Customer Reviews

Stay At Home Dead (Stay at Home Mystery)

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Jeffrey Allen is the nom de plume alter-ego of thriller writer Jeff Shelby. In his first-in-a-series cozy mystery, Erma Bombeck is reincarnated as a male version of Kinsey Millhone when househusband Deuce Winters "deduces" who put a dead body in his minivan. "I regularly found flyers and business cards on the car windows, but finding a body inside was a completely new and disconcerting experience."

Deuce didn't get his name from playing Texas Hold 'Em. A silly name that's "Not sillier than my real name, Eldrick. Like my dad. I was the second. Hence, the deuce." Two decades ago, Deuce's high school girlfriend, Shayna, dumped him when he blew out his knee in a football game, and later married rival Benny, who now winds up in Deuce's car with a knife in his chest. After half a bottle of vodka, Shayna invites Deuce over---before Benny's body is cold, and then obtains a restraining order.

Thrown into the mix is pint-size PI Victor Anthony Doolittle, a name bigger than his three-foot-four frame. Rose Petal is a tiny Texas town that is "relatively safe---my minivan excepted." Big Hair is the norm in the Dallas suburb where Deuce and his wife Julianne experience the ultimate role reversal: Julianne is a partner in a corporate law firm and Deuce is a stay-at-home dad for their preschooler, Carly.

Between folding laundry and being "Room Dad" at Carly's preschool, Deuce and Doolittle work together to untangle the web woven by people shadier than the ground under ancient oaks. What seems to be idle gossip becomes a slew of clues---or are they a sea of red herrings?

Allen tucks words of wisdom in with wit and humor, when Shayna tells Deuce he has a fairy-tale marriage: "Did she really think it was a fairy tale? Julianne and I were happy and in love, but our marriage was work, just like anyone else's. [T]he key to getting the accolades was acting like you didn't deserve them." This in spite of what the author said: "I just wanted to write something that made me laugh. I didn't plan on ever seeing it in print because I put so much ridiculousness into the book."

Allen wrote a laugh riot. This is a delightful read despite dubious legal procedures. Allen's next in the Stay At Home Dad series is due in October 2012. There are three words that every author wants to hear: I. Want. More.

Stay At Home Dead (Stay at Home Mysteries)

Reviewed by L. Dean Murphy

This debut novel started off with a laugh and a dead body. What more could a reader of cozy murders want?

Mr. Allen has a firm handle on how children speak and think. I found I liked the characters, sleuth-stay-at-home Daddy, Deuce Winters, his wife, attorney, Julianne, and charming daughter, Carly.

Mr. Allen has accepted the very hard job of being a househusband, even to the point of being the classroom Dad. He is holding his own but finds himself at a loss when he and Carly find a dead man sitting in their mini-van while grocery shopping.

We, as readers, are brought into small town life in a Texas town, Rose Petal. The women feel they own the PTA and old likes and dislikes still fester among the citizens. As Mr. Winters tries to decide if he needs a bit more in his life, he is framed for the murder. Even more startling is that his ex-girlfriend, wife of the deceased, hits him with a Temporary Restraining Order...what is that all about?

I liked this book for a debut and see great potential for a long-lived series.

Three years ago, Deuce Winters gave up his job as a high school teacher and football coach to become a stay at home dad, a choice that his friends have had a hard time accepting. But he loves spending his day with daughter Carly and even being the Room Dad at her pre-school.

But things take a bad turn when he returns from a grocery shopping trip, Carly in tow, to find a dead body in the family minivan. Even worse, the dead man is Benny. Twenty years ago, Benny tackled Deuce at a high school football game and ended Deuce's football career. Then, when Deuce's high school girlfriend dumped him, Benny married her. With the detective assigned to the case focusing in on Deuce, he decides to rustle up some other suspects. Who had a real motive for the murder?

I was intrigued as soon as I heard about this book since finding a male lead in a cozy series is hard. I enjoyed this book. The characters were what won me over. While Deuce could be an idiot at times, he always meant well, and I loved the relationship he had with his wife. Then there's Carly, who is so cute and perfectly captures a three year old. The rest of the cast was colorful and memorable, and I loved them or loved to hate them.

The plot was weak, however. I felt the mystery could have been better developed, although it did seem that there was something going on. It just didn't always feel like the mystery was progressing. That's probably one reason I thought the climax was pretty weak.

Another grip? The timeline was all out of whack. By my calculations, the story took place over 8 or 9 days in a row, all of them weekdays.

Still, I'll give Deuce a second chance. This was overall an entertaining read.

What a fun debut! Stay-at-home dad, Deuce, finds a dead body in his minivan and when the town's gossip has him all but convicted, Deuce looks into this case to clear his name with help from unlikely sources. This is a light-hearted, fun-filled, and well-written who-dun-it that I enjoyed immensely. The mystery was a good one that had me guessing and when I thought I had the killer's identity in my grasp, the author changed direction. I love the people in Deuce's world; especially scene-stealer Carly. The clever storyline, the comfortable ambiance, the enjoyable banter and likeable cast are the beginnings of a charmingly amusing and wonderful series that is a welcome addition to the cozy genre.

Rose Petal, Texas is a small town in which everyone remains up to date on the latest happenings especially scandals, misdemeanors and felonies. The townsfolk struggle with accepting that Deuce Winters is a househusband while his wife Julianne is a high powered attorney. Whereas she brings in the income, he is the primary caretaker of their three years old daughter Carly.

Nobody is more shocked than this father and daughter when they find the corpse of Benny Barnes inside their van parked in a supermarket lot. Overwhelmingly the locals assume Deuce killed the man responsible for destroying the "suspect's" football career and stealing his girlfriend Shayna over twenty years ago in high school. The clique of parents at the daycare center demands the removal Deuce as a school helper, which is symptomatic of others' belief that Deuce is a killer. Shayna asks him to come over, which he reluctantly does. She follows up by taking out a restraining order to keep him away from her. Life turns stranger when Victor the "little person" detective follows Deuce around town; conducting a surveillance for a client he refuses to name. Determined to clear his name, Deuce with Victor and Julianne's assistance investigates the murder; only to find a business plan turn deadly.

Stay At Home Dead is a charming (except if you are the beleaguered protagonist) creative cozy starring a likable hero and his spouse. She protects his interests and that of a daughter like a lioness. The plot seems simple as it smoothly flows until a twist turns the story line into a wild rapids ride as readers ponder what is going on in Rose Petal. Deuce makes the tale work as a househusband and an amateur sleuth.

Harriet Klausner