Carolyn Haines Bones to Pick

Bones to Pick

Carolyn Haines

Kensington, July 2006, $22.00, 304 pp.

ISBN: 0758210906

After her failure to attain her dream of becoming an actress, Sarah Booth Delaney returned to her hometown of Zinnia, Mississippi to try and save her childhood home Dahlia House. She succeeds after stealing her future partner's dog and collecting the fee. Now the business is doing will and the business is gaining recognition and rich clients. Except for her love life, Sara Booth's life is perfect even if the household haunt Jitty, a servant of a former Delaney occupant, nags her to get married and have children.

Her latest case is to find out who killed Quentin McGee, a writer who dished out the dirt on the rich and powerful in her tell-all book. The police have arrested Allison Tatum whose shoeprint were found at the murder scene and witnesses reported a lover's quarrel believe the victim and the suspect shortly before she died. The problem in this case is that there are so many other people who wanted Quentin dead because she laid bare their secrets for the whole world to know. As with every case involving Sarah Booth, she winds up in danger but this time her partner is also in the hands of a dangerous serial killer.

Carolyn Haines is a writer that always delivers a charming crime caper that is a combination delightful and humorous regional mystery inside a foreboding southern gothic. Readers will enjoy this terrific tale whether they solve the case or not because BONES TO PICK is a beguiling tale. A fast paced plot, a creative storyline and excellent drawn characters make this cozy something out of the ordinary.

Harriet Klausner