Nip, Tuck, Dead: A Pauline Sokol Mystery

If you enjoy Stephanie Plum, Myron Bolitar and other smartly written, part time investigators with quirky friends, families, impersonality's, you will enjoy this series as well.

Another great Pauline Sokol mystery! I love this character and have enjoyed watching her grow as the series takes off. This was great with the Newport backdrop and slightly more information about the ever mysterious Jagger. I hope that we will be hearing a lot more about Pauline, Goldie, Miles, and wonderful Uncle Walt...

Fun series to read to escape reality! Love the main character and her "entourage". Can't wait for the next installment.

If any of you think that mystery novels are dull then you need to read the Pauline Sokol series. Lori Avocato has brought a new, refreshing and humorous main character to us by the name of Pauline Sokol. She is a burned out 35 year old single and sexually frustrated nurse that decided to become a medical fraud insurance investigator. Not knowing exactly how to go about getting the evidence she dives into each case with dogged and sometimes stumbling determination. She usually stumbles into the latest HOT STUD in each book. Of course, then there is Jagger, who she stumbles into frequently, which is good because he is able to help with her case. Lori has created a cast of characters that sometime, well maybe most of the time, drives Pauline crazy. First there is her mother, Stella Sokol, who wants her to quit the investigation job and go back to nursing. Then there are her 2 roommates. Goldie is originally from New Orleans. He came north to be with his life partner, Miles the other roommate. Goldie, always the fashion statement, works for the same insurance agency as Pauline while Miles is an Operating Room nurse at the hospital that Pauline left. Between the two of them, especially Goldie, they make sure that Pauline has perfect makeup on and the right outfit. Pauline's dad, Michael, usually is sleeping or reading the paper. Uncle Walt, on the other hand is more than willing to help our heroine. Adele, a Canadian transplant, is the office secretary with a past. Fabio, not the blond Adonis but just the opposite, is the owner of the insurance agency that our heroine and Goldie work for. In everyone's life some rain must fall. Our heroine doesn't have rain falling on her but more like a hurricane in the name of Jagger. Without a doubt he is the most self centered, egoistical, male chauvinist who Pauline has the hots for but will not admit it to him. He is always able to get her to do what he wants, even if she does not want to do it. And all she wants is to kiss him and get him into bed with her.

Wanting a career change, former nurse Pauline Sokol now works as an insurance fraud investigator for the Scarpello and Tonelli Insurance Company. Her latest job is to investigate Highcliff Manor, a plastic surgery and spa clinic in Newport, Rhode Island. They have suddenly submitted a big increase in health claims and the company's client thinks fraud is involved. Pauline goes undercover as a private nurse (talk about typecasting) caring for her friend Goldie who is really getting a nose job at the manor. When they arrive at Highcliff, Pauline gets right to work snooping into employee Ian's computer, asking questions and looking in desks for evidence. Her nemesis Jagger, is staying at the same inn where she took a room and drives her crazy with his sexy come-ons and unwanted advice. When she finds Ian's body, she is certain his death is linked to the fraud even though the police think he committed suicide. Between taking care of Goldie who is not the easiest patient she ever dealt with and going home for a weekend to say hello to her mother who has a broken arm, Pauline starts investigating in earnest and almost ends up becoming murdered by a killer who hid in plain sight. Readers who like the Stephanie Plum series will want to read the Pauline Sokol tales. The heroine is similar to Plum, who is in a job that she isn't really qualified for while Jaguar is similar to Joe Morelli who watches out for the damsel in distress who never thinks she is in danger. Of course there are many differences between the two humorous crime caper series because Lori Avocato has her own distinct style and humor with characters who feel like the reader's next door neighbors. Harriet Klausner