Murder Can Cool Off Your Affair (Desiree Shapiro Mystery #9)

Meet PI Desiree Shapiro. A short plumpish widow turned New York City private eye who feels that she was born without woman's intuition or very poor intuition at best. Today she is waiting to meet her newest client, John Lander (and his wife) who fears for his life since he has become heir to the family fortune. The trouble is John was second in line to the estate, now that the original heir is dead will he be next? He has already been frightened by a stray bullet which he and his wife think was meant for John. Desiree can't imagine why the couple have come to her for help, when her area of expertise is finding lost pets, not murder but it's now up to her to put the pieces together before her client is killed. Desiree's style of questioning suspects is uniquely her own. She chats people up while eating or feeding anyone she needs information from. Now she must find out who had a motive to kill cousin Edward. John certainly did but he and Edward were not only cousins, they were friends. As Uncle Victor lay dying someone is killing off the heirs to the fortune he has not yet left behind. We follow Desiree as she searches for the killer among the suspects while avoiding being romanced, trying on dresses for her nieces wedding and buttering up her long time friend on the force with donuts and coffee for tidbits of information. Selma Eichler's Desiree Shapiro is a joy to read. Reader's get a bonus of recipes included in each novel. Vannie(~.~)

The Desiree Shapiro series is by far my favorite mystery series. Although this was not Ms. Eichler's best work, just spending time with Desiree is a pleasure. I feel like she is either my best friend or next door neighbor. I always anxiously await the next book. You will enjoy the book, but the plot is not as rich as some of the others.

Desire Shapiro is very comfortable living in her own skin despite society's narrow views of short, full figured women. She is a private detective who has had a remarkable record solving cases for her clients. However she knows she has plenty of competition in Manhattan so she's really surprised when John Lander and his wife Trudie insist she is the only private investigator they want. The Landers hire Desiree to catch the person who killed Cousin Edward and tried to kill John. Wealthy Uncle Victor is dying and his heir was Edward followed by John. The Landers and Desiree think that the inheritance is the motive behind the homicide and attempted murder but the police think John killed Edward and Ken faked an attempt on his own life to divert suspicion. It is up to Desiree to prove the cops wrong. Selma Eichler has once again written a delicious cerebral cozy culinary mystery that satisfies the mind and the stomach. The protagonist is an admirable woman who genuinely likes herself and doesn't need to conform to society's expectations of what a woman should look like. MURDER CAN COOL OFF YOUR AFFAIR has a fascinating story line that ends with a stunner.Harriet Klausner