Thursday, October 11, 2012

Sidney Sheldon's Angel Of The Dark:Review






Rating:  3.25 out of 5




I visited a book fair recently. It was awesome and I found many good reads there (Ha!).This was one of them.

I have read about four Sidney Sheldon's books and I found them interesting. This one, despite its title, is not fully written by Sidney Sheldon. Its author is Tilly Bagshawe. She built this story on some unpublished work of Sidney Sheldon. But this story is not disappointing at all.

The story begins when a very-old-very-rich man, Andrew Jakes is murdered in cold blood and his wife-Angela Jakes, is brutally raped. Due to lack of evidence the police fail to pin the accomplice and the case is closed. The wife disappears and leaves all her inheritance i.e. four hundred million dollars to charity. Everyone seems to move on except for Danny McGuire. He ruins himself in the process of trying to find her, Angela Jakes and the murderer but to no good. He then joins the Interpol and marries again, to get over her.
Back in LA, Matt, the long estranged son of Andrew Jakes is fascinated by this story and wants to a documentary on it. But it soon becomes his passion and later his life.

Story has an interesting plot spanning over France, America, Hong Kong and India. The author clearly has done her research. She got most facts right. The technicalities are well taken care of too but at a certain points in the story one may notice a few loop-holes, like wouldn't they have analyzed the DNA samples of the victims and if one disables the infrared security the surveillance cams would still be on and a few others but for the story's sake it’s better to ignore them. 

The writing is well paced and keeps one hooked to the story. The story doesn't lag overall and there is no rambling like one may find in thrillers generally, where whole chapters are written in building the characters. The characters are shaped well and are interestingly real. The leads i.e. the wives are portrayed as goddesses with hearts deeper than the ocean. The detectives are rather naive and fail to look at what is right in front of them. I don't want to talk more about the characters because then you'll know the end.

I always tend to figure out the end of a story by the time I am like half way through it and I am rarely wrong and this book was no exception to that. Also the funny thing in this story is the portrayal of the men. Most of them (except of maybe Inspector Liu and the mastermind of the murders), are either too naive or either too stupid or both. They are shallow in a sense that they wag their tails for a woman who they have just met and just because of her beauty wag their tails after her, even to a point that they cheat on their spouse, leave their pregnant wife, their family and go completely broke. 

The end of this story could have been better if the author would have just omitted the last two chapter, they take the fun out. For the last time I wanted to believe a man would choose his wife but again he abandons her while she is pregnant and chooses the so called love. Typical men huh! That is why I earlier wrote that the characters are interestingly real. 

Thus his is a good paced thriller which would keep you hooked for the major part of it and Could pass for a weekend read or a book one wants to read while commuting. I read it while travelling to and from my college in the metro.

53 comments:

  1. can u please tell me why carlos hernandez gets killed?i presume lisa killed him..but why?i did not
    get the ending,it was confusing..so need some help!

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    1. What I inferred from the story is that Lisa was never cured of her disease.She tricked Carlos like she tricked all the others and then killed him when her motive was fulfilled.And I think that by killing all the other men, the end might have become synonymous with killing them, this might be the absolution she needed in order to move on.

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    2. i also think the same about the ending

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    3. Angel Of The Dark is undoubtedly a page turning book. The intricate plotting definitely left the reader awestruck. But then i have a few questions regarding the book. If anyone can answer them it would be great.
      1) What happened to all the paintings and jewelry that was stolen from the first two crimes?
      2) Why was the money given to children's charities? What was the significance?
      3) Why did carlos have to be murdered?

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    4. carlos wasnt the real carlos who was sofia s friend in prison! he was actually matt daley who was living under the name of carlos.. and you get to know this because it is told that he had recently given his details on the lease of the house he is found in (which was the 3 story house that sofia shows him in the final chapter). and he was murdered because he has also abandoned his child and his ex wiife!

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    5. But if he was matt he wud be found dead in morocco bcoz thats where he ran away with sofia...so why is an lapd officer investigating the case ??
      I think it was the real carlos who was killed nt sure why bt matt I think got a happy ending

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    6. The moneys goes to childrens charity because sofia and francii both were from an orphange..

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    7. The book end that why carlos died or murdered in is still a mystery for me.. cant get why was he dead?? he was for sure not matt..

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    8. Its obvious...say Sophie never recovered or say she was fine now ..in any case if she had to be sure that she cud b happy ever after with Matt, she had to finish off the only man who know that she is not dead, which was Carlos.

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  2. I have just finished reading the book yesterday..! And i am just a bit confused. First, Frankie kills himself so maybe he did not 'die', he escaped somehow and helped Sofia to get her out the prison and killed Carlos. Now they are going to kill Matt too because he too abandoned his wife and children for another woman.

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  3. i cant remember who this carlos guy is?

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  4. Grr... Carlos is the male nurse at the assylum

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  5. Through out the couple was killing old and rich men who had abandoned their families but what about David Isaag, he never did such thing.Why did they choose him?

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  6. David didn't choose to abandon his college sweet heart and their baby, but he also had a child that grew up without its biological father, so that qualified him as an rich abandoning father.

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  7. I think Sofia was a psycopath who used men and controlled them because of her beauty , even Francini , because if u remember before francini came in her life she was potrayed as a loose character by the orphanage people , she did not change , she just controlled all men , changed her identity , even her looks to some extent living and loving each man in her life , the planner was Francini coz he too was mentally ill , which is quite obvious.She had no identity of her own coz of being brought up in an orphanage .She tried to live a dream life with each rich man she married but also ended it brutally coz of her mental state. But in the end she was living with Matt , the exact life she wanted in Morrocco so i dont think the murders wud have continued coz she was having a baby ,finally a family of her own .

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  8. I had to reread the end..! I think that it was Lisa all the time who was killing the men..and in the end she is able to hoodwink Carlos also so that he helps her to escape..and then..falls in love with her..and she kills him ..to reach her actual destination..Matt the guy she thinks she is in love with and who can take her to Morrocco.. but somehow I did not get closure with this book..would love a word from Tilly Bradshaw as to what she actually intended the end to be..

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    1. I felt the exact way. I am still not able to get closure. I really wish someone could answer this for me. So many possibilities.

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    3. I think Carlos was actually Mancini. Someone must have helped Mancini set up his own death and help them Escape. Rented the villa in his name on the lease and he and Lisa did their same number on Matt because like some of you said he then left his wife and child like all the others.
      Everyone thinks it's Carlos's corpse that's there because his name is on the lease. But it's actually Matt's dead body

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    4. I think Carlos was actually Mancini. Someone must have helped Mancini set up his own death and help them Escape. Rented the villa in his name on the lease and he and Lisa did their same number on Matt because like some of you said he then left his wife and child like all the others.

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  9. I had to reread the end..! I think that it was Lisa all the time who was killing the men..and in the end she is able to hoodwink Carlos also so that he helps her to escape..and then..falls in love with her..and she kills him ..to reach her actual destination..Matt the guy she thinks she is in love with and who can take her to Morrocco.. but somehow I did not get closure with this book..would love a word from Tilly Bradshaw as to what she actually intended the end to be..

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    1. i too desperately need to know the real meaning of why was carlos killed and by whom

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  10. This is a good read. Why is it carrying the name Sidney Sheldon, when in no way its closer to his style.
    This is the first time I am reading Tilly bagshawe, luckily this happens to be a good thriller.
    The author lacks creativity that is evident, but some how manages to tell a good story.

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  11. The ending was confusing. Why does Carlos get killed? How come Matt leaves his wife when he actually says goodbye to Lisa. Was Lisa infact with Carlos but imagined herself to be with Matt? Or did she make Matt do the same mistake as the other four and got him killed. If so then where does Carlos come in? Did Matt change his name to Carlos?? Is Franki still alive? And they both faked their deaths?? So many questions???

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  12. It is pretty simple dear friends .Franki is dead for sure .
    Carlos is the second man who knew that Lisa is alive so he must be killed or he can become a future threat .
    It also reveals that it was Sophie who killed all men before .So actually she is the one to be hanged not Franki.

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  13. The last line of the book reads as "Perhaps he didn't deserve happiness.Perhaps neither of them did. But this was their book now, their story.Together, Matt Daley knew, they were going to live happily ever after."
    I think Matt made sure by killing Carlos there would be no further threat to them and by doing so he had left no trace.

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    1. No.. matt has been potrayed as a soft hearted person.. danny even commented that he couldnt kill a fly... so afcourse he is nt d one to kill carlos

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    2. I agree..I guess Lisa would have killed Carlos because when she she mentions about him in hotel she says " Carlos had moved on".. So it must be her..

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    3. ya matt won't kill anyone. it might be lisa who killed as she want to start with new life and end everything.

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  14. I just finished the book and it has left me with many unanswered questions.The end was not clear at all. Why was Carlo murdered. I don't think Sophie murdered him coz it was always Frankie who made Sophie kill all her husbands.She did not wish to murder any of them..

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  15. Matt ended up abandoning his pregnant wife for Lisa. Almost what other victims kid; leaving their wife and kids and all. So, will Matt end up being the "last" victim? What do you think?

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  16. I don't think Matt was killed.

    He killed Carlos before him and Lisa left to Morocco. Lisa said he was the only other person that knew she was alive. This made him a risk.

    Let's remember Matt was abe to get into Lisa Baley's summer home and David Ishag's home. He tried to plan her grand escape. He's perfectly capable to create crimes of passion so killing Carlos really shouldn't be that surprising.

    Before the epilogue he also says "whatever else he might do in his life, Matt Daley would never, ever put Lisa at risk again"

    Additionally Lisa said Carlos moved before he could pay her back, this plays into the 3 month lease he just signed.

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    1. *before she could pay him back*

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    2. The dead body is a body of a 32-year old. Carlos was around 60 as it was described in the book. Therefore, Carlos is not the one killed. Is it Matt? - I have no idea. :(

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    3. it wasnt described in the book anywhere that he was 60..!!

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    4. it was.. it said that he was in early 50's.. so that might be the range.. 52-56... now i got that ya.. its says 32 years old.. and carlos was not 32.. atleast

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    5. the 60 year old guy was the guard..but carlos was the male nurse.they both are different people.Besides, when it comes to carlos, its mentioned that he had contemplated the patients if they are woth to date...also a 60 year old man would not have friends to tease him about this too..so the dead one could be carlos or matt!

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  17. I found the book interesting. However it was predictable sometimes unlike Sidney Sheldon's other stories and confusing with many unanswered questions.

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  18. I did not like the ending actually. Matt just left his pregnant wife to fulfill some of his stupid desires. Its so unfair.

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    1. Yeah that was a bummer for me too. But sadly enough, in a given situation I believe that is what most men would do. Besides, I think leaving his wife was actually the right decision. If he fell in love with Lisa again then it would be unfair to his wife to still stay with her and force her to be in a relationship where her husband doesn't love her. At least this way she could still use his money and find another man.

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  19. I think Sofia killed Carlos and married Matt to fulfill her wish of Living her fantasy at Morocco and later kill Matt too because he abandoned his family.The ending could have been much more clear.

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    1. Sofia wouldn't kill Matt. She doesn't hold any grudge against people who abandon their family. That was Frankie. If Sofia would kill Matt, it would be because of Frankie who also didn't die.

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  20. I think Sofia killed Carlos and married Matt to fulfill her wish of Living her fantasy at Morocco and later kill Matt too because he abandoned his family.The ending could have been much more clear.

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  21. These, according to me are the possible takes on the ending:

    1. Matt had killed his old self when he married Cassie. He was no longer the soft hearted person Danny had met. This, I believe is apparent from the way he made love to Lisa. He almost consumed her so he killed Carlos out of jealousy.

    2. Lisa killed Carlos because all the time she was the one who was the murderous maniac, not Frankie. Frankie had his axes to grind but she manipulated him into thinking he is the master brain and did all the killings himself. Lisa didn't want to be followed so she killed Carlos too.

    3. Frankie never died either. Once he came out of jail, he used Carlos to free Lisa and then killed him. Now Matt who abandoned his family is himself their next target.

    4. This is a conclusion I came to long before I reached the end but even after reaching the ending I couldn't think of a reason why this is not possible. Okay hold on to your hats: David Ishag is the villain. He met Frankie early in his life (maybe they were lovers) and he used Frankie to finish off four people he somehow had a grudge against. Then he himself pretended to be the fifth victim to escape trial. The reason I came to this conclusion is because in all the four cases, Frankie killed the victims with his own hands but when it came to David, he gave the knife to Sofia (Lisa) and asked her to slit his throat or he would shoot them both. Frankie knew the police were outside and also knew that Sofia (Sarah Jane at the time) didn't have it in her to do so. Also David left before the result came out suspiciously enough. Hence it is possible David hired Frankie all along and finally when Frankie began appealing to come out he used a contact of his to finish him off (Remember Frankie was appealing to be released weeks before he died?). And then maybe David killed Carlos because he had released Sofia.

    My money is on ending number 2. This is because Lisa lied at least once during the trial. She didn't repent that fact that she had been the reason for the death of 4 innocent men. She pretended to be under some delusion and addressed her other avatars in third person but suddenly switched back to first person. Also she lied that Angela hated Andrew in court while she had told Danny that she loved Andrew truly.

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    1. ohh.. after your explanation.. i think ya maybe lisa killed carlos.. and went for next victim matt.. and franki wount be that bad.. what is picturized by sofia..

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  22. Just one small detail that's wrong: The killings are supposed to go from West to East. Los Angeles, London, Paris and then Hong Kong followed pattern but then after that Mumbai is actually to the west of Hong Kong, not east. It would have made sense to have the fifth killing further east like maybe Tokyo or somewhere in Australia.

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  23. Hi, just finished reading and there are some questions left unaswered but i think i'll stick to the theory that sofia is the killer and well, the title said it all, angel of the dark (which fit perfectly for her since she looked like an angel but totally twisted dont you think ?). However im still confused why the jury decided sofia isnt guilty and ended up giving frankie death sentece, even though they catch sofia lying about her personalities ? Also the book didnt answered about some missing property from Jakes's cas

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  24. Damn, why its so hard to comment on ipad ? I cant write more sentence on the last comment so i'll continue here.

    Oh yeah, i thought the main character here is Danny but suddenly Matt take the stage. Its a pitty though since int he end he is became her victim...or is it carlos ? I think Matt change his name into Carlos, but in the epilogue the authorities is LAPD so yeah, another confusing fact.

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  25. Ahh! I just finished reading this book. I am glad to know that many others are baffled by the end. I liked the book but the end completely threw me!

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  26. I agree. I cannot analyze the epilogue part. I need some words from Tilly.

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  27. hi, yeah the end is baffling. I really wondered who killed carlos and why. Also why the leasing

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