Shell Games by Bonnie Kistler
“Shell Games is complex with whip-sharp writing and an exciting, entertaining plot.”
Bonnie Kistler brings forth her formidable credentials as a seasoned trial attorney with success in federal and several state courts along with a Bryn Mawr College undergraduate magma cum laude Honors in English Literature degree to the creation of her ingenious dark psychological thrillers. Her taut writing, intricate plotting, hairpin turns, and unexpected twists will keep the reader glued to the pages unable to foresee the outcome as Shell Games unfolds at a break-neck speed.
It is a complex relationship drama with some serious, high-stakes gamesmanship as various parties vie to gain control of the billion-dollar business empire that comprises Kate Sawyer’s estate. There are reputed links to a notorious 40-year-old multiple murder cold case as well as an investigation into white-collar drug dealing and money laundering. Mix in a Cat-5 hurricane that isolates Kate, her attorney daughter Julie, and the husband-and-wife caretakers of her multi-million dollar waterfront home built on a barrier island when the single bridge to the mainland is closed before they can comply with evacuation orders. It’s a thrill a minute that keeps the reader guessing!
Power, Love, and Secrets Collide in Sarasota
The setting is the historic, stunning beach community of Sarasota, Florida known for its cultural attractions, social activities, and abundance of affluent residents. The large percentage of millionaires makes it one of the wealthiest cities in the state with an inordinately high number of upscale financial management companies and real estate development planners. Kate Sawyer (neé Weller) is a self-made billionaire developer, recognized for her company’s innovative designs, planned gated communities, and for clashing with environmental activists concerned about her many projects responsible for destroying wildlife habitat, erosion, and climate change.
Her late husband, daughter Julie’s father, had little to do with her remarkable achievements. Kate excelled at every endeavor with a winning combination of brains, ambition, and beauty. Now 70, she retains her slim figure and glamorous appearance with rigorous exercise and an intensive beauty regime including nightly peptide injections. She is a firm believer these amino acid chains are the key to anti-aging. Power broker Kate was determined to continue her dominance in commercial real estate and her lofty position in society as a philanthropist and influencer in politics. What she hadn’t expected was a whirlwind romance with a former high school boyfriend.
Hurricane Winds Uncover Billion-Dollar Betrayals
Shell Games opens at the lavish wedding reception of Kate Sawyer and Charlie Mull which she meticulously planned and the month-long luxury honeymoon cruise to Tahiti beginning the next day. Kate had literally tumbled head-over-heels down the stairs of their high school bleachers cracking her skull on the cement landing watching star athlete Charlie playing football. He raced off the field in mid-play to summon medical attention for her. These teenage heartthrobs were inseparable until after high school graduation when Charlie went off to Vietnam and Kate headed to the ivy-covered walls of Radcliffe College. His military tours of duty included several combat zones which left his legs peppered with shrapnel.
Long retired from military service, Charlie was an upmarket car salesman. Julie’s orthopedic surgeon husband, Eric, met him while shopping for a coveted Lamborghini and invited him to dinner to meet his wife Julie and his mother-in-law. Julie had lived so long in the shadow of her aggressively successful mother and domineering husband that she failed to appreciate her own capabilities. She was a corporate attorney who worked for her mother’s corporation and was submissive to Eric’s whims and desires including his choice of a modern showplace home instead of the charming Victorian-style cottage she loved.
Sparks reignited between the mature couple and their second-chance romance was on a fast track to marriage. Kate detested her handsome, arrogant son-in-law suspecting he married her only child, the mousy Julie, for her mother’s money but was convinced Charlie’s devotion was true love. The pre-nuptial agreement with Charlie limited his inheritance to her oceanfront mansion worth roughly $28 million leaving the bulk of her estate to a designated charitable foundation.
Second Chance Romance Spirals into Dark Deceptions
Plans, dreams, and honeymoon were put on hold when the tipsy couple returned home, and Charlie confessed a bombshell secret — he was the Tylenol killer. The police and Julie were summoned, and Charlie was banished. Bizarrely, despite the lateness of the hour, Eric immediately called in his sister, Greta, a family court judge, and her husband Greg, a prominent neurologist. Within no time, he is adamant Kate has dementia, is unable to control her own affairs, and orders Julie to obtain power of attorney to institutionalize her if necessary.
The FBI denies the possibility of Charlie’s involvement in the notorious, unsolved case and Charlie denied confessing within hours. Kate is not willing to concede any physical or mental weakness and readies for the fight of a lifetime to protect herself and her business empire. Wisely, Julie begins to question her husband’s mind games and motives as well as his eagerness to seize control of her mother’s hard-earned billions. She defies his orders and moves in with her mother while Charlie moves in with Eric.
Readers may be reminded of the 1944 George Cukor classic film Gaslight which starred Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer. Tension mounts as rapidly as the storm warnings for an impending catastrophic hurricane approaching the Florida coast. If you were at the movies, you might gnaw your knuckles or bite your nails instead of munching popcorn as this ever-surprising thriller nears its climactic conclusion.
Bonnie Kistler never writes a dull story. Shell Games is complex with whip-sharp writing and an exciting, entertaining plot.
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About Bonnie Kistler:
Bonnie Kistler is a former trial lawyer and the author of Shell Games; Her, Too; The Cage; and House on Fire.
Born and raised in Pennsylvania, she graduated from Bryn Mawr College, magna cum laude, with Honors in English literature, and received her law degree from the University of the Pennsylvania Law School.
She spent her law career in private practice with major law firms, primarily in Philadelphia, before becoming a full-time novelist. She and her husband now live in southwest Florida and the mountains of western North Carolina.
Publish Date: November 19, 2024
Genre: Thrillers
Author: Bonnie Kistler
Page Count: 320 pages
Publisher: Harper
ISBN: 978-0063378933