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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A new and witty female sleuth enters the mystery world, April 11, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Larger Than Death (Josephine Fuller Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
Jo Fuller is a heroine for all of us who wish we had been born when women were supposed to look like women, ample curves were in, and voluptuous was a preferred adjective. Jo, however, has come to terms with herself and her size and is happily enjoying a new job and her new status as a divorcee. She doesn't take put downs from others regarding her size-- the commonest one being a put down/compliment, "You'd be a knock-out IF you lost weight." She has a comeback ready and waiting. The plot thickens(no pun intended)when Jo arrives for a visit with a dear friend and finds that the friend has met a horrible end. Jo's anger fuels her search for answers and despite some rather implausible plot elements--a killer who seems to be preying on fat women, the involvement of a commune, and a child whose existence has been kept secret, the story flows along smoothly. I have to admit I was hooked from the first page and accepted all of these events as being quite plausible while I was involved with the story. Fans of authors Chris Rogers and Virginia Lanier might especially enjoy spending a few hours with Jo. Good plotting and a great heroine.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
I wanted to like this book, but..., July 29, 2000
This review is from: Larger Than Death (Josephine Fuller Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
I admire the feminist politics behind this book. Jo Fuller is plus-sized and not ashamed of it, and when her close friend is found murdered with "Kill the Whales!" scrawled on the mirror, Jo decides to investigate. As any fiction reader can attest, overweight female protagonists are few and far between, and the introduction of such a character should be a refreshing breath of fresh air. The problem with this book is not that it's heroine weighs over 200 pounds. The problem is that reading it FEELS like reading a book with an agenda, rather than reading a book with a great mystery plot and an interesting heroine. The author is simply too heavy-handed with the message--slim people are depicted as starving, unhappy, and unfailingly rude. On top of that, Jo's instant (mutual) attraction to her dead friend's lover was repellent to me. You know the old saying about the body not being cold yet? The connection I felt to Jo, with all her wit and charisma, was severed when she gave in to this attraction. And unfortunately, that connection was never regained.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Entertaining and Fun, May 16, 2000
This review is from: Larger Than Death (Josephine Fuller Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
Larger Than Death is an entertaining way to spend a couple night's reading. The femme sleuth, Jo Fuller, is a full-figured woman whose best friend, also full-figured,has just been murdered. Jo vows to find the killer, but along the way several other victims fall prey. They don't fit the profile of previous victims, which now throws Jo for a loop. A cast of lively secondary characters adds color to the storyline. The one thing that keeps me from a 5-star review is the fact that about 1/2 way through the book, I'd pretty much figured out the culprit. That aside, I've ordered Ms. Murray's second book and am looking forward to reading it.
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