Barb's Book Reviews: Review of "Greedy Bones: A Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery" by Carolyn Haines

Friday, June 8, 2018

Review of "Greedy Bones: A Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery" by Carolyn Haines

In this 9th book in the 'Sarah Booth Delaney' series, the private detective - who runs an investigative agency with her partner Tinkie Richmond - investigates the cause of a mysterious illness in her home town.

It's best to read the books in order, but the mystery can be read as a standalone.

*****

Hollywood actress and private detective Sarah Booth Delaney hurries back to her home town of Zinnia, Mississippi when a mysterious disease breaks out there. Several people, including Oscar - the husband of Sarah Booth's best friend and detective partner Tinkie Richmond - are in the hospital, seriously ill.

All the patients got sick after visiting Zinnia's run-down Carlisle Plantation.

Each human victim experienced a burning fever and delirium before falling into a deathlike coma. The cause of the sickness is unknown, though it seems to be connected to the plantation's bioengineered cultivar. The Carlisle Plantation, which is no longer a profitable working concern, is being used to grow an experimental cotton crop that - in addition to being plagued by boll weevils - may harbor some unidentified infectious agent.

The Carlisle estate is a source of contention between its two co-owners, brother and sister Luther and Erin Carlisle. Luther wants to sell the land to developers, while Erin wants to keep it in the family.

Either way, the 'disease situation' may affect the plantation's future.

The doctors in Zinnia do everything they can to treat the comatose patients, to no avail.

Thus the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) sends two Ph.D. scientists to help. One of them - a gorgeous blonde named Bonnie Louise - immediately gloms onto Sarah Booth's ex-boyfriend, Sheriff Coleman Peters. Sarah Booth, who's dating a Hollywood actor, tells herself she doesn't care.....but she seems very concerned. 😑

Though two trained scientists are now on the scene, Sarah Booth insists on investigating herself. The detective is determined to find out what's causing the disease, so she can save Oscar's life. (In real life, this would be ludicrous. Highly trained doctors and scientists can take years to identify the cause of a new disease. An amateur - who isn't even a biologist or physician - wouldn't have a chance. 😏)

In any case, Sarah Booth's other best friend - the fashionable transgender journalist Cece Dee Falcon - also offers to make inquiries. Sarah Booth's and Cece's interference leads to serious problems for both women.

As all this is going on, Sarah Booth gets regular visits from her personal ghost Jitty, who haunts Sarah Booth's ancestral home, Dahlia House. Jitty is always changing her outfits, which is fun. She's also constantly pushing Sarah Booth to have a baby, which gets old.

After considerable drama and trauma, everything is discovered in a climax I didn't predict.

This is an enjoyable addition to the series, recommended to fans of cozy mysteries.

Rating: 3 stars

2 comments:

Carla Loves to ReadJune 9, 2018 at 1:45 PM
I have heard good things about this series and have contemplated starting to read it. I have a couple from the middle, but not sure if I want to start there. Nice review Barb.
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Barb SafferJune 11, 2018 at 8:27 PM
Thank you Carla. It's a good series. The characters experience more growth than in the average cozy series.🙂
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Barb's Book Reviews

Friday, June 8, 2018

Review of "Greedy Bones: A Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery" by Carolyn Haines

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