CRIME & CLUTTER
by Cyndy Salzmann
Mary Alice has secrets she’s never told – and a storage unit she’s paid rent on for six months because she can’t face what’s inside. She’s even kept the storage unit secret from her friends, because she’s the Clutter Queen, the Domestic Diva.
Unfortunately, one of her friends see her at the storage unit, and then the secret is out. When Mary Alice is forced to open the unit, she discovers her father’s beloved 1963 VW minibus—and a whole lot of secrets. Will Mary Alice be able to get past the pain of the past?
CRIME & CLUTTER is the second book in A Friday Afternoon Club Mystery series, though it easily stands alone. It was nice to reconnect with the members of this group, though I would have liked to have been brought up to date with one romance that began in the first book. There are some really yummy sounding recipes in this book (and some that sound a bit unique, that I don’t think we’ll try.)
There is a secondary story beginning in the middle of CRIME & CLUTTER that is quite interesting. In fact, that secondary story kept the story going when the main story began to sag in the middle of the book. The mystery element isn’t really very strong, the reader can pretty well guess where the book is going the whole time. All in all, CRIME & CLUTTER is a really good read and will keep fans clammering for more in the series. $13.00. 288 pages.
Reviewed by Laura V. Hilton
chbookshelf August 9, 2007
Chick Lit meets mystery. That’s how I would describe Crime & Clutter by Cyndy Salzman.
The Friday Afternoon Club better know as FAC meet each week for encouragement, to fellowship, and share some spectacular recipes. This is the second novel in the Friday Afternoon Club series. The women are fun, comical and more than willing to support each other as well as solve problems. Liz, the protagonist and newspaper columnist, is a down to earth mother and wife who often ends up at the center of mayhem. This time around, Mary Alice, the one deemed to have-it-all-together has a secret. It doesn’t take long for the good intentioned FAC members to pull the secret out of a very reluctant Mary Alice.
Mary Alice has never known her dad and out of the blue, she inherits her dad’s old VW mini-bus. She is encouraged by the FAC to explore the old heap, but this becomes a bit more than Mary Alice can handle. The more Mary Alice finds out about her hippie dad’s ventures, the more she resists forgiving him for abandonment. As the one they all depend on to be perfect goes through an emotional meltdown, Liz and the other FAC members are determined to support their friend and along the way learn a few things about forgiveness themselves.
If you’re looking for a light read and have a fascination with the seventies, in particular the hippie era, this cozy mystery is for you. I found myself laughing out loud quite a few times. There are some serious topics mixed in with the humor making for a nice reading blend. The author schooled me with the historical detail of 1970′s, where ordinary people fought to bring peace and end the Vietnam War in their own unconventional way.
Cyndy Salzman includes recipes which often show up in the chapter, with one of the FAC members making it or passing it around for others to enjoy. Most of the recipes seemed pretty unique to me. If I was more adventuresome in the kitchen, I might try them out.
Reviewed by Tyora Moody