Dial H for Hitchcock

I picked this book based on recent positive review I'd read, and am so glad I did. There are few books that make me laugh out loud but this one sure did. Plus the plot line is fascinating in the way it intertwines scenes and issues from Hitchcock's life and movies.

I love Kandel's style! It is so enjoyable if you are fan of the author she's focusing on of just a mystery fan Although if you are a mystery buff it is just a little more fun. I am such a Hitchcockian fan. I've seen just about every movie he has ever made, it was so cool to see how she weaved in so many classic Hitchcock moments. Also as always Cece is a joy to follow along her journey. Great read, absolutely loved it! I'd say more but no one likes a spoiler on a Hitchcock.

After completing Christie (see Christietown), in Los Angeles biographer CeCe Caruso is way behind her deadline for the definitive bio on Hitchcock having wasted time on a single person's honeymoon after kicking police Detective Peter Gambino to the curb. A fan of the late filmmaker, she sees Vertigo. However, leaving the theater CeCe somehow has someone else's cell phone so turns around to return it. CeCe travels to Beechwood Canyon to return the cell phone to its owner Anita Colby. There she sees someone push the owner off a cliff reminding her of Vertigo. When the police discover a message CeCe left Anita on her answering machine, she becomes their suspect in the murder. The latest CeCe Caruso biography mystery is a super amateur sleuth tale that pays homage to the great director and his films throughout a taut investigation. Filled with jocularity, Susan Kandel keeps CeCe climbing into danger as she fears becoming a dead star in her own film without the accolades of one of the Hitchcock beauties. Fans of Hitchcock will relish Ms. Kandel's terrific tale of an innocent woman in a state of frenzy sought by a killer and the law (sounds so Hitchcockian). Harriet Klausner

Taking your honeymoon alone is not recommended. Just ask Cece Caruso. She's just returned from a lonely cruise after calling off her wedding. And she's returned to find herself facing a deadline on her biography of suspense master director Alfred Hitchcock. So what does she do? She goes to a screening of Vertigo at an old theater in town. The next morning, Cece finds someone else's cell phone in her purse. Trying to return it, she witnesses a murder. Then the killer calls her and warns her to keep quiet. As she begins to try to find out who is doing this to her, Cece continually finds herself one step behind...herself. What in the world is going on? I've been watching a few Hitchcock films over the last couple of years since I knew he would be the subject for this book. As a result, I completely got it. The book is a classic Hitchcock set up, and it works brilliantly. While parts in the first third were a tad slow, I was hooked the entire time and couldn't wait to see how it ended. And how did it end? Well, I'm not going to give anything away, but I will say I absolutely loved it. Since the point of the book was to isolate Cece, we don't get to see too much of the supporting cast. I missed them, but hopefully we'll get to see more of them soon in a later book. There were some bits of humor to lighten the load as things progressed, but the further the story went, the more it focused on the mystery. Even though the plot is very Hitchcockian, I do think fans of the series who aren't familiar with the director will enjoy the book as well. This is a great book that will keep you reading until the very last page.