Goodbye Dolly

I have a weakness for books with goofy titles, and one of the genres that takes pride in goofy titles is the themed murder mystery genre. This particular one's theme is doll collecting and doll repair, which isn't my speciality, but thankfully subject knowledge is rarely required to enjoy a themed mystery. Actually, doll repair and collecting is somewhat interesting anyhow, and I'm not just saying that 'cause my grandmother has a nice doll collection -- I think determining how old a doll is often involves a fair bit of sleuthing, and my sister and I spend enough time thinking about home repairs that learning to patch things invisibly is cool whether it's a doll or her front closet. Anyhow, this book was exactly what I wanted: a mystery show more with a lot of quirky characters and enough twists to make it fun. Gossip-prone doll club? Cute policeman with a doll phobia? "Psychic" aunt who purse-trains teacup sized dogs? Adorable teensy dogs? Crazy exes? Obnoxious tabloid writer? Crazy old doll-loving rich lady? It's got 'em all. Recommended if you like mysteries that are more fun than scary. show less

Recently relocated to Phoenix from Boston, doll restorer Gretchen Birch is a bit nervous about attending her first major doll show without her mother - she doesn't want to mess anything up. So when she bids and wins a box of Ginny dolls but ends up with Kewpie dolls instead, she is understandably upset. She is even more upset when someone is hit and killed by a car during the auction. But what is really upsetting is when a sleazy reporter is murdered and Gretchen's ex-boyfriend is one of the suspects. Gretchen has many questions, including who is following her around and who is sending cryptic notes inside of Kewpie dolls. Gretchen hopes to figure this all out before she herself becomes a victim.

"Goodbye, Dolly" was an okay cozy show more mystery. The strong point is the characters in the book, especially Gretchen. Devastated after her boyfriend cheated on her, she is determined to make a new life for herself in Phoenix. Her aunt Nina, who claims to be psychic and see auras, is also well written if a bit stereotypical. The addition of homeless people, Daisy especially, adds a lot to the story. The doll collecting and restoration aspects are well done and interesting. Where the book didn't work for me is the mystery elements. The mystery isn't all that well plotted. Author Deb Baker tries to throw in a red herring as to the killer's identity throughout the book, but it just makes it obvious who the killer is not. And, near the end of the book, she has one minor character give a major clue in an obvious and poorly written way. The identity of who was following Gretchen around was a nice twist, but Baker cheats on who the killer is. Part of the fun of reading cozy mysteries is trying to figure out who the murderer is. It's pretty easy to figure out here, but Baker takes the easy and lazy way of picking the killer.

"Goodbye Dolly" has some good moments, but could have been better plotted. show less

Just as satisfying as book #1 in the series, and it was fun to see so many of the same characters reappear. I can't wait for book #3!