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A Molly Malone Mystery #2
Poisoned Politics
New York Times best-selling author Maggie Sefton continues her political mystery series
Molly Malone's friend Samantha Calhoun has a thing or two to teach her younger -- often married -- "students." But when photos appear showing Samantha and her latest fling, U.S. Rep. Quentin Wilson, she calls in Molly for some much-needed support. Before Molly and Samantha can investigate who sent the photos, Quentin is found dead in Samantha's living room in what appears to be a suicide. Meanwhile, the shadowy group behind the death of Molly's niece is crafting an insidious plan, and they'll stop at nothing, even murder, in their rise to power.
Molly Malone's friend Samantha Calhoun has a thing or two to teach her younger -- often married -- "students." But when photos appear showing Samantha and her latest fling, U.S. Rep. Quentin Wilson, she calls in Molly for some much-needed support. Before Molly and Samantha can investigate who sent the photos, Quentin is found dead in Samantha's living room in what appears to be a suicide. Meanwhile, the shadowy group behind the death of Molly's niece is crafting an insidious plan, and they'll stop at nothing, even murder, in their rise to power.
240 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2013
4 people are currently reading
226 people want to read
About the author
Maggie Sefton
35 books779 followersAka Margaret Conlan
From author website:
"First, a little biographical information as introduction: Born in Richmond, VA, I grew up in Northern Virginia in Arlington, close to Washington, D.C. I attended university and received a Bachelor's degree in English Literature & Journalism, married, and started my family there. All four of my daughters are grown and established in careers of their own and are literally scattered around the globe. I now reside in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado with two very demanding dogs."
From author website:
"First, a little biographical information as introduction: Born in Richmond, VA, I grew up in Northern Virginia in Arlington, close to Washington, D.C. I attended university and received a Bachelor's degree in English Literature & Journalism, married, and started my family there. All four of my daughters are grown and established in careers of their own and are literally scattered around the globe. I now reside in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado with two very demanding dogs."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
March 19, 2014
This was so disappointing. I enjoyed reading much of it for the setting and characters, but it had no resolution and no real ending. Nothing was solved, nothing was discovered, no clue was understood. Lots of foreshadowing that went nowhere. Why would the author lay out all the clues for only the reader to see, but have her characters pass them by? What was the point?
Did she want us to believe that murder and mayhem in Washington DC goes undiscovered and that is just a fact of life? Was she teaching a lesson? Was she hoping that I'd pick up the next installment? Why would anyone want to read more when there is no promise of closure?
Molly Malone is an interesting character that has interesting friends. She seemed on the brink of understanding and discovery. But, she stays on the brink. Too bad.
Did she want us to believe that murder and mayhem in Washington DC goes undiscovered and that is just a fact of life? Was she teaching a lesson? Was she hoping that I'd pick up the next installment? Why would anyone want to read more when there is no promise of closure?
Molly Malone is an interesting character that has interesting friends. She seemed on the brink of understanding and discovery. But, she stays on the brink. Too bad.
June 24, 2016
Another good book by Maggie Sefton
This was my second book for my June readers challenge.
Molly finds herself in the middle of another suicide. This time her good friend Samathas boyfriend who is a congressman, but also a married man.
Throughout the book, both books so far, there has been a conversation between some men trying to get rid of some of the people Molly has dealings with.
This book only had one death and it was never decided to be anything but a suicide.
Molly tries to help Samatha to get her reputation back, which she does. The book was very good and I am looking forward to book No. Three. Now..
This was my second book for my June readers challenge.
Molly finds herself in the middle of another suicide. This time her good friend Samathas boyfriend who is a congressman, but also a married man.
Throughout the book, both books so far, there has been a conversation between some men trying to get rid of some of the people Molly has dealings with.
This book only had one death and it was never decided to be anything but a suicide.
Molly tries to help Samatha to get her reputation back, which she does. The book was very good and I am looking forward to book No. Three. Now..
June 24, 2013
I received an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Filled with descriptive images of the season and the area, the author's writing style made me want to visit Washington,DC. The characters were interesting and the mystery and political intrigue kept me glued to the book. The only thing that bothered me was the abrupt ending. I like my mysteries to have a nice wrap-up at the end and this one left me hanging. No fair.
Filled with descriptive images of the season and the area, the author's writing style made me want to visit Washington,DC. The characters were interesting and the mystery and political intrigue kept me glued to the book. The only thing that bothered me was the abrupt ending. I like my mysteries to have a nice wrap-up at the end and this one left me hanging. No fair.
August 19, 2015
I did enjoy the story but it ended abruptly - too many loose ends. I have read other books in the series and this is not how they usually end so I was confused.
January 29, 2018
Sigh. This wasn't much better. But it's all to the greater end of unveiling which of my guesses about the plot are correct. Couple of observations. 1) The dialogue is still bad 2) In the first book, the author's obsession was describing food. (Which I'm fully in favor of. People are way too health conscious these days. In this book the author had developed a weird tic of describing her ringtones.
3) The author says she's an accountant.... but I never see her doing any accounting. She seems to do mostly administrative work in addition to answering endless lists of e-mails. But she never tells us what the e-mails say. Whatever...
3) The author says she's an accountant.... but I never see her doing any accounting. She seems to do mostly administrative work in addition to answering endless lists of e-mails. But she never tells us what the e-mails say. Whatever...
December 19, 2018
Book one was great, this one sort of a let down. It seems that this one is the bridge that will lead to a conclusion in the next book. A conclusion that should be full of intrigue and action. At least I have book three on hand to read and find out because I am involved enough in the story that I do want to know how it ends.
July 19, 2018
Doesn't seem as fast moving as the first in the series. I still plan on reading the third book in series.
September 11, 2013
This second book in the series takes place a few weeks after the first one, continuing with Molly Malone’s career as Senator Russell’s accountant and social hostess. Unfortunately, the book is not nearly as thrilling as the blurb makes us believe.
Molly’s best friend Samatha Calhoun, or Miss Thing as Molly calls her, is in trouble. She is having an affair with Quentin Wilson, and now some revealing pictures have been delivered to both their homes. Without a blackmail notice though, so they suspect Quentin’s wife is behind it. She is the one with the connections and the money, without her, he has no hope of being re-elected. And so they will have to break up their affair. Which is hard for Samantha, as this time her feelings are involved.
But when she finds Quentin’s dead body in her house the next morning (she spent the night elsewhere, while he would be collecting his things), trouble starts brewing for Samantha. She has made many enemies in the last decades, being the powerful woman in politics that she is. And they are now gloating about her downfall, and gossiping about her. Molly tries to do whatever she can to help her friend though, but she just won’t tell who she was spending the night with.
And the widow Wilson is not going easy either, trashing Samantha without naming her, but of course, the innuendo is enough. She is going for her husband’s seat, which is her right as his widow. But his staffers really dislike her, so they are looking for employment elsewhere in a hurry, like his right hand, Natasha Jorgenson, who was snatched up by Congresswoman Sally Chertoff.
Natasha tells Molly that Quentin was working on something that was not part of his job at all, something monetary. Loretta of the Congressional Research Service tells Molly that it was the same stuff her niece Karen was working on, before she was murdered, and this does make Molly start her own research again.
Still, not for one minute does Molly or any of her friends suspect murder in the death of the congressman, or the young man who supplied his drugs. Let alone the cabal she ran into in the first book. We do get lots of peeks into the thoughts and actions of the bad guys, but nothing is resolved or discovered in this book, so at the end I was thinking: why write this book when it gives no solutions or answers or discoveries plot wise? It is just filler. And although the drama with Samantha and the workings of American politics are intriguing to follow, I was missing a plot, something important, which I kept hoping would come.
Molly’s personal life is improving though, as her relationship with Danny goes to the next stage. Molly is a lot like Maggie Sefton’s other main character in the Knitting Mysteries though: they are both hardworking accountants who love numbers, they are addicted to coffee, and are cautious with their heart. And there is a lot of drinking beer and alcohol in this book.
And even though I did enjoy the book, I feel like this is only half a book. At this moment, feeling disappointed, I am not sure I will buy the next book, as those are twice as expensive as cozy mysteries.
6 stars.
Molly’s best friend Samatha Calhoun, or Miss Thing as Molly calls her, is in trouble. She is having an affair with Quentin Wilson, and now some revealing pictures have been delivered to both their homes. Without a blackmail notice though, so they suspect Quentin’s wife is behind it. She is the one with the connections and the money, without her, he has no hope of being re-elected. And so they will have to break up their affair. Which is hard for Samantha, as this time her feelings are involved.
But when she finds Quentin’s dead body in her house the next morning (she spent the night elsewhere, while he would be collecting his things), trouble starts brewing for Samantha. She has made many enemies in the last decades, being the powerful woman in politics that she is. And they are now gloating about her downfall, and gossiping about her. Molly tries to do whatever she can to help her friend though, but she just won’t tell who she was spending the night with.
And the widow Wilson is not going easy either, trashing Samantha without naming her, but of course, the innuendo is enough. She is going for her husband’s seat, which is her right as his widow. But his staffers really dislike her, so they are looking for employment elsewhere in a hurry, like his right hand, Natasha Jorgenson, who was snatched up by Congresswoman Sally Chertoff.
Natasha tells Molly that Quentin was working on something that was not part of his job at all, something monetary. Loretta of the Congressional Research Service tells Molly that it was the same stuff her niece Karen was working on, before she was murdered, and this does make Molly start her own research again.
Still, not for one minute does Molly or any of her friends suspect murder in the death of the congressman, or the young man who supplied his drugs. Let alone the cabal she ran into in the first book. We do get lots of peeks into the thoughts and actions of the bad guys, but nothing is resolved or discovered in this book, so at the end I was thinking: why write this book when it gives no solutions or answers or discoveries plot wise? It is just filler. And although the drama with Samantha and the workings of American politics are intriguing to follow, I was missing a plot, something important, which I kept hoping would come.
Molly’s personal life is improving though, as her relationship with Danny goes to the next stage. Molly is a lot like Maggie Sefton’s other main character in the Knitting Mysteries though: they are both hardworking accountants who love numbers, they are addicted to coffee, and are cautious with their heart. And there is a lot of drinking beer and alcohol in this book.
And even though I did enjoy the book, I feel like this is only half a book. At this moment, feeling disappointed, I am not sure I will buy the next book, as those are twice as expensive as cozy mysteries.
6 stars.
© 2013 Reviews by Aurian
January 16, 2016
Molly Malone and Samantha Calhoun have been friends since their fathers were Senators. They know Washington D.C. inside and out. Molly now manages the financial affairs of Senator Russell. Samantha is busy managing her own “affairs”. When her latest fling, married U.S. Rep. Quentin Wilson, is found dead in Samantha’s home, she quickly turns to her best friend, Molly.
Using some her Washington connections Molly finds out that Wilson was researching some of the same things that may have gotten her niece killed. (Deadly Politics – Book 1 in this series.) Molly puts her own life in danger as she tries to reconcile how this death may be connected to the death of her niece.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
I loved the first book in this series. It set the perfect foundation. Washington D.C. is full of possible stories. Molly is a wonderful character, smart and determined.
In this installment Molly again uses the resources she has to try to help her best friend. I was so glad Dangerous Dan was in town to help her but also so their romance could start to bloom and blossom. We have just scratched the surface of this guy’s story. Eleanor is also a very interesting character. She has known Molly and Sam since they were girls and really has their best interests at heart. She is also a powerful woman in Washington.
The story really drew me in. It was exciting and suspenseful. With this series Maggie Sefton sets aside the cozy for a little more thrill and tension and she does that extremely well. The pages were flying.
I did have one huge problem though. This story ended very suddenly with a cliffhanger. Things were just starting to fall into place and that was it. We had several pieces to the puzzle but not all we needed to solve the case. It is like when a television series ends in the Spring and you have to wait until the Fall to see what happens. Only in this case with the previous book coming out last August and this one a year later, that seems to mean we will not have a chance of resolution until August 2014. Then she may leave readers hanging again. I hate the waiting but it will sure create a buzz about this series! I just want the next book right now :) please.
Using some her Washington connections Molly finds out that Wilson was researching some of the same things that may have gotten her niece killed. (Deadly Politics – Book 1 in this series.) Molly puts her own life in danger as she tries to reconcile how this death may be connected to the death of her niece.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
I loved the first book in this series. It set the perfect foundation. Washington D.C. is full of possible stories. Molly is a wonderful character, smart and determined.
In this installment Molly again uses the resources she has to try to help her best friend. I was so glad Dangerous Dan was in town to help her but also so their romance could start to bloom and blossom. We have just scratched the surface of this guy’s story. Eleanor is also a very interesting character. She has known Molly and Sam since they were girls and really has their best interests at heart. She is also a powerful woman in Washington.
The story really drew me in. It was exciting and suspenseful. With this series Maggie Sefton sets aside the cozy for a little more thrill and tension and she does that extremely well. The pages were flying.
I did have one huge problem though. This story ended very suddenly with a cliffhanger. Things were just starting to fall into place and that was it. We had several pieces to the puzzle but not all we needed to solve the case. It is like when a television series ends in the Spring and you have to wait until the Fall to see what happens. Only in this case with the previous book coming out last August and this one a year later, that seems to mean we will not have a chance of resolution until August 2014. Then she may leave readers hanging again. I hate the waiting but it will sure create a buzz about this series! I just want the next book right now :) please.
January 27, 2015
Poisoned Politics is the second book in the trilogy featuring Molly Malone
This is a very exciting and suspenseful series and is a real page turner.
Molly is settling in well after having been gone from our nation capital for a while. Molly is enjoying her job managing the personal affairs at home or Senator Russell and continues to try and find closure on the murder for her niece, Karen.
One morning Moly gets a frantic call from her childhood friend, Samantha Calhoun. The call concerns the man she has been having an affair with, Congressman Quintin Wilson. He was at Sam's house retrieving personal items and when she returned home the next morning she found him and pills spread all over the coffee table. Sam is considered a person of interest as she won't reveal who she spent the night with.
As Molly starts to look into the Wilson suspicious death, she finds that he was researching the same thing that Celeste and her niece had been, and they both ended up dead. Molly thinks that this more than a coincidence.
This book has a wonderful cast of characters and provides an interesting look into what might be some of the behind scenes in our Nation's Capitol. I particularly enjoyed the banter between Molly and Sam and once again the staff at the Senator's home provide some chuckles, too.
And on the romance side, it looks like Molly and Daniel might decide to take their relationship to the next level.
Looking forward to Bloody Politics to see how the story ends.
This is a very exciting and suspenseful series and is a real page turner.
Molly is settling in well after having been gone from our nation capital for a while. Molly is enjoying her job managing the personal affairs at home or Senator Russell and continues to try and find closure on the murder for her niece, Karen.
One morning Moly gets a frantic call from her childhood friend, Samantha Calhoun. The call concerns the man she has been having an affair with, Congressman Quintin Wilson. He was at Sam's house retrieving personal items and when she returned home the next morning she found him and pills spread all over the coffee table. Sam is considered a person of interest as she won't reveal who she spent the night with.
As Molly starts to look into the Wilson suspicious death, she finds that he was researching the same thing that Celeste and her niece had been, and they both ended up dead. Molly thinks that this more than a coincidence.
This book has a wonderful cast of characters and provides an interesting look into what might be some of the behind scenes in our Nation's Capitol. I particularly enjoyed the banter between Molly and Sam and once again the staff at the Senator's home provide some chuckles, too.
And on the romance side, it looks like Molly and Daniel might decide to take their relationship to the next level.
Looking forward to Bloody Politics to see how the story ends.
March 24, 2014
Reading this book is chilling because it makes you wonder how much of the murderous intrigue of this story is going on all the time in our government and Washington DC. This is the second Molly Malone mystery and reading the first one was helpful as this book picks up where the last one left off. I am now anxious for the third book do out in November to continue the tale. This is different from the author's yarn shop mysteries where each mystery is completed in the individual books and the carry over is just in the location and characters. I am somewhat of a conspiracy theorist fan so this book was great for me. I love the characters and the inside Washington locale.
July 28, 2015
I prefer the Kelly Flynn series although Malone in this book is very reminiscent of Kelly! They are both addicted to coffee, they both have relationship commitment issues, they both have a network of friends who have nothing better to do than help them in their quest and they both have jobs that allow them to spend lots of time doing sleuthing! In fact, they are interchangeable! Boring!
The novel tells a story of political intrigue in Washington but nothing is resolved and the book just seems to end as if the author wrote the prerequisite number of pages then stopped.
Not a fan of this novel!
The novel tells a story of political intrigue in Washington but nothing is resolved and the book just seems to end as if the author wrote the prerequisite number of pages then stopped.
Not a fan of this novel!
July 21, 2016
Pretty good DC insider thriller about evil politicians with secret assassins and links to international money bills with which they stand to make millions. Molly Malone is still trying to get over the viscious murder of her niece a year ago, but at least the perpetrator was caught....she thinks. Apparently not, and apparently they must stage a prominent married politician's suicide at her friend's house, throwing both her and her friend into turmoil as they seek to uncover the murderous political plot.
December 6, 2013
Sefton draws me into her characters and settings as if they were old friends in familiar places. I enjoyed the developments in the H/H romance in this second book in the series. Because the economic issue and associated bill are so vague, it's hard to feel invested in the intrigue. I hope the next book leaves me feeling more turned in and satisfied with the ending.
I'm a fan of Sefton's knitting series, too, and it's fun to follow this talented author in two very different series.
I'm a fan of Sefton's knitting series, too, and it's fun to follow this talented author in two very different series.
July 29, 2016
Nothing really happened in this book and then it ended. Actually, it didn't "end" so much as it seems like Sefton just stopped writing. The lack of build up throughout the plot made me less disappointed by the serious dearth of payoff, however. I'm not sure that's a good thing.
I doubt I'll be picking up the third in the series.
I doubt I'll be picking up the third in the series.
October 30, 2014
This is the second book to feature Molly Malone in Washington,D.C. This book centers more on Molly and her friends. Molly's friend from her teen years has gotten involved in a scandal and Molly is her support. Molly has also become close friends with Danny and is not sure how far to get involved. It also continued the hidden secrets from Deadly Politics. It was an easy quick read.
August 31, 2013
Not a favorite this time around. Clearly I missed something--who did it, why, mystery, suspense--just not there,which is a shame as I like Ms Sefton's other books. Not sure if I will bother with any others in this series as they are published, even with the bothersome "cliffhanger" ending.
October 17, 2013
I really liked the mystery once I got into the book. I was sort of surprised the way it ended. There must be a continuing of this story in the next book she writes. Will have to wait and see how it ends with the series of events. Each book in this series seems to be a continued story.
April 13, 2014
I couldn't remember the details in the first book of the series, but that didn't matter. This book could be read as a stand alone. It's a thriller, it's not grisly, the characters are well developed.....definitely hope there are more in the series.
September 3, 2013
Another light but enjoyable book by Maggie Sefton. Someday I am going to count the number of references there are to coffee in just one book!
September 16, 2013
...when's the next one?
September 24, 2013
Not as good as her other series
March 24, 2014
Awful ending w no closure. Mystery not solved.
September 10, 2016
I'm frustrated with this series. There is definitely a mystery but it hasn't been solved in 2 books.
Read
September 2, 2015I have read other books with the same "ending"?? In my opinion the author became tired and quit writing! I will not read any others.
September 10, 2015
Just as good as book 1. Possibly better. Looking forward to book 3!
February 29, 2016
Read books out of order so i liked the second one which I read first better because it had more loose ends tied
October 20, 2016
This book series definitely has to be read in order. It doesn't make sense to read out of order or only one.
September 13, 2013
What a great series!
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December 14, 2018Great 2nd book in the 3 book series. First time reading Maggie Sefton and its great. Loved the book. Great story .
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews