Zany Renovations in Tuscany by Ivanka Di Felice

A decade ago, Canadians Ivanka and David Di Felice moved it Italy, and David acquired Italian citizenship thanks to his Italian parents. That's when Ivanka began chronicling their adventure with her delightful series of well-written and perfectly edited Zany Italy books. This is book three and it, like the others, treats us to her comic perspective on making a new life in Italy.

Comedy is difficult to write, but seemingly not so difficult for Mrs. Di Felice. She is blessed with that special talent of being able to be in a situation, yet also see it from an outsider's perspective, thus she can see the humor in even the oddest, most frustrating situations. If you were ever curious about starting a new life in Italy, you will get a very accurate impression from this book and the previous two books.

The books to date in the Zany Italy series:

1. A Zany Slice of Italy
2. A Zany Slice of Tuscany
3. Zany Renovations in Tuscany
4. One still to come...

Book 1 in her Zany Memoirs, an Amazon Bestseller

The subject of this book is one that most readers will find very odd: the couple renovate a rental property. Dilapidated dumps are seemingly often rented out in Italy, with the owners expecting the renters to fix them up, and install a kitchen and heating on their own dime. Welcome to Italy! We are treated to vignettes with neighbors, workmen, animals, landlords, other immigrants, and family members.

The internet is transforming Italy just as it is transforming the rest of the world. Products are available online for home delivery, including a vast array of second-hand articles, which the economical couple take advantage of, even with the frustrating experiences with couriers. There are also some wonderful experiences with Italians who drive for hours to find just the right piece, and for some adventure on the weekend.

 Book 2 in her Zany Memoirs, also an Amazon Besteseller

There is a wonderful level of maturity in this book, now that Ivanka has reached the half-century mark, and lived in Italy for a decade. She is more patient and accepting of the drawbacks of Italian life, like the archaic banking and other service sectors, including a government that doesn't consider itself a service. As Ivanka says:

One of the reasons we came to Italy was for the slower pace of lie; now we have it and can't complain.

My favorite chapter in this book is “Happy Anniversary” (except for when they leave the dogs in the car!) because it shows the development of her relationship with her in-laws who were featured prominently in the first book. Part of her mellowing with them is due to great loss: many of the family's elderly relatives have passed away over the decade, and her own father sadly passed away sending the author into a long period of grief.

Ivanka's Memoirs About her Unusual Childhood in Canada

My biggest worry for Mrs. Di Felice is that her husband is using her for a workhorse, just as mine did for years, and that she will pay for it as I have, with many physical debilities. Stop that, David Di Felice! Stop that, right now! With their home fixed up, and hidden from the owner so he won't sell it out from under them or rent out at a higher rate, the author deserves some rest and recuperation, for the rest of her days, if you ask me!

I look forward to book number four, which the author says will be the last. I'm not convinced, however. Her quirky mind, and constantly evolving life in Italy will provide much more comic material in the years to come.

From the book's description:

When Ivanka and David Di Felice discover the downside of their “too good to be true” Chianti region house, they resume searching for their dream home in Tuscany.

Join them on a harrowing journey as professional house hunters, while you peek into Tuscan villas, apartments, and haylofts. At long last, they find an idyllic spot, surrounded by rolling hills graced with vineyards and olive groves, distant stone villas, and clusters of cypress trees. But the home has been vacant for years. Follow their adventures as they embark on renovations, endeavouring to bring the abandoned house and garden back to life.

If you’ve ever imagined packing it in and moving to Italy, the book also provides practical advice on how to do so.

As always, a cast of quirky characters enters their lives, and the author’s candid, sympathetic viewpoint captures their charm and the local color.

Can Ivanka and David finally relax and sit back with a bottle of Chianti wine to watch the sun set over the Tuscan hills? Escape to Italy in this witty, heartfelt travel memoir, Zany Renovations, to find out.

This book can be read as a stand-alone or feel free to tag along for more laugh out loud adventures in Italy by reading Ivanka's A Zany Slice of Italy and A Zany Slice of Tuscany.

Here is a direct link to the book at Amazon.com:

A Year In Tuscany by Annie Ayre

Fans of English soap-operas should enjoy this dramady (drama-comedy) novel set in Italy's beautiful Tuscany region.  Rich, poor, criminals, priest... all the usual suspects for soaps are present.

The story is set in 1987 when Italy was dealing with kidnappings and homegrown terrorists.  The protagonists in this multi-strand tale deal with all sorts of odd happenings, with love stories at the center of most of it.  The author keeps all events, not matter how serious, light, with superficial emotions attached to them.

Very English tongue-in-cheek humor dots the story throughout.  One rich family in possession of a large estate acts as a hub around which all the other characters and events circle out.

We get to know the thinking of lots of locals and ex-patriots through the drama, gossip, and farcical situations.  The ending brings all the people and story threads together with a semblance of a happy-ending.

This is a beach read, or something to enjoy when relaxing poolside, preferably with a view of Tuscany, and a cool drink in hand.

From the book's description:

A comic novel set in the scenic Tuscan hills.

When the Duke of Grambörg announces over breakfast that he will sell the old family villa in the Tuscan hills to move to New York, his family is in uproar.

Where on earth will his beautiful daughters, the contessas Claudia and Hanna, live – now they no longer have the family seat?

And that, as it turns out, is just the beginning of the escapades that ensue after the old Danish duca makes his life-changing decision.

Will local poor boy-turned rich man, Osvaldo Cipollina, find a way to buy the villa?

Hopelessly in love with Hanna, will he ever manage to persuade her to see past his humble beginnings, not to mention his dubiously acquired wealth, and return his feelings?

Will the haughty Claudia ever be reconciled with her aristocratic husband: Lord Eastcliffe?

With a cast of characters as rich as a medieval tapestry, there is just no knowing what will happen next in this finely tuned comic novel.

From Lo Strapazzato – “The Scrambled One” – who is a little too fond of arson, to the international diamond smuggler with a taste for fine wines, to the mysterious American cousin of Osvaldo’s who arrives wearing a veil – everyone in this corner of Italy, it seems, has a secret.

That’s not to mention a sultry belle from the American deep south, an Australian crooner, and, at the heart of it all, the perfect sunshine of the Tuscan countryside.

A Year In Tuscany is a delightful story that will appeal to lovers of the English comic novel.

Here is a direct link to the book at Amazon.com:

Giovanni Goes to Med School by Kathy Bryson

This is the first book in a series of humorous novellas set in a medical school in Atlanta, featuring Italian-American student Giovanni and his misadventures with supernatural forces.  I enjoyed the quirky humor in a very realistic seeming hospital setting.  The humor is light and at times dry, and it keeps the same tone through all the surprising events. 

The author also has a trio of contemporary romance books (award-winning) out that have the same light humor and paranormal fun.  This is book one in the series.

Giovanni is a sympathetic character, a young man who is struggling to forge a new path in his life away from his family in New Jersey.  The story moves along smoothly, with unexpected twists and turns, all with poor Giovanni struggling to be a decent, caring human being, and a medical professional under very trying circumstances.  I really felt for the guy!  He's a decent man in a very odd situation trying to do the best for his patient, no matter how weird the situation.

This is book two in her romance-paranormal trio

You could call this a horror story, but I like to think of it as a Twilight Zone story, with believable people experiencing very odd things.  The humane ending is touching, and fits well with the underlying decency throughout the story.  Very entertaining!

Book three in her trio of contemporary romances with paranormal elements

From the description of Giovanni Goes to Med School:

Everyone knows zombies aren’t real, no matter how fun. You don’t have to be a med student to know the dead do not get up and walk around in real life. Anyone who’s buried a pet in the backyard knows the dead don’t walk. They don’t even lurch.

So Giovanni is stunned when his patient sits up in the morgue and starts scolding. The night-shift was supposed be a relief, a chance to study in quiet and off-set ridiculous student loans. Babysitting a huge dog and a dead voodoo mambo were not part of the plan. Now he’s got to convince an unbelieving medical community to take action, so he can get back to learning about the dead – not the undead!

 Here's a direct link to Giovanni Goes to Med School and to the first book in the author's trio:

 

Please visit the author's website-blog.

A Treacherous Treasure (Mooseamuck Cozy Mystery) by Leighann Dobbs

Dominic Benedetti and Claire Watkins are the two police consultants who've retired to Maine's Mooseamuck Island in this cozy mystery series.  Book three in the series has the mature duo embark on an investigation into a very old murder mystery that is linked to pirate treasure.  It also is linked to an old friend of Claire's, which pushes her to investigate further, with Dom's help.

Italian-American Dom Benedetti, and the Italian-American police detective, Zambuco, who sometimes allows the retired duo to help with a case, add some Italophile flavor to the stories.  Dom, especially, is very fond of Italian pastries which he uses to numb the pain of the loss of his beloved wife.  Claire aims for a healthier lifestyle.

Book One

The mystery story begins right away with the discovery of a body.  The book follows the cozy genre norm of clues, suspects, theorizing, another murder, and the resolution that involves some danger for our amateur detectives and their loved ones.

The author is very good about bringing readers up-to-date on the regular cast of characters, the setting, and events from the previous two books in the series.  I would suggest reading the books in order.

The books in the series are:

1. A Zen for Murder (reviewed on this site)
2. A Crabby Killer
3. A Treacherous Treasure

Book Two

Quiet Mooseamuck Island is at times too quiet for Dom and Claire, so the crimes that occur liven up their retirement considerably.  While the police detective doesn't usually invite them to consult on investigations, the duo often use the poor man as an excuse for getting involved.

...you know what can happen with Zambuco.  He's liable to incarcerate the wrong person!

A cat and pet canaries keep the retirees company, and even seem to contribute to conversations at time.  That's just part of the light note the author likes to keep for this very cozy cozy-mystery. 

The writing is clear, direct, not difficult, and all the loose ends are wrapped up nicely at the end, including a clear explanation of the case.  The setting is picturesque, and the there are some lovely descriptions of the views and homes.  This book, and the whole series, is pleasant, clean, easy-reading, relaxing fun.

From the book's description:

Rumor has it that Captain Kidd buried treasure on Mooseamuck Island. But when an old pirate chest is unearthed, the contents reveal a deadly surprise that plunges the island into the middle of a sixty year old murder mystery.

With fingers pointing at several of our favorite Islanders, Dom and Claire must team up once again to get to the bottom of things. A twisty path of suspects and clues, brings them to the horrifying realization that one of their closest friends may be involved.

When another murder strikes fear into the hearts of the Islander's, Dom and Claire team up with an unlikely ally in order to save the island from a dangerous killer who thinks they can get away with murder.

Here is a direct link to the book at Amazon.com:

Please visit the author's website.

Trade Secrets (Marcus Corvinus Mystery) by David Wishart

The Marcus Corvinus Mystery Series is one a handful of detective mysteries set in Ancient Rome that are currently running.  Trade Secrets is the latest book in that series.  It is as entertaining as the predecessors but doesn't have a link to the Emperor, who during the course of this story is Claudius, having just taken over the throne after the murder of Caligula.

The author sets his detective apart by having his upper-class detective narrate his own mysteries in a journal or memoirs fashion in a snarky, colloquial-British tone, showing up the man's lazy, slightly obnoxious character, and his underlying better attributes.  The narrator's comments suggest it is a diary of sorts, written just when the case has been resolved.

Some of those better attributes of Marcus Corvinus are his desire for truth and his dedication to protecting his family from harm.  Marcus Corvinus enjoys a good puzzle and frequent tipples at wine bars.  His wife, Perilla, is his sounding board.  The continuing story of his family and life in general comes between the investigative work, which begins right away with someone bringing him a case to investigate.

The author writes with the assumption that his readers know their history basics and many specifics too, like the traditional Roman clothing and the caste system, as can be seen in this quote:

...most of the punters are plain mantles at best, with a fair sprinkling of freedmen... The purple-striper brigade wouldn't be seen dead doing their drinking and social networking there.

We are dropped down into busy, cosmopolitan Rome, and treated to much local color, including addresses and neighborhood reputations.  A map of Ancient Rome with the locations for the book marked would have been a nice accompaniment to the story, actually.

While some of the language and situations may feel out of time and place, they are actually quite in line with what we know about Ancient Roman society, albeit translated to a British vernacular.

The author emulates the popular Roman novel style from the Roman era, even down to his narrator's vulgar tongue and earthy sense of humor.  If you are sensitive to vulgarities, this isn't the book or series for you.  The story of this solid entry in the series is tied up nicely in the end.

The author skillfully fills the reader in on what he needs to know about the relationships between the regular characters, and about the narrator's past.  The book uses the British single-quote in place of the double-quote, which may annoy or slow down some readers.

In the end, this is a private investigator story, with our investigator chasing down clues and suspects, having to face some danger from heavies, and to deal with men and women from all levels of society who are invariably hiding things.

This is a long and well-established series.  If you wish to read the books in order, here is the series list:

1. Ovid (reviewed on this site)
2. Germanicus
3. Sejanus
4. The Lydian Baker
5. Old Bones
6. Last Rites
7. White Murder
8. A Vote for Murder
9. Parthian Shot
10. Food for the Fishes
11. In at the Death
12. Illegally Dead
13. Bodies Politic
14. No Cause For Concern
15. Solid Citizens
16. Finished Business (reviewed on this site)
17. Trade Secrets (reviewed on this site)
18. Foreign Bodies (reviewed on this site)

From the book's description:

The intriguing, witty and irreverent new mystery featuring Ancient Roman sleuth Marcus Corvinus

May, AD 41. The emperor Claudius has acceded to the throne, and the citizens of Rome look forward to an era of peace and stability. Not so Marcus Corvinus however, who finds himself embroiled in not one but two investigations. A friend of his wife has asked him to look into the murder of her brother, found stabbed to death at the Shrine of Melobosis. A wily businessman and notorious womaniser, no one seems to have a good word to say about Gaius Tullius, not even his less-than-grieving widow. But who would have a good enough reason to want him dead?

At the same time, Corvinus’s daughter comes across a dead body in the Pollio Gardens, and urges her father to investigate. At first Marcus refuses to get involved – but when his enquiries lead him to Ostia, Rome’s busy trading port, he uncovers a disturbing connection between the two deaths.

Here is a direct link to the book at Amazon.com:

Please visit the author's website.

A Room with a Pew (Lucille Mystery) by Peg Cochran

Book four in the Lucille Mystery Series continues with the laughs in this cute cozy series that features a mature Italian-American woman and her extended family and friends.  Lucille follows in the footsteps of her namesake, Lucille Ball, and teams up with her Ethel, best buddy Flo, to get into all sorts of crazy adventures, all with the goal of solving a murder mystery.

The folksy narrative voice is from Lucille's perspective (3rd person limited narration), and the humor comes mainly from her sarcastic tone, silent prayers to saints, eternal dieting attempts, and a penchant for stealing vehicles of all shapes and sizes.  Don't take any of it seriously, despite the author putting in one medical problem, here and there, specific to mature readers.

 Book One

This is book four in the Lucille Mystery Series.  Here are all the books to date in the series:

1. Confession is Murder
2. Unholy Matrimony
3. Hit and Nun (Reviewed on this site)
   
4. A Room with a Pew

Book Two

A Room with a Pew (the title is cute but it has very little to do with the story) begins on Thanksgiving day with Lucille catering the holiday dinner for her family and friends.  Lucille is proud of her ability to handle the busy holiday:

...she may not be one of them executive types she read about in magazines all the time who wear pantsuits to work and order their lunch from fancy restaurants, but she knew how to roast a turkey and she knew how to care for her family.

Book Three

She is also proud of her ability to sort out criminals and crimes, despite always landing in a heap of trouble with her friend Flo.  The bad guys in this book are particularly bad, and the ladies have some very close scrapes to escape from.  There are family problems to deal with along the way, of course, in her working class family.

The series is a light read not just because of the humor.  The writing is kept simple with lots of dialog and minimal description.  There is a regular cast of characters, but the author is very good at bringing the reader up to speed on them, in case you haven't read the other books in the series, or you've read them a long while ago.

The author's other cute cozy mystery series - Gourmet De-Lite

From the book's description, A Room with a Pew:

Lucille Mazzarella is back, and this time she’s investigating the murder of her own poor cousin Louis. Tracking down a killer might lead the fifty-something housewife into the clutches of a Godfather she never wanted to meet.

When Lucille discovers the body of her cousin Louis in the church parking lot, her first thought is that he may have skipped one service too many, but when the cops shock her with the news that Louis was killed by a professional hit man, she realizes the Almighty had nothing to do with the deed.

Even more shocking is the discovery that the victim, who never had a penny to his name, had socked away a huge wad of cash. As Lucille and her best friend Flo follow the money trail, it leads them from a seedy strip joint to a high-stakes gambling ring and all the way to the mob.

As the thugs close in and threaten to end Lucille’s detecting days for good, she’s tempted to give in to the most dangerous crooks she’s ever faced, but then she remembers she’s got a little family thing of her own that means more.

Here is a direct link to the book at Amazon.com

Please visit the author's website.  Follow the author on Facebook.

Rose and the Singing Bagels by Candida Martinelli

"This is a tale of hyphenated Italians who found each other in the cultural stew of an immigrant nation. Despite generations of separation from Italy, certain traits remained in many descended from those who left the country for a better life, or for political freedom, or just for adventure. Some of those traits drew together characters in this romantic tale." (From Chapter One)

Romance - Family Life Novel

Rose and the Singing Bagels is the story of how Rose Marino joined Los Bagels, fell in love, out-smarted a tail, helped her little sister Maggie, played matchmaker more than once, taught her students, tended to Eden, and baked bagels, not necessarily in that order. This is a light, sweet, clean contemporary romance with lots of heart, more than a bit of which comes from the hyphenated Italians in this tale.

 

A Modern Multicultural Fairy Tale:

This sweet modern romance is chock full of matchmaking and happy endings for everyone concerned, with the exception of the obligatory ogre, who gets his just desserts while the happy reader develops an inexplicable craving for bagels. 

(J.B. Hawker - Author Bunny Elder Adventures) 

(Rose Marino) "Simple pleasures filled Rose's life, and she was sure she was missing nothing. A sense of contentment filled her most moments of most days. Was Rose gorgeous? Was she Eve in the garden of Eden? Was she a beauty to rival a model or young Sophia Loren? No, not really. Rose Marino was a natural beauty; trim at forty in her pink sweats; curvy where a woman should be curvy; her thick, long, dark hair held back by a clip at the base of her neck. Rose's interesting face spoke of her Italian heritage..."

(Alex Devincenzi) "For Professor Alex Devincenzi, a dark-featured, lean forty-two-year-old, the day had begun even earlier than Rose's day. Alex was a very early riser, who often liked to begin his days hiking along trails in a nearby national park. He was Maggie's accounting professor, and he dressed as one would expect a hiking accounting professor to dress, in a casual, laid-back style that was clean, neat, within the lines, adding up to what he was, which was a man who liked his life tidy, and above all honest and sincere.

"All those traits made Alex a man whom many women found difficult to deal with, since modern lives, especially the lives of modern women, were rarely neat, tidy, and between the lines. The women were also too often lacking in the honesty and sincerity department, at least that was what Alex told himself, often, usually while hiking, alone."

Here is a direct link to the book at Amazon.com, where the book is available in paperback and as a Kindle e-book:

Lives Wired by Candida Martinelli

Romance - Satire Novel

Where would one go to escape the world?  The beachside town of Marsmouth would be a good choice, and it was the choice for more than one person in this romantic tale.

Gina Accornero's quiet life is threatened when the media invade her sleepy seaside town in search of a disgraced TV star, Robert Granieri.

This romantic tale of how the two escapees to Marsmouth find true love, not with each other, is spiced with a rich satire of the wired world we live in.

(From Chapter One) "For one woman, a hyphenated Italian in need of emotional and physical healing, it was a step back in time to a peaceful life of pumpkins, flower-lined porches, colorful beach huts and bicycles.  She arrived before the Internet boom when Marsmouth was isolated and known by very few.

"For one man, a hyphenated Italian in need of clarity and grounding in reality, it was a refuge from the Wired World's Weirdness, as he'd dubbed the World Wide Web, the Internet.  He arrived after the web had strung its lines into Marsmouth, wiring up the lives of the locals and tourists alike.

"Before the birth and growth of the Internet, Marsmouth had existed in a world of its own, a world of lazy days on the beach, slow walks along the boardwalk, and tranquil forays into the hinterland to visit farms and trails in the woods." 

Here is a direct link to the book's page at Amazon.com where it is available in paperback and as a Kindle e-book:

Bye, Bye Love (Cat DeLuca Mysteries) by KJ Larsen

Bye, Bye Love is book four in the Cat DeLuca Mysteries, a series that goes for laughs with set comic pieces and stock comic characters.  The first-person narration by a hard-boiled, female, private detective plays with the protagonist's XX factor and her Italian-American family.  Here is Cat introducing herself to the reader:

My name is Cat DeLuca and I'm a Private Dick--though I prefer Jane.  I don't investigate for insurance companies or work for ambulance-chasers.  I won't find your high school sweetheart.  But if you're in Chicagoland and you suspect your partner is stepping out, call me.  I kick ass at catching cheaters.

There are vulgarities and scenes of violence, but no sex scenes.  The tone throughout by the butch Cat DeLuca is snappy, snarky, and sarcastic, with some mean-spiritedness.  The softest characteristic about Cat is her love for her dog, Inge the beagle.

Inga is my partner at the Pants on Fire Detective Agency.

Our narrator, Cat, tells us about her big Italian-American family, with half the book, roughly, just about them.  She also fills us in along the way on her previous major cases (books), and the authors even bring back some of the characters from the previous books, so it is best to read the books in order.

The books in the Cat DeLuca Mysteries:

1. Liar, Liar
2. Sticks and Stones
3. Some Like it Hot
4. Bye, Bye Love

Cat's love-life takes up some of the book, as she prepares to have her parents meet her future parents-in-law, which culminates in a bizarre scene, played for thrills and laughs in equal measure.  There are love interests and hunks, including Cat's many hunky family members.

Delucas have been cops or crooks since anyone can remember.

I received the book as a review-copy, but I'm still allowed to mention the things I didn't like about the book.  So, here goes...

The first line of Bye, Bye Love is meant to set the tone for the story, but it grated on my Italian-speaking nerves when it used the plural cannoli for the singular cannolo.

I was staking out the LeGrande Hotel on Asher and sucking the creamy filling out of a cannoli.

There are awkward shifts between past and present tense throughout the book.  I didn't really like the jokes about anorexia, infidelity and Catholicism, nor the erroneous "copper smell of blood" (blood smells of rusty iron), nor Cat's love of using her Taser. 

And the odd title bothers me.  I it follows in the line of children's rhyme titles for the series, but I'm pretty sure it should be written Bye-Bye Love, or even Bye Bye Love.  The chatty dialog has lots of fragmentary sentences, but that is the norm these days, with colons and semicolons having been tossed into the bin by most writers of popular novels.

As I said above, this series aims at laughter, with as much in the book about the protagonist's love-life and family, as about the crime and mystery.  The tone is chatty and smart-alecky.  The characters are straight from central-casting.  The humor having to do with Cat's Italian-American family and heritage is the standard sort you'd expect:  food, crime, babies, mothers, family loyalty...

If you enjoy all these things, then you'll be happy to know that the three sisters who write the series are set to continue writing the books for a long while to come, and it is published by Poison Pen Press, guaranteeing quality editing and presentation for the books. 

From the book's description (with lots of spoilers):

Chicago’s Pants On Fire Detective Agency targets liars and cheats. But PI Cat DeLuca is once again up to her smokin’ skinny jeans in murder.  Cat is out running in a neighborhood park when she crashes over the faceless body of Bernie Love.

Bernie was the finance guy to the scary Provenza family, with whom he grew up.  And friend to Cat’s shady, Ferrari-wheeling-cop Uncle Joey.  As she hauls out her phone, Cat is assaulted by someone with a Rolex, stun gun, and wheelbarrow.

When the cops show up, the killer is gone.  And so is the body.  Captain Bob, a stickler for habeas corpus, blows off Cat’s story.  Stung by a chorus of snickers from the Ninth Precinct, home base for DeLuca men, Cat vows to make her case and goes after Rolex man.

The murderer, desperate to silence the only person who can place him at the park, comes after Cat.  She’s quickly on a collision course with the deadliest adversary she’s ever encountered—but she has the help of her beagle partner, her gun-happy assistant, an ex-spy (or two), and her outrageous, interfering Italian family.  Meanwhile her hot, FBI-boyfriend seems sidelined in Vegas.  

In Bye, Bye, Love, K.J. Larsen delivers another nail-biting tale rife with unexpected plot twists, zany characters, fabulous food, and laugh-out-loud humor. 

Here is a direct link to the book at Amazon.com:

Book 1 in the Series, click cover to go to the book's page at Amazon.com.

Burned by her run-around ex-husband Johnnie Ricco, Caterina DeLuca took the skills she mastered during marriage and opened her own private eye agency. Now she’s a second-story woman, armed with a camera, ready to print 8x10 glossies for use in divorce court.

The men in her big, whacko family, all Chicago cops—one a crook—aren’t sure what to make of Cat’s career choice. But hey, it’s serve and protect!

Then one Rita Polansky retains Cat. Rita’s liar-liar husband is the mysterious, but seriously hot, Chance Savino. Cat is hot on his heels when an exploding building hurls her out of her stilettos and into the hospital. The FBI claims Chance was killed in the fireworks, but concussed Cat remembers a different scenario.

She escapes the hospital to meet with her client. But when Rita doesn’t show, Cat breaks into her home to find Rita with a knife in her chest and two clues at the murder scene: a clutch of candy wrappers and Chance Savino, rummaging through Rita’s drawers.

One surprise after another piles up. As no one else sights Savino, everyone around Cat thinks she’s crazy. Everyone except a determined killer who has put her on his “kill” list.

Book 2 in the series, click on the cover to go to the book's Amazon.com page.

After client Cleo Jones shoots her cheating husband's bum full of buckshot, he disappears, taking her money, her dog, and her sister with him. Cat promises to return the dog and money if her client stops shooting at Walter.

She finds the dog and a mysterious bag full of cash, and then she finds Walter, his very dead body still warm. The cops quickly arrest Cleo for the murder of her husband. Cat is determined to prove her client's innocence and it's not an easy sell.

Cat's investigation leads to four players with secrets: a childhood friend, a gambler, a construction tycoon, and a legendary Chicago designer. But when forensic evidence suggests the detective knows more about the murder than she's telling, Cat faces the certain loss of her agency...and maybe much more.




Book 3 in the series, click on the cover to go to the book's page at Amazon.com.

When an old friend buys a trenchcoat and opens his own detective agency, PI Cat DeLuca sees a train wreck.  Because everything Billy Bonham knows about being a private dick, he learned from Humphrey Bogart.  And that’s just enough to make him dangerous.

The bungling detective is way over his head on a case involving murder and a stolen pair of Marilyn Monroe’s dazzling diamond earrings.  His outrageous client, Cristina McTigue, is pursued by men who want her dead.  Five minutes after meeting the woman, Cat would cheerfully kill her too.

When Billy is gunned down on the street,  it’s up to Cat to save his crazy client and nail a murderer.  She soon finds herself dodging bullets, knee-deep in trouble, and chasing diamonds. Before it’s over, she’ll be helped by her sexy FBI boyfriend, a hunky ex-spy, her outrageous Italian family of Chicago cops, and her interfering Mama who keeps the cannoli coming.

With a cast of zany characters and a pace that’s unrelenting, this laugh-out-loud mystery is best served hot. 

Please visit the authors' website.

This review is by Candida Martinelli, of Candida Martinelli's Italophile Site, and the author of the cozy-murder-mystery novel AN EXTRA VIRGIN PRESSING MURDER, and the young-adult/adult mystery novel series THE VIOLET STRANGE MYSTERIES the first book of which is VIOLET'S PROBLEM.

No Place Like Rome (Lexi Carmichael Mystery) by Julie Moffett

If you are fan of Kathy Reichs's Bones series, you may enjoy this younger version, of sorts.  Lexi Carmichael of the Lexi Carmichael Mystery Series, is not a mature Asperger medical examiner like Bones, she's a twenty-five-year-old Asperger computer security expert.

Part of the reason I loved hacking was that I could lose all connection to the real world.  Sometimes I had trouble navigating the real world.  My virtual world was my zen, my center.

Here is fun 30 second intro to the series and to the character of Lexi Carmichael:

The author inserts much humor into her books, and a lot of it comes from Lexi's social misunderstandings, which can lead to physical altercations.  When the series begins, Lexi works for the U.S. government's National Security Agency.  As the series progresses, she leaves the NSA for the private sector.

I've read only one book in the series, No Place Like Rome, the book that brings Lexi to Italy, along with a hot-stuff Italian-American special agent nicknamed Slash:  "Mystery and enigma all rolled into one".  Luckily Slash, a recurring series character, is loaded with bucks, so the trip is first-class all the way.

We're just a three-minute walk to the Vatican...a beautiful suite...you could see St. Peter's Basilica from the window.

Italy's touchy-feely culture mystifies Lexi.  This is shown to the extreme when she meets Slash's Italian grandmother.  Italy's often overly demonstrative emotions are actually a good thing for an Asperger.  Lots more clues are present for them to pick up on what is going on behind the facial masks they see.

...there was an awful lot of kissing going on lately.  Hands, cheeks and mouth.  I guess it was some kid of Italian thing.  Seeing as how I would be in Italy for an extended period of time, I supposed I'd better get used to

it, although it sure did confuse the heck out of me.

Lexi is not the swiftest in deciphering people, so she is unaware of just how much the men in her life adore her.  Yes, I said MEN.  They find her social awkwardness endearing.  The colloquial, slangy first person monologue/narration drops hints for us to pick up about this, but most of them are over the head of clueless protagonist Lexi.

I'm a geek first-class.  My name is Lexi Carmichael and I'm a mild-mannered twenty-five-year-old...[with a] new mantra in my life--accept and embrace change...

Lexi is more than an Asperger computer geek, she is also mildly neurotic.  To help smooth her way in life, she relies heavily on her best female friend, Basia.

...I was beyond thrilled Basia would be coming.  She was my eyes and ears in social situations and the way things were headed with Slash, I was desperate for her guidance.

The book presents the problem/mystery well, and includes us in much of the computer security work, leading up to an exciting finish.  There are a few typos, some repetitiveness, and a bit of playing fast and loose with history, all things that may be fixed in later editions. 

The series is a quick, light read, with plenty of laughs, and with an appeal that may be greatest for young/new adult readers.  There are six books to-date, with more in the works.

The books in the Lexi Carmichael Mystery Series:

• No Money Down (novella prequel to series)
• No One Lives Twice
• No One To Trust
• No Place Like Rome
• No Biz Like Showbiz
• No Test for the Wicked

Here are direct links to all the books in the series at Amazon.com:

The author also has an historical romance series in print.  Here are links to those books, in case you are interested.

Please visit the series' website, or the author's website.  She is present on Facebook and Twitter.

This review is by Candida Martinelli, of Candida Martinelli's Italophile Site, and the author of the cozy-murder-mystery novel AN EXTRA VIRGIN PRESSING MURDER, and the young-adult/adult mystery novel series THE VIOLET STRANGE MYSTERIES the first book of which is VIOLET'S PROBLEM.