Customer Reviews

The Trouble With a Bad Fit: A Novel of Food, Fashion, and Mystery (Simona Griffo Mysteries)

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

 

 

Advertising executive and amateur sleuth Simona Griffo, her live-in lover Stan, and his son Willie leave the city for a vacation at the Pyne's Cottage on Long Island. When her two guys leave to go camping in New Hampshire, Simona decides to stay on the island a little longer. A new friend Bud Warren wants Simona to prove that his ex-spouse was murdered instead of committing suicide. Simona, along with her partner, illegal Russian immigrant Dimitri start their investigation only to have their client disappear. ...... At first, it is believed that Bud has purposely vanished because he knew that he was about to be accused of killing his former wife. However, that theory proves false when Bud's corpse is found floating in the lake. The authorities rule suicide, but Simona thinks otherwise. Bud never went rowing without wearing his life jacket, yet the protective device was found in a different locale, a distance from the corpse. The daughter of the two so-called suicide victim hires Simona and Dimitri to investigate both deaths even though she thinks the culprit is someone she dearly loves. The detective duo uncovers numerous suspects, who have means and motives. As they get closer to uncovering the truth, they place their own lives in jeopardy. ....... Camilla T. Crespi has an amazing talent that makes reading her novels seem like eating potato chips. It is impossible to stop reading until you have devoured the entire book. Even then the audience will open up another bag and devour a previous novel in the series. THE TROUBLE WITH A HOT SUMMER has no troubles as it captures the atmosphere of a Long Island summer among the Robin Leach crowd. However, it is Simona's relationship with the various characters that turn this mystery into a delightful novel. Whip up a batch of Simona's cool pesta dish for lunch and enjoy a fulfilling reading experience. .....Harriet Klausner

The mystery genre has expanded since it's "Golden Age", to encompass and indeed embrace many new forms. Now we have funny murders, cat detectives, and women who love their guns best, to amuse us alongside the classic puzzle or even no puzzle at all. Yet hidden deep inside the heart of every well written mystery one thing must remain, suspense. Every good mystery must supply the reader with a question that must be answered. That why or how or who creates the suspense and adrenaline surge that readers seek from a good mystery. Camilla Crespi does not seem to yet understand this basic need. Her latest book " The Trouble with a Bad Fit" is tailored to please everyone and succeeds in pleasing no one. The only thing she got right was the title. Pale humor, soft characterization, a recipe here and there (because it is so trendy) cannot disguise or distract from the book's basic lack of suspense filled heart. And because the plot seems as unimportant to me as it obviously did to the writer, I will not try to will it back to conciousness here, but will merely leave one final clue: fluff in disguise.

I passed this book around to all my friends and family. Everyone loved it .We all cooked along with the author Camilla. Nana

I could not put the book down. It held my interest & I worked to guess who the killer was. I am a native New Yorker, and familiar with many of the neighborhoods involved and much of how the Garment Center works. The authors appendices at the end were helpful for someone not familiar with the Garment Center and what goes on. The character is fun, the food interesting. The only reason I gave it a nine, was two minor mistakes about New York. Take it to the beach this summer & mangia!

I have been reading mysteries for about two years now, and I have been shocked at how serious most of them are. I realize that murder is a heavy subject, but if I want grim details accompaning medical/criminal facts, I would read the newspaper. Camila T. Crespi offers a refreshing heroine who doesn't take herself too seriously. In fact, Simona Griffo isn't even a professional detective. Rather, she is a working woman who lets her curiosity get her into situations where she doesn't belong. Crespi's characters in Bad Fit are not incredibly complex, but they are interesting. It is fun to be able to unwind the mystery with the heroine which rarely happens in mysteries because the reader isn't often on the same level as the heroine. I reccommend Bad Fit (or any of Crespi's other mysteries) to anyone who wants a quick-paced, interesting, and fun mystery.