Product Description

Good girls finish last...

That's Belinda Hennessey's new philosophy in life, work, and love after moving to Atlanta to escape a disastrous six-hour marriage. Now she has a killer job, spunky carpooling gal-pals, and the velvety voice of a traffic helicopter reporter to guide her on her way. She's even feeling lively enough to contribute to the manual on relationships and men her friends are writing to kill time during their commute.

But then a traffic mishap with a drop-dead gorgeous cop unleashes a series of events that bolsters Belinda's new bad-girl attitude -- she gets a tune-up from "Officer Goodbody," catches the eye of the throaty traffic reporter, and is targeted for a big promotion. But before Belinda can say "corner office," a coworker is murdered, and evidence points to a carpool conspiracy! With a killer on the loose, her friends at one another's throats, and two men offering southern comfort, Belinda knows only one thing for certain: climbing to the top can be murder on a girl.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #594362 in Books
• Published on: 2003-10-09
• Original language: English
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 384 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Despite its title and blood-red cover art, this tart, down-to-earth tale from Bond (I Think I Love You, etc.) focuses more on the nature of female friendships than on the murder mystery that throws the heroine's life into a tailspin. New to Atlanta, finance specialist Belinda Hennessey is glad to have her carpool mates to take her mind off her failed marriage. Before she can get too comfortable, however, she hits Officer Wade Alexander's police cruiser, misses a crucial meeting and clashes with her malevolent boss, Margo, who wants her to overlook the fact that the company they're merging with may have fudged its numbers. Belinda reluctantly agrees and then finds herself in hot water when Margo turns up dead. Though at times too gullible for her own good, Belinda comes into her own over the course of the novel. Her uncertainties about her job, her zany friends and her budding relationship with Wade are ably portrayed, as is the setting (Bond describes Atlanta's traffic as only a resident could). Clever snippets from the carpool quartet's work-in-progress, a relationship dos and don'ts book for women ("DON'T underestimate the extent to which men underestimate women"), leaven the story, as does the women's banter. Readers who prefer heady sex and romance won't find either here, but for those who appreciate fun, classy, relationship-centered tales: DO read this novel.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Stephanie Bond walked away from a corporate career in computer programming to write romantic fiction full time. These days she uses her computer keyboard to produce fast-paced novels with a comedic twist. Stephanie lives with her husband and her laptop in midtown Atlanta.