Rest for the Wicked (Jane Lawless Mysteries)
Minneapolis restaurant-club owner and former amateur sleuth Jane Lawless has her “first official case as a licensed PI,” investigating the death of a colleague’s nephew. Her workaholic lover, who sees Jane’s superworkaholism as “world class” and makes her “feel guilty for the way she lives,”  dumps her, leaving the lesbian detective yearning for a deeply passionate, emotional rush. Enter Avi, the attractive bartender at the local strip lounge, where Jane blushes while questioning possible leads in her investigation. Never shy, raucous theatrical artistic director Cordelia, one of crime fiction’s most memorable sidekicks, accompanies her in a “striped, double-breasted men’s suit . . . gansta gaudy” as the convoluted plot engagingly unfurls, complete with Ecstasy-laced drinks. Cordelia embarks on a new career, and Jane suddenly finds herself crazy in love with a woman she’s known only for a few days and never kissed. Stay tuned for the next installment, fans. --Whitney Scott