of dark and light that you never really know what to expect. I cried for him, I laughed at him and at the end of the story I smiled for him. The ending, particularly the very last line was so Dodge and the character that Sandra Brown has developed in him and it just made me smile.

Thank you Sandra Brown for loving Dodge as much as me and doing a very rare thing (for you anyways) and continuing the story of a previous novel. :)(less)

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Sep 30, 2012 Nicole rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ah, there is the Sandra Brown I know and love! After a love-hate relationship with some of Brown's more recent romantic suspense (love that Brown was the author but hate the crap she was writing), I feel like she has returned to her former glory with Tough Customer.

Dodge Hanley is a private investigator in Georgia; he lives alone, has no close friends, toes the line of the law to get his job done, and smoke constantly. But his isolated world is penetrated when he gets a call from Caroline King...more

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Feb 02, 2012 Maria rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Beach Read, Romantic Mystery

Shelves: mystery, romance

I'm not sure what attracted me to this book beyond the need to read some romantic suspense. In this regard, the book does deliver, but the double romance diluted the impact of plot developments and weakened the strength of story.

The book opens with Caroline King (a doppelganger of the author) calling private investigator Dodge Hanley for help. Dodge reminds me of NCIS's Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon)if Gibbs was a foul-mouthed chain smoker-- he's an older, acerbic, been there-done that former law en...more I'm not sure what attracted me to this book beyond the need to read some romantic suspense. In this regard, the book does deliver, but the double romance diluted the impact of plot developments and weakened the strength of story.

The book opens with Caroline King (a doppelganger of the author) calling private investigator Dodge Hanley for help. Dodge reminds me of NCIS's Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon)if Gibbs was a foul-mouthed chain smoker-- he's an older, acerbic, been there-done that former law enforcement agent who can charm information out of anything in a skirt. Dodge's kryptonite just happens to be Caroline, who he wronged thirty years prior, and Berry, the daughter he abandoned in shame. But now Berry is in serious trouble, and Caroline plays the "you're her father and it's up to you to save her even though I want you to keep our past to yourself and leave when its all over" card. The narrative alternates between present day and 1978 when the pair met and their explosive romance: it was practically love at first sight for Dodge, and his ambition and terrible decisions led to Caroline kicking him out of her life with extreme prejudice. It would have been nice if the story could have focused on this pair; the reader gets just enough information to understand why Dodge and Caroline fell in love and then were parted, as well as why she calls him back after thirty years, but it competes for time with the other romance in the story. The result is two diluted love stories that feel rushed amid what is a passible suspense tale.

The second love story in the book revolves around Berry, and the sheriff's deputy who responds when she is attacked by a stalker, "Ski" Nyland. Ski reminds me of Alcatraz's Jack Sylvane (Jeffrey Pierce): He's a tall, beautifully scruffy former special forces soldier who's seen a little too much violence in Afghanistan and is grateful for work as a small town deputy--until Berry is attacked and the perpetrator begins a crime spree that leaves everyone grasping for clues. Ski's trying to do his job, but Berry doesn't initially make it easy on him: she's holding a lot of guilt about her personal and professional behavior before she had an epiphany that led her to reform her ways and, in an effort to rationalize things or keep herself from looking bad, she makes things tougher for both Dodge and Ski.

Brown's readers will recognize Dodge from Smash Cut, the 2009 novel in which Dodge is a supporting character, and I wish that the author had allowed this novel to be Dodge and Caroline's story. Theirs is a tragic narrative, and it deserved more time to develop and for the characters to resolve the conflict that kept them apart for three decades. I nearly developed whiplash from Caroline's change of heart, and the end of the book felt more like a cliffhanger than a conclusion.

As with Caroline and Dodge, I wish that Berry and Ski had a longer, more developed narrative too. Although theirs is a little less a "love at first sight" narrative, there are many angst-filled gazes and sighs of forbidden love. Although Berry is a compelling character, she keeps going out of her way to show us her flaws and former despicable nature, a longer, dedicated story would have put those flaws in perspective. In this context, rather than create a flawed, human character, it just feels contrived and unnecessary.

Despite the problems with the character and plot development, the story was enjoyable to read and I would recommend the novel as a light read. The plot twists were interesting enough to keep my interest, and the villain sufficiently twisted to inspire horror. (less)

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Nov 07, 2011 Liz Collins added it · review of another edition

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Sep 11, 2011 Gossymotto rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, detective

This was a very light read. Predictable story and shallow characters. If you just want something to breeze through without having to give it much thought, this one works, but I found the little inaccuracies started to get to me. Dodge (who could be Yosemite Sam, pulls his "Revolver" out of it's holster at one point, only to put his "Pistol" back in. I know that they's a both shootin' irons, but there is a difference so either he's got a pistol or a revolver, which is it? Then when the girl claim...more

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Aug 03, 2011 Marcie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I haven't read a Sandra Brown in years. She used to be one of my faves. I saw this new one on the library shelf and thought, why not? 639 pages of large print, I've got a few days to walk down memory lane with an old friend.

I kept cringing at the awkward logic forcing the action and the odd word choices in dialogue that really didn't fit the character...the "F" bomb flying in from nowhere, and frankly, there is not enough sex in this book. Seriously. Nobody does the nasty til the last 100 pages....more

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Apr 03, 2011 Min rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

P.I. Dodge Hanley receives a call one night from Caroline asking him to come to Small Town, Texas, (where she and her daughter Berry live) because Berry needs his assistance. Berry is the daughter that Caroline and Dodge had together, although Dodge hasn't seen Berry since the day she was born.

Dodge now lives in Atlanta, where he is an investigator for a law firm, and has been married (and divorced) twice. He's a bit of the stereotypical P.I. - he doesn't care much for rules and it really bother...more

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Nov 10, 2010 Patricia Rockwell rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As a fan of Sandra Brown, I really looked forward to this book. The title "Tough Customer" suggested someone who would be hard to convince. I'm not really sure which of the four major characters the title refers to, maybe all four, but certainly all of them are tough, and their interactions are gripping.

First, Dodge Hanley, a middle-aged former detective, who is suddenly called to a small Texas town by the love of his live, Caroline King, hot-shot real estate agent, to assist their daughter Ber...more

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Aug 24, 2010 Jacqueline rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-thriller, romantic-suspense, from-work-borders

This one was kind of hard to categorize. The mystery wasn't very mysterious and the end was a bit of a cop out and there weren't any clues dropped that I could see to help the reader figure it out. Some of the police stuff wasn't real realistic.

The story of Berry and the man stalking her was interrupted quite often by flashbacks of her parents affair 30 years ago. At first the flashbacks were a little disruptive and then you realized that the real story was happening in the flashbacks and becau...more

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Dec 17, 2010 Michael rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, private-investigator, read-in-2010, reviewed, thriller

2 1/2 stars.

Dodge Hanley is a former cop who now works as a private investigator for his friend, attorney, Derek Mitchell.

Dodge has been divorced from Caroline King for thirty years but still has feelings about her. He's taken by surprise when gets a call from Caroline asking for his help. Before he can answer, she tells him that their daughter, Berry, is being stalked by a madman and was almost killed.

When Dodge arrives in Houston, Caoroline introduces him as a friend who is a private investiga...more

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May 04, 2012 Kairee rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Quick review: I didn't read the book, I listened to the audio book version. I listened while I worked and I found the plot fast moving, the characters colorful and flawed, and the overall story was well written.

I really enjoy the way Sandra Brown writes her flashbacks into the story. It was like reading two stories at once. I did notice that there are some words she chooses to use often--sometimes that can pull a reader out of the story. She used innocuous a few times--and a few others that see...more

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May 10, 2013 Matris rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Dodge Hanley adalah seorang detektif swasta yang kini bekerja pada seorang pengacara, tiba-tiba saja dihubungi oleh Caroline King, mantan kekasihnya 30 tahun yang lalu berkenaan dengan kasus yang sedang dialami oleh anak mereka, Berry. Dodge sendiri terakhir kali melihat anak mereka itu saat Berry baru lahir. Karena sesuatu hal Dodge dan Caroline harus berpisah.
Kini, ketika Caroline meminta bantuannya, apalagi itu menyangkut anak mereka, maka Dodgepun memutuskan terbang ke Houston dari Atlanta....more Dodge Hanley adalah seorang detektif swasta yang kini bekerja pada seorang pengacara, tiba-tiba saja dihubungi oleh Caroline King, mantan kekasihnya 30 tahun yang lalu berkenaan dengan kasus yang sedang dialami oleh anak mereka, Berry. Dodge sendiri terakhir kali melihat anak mereka itu saat Berry baru lahir. Karena sesuatu hal Dodge dan Caroline harus berpisah.
Kini, ketika Caroline meminta bantuannya, apalagi itu menyangkut anak mereka, maka Dodgepun memutuskan terbang ke Houston dari Atlanta. Masalah yang dihadapi Berry sendiri terbilang cukup berat. Nyawanya sedang di buru oleh seorang maniak penguntit Oren Starks, mantan rekan kerjanya yang genius dan cerdik. Semua bermula ketika Berry menolak Oren bahkan pernah menghina Oren sehingga Oren sakit hati dan menyatakan Berry harus mati.
Ketika Oren mencoba membunuh Berry tapi tidak berhasil, malahan Ben teman Berry yang terkena peluru, saat itulah Caroline menghubungi Dodge. Meski sudah ada Ski Nyland sang deputi sherif yang menyelidiki kasus Oren itu, namun Caroline yakin dengan kemampuan Dodge sehingga dia meminta Dodge untuk membantu memburu Oren.
Oren sendiri bisa dikatakan sangat lihai dalam bersembunyi. Dia dengan pandainya mengecoh para polisi, dan bahkan dalam pengejarannya dia juga mampu membunuh seorang anak remaja, dan juga Sally Buckland teman kerja mereka juga. Selain itu seorang kakek pemilik mobil yang dirampoknya juga menjadi korban. Berry menyadari bahwa semua kejadian itu adalah akibat kesalahannya. Di sini saya cukup salut dengan Sandra Brown, karena karakter Berry yang dihadirkan bukanlah sosok perempuan sempurna. Di sini Berry diperlihatkan kurang lebih mewarisi sifat ayah kandungnya, yang mana dia ambisius dan juga keras kepala. Sebenarnya sikap ambisiusnya itulah yang menyebabkan Orek mengejarnya. Sementara Dodge dulu berpisah dengan Caroline karena Caroline menganggap dia lebih mementingkan kariernya, karena Dodge bahkan tak ada ketika dia harus berjuang melahirkan Berry.
Beberapa hari pengejaran Oren menyebabkan timbulnya lagi hubungan antara Dodge dan Caroline, juga Berry dan sang sherif. Sayangnya cerita kali ini sepertinya plotnya berjalan lambat. Belum lagi kita di ajak ke masa 30 tahun yang lalu. Hanya ketika sampai di akhir cerita baru terasa seru. Tapi ini mungkin juga disebabkan karena sambil menulis novel ini, Sandra Brown juga menulis novel lain seperti pengakuannya di bagian belakang buku.(less)

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Apr 15, 2013 Deana M rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Berry Malone is working on a presentation with her co-worker Ben at her mother's lake house on a Friday night in Merritt, TX. The police are summoned because Ben has been shot by an intruder. Berry is a wreck and knows who the shooter is. Oran Starks is a former co-worker to her and Ben, and also Berry's stalker. After telling him numerous times she not interested in him, Oran doesn't take the hint and vows to kill her. That was his message when he confronted her in the lake house. Caroline, Ber...more

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Jun 01, 2011 Sean Cronin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Brown fans, fans of romance-mystery

This is a story about relationships, the man-woman kind. The characters are in a thriller setting: A stalker/psycho is after Berry King, the illegitimate (and know to no one, except mom and dad) daughter of Dodge Hanley and Caroline King. After 30 years of not speaking, Caroline calls Dodge after the stalker shoots a man in Berry's bedroom.
The relationship between Caroline and Dodge is interesting. I didn't feel any sparks, however. Berry develops a crush on the handsome, young sheriff who's out...more

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Sep 30, 2011 Jayre rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It's a real shame I cant give it a 3 and a half.

Tough customer by Sandra brown is a story about a man, Dodge Hanley, helping his estranged daughter, Berry, when a deranged killer is stalking her.

That's the plot in a nutshell. The plot fleshed out as we find out why Dodge is estranged from his family. As well as following the movements of a Murderer in the small town of Meritt Texas.

Bare bones the plot is decent, in reality the plot needed some more fleshing out to make this story really sing. In...more

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Mar 23, 2013 Lin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was actually enjoying this...all the way up to the last disc. While I do love a twist ending, it has to be believable, and there have to have been at least *some* clues along the way that would point to that conclusion. In this story, however, the big reveal way SO way out in left field, that it just seemed contrived.

Other points--some good, some not so good about this audio book:

The narrator had a pleasant, gravelly southern drawl. As he read, I pictured Sam Elliott as Dodge, and Harrison For...more

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Jan 04, 2013 Lisa rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I can't figure out if I want to rate this 4 or 5 stars?? I loved it!!! I thought it was well written...I loved the characters...I loved Dodge!!! I laughed, I cried, I was scared, I was a detective, I was totally wrapped in this story and did not want it to end!! I did know how a few things were gonna go down...predictable...but well hidden and a good twist:) if u weren't expecting it:) I predicted the epilogue but I still don't like how it ended:( I still wanna know what happened with everyone.....more

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Jul 28, 2011 Amanda Fritz rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

P.I. Dodge Hanley is surprised by a call that awakens him late in the night. Having been out of touch for 30 years, he can't possibly think of any reason that Caroline King would be contacting him, until she mentions their daughter, Berry. After such a long time, Hanley finds himself in a swift river of emotions, emotion that he never thought he would feel. In a desperate attempt to protect his only child that he has never met, Dodge plunges himself in the police work that was once so important...more

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Sep 24, 2010 Leah (packfan20) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 08, 2010 Shea rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've read most of Sandra Brown's books, and usually I'm excited when they come out and read through them really quickly (as in, maybe takes me 3 days to finish one). This one took me almost a whole week to get through. It was a little sad and disapointing that this book did not live up to Sandra Brown's usual standards.
First of all, I didn't like Berry, one of the main characters. She came across as selfish, kind of mean, and overall just not a very good person. But, most of the book revolved ar...more

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Nov 20, 2011 Wendy Soliman rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romantic-suspense

I hate giving Sandra Brown three stars. Never given her such a low rating before but this one just didn't work for me. The hero meets his daughter thirty years after she was born because her mother called him to say she was in trouble. He runs to her rescue and I like the way he's an addicted smoker. The odd fault in a hero, especially one so politically incorrect, makes a nice change.

My main beef was that there's too much back story. Yes, some was necessary to let the reader know why the coupl...more

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Nov 28, 2010 Susan rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 27, 2011 Darcy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, audio-book

I was excited to see Dodge take a bigger part of this book due to enjoying his part in Smash Cut.

Dodge drops everything and races to Texas at the drop of a hat after receiving a phone call from an old flame, letting him know the daughter he hasn't seen since she was born was in trouble. On the trip Dodge contemplates meeting his daughter for the first time, along with the woman he never stopped loving.

While helping with the investigation into the man now stalking his daughter Dodge does his best...more

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Jun 28, 2011 Neil Mudde rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Got the Large Print book version from the library, ohhhh the joys of large print, one can curl up in bed lean it on a pillow and read away.
I like Sandra Brown's book, in spite of the fact that some of her scenario's are hard to take seriously, often improbable, but it really does not matter, the story goes on and on, and you know some scenes are not too realistic, like everyone is always georgeous, and reminds me of the movies of the 40-50 when stars would have a wild romp in the sack, yet come...more

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Aug 30, 2010 Jane Davis rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romantic-suspense

I have read most of Sandra Brown's novels and like them very much but this is not one of her best. I remember Dodge Hanley from Smash Cut and liked the character. I often like the male better than the female characters in Sandra Brown novels. They are what they are, no excuses made, take me as I am. They may be crude, rude and on the edge of the law but they are basiclly good men. Like Dodge they are often dieing inside but won't let you know it.

Dodge first meets Caroline King when he answers a...more I have read most of Sandra Brown's novels and like them very much but this is not one of her best. I remember Dodge Hanley from Smash Cut and liked the character. I often like the male better than the female characters in Sandra Brown novels. They are what they are, no excuses made, take me as I am. They may be crude, rude and on the edge of the law but they are basiclly good men. Like Dodge they are often dieing inside but won't let you know it.

Dodge first meets Caroline King when he answers a domestic disturbance call and it is lust at first sight. Everything with the young Dodge was lust. Caroline is determined to marry a rich spoiled socialite but Dodge is determined to have her instead. He eventually gets her but screws it up, literally, while getting information from a suspects girlfriend at the time Caroline is having their child. We learn all this in flashbacks. Now 30 years later Berry Monroe is being stalked.

I didn't care much for Caroline. She's more appealing in her youth but seems to have shut down her personality in later years. Berry comes across as selfish, a striver who wants to out-do her mother's success. Caroline was on her way to a good career in real estate when she threw Dodge out and then married the boss. Something Berry jeers at as a way to get ahead when she over-reacts to a minor set back at work and throws a hissy-fit. She really needed a strong hand like Dodge's as a child rather than a pleasant complacent adoptive father and an adoring mother.

I might have given it a higher rating if not for all the stops and starts to break the action. Sandra Brown uses my least favorite literary device--episodic flashbacks.

The first flashback is the beginning if Chapter 4, after Dodge Hanley's fist meeting with Caroline King in thirty years. Time to sit back and have the earlier story roll out and bring us up to date, as Mr. Brown has done in other novels, but it doesn't happen. After 12 pages we are back to the present until another opportunity triggers episode 2 at Chapter 7 for another 13 pages. On it goes for 5 flashbacks. After Caroline confirms to her daughter the Dodge is her father and was Caroline's love of her life you can almost hear the soap opera organ music as the next flashback begins. I barely skimmed the later ones.

When released in paperback I will get a copy and read it again after paper clipping all the flashback pages together and reading them first, as I've done with other novels, or forget them and concentrate on the rather contrived present story.

Sandra Brown's stories may sometimes be contrived but you can't quarrel with her writing style--it flows.
(less)

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Jul 14, 2011 Cindy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This books starts off with Dodge Hanley getting a call from Caroline King stating their daughter is in trouble. Problem is he hasnt heard from Caroline in 30 years and the last time he saw his daughter was the day she was born 30 years ago.. I coudnt quite figure out exactly what age that made Dodge and Caroline but they had to at least be in there late 50 or early 60's. But you certainly couldnt tell it from they way they thought or acted.. There story is told through flashbacks. Berry (there d...more

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Sep 16, 2010 Paula LaRocque rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

You’re midway through Sandra Brown’s new novel, Tough Customer, and you’re having a pretty good time.

The plot is complex and engaging. It features former lovers who are thrown together for the first time in three decades because the child of their ill-fated union is in danger. That now-grown daughter, as well as her own hazardous trajectory, keeps things moving along – as does the crazed killer who is stalking her. And of course the story includes along the way Brown’s trademark steamy sex scen...more You’re midway through Sandra Brown’s new novel, Tough Customer, and you’re having a pretty good time.

The plot is complex and engaging. It features former lovers who are thrown together for the first time in three decades because the child of their ill-fated union is in danger. That now-grown daughter, as well as her own hazardous trajectory, keeps things moving along – as does the crazed killer who is stalking her. And of course the story includes along the way Brown’s trademark steamy sex scenes . . . .

Brown’s characterizations are sound. The characters are imperfect enough, withholding enough, to be annoying – which is doubtless the author’s intent: These folks have a lot to learn! At first the characters seem familiar. There’s Dodge Hanley, the crusty, tough-talking cop-turned-private investigator who tries hard to hide his tender interior. There’s Caroline King, the hard-headed, hard-driving, mid-life career woman – who has both made money and married it and is now widowed. There’s her daughter, Berry Malone, who is ambitious herself, partly in competition with her mother, and making a whole new set of her own mistakes.

And there’s Oren Stark, the wily psycho with a seemingly endless supply of unforeseen – and deadly – tricks up his sleeve.

These are not stock characters, however familiar they might at first appear. They gradually become flesh and blood through Brown’s story-telling skills. They become people you care about.

It’s the last third of Tough Customer that makes it special. You’re cruising along and suddenly you’re smacked right between the eyes: Bam! And you think: I didn’t see that coming! The hints were there – in the narrative, in the killer’s point-of-view chapters – but you just didn’t see it coming. After that, the action is pell mell, the pacing breathless, the flow of information as fast as the reader’s questions. By the book’s satisfying dénouement, the characters are real, each has learned something important – and you, the reader, are deeply invested.

Sandra Brown deserves her phenomenal success, her steady stream of best-sellers. She’s a story-teller, and she knows how to shape a narrative for maximum impact.
(less)

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Nov 04, 2011 Olivia rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It has been a while since I read one of Ms. Brown’s books. This was a great little read because the storyline wasn't overly complicated and the characters had enough development to make them realistic. The storyline is interesting enough and would probably make a great movie. There was a little phantasmal in the thriller side of the story and some predictable twists and turns. Ms. Brown is one of the only authors I have read than can create a storyline that includes the sexual relationships of t...more

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About Sandra Brown

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Sandra Brown is the author of sixty-one New York Times bestsellers, including LETHAL (2011), TOUGH CUSTOMER (2010), SMASH CUT (2009), SMOKE SCREEN (2008), PLAY DIRTY (2007), RICOCHET (2006), CHILL FACTOR (2005), WHITE HOT (2004), HELLO, DARKNESS (2003), THE CRUSH (2002), a...more

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avg rating	preview: Tough Customer Goodreads rating: 3.85 (4636 ratings)
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8762500-tough-customer?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347921342l/8762500.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8762500-tough-customer?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Tough Customer by Sandra Brown[/url]

Tough Customer (Mitchell & Associates #2)

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