Nancy Skopin

This is a good PI mystery with a strong female lead. I appreciate that Nikki doesn't turn to mush around good looking men, doesn't weep and whine over her lack of a love interest, and doesn't need a man to rescue her. She's strong and independent, but still feminine.

We go along with Nikki as she investigates her first homicide, and the author does a great job of showing us how a PI really works. At the same time, though, the story often gets mired down in these details. For instance, we show more learn that Nikki is adept at taking in everything about a person upon meeting. This becomes tedious, as Nikki goes on to list the attire and appearance of every single person she comes in contact with. Once we've established this fact about Nikki, we don't need to go through the list with every person she sees.

The repetition of detail was exacerbated by repeating the very same information. Twice we're told Nikki's best friend Elizabeth's height, weight, hair color, and eye color. And twice we're told the details of Nikki's work for restaurant owners. We're also given several pages of detail on five dogs living with their owners at the marina where Nikki lives. I love dogs, but I did not need to know each one's breed, owners' names, play habits, likes, and dislikes.

The pacing, because of the volume of minutiae, is slow, particularly through the first half of the book. That being said, the plot is intriguing and I enjoyed going along with Nikki as she investigated.

I thought the ending was a little too convenient. We have a Q&A session in dialogue form with the killer, used as a way of wrapping up all the loose ends for readers. The conversation didn't feel realistic to me, particularly given the situation and setting. The Q&A took away from the immediacy and danger of what should have been a climactic scene.

The whodunit aspect is handled well. Nicki is investigating a murder, but we aren't given a lot of gruesome detail and we're not weighed down with misery. While this isn't quite a cozy mystery, the story does have that light, quirky feel. show less

I was glad that Nina was back, but the actual plot of this book was a poor excuse for ending the Nina story. I think the author should have just added the Nina content to the previous book and kept it at that. It felt that nothing else was happening except some very LONG scenes evaluating bars and restaurants while waiting for Nina to do something. This was a disappointing read.

This was not as fun as I expected. I prefer more humour in my quick read mystery books. Also, 75% of the book was about evaluating restaurant staff and rescuing dogs. I like both topics, but not when they get in the way of a good murder story

Now this is better than the 7th book - more murder investigation and less restaurant reviews.
However, I found some things inconsistent and others just too convenient. After having that 'really bad feeling' and receiving a call from her mentor Sam requesting help - why couldn't Nikki put two and two together sooner about his death? I mean, the reader could guess it almost immediately. Also, she had only two suspects throughout the entire case, and it was just a matter of sending photos and show more fingerprints off to her friend Michael who is conveniently a computer wizz to give her the go ahead nod. That's not much sleuthing, if you ask me.
The ending was I think my favourite part - Nina is back! show less