Deadly Interest: An Alex St. James Mystery

Alex St. James, a TV reporter in Chicago, comes home from a night of public humiliation by her former lover to find her elderly neighbor, Evelyn Vicks, has been murdered. Earlier that evening Mrs. Vicks had asked Alex for help with a financial situation. Feeling guilty from pushing her off, Alex does some investigating into Mrs. Vicks' life. She discovers Mrs. Vicks had been secretly looking into the lending practice's of the banks she worked at. Mrs. Vicks' son is soon hounding Alex because he was promised money from his mother and the bank won't let him see her safe deposit box. Add to that the fact that Alex has been attacked and appears to be stalked, Alex knows she must help the police find her killer and fast. I couldn't put this book down. I kept picking it up to read another chapter to find out what happened. I loved Alex. She is such a great character. Her being a TV reporter really added to the story. I can't wait to read more in this series. I highly recommend this book! Just make sure you have lots of time to read as you'll not want to put it down!

Poor Alex St. James. She feels guilty about the murder of her neighbor, Mrs. Vicks, because she brushed her off the same evening she was killed. When she brings her disabled sister home for two weeks, she misses a work trip with a newsman she admires. And then she's attacked when she enters her neighbor's home. Alex, a researcher for a news magazine show in Chicago, reluctantly agrees to look into the neighbor's financial dealings, and then the murder itself. She's threatened and pushed around, but once she's involved she's determined to find Mrs. Vicks' killer. She's an admirable character, determined to do right for other people. She's one amateur detective that admits "This isn't the job I signed on for, you know. News research isn't supposed to be a life-threatening occupation." Anyone looking for an amateur sleuth who knows her limitations will appreciate Alex St. James in Deadly Interest.

Chicago TV reporter Alex St. James of the Midwest Focus Newsletter is running late for an award ceremony in which she is a nominee so somewhat brushes off her neighbor Evelyn Vicks when the older woman wants to show her something. She does help Evelyn get back into her locked house before racing off to the gala where she watches her former lover, Dan Starck of a rival show win the award. He humiliates her in his rambling speech dubbing her as the engine that could implying no matter how hard she tries she can't with no hint that he stole her story. When she returns home she learns someone killed Mrs. Vicks whose son Bart insists she help him with probate because the president of the bank where Mrs. Vick work David Dewars insists Bart killed his mother because he needed his inheritance. Alex, who wants to help, is being stalked by a dangerous con just released from prison. As Chicago Police Detective Lulinski investigates, Alex finds she is caught in the dangerous middle even as her older sister Lucy, who suffers from Williams Syndrome, temporarily moves in with her during renovations at the assisted living facility where she lives. The second "deadly" tale is a terrific investigative thriller starring a likable protagonist whose life becomes quite complicated when her sibling moves in with her, her neighbor is murdered just after speaking with her, and several men enter her life interested in her. The story line is fast-paced and the ending surprising but plausible as readers will count their blessings that Alex is on the case. On top of that is a fascinating coda at a gas station between Alex and Chicago private detective Ron Shade (Michael A. Black's literary sleuth). Harriet Klausner