Customer Reviews

Dating is Murder: A Novel

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3 star:		(3)
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I read Harley Jane Kozak's first book, DATING DEAD MEN, on a plane flight that my fellow passengers probably thought was a little turbulent, when really it was only me shaking the whole damn plane because I was laughing so hard. Kozak's writing is much smarter and funnier than most work in the female sleuth genre, and DATING IS MURDER is fully the equal of its predecessor in humor and depth of characterization. Kozak brings back old friends from DATING DEAD MEN-the inimitable Fredreeq, the redoubtable Joey, the astutely deranged P.B., the singular Uncle Theo, the offstage drawling Rex Stetson-and introduces an array of beguiling new characters. No detail goes astray in the consistently engaging plot, not Richard Feynman or the goose or the cat or the meat mallet, and especially not Conraua (Gigantorana) goliath. The world of the novel is beautifully realized, Wollie's wryly observant voice is a joy, the attraction Kozak conjures between Wollie and Simon is palpable, and the pace never falters. Viva Wollie and her witty, gifted creator!

This is the second in the series by Harley Jane Kozak, with Wollie Shelley at it's center. Wollie is a 6' blond with an almost endless string of things going on in her life.

In this book, she is taking part in a low budget reality show, while trying to paint a mural, design greeting cards, and find a missing friend. During her almost obsessive search for her missing friend, she encounters more trouble than she could have ever imagined.

Her friend happens to be a German Au Pair who works for a wealthy family. When she suddenly turns up missing, the story quickly becomes more than a story of a missing friend. There a re plently of twists and turns, and much more at the core of the mystery than I had truly expected. With her first book, I had figured out the who, what, where and how much more quickly than I did with this book.

I really look forward to Installment #3. They can only get better! This is a fun, awkward and totally likeable character that I won't tire of easily.

I always wonder if the second book in a series will be as good as the first. So often, they are not. In this case, it is better. Dating is Murder is clever, fun and entertaining as heck. I couldn't put it down. And, the ending sequence was the best I've read all year. Just when you think it can't get better, it does. Kudos, Ms. Kozak.

You won't want to put it down for very long.

Although the comparison to Evanovich is unavoidable, it's not a copycat book by any means. "Detective" Wollie Shelley (what a name!) is very much her own quirky person, and the setting is LA (Wollie is living in West Hollywood) rather than New Jersey. This is the first by this author and I look forward to more, although there were enough intriguing comments in this book that she could go back and write one in the period *before* this book.

The plot involves a missing au pair. Wollie is a contestant on a cheesy reality TV show called "Biological Clock" in which the audience will vote on who should be helped to make a baby -- and one of the prizes if she wins will be health care coverage. Besides, she's getting to the age where she may need help to conceive (all of this is told rather humorously with guest experts on the show). Annika has been hanging out on the set because she wants to help produce a similar show in her native Germany. Annika's mother calls Wollie to ask her to find out where her daughter is -- she missed their Sunday phone call and has disappeared. A visit to the police isn't helpful, so Wollie and her friend Joey (one of the show's producers) start investigating on their own, interviewing a number of people. Wollie has an attractive but mysterious man trailing her and warning her off -- but warning her off what? The show? Her investigation of Annika?

There's quite a bit of humor in this book, but even more important for me, the book was well-plotted and truly a mystery.

This follow-up to the tremendously entertaining _Dating Dead Men_ lives up to its predecessor. These books are a cross between mystery and romance--or maybe chick-lit. They have a light touch on the whole boy-meets-girl thing and a light touch on the whole somebody-goes-missing-or-gets-killed thing, and they have many, many laugh out loud moments. Kozak's protagonist Wollstonecraft (Wollie) Shelley is a bit of a ditz, but she's warm and likeable and generally pretty plausible as a character. The story is convoluted, but not unbelievably so. I rather suspect that if I started investigating the disappearance of a German au pair, I'd find a lot of tangents myself.

Kozak does a good job of combining humor with some genuinely creepy and disturbing mystery elements. One scene in the book managed to be both gut-wrenching and amusing at the same time. I was put off at first by the absence of the first novel's hero. The romance element of the novels means you get invested in Wollie's boyfriends. But I trusted that Kozak would make the ride pleasant anyway and offer me an equally attractive male foal point for this novel, and she didn't disappoint. I look forward to seeing what Kozak does next.

As I said when I reviewed her 1st book, you can not find a fresher combination of side-splitting humor and sharp intelligence. Our heroine is independent, feminist, human, falliable, funny, intelligent, bright and down-to-earth! This author is sharp, sharp, sharp. It's so nice to see a mystery that doesn't treat women like Miss Marple looking for a cheesecake recipe. Kozak is very witty and to be watched. Her characters are funny, diverse, madcap and amusing. Her protagonist is strong and intelligent. Enjoy! I am now enamoured with Ms. Kozak and will be waiting impatiently for her next book!

Greeting card artist Wollie Shelley thought she finally had her life all figured out. But then her fiance left her to recover from a very broken heart.

In an attempt to get her out of her funk, Wollie's two friends get her a spot on BIOLOGICAL CLOCK, a Los Angeles based reality dating show where America will pick one couple to potentially have kids. Wollie is only interested in it for the medical benefits for the winner, however.

It's on the set that Wollie meets Annika, a German au pair who is a volunteer member of the show's crew. The two become friends, until one day when Annika disappears.

Annika's mom frantically calls Wollie asking for help, so what can Wollie do but try to find the young woman. She starts with Annika's host family and then begins branching out to other au pairs and friends Annika has made during her time in Southern California. No one has seen her and no one knows where she might be. And everyone seems to be giving Wollie different information about Annika. Was she really into drugs? Did she have a criminal past in Germany?

Wollie's hardly begun digging into the case when she picks up a tail. But the most disturbing thing about him is, Wollie finds him incredibly attractive.

After reading Harley Jane Kozak's debut novel, I couldn't wait to pick up her second book. While the first book started off with a bang, this one starts much slower. Last time I complained that I had a hard time keeping all the characters straight, which wasn't a problem this time around. However, the pace in the first half was a little slow. The plot does kick into high gear in the second half and it was hard to put down after that.

Fortunately, the characters are strong, and that helps keep the entire book interesting. Wollie is a very vulnerable character in this book, dealing with her break-up as well as her desire for a child before she no longer can have one. Yet she is strong in her search for Annika, plunging ahead even though there really isn't anything in it for her. Her friends support her and do always have her interests at heart even if Wollie doesn't think so at the moment. I actually liked them better then in the first book.

The book is also liberally laced with humor. The first person narration provides lots of laughs from Wollie's slightly sarcastic observations on the proceedings. And Wollie's Thanksgiving with her family provides lots of laughs as well.

While the first half drags at times, this is still an enjoyable second entry in what will hopefully be a long running series. I'm already planning on another date with Wollie.

Wollie Shelley is a thirtysomething single woman living in the greater LA area. She does a variety of odd jobs from designing greeting cards and painting murals to being a contestant on a reality dating show. She's working through the heartbreak of having her fiancé dump her and move to Asia with his daughter. This starts to take a backseat to intrigue when a friend of hers, Annika Glük, disappears.

Annika had been in LA working as an au pair for the Quinn family, plus working as a production assistant on Wollie's show, "Biological Clock." When Wollie investigates Annika's life, she finds a narcissistic ex-boyfriend, jealous au pairs, and hints at a dark lifestyle that seems at odds with what Wollie and Annika's other friends know of her. Wollie finds herself in the middle of some major intrigue with a drug czar, a new designer drug, and a federal co-agency investigation, not to mention getting over her heartbreak when a new love interest enters her life.

Kozak is touted as the new Janet Evanovich or Sue Grafton. She's not. She is, however, a strong new talent who weaves a decent mystery around a chick lit background. Wollie is a likeable heroine, attractive but unaware of it. I couldn't completely warm to her, however, because she embodies too many clichés. She's a wimp. Not just in a fight-or-flight situation, but in other day-to-day things like driving. Even though she's a voluptuous six feet, she's a shrinking violet. When she does drive, or stick up for herself, it's almost an accident she makes it through. Another irritating cliché is Wollie's baby fever. She pines over other people's babies (but not children) and sighs over Baby Gap and strollers. Hasn't this theme in women's fiction grown a bit stale? And what's with all these characters who don't have real jobs or normal names?

Those things aside, because I'm sure they do appeal to a portion of the populace, this was an enjoyable book. I can't say I'll rush to my bookseller for more Kozak, but I'd pick up another one of her books if I found it lying around.

Because of her friends and the lack of income from her Good Golly Miss Wollies greeting card artistry, Wollstonecraft "Wollie" Shelley is a contestant on the new reality TV show Biological Clock. Her two pals entered her name and key stats, big chest, big legs, big bod and she was accepted as the perfect six foot contrast to the other female contestants. Wollie would trade in her fifteen minutes of Warhol fame for money so she agrees to the opportunity. Three women date three men with the audience deciding who should mate and produce the next generation.

While dating on the air, Wollie's math tutor Annika vanishes. Unable to stay out of the situation, Wollie finds LAPD lacking interest in the case except for a cop wanting to take her out. So Wollie decides to look for the busy Annika, who besides teaching works as a production assistant and as an au pair for an Encino superwoman. As she makes some fumbling progress, a stalker warns Wollie to back off or else. Being Wollie and attracted to the stalker, she chooses or else.

Chick lit meets amateur sleuth in Southern California. Wollie is as irreverent as ever though her dates seem a bit livelier than her previous appearance (see DATING DEAD MEN). The story line never takes itself seriously as it spoofs reality TV, chick lit novels, and amateur sleuth who-done-its. The cast starting with Wollie, but also her friends, her TV dates, the stalker, and the missing Annika come together to provide a humorous take on DATING IS MURDER.

Harriet Klausner

Every way I try to sum up this book seems trite and silly: 'zany heroine' and 'impossibly laughable situations' and 'disastrous romances'. But, other than the bit about the police detective (without giving too much away I'm not sure I can say more) seeming incredibly forced and unrealistic, the story was actually pretty entertaining. And it did keep you wondering right up until the end. It's the kind of book you don't want to put down because you just have to know!

Not for those who like hard-boiled serious mysteries, but any fan of cozies or the Plum series will probably find this entertaining. The slight character problems aside, it was a fun, fluffy read.

My one criticism is a person one (a bit of a crusade, I guess) about the 'math is hard' attitude. I guess I'm just so very tired of women who can't do math, though at least this time it's shown biting her in the rear. It was too easy and stereotypical as a plot device, and perpetuates a sad misconception.