Hair Brained
Bad Hair Day Mystery, Book #14
By Nancy J. Cohen
ISBN13: 9780997003888
Author’s website: http://nancyjcohen.com/
Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Jerjen
Synopsis:
When hairstylist Marla Vail’s best friend is hurt in a suspicious car accident, Marla assumes guardianship of her infant son. No sooner does Marla say, “Baby want a bottle?” than she’s embroiled in another murder investigation. Her husband, Detective Dalton Vail, determines the crash may not have been an accident after all. But then, who would want Tally—or Ken in the car with her—out of the way? As Marla digs deeper into her friends’ lives, she realizes she didn’t know them as well as she’d thought. Nonetheless, it’s her duty as their son’s guardian to ensure his safety, even if it means putting her own life at risk. Can she protect the baby and find the culprit before someone else ends up as roadkill?
Review:
While having a New Year’s Eve celebration at their house, Marla and her husband Dalton receive a phone call informing them that two of their friends are missing. Tally and Ken’s babysitter has called to tell them that the two have not returned home from a night out. Marla and Dalton go pick up their friend’s young son and begin to look for them. They eventually find out that Tally and Ken have been in a car accident. That is bad enough, but when Dalton, a detective, determines that the accident may not have been so accidental, Marla knows she has to help figure out exactly what happened. But between her own busy life with work and taking care of an infant, her plate is overflowing. She has no idea of how to care for an infant, she has never had any children of her own. But she knows she will do whatever it takes to make sure the baby is safe.
The characters are well rounded and well developed. Marla is a great woman who seems to be able to handle most anything. Watching her work with her husband to try to figure out how the accident happened and who was involved was a refreshing change for me. Usually in the cozies I read, the protagonist is at odds with law enforcement and is always being told to keep her nose out of the investigation. I really liked that that was not the case in this book.
The mystery was well plotted and moved along at a nice pace. There were enough suspects to consider and clues to sift through that it was not an easy one to figure out. I found myself swiping pages as fast as I could to find out what was going to happen next. And not only for the mystery but to see how Marla was going to handle being an instant mother and how all of the turmoil in their lives would work itself out.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a well crafted cozy mystery. This book was a little meatier than your typical cozy, which was great. I have not read any other books in this series, but I was able to follow along just fine. After reading this one, I have to go back and read the others.
