Murder Among Neighbors [Hardcover]

Jonnie Jacobs (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1994

With her husband off in Europe "finding himself," Kate Austen must cope with life in the San Francisco suburbs, but her world is suddenly transformed by the murder of her neighbor and fellow carpooler and the arrival of handsome homicide detective Michael Stone.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This entertaining debut introduces Kate Austen, a resilient young northern California mom. When her husband sets off to "find himself" in Europe, Kate is pregnant and jobless, and their daughter is only five. Then her next-door neighbor is murdered. Kate doubts that the killer was an intruder-nothing of value was stolen, and it wasn't like the orderly Pepper Livingston to have left a window open. Along with her acerbic best friend, Kate begins to look at her neighbors in a new light, especially Pepper's cool husband, Robert. Searching through Pepper's things at the request of nearly divorced homicide Lt. Michael Stone, Kate finds a matchbook in an old purse of Pepper's and a hidden diaphragm; she is also shown an earring the police have found in the hallway. Later, after she and Michael have become more intimate, she uses these clues to come up with the culprit and motive. Jacobs tops off this slice of suburban life off with a dollop of romance and a twist of suspense.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

When quintessential California socialite Pepper Livingston takes time off from her breakneck schedule (Sunshine House, the Save Our Hills Coalition, etc.) to get strangled, the news causes scarcely a ripple among her neighbors in trendy Walnut Hills. Despite Kate Austen's demure protests to the contrary (``Pepper Livingston was certainly the last person you'd ever expect to go and get herself killed''), life goes on as placidly as before. The officer who first questions Kate seems less interested in Pepper's murder than in Kate's thriving ficus; the grieving widower brings his daughter over to Kate's house to play and reminisce comfortably about Pepper over a couple of quiet scotches; the undifferentiated gossips at the Guild Wine Festival trade the most innocuous rumors about alternatives to the official drug-related robbery theory. The only excitement comes when Kate, abandoned by a flighty husband who's taken off for Europe in hopes of finding himself, falls for Michael Stone, the hard-bunned homicide lieutenant in charge of the case. Even in the throes of suburban passion, though, newcomer Kate still chooses dresses and makeup as carefully as ever, and she manages to spot the murderer without seriously disrupting her day care arrangements. A West Coast Compromising Positions, with omelettes, Chardonnay, and mild innuendo substituting for detection, and nary a mean bone in its well-preserved body. -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 299 pages
• Publisher: Kensington Books; First Edition. states edition (September 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0821746804
• ISBN-13: 978-0821746806
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,281,511 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Debut Mystery!, July 13, 2000

By 

Donna Rizos - See all my reviews

This review is from: Murder Among Neighbors (Mass Market Paperback)

This mystery was filled with wonderful, well hidden clues. The characters are all likable and have wonderful developement potential. I finished the book yesterday and I am already half way through the next Kate Austen Mystery. If you enjoy a good "cozy" mystery, you will love this one. Kate Austen is spirited, intelligent, and humorous. This is a great read!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and just good fun, July 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Murder Among Neighbors (Mass Market Paperback)

I have a thing about reading books from a series in the order in which they were written . . . hence, this was my first Jonnie Jacobs -- and I really enjoyed it. I found it light-hearted and pleasant, yet it included enough substance to hold my interest. I am looking forward to the next in the series. I definitely recommend it, particularly to those who like mysteries with a female protagonist.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Murder in Walnut Hills..., April 10, 2004

By 

K. A. Stevenson "WIAPilot" (Tucson) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Murder Among Neighbors (Mass Market Paperback)

"Murder Among Neighbors" is the first book in the Kate Austen Mystery Series by Jonnie Jacobs. It is a book that captures a realistic look at life in the very comfortable Walnut Hills, CA area.

Kate Austen has an adorable 4-year old and is 2 months pregnant. She would be quite happy if it were not for the small fact that her handsome husband has gone off to the Swiss Alps to "find himself" in Europe.

Fortunately, Kate finds herself too busy coping with the daily demands of being a mother to fall apart. Her beautiful next-door neighbors is brutally murdered and Kate haphazardly finds herself drawn into discovering clues as a result of her interactions with various neighbors in the community. A nice looking detective starts questioning Kate and finds her answers quite interesting...

The characterizations of the community were very good and this book was quite interesting. My only doubt was that it mentioned several times that there were many months when Kate and Andy found it difficult to pay the monthly mortgage. Yet, Kate has no job although her daughter attends a posh preschool, and a maid comes to the home once a week. Although she does start ultimately working part-time, it would seem that money would have been a larger concern for her as her husband had been gone for almost 2 months by that time.

Nevertheless, the book is quite good and plan to read the next book in the series, "Murder Among Friends" tomorrow.