"Chiseled out of the Texas landscape, politics, and Virginia's sometimes bitchy, but mostly likable,
character." -- Midwest Book Review
"Promises
Town" by L.B. Cobb is a Texas-size mystery. It takes place in the
Bayou City and can make anyone appreciate his or her strong connection to
Houston... a perfect read for any mystery buff. (Meghana Kulkarni, HTexas
Magazine, pick of Hot Summer Books, Volume 11 Number 5 May 2005 print
edition.)
REVIEW OF TEXAS
BOOKS
Don't start an L.B.
Cobb mystery if there are any demands on the next few hours of your time.
From the opening page, you are hooked and delighted to hang onto the hook.
L.B. Cobb has done it again. As in her previous novel, Splendor Bay, she
positions her readers with the same strong sense of place. Somehow she
gives Houston, Texas, area readers a sensation of home, sweet home, even
though renaming it Bayou City. A police procedural novel written by a
lawyer, Promises Town lets the reader in on authentic techniques -- blood
spatter analysis, weapon ballistics, crime lab technicalities, even a
blow-by-blow of an autopsy.
Virginia Rodriguez, a single mother, dealing with her son,
Nick, leaving home for college, recognizes she is the queen of broken
promises. One day she dreads facing the empty nest, another day, she looks
forward to freedom. Even though on vacation, her boss, DA Wen Boucher
convinces her to take the case of prosecuting the murderer of Federal
prosecutor, Stuart Fullerton. With Leo Zachmann, her favorite defense
attorney as opposition, Virginia anticipates victory and achieving a
promotion. When the fast action slows, a surprise shocks the reader.
Clues, threads, lots of questions with few answers begin to pile up. The
plot thickens when Leo begins investigating the investigators. When
someone in a black SUV tries to run Virginia down, Virginia's complicated
life becomes more complex.
Realistic portrayals of Virginia, her teenage son, Nick,
her boss, Smithy the cop, who is out to marry Virginia, place the reader
directly into their lives. An old lover from the past causes difficulties,
except now Virginia can read him like a book. Convoluted suspects and
different point of views keep the reader intrigued. Just when we think the
crimes are solved, more threads begin to unravel. Promises Town is L.B.'s
second mystery, following Splendor Bay. She is an attorney from Tennessee
who now lives in Houston. Port of Miracles, featuring Leo Zachmann, is
scheduled for a late 2003 Release. (JoAn W. Martin, Author of Yankee
Girl, Review of Texas Books, Summer 2003 Issue.)
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MURDER EXPRESS
PROMISES TOWN Is
the first book I've read by Ms. Cobb, but it won't be the last. PROMISES
TOWN hooked me on the first page and I was sad to reach the last page.
Virginia Rodriguez is an Assistant District Attorney in Bayou City, Texas
and is long overdue a vacation. A politician's murder changes Virginia's
plans for that vacation, and the subsequent events change her whole life.
Leo Zachmann is the defense attorney for the dead politician's wife. We
also meet Leo's wife, Miranda, and some of Leo's employees. I especially
enjoyed Smitty, the cop and his interactions with Virginia. There is also
Nick, Virginia's son, and her neighbor, Mr. Nguyn. Even the most minor
characters are written in such a way that I felt as if I knew them.
The murder mystery is great, and even thought I began to
suspect who was really behind the murder before it was revealed, I didn't
feel cheated by the story at all. I loved all the political intrigue and
feel this book could make a good movie or television series. As I said
previously, I was sad to reach the end of the book, but noted that there
will be another book that will revisit some of these characters in 2003.
(Kay Martinez, MurderExpress.net.)
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MIDWEST BOOK
REVIEW
Talk about women
who have it all until it almost kills them, and you'll find Virginia
Rodriguez. As a prosecutor for the DA's office, Virginia works nonstop
while she manages to bring up her son, Nick, and try to remember to let
the dog, Denver, in and fill its food dish. In the meantime, there has
been a murder committed of a powerful federal prosecutor, and his wife is
found in the hotel room with a gun in her hand. Is she guilty?
Virginia thinks at first this will be an open-and-shut
case. Enter Leo Zachmann, a defense lawyer of some repute and
intelligence, who can see from the start that the case doesn't add up.
He's been hired by a gruff voice calling almost immediately after the
murder was committed:
"'Why, Virginia, I see blinking cop cars and rowdy
reporters and I just have to see if there's paying work I can hustle up,'
Leo dead panned. 'You know how testy the state bar gets when you send
runners in to sign up clients, so I like to do the signing up myself.'
'Right. I was told Mrs. Fullerton hasn't said a word, but it looks like
she managed to sneak a call to a lawyer.'
Leo and his wife, Miranda, also a lawyer, manage to dig up
enough dirt to indicate that "some other dude did it." Indeed,
the absence of evidence is in itself fishy and causes Leo to latch on to
another line of inquiry...of the feds. In the meantime, Virginia's case
dissolves as Leo's case widens. Virginia has yet another issue begging for
attention, a budding relationship.
Promises Town is a splendid follow-up to Cobb's debut
novel. Her characters are chiseled out of the Texas landscape, politics,
and Virginia's sometimes bitchy, but mostly likable, character. (Shelley Glodowski, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review
Bookwatch, Vol 2, No 3, March 2003)
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MYSHELF
Virginia Rodriguez
is a tough young Hispanic woman with an even tougher job. She is
scratching out a living as the Assistant District Attorney in Bayou City,
Texas. As a single mother, she is about to take a well-deserved vacation
and watch her only son graduate from high school.
The last thing she needs is to be assigned to the case of
Federal Prosecutor Stuart Fullerton. Fullerton has stepped on some mighty
big toes in Washington, DC and has now turned up dead in a hotel room. His
wife was found standing over him with the murder weapon and appears to be
the scorned woman.
Easy as pie. Open and shut case. Except that some people
in high places want this case solved a little too quickly and Virginia
realizes that Ms. Fullerton may indeed be innocent. If she digs too deeply
into this one, Virginia's career may be on the line. If she doesn't,
another young woman's life may be on the line.
The story moves along quickly with many supporting
characters that are equally engrossing. Just when the reader thinks they
have the mystery solved, another monkey wrench is thrown into the mix. It
was also very satisfying having a main character that was not only female
but a minority, a strong woman with a lot of the same problems many single
mothers face each day. (Reviewed by Susan Johnson, MyShelf.com.)
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ROGER PAULDING
REVIEWS
PROMISES TOWN
introduces saucy Assistant District Attorney Virginia Rodriquez in the
case of a murdered federal prosecutor. When Virginia arrives at the murder
scene in a posh Bayou City, Texas hotel room, the federal prosecutor's
wife has been found with the gun, he and a lover have been found dead in
bed together, the motive is obvious, and the wife has been arrested. It
looks like a slam-dunk case to Virginia. Enter Leo Zachmann, a shrewd
high-profile defense attorney who challenges Virginia to look deeper into
the facts -- facts that don't seem to add up to the wife being the
murderer.
As Virginia and police detective named Smitty delve into
the inconsistencies, they come to realize that maybe the wife has been set
up, but by then a dismissal of the charges isn't that simple. Powerful
people, including a man from Virginia's past, want a quick prosecution and
conviction. At the same time, Zachmann and his staff are conducting their
own investigation which indicates there's a political conspiracy behind
the murders.
The story is masterfully told from a point-counterpoint
perspective, interweaving the prosecution and defense point of view as
Cobb takes the readers through a criminal investigation, into the
courtroom, and then on to the unexpected ending. As in L.B. Cobb's debut
novel, SPLENDOR BAY, twists, turns, and action keep the pages of PROMISES
TOWN turning. It's also filled with deliciously complex relationships,
suspense, humor, and some very memorable characters. I'm eager to read
more about Virginia and Leo. (Roger Paulding Reviews on Amazon.com.)
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TEXAS AUTHORS
I just finished
reading Houston author L.B. Cobb's new release, PROMISES TOWN. It was
wonderful. I don't know that I have ever read anything that handled
interracial relationships as openly, sensitively, and with such a sense of
acceptance. A marvelous job. I loved the sense of justice and guarded
cooperation that Virginia Rodriguez, Bayou City Assistant DA, and defense
attorney Leo Zachmann had at the end.
I like happy endings and a feeling of fairness with the
bad guys getting their just rewards and the good guys living happily ever
after, and PROMISES TOWN delivers both. The characters were so human and
the plot scary in the possibility of it really happening. I became
involved with the story and the characters and temporarily became a part
of their world. I really enjoyed watching Virginia cope with all the
obligations in her life.
Cobb's debut novel, SPLENDOR BAY, featuring lawyer Bill
Glasscock, really did, as the backcover promised, "sweep me along on
waves of emotion to its surprising conclusion." And now she's done it
again with PROMISES TOWN. Both are 5-Star books. I love her style of
writing and can hardly wait for the next one. (Charlene Keller, Prairie
Hill Books, Brenham, TX at TexasAuthors.com.)
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THE ROMANCE
READERS CONNECTION
A single mom,
Assistant D.A. Virginia Rodriquez tries to make time for both her teenage
son and her job, however, sometimes that balance does not come easy. While
on vacation, she receives notice that Stuart Fullerton, a federal
prosecutor for whom she has little respect, has been murdered.
Found in a extraordinarily compromising position, Stuart
is dead and his wife is found on the scene with the murder weapon in hand.
Virginia begins to question Janette Fullerton’s guilt; the case is
progressing too perfectly. When she discovers she has made the hit list of
a cunning killer, all focus turns to keeping one step ahead of this
murderer. With the help of her on again – off again boyfriend, Detective
Andrew Jackson “Smitty” Smith, Virginia discovers the stunning truth
behind Stuart’s murder.
PROMISES TOWN is another witty, perplexing mystery from
L.B. Cobb. Multi-faceted characters, biting humor and emotional
discoveries pack the pages from beginning to end. I am thrilled that the
next book will build on Leo Zachmann, Janette’s defense attorney, who
deserves his own story! Look for Leo in PORT OF MIRACLES next year.
Meanwhile, ask your local bookseller for your copy of PROMISES TOWN or
head to the online bookstores who are certain to have it available! (Tracy
Farnsworth, Mysterious Corner, TheRomanceReadersConnection.com.)
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SCRIBES WORLD
REVIEWS
Virginia Rodriguez
is hoping for a vacation from her job as ADA. Instead she gets a high
profile murder case, defended by none other than Leo Zachmann, the biggest
and flashiest name in town. Also on the case is Smitty-the-cop; Virginia
had a one-night stand with him, abruptly dismissing the memory when she
caught sight of a photo of his wife and child. But she soon learns that
the wife and child are dead and Smitty is an eligible widower, providing
the romantic tension for the story.
All of this takes place in sweltering Texas, so if you
happen to like all things Texan, you'll probably feel at home here. And if
you like spunky, fiercely independent single mothers, you'll like
Virginia. She's so independent that she told her now eighteen-year old son
his father died before he was born, just so he'd stay out of their lives.
So she's not falling easily, not for Smitty-the-cop or for the defense's
theories that Janette Fullerton, the socialite accused of murder, is the
wrong "guy."
Jannette called in the deaths, that of her husband, a
well-known politician-type, and his lover from a hotel room where the
bodies were found. Her fingerprints are on the gun--albeit the wrong part
of a gun to have shot it--but still, she is the prime suspect. And who
knows? Without giving it all away, she may well have done the crime,
although there are plenty of reasons, including another dead body a few
doors down occurring after she has been taken into custody, to believe
that it is a frame.
It's an entertaining story with colorful characters... All
in all, I think most readers would enjoy PROMISES TOWN for the setting and
characters as well as the plot. (Conny Bryceland, Scribes World
Reviews.)
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CHRIS ROGERS
Humorous,
believable characters, and more bite than a Texas rattlesnake! (Chris Rogers, Author of Bitch
Factor, Rage Factor, and Chill Factor).
MARY V. WELK
A gem of a story!
Master story-teller L.B. Cobb weaves a no-holds-barred legal thriller that
pits battle-weary ADA Virginia Rodriguez and savvy defense attorney Leo
Zachmann against renegade FBI agents and the establishment in a search for
justice. (Mary
V. Welk, author of the Caroline Rhodes Mysteries and winner of the
2002 Readers Choice Award for Best Mystery Series.)
Promises
Town Chapter 1 Promises
Town Chapter 2
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Town Reviews Buy
Promises Town
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