Murder
with Reservations
A
Dead-End Job Mystery with Helen Hawthorne
Elaine
Viets
NAL
Books (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-451-22111-7 (0451221117)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-22111-7 (9780451221117)
Publication Date: May 2007
List Price: $21.95
Synopsis (from
the publisher): Helen Hawthorne has a knack for keeping a low profile.
But in South Florida, it's going to get a lot harder to fly under the
radar ...
Working at Sybil's Full Moon Hotel in Fort Lauderdale keeps Helen safe
and sane. But when a maid is found dead in a dumpster, those days just
might be over. Dead bodies mean another chance for the cops to find
her. To make matters worse, her ex-husband is hot on her trail. Sadly,
the cops don't seem to care much about a murdered maid-but they take
notice of her co-worker's shady story. If Helen doesn't manage to dodge
their questions and shake off her ex, it could be checkout time.
Review:
The clever premise of Elaine Viets' Dead-End Job mysteries is that
Helen Hawthorne, a successful executive from St. Louis, is on the run
from the courts after refusing to pay her unfaithful and lazy
ex-husband Rob alimony and give him half of their assets. To hide from
Rob and the law, she flees to Florida and takes on menial jobs to
support herself that pay in cash. Murder
with Reservations
is the sixth entertaining mystery in this series.
In Ft. Lauderdale, Helen lands a job as a housekeeper with a
second-rate motel, The Full Moon. She quickly befriends the other
housekeepers, but finds herself the center of attention when one of
them is found dead in a dumpster behind the motel. Murders make
headlines, so it isn't long before Rob tracks her down, even renting a
room at the motel. She manages to hide from him, but when a guest is
killed, Helen once again faces questioning by the police. Can she
follow the clues to determine the killer's identity while keeping one
step ahead of her ex? Or will her cover be blown by these murders?
Murder
with Reservations is
populated with warm and delightful characters. The story moves along at
a brisk pace, is frequently humorous, and has a well considered plot.
Everyone seems to have a secret that they just might kill for, so the
killer's identity, which is not revealed until the very end, comes as a
surprise.
A little mystery, a little romance, and a lot of fun. Murder with Reservations
is well worth checking out ... or in, as it were!
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Murder with Reservations and to Breakthrough Promotions for providing a copy of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2007 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read Murder with Reservations? How would you rate it?
Mysteries in this series ...
Shop
Til
You Drop
Signet (Hardcover), May 2003
ISBN-10: 0-451-20855-2 (0451208552)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-20855-2 (9780451208552)
Murder
Between the Covers
Signet (Hardcover), December 2003
ISBN-10: 0-451-21081-6 (0451210816)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-21081-4 (9780451210814)
Dying
to
Call You
Signet (Hardcover), October 2004
ISBN-10: 0-451-21332-7 (0451213327)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-21332-7 (9780451213327)
Just
Murdered
Signet (Hardcover), May 2005
ISBN-10: 0-451-21492-7 (0451214927)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-21492-8 (9780451214928)
Murder
Unleashed
NAL Books (Hardcover), May 2006
ISBN-10: 0-451-21840-X (045121840X)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-21840-7 (9780451218407)
Murder with Reservations
NAL Books (Hardcover), May 2007
ISBN-10: 0-451-22111-7 (0451221117)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-22111-7 (9780451221117)
Clubbed
to Death
NAL Books (Hardcover), May 2008
ISBN-10: 0-451-22394-2 (0451223942)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-22394-4 (9780451223944)
Killer Cuts
NAL Books (Hardcover), May 2009
ISBN-10: 0-451-22686-0 (0451226860)
ISBN-13: 978-0-451-22686-0 (9780451226860)
Omnimystery
keywords for Murder with Reservations
...
Location(s) referenced: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
