Hijack in Abstract by Larissa Reinhart, a Mysterious Review.

Review: After commercial artist Cherry Tucker is asked to do a composite sketch of a suspected truck hijacker as a favor to her uncle, the county sheriff, the witness giving her a description is murdered, causing Cherry to go after the killer herself, in Hijack in Abstract, the second mystery in this series by Larissa Reinhart.

Cherry actually — and irrationally — feels responsible for Tyrone Coderre's death. She saw him the following day at the new SipNZip convenience store, and while he told her that he was going back to the rest area where he saw the truck hijacker to … ahem, pick up a few things … she didn't think anything of it until she was told his body was found there. But she hardly has time to feel guilty; her ex has moved back into her house as her brother, nearly driving her out of it. And she has the opportunity to do a professional portrait of a prominent Russian immigrant in Atlanta, a commission she desperately needs. But she can't help but feel for Tyrone's son and grandmother, left alone and wanting following his murder.

The murder mystery storyline in Hijack in Abstract has a well-considered premise, though is somewhat weakly executed. But that is really secondary to the antics of Cherry Tucker herself, who simply cannot sit still for even a moment. Some readers will likely see her as somewhat scatterbrained and silly and enjoy following her around her small town in Georgia; others will see her as abrasive and pushy and be put off by her constantly intrusive behavior. (The fact that she had nothing to do with Tyrone's murder, and that she has no credible reason for being involved in its investigation, is one of the weaker elements here.) This is one of those mysteries where in order to enjoy it, you have to buy into the character and her over-the-top personality, as she is not only in every scene, she dominates whatever space she occupies. There is nothing subtle about Cherry Tucker, but that very characteristic helps smooth over some of the rough plot patches, providing a bit of comic relief throughout this entertaining, if also rather uneven, mystery.

Acknowledgment: Henery Press provided an ARC of Hijack in Abstract for this review.

Portrait of a Dead Guy
Henery Press (Trade Paperback), August 2012
ISBN-13: 9781938383021; ISBN-10: 1938383028

Hijack in Abstract

A Cherry Tucker Mystery by Larissa Reinhart