Shaky Ground: A Bubba Mabry Mystery [Mass Market Paperback]

Steve Brewer (Author)

Book Description

Series: Worldwide Library Mysteries | Publication Date: April 4, 2003

SITTING DUCK

His client list is at zero, so Albuquerque private eye Bubba Mabry is all ears when a lovely young woman asks him to locate her missing husband. Biology professor David Field was last seen heading for the desert on a research trip. And that's where Mabry finds his bullet-ridden body. Now, with a paying job to find the killer, Mabry wastes no time getting himself into a heck of a mess.

Never mind his nuptials to the fiery Felicia Quattlebaum, a tabloid reporter, are a week away; Bubba's ham-handed investigation threatens to make him a corpse before he's a groom. Once again, he's managed to antagonize the wrong people, including a reclusive land developer in the witness protection program, some nasty mafia goons and a mystery man who's about to score a million bucks -- as soon as he gets Bubba out of the way. All in all, not a bad way to beat the wedding jitters.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Bubba Mabry, an underemployed Albuquerque private eye, hates flying. But when Amber Fields, a paying client, wants to find her missing husband, biology professor Harry, Mabry takes a gut-wrenching helicopter ride over remote desert, where he finds the professor's body. He then signs on with Amber to find the killer, who may have some connection with a reclusive real-estate developer--part Howard Hughes, part Don Corleone--also under investigation by reporter Felicia Quattlebaum, Bubba's fiancee. In a clever variation on the sleuthing-couple theme, Bubba and Felicia go Nick and Nora Charles one better by each solving the case--through different means. Bubba interviews the principals and tangles with mobsters, while Felicia analyzes real-estate deals. Brewer's characters are appealing and amusing, and he vividly captures the feel of Albuquerque's neighborhoods and the desert. His book also has unsettling insights about development, corruption, and environmental politics. A promising series. John Rowen --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

``I couldn't remember the last time I'd outsmarted anybody,'' remarks Albuquerque shamus Bubba Mabry with a modesty entirely justified by his handling of his latest case. Consider the facts: Hired to find missing David Field, Bubba (Witchy Woman, 1996) discovers the biology prof's dead body in a desert photography blind--and promptly vomits on it. Bubba's ham-handed questioning antagonizes not only the publicity-shy developer whose land Field had been trespassing on, and the developer's equally sensitive goons, but the chairperson of the University of New Mexico biology department--who threatens him with the majesty of her board of regents--and his own client, Field's widow, who fires him when he digs a little too deeply into Field's private life (his private parts were little more private than Howard Stern's). Even when the goons stake out Bubba, it's his fianc‚e, indomitable Albuquerque Gazette reporter Felicia Quattlebaum, who scares them off. With a track record like this, imagine how Bubba will act when he goes up against a serious player like Tony ``the Tiger'' Birbone, or a bounty hunter who wants to collaborate with Tony the way a fisherman wants to collaborate with a worm. Amusing froth, though too lightweight to sustain the postlude that runs on and on past the climax. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Worldwide Library (April 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373264542
• ISBN-13: 978-0373264544
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,042,730 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

STEVE BREWER is the author of more than 20 books about crooks, including the recent crime novels LOST VEGAS, THE BIG WINK and CALABAMA.

His first novel, LONELY STREET, was made into a Hollywood comedy starring Robert Patrick, Jay Mohr and Joe Mantegna. BOOST currently is under film/TV option.

Brewer's short fiction appeared in the anthologies DAMN NEAR DEAD, THE LAST NOEL, CRIMES BY MOONLIGHT and WEST COAST CRIME WAVE, and he's published articles in Mystery Scene, Crimespree and Mystery Readers' Journal.

A former journalist and syndicated humor columnist, Brewer now works as a writing coach, book doctor and University of New Mexico lecturer. A frequent speaker at mystery conventions, he was toastmaster at Left Coast Crime in 2011.

Married and the father of two adult sons, Brewer lives in Albuquerque, NM.

More at www.stevebrewer.blogspot.com. Write him at [e-mail].

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A remain a fan, July 28, 2011

By 

J. Salter (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shaky Ground (The Bubba Mabry mysteries) (Kindle Edition)

Steve Brewer's books always catch me...he is one of the wittiest writers around. I really want to have dinner with this guy sometime. His sense of humor matches mine completely.If funny and a bit offbeat is your style, Brewer is the guy to read.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read!, March 3, 2006

By 

New Mexico Fan (Sandia Park, NM United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shaky Ground (Hardcover)

Shaky Ground is another wonderful mystery by Steve Brewer. As a New Mexican, the fact that the story takes place in Rio Rancho, N.M. made the story even more interesting for me. Brewer's wonderful use of descriptive language and humor (Rio Rancho, where every other person's middle name is "the") add even more to his plots. I've read every one of his books and can't wait for the next one.

0 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Just mediocre, February 16, 2006

By 

C. Blanc "Chris Blanc" (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shaky Ground (Hardcover)

It's not terrible, but it's not compelling in any real way. Writing quality is good - witty, moves along well, characterizations are OK - but the mystery is predictable and there's no real change in the characters. Nothing is gained, nothing is lost, except your time reading this. I recommend it to no one.