[.ca] Orchid Beach (ISBN 0061355267)

From Amazon.com:
Talk about a bad first day. Major Holly Barker thought she was getting out of a mess when she left the army. She'd been sexually harassed by her superior, but the exigencies of the military legal system wound up wrecking her career. Orchid Beach seemed like the perfect place to start over. Though Chief Marley, an old family friend, was worried about some local increases in the drug trade, the Florida barrier island was not a crime mecca. As the new deputy police chief, Holly would be stepping on the toes of a few Orchid Beach P.D. regulars who were being overlooked for the job, but she would prove her worth in short order. After installing her trailer in Riverview, though, the bad news started to flood the Beach. The chief was found along the side of highway A1A with a bullet through the head, and his closest friend just had his skull blown apart with the chief's shotgun. Now, Holly is the acting chief in a town she hardly knows and with a police force that's full of animosity towards its newly minted leader. Just about the only consolation is that Holly has inherited Daisy, a Doberman who's about the best and most faithful friend a troubled gal could ask for; Daisy's a fierce defender of her master and she knows how to retrieve a beer on command. Holly is a new character for Stuart Woods, and the author wastes no time getting readers into the thick of the mystery. This means that character takes a bit of a back seat to plotting in Orchid Beach, but with a mystery this fast-paced, the tradeoff is worthwhile. --Patrick O'Kelley

quick paced read..:
this is my first stewart woods book..and I have to say that I'm pretty pleased with it. The dialogue flows pretty easily and the pacing was very fast. I read the book in a couple of days. Good action and plenty of twists and turns that I didn't see comming from start to finish. Definetly worth a look for anyone who's a fan of good crime/mystery novels. I'll definetly be reading Woods' other works!

Woods does it again:
Ever since Chiefs, Stuart Woods has had a loyal following. I'm one of the followers, after a fashion. There's no question he's not the second coming of Chandler, or something, or that his characters are very memorable, or anything. He does, however, create relatively interesting plots, and the characters are interesting also, though everything can be a bit predictable. If you've ever read Nelson DeMille, and not read Woods, I consider the two to be virtually interchangeable, except that Woods' books tend to be shorter, and DeMille's tend to be more international and espionage/military oriented. In this book Woods introduces a new character. She's Holly Barker, a just-retired Army MP officer who becomes Assistant Chief of a small-town police department, only to have the chief get shot just as she gets into town, and then to have various odd things begin to happen. There's a mysterious Lieutenant who wants her job, small town politics, a dog who gets beer from the refrigerator, a drifter who is a good suspect for the chief's shooting except for he doesn't act like it, and another murder to solve. Barker has to deal with all of this, an adventurous father, his old army buddies, an amorous defense attorney, a bad cop who's been in jail, and a raft of FBI agents. All very fun, and all told in standard Woods style, which means it reads fast. If you're going to Chicago or NYC or LA on the plane tomorrow, this is probably a good bet.

Orchid Beach:
When I learned that the new Stone Barrington novel was to feature Holly Barker, chief of police in Orchid Beach, Florida, I thought I'd get to know her by reading the first book in her series by Stuart Woods. Holly Barker is forced into early retirement from the Army after a nasty sexual harassment case. Chet Marley, chief of police in Orchid Beach, offers Holly a job as his deputy chief of police. On her first day on the job, Holly learns that Marley had been shot the night before and was in a coma. She also finds out that Marley's best friend, Hank Doherty, had been killed the same night. Holly adopts Doherty's Doberman, Daisy. She suspects that someone on the force knows about the shootings, but she isn't sure who knows. As she investigates, she is led to Palmetto Gardens, a very exclusive and rich piece of property in Orchid Beach. It is gated with extremely tight security. With the help of the FBI, her father Hamilton, and her lover Jackson Oxenhandler, Holly gets the answers to her questions. I enjoyed this book. Stuart Woods writes page turners, and "Orchid Beach" will keep the reader turning pages.

Gotta love Stuart Woods!!!...:
I am typically a reader of Woods' Stone Barrington series, but since he cannot write them fast enough, I sought out his other series, in which this is the first book. The Orchid series follow a character named Holly Barker, who is retired from the U.S. military. She takes a position with the Orchid Beach police, and upon arriving the chief is murdered. While getting accustomed to her co-employees, the Orchid Beach community, and her new friend Daisy, Holly must try to solve the case, while also investigating a mysterious 'members only' development called Palmetto Gardens. And to top things off, the ex-chief hinted to Holly before his murder that he thought something 'suspicious' was going on in the department. Holly must decide whom she can and cannot trust. The book did tend to be a little unrealistic with the qualities of Palmetto Gardens, but overall if was still a great read. A keeper for any Woods fan!

A good simple mystery:
This being the second book I have read by Mr.Woods I have enjoyed it much more than Swimming to Catalina. His characters are understandable,all dialog is down to earth, the mystery is within a probable format and the great dog is only a plus. I will read more of this author and would recommend his books to all.