Customer Reviews

For Whom the Minivan Rolls (Aaron Tucker Mysteries)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Stay at home father and free lance writer Aaron Tucker is surprised when he's asked to find a missing house wife. Surely there's someone better qualified them he is. But when he's offer a thousand dollars, how can he refuse? But when he follows the few leads he has, he keeps hitting dead ends. And the supposedly distraught husband is not co-operating at all. What is really going on?

I really enjoyed this debut novel. I did have a couple complaints, however. First, while I mostly enjoyed Aaron's sarcasm, occasionally it was over done. Second, I was getting as frustrated as he was by his lack of progress for a while. But half way through, the plot really picked up and the twists kept coming. At that point, I had a hard time putting it down and stayed up late last night to finish. I liked Aaron and his family, and it was nice to see a basically happy man struggling with the day to day trials of life in addition to the mystery.

If you enjoy the lighter side of mystery, this is definitely a book to check out. I'm already looking forward to spending more time with Aaron and his family and friends.

A friend handed me Jeffrey Cohen's "For Whom the Minivan Rolls" and "A Farewell to Legs," telling me they were the sleeper mystery series of the year. I agree! These books are even more of an enjoyable read than Janet Evanovich's series because the humor never lets up! Cohen is a masterful writer.

Bob Pailet, Denver

I have fallen hook, line and sinker for Jeffrey Cohen's hilarious new Aaron Tucker series. The inherent wackiness of suburban living is ripe for the parodying. Hypocrisy and pomposity are fair game, and Cohen doesn't disappoint. The thing I like best is that Jeff Cohen, (for all that Tucker is a happily married family man who lives in a ramshackle house in a New Jersey 'burb') doesn't bombard us with sticky sentimentality. Tucker's understandably wary view of life colors everything he thinks, feels and does. I love his brand of humor. Feeling his way, he guides us through a suburban odyssey filled with murder, mayhem and laughs. Aaron Tucker stay-at-home dad, magazine writer and freelancer extraordinnaire is one of those fictional characters that you never tire of hanging out with. Who wouldn't want him for a friend? That is the strength of Cohen's book. Tucker is, in a word, delightful.

I am a freelance writer in Maryland, mother of four, and avid reader.
I have been searching for a pleasurable reading life after Janet Evanovich and have finally found it in this Aaron Tucker series!
Yeah for me!
I love Cohen's writing style and how cool is it that he created such a great love interest IN THE main characters MONOGAMOUS relationship! I haven't felt this fond of a married couple since Macmillan and wife.
The Burbs he writes about are realistic - not some Hollywood idea of what the burbs are.
Write more, because when I start passing this novel around to friends and family to read they're going to become quite impatient for more (like me).

FOR WHOM THE MINIVAN ROLLS
by Jeff Cohen
Bancroft Press

I admit I figured it would be funny because of the title. I was not prepared for just how funny this book truly is. I was won over right away by Aaron Tucker, a stay-at-home dad of two, who is a freelance writer drafted to look into the disappearance of a prominent woman in town. Taking place in a small community shortly before a mayoral election, we meet a host of local characters, and the plot surely does thicken. A short stint as an investigative reporter is all that qualifies Tucker for the task, and he is pretty open about his lack of expertise.

In fact, Aaron is pretty open about just about everything. He is a very likeable guy, and I found myself rooting for him in his endeavors, and identifying with his foibles as a parent, too. He has an endearing subplot about his child with Asperger's Syndrome, and dealing with an epithet about him written
outside their home-- in barbecue sauce-- and he educates us in the process. His characters are all three-dimensional and very human, like folks I feel I now know as real people. If I ever need a criminal lawyer, I'd want one as smart and resourceful as his wife, Abigail Stein. The dialogue is believable, and right-on, too.

His methods are somewhat unique--I don't recall any other investigator bringing his wife and children along on a witness interview--but they all jive with his character, and it works for him.

Cohen spun a nifty yarn with original twists, in addition to keeping me amused and compelled to read *just a little more* than I had intended to every night. The pace rolls right along not unlike a MiniVan traversing hilly countryside--the story lays a little foundation and sometimes climbs a hill for a moment,
but then speeds on down the other side. Even the climbs were a hoot. It kept me entertained as I "minivanned" my way through the story. Never a dull moment.

The conclusion of the story was also tight, and clever, and satisfying. Ends were tied up neatly, and the plot wasn't convoluted to bring it to a close. It left me with the impression that this author did some serious planning before putting pen to paper, or finger to keyboard. However, it just may be the only "serious" thing Jeff Cohen has ever done. Truly a well-written, amusing mystery. Five Stars!

Read this book and you'll find yourself chuckling out loud often. Aaron Tucker is a freelance writer and family man who is reluctantly pulled into an investigation. When I start a new series I judge it primarily by asking, do I like this character and his world and will I want to spend time here again?

For this book, the answer is a definite YES. I LOVE this guy, love his wife and kids and best friend and little NJ town. I can see a lot of longevity here, a lot of fun with Aaron in the future. This book is real entertainment, in the best sense of the word.

This book is a fresh approach to the tired detective format. Aaron is funny, witty, and willing to share his quirks and strengths. (A leading man who drinks hot chocolate!) I enjoyed the pace of the story and am looking forward to seeing more of Aaron and his quirky, but real family. Why can't TV be this good?!

Every child with a disability should have a father like Aaron. Not only is this book a clever mystery story, but it's a sensitive and informative portrait of a loving family dealing with the ups and downs of raising children, including a child with Aspberger's syndrome. As the wise-cracking Aaron pursues the mystery in this book with persistence and the support of his intelligent and logical wife, he is always there for his children. He rises to the challenge of being a stay-at-home dad with good humor and genuine affection for his precocious daughter and his demanding son. Aaron may be an amateur detective, but he's a great father. In a world of dysfunctional families, divorce, and neglected children, Aaron Tucker and his wonderful family are a breath of fresh air.

Aaron Tucker didn't set out to be a private investigator. He had his hands full as a freelance writer, stay at home Dad, and spouse of the most beautiful woman in the world with amazing legs, Attorney Abigail Stein. His specialty, when not dealing with everything else, is writing newspaper and magazine features on electronics. But Gary Beckwirth wants him and a man like Gary Beckwirth always gets what he wants no matter what the little people say and think.

Gary Beckwirth's wife, Madlyn, is missing and he wants Aaron to investigate. After all, years ago for a short six months, Aaron was an investigative reporter. The fact that, as Aaron points out repeatedly, he failed miserably does not stop Gary Beckwirth's insistence that he and he alone investigate the strange middle of the night disappearance of Madlyn. He won't take no for an answer and suddenly, Aaron's editor at the local paper is willing to pay far above normal rates for an investigative piece on the disappearance for the paper. Aaron certainly can use the money and since he sees the consequences of continued outright refusal, takes the case. Afterall, this isn't what he normally does, he only has a week, and chances are he isn't going to find out anything.

That was the plan. While his sidewalk is vandalized with a vulgar obscenity directed at his young son and while he deals with the joys and travails of being a stay at home Dad, Aaron digs into an increasingly bizarre case. In so doing, he begins to get unwanted attention from the various wealthy and politically connected suspects as well as unknown parties. Stalking and threatening his family is unacceptable and Aaron, with an increasingly uncooperative client, won't stop until he finds out the real truth.

This is a good, strong mystery with a very funny backbone from start to finish. The travails and joys of being a stay at home Dad are detailed loud and clear and ring true with the experiences of someone who has been doing it for a very long time. That fact, along with numerous and often laugh out loud pop culture references make this fast read flat out funny.

That isn't to say that the only thing it has going for it is the humor. Far from it as the core of the book is a complex mystery that would make a certain talk show host proud as it winds and weaves through the interrelated passion triangles. The mystery is full of twisting complexity that didn't come clear until the final few pages. All in all this work is a very good, very well written novel from start to the finish in what promises to be a really good series.


Book Facts:

For Whom the Minivan Rolls: An Aaron Tucker Mystery
By Jeffrey Cohen
www.aarontucker.com
Bancroft Press
www.bancroftpress.com
2002
Hardback
ISBN # 1-890862-18-5
261 pages
$19.95


Kevin R. Tipple © 2005

This book is a delight! The author has created some wonderful characters that you'll want to read about again and again. Take an afternoon and laugh your way to this mystery's resolution. I can hardly wait until the next book is published.