Drag Strip

Sierra Lavotini is an exotic dancer "living large" in Panama City Florida. Sierra is the headliner at the Vinny Gambuzzo's Tiffany Gentleman's Club. She and her friend, fellow dancer Ruby Diamond, are asked to make a special appearance at a nearby race track, the Dead Lakes Motor Speedway. When Ruby is found dead behind a dumpster at the raceway, Sierra kicks her investigation skills into high gear to find out who has murdered her friend. The back of this book compares Sierra Lavotini to Stephanie Plum, Janet Evanovich's feisty New Jersey bounty hunter. I have usually found books that compare themselves to the Stephanie Plum books to fall short, but that is not the case with this book! The characters are funny and unique. Readers get to know Vinny, Sierra's smarmy boss at the club, as well as her borderline-wacko neighbor Raydean. This hilarious mystery was the first one I have read by Nancy Bartholomew, but it certainly won't be my last! I highlly recommend this entertaining story to all mystery fans.

Sierra Lavotini is the headliner of the Tiffany Gentlemen's Club in Panama City, Florida. After her debut in Nancy Bartholomew's MIRACLE MILE, she is back to make us laugh and smile in her latest mystery. In DRAG STRIP, Ruby Lee Diamond has recently moved out of her parent's house in Wewahitchka to work at Panama City. Sierra takes Ruby under her wing and shows her the ropes of her profession.In order to promote his gentleman's club, Vincent Gambuzzo sends Sierra and Ruby to the local drag strip to pose with the drivers competing at the day's races. While working there Sierra sees Detective John Nailor in the hands of another woman (the nerve!) and he is doing everything he can to avoid bumping into her. During that same day she overhears Ruby arguing with someone and then being beaten to death. Sierra arrives too late to stop it and the killer manages to escape. It affects her really hard because she saw Ruby as a friend and she is unable to confide in John Nailor since he is on the run from the cops. Lavotini is not going to take it sitting down and she will do what it takes to find out the truth. In the end she will be involved with religious zealots, organized crime and family secrets.Ms. Bartholomew has another winner with this second book in the Strip series. Sierra is a likeable character who is smart, resourceful and is grounded by the unconditional love given to her by her friends and family. There is a lot of humor written in this book that does not divert from the main storyline. An exotic dancer was murdered and there is a killer tracking Sierra to try and find out what she knows. Several scenes could have been insulting if written by other authors but Nancy Bartholomew is a class act. She never belittles her characters and her books are a joy to read. It will be a pleasure to continue reading her next book in the series, FILM STRIP. She writes good and light books meant to be enjoyed and not taken seriously.

I've read both The Miracle Strip and Drag Strip, and I am hooked on these books. The characters come to life more in each book, the sleuthing gets more sophisticated, the plots better and better. Sierra is someone that I would never know in real life, but would want to be friends with if I happened across her. Her "take no prisoners" attitude combines with an un-apologetic love for exotic dancing. Her large Italian family Philadelphia upbringing offers good comic contrast, but also shows how she is so well grounded in her life. No victim, Sierra. Throw in a handsome single cop and you've got a great, fun read.

In Panama City, Florida, Vincent Gambuzzo owns the exotic dance club Tiffany. To attain a little PR for the club and as a favor, Vincent sends his top attraction Sierra Lavotini to look very pretty and be pinched at the Dead Lakes Motor Speedway. Upcoming star Ruby Lee Diamond accompanies Sierra. However, the night turns rotten when a dirt track driver crashes into Sierra's car. The evening turns ugly when someone murders Ruby Lee. Even more shocking, Sierra observed her "beau" Homicide Detective John Nailor fleeing from the scene of the corpse. Already blaming herself for the death of one of her "family", the betrayal by John shocks Sierra, who finds herself attracted to the cop. Not waiting around for the police to find the killer, Sierra begins her own brand of inquiries that place her in danger with only John to protect his woman. DRAG STRIP, the second Lavotini mystery (see THE MIRACLE STRIP) is an entertaining blending of a police procedural with a Florida amateur sleuth tale. The story line is interesting, but the fun in this novel rests with the main character. Sierra is a zany amalgam of Catholic school guilt and exotic dancer zest that makes her a unique but cherished individual. Her relationship with John who loves her is beginning to simmer. The secondary cast adds that Florida frenzy frequently found in who-done-its set in the Sunshine State. Readers will look forward to the next Nancy Bartholomew book that hopefully will push forward the John-Sierra relationship to new heights.Harriet Klausner