In the first 'Mrs. Plansky' book, Mrs. Plansky's Revenge, the intrepid retiree pursues swindlers who scammed her out of $9,000. In this second novel in the series, Mrs. Plansky searches for a missing friend.
The book works fine as a standalone.
*****
Background: Seventy-one year old Loretta Plansky is having a pleasant retirement in Punta D'Oro, Florida.
Years ago, Loretta and her husband Norm made millions of dollars with their patented 'Plansky Toaster Knife', which slices and toasts bread simultaneously. After Norm passed, Loretta moved into a pretty little condo, and though Loretta misses Norm terribly, she's enjoying her life - shopping, seeing her friends, playing tennis, etc.
At the moment, Mrs. Plansky's 98-year-old father Chandler Wills Banning - a crotchety old coot who got thrown out of his assisted living home - is residing with Mrs Plansky.
Chandler is flat broke, so Mrs. Plansky was paying for his pricey retirement facility. Now Mrs. Plansky is supporting Chandler in her home, where he has an aide named Lucrecia.
Chandler is also 'romancing' Lucrecia's mother, Clara Dominguez de Soto y Camondo, who frequently stays over.
*****
As the story opens, Mrs. Plansky and her tennis partner, Kev Dinardo. win a mixed doubles match at the New Sunshine Golf and Tennis Club.
After the match, it begins to storm, so Loretta drives Kev and his bicycle home in her SUV, with their tennis trophies clinking in the back.
From Kev's driveway, Mrs. Plansky observes a nice house, the ocean, a strip of white beach, and Kev's white, crimson-trimmed yacht named Lizette. Loretta is admiring the sleek yacht when it bursts into flames, explodes, and is replaced by a ball of fire.
When firefighters arrive, Kev says his insurance will cover the debacle because it was an 'Act of God' - a lightning strike. But Mrs. Plansky didn't see any lightning.
The tennis trophies are forgotten in the mêlée, so Mrs. Plansky drives to Kev's house the next day, to give him his prize. Kev's door is answered by a big man who says he's Mitch from the insurance company.....and that Kev is away.
This is followed by some shady occurrences, and Kev doesn't call or show up. Mrs. Plansky comes to suspect Kev's boat was blown up on purpose, and that Kev is missing. Mrs. Plansky goes to the police, but the detective treats her like a confused old lady with dementia, so Loretta decides to search for Kev herself.
This results in threats to Loretta AND her son Jack, who Loretta now learns was involved in some kind of business with Kev.
Mrs. Plansky isn't your average retiree, and her exploits include breaking into Kev's house (twice); freediving; kayaking; swimming; sneaking around a beer brewery; flying to the Bahamas in a private plane; saving people's lives; and more.
As all this is going on, Mrs. Plansky has to deal with her father's antics, which involve frequent complaints; doing things behind Loretta's back; helping himself to Loretta's things; getting engaged; making himself an engagement party with a band; and more.
Some of the fun parts of the novel are Mrs. Plansky's inner thoughts - like the time she tries to figure out the code for a digital lock; or when she's not sure if the insurance man is called Mitch or Mr. Mitch. Despite Loretta's occasional confusion, she gets to the bottom of things in the end, and her spunk is admirable.
The story has a variety of interesting characters, such as Chandler's lady friends at his old retirement home; a journalist who pilots her own plane; Kev Dinardo's ex-wife; a helpful barefoot fisherman; Loretta's daughter Nina; Nina's new beau Hamish; an alligator named Fairbanks; and more.
This book doesn't have quite the verve of the first Mrs. Plansky novel. Still, it's fun to go on an adventure with Loretta, and I suspect Loretta will have more exploits in the future.
I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Petrea Burchard, who does a fine job.
Thanks to Netgalley, Spencer Quinn, and Macmillan Audio for a copy of the book.
Thanks to Netgalley, Spencer Quinn, and Macmillan Audio for a copy of the book.
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