Kyra Davis, Obsession, Deceit and Really Dark Chocolate

Obsession, Deceit and Really Dark Chocolate

Kyra Davis

Red Dress Ink, $13.95

ISBN 9780373895533

San Francisco mystery writer Sophie Katz's former college advisor Melanie O'Reilly asks her to do a favor. She wants to know who killed her husband Eugene, a former FBI agent, in a drive by shooting.

Sophie enlists the help of Russian expatriate private investigator her former lover Anatoly Darinsky and plenty of caffeine. They investigate starting with Eugene's last job, a staff researcher for republican congressional candidate Flynn Fitzgerald in his race against democrat Anne Brooke. As they dig deeper, they find that one of the candidates has an unusual fetish. As Sophie is stalked by an unknown adversary, she wonders if Eugene uncovered the dark truth, which if revealed would doom the congressional run and might be the motive for a deliberate drive by shooting.

Sophie's third zany whodunit (see PASSION, BETRAYAL AND KILLER HIGHLIGHTS and SEX, MURDER AND A DOUBLE LATTE) is an entertaining madcap San Francisco romp. The heroine lands in one predicament after another as she follows the clues while someone follows her. Readers who enjoy a chick lit private investigative thriller starring a person who proves there really is a warm San Franciscan night will want to read Katz's capers as the mystery is fun and the satirical social commentary superb though even though the sleuth's supporters would agree she needs to be on decaf.

Harriet Klausner