Another Two Thumbs Up for Cutthroat!

Here's an early preview from Paige Crutcher, journalist and reviewer for the Examiner.com, who has this to say:

A CUTTHROAT BUSINESS is equal parts charming and sexy, with a side of suspense.

Bente Gallagher's heroine and hero, Savannah Martin and Rafe Collier, are a pairing of perfection. The prim Southern Belle and street-smart alluring rogue captivate and delight. As readers watch the two team forces in an effort to solve a murder, and attempt not to fall under each other's spell, they'll find it impossible not to enjoy the ride.

A CUTTHROAT BUSINESS is a lightning fast read that will have readers coming back for more again and again.

Thank you, Paige!

A CUTTHROAT BUSINESS is available for preorder from Amazon.com HERE.

Five Stars for "A Cutthroat Business"!!!

The first very early pre-review of the ARC of "A Cutthroat Business" is in, from Lynda Coker and Between the Pages, and it couldn't be nicer! Just listen to what she has to say:

"WOW! This series and author were new to me, and I have to tell you that they're both great. In 'A Cutthroat Business', Bente Gallagher hooks you in the first page and doesn't let go until the last. And there is something for every reading preference in her writing. Tricky plot twists, rich description, likable characters, and some villainous characters you'll love to hate. My favorite is her humor. Not heavy, in-you-face humor, but subtle, sneak-up-on-you humor that will have you chuckling out loud. The hero in this story, Rafe Collier, is straight out of my little black book of most loved 'alpha' types. And the heroine, Savannah Martin, while a capable, independent business woman, is still sweet and vulnerable. It was so amusing to watch as she pussy-footed around Rafe, not sure if he was an irresistible hunk or a killer. The elements of Mystery and Suspense weave in and around these two characters linking them in ways they both distrust, yet cannot resist."

If that isn't a fantastic review, I don't know what is! Thanks, Lynda!!!

A Pull-No-Punches Mystery!

Yep, that's what the divine Miss Harriet Klausner calls "Plaster and Poison."

The first review is in, and you can read it HERE.

Among other nice things, Miss Klausner calls the book 'delightful' and the plot 'solid and entertaining.'

So there!

The shortest review ever!

Or maybe not ever - I'm sure there have been shorter ones - but this is pretty darned short. Three sentences total, and one of them is a quote from moi. From that article I wrote for the Mystery Reader's Journal back in May, for their History Mystery issue.

Here's the link - but since the review is so short, I figure I'll just post the whole thing:

Jennie Bentley writes, "If Derek — 6 feet tall, with melting blue eyes, sun-streaked hair, snug jeans and a toolbelt riding low on his hips — can't make it interesting, then I don't know what to tell you."

If you surmise, however, that this novel is chick lit or a sappy romance novel, you would be wrong. It's an ingeniously plotted murder mystery with several prime suspects and a nail-biting conclusion.

So there! Thanks, Roy E. Perry, for those kind words!

A Few Reviews...

I got reviewed by the Nashville Scene today - here - and all in all, I guess can't complain. A comparison to the great lady of mysteries, Dame Agatha herself, isn't anything to sneeze at, even if that crack about my prose being 'nothing if not accessible' hurt a little...

Also, the lovely Diana Vickery at the Cozy Library has posted her review, and a beautiful one it is, too. When I thanked her for taking the time to read and review my book, especially in such a spectacular way, she told me that it's an easy book to like. Bless her!

Another review...

Ron Wynn at the Nashville City Paper has read the book... and likes it.

You can check out the whole thing HERE; this is just the conclusion:

Billed as a "do-it-yourself mystery," Fatal Fixer-upper smartly blends investigative drama, sexual tension and romantic comedy elements, and marks the start of what looks like an outstanding series of Avery Baker cases.

Thanks, Ron!

Woo-hoo!

FATAL FIXER-UPPER receives 4 1/2 stars from Romantic Times Book Reviews! Thank you, Page Traynor.

RT Rating: 4 ½ stars
Category: MYSTERY
Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime
Published: November 2008
Type: Mystery (Amateur Sleuth)

While this is another in the themed mysteries that are not only extremely entertaining but lightly educational, the mystery is unusually strong. Home renovation and design tips are skillfully worked into the story, the characters are developed and sympathetic, and the setting is charming. The climax leads to a bang-up ending in which the intelligent heroine has to either save herself or lose all.
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Summary: Avery Baker loses a boyfriend and then quits her job after inheriting her aunt's Victorian cottage on the Maine coast. She decides to work on the cottage so she can sell it and gets local hunky handyman Derek Ellis to help her. Soon she doesn't know whether the cottage or the man is more attractive, but when her house is broken into she wonders if he's one of the bad guys. A missing professor, disappearing antiques and old secrets all combine for a first-rate mystery and a frightening surprise ending. (Berkley Prime Crime, Nov., 336 pp., $6.99)

—Page Traynor

Let the celebration begin!

First Review!

I always knew it was coming, and now it's here: "Fatal Fixer-Upper"s very first review.

http://themysterygazette.blogspot.com/2008/09/fatal-fixer-upper-jennie-bentley.html

The divine Miss Harriet Klausner likes the book, and gave it 5 stars at the B&N.com website (although she did give away rather a lot of the plot points, I thought).

Oh, well... no blood, no foul. Let there be great rejoicing in the land!