The PMS Outlaws

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I am reading the series out of order but felt no qualms at missing the two prior to this one and 'I Should Have Killed Him'. A.P., Bill and Jeoffrey are delightful (and lets not forget Edith), this ensemble cast works for me. I was relieved that E. has finally put Cameron to rest, and will now get on with her life. I look forward to the next installment of this Southern Gothic mystery/family saga. Here's hoping Bill & A.P. will get together (I think it is a natural development).

Sharyn McCrumb might have written this novel in violent reaction to "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister." One of her overriding themes in "The PMS Outlaws" is the treatment of ugly people in a beauty-loving world. In the following scene, Elizabeth (the main series character) is talking with another inmate at the Cherry Hill Psychiatric Hospital:"`When you get right down to it, there is only one universal currency.'"`And that is?'"`Beauty. Beauty is the one status symbol that cannot be taken away. If you're beautiful, you can be set down anywhere in the world, without your I.D. or your credit cards, and people will treat you well. Cleverness won't help you if you wind up in a place where they don't speak your language, or if your wisdom is not recognized, but beauty is the universal wealth...Anyhow, pretty people matter. The rest of us don't.'"The PMS outlaws themselves are two women with entirely different reasons for picking up men, humiliating them, and stealing their cars and wallets. One of the women is an escaped convict. The other is the attorney who sprung her out of the hoosegow.There are many subplots to this novel: Elizabeth's struggle with depression after the disappearance of her marine-biologist husband; her clueless attorney-brother's purchase of a new law office and residence (hint: its nickname is `Tara'); a mystery involving an elderly moonshiner who once owned the stately, old mansion; and (my favorite) the lawyer, A. P. Hill's increasingly frantic search for the PMS outlaws.Miscellaneous items that make this novel stand out from all of the others in the series:(1) no murder; no murder mystery;(2) Elizabeth does not function as a forensic anthropologist. She hardly functions at all;(3) Very little concerning Appalachian or Scottish folklore, although there is a wonderful little riff on silkies;(4) Elizabeth's husband, who was a major character in "Highland Laddie Gone," Paying the Piper," etc. has truly disappeared---somewhere off the coast of Scotland;(5) The `Titanic.' "The PMS Outlaws" is a wonderfully ferocious comedy of Southern manners rather than a genre mystery. It is the Superbowl of `Steel Magnolias' versus `Animal House.'

I really enjoyed this book. I've read other reviewers who dislike the more serious side of Elizabeth. I don't agree. Sure, she could have stayed happily married to Cameron and solved light mysteries on the side forever, but I think that showing growth and change in the character is much more interesting. There was plenty of supporting humor - Geoffrey, for instance, and Emma's apology letters. I also liked the discussion of beauty and the power it has. I thought it was a very true, clear, and honest description of the way society can treat people. This is shown through the people in the mental hospital and the crime spree that Purdue begins. (For people who liked Purdue, she was introduced in McCrumb's short story collection, which is also excellent.)I gave this book five stars because after I finished it I wanted to reread certain parts again. And, as always, the plot was well constructed and believable.

Sharyn McCrumb has outdone herself with the return of her McPherson series. The McPherson mysteries were the first books the author became known for. They were dropped for a number of years while she did her acclaimed Ballad series. Now she is back to her original series with a twist.For those of you not familiar with Sharyn McCrumb, she uses East TN and North Carolina as the setting for her books. She uses familiar landscapes as background. She takes little known facts and legends and uses them to good advantage in her books.The series always circled around Elizabeth McPherson. The series started with her romance to Cameron & their adventures. Elizabeth meets Cameron in the first book, which takes place at a a Highland Games Festival. The family included Elizabeth's brother Bill and a few other cousins and assorted relatives.This book alternates passages with Elizabeth, Bill and Bill's law partner, Powell's, schoolmate, who is on the run in a Thelma and Louise adventure. I usually do not like books which skip back and forth between characters and time periods, but Sharyn makes it work.Sharyn has also taken another genre no-no, she has killed off a beloved character who has been in the series from the jump and made it work. The book opens with all this, so this is not a spoiler, but I won't tell you who the character is. Elizabeth is so devestated about this loss, she checks herself into a mental hospital. The famous quotes about sanity/mental health and the group discussions make one think Sharyn has either done her thorough research, or has known somebody who has taken this journey. The descriptions of grief and depression are extremely well-done & deep, but at the same time, not depressing and morbid. The book jumps from Elizabeth's daily life to Bill's daily life in the law world, complete with stuffed groundhog. Bill and Powell buy a huge old mansion, which comes complete with the former owner, who wildly enough, manages to tie in with Elizabeth's bout of depression and the Thelma and Louise saga.Sharyn McCrumb's use of language is always wonderful. Her characters are offbeat but believable. Who doesn't know a lawyer with a stuffed groundhog wearing a judge's robe on his filing cabinet. I have been a fan for years. I liked the ballad series and I loved her two mysteries set at the sci fi convention. But I love her McPherson series the best. I was very happy she returned to it and made it even better than before. Bill was previously just a sidelines character, but he could now star in his own John Grishamesque novel. Hats off to this wonderful author for another great book!

Forensic anthropologist Elizabeth MacPherson may have solved several mysteries, but the disappearance of her spouse, allegedly drowned in the North Sea, proves too much for her. Unable to cope with her depression, Elizabeth checks herself into her family's personal motel, the Cherry Hill Psychiatric Hospital.At about the same time as Elizabeth's mind unravels, her brother Bill's legal partner A.P. Hill (a lawyer, not the reserve post) tries to stop the PMS OUTLAWS. The two female criminals, an escaped con and her lawyer, are becoming renowned throughout Appalachia for incarcerating naked, horny males to various plumbing accessories. Everyone converges on the new law office of Bill and A.P., where already resides a nonagenarian former FBI fugitive. No one except those who read the novel will ever know the zany outcome.THE PMS OUTLAWS is a mixing of the Marx Brothers at the Opera with Thelma and Louise. The story line is extremely humorous with a biting undercurrent that impels the audience to look at social issues. The tale works on all levels because the entire cast from Elizabeth to the lawyers to the female "thugs" to their victims all seem genuine. Best-selling, award winning Sharyn McCrumb is at her witty best with this great satire.Harriet Klausner