Helpful Score: 4
First Line: Mama just wanted to look pretty for high-stakes bingo night at the Seminole casino.
Mama is a lady. A Southern lady. She prefers to wear sherbet-colored pantsuits with matching accessories. She drives a vintage turquoise convertible...and she has three daughters. The oldest, Maddie, is the principal of the middle school in Himmarshee, Florida, and she can be a bit...tense and assertive. Marty, the youngest daughter is a librarian, and after growing up with Maddie and Mace, she normally doesn't say much of anything. Mace, the middle daughter in Mama's tribe, works with wildlife in Himmarshee Park and much prefers critters to people. One of Mace's aims in life seems to be doing the exact opposite of whatever Mama and Maddie want.
When a dead body is found in the trunk of Mama's convertible, the new lawman in town, humorless Detective Martinez, sets out to prove that Mama's the killer, and he throws her in jail. Naturally all three daughters swarm to her defense.
Although the author certainly has a wonderful turn of phrase, as I read the first part of the book, I was afraid that I'd gotten trapped in a routine cozy mystery. I was wrong. Detective Martinez-- at first the run-of-the-mill book 'em regardless of the facts lawman-- has real depth, as do Mace and her sisters. The Florida setting came through loud and clear because not only did my consumption of iced tea spike during the reading of the book, I had to turn the ceiling fan to a higher speed. Sharp kept the ball rolling at a good clip, and I quite happily climbed into the backseat of Mama's turquoise convertible for an entertaining ride.
More than anything, I enjoyed Mama Does Time for the characters and the humor. Want examples of what I'm talking about? Here are a few:
"...what happened to your hair, honey? It looks like a possum crawled in there and dug a nest."
After I polished off the chicken, I ate some tortilla chips with a bowl of my homemade salsa. It's strong enough to blow the back of your head all the way to Guadalajara.
And my personal favorite...
He poked her gently in the arm with his fork. "Chill out, Maddie. If you wind yourself up any tighter, only dogs will be able to hear you fart."
Now some of you may be thinking that Mama Does Time is going to be just too Southern for your taste buds. That would be a legitimate concern; however, I have a testimonial from my Yankee book buddy in Minneapolis. Cheryl and I are both on Paperback Swap, we both love mysteries, and we tend to mail each other books on a regular basis. Here's what Cheryl wrote on the packing slip when she sent me this book: "Enjoy! I liked it, even with the 'y'all', sweet tea and yappy little dog! LOL"
Mama Does Time is an entertaining mystery with a wonderful cast of characters that is appealing regardless upon which side of the Mason-Dixon you reside. I, for one, am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
Mama is a lady. A Southern lady. She prefers to wear sherbet-colored pantsuits with matching accessories. She drives a vintage turquoise convertible...and she has three daughters. The oldest, Maddie, is the principal of the middle school in Himmarshee, Florida, and she can be a bit...tense and assertive. Marty, the youngest daughter is a librarian, and after growing up with Maddie and Mace, she normally doesn't say much of anything. Mace, the middle daughter in Mama's tribe, works with wildlife in Himmarshee Park and much prefers critters to people. One of Mace's aims in life seems to be doing the exact opposite of whatever Mama and Maddie want.
When a dead body is found in the trunk of Mama's convertible, the new lawman in town, humorless Detective Martinez, sets out to prove that Mama's the killer, and he throws her in jail. Naturally all three daughters swarm to her defense.
Although the author certainly has a wonderful turn of phrase, as I read the first part of the book, I was afraid that I'd gotten trapped in a routine cozy mystery. I was wrong. Detective Martinez-- at first the run-of-the-mill book 'em regardless of the facts lawman-- has real depth, as do Mace and her sisters. The Florida setting came through loud and clear because not only did my consumption of iced tea spike during the reading of the book, I had to turn the ceiling fan to a higher speed. Sharp kept the ball rolling at a good clip, and I quite happily climbed into the backseat of Mama's turquoise convertible for an entertaining ride.
More than anything, I enjoyed Mama Does Time for the characters and the humor. Want examples of what I'm talking about? Here are a few:
"...what happened to your hair, honey? It looks like a possum crawled in there and dug a nest."
After I polished off the chicken, I ate some tortilla chips with a bowl of my homemade salsa. It's strong enough to blow the back of your head all the way to Guadalajara.
And my personal favorite...
He poked her gently in the arm with his fork. "Chill out, Maddie. If you wind yourself up any tighter, only dogs will be able to hear you fart."
Now some of you may be thinking that Mama Does Time is going to be just too Southern for your taste buds. That would be a legitimate concern; however, I have a testimonial from my Yankee book buddy in Minneapolis. Cheryl and I are both on Paperback Swap, we both love mysteries, and we tend to mail each other books on a regular basis. Here's what Cheryl wrote on the packing slip when she sent me this book: "Enjoy! I liked it, even with the 'y'all', sweet tea and yappy little dog! LOL"
Mama Does Time is an entertaining mystery with a wonderful cast of characters that is appealing regardless upon which side of the Mason-Dixon you reside. I, for one, am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
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