Kris Neri

Since D.B. Cooper jumped from a plane disappearing with his loot, that scenario has been fodder for many writers' imaginations. Elmore Leonard used the storyline in his televised series Justified. Neri uses the same premise in a startlingly entertaining mystery set in fictional Tecos, New Mexico on a stretch of highway known as Route 66.
Tracy's dad, aging Hollywood hunk, Alec Grainger used to take his daughter on road trips to Tecos when she was little to cover visits he made to a young show more lady, Lucy, who ran a luncheonette, The Lunch Pail Café. As a girl, Lucy had a collection of these handcrafted lunch pails.
The visits stopped long ago when Lucy ended up in the big-house, accused of shooting her boyfriend. So when Daddy calls and asks her to meet him and his best friend, Philly, a wanna-be-gangster-type from the old days, Tracy and her husband Drew drive from California to New Mexico, only they do it Tracy-style, stopping at every kitschy little piece of Americana along the way, just like in days gone by.
From the Biker Bunny Bin, a storage unit where Grainger had left all of Lucy's famous lunch pails, to the Kontiki Pizza and Chinese Restaurant that only served waffles, Neri takes us on a road trip from hell. When Woody, Lucy's son and Grainger's protégé turns up dead, the family is scrutinized for their possible part in his murder and leaves Tracy on the lam from the FBI. Several mysteries unravel on this journey and all will come to fruition because as Tracy says, "Route 66 is a vortex of coincidence. An amazing number of paths cross here."
Neri maintains an entertaining arc of mystery throughout, providing a litany of characters from the quirky retired city cop masquerading as a western sheriff in a small county to the former beauty queen cum minister's wife who poses for risqué photos when she gets bored. You will be totally amused, delighted, and engrossed with this light-hearted mystery on wheels. show less

Since D.B. Cooper jumped from a plane disappearing with his loot, that scenario has been fodder for many writers' imaginations. Elmore Leonard used the storyline in his televised series Justified. Neri uses the same premise in a startlingly entertaining mystery set in fictional Tecos, New Mexico on a stretch of highway known as Route 66.
Tracy's dad, aging Hollywood hunk, Alec Grainger used to take his daughter on road trips to Tecos when she was little to cover visits he made to a young show more lady, Lucy, who ran a luncheonette, The Lunch Pail Café. As a girl, Lucy had a collection of these handcrafted lunch pails.
The visits stopped long ago when Lucy ended up in the big-house, accused of shooting her boyfriend. So when Daddy calls and asks her to meet him and his best friend, Philly, a wanna-be-gangster-type from the old days, Tracy and her husband Drew drive from California to New Mexico, only they do it Tracy-style, stopping at every kitschy little piece of Americana along the way, just like in days gone by.
From the Biker Bunny Bin, a storage unit where Grainger had left all of Lucy's famous lunch pails, to the Kontiki Pizza and Chinese Restaurant that only served waffles, Neri takes us on a road trip from hell. When Woody, Lucy's son and Grainger's protégé turns up dead, the family is scrutinized for their possible part in his murder and leaves Tracy on the lam from the FBI. Several mysteries unravel on this journey and all will come to fruition because as Tracy says, "Route 66 is a vortex of coincidence. An amazing number of paths cross here."
Neri maintains an entertaining arc of mystery throughout, providing a litany of characters from the quirky retired city cop masquerading as a western sheriff in a small county to the former beauty queen cum minister's wife who poses for risqué photos when she gets bored. You will be totally amused, delighted, and engrossed with this light-hearted mystery on wheels. show less

There is more on the back of the book and it's all praise. It's a veritable paranormal Who's Who on that back cover singing praises over this book: Charlaine Harris, Casey Daniels, Shirley Damsgaard, Diana Gabaldon.
I cannot remember where I saw the review or synopsis of this one, but, once again, I am so glad that I did! This turned into a 'danger book' for me..the type that keeps me up reading past my bedtime. I loved Samantha and Annabelle, then the chemistry between the two main show more characters made me laugh and cheer them on. The story is a good one of quirky-means-well working with straightlaced good to fight the evil that is trying to take over the world, starting with Los Angeles.
All that appears normal isn't so, as Annabelle the goddess shows Samantha the fake psychic. Samantha knows the ways of the world, how to pull a good scam and where to find nifty vintage prom dresses. Annabelle knows where the gnomes and flower faeries reside and who to call when in need of a magical recharge.
The twists and turns were fab, especially the "Whoa! Did not see that coming" moment in the end.
Please let there be more to this series!! I'll look for Kris Neri's other books, that's for sure.
Five goddess sparkly diamonds.... show less

Kris Neri has crafted a pleasant enough debut with Revenge of the Gypsy Queen. Tracy Eaton, only daughter of a pair of narcissistic Hollywood screen legends, is a plucky and clever heroine. No silly scruples for her! She's a real find. The other characters -- particularly Uncle Philly -- are handled with just the right measures of wit and sympathy.

Sure, the novel is funny; however, some of her madcap adventures are a bit unrealistic -- even for a farcical mystery novel. And you're certain to show more figure out the Eatons' secret halfway through the book. Indeed, most will figure out who the villain is before the exciting climax.

Is this novel in the same league as Lindsey Davis's Falco series or Ann Granger's Markby and Mitchell series? Of course not. But it's still a nice novel to read in between the installments of your favorite mystery series. Pleasant is good enough for me. show less