This delightful mystery succeeds in uniting two kindred souls in need of a change.
In this novel, a man and a woman team up to solve seemingly unrelated crimes, both hoping to leave behind their ruts and find new directions for their lives.
April September and Preston Tremlock are approaching middle age with plenty of dreams but little success to show for them. April is a fledgling mystery writer collecting rejection slips while working a banking job she hates. Preston is an amateur detective loathed by the local police force that he pesters with his investigative theories. The two meet when April storms into Preston’s office at the insurance company where he has a short-term gig. Despite such an antagonistic beginning, they discover they both love mysteries. Although she’s engaged, April agrees to go out for coffee with him after he returns her notebook, which she had lost. Their big break comes when April’s bank is robbed by a trio of Santas, after which millions of dollars disappear. The insurance company, which has fired Preston, offers a $250,000 reward for whomever discovers the missing money. April quits her job and proposes to Preston that they combine their resources by moving in together, focusing on finding the cash (“We’re going to collect that reward. Plus I’m going to write about it and sell it”). April decides Preston is gay without ever confirming that. Together, they forge ahead blithely, ignoring danger, toward a brighter future. In this charming mystery, veteran screenwriter Olek has created a memorable pair in April and Preston. Both think they’re the smartest people in any room, which leads to frequent clashes between them. Later, the fact that Preston isn’t actually gay results in more bumps in their road. But their deductive powers and analytical skills are ideal for the task at hand. Their unorthodox methods and willingness to skirt legalities leave them far ahead of the local cops. As a result, the police fail to uncover the bank theft’s important connection to some murders. Olek’s engaging narrative flies along with April and Preston as they careen from one false lead to another, unbothered by failure. They’re a winning combination, hopefully one that the author will bring back for another case.
This delightful mystery succeeds in uniting two kindred souls in need of a change.Pub Date: Oct. 11, 2022
ISBN: 9798838416575
Page Count: 376
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.
Stephanie Plum’s 31st adventure shows that Trenton’s preeminent fugitive-apprehension agent still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve, and needs every one of them.
The current caseload for Stephanie and Lula—the ex-prostitute file clerk at her cousin Vincent Plum’s bail bonds company, who serves as her unflappable sidekick—begins with two “failures to appear.” Eugene Fleck is suspected of being Robin Hoodie, who robs from the rich and, yes, distributes the proceeds to the poor. Racketeer Bruno Jug, who’s missed his court date on charges of tax evasion, is also suspected of drugging and raping a 14-year-old. But neither of these fugitives can hold a candle to Zoran Djordjevic, aka Fang, a self-proclaimed vampire wanted in connection with the gruesome fate of his late wife and three other missing women. As usual, Stephanie’s personal life is just as helter-skelter as her professional life as a bounty hunter. She’s managed to get herself engaged both to Det. Joe Morelli, of the Trenton PD, and Ranger, a former Special Forces agent who runs a private security firm; she thinks she may be pregnant; and she’s willing to marry the father, whichever of her fiances that turns out to be. On top of it all, her nothingburger schoolmate Herbert Slovinski suddenly pops up at one of the funerals she ferries her Grandma Mazur to, hitting on her relentlessly and gilding his importunities by cleaning and painting her shabby apartment and laying new carpet. Luckily, Lula’s on hand to offer cupcakes that stave off the worst disasters, and whenever this hodgepodge threatens to slow down, another FTA appears, or fails to appear.
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781668003138
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
Fast-moving excitement with a satisfying finish.
The feds must protect an accused criminal and an orphaned girl.
Maybe you’ve met him before as protagonist of The 6:20 Man (2022): Ex-Army Ranger Travis Devine, who’d had the dubious fortune to tangle with “the girl on the train,” is now assigned by his homeland security boss to protect Danny Glass, who's awaiting trial on multiple RICO charges in Washington state. Devine has what it takes: He “was a closer, snooper, fixer, investigator,” and, when necessary, a killer. These skills are on full display as the deaths of three key witnesses grind justice to a temporary halt. Glass has a 12-year-old niece, Betsy Odom, and each is the other’s only living relative—her parents recently died of an apparent drug overdose. The FBI has temporary guardianship of Betsy, who's a handful. She tells Travis that though she’s not yet 13, she's 28 in “life-shit years.” The financially well-heeled Glass wants to be her legal guardian with an eye to eventual adoption, but what are his real motives? And what happens to her if he's convicted? Meanwhile, Betsy insists that her parents never touched drugs, and she begs Travis to find out how they really died. This becomes part of a mission that oozes danger. The small town of Ricketts has a woman mayor who’s full of charm on the surface, but deeply corrupt and deadly when crossed. She may be linked to a subversive group called "12/24/65," as in 1865, when the Ku Klux Klan beast was born. Blood flows, bombs explode, and people perish, both good guys and not-so-good guys. Readers might ponder why in fiction as well as in life, it sometimes seems necessary for many to die so one may live. And what about the girl on the train? She's not necessary to the plot, but she's a fun addition as she pops in and out of the pages, occasionally leaving notes for Travis. Maybe she still wants him dead.
Fast-moving excitement with a satisfying finish.Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781538757901
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
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