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Description
The Pretender: How Martin Frankel Fooled the Financial World and Led the Feds on One of the Most Publicized Manhunts in HistoryThis is the unbelievable but true account of Martin Frankel a timid, two bit investor with a dark side who pulled off one of the greatest financial scams of the century and led the FBI on a four month global chase before finally being caught. The Pretender chronicles how a bumbling thirty year old Midwesterner, a lifelong gawky misfit, built an intricate, fraudulent moneymaking scheme that bilked insurance companies out of $200 million. Transforming
This is the unbelievable-but-true account of Martin Frankel -- a timid, two-bit investor with a dark side who pulled off one of the greatest financial scams of the century and led the FBI on a four-month global chase before finally being caught. The Pretender chronicles how a bumbling thirty-year-old Midwesterner, a lifelong gawky misfit, built an intricate, fraudulent moneymaking scheme that bilked insurance companies out of $200 million. Transforming himself from mama's boy to corporate mogul, Martin Frankel entered a world peopled with desperate businessmen, political power brokers, masterful con artists, vulnerable women, vindictive husbands, and charitable priests -- and spun his web of lies deep inside the power centers of Washington, D.C., New York, and the Vatican. But such success and excess aroused the suspicions of the authorities, and Frankel vanished from his opulent mansion-leaving behind a mysterious fire and some very confused law-enforcement officials-and ran for his life across Europe.Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Wall Street Journal Books
Published: 10/02/2002
ISBN: 9780743204194
Pages: 288
Weight: 0.60lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.53w x 0.74d
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4.9 ★★★★★
Based on 1674 reviews
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Product Reviews
★★★★★ 5
noir
Format: Kindle
Always the last person you can think of is the murderer. The same with this book also. I love learning about new cultures and you can learn some things about Chinese culture from this book. So interesting
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Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2024
★★★★★ 3
Pretty good
Format: Hardcover
In 1932, Lulu Wong made a name for herself by leaving Chinatown and becoming a Hollywood star. Most girls who look like her don't get lead roles, so Lulu is the pride of her neighborhood. So everyone is shocked when Lulu's body is found in a local stable far from her Beverly Hills home by her friends, sisters May and Gemma. The girls know that the police won't look too hard into the murder, so they decide to take matters into their own hands. As they investigate, the sisters discover a plot to frame Chinatown as a den of iniquity that should be demolished in favor of constructing a new train station. May and Gemma soon find themselves in a race against time to not only find justice for their friend but save their neighborhood, all while being targeted by a killer.
I've only read a few books by Lee, but they've all been winners. I love her style when it comes to YA historical fiction. She crafts compelling plotlines that include real issues of the time with characters you can't help but root for. I liked both our main characters. May was more logical and reserved, while Gemma was a spitfire, but they balanced each other perfectly. I liked how we got both of their POVs, but I did enjoy Gemma's slightly more because I loved her gumption. I thought the mystery was well-paced and kept me intrigued. I had no clue how it would play out, and I liked how Lee wrapped it all up. It did drag a bit in the middle, but overall, I thought it was entertaining.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2024
★★★★★ 4
not as good but nearly there
Format: Kindle
I had hoped that Kill Her Twice would grab my attention in the first few pages and not let go till the very end (like her other books I have read), but this one had a very. Slow. Start.
The mystery of the death of a young Chinese starlet in California in the early 1900’s is the catalyst that starts everything: new characters are continuously introduced, their motivations becoming clear and murky and clear again several times before the last quarter of the book. But. The last quarter (finally) had me hooked.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 1, 2025
★★★★★ 5
Excellent
Format: Hardcover
Another wonderful book by this great author. I love the stories, but also her style and her sense of humor.
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Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2024
★★★★★ 4
YA historical murder mystery
Format: Hardcover
3.5 stars
What I Liked:
-Character voices seems to be once of Lee's writing strengths. From the start of the book, Gemma and May's voices sparkle on the pages. Gemma herself seemed to be a little stronger of a character, but I think that's because she had a more spunky, active personality.
-The positive sister relationship made me happy. So often, I feel like siblings don't appear in fiction, or if they do they just fight with each other. I liked how all of the Chow sisters worked together, and the positive family relationships in general.
What I Struggled With:
-Something about the mystery fell flat and I was left wanting more. I can't pin my finger on exactly why I felt that way, but it might have had to do with how Gemma and May solved the murder. They honestly don't really see it coming or put together many clues until the end. When the murderer revealed everything, I could see the crumbs that had been foreshadowed--but I think that they needed something /more/ to make them work.
- I'm glad that Gemma and Freddie didn't end up together. I'm not entirely sure of what the age difference was, but since he'd already graduated med school and seemed to have been a doctor for a while, I'm guessing it was fairly large. Because of the age gap, I was a little uncomfortable with the relationship that seemed to grow between them. I don't think it would have bothered me if just Gemma had a crush, but Freddie seemed to like her as well. But as I already said, they don't end up together.
Overall:
I enjoyed Kill Her Twice. But I was a little disappointed in mystery side of it. Yes, Gemma and May are solving a murder, but the mystery seemed to fall a little flat. However, Lee's abilities in writing characters shine.
Cautions: three instances of swearing; one blasphemy; light romance; one kiss; brief, moderate violence; non-descriptive mentions of poisoning; two minor characters are discovered to be gay, referenced briefly; an unmarried character is discovered to have been pregnant, which is referenced multiple times ; several Bible verses are taken out of context and twisted
(I received an eARC through NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.)
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Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2025