Cheap Retribution (Book) (Jilliane Hoffman) Price

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Customer Reviews of Retribution

An entertaining, although predictable, beach read
This is a good book to curl up with on the beach this summer. A real page turner! It wasn't without it's flaws, but I argue that it is much better than some of the tripe that is being pawned off as "thrillers" these days. While the characters were in large unlikeable, it is also the case with MYSTIC RIVER by Lehane, yet everyone upholds him to be a fantastic author. The plot wasn't any less surprising as DA VINCHI CODE, yet people seem to think that was the best book ever written. In other words, it's amazing that the criticism applied to this book turns a blind eye to other books that suffer the same flaws. I wouldn't pick this book up to be intellectually stimulated, but for an entertaining read on the beach, this is perfect.

That being said, I was somewhat confused by the ending. The therapist confesses to the crimes, but nothing becomes of it, and the villian's guilty verdict is upheld by appeals. So was he actually framed, or was the therapist just crazy and saying things to mess with C.J.? I can't tell. It was probably the biggest chunk of plot development, yet it was rushed at the end. C.J.'s ethical transgressions were pretty much excused in the epilogue. It would have been fascinating to see how she dealt with her wrong doings, as well as the defense attorney, who seemed to be torn apart regarding her ethics at one point. So there are ways this book could have been made better, but take it as it is - a book for the masses to enjoy. I would be happy to read Hoffman again, which is more than I can say for other authors, such as Lehane and Brown, who people have touted over Hoffman in their reviews.

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"Punishment considered morally right and deserved"
Jilliane Hoffman's first novel delivers what it promises, a fast-paced, riveting legal thriller that finds you reading late at night without letting you go. Although the novel is not the best I have read this year, it still is a very good first effort. Hoffman has some characteristics in her writing style that I found extremely interesting, like narrating the same event from the different perspective of the characters involved, and her knowledge of the legal system adds a "reality" touch to an otherwise highly unlikely plot. Nevertheless, it is important to bear in mind that this is fiction, and the author has latitude in how believable the story is.

The novel starts in 1988 in New York City, where we find Chloe taking a night off from studying for the bar exam to go out with her fiance in their anniversary in hopes that he will pop the big question. After the night does not go as she expected, she returns alone to her home and is raped savagely all through the night by a stranger in a clown mask. Twelve years later in Miami, Chloe is working as an assistant state attorney and has changed her name to C.J. Townsend. The police are in the track of a serial killer that kidnaps and murders young women taking their hearts out. When a suspect is taken into custody, CJ finds herself prosecuting the man that raped her twelve years earlier.

Hoffman does a very good job in describing what goes through the mind of a rape victim, the fear, anger, insecurity, etc. I think though, that she is somewhat repetitive in the description of the rape itself, going back to it several times throughout the novel without any real need to do so. Also, at some points the author loses some of the reader's interest, but luckily she recovers quickly and delivers a pretty good book overall. One of the most distinguishable features that elevate the quality of this work is the depth the characters have, and the ability of Hoffman to present their inner conflicts in an interesting way. Finally, I feel the need to point out a minor annoying issue; throughout the novel, Hoffman refers to cell phones by a brand name, which bothered me every time I faced this nomenclature.

Overall, Hoffman appears as a very promising author and I am looking forward to her next novel. If she can fix the minor aspects I have pointed out, I think she will be among the best in the genre.

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Unfortunately, I've read it all before
I have a confession to make; I really did not like this book. I couldn't finish reading past about a quarter of the way through - but because I ALWAYS read to the end I forced myself to skim read the rest. I can't understand such great accolades for stereotypical characters and a plot that, beyond the chilling rape scene at the beginning, failed to impress me.

I didn't like the style of writing from the beginning. Chloe Larson came across as irritating as hell in the first couple of chapters. I wanted to shout "Okay, I understand that she has perfect blond hair, a perfect size 4 body, a perfect life - enough already!' The plot was spoilt by over-the-top physical descriptions that sounded as though they came from notes on a Hollywood movie. Seriously though, the fact that the heroine had blond hair was mentioned far too many times in the first twenty pages, why didn't the editors notice this?

The book seemed to plod by, with paragraphs that went on forever and led nowhere. So much of it was predictable: Young blond woman is brutally attacked, she changes her looks and comes out the other side 'tough' but vulnerable, falls for brooding, dark-haired Italian Detective...and so on. I don't mean to sound patronising, it's just that I read a huge number of books and I've read this type of thing so many times before. What's more, I've seen the movie so many times before.

Overall I could not recommend this book because it was so hackneyed and stereotypical. The scariest and best-written scene was near the beginning and it all went downhill from there.

JoAnne