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Damage Control: A Novel Audiobook
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(3.06) - 265 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Maggie Silver does her best to scramble up the ladder at an exclusive, high-powered PR firm in Southern California whose clients are movie stars and famous athletes. She is asked to take on her toughest client yet: Senator Henry Paxton, distinguished statesman from Southern California, who also happens to be the father of Anabelle, Maggie’s best friend in high school. Senator Paxton’s young female aide has been found murdered, and it is up to Maggie to run damage control and prevent the scandal from growing.
Thrown back into the Paxtons’ glamorous world, Maggie is unexpectedly flooded with memories from the stormy years in high school, when her friendship with Anabelle was dramatically severed after a tragedy that neither of them has been able to forget. As Maggie gets further embroiled in the lives of the Paxtons, she realizes that the ties of her old friendship are stronger than she thinks.
Riveting and suspenseful, Damage Control examines our craving for celebrity and spectacle and how far the bonds of friendship can stretch before they break forever.
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"I enjoyed this book. It is not only a thriller with lots of twists and turns, but it accurately dipicted PR/crisis management. All of the "clean" tactics they use--the messaging, the media newscycles, bargaining with reporters etc. were pretty on target."
— Podurham (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Denise Hamilton scores her largest and greatest triumph: Damage Control is a great mystery, and, much more rarely, a superb psychological thriller. Kudos to this brilliant talent.”
— James Ellroy, New York Times bestselling author -
“Hamilton does a beautiful job of describing LA neighborhoods and unraveling its secrets.”
— Washington Post -
“You can’t beat LA-based noir for moodiness, and no one writes it better than Denise Hamilton.”
— USA Today -
“Excellent…The suspenseful denouement should please Hamilton fans.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
“Denise Hamilton dives deeper into the menace behind the glamour of Southern California in this riveting stand-alone thriller…In a novel that marries celebrity culture, surf noir, and the bonds of friendship, Hamilton is at the top of her game.”
— Kirkus Reviews -
“This is such a superb book! I stayed glued to the pages from the first to the last. Hamilton is a veritable poet of Los Angeles, capturing its spirit and images with clear eyes and love. She is also able to step into the world of teens and follow them into maturity as few writers of adult fiction can achieve. Her prose is gorgeous, funny, wry, and realistic.”
— Barbara Peters, The Poisoned Pen
Damage Control Listener Reviews
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" Damage Control was a well written thriller with plenty of action and plot twists. Maggie Silver an associate with a high profile PR firm is reunited with her estranged best friend when her firm takes on Annabelle's father as a client. The bit started to drag a bit in the middle but was an enjoyable read overall. "
— Sherrie, 2/20/2014 -
" The first half of this book was 3 star worthy -- there was an interesting premise and a fast-moving plot involving a "damage control" firm (a specialty within PR for big name clients who get involved in scandals) in LA. Political intrigue involving a senator, his messed up family, and the morally corrupt intersection of politics and PR. But then the main character started doing totally stupid stuff, apparently solely to advance the plot. I don't read much in the thriller/suspense genre so maybe I'm judging too harshly, but the main character felt totally false to me. Her reasons for doing all the stupid things and her constant waffling on morals and where her loyalty should lie didn't ring true. It felt like I didn't know her and didn't want to know her other than to point out what an idiot she was. Even the political intrigue ended up being disappointing. "
— Christina, 2/10/2014 -
" Loved this book! I couldn't put it down. Thanks for the recommendation, Michelle! "
— Tiffany, 2/7/2014 -
" I've never read a book with better descriptions of LA. Made me feel like I was there. Can't wait to read more by her. "
— Jessica, 2/5/2014 -
" Denise Hamilton is a west coast Mary Higgins Clark with a grittier Los Angeles setting. Loved this book, but recommend it with caution because of some of the language and situations. "
— Lindy, 1/31/2014 -
" I cant say that I disliked this book but it wasnt one of my favorites..I must say that it was a little too long for my taste as I dont think that it required 372 pages to get into this mystery/political drama but it wasnt a bad read, sometimes interesting and other times too involved with Adderall references, a hugh number of scent memories and a confusing mix of characters and sideplots but I can say I was surprised with the end murderer..Okay so this story begins with two sixteen year old best friends that do everything together-Maggie and Annabelle until one night when things end badly for both of them and their friendship is forever strained..Flashforward sixteen years later and Annabelle and Maggie are brought back together through Maggie's PR job where she is hired to investigate a murdered political aide of Annabelle's father senator Henry Paxton. The story then turns straight into the sitcom Scandal with a PR firm doing damage control with the media and the public to curb public opinion in favor of the senator, erase the murder and keep the votes coming. The book gets in-depth with the inner workings of reporters, PR agents, cops and politicians--it gets ruthless and the twists and turns dont stop with more murders, paternity questions, romance, addiction, cancer and a whole lot more that makes the reading dense and despite it all pretty forgettable. I enjoyed reading this book however and do recommend it as it made me long for the return of Scandal and election year, nothing more interesting than a dramatic story.. "
— Monique, 1/18/2014 -
" Very well-written thriller! The protagonist is a perfume-lover, and I enjoyed the references to familiar fragrances. One perfume even figures into solving a crime! I plan to read more of Denise's books. "
— Haunani, 1/18/2014 -
" Fun read! Loved all the perfume references.I will be seeking out more of her books to try. "
— Tama, 1/8/2014 -
" This was an ok read, it was missing something. I'm not sure what exactly, but it definitely was missing. "
— Tamera, 10/16/2013 -
" I like Denise Hamilton's writing and I don't know why I don't have her on my "must read" list. This book is a standalone. I liked it very much. Excellent story, crisp writing. Ready for more! "
— Kelly, 7/27/2013 -
" A really good book. I couldn't put it down. If you love reading about scandals of any kind this is the book for you. "
— Lynn, 6/8/2013 -
" I could not put this book down!!! Started reading it at lunch and put off dinner to finish it. Just when I thought I had something figured out in the plot, the author added another detail that made me second guess myself. "
— Candy, 9/9/2012 -
" I'd never read anything by this author before and was not disappointed. The flawed but sympathetic heroine nearly destroys herself while trying to confront an issue from adolescence that threatens her career. Fast paced and gripping. "
— Kris, 9/6/2012 -
" Liked this stand alone by Hamilton, who writes the Eve Diamond series. A publicist firm, a rogue worker, murder and friendship are all explored, and done well, in this novel. "
— Diane, 7/11/2012 -
" A bit trashy but entertaining "
— Lynn, 6/3/2012 -
" An interesting mystery with a dozen disparate threads that were tied together too suddenly in the last 10 pages. "
— Tanya, 4/11/2012 -
" Loved it... the twists and turns kept me guessing. Great detail on the PR biz, inside look into political and well-funded dynasties. As always, Denise provides great insight into our cultural defects. "
— Darlene, 3/14/2012 -
" The underlying story had me guessing about "who done it" and it definitely held my attention but it may have veered off course a few times in the process. "
— Shannon, 11/6/2011 -
" An amazing author and a terrific book! "
— Cathy, 10/29/2011 -
" I wish I could do 3.5 stars on this one. I more than "liked" it but didn't quite make it to "really liked it." It was pretty suspenseful and I didn't see the end till we were there. Good but not super wonderful great. "
— Melanie, 10/6/2011 -
" Wasn't this supposed to be about a murder?<br/><br/>Unnecessarily lengthy with a tediously unfolding plot better suited to a soap opera. "
— Happy, 9/27/2011 -
" I've never read a book with better descriptions of LA. Made me feel like I was there. Can't wait to read more by her. "
— Jessica, 9/15/2011 -
" I won this book from Goodreads, and I love it. The plot flows beautifully, and the characters are so easy to relate to. I dont want to give anything away but as far as Im concerned IM HOOKED. Best book of 2011. "
— Sanyel, 7/29/2011 -
" Loved it... the twists and turns kept me guessing. Great detail on the PR biz, inside look into political and well-funded dynasties. As always, Denise provides great insight into our cultural defects. "
— Darlene, 7/8/2011
About Denise Hamilton
Denise Hamilton is a writer-journalist whose work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Cosmopolitan, and the New York Times and is the author of five acclaimed Eve Diamond crime novels, Prisoner of Memory, Savage Garden, Last Lullaby, Sugar Skull, and The Jasmine Trade, all of which have been Los Angeles Times bestsellers. She is also the editor of and a contributor to the short story anthology Los Angeles Noir, winner of the Southern California Independent Booksellers Association Award for Best Mystery of 2007. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two young children.
About Vanessa Hart
Vanessa Hart (1959–2014) narrated dozens of award-winning audiobooks in her career. She was a finalist for the 2009 Voicey Award for Best Female Voice and was a finalist in the 2008 Audie Awards.