The plot wasn't really making itself known at almost a quarter way through and when 28-year-old MC started fretting about getting too old to have babies and how she can't eat carbs because she'll get fat, that was my sign that this book is not for me.

The oil boom of Texas from the view of the lawyer. But when the lawyer is best friends with the mastermind things are a bit twisted. Honesty is not a high priority. From the beginning of the book with a rape to the raping of the land of one of the female lawyers the story has twists and turns. Greed is a huge factor. The unraveling of secrets is spectacular. Add in a bit of romance for a book with many layers. It was a good story.

Well done yet a bit darker of a book. There are some triggers in here so people should know that going in. It’s a well done story that looks at the darker side of an industry.

“I think we were both victims in different ways. But we’re older and wiser now, and this show’s not over yet.”

You know what they say about payback and karma. In Crude Ambition, Patricia Hunt Holmes captures the essence of these age-old adages to perfection. Fresh off her first week as an intern at the prestigious Houston law firm Edwards and Harrison, Laura Petrillo heads to party at a high-class beach house in Galveston with her sponsor, Carolyn Page. Such an invite from Paul Robinson, who is a shining star at the law firm, is both unexpected and exciting. When Laura wakes up in the hospital after being drugged and sexually assaulted, she tries to piece together the horrific events at the beach house, eventually slinking back to New Jersey under a suffocating cloud of humiliation and self-doubt. To her credit, Carolyn wanted to do the right thing by trying to track her down to help her, but when Laura starts going by the name Ann Meyers, Carolyn chooses to lock those events away to ensure her fast-paced career plan to make partner at Edwards and Harrison remains on track. But the past rarely stays buried forever, right?

Over the next ten years, both Ann and Carolyn become successful lawyers, with their paths destined to cross once more.

Crude Ambition is a medium-paced burn, with greed, cutthroat career building, and selfish ambition boiling over on the front burner and revenge slowly simmering on the back. Following the initial horrific events in Galveston, the overall story maps the rising careers of both Laura and Carolyn and the eventual opportunity for Laura to exact her vengeance on the men who assaulted her and for Carolyn to open her eyes to what really matters in life. As a creative legal backdrop, the author has crafted an incredibly interesting story about the perils of hydraulic fracking and residual dangerous pollutants, with several greedy scumbags preying on hardworking Texas ranchers and promising them riches and royalties when the drilling on their land hits pay dirt, all while illegally lining their own pockets.

When Carolyn discovers her brother has given permission to drill on the family ranch southeast of San Antonio, Texas, the story explodes across the pages in an environmental and inhumane nightmare. While this tale of greed and revenge is somewhat predictable, with no earth-shattering surprises, it is presented in a way that is compelling and entertaining. We all want to see the bad players fall off that pedestal and get their just deserts. Both Ann and Carolyn and their best friends are strong, successful women, and watching them grow and flourish as professional lawyers in that so-called "good ol' boy" world is delightful and cheer-worthy. Both women are rational and methodical as they transition into their strong moral selves, all of which serve them well when everything hits the legal fan in the ending chapters. Fortunately, the legal aspect throughout Crude Ambition is easy to navigate and understand because the author rarely has the characters pontificate in legalese.

A thread of romance runs throughout, but it is not overpowering, and a couple of twists make Carolyn’s love life quite charming, with no crude language and overt sexuality to detract from the overall story, which is plenty dynamic all by itself. In both professional and personal lives, doing the right thing takes courage and backbone, and silence really does mean consent. Crude Ambition is a story about sweet revenge and self-discovery, and it is a cautionary tale about the dangers of becoming too high and mighty and donning greed and privilege like a flashy superficial coat. The eventual and inevitable fall from grace is nothing short of spectacular.

Crude Ambition is one of the most satisfying stories I’ve ever read. The book was written by Patricia Hunt Homes, but I have no doubt that Mr. Karma (Or is it Ms.?) was a major contributor. I was fully engaged from cover to cover, and I’m still reeling from my enjoyment of it.

The story is set in Houston, with offshoots to the Texas Hill Country, the Panhandle, and even Washington, D.C. The storyline follows the paths of two young, professional women with high ambition. They are both attorneys. One works for a large Houston firm, and the other for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Most of the story revolves around the oil business, particularly as it related to “fracking” - the process of injecting liquid at high pressure into the ground in an attempt to force open fissures in the earth to extract oil or gas.

There are numerous stories about the Texas oil business, as well as the “good ‘ol boys club,” but I think this story provides a unique perspective. The story evolves almost entirely around the white collar professionals - attorneys, accountants, etc. - who provide the infrastructure for the oil business.

Although some of the characters are rather shady, there is only one true antagonist - oil magnate Joe Bill Hawkins. He has absolutely no empathy, and he will gladly step on anyone and everyone to get what he wants. If he gets accused of doing anything illegal, he points fingers and shifts blame faster than a speeding bullet!

Okay, enough about the storyline. Now I’ll tell you what I liked about the story: EVERYTHING!

I’ll start with the description. I loved how the author provided her description. When a new scene started, she provided a wonderful description of the setting, and then she got right down to business with the characters. For example, when a meeting was about to take place at a great room on a ranch, this is how she described the room:

“Bighorn sheep, antelope, deer, a brown bear, and other trophies filled the walls of the stone and log entry hall and great room. A floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace big enough for a man to stand in was on one side of the room. Mesquite wood burning in the fireplace gave off a sweet aroma. Windows lined the wall looking west, providing a view of the rolling countryside covered with scrub brush, live oak and mesquite trees, and breathtaking sunsets.”

Afterward, she got right down to the business of the meeting.

Next comes the characters. The character arcs are fantastic. A few of them surprised me, but not in a negative way. Further, even though most of these characters live life way above the pay grade of the average reader, the author did an amazing job of making all of them vulnerable - just like many of us. For instance, Carolyn - the main character - is very driven to rise to the partner level in the law firm. However, she has a number of internal clashes as she tries to decide just what she’s willing to do - or more importantly, not do - to get where she wants to go.

As I said, the story revolves around fracking. However, and thankfully, we don’t get knee-deep in the process. Rather, the author takes us into the world of the attorneys and accountants who do the contracts and charge the oil companies massive fees to keep them legal. The author managed to make this part quite interesting! As a retired CPA, I know how some of this stuff works, such as independent audits and due diligence, and that is all part of the story, but it’s in a very “lay way” - so that anyone can understand it.

I would love to tell you more about the storyline, because I thought it was fantastic and quite original, but I won’t. I’ll let you have the pleasure of discovering that yourself. I also said Mr. (or Ms.) Karma was a major contributor to this story. If you read it, you’ll know exactly what I mean, and I hope it satisfies you as much as it did me!

This is another story that I highly recommend! Happy reading!!

I had that ‘a-ha’ moment thinking about the title, and really the definition of ambition. The lawyers in the novel are looking for power and partnership in the firm. The oilmen are searching for the money and success that oil brings. Ms. Holmes picked an apt title, undeniably.

CRUDE AMBITION is a character driven novel, with two strong lead female characters, and some smarmy men who conduct shady deals. Over the course of ten years, Carolyn and Ann, our two main characters, are climbing the ladder as lawyers. Carolyn, especially, is bumping against a very thick glass ceiling! What I found most interesting about Carolyn is she makes some decisions early in the novel for the betterment of her career, but not necessarily for the betterment of her integrity. Her choices are certainly in a grey area, and I honestly don’t know what I would have done in her position. Oh, and Carolyn is a reader! Nothing endears me more to a character (and author!) than a recommendation of PILLARS OF THE EARTH.
Ann’s motto should really be “revenge is a dish best served cold” or maybe “slow and steady wins the race”. Ann really shows the most growth in this novel. It takes her some time to come into her own, but once she determines what she wants, Ann really goes for it.
As for the male characters, the crew from the Midnight Poker Club are not men I would want in my life! Smarmy, shady, dishonest good ol’ boys barely begin to cover Paul, Peter, Trey, and Joe Bill. Along with some of the characters from Carolyn’s hometown, the men in this novel are very problematic. There are a few good men (lol, legal humor!) in CRUDE AMBITION as well, including Carolyn’s high school sweetheart, Kenny. Now he’s a Texan to star in a romance!

Ms. Holmes is well versed in the lawyer-y world of CRUDE AMBITION’S setting. Her attention to details, both in the setting and characters, is compelling. Houston comes alive while reading. From the neighborhoods to the restaurants, to driving from Houston to the Hill Country, the Texas setting was integral to the story. (And I’ll admit, it made me a bit homesick for Texas.) The writing is descriptive and accessible. For a legal drama, there isn’t a lot of legalese that a reader would need to understand, thankfully. The novel is told from both Carolyn’s and Ann’s points of view. This really gives the reader the opportunity to empathize and understand both characters.

My only caveat for CRUDE AMBITION is this: I wanted to bad guys to get their comeuppance much quickly. As the novel unfolds over 10 years, I was hoping and waiting for what I thought might happen with the characters. But it took reading through 80% of the novel for the retribution to start. And after that 80%, the ending wraps up quickly and neatly. While the ending is satisfactory, I would have preferred that the action to have started earlier in the novel.

CRUDE AMBITION is a compelling legal drama, with well-written and strong female protagonists. Check it out if you are looking for a great character-driven read!

The journey of two women, Carolyn and Laura/Ann, hampered by the "good ol' boy" network proves that goals can be obtained with hard work and dedication...and maybe a little bit of revenge.

This book elicited some strong emotions from me especially when it came to the misogynic attitudes of the men in this story. Laura is an intern with Carolyn's law firm and she is mentoring Laura. What she doesn't expect is for a situation at a home in Galveston to go all wrong and for Laura to disappear. What happened to her? Is she still alive? We see Carolyn's compassionate side because she knows something happened that shouldn't have but she doesn't know what to do or if she should say anything. I can understand because she is relatively new to the firm and rocking the boat could cause her to lose her job. But is it the right thing to do to stay silent against the men in the firm? Even when she asks her mentor his opinion, he tells her to keep quiet. What sort of precedence does that set for Carolyn and this law firm? For Laura, this event shakes her to her core and her life isn't quite the same after that. We see her struggles and how she copes with the situation and the effect it has on her life.

This story has so many facets to it that it kept me intrigued especially when it involved different areas of the law including the Securities and Exchange Commission, Environmental Law and the Clean Water Act, and the oil & gas industry. In Texas, there is always a possibility of hitting oil or gas in your backyard. However, not all companies are ethical and we see that when they descend upon Carolyn's hometown. I was drawn to the friendship between Carolyn and Cynthia. These two women are driven to become partners in the firm and will do what it takes to get there ethically unlike their male counterparts.

Speaking of the men...whew, the mentality of most of these men is mind-boggling. I'm not sure who was the worst because there were multiple contenders. Paul is a lawyer in the firm and his biggest client is Joe Bill. I think there could be a tie between these two as to who had the worst personality and outlook when it came to business and women. I felt bad for Paul at times when he had to try and figure out what Joe Bill was doing since he wasn't the most forthcoming with his business movements. This might have actually been a slight blessing for Paul because he could have plausible deniability in some cases.

The book would not be complete without a romance storyline. Carolyn has two suitors including her high school boyfriend and a doctor that happens to be the brother of one of the other lawyers in the firm. I could sense her struggle with who to choose and why because these two men are polar opposites in where they are in their life. I think her final decision and the path that would be laid out from her choice was the best possible outcome.

There are a lot of moving parts to this book, but they all come together and I enjoyed the alternating POV where we see what is happening with Laura/Ann and how she is handling her life after her time in Houston. I cheered at the end when certain characters got what was coming to them and perhaps it should be a lesson to the reader that bad behavior will not be rewarded in the end. The author also pays attention to detail and researched the different parts of Texas that were represented.

Overall we give this 4 paws up and look forward to the next novel from this author and the social issue that it addresses.

It’s always good when a book reflects the title in a way that makes the reader think “aha” and Crude Ambition does that. From the ambition of the senior partners in the law firm where Carolyn is struggling with moral and ethical decisions, to her own ambition to be somebody more successful than what she deemed her mother to be, or her friends in the small town where she grew up, that tension is always there, and ambition drives every character’s actions.

It was interesting to see Carolyn in that small town when she goes there from Houston to visit her father and find out what’s going on with her brother, who has gotten tangled in a mess of corruption and is trying to take over the family ranch . Then, of course, there’s Carolyn’s relationship with Kenny, the boyfriend from her past who wants to become the man in her life in her present.

At times, Carolyn is conflicted between wanting to give it all for her career or wanting the peace and slow pace of country living. As someone who appreciates the benefits of country living, I kept pulling for the latter for Carolyn. Especially since she felt so at home there, despite her ambitions, and the old embers of attraction to Kenny sparked a new interest. The first time he calls her “darlin'” in that soft Texas drawl, we know it won’t be the last.

It was nice the way all of the elements in the story eventually came together to right the wrong that occurred in the beginning of the story, as well as showcasing how the quest for more money can push people to extremes, allowing them to believe it’s okay to cut corners in order to make more money. There were places where I thought the story got bogged down in detailed descriptions and detailed background information about characters that really slowed the pace. I also thought the timeline could have been shortened between that wonderful opening scene that really pulls a reader in, and the final resolution to what happened that night. However there were things that needed to happen to the characters in order to set up the ending of the story, and maybe that’s why there is such a significant time-span. Also, readers who like detailed back story on characters, won’t find that a problem, which is one of the beauties of fiction and readers. We all have different reactions to the same story.

This book is a blend of straightforward fiction and romance with a bit of suspense thrown in. The best scenes were when Carolyn was at home on the ranch dealing with her brother, spending time with her father, and working with Kenny to preserve the integrity of the land, as well as her own integrity. For me, that’s where Carolyn became more endearing as a character.

The resolution was was very satisfying in that the bad guys got their comeuppance, and we see hope and happiness in Carolyn’s future.

And don’t forget the cowboy!

Crude Ambition gave a fascinating insider’s view of what it takes to be a corporate lawyer in Texas. I loved the slower pace of this book; it really offered an opportunity for character development. Carolyn, Ann/Laura and the people in their lives were multi-dimensional, flawed, and, perhaps because of that, very realistic. Thank you NetGalley.

Crude Ambition is the perfect title for this book! Two ambitious women - both working at the same law firm -attend a party at a Galveston beach house. When something happens to one of them at the party things will never be the same again. I really liked how this author wrote about climbing the corporate ladder in a law firm and fighting against the ruthlessness and greed of oil companies. The descriptions of the area are great too! Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy of this book!

I think the fact that I disliked almost all of the characters is a testimony to both the strength of the plot line and the ability of the author to really bring characters to life. It was great to see strong female characters taking charge in a kind of unpleasant context.

I was provided a free copy of this text by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book was a decent debut for Patricia Holmes, but there was something lacking with the novel. The topic was interesting though. Hoping for a better 2nd novel from Holmes.

Patricia Hunt Holmes Crude Ambition River Grove Books Austin, TX, 2021.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review.

I have had a difficult time assessing the star rating for this book. Although there is value in ensuring the reader has background information, at times I found the novel overwritten. To me, some aspects of the ending were unsatisfying. However, the plotting in general was good, and the topic engrossing. If half stars were available, I would have added a half. That being said, there are several real positives about the novel.

The story moves locale between Houston, where Carolyn works in a prestigious law firm, and her former home, a ranch in a rural area southeast of San Antonio. In Houston, her life revolves around work, with its ambitious male colleagues, and her friend, Cynthia, a successful lawyer from the ‘right background’. At the ranch, her brother and father lead an uneasy existence as conflict over what should happen to the ranch mounts. Carolyn’s social life, truncated as it is by her need to return to work in Houston, revolves around people from her schooldays, friends and enemies.

The major political story is compelling. Landowners are lured by the thought of riches from drilling their land for oil; lawyers, large and small, in ensuring that businesses vital to their income achieve their aims, ignore legalities; the depiction of the negative impact on the land and water associated with oil drilling and fracking, is persuasive. Where nonfiction uses facts and figures to demonstrate the harm to the environment when regulations are ignored Patricia Hunt Holmes writes of the small body of a child, still alive in his dead mother’s arms, to tell the story. A secondary political story is the way in which women are treated in legal firms, with their secondary roles becoming an important part of the narrative. Associated with that storyline is that of Laura, a summer intern mentored by Carolyn, who is assaulted at a beach house belonging to a senior colleague. Psychologically devastated, she initially becomes another victim of societal expectations. Her story is cleverly woven into the broader political narrative.

Characterisation is another excellent feature. Each character is developed with sensitivity to the challenges placed upon both women and men, from ambition; need to conform to the demands of their class and background; fear of losing a place in the demanding hierarchy of family, social group, or profession; and the fear of failing friends, expectations, and colleagues. The most well-developed character, Carolyn, demonstrates the impact of all these pressures as she moves from the aftermath of the horror linked to the beach party; to advancing up the legal ladder; and steering the relationships associated with family, friends, colleagues and two would-be lovers. The men who rule the prestigious law firm are also impacted by expectations. Landowners who scent the lure of money from oil are not immune, and even the most simply developed character, Cody, Carolyn’s brother, has his place in having to meet expectations, leading to his predictable behaviour.

Carolyn’s dilemma is well observed. She feels responsible for Laura, whom she finds dishevelled and injured at the beach house, takes to hospital, only to find that next day she has disappeared. Carolyn’s belief that she should follow up the events is uneasily tamped down in the face of her male superiors’ indifference – and less justifiably, in her desire to rise in the firm. Her conflicting aspirations and emotions are increased as her father and brother become the target of oil exploration.

These conflicts personal and professional, are intertwined with the thriller like narrative about the people behind the drilling, vanishing information, where money from the successful drilling has been dispersed, and responsibility for the death of a woman in a vehicle accident.

This is a fine exploration of two political issues which come together in a satisfying manner. Carolyn, with her role in both narratives becomes a character with whom it is easy to identify. Her recognition of the way in which women need to defer to rise in the legal fraternity is well drawn, her shortcomings becoming a dilemma for the reader as well as herself. The resolution of one of the political stories is satisfying. The problems faced by women in a demanding and chauvinist profession are not so well resolved, although Patricia Hunt Holmes weaves a solution which is pleasantly romantic as well as practical.

Crude Ambition follows the lives of two young women who attend a law firm party, leading to vastly different paths. It is a story of choices due to unfortunate circumstances and the consequences of those decisions. The author paints a story of ambition amidst lies, secrets, and coverups at the expense of a young woman’s honor.

Carolyn brings Laura, a young intern, to a law firm party at a Galveston Island beach house and finds her violated and unconscious the following morning. Horrified, Carolyn takes her to the local ER while the partners watch in disgust and panic. The next day Carolyn discovers that Laura has disappeared and left the hospital, unknown to the medical personnel. This experience leads the two women on separate career paths, forever changed by that single event. With many twists and turns, the author weaves their stories with different POVs as they navigate among the corruption and greed of oil firm executives, environmental issues with fracking and ranching in South Texas, and the legal and moral issues involved. There is a little bit of everything in this novel—greed, romance, revenge, and justice.

The title, Crude Ambition, captures the essence of the story. Although not familiar with the oil industry, fracking, and intricacies of the law, I thoroughly enjoyed the setting and characters. The author Pat Holmes gives the reader a compelling inside view of law firms, the oil industry, and Southern Texas life. I’m looking for a sequel and a series on Netflix. I recommend this intriguing, fast-paced story and thank NetGalley for allowing me to read and review it. #NetGalley #CrudeAmbition #womensfiction #legalthrillers

I really disliked the main character and theme in this book. The "incident" mentioned in the blurb is with respect to an intern's female mentor finding the intern lying unconscious, with her pants and panties beside her on the floor in a house owned by a powerful man during a party. This woman, who is supposed to be mentoring and assisting the intern, does take her to the hospital but in order to save her job and further her career, she doesn't contact the police nor does she even mention to the hospital staff that a rape kit should be administered. I couldn't go on with this book after reading this. I'm not interested in reading books where the female protagonist is so narcissistic and self-serving that she would deliberately do this to a young female that she was supposed to be mentoring.

Surely this book could have been written with the storyline that despite the female lawyer's efforts of contacting the police and reporting the possible rape, her efforts were thwarted and that ten years later, the intern and the female lawyer join forces to get justice. What ever happened to women supporting other women??? This is a trope that in the time of the #metoo movement must be discontinued and I'm disappointed that the author's editor did not have this storyline changed. I would rather read the back of my cereal box rather than this.

I found the story compelling, but the writing was not good. It was all action. The characters were one-dimensional. The author needs to take some writing classes to understand how to write descriptions and backstory.

Crude or Refined?

Ann and Carolyn are separately climbing their respective corporate ladders while navigating firm politics and dicey co-workers. They’re smart, ambitious, and ethical.

However, not everyone they encounter is guided by a similar moral compass. Beneath the veneer of Houston’s elite society lie vile proclivities in a few individuals. Joe Bill Hawkins, to name one.

Embodying the oiliness of spirit as well as profession, Joe Bill and his entitled ‘boys’ have taken the low road to prosperity and hurt others in the process. He's a villain you’ll most likely want to meet his comeuppance.

I loved this story about two career driven female attorneys!

Intelligent successful women always occupy a spot on my want to read list although I would classify this as more of a Women’s Story than Thriller. I especially recommend reading when you’ve wearied of dumb and dumber characters.

In addition, the author’s research regarding the Securities and Exchange Commission, oil industry, and accounting laws are evident. I love learning about businesses of all varieties so that was another positive for me.

Thank you to the author, River Grove Books, and NetGalley for my electronic review copy in advance of publishing June 8, 2021.