Family Plots: Love, Death & Tax Evasion

A real life underdog, Cemetery Mary battles deceit, deception, and life's (and family) drama with every well-written page. Family Plots reminds us not to take life too seriously and inspires us to be brave - for ourselves and the ones we love.

This love and death memoir-novel kept me turning pages in suspense. "Family Plots" is the entertaining tragic/comic recount of a decade in the life of a young investigator in the San Francisco Bay Area. A humorous and dark account, the book has a wonderful and meaningful message as well.

WOWser! Want to forget about your own pain for a while by laughing at someone elses? This is a timely read with certain universal truths: that all men (and women) are endowed with a desire for power and control... That it is easy to worship strange gods like money and want to be worshipped in exchange. These characters are sooooo human, so fragile, so funny that I recognize some of them in my own life. Lord forgive us all for our Palin-esque foibles.

Family Plots is wonderful on so many levels that I'm afraid I won't do it justice, but I'm going to try, because I think Mary Patrick Kavanaugh and her incredible first book deserve widespread recognition. Though it's written as a novel, the book is basically the true story of the author's search for love and stability for herself and her small daughter. She does find happiness, but there's a hitch: the man of her dreams is not exactly on the up and up, an he comes with a cast of characters that are both mysterious and shady. I won't try to summarize the plot, because I don't want to give anything away, but it's a remarkable, sometimes zany story with unforgettable characters, masterful dialog, and so much humor and heart that I predict it will become a best seller. This book is simply a pleasure to read, and though it's humorous throughout, it ultimately takes you to a place that is surprisingly serious, with messages about love and humanity that are deeply moving. Family Plots has everything. Above all, it has Mary, whose honesty and quirky take on life make it one of the best modern novels I've read. I simply love this book, and heartily recommend it to anyone who appreciates a good story, superb writing, and the kind of wit and wisdom that make you fall in love not only with the book, but also with the author.

This is a fun read with lots of humor that makes the journey through some serious life crisis totally entertaining. The humor reminded me a bit of the writing of Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of Eat, Pray, Love.