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A KEVIN R. TIPPLE BOOK REVIEW:
Scrub-a-Dub Dead: A Charlotte LaRue Mystery by Barbara Colley
This book came to me by way of my attendance at HHCC Convention in Dallas last June. Once I realized that not only was the book set in Louisiana (New Orleans to be precise) and that the novel and series was written by a Louisiana native and resident of New Orleans, I knew this book would have to be the selection for this edition. While it isn't a book I would have picked up on my own while browsing, I found it a fairly enjoyable cozy style mystery though Charlotte is just a bit of a snoop and I'm not sure I would want to hire her in real life.
Scrub-a-Dub Dead: A Charlotte LaRue Mystery Barbara Colley Kensington Books http://www.kensingtonbooks.com January, 2007 Hardback ISBN # 0-7582-0766-2
Hurricane Katrina has come and gone and for Charlotte LaRue living and working in the Garden District of the City of New Orleans, life has returned to normal. Most of her clients for her business "Maid-for-a-Day" have weathered the storm just fine and business is once again going well. Because Charlotte owes a favor to her friend Carrie who owns a commercial cleaning operation as opposed to Charlotte's domestic company, she has agreed to help her out by filling in at the New Orleans Jazzy Hotel for the next two weeks. It will be a change of pace for her and a tight schedule since she plans on continuing to make sure her own company's clients are well taken care of just like normal.
The hotel is currently hosting a convention of the "Red Scarf Sorority" and despite all of Charlotte's planning; things aren't going to be easy. The society may consider themselves a group of the best women over forty but they have apparently taken over the market on petty bickering and backstabbing and raised it to new heights. After overhearing several conversations that were thick with deceit, deep dark secrets and threats, Charlotte is still shocked when a guest is murdered.
Before long, when she isn't actually cleaning rooms in the hotel, Charlotte is actively investigating the case and asking questions everywhere, reading files left out on the open, and generally making a pest of herself. Driven by curiosity more than anything else and an apparently uncontrollable need to know all the dirt on everyone, Charlotte becomes a repository of disconnected scraps of information. As she cleans, listens, and snoops into everything, she gradually not only begins to solve the case but as expected, ultimately makes herself the target of the killer.
This is the sixth novel in the series and the first I have read. It is fairly clear that this novel is constructed to tie up some loose ends from earlier in the series as numerous flashbacks to other issues and books are scattered throughout the work. As such, the recurring characters, particularly the main character of Charlotte LaRue seem to have been fully developed previously and no real character development occurs in this novel.
It was only after I finished the book that I read the acknowledgement page where fellow Kensington author Evan Marshall is thanked. Those familiar with his numerous books on how to write and market books to publishers as well as his own "Jane Stuart and Winky Mystery" series also from Kensington will recognize the fact that Author Barbara Colley follows his formula very well. The style of writing is to assemble a large cast of characters related by blood or birth, a hook at the end of almost every chapter and the increasing need to suspend disbelief in favor of coincidence as the novel progresses toward a happy feel good ending.
Barbara Colley follows the formula very well and the result is a lighthearted fun read at 244 pages (including recipes) that pleasantly passes the time. While certainly not for everyone, it fits well within its market and genre and is certain to please its core audience.
Kevin R. Tipple © 2007 |