Mama Rides Shotgun

Funny, witty and cute... It's the kind of book you start with your first cup of coffee and find yourself calling into work "sick" because you just can't put it down. What other trouble can Mace get Mama out of? I want more!

The Mama series is getting better and better. I can comment on the great story and witty writing, but that seems to be a given with Deborah Sharp. What I especially love is all the "supporting" characters. "Supporting" is in quotes, because you can't call them that (I just can't come up with a better word, which is probably one reason why I am not a writer). In so many mysteries or book series, you have a main character who is the sole focal point, the one who is so much smarter/more insightful than everyone else, the one who figures everything out. The other characters, even those who appear throughout the series, can be little more than caricatures, or complicated props. As a result, a series of books can quickly become stale, "new" cases merely becoming echoes of earlier ones. Maddie, Marty, Carlos, Mama (of course), and even Sal, are much more complicated/complete than your initial introduction to them. Even within Mama Does Time, their characters are fleshed out and evolve, and that continues with Mama Rides Shotgun. Who would have thought Marty would go from the mousy librarian to a (threatened) leg-breaker?!? And, especially with Mama and her girls, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. They all contribute during their "group-think" sessions; it's not just Mace (the protagonist) who figures everything out. As long as this continues, this is a series that will never get "old." I agree with an earlier reviewer that, although this book can stand alone, to truly experience the growth of the characters you really should read Mama Does Time first. Plus, Mama Does Time is a great book itself!! Another huge attraction for me to Mama Rides Shotgun is knowing that the Florida Cracker Trail is a real event, and that the author actually made the ride. Although you know the characters and locations are fictitious (or maybe more accurately a combination of many real people and places), that many of the elements are real and that the author has experienced them only adds to the book. Eagerly awaiting the next one!!

Mama Rides Shotgun was a great follow-up to Mama Does Time, the first Mace Bauer Mystery. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and it confirmed just how much I adored the characters. Mace is back again to solve a murder, only this time it's on the Florida Cracker Trail; a six-day trip on horseback, a tribute to Florida's early cattle-driving days. An old friend of her Mama's is found dead and Mace believes it is not by natural causes. But who did it? The rich man's son who couldn't live up to his father's expectations? The young beautiful widow? The bitter old friend? Don't let the cliches fool you because this is one novel where you can't see it coming until the end. There is enough twists and turns in this cozy mystery that will keep a reader guessing. I simply enjoyed Mace's character: she's extremely independent, smart, and her sarcasm keeps me laughing. She's a very easy character to relate to, especially when she's dealing with her Mama and her two sisters. She's still learning to accept her mother's new fiance, her sister Marty's new assertiveness, and her attraction to the hot Cuban detective from Miami, Carlos Martinez (despite their short but failed relationship that started in the first book). Carlos alone would keep me coming back for more Mace Bauer mysteries! While this is a stand alone novel, I would recommend starting with the first mystery. One, it's a great introduction to the series (I hope it's a series) and two, it is a favorite of mine. I'm going to have to agree with the first reviewer: Mace is definitely my new and favorite Florida character! Move over Carl Hiaasen!!

Don't tell Carl Hiaasen, but Mama has quickly become my favorite Florida character. Deborah Sharp's second book places Mama on a six-day cattle ride with her daughters. When an ex-beau suddenly dies the mis-adventure of being around Mama ensues. I LOVE that this is set far away from the beaches and neon of Miami, in rural Florida. The fictional town of Himmarshee is a side of Florida that people should read about. This is a great read that will have you wishing book three was already published.