Review: A FUN READ!!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 7, 2012
Meet the Shady Ladies. Wherever they go murder follows.Six mystery writers who exchange emails, instant messages and texts discussing plot lines, sex and murder for their books, get a dose of non-fiction when one of their own is suspected of doing in a wife-beating killer.Aristair is tough and strong, won't date men but having sex with them is just fine. Hope is the caring mother of the group. She looks out for all of them and always tries to do the right thing. Megan is the fiery one, you don't want to get on her bad side. Veronica is busy with her kids but does her best to keep up with all the happenings and drama. Kate is the most published of the bunch and that brings its own problems. Shelby is from the South recently transplanted to the Midwest. She won a contest to become a member of the Shady Ladies.The heat cranks up when another member's crooked literary agent is killed, and their newest member's husband is looking more and more like a serial killer.This was such a fun read. I could so picture a group of authors doing this, without the actual murder of course. Cozies authors seem to be a tight bunch whether it be The Cozy Chicks, The Stiletto Gang, Jungle Red Writers, Mysteries and Margaritas, or Mystery Lovers Kitchen, cozy authors love to congregate together and we all love to see what they are up to, the stories behind the stories.It did take a bit to get used to the different format of texts and emails but soon the pages were flying by making this a very quick read. I was afraid that we would lose the background or the depth needed to follow the mystery but this was not the case at all. We get to know the characters and the plot was very easy to follow. Each character is very unique. I cannot pick a favorite.Social media is taking over the world. I read Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park back in August of 2011 and loved it. It was filled with Facebook statuses. People today Facebook, E-mail, and text  so why not a mystery written the way we now communicate. I wouldn't be a fan of many books in this format but it was a nice change of pace.