Only Good Yankee (A Jordan Poteet mystery) [Mass Market Paperback]

Jeff Abbott (Author)

Book Description

Series: A Jordan Poteet mystery | Publication Date: April 1, 1995

Mirabeau, Texas, is a dynamite little town -- especially when toolsheds, doghouses, and mailboxes mysteriously begin to explode. So far, the sole victim is local librarian Jordan Poteet, struck by a chunk of his girlfriend's mailbox. Yet Jordy gets an even bigger jolt when his ex-girlfriend, Lorna, arrives from Boston. She's come to scoop up everybody's riverfront property -- and, if possible, Jordy as well.

With pro-development folk and die-hard environmentalists all foaming at the mouth, tempers become downright murderous. And the unfortunate victim is Lorna's handsome colleague, garroted with a piece of barbed wire at the Mirabeau B&B.

Dynamite, lust, murder...what next? Mirabeau braces for the worst and gets it -- while Jordy, his true love Candace, and Police Chief Junebug Moncrief light out after a killer...

Agatha Award-winning author of Do Unto Others.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Between a reemerged ex-girlfriend, a mad bomber and a murderer loose on the streets of Mirabeau, Tex., sleuth/librarian Jordan Poteet has his hands full. The bomber is blowing up everything from mailboxes to the top floor of Mirabeau's B&B; Lorna, Poteet's ex, works for a land developer interested in turning the town's riverfront property into resort condos; and the murderer is a nasty soul who garrotes his victims with barbed wire. In this sequel to Do Unto Others, Abbott stirs up a homey brew of humor, sweet-and-sour Southern charm and, most of all, saucy, revealing characterizations: Jordan's current girlfriend, Candace, looks "like she'd tiptoed out of Laura Ashley University with a bachelor's in Prim," while Lorna is likened to a hurricane moving in from the coast?"The only difference was that hurricanes are indifferent to the destruction and chaos they cause." And then there's Billy Ray, the prosecutor, who's "the type of fellow that'd poke his finger between a cottonmouth's fangs to see if the mouth is really all soft inside." Add a mixture of slightly unbalanced townsfolk and a rigid environmentalist hell-bent on protecting Mirabeau from the developers, and you have escapist fare that's as good as it gets. Speaking in the first person as Jordan Poteet, Abbott brings an engaging new voice to Southern mystery fiction.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"A carefully considered plot, clearly drawn characters, and Abbott's irresistible Southern voice combine to create an exciting new entry in mystery fiction."-- Deborah Adams

"Abbott's debut has both light and dark tones, is thoroughly readable, and presents a well-drawn gallery of suspects."--Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Fawcett (April 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345394380
• ISBN-13: 978-0345394385
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.5 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #85,472 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jordy's old girlfriend returns, November 5, 2001

By 

Karen Potts (Lake Jackson, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Only Good Yankee (A Jordan Poteet mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)

As much as I hated the title of this book (being from a northern state myself) I really enjoyed reading it. Jordy Poteet, inveterate librarian in the mythical small town of Mirabeau, Texas, returns to solve yet another murder. The book begins with some mysterious explosions, one of which injures Jordy's arm. Shortly after his injury, Jordan is surprised with the appearance of Lorna who was his girlfriend when he lived in Boston. She is presumably in town with a corporation which is attempting to buy some land for an upscale housing development. She is accompanied by her boss who is unceremoniously killed with a length of barbed-wire. Complications arise when environmentalists oppose the development and Lorna tries to seduce her old boyfriend. Jordy is caught in the middle, between Lorna and new girlfriend Candace, and frankly begins to enjoy all the attention. Things get serious when there's another murder and Jordy works to sort things out. There are a sufficient number of "red herrings" to make this an enjoyable mystery and one which is not easy to figure out. As usual, Abbott creates the perfect Texas small-town background for his well-written book.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing and hilarious., February 19, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Only Good Yankee (A Jordan Poteet mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)

Mr. Abbott could be writing about my hometown. I kept thinking, "I know this person," each time a new character appeared. What a riot

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing tale, characterizations outstanding. The best yet, February 20, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Only Good Yankee (A Jordan Poteet mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is Abbott's best mystery yet. His characters are real,and sympathetic. The mystery is engrossing. I loved thisbook, and I'm picky about mysteries.