The Big Dirt Nap: A Dirty Business Mystery (Dirty Business Mysteries) (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Maybe I'd have had a drink with the guy if I had known the next time I saw him he'd be sprawled out in a..." (more)
Key Phrases: corpse flower, titan arum, Nick Vigoriti, Michelin Man, Bernie Mishkin (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Harris's cute second dirty business mystery (after 2008's Pushing Up Daisies), landscape designer Paula Holliday is thrilled when her TV producer friend, Lucy Cavanaugh, suggests an all-expenses-paid getaway for the two of them to the Titans Hotel in Connecticut wine country. Paula even wangles a Springfield Bulletin gig to write about the titan arum (aka the corpse flower) on display under glass in the hotel lobby because the bloom smells so bad. When Lucy fails to appear and the dead body of new acquaintance Nick Vigoriti turns up on the hotel's loading dock, Paula considers returning home. Det. Stacy Winters's investigation persuades a TV reporter that Paula is a person of interest in Nick's murder, but Paula is more worried she might become the killer's next victim. The nifty puzzle that unfolds involves Native American casinos, mysterious Russians and that stinky slow-blooming flower. Author tour. (Feb.)
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Review

Praise for The Big Dirt Nap

“An absolute must-read for cozy lovers. Readers of Susan Wittig Albert and Earlene Fowler will relish Rosemary Harris’s exceptionally engaging new voice. Harris’s delightfully witty A Dirty Business series is in full flower.”
- Julia Spencer-Fleming, Edgar finalist and author of I Shall Not Want

"A wild and funny ride...a lot of fun to read."
- Crimespree Magazine


Praise for Pushing Up Daisies

“Quirky, original, and captivating . . . a sure-to-please series.”
- Carolyn Hart, author of the Death on Demand series

“Think Diana Mott Davidson’s caterer extraordinaire Goldy Schulz or Earlene Fowler’s Benni Harper. Harris plots out a good story.”
- Omaha World-Herald

“An appealing main character . . . Recommend this to fans of Veronica Heley’s series starring avid gardener Ellie Quicke.”
- Booklist

“If you like gardens and like reading mysteries, this is the book for you--a clever mystery full of garden lore, fast-paced and engaging, with a heroine who isn’t afraid to get down in the dirt.”
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“Sophisticated social comedy, romance, and murder could give Harris a wide readership beyond the fans of amateur sleuth books.”
- Connecticut Post

“With sassy wit and smart plotting, Paula Holliday is a sleuth to watch.”
- Susan Wittig Albert, author of the China Bayles herbal mysteries

“Contemporary cozies, such as Pushing Up Daisies…are reinventing themselves with likable female amateur sleuths who are smarter, less nosey, and able to work their investigations plausibly into their daily routines.…A charming debut.”
- Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1 edition (February 17, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312369689
• ISBN-13: 978-0312369682
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #115,103 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fun read!, March 30, 2009

By	Monica Garcia "ReadingWithMonie.com" (Arlington, Texas USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Paula Holliday's friend Lucy has invited her for an all-expense-paid trip to the Titans Hotel. Lucy is there to do an investigative story on the hotel and Paula, who owns Dirty Business gardening and landscape company, is there to see the famed corpse flower on display at the hotel.

Shortly after Paula arrives she runs into Nick Vigoriti. A good looking ladies man who refuses to accept the brush off and doggedly tries to pick her up. Next thing you know the police are knocking on Paula's door because Nick is dead. And worse yet, Lucy is missing. Somehow the two are tied together but when the police refuse to investigate the disappearance Paula starts asking questions that make people nervous.

Judging a book by the cover is supposed to be a no-no but I did and I was not all that excited about reading this book. Boy was I mistaken. This book is hilarious. Paula cracked me up from the opening line to the very end.

I'll share my favorite scene so you get an idea... With both Paula and Lucy in full Goth make up (don't ask LOL) they scare the heck out of a convenience store clerk. Paula then terrifies him further when she calls him by name.

"Chill. You name's on your shirt." I peeled off a few dollars,
then hurried Lucy out of the store, but not before sticking my
head back in and telling the frightened clerk to have a nice day.

The book is filled with those kinds of witty interactions and I couldn't get enough. The characters are well described that I could easily picture each and every one. This was the second book in the Dirty Business mystery series and it stands alone as I have not yet read book one, Pushing Up Daisies, which is now on my wish list. I highly recommend this one to all cozy mystery lovers.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mud baths, mayhem, money, and murder, March 24, 2009

By	Sacramento Book Review "SacramentoBookReview.com" (Sacramento, CA) - See all my reviews

The second installment in the Dirty Business Mystery series, "The Big Dirt Nap," is reminiscent of titles Raymond Chandler or Dashiell Hammett may have given one of their Masterpieces of sly slouthing. Rosemary Harris does them both honor by using Chandler-esque "cheesy-dry" humor and Hammett-like dialogue. And, just for good measure, the action never stops for the main character, Paula Holliday.

Paula thought she was in for a relaxing girls' weekend while writing a feature article for a local news rag about the beautiful, but rare corpse flower on display at the once bustling Titans Hotel. Unfortunately for Paula, the man flirting with her at the hotel bar ends up becoming a corpse himself; and after several cryptic text messages from her friend Lucy, who goes missing, Paula is forced to put her detecting skills to work.

Throughout the novel, Harris's hero constantly internalizes her insecurities about being a part-time reporter, and a single, 35-year-old, fledgling gardening entrepreneur living in the posh suburbs of Connecticut with an aversion to making new friends. Such an insecure disposition is a pre-requisite for this genre; these internal monologues make for a fun frolic through the psyche of the protagonist and keeps the pages turning.

Reviewed by Joe Kopaczynski

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good but not as much fun as the first book, March 15, 2009

By	W. Oliver (Alabama) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I really enjoyed the author's last book - the first in a series - Pushing Up Daisies: A Dirty Business Mystery (Dirty Business Mysteries) - and was looking forward to this follow-up. "The Big Dirt Nap" brings back Paula Holliday, wise-cracking landscaper, and this time she gets caught up in a hotel/casino related murder while doing an article on a corpse flower. The writing is very good and engaging, the characters are well developed and the humor is good. I didn't enjoy this outing as much however. The plot is not that interesting and, unfortunate for garden lovers, there is little gardening in this one. Still, I would recommend it and I will try the next installment.