Deadbeat [Hardcover]

Wendi Lee (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1999

Angela Matelli has a brownstone (and mortgage) in East Boston, a large, somewhat eccentric, extended Italian family, and a mother who wants nothing more than for her daughter to find the right man, settle down, and shut down her business. In her late twenties, having recently left the Marines, Angela is no scratching out a living as a private investigator on Boston's mean streets. Unlike in the movies, however, that means a lot of car repossessions and insurance investigations. So when Cynthia MacDonald wants Angela to find the person who is using her identity to run up fraudulent credit card bills, and ruining her credit rating in the process, she is in no position to refuse.

Angela finds it surprisingly easy to track the woman responsible for the "true-name" fraud of Cynthia MacDonald. Lisa Browning, however, is a single mother trapped in a financial bind, and Angela can't help but take pity on her. Instead of turning her in, Angela decides to give her a chance to roll over on the people above her in the fraud ring. But then Lisa Browning is murdered.

Feeling responsible, maybe a bit guilty, and definitely angry, Angela decides to go after the person who murdered Lisa Browning. The only problem is that it may well have been the person who hired Angela to find her in the first place.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Boston PI Angela Matelli may be an expert at aikido with a wry sense of humor and a social conscience, but her engaging traits can't conceal the utter predictability of her third adventure (after Missing Eden, 1996). She is approached by an irascible, hostile and outraged client: someone has run up $75,000 in bills on her credit cards, destroying her credit rating. Angela uses her considerable street-smarts to quickly find the culprit, Lisa Browning, a vulnerable, appealing, financially strapped single mom who has been drawn into crime by more sinister players. When Lisa is bludgeoned to death, Angela suspects her surly client. After an attempt is made on her own life, however, she zeros in on the other members of the fraud ring. Although buoyed by a lively galaxy of Lisa's relatives (a relentlessly nosy mom, a charming brother who might be mob connected), this mystery fails to overcome its easily spotted culprit and far-fetched plot twists: Why, for instance, would a crack crime-scene unit overlook a vital phone tape, leaving it for Angela to discover?
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

A third outing to Boston with p.i. Angie Matelli (Missing Eden, 1996, etc.) and her new client, investment counselor Cynthia MacDonald. Someone has been using Cynthia's stolen credit cards to run up thousands of dollars of debt in her name and push her credit to the max. Using a photo cleverly wangled from a car rental agency, Angie sets out to find the false Cynthia. Her quarry turns out to be Lisa Browning, mother of small daughter Jessica and divorced wife of Tim. Jessicas apartment boasts a brand-new TV and VCRboth bought at Technology Bytes in Methuen, one of a chain run by Spence Balczeck, whose salesman Jimmy Stiles owns a surprisingly expensive car. Lisa claims to be on her own, but is she only one part of a credit scam ring? The question seems answered when shes found beaten to death and Angie, teaming up with old friend Sergeant Dana Proux, tracks a killer on the prowl for his next victim. Angie's stereotypical Italian family takes up a lot of space, as do her endless phone calls, lunch dates, and trips around town. None of the above, or the breezy narrative style, is much help to the episodes hardworking but contrived and lifeless storyline or its unconvincing characters. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 250 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (February 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312168128
• ISBN-13: 978-0312168124
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,252,162 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars thoroughly enjoyable, November 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Deadbeat (Hardcover)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Angela Matelli is a delightful character -- she's smart, funny and has the same kind of family issues that both bless and plague many of us. The mystery itself, involving a stolen identity, had enough twists and turns to keep me guessing. Also a nice twist in making the perp more sympathetic than the victim. It's a fast read -- Lee's breezy style sort of pulls you along. This is a perfect book for curling up with on a dreary afternoon. I'm looking forward to the next addition to the series.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great work in a terrific P.I. Series, February 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Deadbeat (Hardcover)

Boston investment counselor Cynthia MacDonald hires private investigator Angie Matelli to uncover the identity of the person using her stolen credit cards to run up a sizable debt. Angie quickly but cleverly traces the scam to Lisa Browning, a single mother in the midst of a financial crisis. Feeling sorry for the desperate woman, Angie promises not to turn her into the law if she names her associates. Lisa insists she has no partners.

However, someone must have disagreed because Lisa is soon murdered. The ex-marine takes the woman's death as a personal affront, investigating the killing even if it means placing her own life on the line.

The third Angela Matelli mystery is an interesting tale, yet has even more appeal than the first two novels (MISSING EDEN and THE GOOD DAUGHTER). Angie remains a first rate-working stiff and her middle class Italian family adds a flavor of Boston to the novel. However, the story line is more subdued than the previous works contained because too much of the novel is spent touring the city through Angela's eyes. Still, a well-written female sleuth novel by the gifted Wendi Lee that fans of the sub-genre will enjoy.

Harriet Klausner

1.0 out of 5 stars Pass this one by!, June 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Deadbeat (Hardcover)

I love female detective fiction. There are many fine examples in the genre, the sadly neglected Anna Lee written by Liza Cody; Carla written by Linda Barnes; and the gold standard of Kinsey Milhone by Sue Grafton. This book "Deadbeat" features a poor, pale wanna-be as its "heroine". Dull, poorly written, maddening in some way I'm unable to put my finger on - perhaps all the facts of this character's life are presented one after the other, but we never get a clear concept of who she is or her inner life. The story is so dull, I gave it a good shot but tossed it aside in disgust and boredom after 50 pages. Beware the amateurs, let's hope there's another Sue Grafton out there, long may she live - but skip this pathetic thing.