Review and Giveaway: Lethal Outlook

Lethal Outlook (Psychic Eye Mystery - Book 10) by Victoria Laurie

Publication Date: June 4, 2013
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Obsidian Mystery
Genre: Paranormal Cozy Mystery
Pages: 352
ISBN-10: 045141490X
ISBN-13: 978-0451414908

(Received for an honest review from Obsidian Mystery)

Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, IndieBound

Victoria Laurie on the WEB: website, blog, twitter, facebook, goodreads, librarything, fantasticfiction, cozy-mystery

Books in the series:

Abby Cooper: Psychic Eye (2004), Better Read Than Dead (2005), A Vision of Murder (2005), Killer Instinct (2006), Crime Seen (2007), Death Perception (2008), Doom With a View (2009), A Glimpse of Evil (2010), Vision Impossible (2011), Lethal Outlook (Hard Cover) (2012)

Coverart: Click on the image for a larger, clearer view of the covers in this series.

Excerpt from Lethal Outlook, courtesy of Amazon's Look Inside Feature

Synopsis:

When a mysterious client approaches Abby with a cryptic message about a young mother who has vanished, Abby is more than willing to get involved. After all, it's the perfect distraction from dealing with the headache of her sister Cat - who has flown into town and turned Abby and Dutch's impending nuptials into Weddingpalooza.

After Abby recruits her business partner and BFF, Candice, to assist, they meet with the parents of the missing woman. But the parents refuse to put their faith in a psychic. What's worse, due to a grave misunderstanding, the family suspects Abby has a connection to their daughter's husband - the man they believe to be responsible for her disappearance.

So while the family may be blind to the truth, with a potential killer in her sights, Abby is determined to keep her eyes wide open...

Thoughts:

Victoria Laurie's tenth book in the Psychic Eye series, Lethal Outlook is another successful offering. Laurie provides authenticity and realism in this series while still keeping that paranormal edge. This book and series blends the idea of psychic abilities with traditional mystery and combines the best of both. Laurie's knowledge of the psychic world is the glue that binds this series and readers can't seem to get enough.

This is one of those books that you want to read slowly and savor, but you just can't manage to do it, because it is riveting. I love the idea behind this series. Laurie is a professional psychic herself which lends a lot of credibility to her writing. Her descriptions of how Abby's abilities manifest and how she is able to adjust them to her real life is genius. Laurie is obviously very knowledgeable about her subject and keeps the reader interested from the first page to the last.

The mystery aspect of this one was interesting. It was not overshadowed by the secondary plot of Abby's wedding which could easily have made this one a dud. Readers are still treated to Abby's typical off the wall adventures. Abby isn't up to her best because of her recent accident in the last book, but she is still able to hold her own with the bad guys. She is intuitive and observant. Her sleuthing skills are a lot better than her interpersonal skills though.

As a character, Abby can be a little off putting. She can be a bit whiny and she isn't very good at making important decisions like her wedding plans. She jumps at the chance to sleuth instead of pick out her wedding venue. Her sister Cat has kind of taken over, and Abby can be catty with her. She also ignores Dutch on occasion and lets face it, who would want to do that? But I think these things are part of what makes Abby a special heroine. She isn't perfect. Far from it in fact, but that makes her more real. Ever had a tiff with your sister? I know I have. Ever ignored a text or a call because you were busy doing something else? You get my point.

I liked the way the relationship between Abby and Dutch has progressed in the series and a wedding seemed inevitable. I'm glad as a reader to get to see this couple come full circle. I think fans of the series are in love with these characters and enjoy seeing them happy. Abby may be a challenge, but Dutch is up for it.

Lethal Outlook is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 4 out of 5 apples from my book bag!

About the Author:

Real-life professional psychic Victoria Laurie drew from her career as a gifted intuitive to create the characters of Abigail Cooper and M. J. Holliday. She lives with two spoiled dachshunds, Lilly and Toby, and one opinionated parrot named Doc.

Giveaway Details:

The publisher is sponsoring a giveaway for one copy of Lethal Outlook by Victoria Laurie.

~You must be an email subscriber to participate.
~US addresses only
~The deadline to enter this giveaway is Midnight, EST, July 10th.

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