A maverick London lawyer with an irresistible smile and a body to match, Sarah Fortune masks a numbed heart with a string of lame-dog clients and a retinue of eccentric lovers. Now she finds herself protecting Cannon Smith, a man whose worse enemy turns out to be his own beloved twin brother, Johnny. Long ago, the brothers were inseparable, but now they've taken different paths - and Johnny doesn't like that...not one bit.
It's hard for Sarah to believe that a man could hate his brother so, but Johnnyboy is truly evil. Inflicting the worst kind of pain is his deepest pleasure and there is nothing he fears - except the dentist's chair.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Doctor, lawyer, Indian chief, rich man, poor man, beggarman, thief? Well, perhaps not, but the array of characters Frances Fyfield collects in Staring at the Light are equally varied: lawyer, dentist, IRA bomber, artist, nun....
A maverick London lawyer, Sarah Fortune finds herself protecting Cannon Smith, a talented artist with a prison record, a wife he loves deeply, and an unfortunate handicap: a twin brother, Johnny, whose need to believe that he is the most important figure in Cannon's life sails effortlessly beyond the threshold of mental health and into psychopathy. Long ago, the brothers were inseparable, but now they've taken different paths--and Johnny doesn't like that at all. He is determined to bring Cannon back to him, and no one is exempt from playing a pawn in his murderous game: not Sarah; not her Aunt Pauline, a nun who is sheltering Cannon's terrified wife; not William Dalrymple, one of Sarah's eccentric retinue of lovers and a dentist whose chair becomes a horrific centerpiece that will make most readers remember Marathon Man shudderingly.
Sarah's blithe, brittle independence is her hallmark: "She was perfectly comfortable living alone with her inexplicable devotions.... She seemed to have turned into a bit of a gypsy, encumbered with a small mortgage and very little else, her ambitions lessening with each succeeding year." But whereas Sara Paretsky's very insistence on V.I. Warshawski's wise-cracking solitude, for example, paradoxically signals that those still waters run as deep as Lake Michigan, Fyfield's determination to turn her heroine into a lone London gun merely renders Sarah as a two-dimensional woman with a commitment phobia.
The novel does, however, possess more than its fair share of vibrant, subtly sketched characters. Cannon Smith, trapped by memories of his own loyalty, must realize that even the most desperate efforts to achieve happiness may fall silently short: "There was not really anywhere to hide. From a ghost. A legend he no longer quite knew. From his own heart and the lure of destruction. From his own nature. From a world where he still did not understand the rules." And William Dalrymple, in his halting attempts to escape his personal and professional failings, and his terrified retreats into the comforting solitude of plaster molds and porcelain veneers, is a figure of ineffable pathos and shy courage. Fyfield's skill may even convince you that Willy Loman has thrown over sales in favor of dentistry, putting down his traveling case for good and picking up a drill and scalpel in its place. --Kelly Flynn
Sarah Fortune, maverick London lawyer with an irresistible smile and a body to match, masks a numbed heart with a string of lame-dog clients and a retinue of eccentric lovers. Now she finds herself protecting Cannon Smith, a man whose worst enemy turns out to be his own beloved twin brother, Johnny.
It?s hard for Sarah to believe that a man could hate his brother so, but Johnnyboy is evil. Inflicting the worst kind of pain is his deepest pleasure. It doesn?t take him long to discover there is little Sarah fears ? except the dentist?s chair.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
FREE
Within U.S.A.
Shipping:
FREE
Within U.S.A.
Seller: Wonder Book, Frederick, MD, U.S.A.
Condition: Very Good. Very Good condition. Very Good dust jacket. A copy that may have a few cosmetic defects. May also contain light spine creasing or a few markings such as an owner's name, short gifter's inscription or light stamp. Bundled media such as CDs, DVDs, floppy disks or access codes may not be included. Seller Inventory # V18A-03395
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books: West, Reno, NV, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. First Edition. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # GRP66504075
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
Condition: Very Good. First Edition. Used book that is in excellent condition. May show signs of wear or have minor defects. Seller Inventory # 17427404-6
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. First Edition. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # GRP66504075
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: zeebooks, Foley, AL, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Slight wear and foxing to page edges. Name inscribed on front flyleaf. Seller Inventory # 240216088
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: zeebooks, Foley, AL, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: New. May have small remainder mark and light shelf wear. Seller Inventory # 221228075
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: GetitBooks, FOLEY, AL, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: As New. Brand New has small remainder mark may have light shelf wear due to storage and handling. Seller Inventory # SKU1002019
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: William Ross, Jr., Annapolis, MD, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Fine. First Edition. First American Edition, First Printing with full number line. New unread Fine book in Fine dust jacket. All our books are bubble wrapped and shipped in a sturdy box with Delivery Confirmation. NO remainder mark, NO previous owner markings or inscriptions, NOT price clipped, NOT a Book Club Edition, NOT an Ex-Lib. Dust jacket covered in protective clear wrapper. Seller Inventory # 008955
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Go4Books, St. Cloud, MN, U.S.A.
Soft cover. Condition: As New. No Jacket. 1st Edition. Advance Uncorrected Proof. Seller Inventory # 004828
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Hook's Book Nook, Pottstown, PA, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Like New. SIGNED BY AUTHOR in like new dj. Seller Inventory # SKU1001732
Quantity: 1 available