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Patricia Schuster acquires both independence and furniture polish after inheriting her grandmother’s house and antique business. Her new life in the Northern California town of Lakeville is in jeopardy, however, when she is falsely arrested for stealing a rare 1950’s Cadillac and is blackmailed by Jimmy, a toothpick-wielding used-car salesman. When the real car thief ends up dead, she turns to her grandmother’s friends—four women in their golden years who play fast and loose with the law. But how far over the line will Patricia have to go to find a killer and clear her name?
Reviews
Philipp’s tongue is firmly in cheek in this goofy, entertaining series debut. Graphic artist Patricia Schuster, who has hit a professional dead end, gets a chance to start over when she inherits her grandmother’s house and antique business in Lakeville, a short distance north of San Francisco. But when Patricia drives a drunken friend home without knowing her friend’s car has been reported stolen, she gets arrested for stealing it. This humiliation turns into something more complex when her friend drowns in a swimming pool. Aided by some of her late grandmother’s close friends, including the widow of a mobster, Patricia plays gumshoe while falling for the hunky son of the officer who arrested her. The ending is a bit over the top, but Philipp’s light touch and the endearing romantic subplot bode well for the sequel. (BookLife)
