Going Out in Style

Chloe Green is the pseudonym for one Suzanne Frank, authoress of a series of time-travel romance/suspense books, none of which I have read. Her debut mystery, Going Out in Style, is about as far away as one can get from time travel and ancient civilizations. Anyway, Going Out concerns Dallas O'Connor, a local set designer who arranges and designs sets for catalog fashion shoots and similar projects; that is, Dallas would normally be doing these things if she were not in hiding. See, when she reports early to work one morning she happens upon the lifeless body of an up-and-coming model, not to mention the very life-filled body of a hunky Cuban artist named Raul who is holding the murder weapon. Sometimes the early bird gets more than the worm, sometimes she gets accused of wielding the knife herself for the final cut. Raul, naturally, asserts his own innocence as well, and Dallas is reluctantly made his partner in crime investigation. So, she blends into the city for which she was named, sneaking around to colleagues and friends conducting her own investigation in order to clear her name. It's not as easy as it sounds, however, as it seems somebody is usually one step ahead of her, planting traps and staging other crimes that have the police thinking Dallas is on some sort of spree, and Dallas must work quickly before she finds herself fashionably late to her own funeral.Going Out is a nice, enjoyable read with moments of mirth and lunacy (particularly when Dallas and Raul are hashing out their plans and options); Dallas especially is likeable as a harried heroine who knows her priorities and still feels justified in bending the rules (it's not everyday somebody accepts a date with a stranger in a fancy restaurant when she's supposed to be running for her life). I suppose I also like this story because of its originality, since I do not recall having read a Texas-set mystery in years, much less anything with the fashion industry as a backdrop. If Suzanne/Chloe can tear herself away from her romances, I think she can continue to keep the Dallas O'Connor series in fashion.

Smart, fast paced, exciting, sexy and funny. Not funny because she tells jokes, but funny because of the heroine's outlook on life. She knows Dallas, Texas people and fashion industry folks to a 'T'. A real page-turner that you won't be able to put down.

Dallas O'Connor works as a stylist for The Store, but also toils as the production manager of the Store's quarterly catalogue, Metamorphosis. Although she can use the extra money, Dallas wonders about her sanity for accepting the extra job because the art director Gary keeps changing his mind on the publication's concept. The lead model nineteen-year-old Ileana Kargonis fails to show up for the shoot. When Dallas arrives at the studio she hears strange noises, which lead her to finding the murdered body of Ileana.Dallas also sees a man holding a bloody knife leaning near the corpse. She refuses to listen to what the man has to say, fleeing the scene and calling the police. The cops think Dallas is a prime suspect since there is no evidence that the person she claimed to have observed by the body was ever in the building that evening. That same individual abducts Dallas, forcing her to help him prove his innocence before the police arrest either one or both of them.Chloe Green is going to have a long, successful career as a mystery writer if her funny, breezy debut, GOING OUT IN STYLE, is any predictor. The cast is eccentric, whimsical, and entertaining. The admirable heroine goes with the flow, but tries to influence the direction it is heading. The delightful anti-hero "partner" makes a perfect foil for Dallas. Hopefully this novel will evolve into a continuing series because it is fresh and enjoyable reading.Harriet Klausner

Chloe Green sets the pace for summer. Read those pages, and read them fast, or you might get caught by the murderer chasing Dallas O'Connor all over . . . well . . . Dallas. Capturing the essence of the city, Green weaves a tale of intrigue involving the fashion industry, the subculture including Greenville Avenue, the restaurants to see and where to be seen, and the corpses that seem to be wherever Dallas goes. This is the first in a series, so feel free to invest in this character. She'll be around for a while. It's smart. It's well-written. It's engaging. It's fun. Take extra sun block to the beach. You'll get caught up and roast.