Pray and Die

First Line: "Look, is this really necessary? You know who I am." Jordan Lacey was on the police force for a short while, but she's not the most politically correct person in England. After telling a superior officer what an idiot he was-- in ringing, bell-like tones in front of all sorts of witnesses-- Jordan finds herself without a job. She decides she's going to be a private investigator, but she doesn't know how much call there is for one in a low crime area like Latching, West Sussex, so she adorns her office windows with displays of secondhand books and bits of glassware and china she's able to pick up on the cheap. More often than not, she has to replenish her display windows. There's also more P.I. business than she thought there'd be. There's the woman who's lost her turtle, and the other woman who believes her husband is cheating on her... and then there's the body of the murdered nun Jordan discovers in an abandoned, boarded-up hotel. Pray and Die is really a character study of a true original more than it's a mystery. Jordan is unique. She's fiercely independent, knows how to live on scarcely any money, and her thought processes don't always run along the same lines as the rest of us. This can be a very good thing. She may secretly hope for a knight on a white charger, but she's more prone to collecting a series of misfits: "So don't come to me for advice about men. I'm a loser. Leave them alone if you can. If you can't, pick a good 'un. If there aren't any around, then get a cat and a library ticket." Although I'm a dog person myself, I think that's excellent advice. Even though I made friends with Jordan while I read about her and I did find this book to be a wonderful character study, the mystery was practically non-existent. If that doesn't matter to you, you should love this book about an endearing, quirky young woman. I do know that Jordan is such a charmer that I'm looking for the second book in this series.

I have never missed a Stella Whitelaw book! I love them all and this one certainly does not disappoint!

Jordan Lacey couldn't make it as a policewoman, so now she's freelancing as a private eye in the small south England coastal town of Latching. She sets up shop in an area that's rapidly deteriorating and sells the odd thrift-shop item in-between cases. (She cases all the local charity shops to stock her wares, marking them all Six Pounds.) Jordan has a quirky personality, ongoing trouble with men, a bad case of pollution-caused asthma, and sometimes rubs folks the wrong way. Her initial foray into investigative work, with three cases (one's not hers, but the police can't lock her out) that fold into each other in a clever way, is a fast, funny, downright good read, in an overcrowded field, that of the cozy mystery. (Although there might be more violence here than in the usual cozy... ) Poison-pen letters, World War II intrigue, runaway teenagers, an unusual stepparent/stepchild relationships, a hospice that can't keep track of its nursing sisters...the characters will fascinate and keep one guessing what's going on. I hope reappearing characters will include sexy/morose Detective Inspector James; the pensioner with time on his hands who advises Jordan on rare books; the various worldly-wise ladies who run the cafs and grocery shops and keep an eye on her; and the male parasites Jordan unfortunately attracts, among them the married man she's much too good for. This is a feisty, likable, goodhearted heroine with a spirited, unique personality and odd eating habits who will get under the reader's skin. Stella Whitelaw, we want more! (Please :)

Jordan Lacy is a clever, original heroine, with a quirky approach to life. Suffering with both asthma a plethora of unsuitable men, Jordan approaches her investigative business with the methodology she learned as a police woman, and with an unorthodoxy that leaves the reader grinning. She has a double bed sit, and a box of "props" she uses as disguises, a love for jazz, and a love of cooking, as well as a store front cover from which she sells underpriced treasurers - Jordan is truly an original. When things are not going well, then a trip to the beach or the pier will help. The author does an exquisite job both with the setting and with allowing the reader insight into Jordan. This is a well thought out, and cunningly developed British cozy with heart beating drama on the last few pages. Enjoy!