Like greeting an old friend, I was tickled to find another one of the books in the Savannah Reid series. So, I had barely finished Murder Unleashed when I began reading Poisoned Tarts (2007) by G. A. McKevett. I've blogged about this series before: it is about a southern girl who moved to California, became a cop, and then, after leaving the force, became a private investigator. Savannah is one of those full figured women who is at peace with herself, her body, and her life; I like the series for the characters as well as the way the author unravels the cases.
This book begins shortly before the Halloween season, and Savannah gets caught up in a missing person case that Dirk (her former partner on the San Carmelita police force) has been assigned. The missing girl is named Daisy, and she hangs out with a spoiled little rich girl named Tiffany who is something of a Paris Hilton type. Tiffany has two little rich girl friends, and Daisy is just sort of the fourth member of the group, not totally accepted because she isn't super skinny and super rich.
However, the trio (sporting look alike pink tshirts with skeleton keys) is less than forthcoming when interviewed about their missing friend. Their escapades are well known to the local media--they are party girls who seem a little out of control. Savannah and Dirk are sure the girls know more than they are saying, but Tiffany's rich daddy has hired a great lawyer, and they don't have enough information to pursue things.
In the meantime, Savannah's grandmother is visiting her, and the reader gets more of an insight into the role this woman played in raising Savannah and her 8 brothers and sisters. Gran is a practical woman who reads her Bible and the tabloids with equal enthusiasm; she is lively, curious, compassionate and tough. She also ends up contributing to the investigation, as does Tammy, the young and computer savvy assistant who hacks into databases.
Once Daisy's car is located--and with it, one perfect print from Tiffany--the heat turns up on the Skeleton Key three, as the trio is called. However, Dirk and Savannah are racing against time, as more than 48 hours pass with no sign of Daisy. Back when they were partners on the police force, they had a similar case, and found the missing girl almost dead. She later died, and Maggie still haunts both of them. In spite of the missing girl, the spoiled Tiffany prepares for a big party, and transforms the mansion into a ghoulish set for a horror movie, tragedy strikes.
To find out what happened to Daisy -- and what happened at Tiffany's mansion, check out Poisoned Tarts. You can find it in the WPL mystery section.
c Waterloo Public Library 2008
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