Nothing but Gossip (Lilly Bennett Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Marne Davis Kellogg (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Kellogg loads her novels with gyrating plots. In this fourth mystery (after Tramp, 1997) about PI/heiress/U.S. marshal Lilly Bennett, of Roundup, Wyo., she involves Lilly in a murder investigation even as our heroine is readying to marry rich and handsome Richard Jerome, manager of the Roundup Opera. The murder victim is millionairess Alma Rutherford Gilhooly, who was so obnoxious that Lilly, who narrates, can't decide whether the person who shot her dead was an angry relative, a scorned lover or an irate business associate. The suspect list includes Alma's half-sister, with whom Alma was locked in a proxy fight for the family oil business; Alma's browbeaten husband; a group of Russian oilmen; and a string of present and former lovers who depended on the dead woman's pocketbook. In a humorous subplot, the picture-perfect Western hamlet where Lilly has her office is invaded by Robert Redford and his movie company, who are filming "a socially conscious, politically correct, old-time Western about cowboys who treated women as equals and believed that no meant no." Kellogg's characters are larger than life, with huge incomes, egos and libidos. The plot moves swiftly as Lilly zooms around in private planes, helicopters and assorted land vehicles. The killer attempts three more murders before Lilly nails him at a funeral, the pair battling on top of a rose-covered casket?leaving Lilly just enough time to marry Richard in a fairy-tale ceremony, Wyoming style. It's a delightful windup to an entertainment that never flags.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal
Almost 50, opinionated, and energetic, private investigator and federal marshall Lilly Bennett (Tramp, LJ 8/97) finally decides to get married?much to the delight of her wealthy, ranch-owning folks in Roundup, WY. An attempted murder interrupts the countdown to wedding day, though, tumbling Lilly into the thick of a deadly oil company proxy battle over Siberian expansion. Her investigation uncovers a surprising confusion of likely suspects, including a philandering husband, an ex-con televangelist, and an ambitious politico. Earthy but stylish prose, a sensible but waggish and sexy heroine, and an improbable but vastly entertaining plot place this at the top of the must-read list. For all collections.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (October 5, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553580469
• ISBN-13: 978-0553580464
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #886,845 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Full of wit with an exciting mystery and great detective., January 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Nothing but Gossip (Hardcover)

Heiress, private sleuth and U.S. Marshall, Lilly Bennett, is finally getting married, an event which her mother had almost given up on. After more than a couple decades of trying to find the right man, Lilly is marrying Richard...who is everything a woman could want. She takes on the case of a murdered oil heiress the week of her fabulous wedding and puts not only her life and that of her brother's on the line, but is expected to attend a number of high society pre-marital parties. Can she do it all and still keep the love of her life? Lilly has fun skewering both ends of the political spectrum as well as societal mores. A professional woman sleuth...with a big difference.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kellogg's prose has gotten even more crisp and pithy, May 18, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Nothing but Gossip (Hardcover)

Forget the plot -- read Kellogg's books for her wordsmithing. In this novel, sleuth Lily really comes into her own with her on-target marksmanship rivaled only by her pinpoint accuracy in assessing the world as we know it. Her comments on an indecent exposure case are worth the price of admission. And how refreshing it is to have a protagonist who doesn't cut her own hair with nail scissors but who can still shoot-em-up with the best of 'em.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put it down!, August 12, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Nothing but Gossip (Hardcover)

I picked this book up as something to read on the plane, not knowing or even hearing of Ms. Kellogg ever before. But, once I started reading it, I just couldn't put it down. I was very impressed with Ms. Kellogg's style--she gives her main character, Lilly Bennett, such insight and wisdom into all the other brilliant characters that inhabit the story, I was enraptured to the end. I love the setting and general feel of the book- the laid-back, yet sophisticated upper-class western that the book is set in was a breath of fresh air from what seems like every other stuffy, old-school murder mystery dealing with the upper class.

I'm working on reading all the rest of Ms. Kellogg's work now, and I have to say that it just keeps getting better. Kudos to you, Marne!