Customer Reviews

In the Wash: The Rona Shively Stories

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This novella is recommended for:
1. Fans of the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich
2. People who like murder mysteries
3. People with short attention spans
4. All of the above

Just in case you fall under category 3, I'll make this quick.

Main character:

Rona Shively, Private Detective, 38 years old, petite, single and available, did time, domestically challenged, foul-mouthed, drives ugly car and has no aversion to alcohol or fast food.

Assignment:

Locate missing person

Possible problems:

a. Missing person's uncle is a crime boss
b. Missing person has undergone significant lifestyle changes
c. People are starting to get killed
d. Effeminate neighbor is getting too close for comfort
e. Nothing appears to be as it seems

Humor, mystery and murder combine here in an all-too-short but thoroughly enjoying read, and I'm really looking forward to the next Rona Shively Story.




Amanda Richards, June 20, 2007

Rona Shively's life IS full of surprises. As a private investigator, she finds herself in more trouble than she bargained for when she takes on a missing person's case: looking for an ex-wife who has changed her lifestyle drastically. As though that didn't present enough trouble, Rona escapes murder by a thread until it finally surprises her 'In The Wash'--room that is. During all the difficulties, Rona is faced with a chance to love and be loved, but will her tendency not to trust anyone keep her from this very aspect of life a woman desires so badly? I liked Rona Shively because she's so down-to-earth. She's tough, but underneath that toughness lies a tender heart. The story is good, the plotting great. Rebecca Benston draws you into the story from the first page. Read the book. It's a delightful, but short, mystery.

In the Wash is a mystery, the first in a series for which the sleuthing protagonist is Rona Shively. Rona is an interesting character whom Benston describes as "feisty, fearless and fabulous."

Here comes the short summary: Rona Shively has already been a detective for some time when this book begins. She is thirty-eight years old, has problems with her personal relationships, and in the case which this book recounts, has problems with her professional life, as well. She is hired to find a person named Luther Janetti, who has lived an interesting life. While on this search, Rona catches the attention of her annoying neighbor, hears conflicting stories concerning her client, and finds herself in mortal danger.

Now, on to the pros and cons of this book...

For one thing, Benston knows how to put a sentence together adequately. It is not hard to read her writing. This mystery is a short, light read. This is the sort of story a person might want to bring along on a trip to the beach.

Another factor is the plot. Obviously, I can't give too much detail, particularly as this book is rather short, but the plot is kind of crazy. The first three chapters immediately convey the fact that Benston is not an author to write about the mundane. Even the description of the person Rona is hired to find causes the reader to raise his or her eyebrows and say, "Ooh...I need to know more!"

Unfortunately, the read is not as engaging as the first three chapters led me to believe. To be fair, this is the first book in the series, and Benston's writing might get smoother in her later books. With regards to this first book, however, I felt that it was a bit under-developed.

The plot is interesting, but the conclusion felt too hasty. The book was wrapped up too quickly. Really, the entire book feels like it should have been fleshed out a little more. There are quite a number of characters introduced, but I didn't often feel like I comprehended their personality. And at times, the manner in which the action occurred felt a bit mechanical.

However, Benston's subject matter in this first book was intriguing. She seems to be an author who has really interesting ideas. Also, In the Wash is a quick read, which is often desirable.

The protagonist of this story, Rona Shively, bears a superficial resemblance to Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. Both are sassy, loudmouthed single gals, living alone with their pet for company. Both drive crappy cars, both are short and too pretty to be taken seriously in their chosen line of work, and both like to eat greasy food. The author was obviously inspired by Evanovich's success but chose to take her mysteries in a different direction. Instead of writing fluffy slapstick Benston takes on a darker subject.

As a struggling private detective Rona Shively has seen a lot of strange things in her day, but Gilbert Delvecchio is definitely a first. He needs her to find his missing ex-wife. The ex is now remarried and living under a different name but they have still remained friends and Gil is worried.

The case turns out to be much more complex than Rona anticipated. One of her contacts is murdered and she becomes afraid the same fate will befall anyone she lets into her confidence. This leaves her working alone without a safety net. Her paranoia follows her into her personal life where she pushes away her suitors. Rona is determined to not ask for help from anyone, not even if she really needs it.

At just under one hundred pages, this book is more of a novella than a novel. For such a thin volume it is surprising just how much plot is crammed into the pages. Rebecca Benston doesn't waste any words. She uses the flow of the narrative to fill us in on Rona's back-story and motivation while still keeping the action moving along to the inevitable conclusion.

This series should be popular with readers who enjoy tough, out-spoken female leads. The next one in the series is expected in July titled Under Lock and Key.

Rona Shively is a private investigator. With her small frame, no one would ever believe that Rona was capable of succeeding in her chosen career. Yet she is doing okay. Rona's good friend, Norman Dent, is not only helping Rona find and purchase a decent vehicle, but also sent Rona her latest client.

Gilbert Delvecchio is looking for his ex-wife, Lucy, who often calls Gilbert to check in and chat awhile. Lucy is now named Luther Janetti and seems to have dropped off the radar. Gilbert is worried, especially since Janus Gofski, a big crime boss, has a hit out on Luther! What is the hit for? Who really knows? It could be something to do with gambling, messing up with the laundry mat business Gofski had given Luther, or perhaps because Luther married Gofski's favorite niece (Rita Gofski) without informing anyone that he used to be a she. Seems Gofski is interested in Gilbert's meeting with Rona too. Two of Gofski's henchmen have been following Gilbert and now they begin following Rona.

Rona starts doing what she does best, research. Rona begins to slowly put pieces of the puzzle together, never stopping to think that Gofski's men might harm anyone crazy enough to help her case along. Rona realizes that she had best complete this case fast or she may be the next one to die.

**** This is a short, but expensive, mystery novel. There is less than one hundred pages in the book, however, the book is oversized. I figure it rounds out to about two hundred pages in a normal sized paperback. The action moves along at a pretty good pace. I never had time to get bored. The only real problem is that after page seventy-five typos began to appear. (Nothing a spell checker would catch though.) Do not worry. Chances are most people will never even notice the errors. All-in-all, this mystery is definitely worth your time to read. I hope to catch the next case of Rona Shively in the near future. ****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

Rebecca has given us a very well written, if short, novella to enjoy. Her writing style is similar to that of Kim Harrison, so fans of Kim's works should take a moment out of their day and pick up "In the Wash"! I'm looking forward to future works from this author.

Reviewed by Ellen Hogan for Reader Views (5/07)

Rona Shively is a private detective who is hired by Gilbert Delvecchio to find his ex-wife. The problem is now his ex-wife is a man and remarried to Rita Gofski. The case intrigues her, so she takes it and starts making inquiries to the whereabouts of Luther Janetti formerly Lucy Deardon.

Rona goes and sees a friend Kimball McInaney; after eating dinner they look at a book that Kimball has. Rona and Kimball met in prison and the book contained information on other convicts in the prison. Kimball opened the book to a page on Rita Gofski. She had been in prison on a drug charge. After getting the information, Rona leaves Kimball's apartment. She sees a man go into the building she has just left and waits around. Then she goes back in and finds Kimball dead.

Rona is a hard as nails investigator whose job comes first and relationships come second. She rationalizes every move that she makes. "While I waited for the police, I thought about how it might look if they found Kimball's notebook. Some of the people in that binder were cops. Quickly, I looked around the apartment for the binder we had been working from earlier. It lay on Kimball's dresser in the bedroom. I picked it up and ran for the door. The cops didn't need to know that I had been there. My call had been anonymous and I really just wanted to make sure someone knew what had happened."

Along the way, other friends of Rona's get involved and she tries to keep them safe. She also gets to know her neighbor Charles. But the relationship that matters to Rona is the one developing between herself and her best friend Norman Dent.

There are close calls and a shootout to make the book interesting. Once you start it you want to keep going and find out what is going on. It is a quick read, but worth every minute.

Anyone who loves a good mystery will love this book. It keeps your interest from the first word and hold on till the end. I would highly recommend "In the Wash" -- as a mystery reader, I enjoyed it very much.

Received book free of charge.