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The Breathtaker
 
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The Breathtaker (Paperback)

by Alice Blanchard (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group; First Edition edition (4 Dec 2003)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0316726591
  • ISBN-13: 978-0316726597
  • Product Dimensions: 23.2 x 15.2 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,241,268 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Review
'In truth, Blanchard writes so well that even her quiet descriptions of desolate towns and lonely people are good enough to rattle the rafters' New York Times Book Review 'A heart-pounding, highly literary novel full of stunning art and science. Blanchard's descriptions of what it feels and looks like to be inside a tornado at its full power are riveting and addictive' Dick Adler, Chicago Tribune 'The Breathtaker is a dark and stormy novel and a particularly thrilling one' Sherryl Connelly, New York Daily News 'A well-crafted thriller' Booklist 'A relatively new writer, Blanchard is ready to take on the established authors in the genre with a book filled with polished prose and gripping tension. This book was a joy to read and a good scare to boot' Chicago Sun Times 'A complete treat for readers who like some thrills with their mysteries . . . Blanchard dips us into the odd little world of storm chasers, both the professionals and the hobbyists. It's a terrific thriller that does not insult the intelligent reader and just gets harder to put down as the pages turn' John Orr, San Jose Mercury News 'A brilliant study of violence and grief, powerful as the tornado itself' - Independent on Sunday 'The Breathtaker is a dark and stormy novel and a particularly thrilling one' - Sherryl Connelly, New York Daily News

Sherryl Connelly, New York Daily News
'The Breathtaker is a dark and stormy novel and a particularly thrilling one'

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Customer Reviews

5 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars This book rocks., 17 Nov 2003
By A Customer
"The Breathtaker" is a thrill ride. The story is bone-chilling. The characters are flawed and poetic. The writing is gorgeous. The stakes are sky high. It's exhilarating and original. Wow, this book is fun. There's nothing else quite like it out there.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The Killer is as Destructive as a Tornado, 7 Jan 2008
By Katie Osborne (Portland, Oregon and the sunny Caribbean) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Breathtaker (Paperback)
At first it looked like the Pepper family had been killed by a tornado, yet Police Chief Charlie Grover, who is a single father trying to raise a rebellious teenage daughter, can't help but think that maybe it had been murder. Several of the marks on the bodies look like they could have been defensive wounds. Still it takes the discovery of the killer's signature in the lab - each victim had a tooth extracted and replaced with another - before he's convinced he's right.

And since there is only one group of people who are likely to know when a tornado is going to strike, the storm chasers, the list of suspects is pretty slim. Included among the storm chasers are his own father, an ex-alcoholic who used to beat him and his mother, as well as the local bad boy his daughter is seeing.

To solve the case and catch the killer, who he suspects is stalking him and his daughter, Grover goes on a storm chase with Dr. Willa Bellman, a scientist at the local wind research facility who also tugs on his heartstrings. On that chase he experiences the awesome power of a tornado. The risk is high, the tension drips, the killer has to be stopped and I predict you won't be able to put the book down, even if you do, as I did, figure out fairly early who the killer is.

This whirlwind of a book has movie written all over it, so don't be surprised if you see it at your local cinema sometime in the near future. Alice Blanchard has written another winner.

Review submitted by Katie Osborne
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1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Idea, 24 Sep 2004
By Erin Horgan (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) - See all my reviews
Police Chief Charlie Grover investigates the death of a family, who at first seemed to be victims of a tornado but were also victims of a murderer. Didn't like the plotline with Sophie Grover and Boone Pritchard (good girl shagging bad boy - far too stereotyped for my liking). Didn't think much of the characters (in both of the author's novels, a lead character was abused as a child - this thread is getting boring). And the people weren't killed because they'd done something wrong - it was more of a random "gotta kill someone" thing. Too flawed for me to fully appreciate. (B+)
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Not quite breathtaking...
The Breathtaker is a pretty fast moving, serial-killer murder thriller set in the town of Promise, Oklahoma in the tornado belt of middle America. Read more
Published 20 months ago by N. Megahey

4.0 out of 5 stars A refreshing twist on the crime genre
The blurb makes it sound supernatural - a killer who appears to be able to predict when and where a tornado will strike, and murder his victims at the same time. Read more
Published on 18 Nov 2006 by Phil Robertshaw

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