Customer Reviews

Dead Over Heels (Aurora Teagarden Mysteries, Book 5)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Aurora "Roe" Teagarden had just finished wrestling her lounge chair into a comfortable position when the body of her old nemesis, Detective Jack Burns, landed with a thud in her front yard. Everyone in town knew that Jack and Roe did not get along, but its not like Roe could be in two places at once so the police start looking for other suspects. But then Roe has an argument with her assistant at the library and she turns up brutally beaten the next day and her open purse is found on the hood of her bodyguard's car. An admirer sends her flowers with no name attached, her cat is suddenly sporting a new ribbon around his collar, her ex-lover is stabbed, and that is just the beginning. Roe has been found in the middle of murder and mayhem before, but this time, it's personal...

I enjoyed this book, just as I have enjoyed all of the Aurora Teagarden series, but this one was not as good as the previous books. Roe solved the crimes a little too easily and there was a little too much going on for no one else to spot that the connection between all of the goings-on was Roe herself. I know it is a small police force, but come on. Anyway, Charlaine Harris' writing style is still very engaging and clear. I always enjoy her characters and there were some new people to meet in this book that were fun to get to know because they were a little different. I just wish that the plot had been a little bit better developed and solved. I felt that the author was rushing to finish this one and just decided to end it one day, wrote the last couple of pages and called it done. Still, if you have enjoyed her other books, you will enjoy this one and, if you are like me, you like to read a series all the way through, so find a cheap copy.

Although an engaging read, this installment of the Aurora Teagarden series is the weakest. The initial shocking discovery of the body (tossed out of a low-flying plane onto Aurora's backyard) turns out to have a questionable motive behind it. When the killer is unmasked, I found myself having to stretch my disbelief beyond the breaking point. Simply put, the killer's motivation is atypical to the character. It's a good read for those who enjoy her works, but if you had to skip one, this would be it.

There you are, sitting in your front lawn, trying to get a little sun. You just got your adjustable lawn chair in that just right position and low and behold somebody goes and drops a dead body in your freshly mowed grass.

Just another day for our small town librarian, Roe. She seems to come across dead bodies like other people come across stray cats. Will she figure out who the murderer is? Will she figure out why he/she thought her front lawn was a good dumping spot? Well, read and find out.

These are great no brainer books. They are easy to read, easy to follow, and require very little thought process. Sounds boring? Actually, not really. The early novels contained a lot of flat characters, but by Dead Over Heels, Harris has begun to develop more defined witty characters. I think most readers will enjoy this story.

In this 5th. book of the series, Aurora Teagarden has a dead body dropped unceremoniously from a passing airplane into her yard. The victim is a policeman who has been the bane of her existence when trying to solve other crimes. The finger of suspicion points to her and her bodyguard and then to a series of people who may have had a motive. The premise of the eventual solution is slim indeed, but if you enjoy Aurora Teagarden books and are good at suspending disbelief, give this one a try.

As far as Aurora Teagarden Mysteries go, "Dead Over Heels" is quite enjoyable. Roe's relationship with Martin develops, & we get to see all of the regulars of Lawrenceton, GA. Along the way, the mystery was interesting, but I only give this book 4 stars because the conclusion was a little over the top. I found it ridiculous to be honest, but the ride was fun enough. It's always fun to visit Lawrenceton, & I hope that Mrs. Harris writes another Roe mystery one of these days.

Dead Over Heels (1996) is the fifth mystery novel in the Aurora Teagarden series, following Julius House. In the previous volume, Roe traveled with Angel to New Orleans looking for clues. She found more than she expected. Only Angel's intervention saved her from the killers.

In this novel, Aurora Teagarden was born and raised in the small town of Lawrenceton, Georgia, in the suburbs of Atlanta. Roe is now married to Martin Bartell. She has had some strange experiences in her life.

Martin Bartell is Aurora's husband. He is manager of the local Pan-Am Agra plant. Martin was born and raised in Corinth, Ohio, and served in combat as a Marine at the end of the Vietnam War. Then he served as a covert operative in Central America.

Aida Brattle Teagarden Queensland is Roe's mother. She owns Select Realty, a very successful real estate firm. She is now married to John Queensland, who has two sons by his previous marriage.

Shelby Youngblood is an old friend of Martin from the war in Vietnam. Then he worked as a bodyguard in Florida. Shelby is married to Angel.

Angel Youngblood is a martial artist and stuntwoman. She is almost as tall as her husband and towers over Roe. She too has worked as a bodyguard and now protects Roe.

In this story, Roe and Angel are mowing the yard. It is Angel's turn and Roe is setting up a lounge chair. A plane circling overhead irritates her and she looks up to see a body falling toward them.

Roe immediately charges toward Angel and knocks her down. The body just barely misses Angel and the lawnmower. Angel pukes at the sight.

They call the sheriff and soon deputies, doctors, and other officials -- as well as Martin and Shelby -- are surrounding the body. The sheriff sits down next to Roe and hears her description of the incident. Then he rises to watch his men turn over the corpse.

Sheriff Lanier initially asks Roe to see if she can identify the body, but he soon recognizes it himself. It had been Jack Burns, Detective Sergeant of the Lawrenceton Police. Soon Lawrenceton cops arrive on the scene.

Roe and Angel tell all that they know, but Angel had not seen anything until after the body fell on their yard. Roe had noticed the plane colors, but not its identification numbers. Still, the police track down the plane to a local airport.

Roe takes a dish over to the new widow and meets her mother outside the house. Roe tells Aida all that she knows as they approach the house. Roe put her salad bowl into the refrigerator and then goes to give her condolences.

Bess is with two large men in the back of the house. These men give their names, but not their business. They strongly dissuade any casual conversations with the widow. Roe suspects that they are federal agents.

Roe tells Bess that she believes Jack to have been dead before he hit the ground. She had seen the body flop mindlessly in the sky. Bess thanks her for this insight.

Angel is still feeling poorly, so Roe takes her to the doctor. Angel has never seen a doctor except for emergency care. Angel is totally shocked when the doctor says that she is pregnant.

This tale casts Roe into a confusion of clues and deductions that seem to lead nowhere. For some reason, a man associated with her and with Angel have been attacked. Then other people are hurt.

Roe wonders if Angel has a secret admirer with violent tendencies. In the next installment -- A Fool and His Honey -- Martin has a death in the family. Read and enjoy!

Highly recommended for Harris fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of first degree murder, criminal psychology, and persevering women. For anyone unfamiliar with this series, the initial volume is Real Murders.

-Bill Jordin

I am in the middle of the Teagarden series, and I am really enjoying it. I started reading Ms. Harris with the Vampire series along time ago, but lately I had gotten bored. I moved on the Lily Bard books, which I really enjoyed, and recently started the Teagarden series. Oh I also have read the Harper Connelly series which is fun. Anyway, I am enjoying this series even though I had read such mixed reviews about it. Some people complained it turned dark, but that is the fun of Ms. Harris, you never know what to expect. Her books are different than normal "cozies", they can turn on a dime. I also like how each series has it's own tone.

This is the 5th in a series of mysteries about Aurora Teagarden, a librarian who has come into some money and lives among her family and friends (and a few enemies) in Lawrenceton, GA. This time out she is minding her own business when a body is dropped from a small plane and onto her newly mown lawn; it turns out to be a policeman who feuded with Roeon numerous occasions. After other killings continue to point to Roe or her household, she decides to get serious and figure out who the real killer is, of course!

Aurora and her circle of acquaintances are interesting characters, but this 5th in the series was neither believable nor particularly amusing. Many people are killed and the ending wraps up very quickly and without full motivation for some of the occurences. A good series, but a subpar outing.

So I have been working my way through the Aurora Teagarden mystery series. I read Sookie first and they still remain high on my all time favorites list. Than I tried a couple of Aurora books and a couple of Harris's other series Lily Bard. By the second Aurora book I had a definite preference for those over the Lily Bard books. The third and fourth books were the best and I had hoped that would continue on to "Dead Over Heels". Unfortunately, that didn't happen and I shut the final page, disappointed. I don't care for Aurora's husband Martin. I don't think theirs is a very steady marriage. I do like the two bodyguards introduced in "The Julius House" and I am a little worried about a plotline introduced for them here. My biggest problem with this story is a untter lack of consistancy in the characters. Roe Teagarden was introduced in the first book as a plain Jane schoolteacher type who hadn't had many man interested in her through the years. By the second book she had two men courting her. I thought this was cute and her time due. Now in this book she has her husband (neither of her first two beaus), an ex-beau, a stalker, and a hint of a romantic interlude with a friend. Its too much and unbelievable to read these books and to know that nothing major has changed about the character yet she suddenly has FOUR men currently wanting her. The mysery itself fell flat after an exciting first couple of chapters. The murderer, when revealed, was dull and his behavior was completely out of character for him also. Harris's writing is still as engaging as ever. There is no doubt that this woman can WRITE. But this story just felt rushed and I know that every author has his or her highs and lows, and this maybe the lowest quality book published by Harris. I intend to finish out the series as there are only a couple books left, but I sure miss the Roe Teagarden from the beginning of this series.

All of Charlaine Harris' books, whether it's the Aurora Teagarden series or the Lily Bard series, are very enjoyable and fun. She provides a good story and puts in humor and likable characters. I recommend all her books!