Denise Swanson, Murder of a Botoxed Blonde

Murder of a Botoxed Blonde

Denise Swanson

Signet, March 2007, $6.99, 256 pp.

ISBN 0451221419

Scumble River school psychologist Skye Denison is now a paid consultant in the SRPD. Margot Avanti, owner of a beauty spa and resort on the old Brufeld Estate, asks the "Nancy Drew of Scumble River" to investigate vandalism with holes in the ground and walls that keep appearing. Margot assumes it is treasure hunters seeking the rumored buried jewels hidden by the former owner allegedly somewhere on the property or inside the converted building.

Skye first says no but her best friend persuades her and asks to come along as her guest so she won't have to host Thanksgiving for a horde of relatives. From the very beginning, she knows she isn't the stereotype type of the guest with the emphasis on beauty and being thin. When one of the women, a former high profile model, is murdered, the chief of police wants Skye to help on the investigation. While she is delving into her inquiries, treasure hunters keep appearing on the property and valuable items go missing. The staff have secrets that they are hiding but which one has a secret so deadly he or she is willing to kill to keep it from being revealed?

The Scumble River mysteries are one of the most satisfying cozy series on the market today. The heroine is a perfect role model for anyone. She sticks to her beliefs but isn't inflexible, is strong enough to accept her full-figure size and is bold enough to solve a whodunit that has the police stymied. The romantic triangle between her, Simon the undertaker, and Wally the chief of police jazzes up an already satisfying storyline.

Harriet Klausner