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Hand In Glove by Anne Stuart


Judith Daniels knew that her friend, Lacey, feared for her life. And when Lacey died suddenly, Judith was convinced that her death had not been an accident. Desperate to learn the truth, she applied for Lacey's job at Ryan Smith's puppet factory.

Her task proved difficult. The voices behind the puppets were cleverly disguised. So were the people involved, for each one - like Judith herself - seemed to have something to hide. Even Ryan Smith, the creative genius of the group, was deliberately evasive.

Then it was Judith's turn to fear for her own life....

First. Let's just start by taking a close look at this cover:



They don't make 'em like this anymore. Just look at those sad puppets!!

LOL That cover is amazing. :D

Absolutely amazing. :-D

You're making me want to read it too xD

I'm sad, this is the Kindle cover:

DoodlePanda wrote: "You're making me want to read it too xD"

Please do!

Kindle cover sucks. :(

I guess i could... its not too expensive xD

I might have purchased it :P

LOL!!!

"Judith Kennedy Daniels was the daughter of an extremely old, extremely wealthy Irish Catholic family from the Main Line of Philadelphia, and every inch of her long, leggy body, her flawless complexion, her blue, blue eyes, her silky blond hair and her perfect features proclaimed that lineage. She resembled a tall young Grace Kelly, elegant and untouchable."

Spare me. *facepalm*

ROFL

Haha! I was about to comment on the same "Grace Kelly" paragraph. I started reading it last night and I rolled my eyes so hard in the beginning... :D

AND THEN

She met the puppets and I was like, OMG that's fucking adorable. And that made me roll my eyes at *myself*.

This is going to be one of those, "It's doing so many silly things but I can't stop reading because I like it" books. :D

Can i class this as a WSW read? For Bingo purposes

LOL how far into it are you guys?

It's vintage, and involves puppets. Some of this shit wouldn't have been weird when it was published but it's not stuff you see much these days, so I vote yes.

I'm about 15% in so far.

I'm making highlights on my Kindle for discussion after we've finished. I don't want to do spoilers so I'll just wait till we're done reading to discuss some of the "WTF" moments.

Christa wrote: "It's vintage, and involves puppets. Some of this shit wouldn't have been weird when it was published but it's not stuff you see much these days, so I vote yes."

This

Good idea! :D

Kinda like the prologue though xD

Christa wrote: "I'm making highlights on my Kindle for discussion after we've finished. I don't want to do spoilers so I'll just wait till we're done reading to discuss some of the "WTF" moments."

I'll try to do this but I'm switching between 2 ebook locations (screen and ipad) and 1 MMPB. O_O

Let me say that I hate the causal sexism with the Steve character - and how Judith just takes it. *shudder*

(view spoiler)["Meet our new miracle worker. Judith Daniels, Steve Lindstrom."
"Hel-lo, pretty lady." The man moved closer, like a bird dog scenting a nice plump partridge..."

[SNIP]

"Well, you're a welcome addition to The Puppet Factory," Steve said, all but panting over her. "Ryan doesn't hire women for their looks, and, lady, you're the best thing I've seen in years."

Down, boy," Ryan murmured. "She's here to work, not to provide mattress duty."

"Ryan!" Steve appeared distressed. "Just because you're inhuman doesn't mean the rest of us aren't interested in the basic biological functions of eating, sleeping and sex." (hide spoiler)]

I put that there because it might go in my review. It's just a snippet of sexual harassment.

im totally reading that spoiler right now, even though i havent gotten that far :P

....and WTF!? Was this ok in books back then??

DoodlePanda wrote: "im totally reading that spoiler right now, even though i havent gotten that far :P

....and WTF!? Was this ok in books back then??"

Yep! It's still a thing, actually, the difference is now you're supposed to either have them make a personality turn-around (grow out of their harassing ways) or not present them as a positive / sympathetic character.

Now that I think about it, since you and I recently read Fear University, I don't find this guy's behavior any worse than Ollie pushing Luke till he lost control, which falls under "it's not assault because he really wanted it". Ollie has some serious boundary issues. LOL

That's not a criticism, mind you - I don't think fiction should be limited by societal rules. There's plenty of stuff out there that everyone can find something they're comfortable reading. I just find it interesting, that's all.

Yes.

But I do think it was worse, then. Then it was accepted. Like, now the character would have been all "Don't touch me. We don't know each other."

(view spoiler)["And one more thing," Micki added.
"Yes?"
"Just so we don't step on each other's toes. You've met Steve? The one coming on to you in the puppet booth?"
Judith nodded, glad to have her suspicion confirmed.
"I sleep with him sometimes," Micki said. "When neither of us has anything better to do."
"I'll keep my hands off."Micki shook her head. "No, that's not it. He's yours for the taking. We don't have any claims on each other and we don't want to."
"Okay," Judith said.
"Ryan's a different matter."
"You're sleeping with Ryan?" Somehow she'd missed this complication. Lacey had usually complained about whomever she'd had to supplant, but Judith had gathered that when Lacey had snared Ryan, he'd been unattached.
"No," Micki said. "He doesn't believe in bedding the employees. He made one exception, and he's been regretting it ever since."
"And?"
"And if he decides to make another exception, it's going to be with me, not you. Understand?" (hide spoiler)]

Dropped for review only.

"she was traveling at 57 mph" is oddly specific

DoodlePanda wrote: ""she was traveling at 57 mph" is oddly specific"

I noticed that, too! I was like...huh?? Why?

LOL Yeah, there's a couple "oddly specific" things I've noticed so far. I feel like someone once told her, "You need to focus more on details" and it just kinda stuck. :D

I'm kinda hoping we find out exactly why she stayed friends with Lacey for all these years because from what I'm reading so far... I don't get it.

Christa wrote: "LOL Yeah, there's a couple "oddly specific" things I've noticed so far. I feel like someone once told her, "You need to focus more on details" and it just kinda stuck. :D

I'm kinda hoping we find ..."

Me, either!! Plus putting her life on the line? It makes no sense.

And why are all the women so disagreeable for the most part?

Yea, I don't see any reason why they would be friends yet... LOL

Right?? Even Micki is doing that "I'm supposed to be a badass but mostly just come off as an asshole" thing.

Franz is really the only person I like at this point, and I've seen him for all of 5 seconds so far. LOL

In case no one else noticed (or was reading the paper version for that bit) she "updated" some stuff. I don't know how much, but early on she makes a reference to Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The movie came out 5 years after the novel was originally published, and the series was another 5 years after that.

Christa wrote: "In case no one else noticed (or was reading the paper version for that bit) she "updated" some stuff. I don't know how much, but early on she makes a reference to Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The movi..."

I don't have that version! O_O But, was that even necessary??? I'm just sayin'

It really wasn't necessary at all, especially since we still have chain-smoking, sexual harassment and so many other things that were prominent in romances of that era. I found it a bit jarring, that's why it stood out.

There's so much face-palming happening as I'm reading this but it's quite enjoyable. :D There's something freeing about just accepting a book for what it is and going along for the ride.

So. I'm reading this and thinking... Why is Micki even alive??

She's having sex with Steve and she wants to have sex with Ryan.

The "bad guy" is all concerned about whores...so how is Micki exempt? Is it because Ryan won't have sex with her? If yes, that's even more sexist.

Also, its clear there are only 3 suspects: Ryan, Steve and Franz. Which means there are only 2 suspects: Steve and Franz cause Ryan is the hero.

Micki's alive because she's wearing plot armor. LOL

It's kind of clever that the puppeteers switch off between puppets the way they do. Makes establishing who was where and when a bit more complicated. But I do question the fact that Princess can't tell the difference between Ryan and Micki voicing the same puppet.

Christa wrote: "Micki's alive because she's wearing plot armor. LOL

It's kind of clever that the puppeteers switch off between puppets the way they do. Makes establishing who was where and when a bit more complic..."

LOLOL!! Plot armor. I love it.

Christa wrote: "It's kind of clever that the puppeteers switch off between puppets the way they do. Makes establishing who was where and when a bit more complicated. But I do question the fact that Princess can't tell the difference between Ryan and Micki voicing the same puppet.."

I agree! But it does kinda make sense that she can't tell. She's only been there a short time and they are professionals.

OMG!! OMG!!!

LOOK!! Look! Look! LOOK!

Southern Cross


Was it her imagination?

At NORStar Space Park, fantasy became reality. There, robots ruled the far reaches of the galaxy, and good battled evil. At NORStar, dreams came true... .

But so did nightmares. Especially for Kristian Ellis, who witnessed the murder of one of her coworkers, Simon Juniper. But after she got help, the body had vanished--and with it, all evidence--except for the words "Southern Cross," which Simon had whispered before his death. The only person who knew what that meant was Tory Roberts, part owner of the space park. The only man who could help Kristian find the murderer, the man determined to become a permanent part of her life.


I've read this before!! There's an ALIEN in it! I was digging through some old records when I ran into this and OMG. Totally want to do a buddy read...but it's out of print. Probably because of said alien, lol.

LOL xD

It's really a shame that's out of print, cuz that looks like fun read. :D

I have finished. When everyone else is done, we can then commiserate together. :D

(There are so many issues with this book but it was rather entertaining, for all the wrong reasons.)

I haven't gotten much read as I've been working all weekend, and its been too busy to read at work. :(

I'm totally finished...

and OMG. Judith was TSTL personified.

Christa wrote: "It's really a shame that's out of print, cuz that looks like fun read. :D"

I'm thinking of grabbing one regardless...

TSTL?

I'm about half way done, but feel free to discuss if you want, I dont mind spoilers with this one xD