Customer Reviews

Sex and Salmonella: A Tory Bauer Mystery (Tory Bauer Series)

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4 star:		(2)
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2 star:		(1)
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Poor Tory Bauer. This over forty, overweight, widowed, mystery loving waitress would like nothing more than a little peace and quiet when her early shift at the cafe is over. Maybe some James Taylor on the stereo, a cold Diet Coke, and a good book to keep her company. But that is not to be. Delphi, South Dakota is hopping this hot and dusty summer afternoon. Hamilton Bogner's International Extravaganza is in town, and this rather seedy carnival has set itself up on the vacant lot right next to Tory's trailer. To make matters worse, her officious cousin, Junior, has gotten food poisoning, and Tory's been enlisted to take her four young children to the Extravaganza. There are rides and games, food booths filled with sugary treats, and a trip through the ever popular fun house with its Evil Hall of Mirrors. As Tory looks up, trying to get her bearings, she sees a dead body stuffed up in the ceiling grid above the mirrors. This is no prop, that's for sure. She knows the real thing when she sees it, and even recognizes the corpse, Lily Mitchell, a troubled young carnival worker. Who would want Lily dead, and why? Now with the gossip mill grinding overtime, and secrets and suspicions popping up all over town, Tory dives head first into the case, and she's not going to stop digging until she gets to the truth..... Kathleen Tayor is back with the second installment of her Tory Bauer mysteries, and this is a fun-filled series that just gets better with each book. Sex And Salmonella has it all... a well paced plot filled with vivid, laugh-out-loud scenes and clever twists and surprises, great small town, mid-west atmosphere, and a quirky cast of colorful and memorable characters. But it's Ms Taylor's engaging writing, witty dialogue, and terrific dead-pan delivery that makes this novel stand out and sparkle, and once you begin the first entertaining chapter, be prepared to finish this book in one sitting. Sex And Salmonella is the only Tory Bauer mystery that is out of print, but it's well worth the effort to find a copy. For those new to Kathleen Taylor and the gang from Delphi, South Dakota, be sure to start at the beginning with Funeral Food to get the real flavor of this series. For those who are already fans, Sex And Salmonella is a winner that shouldn't be missed.

I've enjoyed all the Tory Bauer mysteries, and I hope to see another one soon. I think she does a great job of creating believable characters and portraying local color. Whenever she writes about "People in the Midwest," I find myself nodding and laughing at what she says. No, these books don't have the psychological depth of Wendy Hornsby or Patricia Cornwell, but Wendy Hornsby and Patricia Cornwell don't make me laugh, either. I wholeheartedly recommend these books for people who know small towns and want to laugh a lot.

This book is the second in the Tory/South Dakota series...and the only one of the series to be out of print!! Why I don't know, because you need to read this book to really get into the whole series.

The series is set in a small South Dakota town. Tory, the main character is a fat waitress at the town's only cafe. Her roommate, Del, is a nympho, who sleeps with everybody who moves. Tory's best friend is Neil, the local millionaire librarian.

This wonderful book naturally centers around people sleeping around and getting wonderfully ill.

Tory's cousin, annoyingly upright Junior, faints from food poisoning in the cafe, leaving Tory in charge of the town celebration's carnival. So Tory must go and preview the carnival in another town and report back to Junior. Tory hitches a ride to the carnival with her married lover, Stu. Along the way, they have an afternoon tryst where the witness some other shenanigans, which open up the can of worms. That is where the fun begins.

We get to meet different interesting members of the carnival..

Kathleen Taylor's been blessed with the gift of wit and she's not afraid to use it, thank goodness. Even I, no great reader of mysteries, could tell "Sex and Salmonella" was different from the average "stab and solve" mystery novel. An introduction that pokes fun at the predictability of the genre; a less than perfect heroine with a penchant for epithets, general crankiness and Diet Coke; and a bevy of small town South Dakota natives filled to the brim with a carbine load of personality quirks all makes for a fun ride. I laughed out loud at several points. If you prefer your mystery novels to be of the serious, psychological thriller variety, "Sex and Salmonella" is probably not for you. If, however, you're tired of the same old same old, stop in at the Delphi Cafe for a generous helping of humor, wisdom and a simple yet engaging mystery that will leave you wanting more. Good thing there's two more books in the series!

As a bonus, James Taylor fans will appreciate Tory's reliance on the dulcet tones of the nasal voiced folk singer to sooth her frazzled nerves, even in the face of her Country & Western soaked environs.

Because this book is out of print, I had some difficulty finding it. After enjoying three other Tory Bauer mysteries, I was determined to add this one to my collection. It was worth the effort. Witty, humorous and well written, this book was hard to put down. I didn't read these mysteries in chronological order, but had no difficulty picking up and following the story lines. Still, it might be better to read them in the order they were written. Funeral Food (the first) is an excellent introduction to the wonderful characters that populate these stories. I think Avon Books would be wise to issue a reprint of this book. Kathleen Taylor is on her way to The Bigs.

Love the title. Love the characters. Love the mystery. Kathleen Taylor gets it all right.

Kathleen Taylor's first mystery novel is a definite success in this reader's opinion. Tory Bauer's character is well-developed and believable. While I have never been to Tory's part of the country, I felt as though I was there with her. The small town politics, gossip, and relationships were very realistic. Unlike some books which take awhile to "get into", Sex and Salmonella had my attention from beginning to end. This was a funny and enjoyable book. I actually laughed out loud several times (my husband even commented on it). I can't wait to read Kathleen Taylor's next book, The Hotel South Dakota. In fact, I think I'll order it right now. Happy reading, Bett

What a great title. And the setting, in South Dakota, seemed promising, too. I was hoping for something quirky and full of local color, maybe like the movie "Fargo," or Lake Wobegon, or what Robert Parker does for Boston, or Sara Paretsky does for Chicago. Some may think she succeeded. It's readable. But the characters and setting never came alive for me. Very superficial, top-of-the-brain writing. But then, that's the way the Lillian Braun "Cat" series strikes me and people have been willing to buy more than a dozen of her titles, so maybe this won't be the first and only "Tory Bauer mystery."