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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing Mystery, May 16, 2005
In this disappointing entry in a usually reliable series, Jane Jeffrey has finished writing a novel and is hoping to get it published, so she and her friend Shelley Nowack attend a mystery writer's convention, and, before they know it they are investigating the poisoning of an agent, an attack on a reviewer, and a case of plagiarism.
Among other things, this book lacks continuity. In past books in this series, Jane is portrayed as being quite frugal, not willing to part with her ancient station wagon, even though it is falling apart. All of a sudden, Jane has a completely different attitude, not only willing to buy a new jeep, but have the pothole in her driveway repaired, and buys cell phones for herself and two of her children. Her decision to buy the jeep would have worked much better if it was developed throughout the course of the book and she bought the jeep at the end of the book.
Newcomers to the series will wonder how Jane, a single mother, with no apparent job, has so much money. Churchill has always explained this, and what happened to Jane's husband, in a few simple sentences in past books, and should have done it her. Jane's decision to leave her two youngest children home alone, although they are old enough to be left alone, was a decision she would have agonized about in past books and it came too easily in this one.
I did enjoy the parts about the convention, reading it, I felt like I was there. But the book felt thrown together, as if Churchill was meeting a deadline. More time should have been spent developing the characters, several of which, particularly Vernetta are written so broadly that they are unbelievable. The mystery itself is practically non-existent; the book is more about the convention than the two attacks, neither of which is fatal.
The Jane Jeffrey mysteries are usually quite good. Newcomers to the series should not let one weak entry keep them from reading the rest of the series.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Spending time with Jane and Shelley, December 19, 2004
This review is from: Bell, Book, and Scandal (Jane Jeffry Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)
Unlike most of the other reviewers of this book who gave it a low rating, I liked it very much and give it a high rating. I think it is refreshing to find a mystery book that does not involve a murder. I enjoyed spending time with Jane and Shelley in what I consider more normal circumstances. How many of us encounter a murder every few months? This book was about two women friends attending a mystery writers conference, the characters they meet, and two non-murder mysterious events. It did not have me on the edge of my seat or give me nightmares - thank goodness. It was an enjoyable, light read - no vulgar language, no vicious murder, no creepiness. I felt like I was reading about the activities of my own kind of friends - nice people who get involved, are curious, and like most women in this world, constantly change their minds! Jill Churchill took a chance writing this non-murder mystery and according to the majority of reviews, folks were not pleased. However, this happy reader enjoyed the breezy writing and the two every-day type of mysteries - and spending time with Jane and Shelley.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Awful piece of "literature", April 23, 2005
This review is from: Bell, Book, and Scandal (Jane Jeffry Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)
I used to enjoy Jill Churchill's books-- but then again, that was years ago when I was much, MUCH younger and hadn't yet discovered great mystery writers.
Since then, Churchill's books have seemed to get worse.. or maybe I've gotten too old for her work?
Bell, Book, and Scandal stars Jane Jeffry and her best friend Shelly Novak. Both seem in this novel to be middle-aged technologically-stunted (and backwards) fools, having just discovered the wonders of cell phones and car alarms. It's awful reading them rave about these things when these "innovative" inventions have been around for years and years.
This book reads like a rulebook for how to write a mystery novel, and yet Churchill breaks every rule she writes. Although the mystery begins rather early on, there is no mention of it for the next hundred or so pages, making a long, dull read. I was bored to tears reading this book, and the end was unsatisfying.
Jane and Shelly are big boring duds, and deserve each other-- after all, who would want to befriend such disgustingly boring people???
Churchill needs to come up with better storylines.. this one was simply awful.
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