Murder by Manicure (A Bad Hair Day Mystery) (Paperback)

by Nancy J. Cohen (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In this middling cozy, Florida hairdresser Marla Shore steps out of her salon into a deadly fitness club for her third excursion as an amateur sleuth (after 2000's Hair Raiser). Taking advantage of a free trial membership, Marla encounters one of her customers, Jolene Myers, on her first visit. Jolene has a rather heated argument with another member, Cookie Calcone, and not long after that, Jolene turns up dead in a whirlpool. Marla's love interest, homicide detective Dalton Vail, thinks Jolene's death was no accident, and Marla starts poking around, trying to dig up information to help solve the case. Marla's list of suspects includes staff members of the fitness club the handsome massage therapist Slate Harper and pushy Keith Hamilton as well as local realtors Sam and Eloise Zelman, local councilman Wallace Ritiker and pharmacist Hank Goodfellow. A second murder and a disappearance muddy the waters, but Marla continues doggedly on, despite a couple of attacks trying to warn her off. Det. Vail does more posturing and smoldering than actual detection, while Marla stews over making a commitment to him. Cohen leavens the narrative with Marla's comments on hairstyles and makeup, and the premise is a promising one, but the mostly one-dimensional characters and strained dialogue dilute the effects. Agent, Linda Hyatt. (Dec. 4)Forecast: Dazzling jacket art in primary colors will get potential customers to pick this off the shelf.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal
In her third adventure, Palm Haven hairdresser Marla Shore (Permed to Death) happens to be present when the body of one of her clients is found at a fitness club. Suspects in the club at the time of foul play include a city councilman, a female mortgage broker, a rabid animal rights activist, and various combative employees. Marla's boyfriend, homicide detective Dalton Vail, who heads the case, cautions her against getting involved and then lets her in on clues that encourage a series of interrogations some dangerous, some not. Observations about makeup, hair, and apparel mix with humorous, sexy overtones and catty remarks. A solid series addition.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Kensington; Reprint edition (November 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 157566741X
• ISBN-13: 978-1575667416
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #769,116 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars The worst mystery I have ever read, August 9, 2006

By	M. Benno "likes2bake" (Northern NJ, United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have to agree with the other reviewer, it is annoying that the main character calls everybody "pal." She is catty and snotty, not fun. She goes around telling everybody they need to come to her and get a REAL haircut or highlights, and trying to snarf up business for her manicurist. In her head she comments on everybody's hair and makeup. CATTY!
What's more, the title of this novel gives everything away. I knew by page 25 whodunit, which was annoying. The person who wrote that there were no clues about the murderer's identity didn't read carefully enough, it was so obvious.
The Yiddish in the book is cloying and useless. If anybody called me a "shayna madel" I would yell at them to speak English. It's dumb and unnecessarily jarring.
The characters are plastic and act like morons. Everybody acts like they hate everybody else but have nothing better to do than get their hair cut or buy a bagel.
The police lieutenant she is interested in has a daughter, and Marla (the main character) is nasty and patronizing to her, and insists she doesn't want to be the mother of an already-there child. She acts like the child is a piece of dirt on her shirt to be brushed off. The police leiutenant is stand-offish in one chapter, leering in another, and obtuse in another chapter. Multiple personality, much?
Please don't waste your time or money on this book. It is without a doubt the worst book I have ever seen put into print.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as it looked, October 4, 2004

By	Noelle Kjellman (NH USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I picked this book up at the library. The title and cover art intrigued me. I thought it would be a fun, easy read. However, reading it wasn't so easy. For some reason, the author likes to use what I guess are Yiddish phrases all throughout the book. It is distracting and I'm not sure why she does this. Another annoying use of language is the use of the word "pal." The main character, Marla, thinks sarcastically to herself and calls everyone "pal" (in a negative context). The plot itself was okay. Marla's relationship with Dalton seemed a little strange. Another thing is that this is the first (and last) in the series I have read and it mentioned something about someone named Tammy and drowning in a pool. I'm not quite sure the relationship between Tammy and Marla and it drove me nuts because it was referred to on numerous occasions. I like when authors briefly explain the important stuff that came previously in the series. That way you aren't missing anything if you haven't read any of the other books. Nancy J. Cohen does not do this. I am a big fan of mystery books. This one, however, disappointed me. I wouldn't recommend it. If you are looking for a book with a great female slueth pick up the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars did not care about the characters or the story, March 12, 2007

By	quiettime (Katy, TX United States) - See all my reviews

I have to agree with the other reviewers who did not care much for this book. I had to force myself to finish it. I did not care about any of the characters, did not like the main character (Marla), she is catty, doesn't like children, but pretends to care about the daughter of her "possible" love interest, the detective. Made me want to tear my hair out. The Yiddish, the "Bless my bones," the weak story... not my cup of tea. Try any of the books in Ann George's "The Southern Sisters" series instead.