[.ca] Kill the Competition (ISBN 0060539836)

delightful relationship drama inside a police procedural:
Having just moved from Cincinnati to Atlanta, financial expert Belinda Hennessey adjusts to her new town. She knows that her new town is more expensive than her previous one and that the rush hour traffic into the city is unbearable especially from the north side. Thus she has joined those drives using the HOV carpool lane into and out of the city. Belinda works on an assessment whether her new firm Archer Furniture should acquire the mom and pop Payton Manufacturing. Her boss "Maniac Margo" wants the report done yesterday (weekend or not). Belinda concludes that the potential new addition cooked the books, but Margo tells her to be quiet. Reluctantly Belinda agrees being the new kid on the block and wary to make waves. Not long afterward, someone murders Margo with the evidence pointing towards Belinda due to the fiscal cover-up or a member of the car pool who have had run-ins with the now dead queen of nasty. KILL THE COMPETITION is a delightful relationship drama with a strong police procedural plot to anchor the tale. Though the romance between Belinda and police officer Wade Alexander is warm and fun to observe and the murder investigation cleverly intertwined into the prime plot, the tale belongs to the four female car poolers. Their outlook on Atlanta, work, and men forge a strong bond between them and make for a witty novel that readers will cherish especially if you ever been stuck in Spaghetti Junction (Atlanta's most notorious parking lot during the rush hour). Harriet Klausner

Wow!:
This was my first book by Stephanie Bond and all I can say is "WOW"! The characters were witty, funny, and clever. The characters are those whom you can relate with. I found myself thinking, "Hey, I know someone like that". I laughed out loud a few times, earning a curious look from my family. The suspense was literally killing me! Who murdred Marge Campbell? I could not put the book down! I was captivated and practically obsessed in finding out. I read the book for twelve straight hours (the family had to fend for themselves, dinner? I snapped, "order a pizza" the kids fighting? I hid in my room and locked it. Yeah, I guess I was obsessed! LOL) Could it be Julian, the reporter, Belinda, the main character? Belinda's carpool/work friends? Libby, Carole, or Rosemary? All had motive to kill the hated Marge Campbell, nobody like the cruel woman. Are Belinda and Wade, the sexy police officer going to hook up or what? (aka "Officer Goodbody" as dubbed by Libby). Then "wow" once it was revealed who killed Marge Campbell, I was stunned! Usually, I piece things together before it is revealed "who done it" and most of the time I have it figured out before I even finish the last chapter. But "wow" I didn't even "think" about this person! Great story! Fast paced, never a dull moment! Will hold your attention to the very end and maybe a little obsessed...LOL Enjoy!

I loved this book!!:
This is the first Stephanie Bond book that I have read and I am very very pleased. If you liked Linda Howard's Mr. Perfect, you will love this book. I can't wait to read more of Mrs. Bond's books.

Delightful!:
I was delighted by every page of this book. The characters were clever, the dialogue was terrific, and the levels of humor, romance and intrigue were nicely balanced.Very entertaining!

Comedy and Suspense Collide.:
Belinda came to Atlanta hoping for a fresh beginning to heal her heartache and embarrassment. It is not long before she is involved in a carpool with three other women at work. The morning drive is spiced with girl talk, gossip, writing a relationship Do's and Don't's book, and the sexy traffic reporter's voice. Then, life gets interesting. First, they have a car wreck, with a to die for cop. Then, Belinda begins breaking a few rules and confronts their "witchy" with a B boss, only to land a promotion as a result. Then, she runs into none other than the sexy voiced man and finds out there's more to him than a voice. She is also discovering that she has an eerie amount of things in common with a dead woman. All of that would be fine, except for one thing, there's a dead woman in her trunk, and it the top candidates for the killer are either Belinda or those closest to her. **** Whatever kind of book you want, you will probably find it in Kill the Competition. Laughter, suspense, passion, and female bonding all combine in this realistically complex and sometimes whacky book. Ms. Bond has created magic, and she pulls more than one rabbit out of the hat to surprise her readers. ****