Deadline

By: Sandra Brown

Narrated by: Stephen Lang

Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's Summary

Dawson Scott is a well-respected journalist recently returned from Afghanistan. Haunted by everything he experienced, he's privately suffering from battle fatigue which is a threat to every aspect of his life. But then he gets a call from a source within the FBI. A new development has come to light in a story that began 40 years ago. It could be the BIG story of Dawson's career one in which he has a vested interest.

Soon, Dawson is covering the disappearance and presumed murder of former Marine Jeremy Wesson, the biological son of the pair of terrorists who remain on the FBI's Most Wanted list. As Dawson delves into the story, he finds himself developing feelings for Wesson's ex-wife, Amelia, and her two young sons. But when Amelia's nanny turns up dead, the case takes a stunning new turn, with Dawson himself becoming a suspect. Haunted by his own demons, Dawson takes up the chase for the notorious outlaws...and the secret, startling truth about himself.

©2013 Sandra Brown (P)2013 Hachette Audio

Wish there were more like it...

Sandra Brown has pioneered her own unique niche since throwing off the constrainting rules of writing genre fiction with the publication of Envy in 2001. I have mad love for just about every word she's written since then and Deadline is no exception. Setting a meticulously crafted mystery/thriller at the heart of a love story, Brown honors her romance writing roots as well as her romance reader fans. Or is it the other way around--romance at the heart of a mystery? Either way you choose to look at it, one needs the other and it's a happy confluence that pleases me in all the best ways.

I've struggled with false starts and wholesale deletes in writing a review for fear of spoilers. I'm a spoiler hater and I'm glad that I experienced Deadline knowing only what is revealed in the blurb and I urge you to do the same. I reveled in Brown's trademark diabolical plot twists without having a clue as to where she was going with it. Unspoiled is the only way to go with Sandra Brown.

In addition to main protagonists Dawson and Ameilia, there are numerous characters important to the storyline, each requiring a unique voice. Stephan Lang aces it in that respect, seamlessly delivering dialogue between/among the entire cast while consistently staying in character. I especially loved his voicing of a certain villain An unexpected choice and so devious and insightful. Extra kudos to Lang for his heartbreaking reading of Flora's journal.

I didn't love Lang's Ameilia voice, not that the timbre is a problem, but a bit of a miss on her characterization. She sounds too soft and hesitant, almost apologetic, for an accomplished professional woman with an aristocratic upbringing. Hero Dawson Scott's voice is exactly right to my ear. Dawson is decidedly different sort of Sandra Brown hero and that's all I'm going to say. Lang clearly gets Dawson and I love him for that.

Sandra Brown delivers another excellent romantic thriller and Stephan Lang pretty much nails it.

14 of 15 people found this review helpful

Very good story! Gratuitous sex at end cheapens it

As I was reading the book all I could think of was how much I loved the rhythm of the book.The reader and the author combined to create a very good listening experience. I really enjoyed it. When I read a book, I am always thinking about if I could recommend the book to anyone and then to whom. Through the first 90% of the book, the answer was yes I would recommend the book and I had a long list of friends that depend on me for recommendations. Then, out of the blue, very graphic sex is added for who knows what reason. The story is over, we know where it is going and then bang. It doesn't fit, it wasn't needed and it cheapens the whole book. I can't recommend the book to anyone without telling them to be careful. I really can't believe that this was added to the book. It's place in the book seems like an afterthought. For me this was disappointing as I was really enjoying the book up till then.

12 of 13 people found this review helpful

Mixed bag as usual

Sandra Brown is great at novel plot lines keeping you guessing. However all the male leads start out nasty like the old romance novels with heroine's who pretend to hate them until they learn about some excuse provided to excuse the men's lack of control with sex and anger. The deep love is based on looks and hormones as they allegedly fall in love before they know each other. While I am intrigued figuring out the plot, I have started fast forwarding through the numerous sex scenes as they are the same in every book of hers that I have read. I think she is a talented author who does not have to depend on providing soft porn to sell her books.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Listen for It, Wow What an Ending

Would you consider the audio edition of Deadline to be better than the print version?

Stephen Lang did a very good job...3rd listen by this reader. He is a very versatile actor and a great reader. What a range of voices and he just gets the pace needed for the story.

What did you like best about this story?

So many clues, what a twist and turn listen. Great Sandra Brown listen

Which character – as performed by Stephen Lang – was your favorite?

Grant, such innocences.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

When the boys' see the sand Dragon

Any additional comments?

if you like this listen, get Witness by sandra brown and Smoke Screen

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Unbelievably mediocre!

I was so disappointed with this latest from Sandra Brown. The prologue and first couple of chapters were fine though, like Dawson, I couldn't care less about the what happened to the baby of the terrorists. It had no relevance to Dawson (nor me the reader) at the time but I trudged on certain that Ms Brown would trigger some interest on my part.

Instead, the ensuing chapters read like Women's Fiction, focusing on a divorced Amy and her home life which revolved around her kids and an unlikeable Steph, her kids
nanny. It took too long for any suspense or real mystery to kick in and by then I was bored to tears.

I found this a very unSandra-Brown book.

Stephen Lang's narration didn't help either. I didn't care for him in Chill Factor but I think he's worse here. While I like that he softens his voice for the female parts, in general he is boring and doesn't bring life to the characters or the scenes. I hope, if the author continues to write, that she will return to her previous style where there was drama, suspense and romance - and that the audio producers can get Slezak or Phil Gigante. Anyone else but Lang though Lang is still better than any female.

18 of 23 people found this review helpful

Great complex story

Narrator was good although there were a couple moments where it was unclear who was speaking in a conversation.

Loved the story. I appreciated the complexity of the characters. Nice romance without being obvious or forced.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

My favorite SB story.

What made the experience of listening to Deadline the most enjoyable?

I thought it was a fantastic story about a twisted serial killer and his family and had a chilling twist at the last moment that I didn't see coming. I loved it!

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Yes, it kept me in my car wanting to hear the end of the chapter.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

DEAD LINE

i REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK...I HOPE YOU WON'T LISTEN TO THE PREVIOUS REVIEWS CAUSE I FOUND NOTHING MEDIOCUR ABOUT THIS BOOK...THE STORY WAS GOOD,,THE NARRATOR DID A GREAT JOB,,,! AS ALWAYS I DIDN'T WANT IT TO END...

16 of 21 people found this review helpful

Disappointing

Have read many.of her books. This is not up to her usual standards. Overall disappointing

9 of 12 people found this review helpful

She Did It Again

Good story! She had me fooled to the end. Maybe I missed it, but was the second child mentioned earlier? But I don't want to give away the book. Sandra Brown writes a great book. Stephen Lang--great job!!

3 of 4 people found this review helpful