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Snow Angel
For Julia Larsen, a star television reporter, this holiday season was supposed to heal all the wounds between her and her family. But instead she finds her parents, the former governor of California and his wife, have been senselessly murdered, and all at once her life is thrown into turmoil.
Standing by Julia's side is the devilishly handsome Matt Hinson, a longtime family friend and the man to whom she has always been attracted. At first Julia resists any temptation Matt presents, still hoping she can work out the differences between herself and her estranged husband, Tom.
But soon Julia cannot resist Matt's charms, and she falls completely under his spell. Then the worst happens. Matt is arrested for the murders, and Julia throws herself into defending the one man she can be sure is innocent. Amid a media circus, the trial of the century begins.
Against a spectacular background, as prosecution and defense pull out all the stops and as TV and newspapers spread truth and rumor, Julia is caught in a war between searing passion and chilling doubt. Is Matt the psychopath the police believe he is, or has this mountain of evidence been somehow fabricated?
Standing by Julia's side is the devilishly handsome Matt Hinson, a longtime family friend and the man to whom she has always been attracted. At first Julia resists any temptation Matt presents, still hoping she can work out the differences between herself and her estranged husband, Tom.
But soon Julia cannot resist Matt's charms, and she falls completely under his spell. Then the worst happens. Matt is arrested for the murders, and Julia throws herself into defending the one man she can be sure is innocent. Amid a media circus, the trial of the century begins.
Against a spectacular background, as prosecution and defense pull out all the stops and as TV and newspapers spread truth and rumor, Julia is caught in a war between searing passion and chilling doubt. Is Matt the psychopath the police believe he is, or has this mountain of evidence been somehow fabricated?
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1996
101 people want to read
About the author
Thom Racina
22 books10 followersFrom: http://www.thomracina.com/about.html
Thom Racina hails from Kenosha, Wisconsin, went to school in Albuquerque and Chicago, where he got a MFA in Theatre Arts and Directing, lived in Los Angeles for 25 years, but now makes his home in Palm Springs, California. He's an accomplished pianist, loves to cook, and is a travel junkie—he's when he's in Row 3 on any American Airlines plane.
Next to books, theatre and music are Thom's passion, and he's authored several musicals for children: "Allison Wonderland," the Alice story retold as she falls into a television set (with a new version just produced as "Allison Webland"), "The Wizard of Odds," with an anti-bullying theme, "The Marvelous Misadventure of Sherlock Holmes," and a contemporary musical version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." All four plays are published by Samuel French, Inc. and are performed all over the world.
To put himself through college—Thom graduated from Chicago's famed Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute with an MFA in Theatre Arts and Directing—he wrote books he wouldn't put his name on. Westerns, romances, porn, whatever the publisher needed that weekend (he wrote over 200 of them in about 3 years). He graduated to mainstream publishing with a take-off on The Happy Hooker called "The Happy Hustler" (Warner Books), which he invented in a weekend, and sold three million copies, spawning three sequels. He then ghost-wrote seven books for Xaviera Hollander (The Happy Hooker), made up life stories for Ivory Soap girl-turned-porn-star Marilyn Chambers and Fanne Fox (Wilbur Mills and the Tidal Basin), and turned out 25 novelizations of TV shows and major motion pictures. He has been published by Warner, Dell, NAL, Berkeley, Ace, Putnam and Penguin. In total, he authored 212 books before his breakthrough success with Blizzard.
"The Great Los Angeles Blizzard," published by Putnam's in 1977, and which was to become the basis for the ratings-breaking "Ice Princess" story on General Hospital (snow on Port Charles), was a best seller at a time when disaster stories were the rage.
In the 19 years between Blizzard and his next novel, Thom gave the world over 4,000 broadcast hours of General Hospital, Days of Our Lives, Another World, Santa Barbara, Generations and Search for Tomorrow, besides writing for the much-acclaimed nighttime series, Family. As head writer for the soaps, he received five Emmy nominations, one specifically for Luke and Laura's wedding on GH, the single highest-rated episode in daytime history. He also worked in Hamburg and Toronto writing Family Passions, a Canadian/German production. In 2012, he served as co-head writer (with his dear friend Susie Bedsow Horgan) of the online reboot of One Life to Live. Of his years writing serials, he says, "It was a treadmill, but so much fun to play God."
Thom has over a million copies of his thrillers in print:
"Snow Angel," published in hardcover in 1996 and in mass market in 1997, has been translated into five languages. Romantic Times called it "a breathtaking read, a devilish treat that will leave you crying for more." It was bought for the movies three times, but never made it to the screen. Thom still has hope.
"Hidden Agenda," a political thriller, was published in hardcover by Dutton in 1998, and was the lead Onyx paperback title for March 1999.
"Secret Weekend," a thriller set in Honolulu and Hong Kong, was published by Penguin/Putnam (NAL) in November 1999.
"The Madman's Diary," a thriller set in Palm Springs and Mexico's Baja Peninsula, was published by Penguin/Putnam (NAL) in the summer of 2000.
"Never Forget," set in Paris, Amsterdam and Hollywood, is Thom Racina's Sidney Sheldon thriller, jet set, bigger than life, older woman, younger man and the girl that comes between them--in other words, passion can kill. Published by NAL in the fall of 2002.
"Deadly Games" published in December 2003 tells the tale of Practice Run, a computer game that's captiva
Thom Racina hails from Kenosha, Wisconsin, went to school in Albuquerque and Chicago, where he got a MFA in Theatre Arts and Directing, lived in Los Angeles for 25 years, but now makes his home in Palm Springs, California. He's an accomplished pianist, loves to cook, and is a travel junkie—he's when he's in Row 3 on any American Airlines plane.
Next to books, theatre and music are Thom's passion, and he's authored several musicals for children: "Allison Wonderland," the Alice story retold as she falls into a television set (with a new version just produced as "Allison Webland"), "The Wizard of Odds," with an anti-bullying theme, "The Marvelous Misadventure of Sherlock Holmes," and a contemporary musical version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." All four plays are published by Samuel French, Inc. and are performed all over the world.
To put himself through college—Thom graduated from Chicago's famed Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute with an MFA in Theatre Arts and Directing—he wrote books he wouldn't put his name on. Westerns, romances, porn, whatever the publisher needed that weekend (he wrote over 200 of them in about 3 years). He graduated to mainstream publishing with a take-off on The Happy Hooker called "The Happy Hustler" (Warner Books), which he invented in a weekend, and sold three million copies, spawning three sequels. He then ghost-wrote seven books for Xaviera Hollander (The Happy Hooker), made up life stories for Ivory Soap girl-turned-porn-star Marilyn Chambers and Fanne Fox (Wilbur Mills and the Tidal Basin), and turned out 25 novelizations of TV shows and major motion pictures. He has been published by Warner, Dell, NAL, Berkeley, Ace, Putnam and Penguin. In total, he authored 212 books before his breakthrough success with Blizzard.
"The Great Los Angeles Blizzard," published by Putnam's in 1977, and which was to become the basis for the ratings-breaking "Ice Princess" story on General Hospital (snow on Port Charles), was a best seller at a time when disaster stories were the rage.
In the 19 years between Blizzard and his next novel, Thom gave the world over 4,000 broadcast hours of General Hospital, Days of Our Lives, Another World, Santa Barbara, Generations and Search for Tomorrow, besides writing for the much-acclaimed nighttime series, Family. As head writer for the soaps, he received five Emmy nominations, one specifically for Luke and Laura's wedding on GH, the single highest-rated episode in daytime history. He also worked in Hamburg and Toronto writing Family Passions, a Canadian/German production. In 2012, he served as co-head writer (with his dear friend Susie Bedsow Horgan) of the online reboot of One Life to Live. Of his years writing serials, he says, "It was a treadmill, but so much fun to play God."
Thom has over a million copies of his thrillers in print:
"Snow Angel," published in hardcover in 1996 and in mass market in 1997, has been translated into five languages. Romantic Times called it "a breathtaking read, a devilish treat that will leave you crying for more." It was bought for the movies three times, but never made it to the screen. Thom still has hope.
"Hidden Agenda," a political thriller, was published in hardcover by Dutton in 1998, and was the lead Onyx paperback title for March 1999.
"Secret Weekend," a thriller set in Honolulu and Hong Kong, was published by Penguin/Putnam (NAL) in November 1999.
"The Madman's Diary," a thriller set in Palm Springs and Mexico's Baja Peninsula, was published by Penguin/Putnam (NAL) in the summer of 2000.
"Never Forget," set in Paris, Amsterdam and Hollywood, is Thom Racina's Sidney Sheldon thriller, jet set, bigger than life, older woman, younger man and the girl that comes between them--in other words, passion can kill. Published by NAL in the fall of 2002.
"Deadly Games" published in December 2003 tells the tale of Practice Run, a computer game that's captiva
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
January 19, 2025
The idea of knowing who the killer was from the very beginning was quite interesting, although it took away some suspense. The middle part dragged a bit, but the end was really thrilling.
February 12, 2013
Unusual thriller in that you know right away who the killer is, but the suspense is in how he plans to get away with it.
Recommended by Connie
Check our catalog: http://encore.cooklib.org/iii/encore/...
Recommended by Connie
Check our catalog: http://encore.cooklib.org/iii/encore/...
January 28, 2020
Definitely a thrill ride of a book!
It's a little outdated, mentioning tape-decks, but that's a little charming since I'm from the tape-deck-era.
There was a bit of a slow point for me in the middle of the book and the incessant mention of the main character's sexual deviances was to 'ick' for me but I powered through.
The ending just about had me ready to throw the book across the room, but then it redeemed itself and everything was ok again. (If you read the ending you will know exactly what I mean)
An interesting thriller with a unique killer and resolution to the story. A little bit of an older read but worth the time if you come across it.
It's a little outdated, mentioning tape-decks, but that's a little charming since I'm from the tape-deck-era.
There was a bit of a slow point for me in the middle of the book and the incessant mention of the main character's sexual deviances was to 'ick' for me but I powered through.
The ending just about had me ready to throw the book across the room, but then it redeemed itself and everything was ok again. (If you read the ending you will know exactly what I mean)
An interesting thriller with a unique killer and resolution to the story. A little bit of an older read but worth the time if you come across it.
March 29, 2024
Julia stepped into a nightmare what was supposed to been a family reunion turns into hell
She finds her parents dead inside their home
Who could have done this
With her husband and her on the outs she turns to another,
Matthew her longtime friend
She shares with him her feelings and entrusts her secrets
Then in a shocking surprise Matthew is arrested for the murders now Julia is caught in a war of lies and truth
A chilling suspenseful read
And wow what an ending !
April 21, 2022
I read this during middle school so I don't really remember the scene much. But I can say, it was a remarkable story for me because of the egoistic unique killer and how the murder had plotted. However, I didn't critique or analyze the book before so if I have time, I will read the book again and come back here. Btw, I have the hard copy of the story and it was well taken care of.
September 25, 2017
Oh my, one of the worst thrillers I ever tried to read. Completely unbelievable and I despised the characters, every single one of them. For a 'killer' who thinks he is extremely intelligent he is made to look just plain stupid. Gack, don't bother with this.
December 7, 2017
Decent twist blemished by excessive page-filler romance
June 23, 2018
I really didn't like any of the characters, so it was hard for me to care what happened to anyone.
January 20, 2019
This was a thrilling ride. I did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. A lot of fun!
December 21, 2022
3.5 stars, rounded up
January 11, 2010
This book grossed me out. The story line intrigued me, and I did like trying to figure out the protagonist's secret. The characters were, for the most part, well developed and believable... BUT, the bad guy really creeped me out, and it usually takes a lot to really creep me out. Also, the 'love' story here? I am not a prude or anything, and although they are not my favorite to read, I don't mind reading love scenes, but EW! This guy really creeped me out. Super obsessive, crazy, creepy stalker guy, who fantasizes about this girl from the first time they meet, and all the creepy nasty stuff in between. The main story line was pretty good, and a lot of the development between the protagonist and her husband was well written, but there was too much there that really creeped me out for me to enjoy this book at all.
Maybe others liked it better, but ew. Too much here that's just plain creepy.
This is one of the few books in my life that I honestly wish that I had not finished. Even the other books that I didn't much care for, I appreciate that I read them, and what they had to teach me (Catcher in the Rye, Of Mice and Men etc). Some of those, I might like better if I read them again. But this one, I wish I hadn't wasted my time on.
Maybe others liked it better, but ew. Too much here that's just plain creepy.
This is one of the few books in my life that I honestly wish that I had not finished. Even the other books that I didn't much care for, I appreciate that I read them, and what they had to teach me (Catcher in the Rye, Of Mice and Men etc). Some of those, I might like better if I read them again. But this one, I wish I hadn't wasted my time on.
April 29, 2015
This was the first book I've read by this author and it was recommended to me by a friend who generally enjoys the same type of stories that I do. Well, the jury is still out on whether or not I will read more by this writer, as I have many books on my TBR list who are superior in this genre. Problems? Well, the villain was over the top, more of a caricature. Much of the plot was unbelievable though there was an interesting twist or two. Lastly, the "heroine's" husband went from zero to hero rather rapidly and I am not even sure she was worth it. I almost went for 2 stars, then thought 2.5 might be more fair, but I rounded up because I don't like to be too hard on a writer until I've given at least 2 of their books a chance. You're on notice, Mr. Racina.
August 30, 2009
I didn't hate this, and I didn't love it. There was no mystery in the classic "who done it" sense, but Matthew was a rather creepy villain. His masturbation obsession was rather disturbing. The only mystery was why Julia had fallen so hard for him. The author leaves enough clues for a clever reader to figure it out rather early, but it was intriguing to finally see everything finally unfold. Some of the coincidences were a little unbelievable, but for an easy suspense book, I can't complain too much.
June 4, 2014
Feeling generous, I'm giving SNOW ANGEL three stars. This book is billed as a "chilling suspense" novel. Hmmm, I must have blinked... a lot... and missed the "chilling" revelations. Predictable plot, author substituted frequent masturbations for lack of more interesting actions. He did include a very likable dog and kid ~ this tale's saving graces ~ since most of the other characters were unremarkable. I stuck it out to the end, rooting of course for the dog and the kid.
November 20, 2008
We find out right away who did the crime, so the only mystery is why the protagonist continues to stand by the perpetrator in the face of so much evidence against him, even to the detriment of her own marriage. Unfortunately you will likely figure that out too, leaving just an entertaining read with no real mystery.
November 18, 2008
And again, I'm not a murder mystery person, but this was worse than the other. Some times I think it is a not a good thing to be a person who doesn't like to walk away from a movie/book, even if it isn't good.
Way too much sex and violence. Thank goodness I didn't spend money to buy this one... too bad someone else did.
Way too much sex and violence. Thank goodness I didn't spend money to buy this one... too bad someone else did.
July 17, 2009
A very good suspense/thriller. In fact, I got it from the library Monday afternoon, started reading it, didn't have time to read Tuesday but finished it on Wednesday. There's some sexual scenes in it, and I thought it was so interesting how I could tell a man wrote the book. The sexual feelings and what happens during sex is definitely from the man's point of view. ;)
September 10, 2012
I found this book intriguing, if nothing else. Matthew Hinson is an interesting killer, and the other characters are believable and well fleshed out. The tabloid blurbs scattered over the book are a little over the top though, and distracted from the story a bit. An okay read.
April 26, 2013
It wasn't what I was expecting. I was about to give up on it but it did pick up somewhere toward the end. But there were definitely areas where the author drug out the story where it could have been shorten a bit and still told the story well.
January 14, 2008
A typical thriller with the usual twists and "surprise" turns. I didn't hate it, but I had the twist figured out early in the book.
September 30, 2008
PRETTY GOOD STORY LINE. THE KILLER WAS REVEALED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE BOOK, BUT AS IT UNFOLDED I WOULD NOT HAVE GUESSED THE ENDING.
Read
August 31, 2009An interesting book, it kept you guessing to the end...though the ending kinda had a predictability about it. But still, a good beach read if you ever need one.
October 25, 2021
The ending was unexpected. I really enjoyed the book.
July 30, 2011
My first Thom Racina book. And I'll have to read all of his books. It was a wonderful, edge-of-your-seat book.
February 21, 2012
Creepy, i like it! :)
Read
June 25, 2012Definitely not a book I would recommend or reread.
January 31, 2013
CRAZY! This book takes off and doesn't stop! OMG! Read this years ago and have not forgotten it
February 27, 2013
This book was great! Definitely not the same ol' murder mystery! Good plot twists. Gotta find more by the same author!
December 11, 2021
So exciting!!! I absolutely love this book & have read it so many times!!!
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews