Body Work

by Fiona Brand

The killer liked his women young and defenseless.

He was never caught.

As a child, Jane Gale witnessed her mother's murder and was nearly killed in trying to escape. Left for dead, she has suffered complete memory loss, unable to recall who she was before the accident or the events that caused her mother's death. Twenty-five years later, Jane has a new life and a blossoming career as a novelist -- until the killer picks up her book and discovers that the only eyewitness to his secrets has survived. And told.

Oblivious to the fact that she has attracted the murderer back into her life, Jane has no idea where the inspiration for her bestseller came from. But she has a photograph that leads her back to Louisiana, to a place she knows but can't remember -- and to a stranger she wants to trust. Because somehow he is a link to her past . . . and her only chance of staying alive.

Genres: Romantic Suspense, Thriller, Romance, Mystery, Suspense, Fiction, Adult Fiction

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 1, 2006

About the author

Fiona Brand has always wanted to write.

After working eight years for the New Zealand Forest Service as a clerk, she decided she could spend at least that much time trying to get a novel published.

Luckily it took five years, not eight, before Fiona wrote her first award-winning novel.

She has won the Australian Romantic Book of the Year award (category section) twice, one of her novels was listed by Romantic Times as one of their all-time top two hundred favorite romance books and she has been featured in Next and She magazines.

Fiona lives in a subtropical South Seas paradise called the Bay of Islands with her two sons.

Reviews

[Quirkyreader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very fast paced novel. If this had been the only thing I was reading and I didn't have to work I probably would have finished this story on a day.

It starts with an event that happened in the past. And this event never ended, it just went into hibernation for a few decades. A terrible accident happened. Who did it an why? Why is the main character having dreams and writing about things she has no memory of?

Read the story and find out.

[T.M. Carper]

The first hundred pages take place in the past, getting the story off to a semi-boring starting. The story really picks up pace midway and turns out to be an average book.



Not Brand's best work, but decent characters and a few twists--some that you see coming and others you don't. Borrow, don't buy.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Body Work ' by Fiona Brand is the story of Jane Gale, who escaped from a murderer at age 7. Her family was murdered but somehow she escaped only to be seriously injured by a vehicle. She almost died but was saved by a EMT. She was adopted by a family and given the last name ,Gale.
Jane had no idea of who, what and when this all occurred , but 25 years later she is determined to find our her own history. But she doesn't know that the killer is still alive and he didn't know she was still alive ! She returns to Lassiter, Louisiana to seek some answers, but when the killer discovers that one family member is alive , it becomes a battle to survive for Jane.
The beginning of the book is confusing but when all the pieces fall into place , it will resonate with readers and becomes a page turner.

[Allie Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a mystery date that I purchased, it was not the worst that I’ve read but not the absolute greatest thing I have read. The mystery/suspense piece of the book was good once you got to, the first few chapters were very slow. I also felt like the romance part was just thrown in.

Like I said overall it was an okay read but it took a while to read.

[Delinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confusing at first, but then it started to make sense on why some characters had been introduced.

[Cris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has lots of twists and turns. Great read if you like mysterys you can't solve

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An exciting and fast-paced romantic suspense thriller packced into one novel makes for an exciting read. Jane Gale, on the search for her long-lost identity, stumbles onto vague and elusive memories that come and go as the danger and mystery surrounding her escalates in Lassiter, Lousiana - the place where it all started. It's a story that has its roots from 45 years back as it makes its way toward present time. Brand has a certain expertise for producing an intricate yet fascinating story, as well as connecting an important past and present timeline filled with lots of action. I absolutely admire Jane, the heroine, and her uncanny ability at escaping the mounting danger as the murderer makes his way to initiating her demise. Readers will continue to soak up the pages filled with clues and deliberate deceptions until the mystery abruptly unfolds in the conclusion.

While Part 1 and 2 of the story are B-O-R-I-N-G, it's essential to the entire story. I was sort of perplexed because the intricacies of the boys' (Charles, Etienne, and Stephen) personalities doesn't really click in until the case is completely unraveled. It gets interesting when Part 3 comes, and that's the present time with narration focusing on Jane and John. Also, there are many character similarities in Body Work to that of Double Vision, her other novel. It's recommended, although the network of clues and action anchored from the past dominate INSTEAD of focusing more on the budding romance between Jane and John. It's not enough but suffices .. which is why it gets 3/5 stars.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

To give background, the first part of the book takes place 45 years ago and shows the life of 3 small boys. The second part of the book occurs 25 years ago, as the current heroine in the book is a young girl who witnesses her mother's murder. In present day, Jane Gale is an author of a bestselling murder novel. She has no memory of her younger years after being hit by a car when she was 7 years old and being in a coma for many months. She had one picture in her pocket and she is knocking on doors trying to find her family. Instead she finds John Toussaint, a policeman who is a part of her past. Jane has a stalker. But she also has worse problems than that as a serial killer read Jane's novel and believes she saw him kill her mother.

I believed I knew which of the boys was the killer, although it didn't turn out to be the most likely suspect. I always enjoy books set in Louisiana.

[Kerry · Rating 2 out of 5]

All a bit ho-hum really. This was a good premise that unfortunately wasn't handled as well as it could have been.

The entire set up was just a bit too complicated, so that it became necessary to do a very abrupt info dump at the end to explain just who did what and why two out of three brothers turned into psychopaths while the third didn't.

Again, the characters had potential, but sadly didn't quite live up to it.

I feel Body Work was an okay way to pass a few hours, but nothing mind blowing. This was a library book and I'm glad I didn't spend my money on it.

[Copied across from Library Thing; 5 November 2012]

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a new author for me, and I will be reading more of hers.

I really enjoyed the book, and it was really well written, the characters were well constructed. My onlt complant was the beginning of the book, it jumped around from so many characters that it was hard to keep track of who was who.

[ReBecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was okay... not the best suspense crime novel I've ever read, but also not the worst. It did have some good ideas and I think if they had of focused more on the actual events and killings and Jane getting her memory back it would have been better. Instead, Brand focused on the sexual relationship building between Jane and John.. which I feel could have been left out completely!

[Suzanne Strack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book, and found it hard to put down. I was surprised, because I had read some of the reviews. One reader stated that the first two parts of the book were boring, but they sucked me right in. I found it easy to follow along, and liked how the first two parts, from 45 years ago, and from 25 years ago, brought the story all together.

[Desirae Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always enjoyed books that did not depict the main female character as flawless, which is why I fell in love with Jane. This book had me guessing at almost every chapter. I do wish we could have found out if Jane and Etienne reconnect after all those years later though. But regardless, I still loved this book very much!

[Candy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book. The first part of the story is about the 3 boys and why they might be who they are. The second part of the book is an interesting read about a young girl who writes a book and doesn't realize it is her part of her past. The story unfolds of her realization and the horrors of the murder of her mother.

[Mysterious · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author didn’t do a good job with this. The relationship with John and Jane started abruptly, rather than a slow build up.

The killer is obvious, but even if you accept it is not a mystery and it is more of a thriller, the tension just isn't there.

[Amar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This writer is good in that she really gets me worked up with her mystery/suspense angle in her books...her writing is like Linda Howard but w/o the oomph...I like her h/h but she always leaves you wanting with their relationship! Still worth the read however!

[Sidney · Rating 2 out of 5]

I finished the book, but I had to skip over several parts because of sexual scenes. I wouldn't recommend it. I really shouldn't have finished it, but I wanted to know how it ended!

[krin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this thriller. I liked how Jane gradually learned that the book she wrote was based on forgotten memories and how she learned to face her enemy.

[Foggygirl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am glad that I got this particular book out of the library and didn't buy it, it wasn't particularly interesting.

[Dennis W · Rating 4 out of 5]

7.5

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

...not organized... too much background information.. I found this boring...

[Cynthia Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, it as really fast to read and kept you interested the whole time. It was the first time I read this author, I will check out her other books.

[Tammy Johnson Winkler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed the book. Quick read.

[TH0TP0CKETS · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took me awhile to get into it but it was a decent thriller and a good read, ultimately.