Scan barcode
mrsbear's review against another edition
5.0
Buying Time is absolutely one of the best legal thriller books I have ever read! This was my first book by Pamela Samuels Young and for sure will not be my last.
Buying Time took hold of me from page one and with each chapter only held me tighter and tighter wanting more. This book has a little bit of everything, murders, dirty lawyers, corruption, romance, outstanding characters that you love or not love or want to kick in the pants.
I have to say my favorite characters was by far Dre. I always hold the underdog very close to my heart and Dre is a good guy. Maybe he didn't start out that way but he saw the error of his ways and changed. Gotta love him for that.
Angela was a character who was very easy to identify with. A strong woman, a lawyer, the Assistant US Attorney who is caught in a relationship that she knows is bad but shows us that even a smart, strong woman can get mind screwed as easily as anyone.
Waverly Sloan? I really didnt fall in love with him. Yeah, he was basically a good guy but there is just something about him that makes me say Hmmmmmmmmmm.
Overall one hell of a good book. A book that will keep you up all night. A book that promises another twist in each chapter.
Move over John Grisham, Pamela Samuels Young is here to stay!
Buying Time took hold of me from page one and with each chapter only held me tighter and tighter wanting more. This book has a little bit of everything, murders, dirty lawyers, corruption, romance, outstanding characters that you love or not love or want to kick in the pants.
I have to say my favorite characters was by far Dre. I always hold the underdog very close to my heart and Dre is a good guy. Maybe he didn't start out that way but he saw the error of his ways and changed. Gotta love him for that.
Angela was a character who was very easy to identify with. A strong woman, a lawyer, the Assistant US Attorney who is caught in a relationship that she knows is bad but shows us that even a smart, strong woman can get mind screwed as easily as anyone.
Waverly Sloan? I really didnt fall in love with him. Yeah, he was basically a good guy but there is just something about him that makes me say Hmmmmmmmmmm.
Overall one hell of a good book. A book that will keep you up all night. A book that promises another twist in each chapter.
Move over John Grisham, Pamela Samuels Young is here to stay!
peachani's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Murder
Moderate: Car accident, Death, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Classism, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Incest, Medical content, Rape, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, and Cancer
lisaortiz1221's review against another edition
4.0
Buying Time brought three characters with their separate stories together, converging into one legal thriller wrought with corruption, deceit, murder and more. this was one of those un-put-down-able books that was a great way to mix up my reading habits and i would definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a good thriller/suspense novel.
do you know what a viatical settlement is? i didn’t prior to reading this, so let me do a quick explanation first. apparently, there are brokers that purchase life insurance policies from individuals (usually those with terminal illnesses such as cancer) at a percentage of the face value. they pay the individual in cash, in exchange for being named the sole beneficiary of that policy. investors are willing to put up the cash for the return on their investment once the individual dies. at first it sounds a bit morbid, but in actuality, it can be a very meaningful thing for terminally ill patients. it allows them to do things they might not have afforded, such as experimental procedures that their insurance won’t cover, or to spend the last months of their life traveling. but, on the flip side of that coin is the potential for questionable and unethical actions, which is exactly what Buying Time is about…
Angela is a moderately successful attorney working on what could be her breakthrough case following an organization called Live Now that deals in viatical settlements. the organization is under scrutiny for their questionable tactics, but she soon realizes that the issues run much deeper. though Angela is dedicated and fierce in her professional life, her personal life is a constant source of headaches. her engagement to a judge seemed like a good idea at the time, since her biological clock is ticking, but as he becomes more and more controlling and condescending, she isn’t so sure of herself. then, when she meets the sensitive, thoughtful and good looking Dre at the gym, she finds herself caught up in a tangle in both her personal and professional life.
Lawrence Erickson is on the up and up with his career, shooting for the coveted U.S. Attorney General position, but his wife, at home with terminal cancer, is becoming a problem. she is the ruthless sort, clearly unhappy in the marriage and is threatening to expose something that could ruin his career. as he tries to placate her and hold her out until she kicks the bucket, he finds himself sucked into a web of political scandal and cover ups of enormous proportions.
Waverly has made a few wrong turns in life, but has the best intentions. supporting his gold-digging wife (and impressing his in-laws) proves to be more difficult than he’d anticipated and he finds himself cutting corners, and ultimately disbarred from the legal profession. when he gets offered the opportunity to sell viatical settlements for Live Now, he thinks things might finally be looking up. but, when his clients start dying sooner then they should and he finds himself under suspicion, he realizes that the downward spiral of his life has only just begun.
one thing i really appreciated about reading Buying Time was the presentation of viatical settlements in its strengths and weaknesses. this is an actual thing that can be a blessing to the patients. in addition, Young also explores domestic abuse in a very tangible way. although a tad graphic at times, i didn’t find it over-dramatic or excessive in its representation and appreciated the varying levels of human corruption. the depth and variety of characters that Young presented was extremely well done and although i can’t say that i liked many of the characters, their flaws were all well drawn. by far, my favorite was Angela, the strong and stubborn woman of the bunch. Waverly was irritatingly naive and played an annoying, yet convincing victim and Erickson was so easy to hate, the epitome of a deplorable politician.
my only qualms about the book were in its over-simplification of the nature of relationships. the marriages seemed borderline cookie cutter types, with enough predictability to bug me a bit. but, otherwise, it was an excellent book that i couldn’t put down. if you like a good thriller, this is a book not to be missed.
do you know what a viatical settlement is? i didn’t prior to reading this, so let me do a quick explanation first. apparently, there are brokers that purchase life insurance policies from individuals (usually those with terminal illnesses such as cancer) at a percentage of the face value. they pay the individual in cash, in exchange for being named the sole beneficiary of that policy. investors are willing to put up the cash for the return on their investment once the individual dies. at first it sounds a bit morbid, but in actuality, it can be a very meaningful thing for terminally ill patients. it allows them to do things they might not have afforded, such as experimental procedures that their insurance won’t cover, or to spend the last months of their life traveling. but, on the flip side of that coin is the potential for questionable and unethical actions, which is exactly what Buying Time is about…
Angela is a moderately successful attorney working on what could be her breakthrough case following an organization called Live Now that deals in viatical settlements. the organization is under scrutiny for their questionable tactics, but she soon realizes that the issues run much deeper. though Angela is dedicated and fierce in her professional life, her personal life is a constant source of headaches. her engagement to a judge seemed like a good idea at the time, since her biological clock is ticking, but as he becomes more and more controlling and condescending, she isn’t so sure of herself. then, when she meets the sensitive, thoughtful and good looking Dre at the gym, she finds herself caught up in a tangle in both her personal and professional life.
Lawrence Erickson is on the up and up with his career, shooting for the coveted U.S. Attorney General position, but his wife, at home with terminal cancer, is becoming a problem. she is the ruthless sort, clearly unhappy in the marriage and is threatening to expose something that could ruin his career. as he tries to placate her and hold her out until she kicks the bucket, he finds himself sucked into a web of political scandal and cover ups of enormous proportions.
Waverly has made a few wrong turns in life, but has the best intentions. supporting his gold-digging wife (and impressing his in-laws) proves to be more difficult than he’d anticipated and he finds himself cutting corners, and ultimately disbarred from the legal profession. when he gets offered the opportunity to sell viatical settlements for Live Now, he thinks things might finally be looking up. but, when his clients start dying sooner then they should and he finds himself under suspicion, he realizes that the downward spiral of his life has only just begun.
one thing i really appreciated about reading Buying Time was the presentation of viatical settlements in its strengths and weaknesses. this is an actual thing that can be a blessing to the patients. in addition, Young also explores domestic abuse in a very tangible way. although a tad graphic at times, i didn’t find it over-dramatic or excessive in its representation and appreciated the varying levels of human corruption. the depth and variety of characters that Young presented was extremely well done and although i can’t say that i liked many of the characters, their flaws were all well drawn. by far, my favorite was Angela, the strong and stubborn woman of the bunch. Waverly was irritatingly naive and played an annoying, yet convincing victim and Erickson was so easy to hate, the epitome of a deplorable politician.
my only qualms about the book were in its over-simplification of the nature of relationships. the marriages seemed borderline cookie cutter types, with enough predictability to bug me a bit. but, otherwise, it was an excellent book that i couldn’t put down. if you like a good thriller, this is a book not to be missed.
dmwhipp's review against another edition
3.0
A fast-paced, enjoyable thriller. I had never even heard of viatical settlements before reading this, but what a great plot device, as well as a bit of a scary prospect.
addicted2bookz's review against another edition
5.0
Suspenseful! I totally enjoyed reading this book. I like Dre and Angela! I'm looking forward to the next Pamela Samuels Young book!
fureverfriend's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
naika's review against another edition
4.0
Not going to lie, the first half was a bit slow and I wasn’t quite sure what the story was doing or where it was going. But halfway through, it hit its stride and from there it was just a wild experience. I guessed one of the major twists, but found myself doubting my intuition because of all the curveballs. Which is what I like and want from my mysteries. But despite knowing one of the twists, I wasn’t even prepared for how it would unfold. I agree with some other reviewers who mentioned it was unclear who the series was following, as it seemed like many characters shared prominent roles in the story (Angela, Dre, Erickson, Becker, Waverly). I sometimes struggled to keep all the characters straight. But all in all, I enjoyed myself and look forward to book two.
locpressedbooks_'s review against another edition
4.0
Freaking crazy. I love it. More will come in my monthly wrap-up.
jasiri31's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
A very unique and original plot. Many people write about relatives or friends commiting murder to collect insurance policies, but rarely do you hear about the companies allegedly murdering clients, etc. She is an excellent writer with real world Attorney/legal experience.
More...