Customer Reviews

Relative Danger

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Caelie Gunther arrives in town a few days before her granddaughter Kat's graduation only to find out Kat may not graduate at all. Caelie made a deathbed promise to Kat's mother that she would see Kat graduate, so she is determined to make Kat graduate.

Kat explains that a school janitor was killed. Her favorite teacher is no longer speaking to her so she has no interest in going to school. Caelie signs up to be a substitute teacher at the high school to get Kat back in classes.

In the school Caelie encounters some rude students and there are some mysterious incidents as well as more violence. Can she find the killer in time for Kat to complete her final exams and graduate? Will the fact that her ex-lover Gil Thurman is in town at his new restaurant sidetrack her plans?

I enjoyed Caelie. She is a great senior sleuth. She is a lot of fun and cares about her family but doesn't want to be tied down to them or them to her. Apparently she moves around a lot. She doesn't want to get tied down in a relationship either. This makes her a very interesting character and also very three-dimensional in my eyes.

The sparks always fly when she's with Gil. There is a lot of mystery as to what might develop between them. I hope that eventually something does.

I like the way Caelie interacts with her granddaughter and son as well.

I highly recommend this book.

Cealie Gunther visits her widowed son and granddaughter Kat, for her high school graduation--only to find that Kat has stopped attending school. And, her favorite teacher is a suspect in the death of a school janitor.

Cealie decides to take it upon herself to get the girl to go back to school, and if that means she has to solve a murder, so be it. She takes a job as a substitute teacher to gain entry to the school and snoop around.

Cealie's ex-lover, Gil, is also in town opening a new venue in his chain of Cajun restaurants. Cealie had broken off their relationship when she felt a need to find her own independence. She has spent the time since traveling and rediscovering herself. However, she finds herself unable to stay away from him even when she spies his new woman.

Cealie manages to cause all kinds of trouble for everyone as she sticks her nose in the murder investigation and attempts to get her family back on track.

I liked Cealie a lot. She is feisty, determined, and lovable. She has a cactus plant as a pet. Shaw does a good job of showing that grandmas can be sexy too.

Armchair Interviews says: Sexy grandmas, hmmmm.

I enjoyed the character of Cealie Gunther, the amateur grandmother detective, in this exciting adventure story.

Cealie goes to Chicago for her granddaughter's high school graduation and finds that her smart granddaughter is very scared and isn't going to school. One of the janitors has been murdered at the school and, for some reason, her granddaughter is now scared of attending.

Cealie then decides to substitute at the high school and find out who the murderer is.

I loved the fact that by the end of the story, Cealie has not only solved the mystery and connected with the man she loves, but also has mega-respect for teachers. Being a teacher myself, I always appreciate the acknowledgment that our job is not easy.

Being 50+ years old, I loved the love story and could identify with the feelings of an older adult -- but for teens, I could imagine the groans when the main character discusses her feelings about a sexual relationship. If they can get around that idea, though, then I think they will enjoy the rest of the novel.

Reviewed by: Marta Morrison

Relative Danger by June Shaw (Thomson - Gale 2006) is a mystery written from the perspective of a baby boomer. It is the first adventure for Cealie, a sexy grandmother, who is out to "find herself". She stumbles on a mysterious death at her granddaughter's (Kat) high school while in town for Kat's graduation.

Relative Danger is an easy and fun read. Although it's a mystery, Relative Danger is laced with humor and insight into the aging of woman who was recently widowed and coping well.

The reader will relate to and love the characters, from Cealie's single parent, somewhat depressed son, Roger to perky but honor student granddaughter, Kat. And then there is Gil, Cealie's sometimes boy friend, and my favorite, "Chicken Boy".

Cealie becomes a snoop when Kat avoids school just before graduation because of the suspected murder of the school's janitor. Cealie was determined to see Kat graduate based on son Roger's deceased wife's wish that her daughter graduate.

There are unexpected twists and turns in the plot that will keep the reader in suspense until Cealie finally solves mystery.

Relative Danger is a great launch for what could be a series for Granny turned private eye Cealie. However, as a male, sometimes I found that I was given too much information about some of Cealie's female "problems".

Ironically, this look into how a widowed Baby Boomer overcomes aging problems may make Relative Danger a surprise best seller.

I highly recommend Relative Danger. It just may be a book that will make rainy summer vacation days a little sunnier.

Cealie Gunther is a super sleuthing amateur homicide detective but not by choice. Her granddaughter, Kat, is scheduled to graduate from high school soon but the murder of a janitor at her school and the implication of her favorite teacher has her staying home from school with no desire to graduate. Cealie made a deathbed promise to Kat's mother to always be there taking her place when Kat graduates, gets married, has babies and other memorable events in life.

That deathbed promise causes Cealie to seek a position of substitute teacher at the high school Kat attends so she can secretly investigate the murder and get Kat's favorite teacher off the hook so Kat will go back to school and graduate.

June Shaw has created interesting and realistic characters in Relative Danger. The suspense begins to mount right from the beginning of the story and each chapter ends in a cliff hanger, which made it impossible for me to put the book down. Ms. Shaw's well written and structured book coerced me into reading her book to find out what was going to happen next. The number of suspects increases as Cealie gathers new facts and when the culprit is finally caught, I was completely surprised. I never would have guessed.

Relative Danger is a wonderful cozy mystery and will keep you entertained throughout the story. When it ended, I was sorry that there was no more to read. However, the story ends with Cealie receiving a mysterious email from her cousin Stevie that begins with HELP!!! So, it looks like the murders, suspense, intrigue, and cliff hangers may not be too far away. I can't wait.

I highly recommend this book. You won't regret reading it.

When her beloved spouse died, Cealie Gunther decided she needed to find herself as she felt lost as a couple. She opened up a successful business Deluxe Copy Editors and soon met restaurateur Gil Thurman, owner of Cajun Delights, and they share a romance hotter than his hottest sauce until she decides to end it as she lacked his confidence.

Cealie visits her widower son Roger and her granddaughter Kat in order to see the latter graduate from Skidmore High School. She sees Roger is still grieving the death of his wife Nancy and notices that something is bothering Kat, who is skipping classes. To help her granddaughter, Cealie accepts a substitute teaching position at the school and soon learns that custodian Mr. Labruzzo died from a fall with Kat's favorite teacher Marisa Hernandez as the prime suspect. Unable to resist she begins to investigate, which places her in danger from a killer, alienates Kat by butting in, and desires Gil, who opens up a Cajun Delights in town.

RELATIVE DANGER is more a family drama than an amateur sleuth whodunit though the latter is cleverly designed to enhance the relationships between three generations of Gunthers. Cealie is a delightful protagonist whose asides (and too frequent laments) and bad run on cars make her a grandmotherly chick lit heroine as all she wants to do is help her angst-laden granddaughter. Readers will enjoy this fine academic mystery starring a feisty protagonist who out of love tries to uncover the identity of a killer.

Harriet Klausner

I finished reading Relative Danger by June Shaw yesterday. This was my first book by
this author.
I found this book a fun read and a definite cozy. Some of my reasons for finding this a fun read: The main character/sleuth, Cealie/Gram was comparable to a real person with a
family I could identify with.
Some situtations appeared to be similar to what most families experience.

The situations I could easily identify with were Cealie's being a Grand-mother of a teen
age grand-daughter in high school, which I am and have. Also that Cealie was a
substitute teacher. I am also a substitute teacher, so I was able to compare notes with
Cealie's experiences with classes.

Cealie chose to find out about herself by herself, which I also chose to do but years
before Cealie.

Relative Danger was an enjoyable read with an exhilerating climax.
Cealie visits with her son/Roger and grand-daughter/Kat with the expectation of attending Kat's high school graduation. She is shocked to learn that Kat may not even continue to finish her senior exams in order to graduate. Kat's reasoning behind this decision is that her teacher/mentor, Miss Hernandez, is suspected of murdering the janitor, Mr. Labruzzo. Kat finds this situation more than what she can deal with and no longer cares if she graduates at all.

The author throws in a romance with complications between Cealie and Gil. Gil is a restaurant owner and ex-lover of Cealie's. Unfortuneately he appears to be involved with a younger woman...or is he?

The family is going through their grieving process after the death of Cealie's daughter-in-law. Roger and Kat have their own separate ways of dealing with the mother's/wife's death. Roger is especially having a hard time of coming to grips with his loss.

Cealie decides to become a substitute teacher at Kat's high school in order to do a little sleuthing on her own. That's when situations arise that brings danger a little to close for comfort and to Kat.

The final chapters brought a spell binding climax that was nothing short of fantastic. Good job Miss Shaw! The final results were a surprise to me...which is the way a good mystery should be.

One suggestion from this lover of cozy mysteries is -Cealie please get a pet and stop talking to your cactus/Minnie. :)

If you want to have a good read, a smoothe read with a pulse pumping climax-then Relative Danger is for you.

Ellen

I had to take a hiatus from reading novels for a while, but I am back! I'm here to say that Relative Danger was a great book to start my reading comeback! What a page turner! As an international traveler, a doting grandmother and an independent, active baby boomer, I could identify with Cealie. I highly recommend this great book for everyone who enjoys romantic murder mysteries, but especially all of you baby boomers! I had a very difficult time putting this book down.

Cealie Gunther is so much more than a widow, mother, Gram, or business owner. She is also a person trying to rediscover herself. Cealie began her journey to find the original Cealie when her beloved Freddy passed. I assure you that the old or in-between Cealie is not afraid to live her life to the outside world, but to those that truly understand her, like Gil, she is afraid of being left behind again.

Cealie made a death bed promise to her daughter-in-law that she would be 'there' for granddaughter, Kat's Graduation days, Wedding day, and to hold Kat's hand for each and every baby. The dialog forces you to understand that Cealie is a joy to be around. She is a fixer of problems, and is truly loved. You quickly discover, Cealie's personal vulnerabilities and you want to weep for her.

The crisis? Kat's High School Graduation. Will the honor student graduate or not? And, why? Is it tied up because of the school's janitor? Is it something to do with Kat's former Spanish teacher whom Kat adores? Is it because Kat's Father is damaged from the loss of his wife and she would be 'abandoning' him to leave for college?

Cealie, who loves to talk to herself and plants, decides to become a Substitute teacher to see what is going on. Her cars get vandalized, Nasty slogans and treats are written, she gets locked up in a classroom and almost poisoned by sulfur, and even someone tries killing her by gunshots, and running her over.

Cealie, is determined but scared. It is worth the wait.

Ms. Shaw is a competent writer and her sense of humor as a coping mechanism is superb. Please discover Cealie Gunter. What I would give to have her in my family.

I must be in the minority, but I'm having a hard time getting into this book. I almost stopped reading when I was 1/4th into it, but I pressed on. I'm now 1/2 way through it and it is still pretty boring. I've only stopped reading two books without finishing in my life, and it looks like this will be #3. I would feel much better about not finishing it had it been free.