Adriana Gavazzoni
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Genre: Thriller/Mystery Locations: New York - Hamptons - Paris Series: Behind the Door, Lara's Journal, The Brilliant Game Log-line:
What is pleasure and what is displeasure? And what is normal? Who has established that? I think I know where you want to go. Who defines normality? Who has the authority to do it? |
Protagonist:
Female
Synopsis:
Behind the Door (Book 1)
When Lara dies at the hands of Manhattan lawyer Mark, during a sex game at her summer house in the Hamptons, Carl, Mark´s defense attorney, hires Simone Bennet, a psychiatrist, professor and author of books on sexual behavior, to help him buttress his argument that Lara´s death was accidental.
To help his defense, Mark has written a detailed account of his steamy, year-long relationship with Lara. Carl gives the text for Simone for analysis.
While evaluating the presumed killer´s writing, Simone continues to receive psychiatric patients with sexual disorders and unusual fantasies, and to research strange sexual behavior for her next book. Meanwhile, Simone´s clinical partner, friend and research colleague, Edward, is working with the police to capture a serial killer, who is torturing and killing women around Simone´s world.
From hot and unusual sex to the swing houses of New York and Paris, this fast-paced page-turner is a blend of mystery, suspense, humor, romance and erotica.
With a shocking twist at the end that no one sees coming, the murder culprit may not be who you think...
Lara's Journal (Book 2)
Simone Bennet is on a long vacation, trying to heal from the trauma she suffered at the hands of a serial-killer kidnapper. After looking death in the face, she tries to develop a new outlook on life—live in the moment! Carl, the charming lawyer, is back, asking once more for Simone’s help, this time in analyzing Lara’s journals, which were discovered by her siblings after her death. In her own words, Lara divulges all her secrets, and reveals a dramatic world of betrayal, passion, and the most unusual sexual behaviors, exposing the beautiful architect’s troubled life. As Simone tries to deal with the contents of Lara's haunting diaries, one of her patients gets himself into a bit of legal trouble, forcing Simone to return early from her vacation. Although she's happy to be back on her home turf, she finds herself surrounded by a whole new set of problems. A killer is out there, and this time, he seems to be after the people Simone cares about most. Suddenly, people around her are dying, a stalker/admirer keeps showing up at all the wrong times, and Simone’s dear friend Edward has a new girlfriend—forcing Simone to analyze her feelings for him and her attraction to Carl.
The Brilliant Game (Book #3)
Psychiatrist Simone Bennet feels like a pawn on a chessboard—as if some invisible, master chess player is toying with her life and the lives of the people she loves and cares for.A series of horrific events—several murders and Simone being tortured at the hands of a serial killer—culminate in the kidnapping of her daughter and have turned Simone’s life upside down.Struggling to stay afloat in the middle of a sea of chaos, Simone continues to receive her psychiatric patients and do more work for the New York attorney, Carl, while local police, the FBI, and Edward—Simone’s boyfriend, best friend, and business partner—are working hard to locate her child.Simone is analyzing another set of Lara’s journals, and she becomes dragged into a vortex of sex addiction, suffering, and Lara’s struggle for some kind of balance in her life, while Simone battles an inner fight against her mixed feelings for the enigmatic lawyer.Filled with twists and turns, this final book in the Hidden Motives trilogy reveals a deranged, steamy, and disturbingly brilliant game of sex, murder, and mystery and chronicles a woman’s conflict between love and reason. Fasten your seat belts before you embark on this roller coaster, and prepare for the most unpredictable end.
Female
Synopsis:
Behind the Door (Book 1)
When Lara dies at the hands of Manhattan lawyer Mark, during a sex game at her summer house in the Hamptons, Carl, Mark´s defense attorney, hires Simone Bennet, a psychiatrist, professor and author of books on sexual behavior, to help him buttress his argument that Lara´s death was accidental.
To help his defense, Mark has written a detailed account of his steamy, year-long relationship with Lara. Carl gives the text for Simone for analysis.
While evaluating the presumed killer´s writing, Simone continues to receive psychiatric patients with sexual disorders and unusual fantasies, and to research strange sexual behavior for her next book. Meanwhile, Simone´s clinical partner, friend and research colleague, Edward, is working with the police to capture a serial killer, who is torturing and killing women around Simone´s world.
From hot and unusual sex to the swing houses of New York and Paris, this fast-paced page-turner is a blend of mystery, suspense, humor, romance and erotica.
With a shocking twist at the end that no one sees coming, the murder culprit may not be who you think...
Lara's Journal (Book 2)
Simone Bennet is on a long vacation, trying to heal from the trauma she suffered at the hands of a serial-killer kidnapper. After looking death in the face, she tries to develop a new outlook on life—live in the moment! Carl, the charming lawyer, is back, asking once more for Simone’s help, this time in analyzing Lara’s journals, which were discovered by her siblings after her death. In her own words, Lara divulges all her secrets, and reveals a dramatic world of betrayal, passion, and the most unusual sexual behaviors, exposing the beautiful architect’s troubled life. As Simone tries to deal with the contents of Lara's haunting diaries, one of her patients gets himself into a bit of legal trouble, forcing Simone to return early from her vacation. Although she's happy to be back on her home turf, she finds herself surrounded by a whole new set of problems. A killer is out there, and this time, he seems to be after the people Simone cares about most. Suddenly, people around her are dying, a stalker/admirer keeps showing up at all the wrong times, and Simone’s dear friend Edward has a new girlfriend—forcing Simone to analyze her feelings for him and her attraction to Carl.
The Brilliant Game (Book #3)
Psychiatrist Simone Bennet feels like a pawn on a chessboard—as if some invisible, master chess player is toying with her life and the lives of the people she loves and cares for.A series of horrific events—several murders and Simone being tortured at the hands of a serial killer—culminate in the kidnapping of her daughter and have turned Simone’s life upside down.Struggling to stay afloat in the middle of a sea of chaos, Simone continues to receive her psychiatric patients and do more work for the New York attorney, Carl, while local police, the FBI, and Edward—Simone’s boyfriend, best friend, and business partner—are working hard to locate her child.Simone is analyzing another set of Lara’s journals, and she becomes dragged into a vortex of sex addiction, suffering, and Lara’s struggle for some kind of balance in her life, while Simone battles an inner fight against her mixed feelings for the enigmatic lawyer.Filled with twists and turns, this final book in the Hidden Motives trilogy reveals a deranged, steamy, and disturbingly brilliant game of sex, murder, and mystery and chronicles a woman’s conflict between love and reason. Fasten your seat belts before you embark on this roller coaster, and prepare for the most unpredictable end.
READ THE FIRST CHAPTERS
| behind_the_door.pdf |
Blurb Reviews
REVIEW FROM READERS' FAVORITE - 5 STARS
Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite
Behind the Door: A Sizzling, Psychological Suspense - Hidden Motives Book 1 by A. Gavazzoni is a complicated story, but in a really good and intriguing way. I was unable to put this book down, mainly because I didn't want to put it down, it was so good. The story follows Simone; she is a psychiatrist by profession and a compassionate person by nature. She is the perfect person for the job. Her clientele are men and women who have issues with sex (think kinky sex, but more) and she enjoys her work.
Her life takes a serious and more profound turn when a defense attorney named Carl offers her a job. She needs to help him prove that his client, Mark, is innocent. Mark is accused of killing a woman named Lara and Carl needs Simone's help to prove that Mark is innocent. Carl provided her with a diary in which Mark wrote every single detail about his affair with Lara. Now it is Simone's job to prove if he is the killer or not. To make matters worse, there is a killer on the loose who is murdering women. Can Mark be that person? Or is he innocent? Stuck in a moral and professional loop, it is up to Simone to find the truth through words written by Mark in his diary!
REVIEW FROM ONLINEBOOKCLUB - 4 OUT OF 4 STARS
South African Author Angela Shearer - author of The Scarlet Code and Mad Mischief.
Behind the Door is a magnificent and disturbing tale that takes us to places beyond the boundaries of imagination. It throws us into the seductive arms of a world that most of us would never have the guts to visit. The story is gripping and the characters are real, with such depth, that I believe just about anyone would relate to them. The story is evocative, tragic, profoundly immoral and wickedly enticing. It grips you, holds you down and sets your mind on fire. Decency aside, it does not allow you to judge as it grabs your mind, twisting it in a thousand directions, as you try to comprehend the complexity and gravity of the tale. It is heart breaking, thought provoking, cleverly weaved and intelligently written. The pace is fast enough to keep you interested, but not too fast that you get lost as it carries you along on suggestive rapids, that come and go, between serious feelings and complicated relationships. A brilliant first Novel. I am so impressed and I absolutely loved it! In short, it is a sensual meander in the hands of a pro. Well Done!
Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite
Behind the Door: A Sizzling, Psychological Suspense - Hidden Motives Book 1 by A. Gavazzoni is a complicated story, but in a really good and intriguing way. I was unable to put this book down, mainly because I didn't want to put it down, it was so good. The story follows Simone; she is a psychiatrist by profession and a compassionate person by nature. She is the perfect person for the job. Her clientele are men and women who have issues with sex (think kinky sex, but more) and she enjoys her work.
Her life takes a serious and more profound turn when a defense attorney named Carl offers her a job. She needs to help him prove that his client, Mark, is innocent. Mark is accused of killing a woman named Lara and Carl needs Simone's help to prove that Mark is innocent. Carl provided her with a diary in which Mark wrote every single detail about his affair with Lara. Now it is Simone's job to prove if he is the killer or not. To make matters worse, there is a killer on the loose who is murdering women. Can Mark be that person? Or is he innocent? Stuck in a moral and professional loop, it is up to Simone to find the truth through words written by Mark in his diary!
REVIEW FROM ONLINEBOOKCLUB - 4 OUT OF 4 STARS
South African Author Angela Shearer - author of The Scarlet Code and Mad Mischief.
Behind the Door is a magnificent and disturbing tale that takes us to places beyond the boundaries of imagination. It throws us into the seductive arms of a world that most of us would never have the guts to visit. The story is gripping and the characters are real, with such depth, that I believe just about anyone would relate to them. The story is evocative, tragic, profoundly immoral and wickedly enticing. It grips you, holds you down and sets your mind on fire. Decency aside, it does not allow you to judge as it grabs your mind, twisting it in a thousand directions, as you try to comprehend the complexity and gravity of the tale. It is heart breaking, thought provoking, cleverly weaved and intelligently written. The pace is fast enough to keep you interested, but not too fast that you get lost as it carries you along on suggestive rapids, that come and go, between serious feelings and complicated relationships. A brilliant first Novel. I am so impressed and I absolutely loved it! In short, it is a sensual meander in the hands of a pro. Well Done!
Awards
Gold B.R.A.G. Medallion
Gold Excellence Award
Gold E-lite Award
Golden Book Award
Bronze YPPY Award
Numerous honorable mentions including The Reader's Favorite
Finalist for Eric Hoffer Award, The IAN Book of the Year, American Fiction Awards, and Indie Excellence Award.
Gold B.R.A.G. Medallion
Gold Excellence Award
Gold E-lite Award
Golden Book Award
Bronze YPPY Award
Numerous honorable mentions including The Reader's Favorite
Finalist for Eric Hoffer Award, The IAN Book of the Year, American Fiction Awards, and Indie Excellence Award.
