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THERE WAS A CROOKED MAN by K.J. Larsen

THERE WAS A CROOKED MAN

From the Cat DeLuca Mysteries series, volume 5

by K.J. Larsen

Pub Date: Nov. 1st, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4642-0589-7
Publisher: Poisoned Pen

A private eye’s latest case leads her back to her own family of Chicago’s finest, giving her a chance to solve the crime while eating her Mama’s cooking.

Although coming from a family of cops has made being a PI a natural move for Cat DeLuca, she gets less respect than the boys in blue because her Pants On Fire Detective Agency specializes in catching cheating spouses rather than criminals. Cat’s also used to getting a hard time from her large Italian family, with whom she has a love-to-hate relationship. Her mother has been especially vocal lately about pushing Cat to marry her long-term boyfriend, FBI agent Chance Savino. Mama has even hired the local priest to join them on an engagement-encouraging cruise. However, it’s her long-separated sister Sophie who’s giving Cat the hardest time lately. While Sophie might technically be Cat’s sister by blood, the two couldn’t be more different, and Cat sometimes calls Sophie Barbie because of her looks and her dream lifestyle. Since Cat’s usual partner, larger-than-life Cleo Jones, is away for the duration, likely to the chagrin of Larsen’s fans (Sticks and Stones, 2014, etc.), Sophie’s determined to step into Cleo’s job at Pants on Fire. Cat, too distracted to say no, is busy working her latest unofficial case: sussing out the whereabouts of Bridgeport’s police captain Bob Maxfield’s beloved Pomeranian, Sam I Am, who’s been dognapped and beamed to Bob’s computer via live feed. Bob doesn’t want Cat anywhere near the case, and no wonder: the dognappers know about his own past role in some shady business, and the misdeeds of Cat’s family may be tied to Sam’s fate.

Light fare, focusing on the heroine’s family rather than her burgeoning business or romance, that’s more interested in developing her relationships than building suspense.