Customer Reviews

Hostile Makeover: A Crime of Fashion Mystery

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

So they're calling Byerrum's series "chick lit mysteries." Well, I'm a guy and I like chicks, I like lit, and I love this series. Okay? Deal with it. (I even like Washington, DC, believe it or not, and I'm a New Yorker.) Byerrum really gets this place and the whole weird Washington atmosphere of government conspiracies that sound real but turn out to be fantasy, and the stuff that sounds like stand-up comedy but turns out to be real. And she makes it funny and sarcastic and suspenseful too. She writes great funny women characters, at least to me, but then I'm a guy, I only date funny women, what do I know? (Who wouldn't want to date Lacey Smithsonian, she's smart, witty, looks great in a devastating suit, and knows how to use a weapon. What's not to like?) Any guy who's sat through an episode of "Extreme Makeover" will wonder what would happen if the latest made-over reality TV diva turned out to be a killer witch on wheels, and that's where this one takes off. "Killer Hair" was a knockout, "Designer Knockoff" was even better, and "Hostile Makeover" hits it out of the park. This one gets two thumbs up from me. Guys, read the funny parts (there's plenty of 'em) to your girlfriends, this chick-lit mystery will make you a chick magnet.

Lacey Smithsonian is interviewing Amanda Manville, reality TV makeover success story turned model. Apparently all the makeover surgeries turned her sweet personality into that of a diva gone bad. All Amanda wants to talk about is the death threats she's received. She requests Lacey's help in stopping the stalker. Lacy doesn't take much stock in the existence of a stalker. That is until Amanda is killed.

She and her boyfriend Vic Donovan are planning a getaway weekend until Lacey's mother and sister descend upon her. How can she investigate Amanda's murder, survive her relative's visit, and keep Vic from meeting then?

With Amanda's unpopular personality, the list of suspects is quite long. How can Lacey weed out the real killer without putting herself in danger or her family since they keep tagging along?

I really like Lacey. She's so down to earth and fun. I like her vintage clothing, too. Her quirky family and relationship with Vic spice things up as well.

I live not far from DC, and Ms. Byerrum has the fashion tone of Washington down to a T. The tidbits always add to the story.

Lacey's friends and co-workers are great additions to the story as well.

I highly recommend this book and the whole series.

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This is the third book in the `Crimes of Fashion' series and, in comparison to the first two - Killer Hair and Designer Knockout - was the weakest in terms of storyline and characters. Hostile Makeover puts fashion journalist Lacey Smithsonian on the trail of a killer when a supermodel, Amanda, is shot in her presence and Lacey's car is used in the getaway. This book felt more contrived and less mysterious than the other two in the series. True, these are simple mysteries to begin with, but Lacey Smithsonian was definitely dull in this story, especially in the beginning chapters. The storyline took several chapters to actually begin and, when it did, it seemed completely implausible. Lacey interviews Amanda for a fashion article and, 10 minutes into the interview, Amanda recruits Lacey to find her killer. At this point, Amanda isn't even dead and her attitude is off-putting and insincere. The other problem with this book is with the `romance' between Lacey and her sorta-boyfriend Vic Donovan. Vic has finally relocated to DC from Colorado, but is longer a cop. His job (as a cop) could actually add dimension to the mysteries Lacey encounters but for some reason the author puts Vic in the sidelines and a different career. Plus, the couple is still not `together' which is pretty unusual and ridiculous to read through. This book isn't the best in the series but is still readable.

Ellen Byerrum pulls another superlative Crime of Fashion out of her vintage cloche, simultaneously sticking a hatpin in America's spinning-out-of-control passion for makeovers.

Now, Byerrum spins a mystery out of (very luxurious) whole cloth with the best of them, featuring characters we come to know and love a little bit more each time (Lacey Smithsonian, her boss Mac, sometime paramour Vic, best friend Brooke) and even some we've come to know and not love (evildoer-with-sugar-and-chocolate, food editor Felicity). But her talent for creating memorable one-off and secondary characters is positively Dickensian.

This time, we meet devil's spawn dress designer Amanda Manville, who won a makeover contest that turned her as ugly on the inside as she became beautiful on the outside; Tate Penfield, Amanda's secretive ex-fiance; jinxman Harlan Wiedermyer (read the first couple of paragraphs of the book and laugh out loud); my favorite new characters, Lacey's mom Rose and her former cheerleader sister Cherise; and on down to a waitress in a donut shop spotting her potential 15 minutes of fame.

All these wonderful characters combine with Byerrum's gift for clever plotting and snappy dialogue to fashion a perfectly entertaining, keep-em-guessing-til-the-end whodunit.

I look forward to each installment in Ellen Byerrum's Crimes of Fashion series. Be sure to read the first two Lacey Smithsonian novels, DESIGNER KNOCKOFF and KILLER HAIR, if HOSTILE MAKEOVER is your first.

Just by coincidence, Bob Woodward's book on Deep Throat happened to be the book I read right before this new book of Ellen's. This DC expatriate will take Lacey Smithsonian's wacky Washington world any day of the week over the real Washington, DC, of Watergate and other, more recent, evildoings.

I have many of Ellen Byerrrum paperback books... I didn't like this one as much as others... Chapter 31 the ending seemed rather silly to me...it didnt have the punch of a solving of a murder mystery. The story line was good up until that point. I think the ending could have been better...

With the third installment of Lacy Smithsonian and her crimes of fashion series Ellen Byerrum carries on in style! Why can't Law and Order be as inventive and original? Lacey is a reluctant detective and relentless columnist. A fearlessly stylish woman in the testosterone power center of the world. Ellen Byerrum has created a refreshingly original and thoroughly enjoyable read.
In this installment Lacey meets reality or at least the leftovers from reality television, and it isn't pretty. With her 1940's fashion flair she is off to cover the story and upstages her journalist peers, the style mullahs and the police. Even CSI would miss these fashion clues.
What I like the most are the Crimes of Fashion and Fashion Bites columns. I wish they were syndicated in my local paper. Looking forward to the next one... and in the meantime maybe Hollywood could get a clue and instead of stiletto superheros and sidekicks with cleavage, they could put Lacey on the fashion detective beat.

This book is well written. It takes me directly into the area because Ellen has done her research well. There's no argument about any DC or Alexandria falsehoods here. And her attitudes of the characters are abound in the real world of the nation's capital. I see people here and wonder if they are the background for one of the characters.
Lacey may appear to be a little overzealous with her sleuthing, but many of us in her shoes would do the same thing. At least I would.
Her family is a thorn in her side and she wants to be a grownup without hovering. She doesn't know how to get rid of them, so she drags them along, hoping they will run away. When you're doing something that's not technically your job, how can you tell you mom you're working, so leave me alone? You go girl!
The characters are a lot of fun, and Ellen does a good job at making sure each character somehow appears in each subsequent book.
Some people may believe the dialogue is too "cute" or "childish", but if that's the personality of the character, what is a writer to do? I think the dialogue makes for an easy read, because I don't have to look up a lot of fancy words, or go back a couple of paragraphs to re-read something to understand what's happening at the moment. That's what a cozy (especially a chick-lit) is all about.
Personally, I hope there's an interest in Tony in the future. I'd fall in love with him. It's really the only part of the books I don't like. I see the sparks flying, but can't understand Lacey's pentagon jammers not letting it through.
The clues are well placed and in there, but they don't jump out saying "Hey, I'm a clue! Come find me before you get to the last page!" Some books I've read you know who the killer is as soon as they appear and put in your head why they did it, or you know who it is and never why, but Ellen's always surprise me, if not the who, definitely the why.
I love the little quips she puts in, the news articles, the tips, etc. I've actaully laughed out loud, and said "This is my husband's idea of dressing up! Boy, now I know I'm not the only one who sees strange outfits and thinks they are strange.
I can't wait for the next installment, wondering what the crime will be this time. A shopping mall? A Kennedy Center gala? Maybe some funky costume party?
If you like books that don't need oil to make the wheels in your brain spin, I highly recommend chick-lit mysteries and cozies, such as the Bubbles series, The Blackbird Sisters, Goldie Bear Schultz, and Murder She Wrote.

I really enjoy this series. Its not brain surgery or world peace, but its clever and entertaining and a lot of fun. Not the run-of-the-mill female detective type of book, nor is it a woman's romance novel. There's a little of both, plus a lot of wit and creative characters mixed in. A fun read!

Hostile Makeover is the third book of the Crime of fashion mystery series by Ellen Byerrum. This book is about Lacey who is fashion journalist in Washington, DC who finds herself in the middle of a supermodel's murder plot. This book has a mix of fashion, , romance with a Colorado cowboy, and impromptu visit from her family, Washington DC hot men and crazy off-the-wall murder mystery. I would recommend this book and I would also suggest books Kate Angell and The Ice House by Minette Walters.

Nice Book, Great Price
I bought the whole series for my married daughter (because she asked for them for her birthday).
They were a great price and she really likes them to read again and again.
In expensive paper-back.