16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
More Fun with Jaine, August 29, 2003
This review is from: Last Writes (Jaine Austen Mysteries) (Hardcover)
Jaine Austen is thrilled when her friend Kandi gets her an assignment writing an episode of the syndicated sit-com Muffy `n Me. And, if this goes well, it might even be a permanent job. With visions of Malibu beach homes in her head, Jaine starts work. Her dream dims a little when she encounters the cast fighting and poor working conditions. But it becomes a nightmare when one of the stars is poisoned during the filming of the first scene of her script. With Kandi as the prime suspect, Jaine must find out who the real killer is to keep her friend from going to jail.
I enjoyed the first booking this series, but I think I liked this one more. It's light and fun, definitely for the humor mystery crowd. Jaine's narration is loads of fun, contrasting what she wants with what really happens. The characters are lively and well developed. All the secondary characters from the first book are back, from the memory writing octogenarians to Lance, the neighbor with x-ray hearing. They add some wonderful bits of humor. And the plot was great. It twisted so many ways that I still had no clue who had done it until the end. Plus the sub-plot with her parents is a riot.
This is an enjoyable read. I'm already anxious for the next book in the series.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Funny, May 19, 2008
I didn't like this Jaine Austen episode as much as the others I have read. It seemed like it took forever to finish. It might just be me but I felt it was not up there with the rest of her books. I still gave it 3 stars because it was clever and entertaining.
Jaine gets a job writing for a sitcom. The author definitely knew the ins and outs of a tv studio. Someone kills the handsome actor in the show. The police suspect her best friend Kandi. Jaine works hard to find the real killer.
If you have read the other books in the series, don't miss this one!
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a fun summer read, June 26, 2003
This review is from: Last Writes (Jaine Austen Mysteries) (Hardcover)
Thanks to the efforts of her best friend, Kandi Tobolowski, free lance writer Jaine Austen has finally landed a gig as a sitcom writer -- or at least as a writer for one episode of "Muffy n' Me". Of course it is true that as far as sitcoms go Muffy n' Me isn't exactly top notch -- ditto the studio (Miracle Studios), the acting cast and the head writers, Audrey and Stan Miller -- but Jaine isn't about to allow such considerations to get her down. She finally has her first real professional tinsel town job!! The atmosphere at the set however soon extinguishes the stars from Jaine's eyes: everyone from the actors to the stage crew is out for number one; and the star, Vanessa Dennis (affectionately known as VD) who plays the teenage Muffy, turns out to be truly obnoxious; add to that the fact that half of the head writing team, Audrey, seems to be an Ice Queen, while the other half, hubby Stan, is an ineffectual alcoholic -- and you have some idea of what the atmosphere at the set of "Muffy n' Me" is like.
But it is when one of the cast members, Quinn Kirkland , is discovered in fragante delicto with the teenage Vanessa, that things really begin bubble. Quinn, it turns out is a bit of a slimy Romeo, who has been spreading his favours evenly and indiscriminately around all the women on the set (a list that unfortunately includes Kandi and Audrey). Now the women are all breathing fire and swearing revenge, and when Quinn dies during the shooting of a scene (apparently from nibbling on piece of poisoned doughnut), the police zero in on Kandi as prime suspect! Now it is up to Jaine to figure out who really killed Quinn and to get her friend off the hook...
This is the second Jaine Austen mystery novel, and while I really do love these novels, honesty compels me to warn that although "Last Rites" proved to be an amusing and enjoyable read, if you're looking for a mystery novel that will really engage the detective in you, you might want to give "Last Rites" a miss. On the other hand, if you're looking for something light, entertaining and funny as can be, I'd recommend this book in a heartbeat! The thing is, "Last Rites" unfolds a little slowly. Jaine has a small group of suspects to work with (all who don't really trust her all that much because she's a bit of an outsider); add to that the fact that much of the 'action' really is confined to the sets and offices at Miracle Studios, and you will understand why the book is not really a page turner. Fortunately one can always fall back on Laura Levine's bright and breezy narrative prose style. And something else worthy of mention, the authour's precise and cleverly drawn character and scene descriptions. All in all, "Last Rites" proved to be a truly humourous and charming read. I enjoyed all of Jaine's witty asides, her deprecating humour and her wacky interactions with her parents and her cat, Prozac (who bears an uncanny resemblance to my own cats). So that if you're looking for a nice summer read to while away the time while sunning yourself on a deck (or whatever scenario grabs your fancy), I'd recommend "Last Rites" as a book worthy of consideration.
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