Customer Reviews

Revenge of the Gypsy Queen (Tracy Eaton Mysteries #1)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Revenge of the Gypsy Queen is an enjoyable romp with sleuth wannabe, Tracy Eaton. In this first installment, we find Tracy in New York with plans to attend the wedding of her sister-in-law, Marisa. All is well until the bride is kidnapped and the family seems more concerned with cover up then recovery . Tracy swings into action, and with the help of loveable Uncle Philly, they scour the city, running into any number of memorable characters. This book contains wonderful dialogue and a plot that keeps you guessing. I highly recommend it!

What a great addition to the mystery genre! Although Kris Neri has been writing mystery short stories for some time, this is the first book in the Tracy Eaton series. This book is fast moving, delightfully funny, and extremely witty. Tracy Eaton and her husband Drew fly to New York for her sister-in-law's wedding. The fun begins when her sister-in-law is kidnapped and her "overly polished" in-laws don't want to involve the police. Tracy, a mystery writer herself, has a once in a life-time chance to find the kidnappers. After all, isn't this what she writes about?! Throw in a very amusing cast of characters... movie star parents, old money in-laws, mafia bosses, a ballerina, and a miss-placed southern cop, you have a wonderful read! Tracy Eaton's smart mouth and wit will keep you smiling throughout the book. This is a refreashing debut mystery.

Kris Neri has scored a bullseye with her first novel, introducing protagonist Tracy Eaton, along with a wonderful cast of characters. Neri keeps us turning the page to find out what happens next as amateur sleuth Tracy Eaton takes on her in-laws, the mob and the city of New York. Great read and great fun. Looking forward to the next book.

Kris Neri brings a wonderfully witty new series to the contemporary mystery genre. The debut delightfully introduces the series characters in a humorous, hectic way. The lead character and sleuth is Tracy Eaton, a mystery writer with an optimistic outlook on life. Her husband Drew is an attorney and her parents are eccentric Hollywood stars that liven up the storyline.

As the mystery begins, Tracy is discussing what has already happened, but not in detail. She then takes the reader back to the beginning and later picks the story back up where the reader came in. There is nothing confusing about this at all because it is done in an amusing manner.

When Tracy and her husband Drew came to New York to attend Drew's sister's wedding, what they expected was a vacation of sorts and the usual wedding chaos. What they get is family secrets, kidnapping, panic and danger. First, a family member Tracy never heard of shows up and has the family acting odd. Then, when Marisa is kidnapped before her wedding and her fiancé is contacted about a very unusual ransom, Drew's family gets even odder, if that's possible. Tracy isn't just left out of the family decisions because she is an in-law, her ability and intelligence is also doubted. Instead of getting bent, Tracy lets the excitement of a real mystery case initiate her into finding Marisa. Along the way, she finds some engaging cohorts to help her sleuth and pull off capers.

Revenge of the Gypsy Queen is told in the first person by the lead character. Usually, when a story is written in the first person, I feel the story is being told to me. Not this time. Tracy's voice made me feel included in this madcap menagerie. It was a wonderful experience.

Revenge of the Gypsy Queen may be Kris's first book, but the lady is no newcomer to the mystery scene. Her extensive short mystery fiction résumé includes two Derringer Awards, one of which was for "L.A. Justice." That is where sleuth wannabe Tracy Eaton debuted, and Tracy's fans were soon clamoring for a full-length novel. Kris Neri was kind enough to oblige.

Tracy Eaton is the daughter of Hollywood celebrities, wife of straight-laced lawyer Drew Eaton, and a mystery writer who yearns for the cloak-and-dagger adventures her fictional sleuth enjoys. Revenge of the Gypsy Queen finds Tracy in New York City for the upcoming wedding of Drew's sister Marisa, and before long Tracy is living out her detective fantasy. The reasons, however, are unfortunate: Marisa has been kidnapped. A wealthy developer and a mobster have both taken an unusual interest in the restaurant Marisa and her fiancé Tony run. Drew's black sheep Uncle Philly is in town, behaving suspiciously, and under investigation by the NYPD's Special Frauds Squad. And Drew and the rest of his family seem to be trying to keep secrets from Tracy. The Eaton family, in fact, seems content to try to meet the kidnapper's bizarre demand-the sale of the restaurant The Gypsy Princess-without any police involvement, so it falls to Tracy to be the "sensible one" for a change and get to the bottom of the mystery.

Of course, Tracy's definition of "sensible" is a bit wide of the mark. All the more fun for the readers who follow her as she crawls beneath cars, tails suspects, dodges various instruments of death and destruction, beards VIPs in their dens, and delves into the family secrets. Neri has created in Tracy a lovable writer-turned-sleuth who takes all the horrible clichés that implies and pummels them into submission with her unique sense of humor.

The story's resolution is also fresh. The grand finale, which requires the talents of a supermodel and a small army of-well, I can't tell you what without spoiling all the fun-is only the beginning of the end. True to the book's title, Neri spins a tale of revenge that leads Tracy into the dilemma of weighing the value of the absolute truth against justice. Fortunately, Tracy has the resilience to grow from the experience without losing her impetuous spirit. And that means I'll be reading Tracy's next adventure, Dem Bones' Revenge, as soon as possible.

(adapted from a "Skullduggery" review)

This novel is a hoot 'n a half! I loved it! I dare you to find a mystery novel that is just as fun as Revenge Of The Mystery Queen. Our heroine is mystery writer and would be detective, Tracy Eaton. She is a smart aleck and a smart lady who doesn't miss a thing. She just so happens to be the child of goofball Hollywood celeb parents but has managed to get herself married to a straight and narrow attorney named, Drew. The mystery ensues when Tracy's sister-in-law ends up getting kidnaped from her own wedding. The whole Eaton clan ends up acting mucho bizarre and Tracy has to hurdle obstacle upon obstacle, or is it truth upon truth, to get to the ending.

Leann Arndt, Reviewer

What a wonderful book this is!!!!! You will be laughing your way from chapter to chapter. Tracy is a great character who is totally opposite of her in-laws whom she has to deal with throughout the book. It's like reading an episode of I Love Lucy. I met the author at a book signing and she is delightful too.

Tracy Eaton's trip to New York was not what she expected. Instead of quality time with her in-laws getting ready for sister-in-law Marisa's wedding, the bride-to-be in kidnapped on Tracy's first full day there. Then, the by-the-book Eatons decide to give in to the strange demands and not call the police. Tracy decides that it's up to her to find Marisa and rescue Marisa's restaurant, which her family is supposed to sell to get her back alive. But what are the Eatons hiding? Everyone has a secret, even the groom. Tracy's going to have to work fast to put all the pieces together before the wedding is ruined.

Tracy Eaton explodes on the mystery scene with a bang in this fun book. The plot never looses its way or the pace, and the ending truly surprised me. I recently reread this book, and I discovered how well plotted it truly was. Scenes that didn't mean anything to me before suddenly took on a whole different meaning when I knew the ending. The characters are very well developed, and the plot flows from character, not the other way around.

Kris Neri has a true winner on her hands with the characters in this fun series. I'm looking forward to reading about Tracy's exploits for years to come.

I'm not usually a fan of this type of mystery, but Kris Neri managed to convert me. An engaging and humorous style, and a strong plot kept me turning the pages, and I really enjoyed meeting Amateur-Detective Tracy and her family. Mafia characters and a tough cop are added to the mix which should satisfy the "I only read hard-boiled" types like me. Check it out!

Kris Neri has crafted a pleasant enough debut with "Revenge of the Gypsy Queen." Tracy Eaton, only daughter of a pair of narcissistic Hollywood screen legends, is a plucky and clever heroine. No silly scruples for her! She's a real find. The other characters -- particularly Uncle Philly -- are handled with just the right measures of wit and sympathy.

Sure, the novel is funny; however, some of her madcap adventures are a bit unrealistic -- even for a farcical mystery novel. And you're certain to figure out the Eatons' secret halfway through the book. Indeed, most will figure out who the villain is before the exciting climax.

Is this novel in the same league as Lindsey Davison's Falco series or Ann Granger's Markby and Mitchell series? Of course not. But it's still a nice novel to read in between the favorite installments of your favorite mystery series. Pleasant is good enough for me.