Review: Where are the Big Publishing Houses?
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 12 30, 2012
Before reviewing "No Such Thing As a Lost Cause", I took the time to re-read the previous four books in this excellent series by Shelly Fredman. When I review a book in a series I ask myself some basic questions: 1) Does this author follow his/her own canon? 2) Do the characters develop or are they stagnant? 3) Does the plot relate realistically to the characters? After those questions are answered, I will read the book as a "stand-alone". A good story should shine all by its self, with or without a series to back it up.Unlike some of the more popular "Heroine Based Cozy Mysteries" such as Janet Evanovch's "Stephanie Plum" series, Fredman makes her characters reach and grow. Brandy Alexander is egocentric albeit self-debasing. She has a good heart and tries to better herself. She believes in true love and keeps finding it over and over again. Her present and by far most intriguing love interest is a dark and dangerous Nick Santiago. The reader is torn between wanting this couple to succeed and dreading the consequences if they do.The plot of "...Lost Cause" is contemporary and poignant and involves the cruel world of dog fighting and the reality of street gangs and drug smuggling. Fredman manages to make all this work and still keep the book light enough to stay in the "cozy" genre. The story is sexy without being about sex. It is violent without displaying the violence. It reads well and leaves great visual images in your mind. It is a true example of its genre. And I highly recommend it.When will a major publisher pick up this talented and promising author? Given the proper backing Brandy Alexander could be this generation's Nancy Drew...all grown up and knee-deep in trouble.Five well earned stars!