"Powerhouse of an amateur sleuth novel"
Following a gang raping and a media feeding frenzy,
Lily moves to Shakespeare, Arkansas accepting work as a
cleaning woman. The small town has had several homicides
and usually Lily is found in the middle of the
investigation. She does not expect to ever have a normal
relationship ever again until Lily meets private
investigator Jack, who convinces the scarred woman that she
is beautiful inside and out. Jack and Lily marry, but she still suffers nightmares
from that brutal attack and enters group therapy under the
auspices of Tamsin Lynd. The therapist has some problems
caused by a stalker who actually kills one of her
patients. A reporter who wants to do a story about Tamsin
is also murdered. Lily and Jack decide to take down the
stalker though it places them in danger from a homicidal
maniac. SHAKESPEARE'S COUNSELOR is the best work in this fine
series because the audience empathetically feels the
healing of Lily predominantly due to her bond with he
beloved Jack. The mystery is loaded with red herrings that
hide the villain in plain sight so that the audience is
stunned when the culprit is revealed. The vulnerable facet
of Lily's personality emerges turning her more likable and
less of an object of pity. This strengthens a strong
character and turns a wonderful series into a powerhouse. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted October 8, 2001
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Cleaning woman and karate expert Lily Bard is a woman with a complicated past. Trying her best to cope with her terrifying memories and horrible nightmares, she decides to join a weekly group therapy session in her hometown of Shakespeare, Arkansas. At first, Lily can hardly believe the number of her fellow Shakespeareans that share her life experiences. As it turns out, the group members' feelings aren't the only things that need sorting out -- they assemble for a session and find a woman dead, killed in bone-chilling fashion and deliberately left on display to send a twisted message. Who would commit such horrendous crime, and who is the intended recipient of the message?Before long, Lily becomes embroiled in this disturbing murder and its aftermath, one in which the brutal killer's motives are entirely unclear. The truth is, the situation has dredged up more than a few of her own terrible secrets, and she may not be able to rest until she can untangle the who and why of this terrible crime. But can she accomplish this before the killer strikes again, and before her nightmares send her over the edge? Shakespeare's Counselor is the most complex and absorbing installment yet in Charlaine Harris's engaging, original, and more than slightly dark mystery series.
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