Bad to the Last Drop
A Best
Friends Mystery
Deb Lewis and
Pat
Ondarko
Langdon Street Press (Trade Paperback)
ISBN-10: 1-934938-56-4 (1934938564)
ISBN-13: 978-1-934938-56-0 (9781934938560)
Publication Date: November 2009
List Price: $15.95
Synopsis (from
the publisher): Everyone who frequented the Black Cat Coffeehouse in
picturesque, rural Ashland, Wisconsin, knew Joe Abramov. Joe was the
local eccentric, a "predictable fixture" at the Black Cat, "as much a
part of the scene as the aroma of good coffee." Whether Joe was
insisting that the CIA was spying on him or talking about hitting it
big in the lottery, Ashland residents came to expect--even depend
on--his daily conversations.
When Joe goes missing and is later found dead, the regulars at the
Black Cat are understandably upset. But when it's discovered that Joe
might have been killed, the town of Ashland is rocked to its core. Best
friends Deb Linberg and Pat Kerry take it upon themselves to help solve
what becomes increasingly evident is Joe's murder.
Review: Best
friends Deb Lewis (a lawyer) and Pat Ondarko (a pastor) together pen
their first "best friends" mystery featuring Ashland residents Deb
Linberg (a lawyer) and Pat Kerry (a pastor) in Bad to the Last Drop, a cozy set
along the northern Wisconsin shores of Lake Superior.
The gathering spot in Ashland is the local coffeeshop, the Black Cat.
Pat and Deb and regulars as is Joe Abramov, a Vietnam War veteran who
seemed to live in another world, one filled with contacts at the CIA
and lottery winnings. But when Joe doesn't show up for 4 days, the
Black Cat barista calls the police, who find him dead in his apartment.
There is no sign of forced entry, no unusual wounds on the body -- a
seemingly natural death. But an autopsy reveals poison in his system
giving Pat and Deb an opportunity to play the role of amateur sleuth
and solve the mystery of who might have wanted this much beloved,
colorful character dead.
The narrative in Bad to the Last Drop
is casual, conversational even, not unlike a leisurely visit to a local
coffeeshop to enjoy in a cup of Italian roast and catch up with friends
and neighbors. It is, however, also somewhat uneven, with frequent
backstories that don't necessarily add anything to the story, and a
non-linear chronology with passages that start with "Several weeks
prior to that morning ..." and "Earlier that evening ..." And though
Pat and Deb are the principal characters, several others occasionally
share the point-of-view, popping up unexpectedly in the conversation.
It's all a bit disjointed.
There isn't much of a mystery here, the story focused squarely on Pat
and Deb individually and Pat and Deb, best friends. Still, Bad to the Last Drop is a pleasant
book, and short enough (at less than 150 pages) to be completed in one
sitting in front of the fire on a cold winter day. (The final pages of
the book include recipes "guaranteed good to the last bite" and a short
preview of the next book in the series, Too Much at Stake.)
Special thanks to Langdon Street Press for providing an ARC of Bad to the Last Drop for this review.
Review Copyright © 2010 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read Bad to the Last Drop? How would you rate it?
Mysteries in this series …
Bad to the Last Drop
Langdon Street Press (Trade Paperback), November 2009
ISBN-10: 1-934938-56-4 (1934938564)
ISBN-13: 978-1-934938-56-0 (9781934938560)
Omnimystery keywords for Bad to the Last Drop ...
Location(s) referenced: Wisconsin.
