Smoke Screen

A Novel

By: Sandra Brown

Narrated by: Victor Slezak

Length: 14 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's Summary

When newswoman Britt Shelley wakes up in bed with the handsome and hard-partying Jay Burgess, a rising star detective in the Charleston PD, she remembers nothing of how she got there...or of how Jay wound up dead.

Five years earlier, Jay was a hero of a disastrous fire at Charleston's police headquarters, which would have been even deadlier if not for the bravery of Jay and three other city officials who led others to safety.

Firefighter Raley Gannon, Jay's lifelong friend, had been assigned to investigate the fire, but the investigation ended in a scandal that shattered Raley's world, and forced him to surrender the woman he loved and the work to which he'd dedicated his life. For five years his resentment has festered, but he was helpless to set things right. That changes when he learns of Jay's shocking death.

As suspicion against Britt Shelley mounts, Raley realizes that the newswoman might be his only chance to get personal vindication - and justice for the seven victims of the police station fire. But there are powerful men who don't want to address unanswered questions about the fire, and will go to any lengths to protect their reputations.

As Raley and Britt discover more about what happened that fateful day, they realize that they're not only chasing after the truth but running for their lives.

Smoke Screen is Sandra Brown's most intense novel yet.

©2008 Sandra Brown Management LTD. (P)2008 Simon and Schuster, Inc.

I enjoyed much of it

but toward the end I realized things were missing or weak.

Raley was an arson investigator. He was drugged and set up for something that caused him to lose his job. Five years later Britt, a TV news reporter, was drugged and framed for murder. Both events had something to do with Jay. Raley contacts Britt and together they try to figure out what’s going on, as hit men are after them.

I prefer discovering clues throughout the story to uncover the mystery. In this book, almost nothing is learned until the end when bad guys confess. 95% of the book is hiding, fleeing, and wondering. They have no proof and get no proof. Then all of a sudden we have confessions and it’s over. In each case a bad guy is going to do something bad but does a tell-all to someone first. Both of these were too convenient to the plot. That was disappointing. I want to be intrigued or impressed. I wasn’t. But the author is a talent.

The bad guys were one dimensional - could have been better.

This is romantic suspense, but don’t expect emotion inducing romance. The romance needed something. There were a few sex scenes, mildly done, not much detail.

In fiction, I usually don’t mind an author making up technical things, but this was too obvious. Removing stem caps from tires does not cause flat tires.

The narrator Victor Slezak was very good.

Genre: romantic suspense.

Murders Most Foul and Vindication

Another good one by Sandra Brown. ... I enjoyed this novel... plenty of despicable characters. It was hard to figure out who the "truly" bad guys were. Nevertheless, It was not too hard - about midway through - to figure who the "ultimate" bad character was going to be. This is a fast moving intense, suspenseful and scandalous mystery. This one is high on my Sandra Brown list with Envy at the top. I highly recommend Sandra Brown for original and enjoyable storylines..

This is an intense story of corruption in high places, revenge and justice.... police corruption... sounds familiar? That's what I like about Sandra Brown's stories. They are so realistic that long after the novel is finished, the storylines are memorable.

Victor Slezak's narration is excellent. Yes, his range may be limited in that some of his characters sound alike, but the top-flight writing skills of Ms. Brown helps the listener keep whose speaking straight. Slezak's voice is quite velvety and fits Ms. Brown's stories very well. I am a sucker for his voice and I much rather have his voice in my ear with a few glitches than someone whose voice is not enjoyable.

Also, as a negative that I put under the "who cares" category, the author takes creative liberties with technical things such as having one character remove stem caps from automobile tires which is supposed to cause the tires to slowly go flat. Well, I know that this is not true. I've had the stem caps off my car tires and nothing happened. You must keep pressure on the inner part of the stem to let out the air! But who cares about this odd but useful technicality when the overall story is entertaining and keep you listening and wanting to know more!

Loved the book, love the narrator!

I loved this story. Although I usually try to take my audiobooks off of my IPOD after listening to them to save space, I just can't get rid of this one because I keep go back to listen to it over and over again. It has your betrayal, cover ups, romance, fights, but there is so much you just don't see coming. The ending was great and completely unpredictable. I loved the characters, the story and as always, another great narrating job by Victor Slezak.

Imaginative and creative.

Sandra Brown always manages to captivate me with her story telling. She is a wonderfully creative writer and did not disappoint in the delivery of Smoke Screen. As usual she leaves me wanting to read more of her books. Very well done!

What a Writer! Loved the story!

Sandra Brown is a true wordsmith. I was hooked on this story from the beginning. Victor Slezak has such a pleasant voice and is a great actor. He could have used a higher pitch when narrating the women's voices but he did a great job. Speakers in the Carolinas do have a pronounced accent. I loved listening to him. I'm pretty picky and I was impressed with the whole production.

Excellent Story

So nice to pick up a romance type story with a really good plot. I could guess some of it but other parts kept me guessing.

Well crafted

This is a well crafted story that moves fast. My only complaint is the narrator. Slezak has a good voice and does the secondary characters well. However the H/h both sound just alike. Several times it was hard to know which character was speaking. Dick Hill narrates other books by Brown and does such an awesome job, it makes Slezak's limitations all the more prominent

"Yeah, maybe I like you a little"

Where does Smoke Screen rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This one smokes! I re purchased through audible as it is ez on I pod. I have listened to this one many times. Full version of White Hot is about the only one better. Audible, you really should try to get the full Victor Slezak read version. Fans are missing out. You got Envy and Hello Darkness, White Hot beats both of those books.

What other book might you compare Smoke Screen to and why?

Lethal, same hunky character which Victor makes yummy

Have you listened to any of Victor Slezak’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have all of his SB performances...he is more $$$ but no one does SB characters better!
He makes all the heros "sexy as all get out" none better.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I do listen to all of SB books read by Victor in one sitting. Hence, I have to re listen another time to catch all the clues given by SB to figure out the who done character.

Any additional comments?

if you are a SB fan, this is one you must not miss. I buy all of SB Books read byVictor Slezak. None will disappoint read by him. Rainwater will break your heart

Fasten your seatbelt!

Mystery/detective thrillers are my "go-to" genre. What makes Smoke Screen a good read is the seamless interweaving of plot with rich and fully realized characters. This was my first Sandra Brown listen (a suggestion from a friend) but she is now on my favorite author list. I'm already on my second Brown title and will continue till I have read or listened to every title on the Brown list.

Good Book!

I almost did not get this book because of some of the reviews but I am glad I did get it. I love the combination of Sandra Brown and Victor Slezak plus I thought the characters in this book were very believable and very likeable. True - it is not on the same level as Envy but then not many are.