Book Review - The Flaming Luau of Death by Jerrilyn Farmer
Category Book Reviews
The latest Madeline Bean novel arrived this week, and I've already finished it... The Flaming Luau of Death by Jerrilyn Farmer. Another outstanding installment in the amateur sleuth series...
Madeline Bean, a professional caterer, decides to throw a major party for her assistant who is getting married. So she books a party of eight over to Hawaii to put on a "killer" bachlorette weekend. But things start going downhill before they even leave. The assistant, Holly Nichols, tells Bean that she apparently is already married due to a prom night Las Vegas quickie that was never annulled. Furthermore, the husband disappeared to college almost immediately and hasn't been seen since. Now Holly is getting threatening emails from someone wanting to know where he is, and isn't content to take "I don't know" for an answer. Once over on the island, the threats don't go away, a dead body shows up on the beach of their private luau, and Bean is mistaken for Holly, placing her in a life-threatening situation. Add in a couple of major plot twists, shake well, and see what you get...
Farmer is not as popular or well-known as someone like Evanovich or Grafton, but in my opinion she should be. She does a great job with the female amateur sleuth genre, and Madeline Bean is a very likable and believable character. The plotlines and pacing are perfect, and you're never quite sure what the next twist is going to be. Add in her own "on-again, off-again" love interest, and Bean is an actual personality who continues to grow and evolve with each new novel.
If you haven't tried out any of the books in the series, you're in for a treat. Go back, start at the beginning, and enjoy. I promise you you'll still be interested when you get to this one. And if you're an on-going fan of Mad, you won't be disappointed. Farmer's still at the top of her game here.
The latest Madeline Bean novel arrived this week, and I've already finished it... The Flaming Luau of Death by Jerrilyn Farmer. Another outstanding installment in the amateur sleuth series...
Madeline Bean, a professional caterer, decides to throw a major party for her assistant who is getting married. So she books a party of eight over to Hawaii to put on a "killer" bachlorette weekend. But things start going downhill before they even leave. The assistant, Holly Nichols, tells Bean that she apparently is already married due to a prom night Las Vegas quickie that was never annulled. Furthermore, the husband disappeared to college almost immediately and hasn't been seen since. Now Holly is getting threatening emails from someone wanting to know where he is, and isn't content to take "I don't know" for an answer. Once over on the island, the threats don't go away, a dead body shows up on the beach of their private luau, and Bean is mistaken for Holly, placing her in a life-threatening situation. Add in a couple of major plot twists, shake well, and see what you get...
Farmer is not as popular or well-known as someone like Evanovich or Grafton, but in my opinion she should be. She does a great job with the female amateur sleuth genre, and Madeline Bean is a very likable and believable character. The plotlines and pacing are perfect, and you're never quite sure what the next twist is going to be. Add in her own "on-again, off-again" love interest, and Bean is an actual personality who continues to grow and evolve with each new novel.
If you haven't tried out any of the books in the series, you're in for a treat. Go back, start at the beginning, and enjoy. I promise you you'll still be interested when you get to this one. And if you're an on-going fan of Mad, you won't be disappointed. Farmer's still at the top of her game here.
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Comments
Posted by Duffbert At 13:40:28 On 29/03/2005 | - Website - |
If you like culinary mysteries, check out Diane Mott Davidson's Goldy Bear series. Good stories, plus recipes in every chapter.
Posted by Esther Strom At 13:22:49 On 29/03/2005 | - Website - |