Raiders of the Lost Corset

I Really Loved this book. This book was interesting, funny and had a great plot. I read a lot of books in this genre and this was one of my favorites. I loved the characters and the clothes. Not only did I enjoy the book itself I also enjoyed the newspaper articles written by Laci within the book. Sort of like a two for one deal.

My favorite line was "The meal was lovely until the shooting started, but that wasn't until dessert." In a perfect world, the heroine would have adventure, romance, nice clothes, good hair, and dessert, but four out of five is not bad. I loved the idea of using perfume as a red herring. So much more esthetically appealing. An intelligent and well-researched book.

What started as an article on corsets and a possible treasure hunt for a missing corset and jewels, turns into a murder mystery when Magda Rousseau, master corset maker, dies in front of Lacey from a stab wound. Lacey determined to fulfill Magda's dying wish to "find the corset"-a fabled royal corset stuffed with jewels, takes off to Paris and outlying areas with her conspiracy, theory friend Brooke for company. Along the way she encounters Griffin, a British jewel thief, and Kepelov, a former KBG agent, also in pursuit of the treasure. Brooke and Lacey are joined by Damon and Vic in Paris. Brooke and Damon continue working on their various conspiracy theories in the City of Light. Lacey and Vic finally consumate their relationship. A note leads Lacey to New Orleans, this time with her stylist, Stella, in tow to continue her pursuit of the fabled corset. The Big Easy yields further clues that lead her around the French Quarter, while trying to avoid Griffin and Kepelov, who are back on her trail. Vic joins her New Orleans and with the help of Turtle Dove and his cousins, puts a stop to Griffin and Kepelov's antics. Fellow reporter Tony Trujillo is sent down to "keep an eye" on Lacey, and tries to scoop parts of the story. The mystery concludes in New Orleans with the confession of Magda's killer, and Lacey following a "fashion hunch" finds the corset. The further development of Lacey and Vic's relationship is a relief after 3 books of them playing cat and mouse. The cast of supporting characters is expanding with the addition of Detective Broadway Lamont, and the continuing saga of Felicity and Harold at work. The author does a great job of weaving friends like Stella, Damon, and Brooke into the story allowing them in on the adventures. Though neighborhood Psychic Marie is still MIA. A reapperance from her would be nice. She was in the first 2 books, had a brief mention in the 3, but seems to have been dropped from the series. The descriptions of France and New Orleans (pre Hurricane Katrina-as there is no mention of the Hurricane or it's destruction in the book)are fun. In addition, the history of the corsets origins is based on historic fact and completely plausible. Crimes of Fashion is a series I truly enjoy reading and looking forward to each new book.

Ellen Byerrum's RAIDERS OF THE LOST CORSET sends la belle Lacey Smithsonian to Paris and New Orleans on a wild and wacky hidden-gem chase with best friend Brooke and on-again/off-again beau Vic Donovan. Not only is RAIDERS a satisfyingly solved mystery, Byerrum's fourth in her "Crimes of Fashion" series provides a serious Time of Passion for Lacey and Vic. I'm not going to give away any more of the happily-ever-after (or not) than that--just be on the lookout for pecan pie cake. The penultimate scene is so utterly funny and so truly cinematic, I can't wait to see RAIDERS OF THE LOST CORSET in the movies (I'm seeing Reese Witherspoon as Lacey, and Hugh Jackman as Vic). Whoever stars in the movie, there'll need to be a special "Best inadvertent use of local color in an S & M scene in a mystery-slash-comedy" award that year (and one this year in the Edgars). RAIDERS is in general the most visually appealing of the Lacey novels, taking place as it does in one of the more artistic pockets of usually helmet-haired DC, the City of Lights, and the pre-Katrina Big Easy. And then there's Lacey and Vic's cake-making scene. Hard to go wrong with this ajout fabuleux to the Byerrum-Smithsonian catalog.

The Eye Street Observer "Crime of Fashion" columnist Lacey Smithsonian visits master corsetier Magda Rousseau as she lies dying in her workshop. With her last dying breath she begs Lacey "to find the corset". The two women were heading to France to find the expensive jeweled corset that was stolen by a Latvian soldier when the Bolsheviks killed the royal family. She journeys to a farmhouse in Monk Saint Michel where Magda's relatives live. Magda believed it was hidden somewhere in the house but Jean-Claude Rousseau tells her that it is nowhere in the in the house and the only room locked up for decades is the coal room. When they remove the nails that keep the door permanently closed, Lacey finds a note with an address on it. There is no such number on the street in but her lover tells her there is a street by the same name in New Orleans. When she gets back to the states, she finds the address and the druggist who works there has an urn for her left there decades ago. A note inside the urn leads her to a crypt that has nothing inside but another address. When she goes there, the proprietor knows nothing about what they are looking for. After nearly being killed, Lacey continues the hunt while avoiding Magda's fate. This is a hilarious crime caper where one has the clues to find the bejeweled corset. The support cast, including the villains act in such a clichéd manner that reader will find themselves laughing out loud. The heroine is stubborn, intractable and totally adorable as she marches a path through France and New Orleans to find something that might not even exist. Ellen Byerrum has a hit series on her hands with her latest tale. Harriet Klausner