Drive Time

An intriguing idea about insider trading that could have been better executed. Plot points were somewhat predictable yet still exciting. Unfortunately Charlotte’s single life and loneliness was really played up, which was a bit disappointing. Overall a fairly average read; not something I would seek out.

Charlotte McNally is trying to cope with changes in her life as the wedding day approaches. Can an investigative reporter keep secrets that may lead to a breaking story, a change in employment, or affect the loyalty due her intended, her working partners? The burden of shielding the source and doing the job she loves while making decisions that will affect her future make for a strong plot the plows through the narrow streets of Boston. Hank Phillippi Ryan brings her fans the strongest mystery to date with DRIVE TIME. Charlie Mac at 47 is trying on motherhood, faculty wife, and maintaining the never ending task of following leads to develop a top breaking story for the newest ratings. Three murders, an auto accident, and a faculty meeting have her hopping from abode to home while living out of her tote bag. This is one you will not want to miss from the annals of crime fiction related to television. Charlotte McNally will dig a hole in your heart and take up residence. Nash Black, author of Indie finalists WRITING AS A SMALL BUSINESS and HAINTS.

Investigative TV news reporter Charlie McNally has a lot on her plate: a dangerous car-identity-theft scam to uncover; her upcoming marriage to prepare for; mysterious threatening phone calls, suspicious deaths, and possible blackmail at the private school where her fiance teaches; secrets to keep (or not); frustration at her inability to be in two places at the same time; and an important career-vs.-personal-life decision to make. It's an intriguing, complex tale, and Ms. Ryan is a skillful storyteller and a first-rate writer. She also knows her subject well, since she's an award-winning investigative reporter herself. The story, fast-paced, fun, and absorbing, is action-packed, with car chases, stakeouts with hidden cameras, and murder. The characters are engaging, and I especially liked the interplay between Charlie and her co-workers. Charlie Mac is an intelligent heroine, and her fiance, Josh, and her precocious nine-year-old stepdaughter-to-be, Penny, are appealing, smart characters. This, the fourth installment in the Charlotte McNally series, is the first book by Ms. Ryan I've read, and it was such a good, entertaining read that I'm going to lose no time in getting hold of the first three.

All of the Charlie Mac series are fun to read, but the 4th, Drive Time, is the best yet in my opinion. Hank Phillipi Ryan writes with knowledge of her subject and presents her characters as real people. I hope there will me more assignments for Charlotte McNally,Charlie Mac, to investigate and Hank will continue to share them with us. Each book gets better and better.

Boston's Channel 3 investigative reporter forty-seven years old Charlotte "Charlie" McNally is looking into a nasty car theft-auto forgery ring. The story smells like an "Emmy" if she and the crew live long enough for air time. At the same time she has an offer to go to New York for the big time. Charlie is concerned for her fifty-two years old fiancé, Josh Gelston, a teacher at the Bexter Academy, and his nine year old daughter, Penny a student there. Unable to resist, the intrepid reporter makes inquiries that lead her to realize murders have occurred and so has blackmailing. She remains ignorant to the fact the killer is watching her progress with plans to get rid of a nosy investigative TV news reporter. The latest "Time" after time investigative thriller (see Prime Time, Face Time, and Air Time) is another great entry in a strong series. Filled with non-stop action starting when Charlie is eight minutes away from starting the rest of her life except she and photographer J.T. stop on the highway to investigate an incident setting the tone once again for a fabulous tale. This time the prime story line has Charlie's professional life crash into her personal life as Hank Phillippi Ryan provides a superb thriller. Harriet Klausner

Ms. Ryan has really outdone herself on this last installment to the Charlotte McNally series. This time Charlie's aiming to stop a car scam operation while at the same time, planning for her upcoming wedding. By far the best of the four McNally stories, Ryan has held nothing back in this one. Full of action including high-speed car chases, hidden video, stakeouts, and even her fiancé and stepdaughter get tangled up in the weaving of deception, secrets and murder. Ryan has a knack for storytelling and her real-life experience in news reporting is highly reflected in her writing. She has a very unique voice and the ability to make each story in her books better than the last one. Though her characters are fictional, you can only suspect that the McNally character reveals many of Ryan's own qualities, which appears to add humor and hands-on investigation into even to the grimmest of crimes. Her stories in this series are well written, the plots are intriguing, the characters are extremely realistic and the background settings are right on target. I've read all four books in the McNally series and have to admit I've loved them all, but this last one, Drive Time, tops them all. A difficult task in outdoing the last great read, Ryan has handled the task with the ability to keep all the characters, old and new, in place - their personalities never faltering. Also due to her experience in getting the facts and reporting the news, she's able to use her talents as well to make her stories realistic, allowing the reader into the mind of McNally, and laying out the details to make everything fit into place exactly right, holding the reader in suspense until she lets go of the climatic ending. What I really enjoy about Ryan's writing is that you can't figure out the plot and ending before finishing the book. I just didn't want to put it down. A real page-turner! Ryan is an amazing new talent in writing mysteries laced with realism, facts, and plenty of action! I'll miss the series and hope she will add more later on! Reviewed by Cindy Bauer for [..] Cindy Bauer is the well-seasoned author of the Memory Box Trilogy (Chasing Memories, Shades of Blue and Crystal Clear), an Inspirational Fiction series. She is an avid reader, a freelance writer and editor, and reviews books for [..]. She's also a volunteer staff member at Visual Arts Junction and contributes articles on writing, publishing and marketing works.