Single Girl's Guide to Murder
Joanne Meyer
Kensington, Mar 2005, $12.95, 291 pp.
ISBN: 0758202644

NYPD Homicide Detective Andy Faluso heads the investigation into the murder of professional escort Dick Kordell. The prime suspect is wannabe actress and super mannequin model dummy Karen Doucette because she was dating the deceased just shortly before he died. Andy has focused on her as he is in her Manhattan kitchen as much as her refrigerator and on the phone with her so frequently he must have communication stock. Interestingly he believes she is innocent.

Karen admits to herself she wanted him dead for cheating on her with her ex best friend, but she just dropped both of them, not killing anyone. Still someone who knew of her relationship with the late lover has left evidence to hang Karen. Concerned that Andy, who she likes having around, will arrest her, Karen poses as a freelance journalist to interview Kordell's wealthy female clients to determine who wanted that Dick dead.

THE SINGLE GIRL'S GUIDE TO MURDER is a lighthearted New York amateur sleuth tale with obvious police procedural elements. The storyline reflects the heroine, a cool, breezy, and nice person. The murder investigations (professionally and amateurish) nicely contrast one another especially when ironically the reader knows why Andy spends so much time with Karen while she remains clueless. Joanne Meyer writes a fun Manhattan mystery that in spite of an Irish Stew queen sized ending deserves chapter two in Karen's guide to mayhem and bad cooking.

Harriet Klausner