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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a good read, November 19, 2007
This review is from: Accessory to Murder (Josie Marcus, Mystery Shopper, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)
In this latest Josie Marcus installment, Elaine Viets takes on the difficult topics of racism and class snobbery with interesting results.
Mystery shopper, Joise Marcus, has gotten herself involved in a few murder investigations in the past, but all her previous investigations will pale in importance when stacked against this latest case -- that of proving that her best friend, Alyce's husband, Jake, innocent of the murder of the hot young designer of Italian scarves, Halley HHardwicke. The police think that Jake and Halley were having an affair and that Jake murdered Halley in order to keep the affair secret from Alyce. Alyce believes that her husband is innocent of both charges. But Josie is not so sure that Jake wasn't having an affair with Halley. After al he has cheated on Alyce in the past. But for Alyce's sake, Josie will keep her doubts to herself and poke at every dark corner in the rich suburban neighbourhood Alyce's resides in, in order to discover who hated Halley enough to kill her...
I enjoy Elaine Viets' Josie Marcus novels because they are well written, interesting and fast reads. This particular installment, for instance, brings the reader face to face, even if it is for a brief moment, with the prejudice and assumptions that white, upper middle class people have towards blacks and those not of their social class. It makes for a little uncomfortable reading but is welcome all the same, and I liked the manner in which the author layered these issues into the novel at hand. So that while the investigative subplot seemed all over the place at times, watching how Joise and Alyce carried out their investigations, Josie's observations of what was going on around her, and
Josie's interactions with her family, made for some truly absorbing reading. A good read.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
quirky fun who done it, November 7, 2007
This review is from: Accessory to Murder (Josie Marcus, Mystery Shopper, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)
Josie Marcus is a single mother who pays a nominal rent by living in her mother's house. She has known much heartache and tragedy but she is also best friends to Alyce who lives in an affluent gated community filled with mansions and villas while she lives in a blue collar neighborhood. She doesn't like Alyce's husband Jake who cheated on his wife but tolerates him out of her friendship for his spouse.
When Alyce's neighbor is murdered in what looks like a carjacking, a black male is arrested while running through the mall. The police are forced to let him go when evidence proves him innocent; then the police turn their eyes on Jake as a suspect. Circumstantial evidence points to him having an affair with Halley Hardwicke and witnesses saw them arguing before her death. Alyce knows that Jake is innocent of murder and asks Josie to help. She starts nosing around and almost gets killed by a cold blooded killer who has gotten away with murder twice.
There are two heroes in this book: Alyce for sticking by her man even though he doesn't deserve it or her and Josie who goes the extra mile to help her friend. There are some very funny scenes as Josie is mystery shopping at greasy fast food places and is inundated with hundreds of packages she never ordered by someone who wants her busy returning packages and magazine subscriptions. Elaine Viets has written a well thought out who done it starring a sleuth who is totally believable and a bit quirky. Harriet Klausner
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best of the Rest, August 1, 2008
This review is from: Accessory to Murder (Josie Marcus, Mystery Shopper, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)
This installment of Josie Marcus, Mystery Shopper, was the best so far. One of Alyce's neighbors is murdered and Alyce's husband Jake is charged with the murder.
This book explores true human nature. We see what Alyce's neighbors do when she is down. Some, figuratively, kick her and rub salt in her wounds. Others are still kind.
Josie has a date with someone her Mom wants her to go out with as well as someone else, who is new.
I liked this book. It was excellently written. You will like it also.
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