Murder to the Metal

April 2, 2018
Set in Cleveland, Ohio, Hogsett’s amusing sequel to 2017’s Too Lucky to Live finds part-time librarian Allie Harper, who does narrative duty, and her companion, Thomas Bennington III, a professor who won a $550 million lottery jackpot in the previous book, ensconced in a rented 9,000 sq. ft. mansion overlooking Lake Erie. What are a newly and wildly rich couple to do? Why not start the T&A Detective Agency? They are handed their first case when Loretta Coates, a librarian friend of Allie’s, asks Allie to find her boyfriend, Lloyd Bunker, who has vanished without a trace, as has his classic 1967 GTO. As Allie and Tom investigate, they discover that Lloyd’s disappearance is connected to a web of other misdeeds that could spell trouble for themselves. A clever explanation for the crimes helps compensate for some lame sleuthing: many of the clues are discovered solely due to happenstance or are laid in place by Cleveland cop Tony Valerio, an unofficial T&A member. Readers who don’t mind slapdash detecting will look forward to spending more time in Allie’s likable company. Agent: Victoria Skurnick, Levine Greenberg Literary Agency.

April 1, 2018
Lottery winners who play detective may bear more responsibility for the crime than the solution.Winning the $550 million from the MondoMegaJackpot last year has been a real life changer for Allie Harper and her partner, Tom Bennington, though not in the way anyone would have expected. Instead of focusing on a lavish lifestyle and the related accoutrements, Allie's trying to convince Tom to join her in founding the T&A Detective Agency--named for their initials, of course. Their success in staying alive long enough to collect and protect their winnings (Too Lucky To Live, 2017) has convinced Allie that she has what it takes to help when her former colleague Loretta Coates shows up at her door. Loretta's boyfriend, Lloyd Bunker, disappeared on a courier gig, and Loretta wants Allie to find out what happened, even if it means learning that Lloyd may be dead. So Allie gathers her network, including her bodyguard, Otis, who's a licensed private investigator; a Cleveland cop who's relieved not to be working against Allie this time around; Margo, her former landlady and a sassy woman in her own right; and a new ally, television reporter Lisa Cole. Tom helps where he can; though he's blind, his limitation has given him a greater ability to listen, and he's the crew's resident lie detector. When Allie finally learns of Lloyd's fate, she's shocked by its connections to her own life, connections that put her, the team, and especially Tom in grave danger as the curse of the MondoMegaJackpot continues apace.So many quirky characters, intersecting plots, and sudden reveals overfill Hogsett's second that it can be hard to decide which of her unique threads to follow.

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June 1, 2018

Ten months after their adventures in Too Lucky To Live, Allie Harper and boyfriend Thomas Bennington III, a blind professor who won the lottery, have formed the T&A Detective Agency to solve "mysteries of the heart." Their first case involves the disappearance of Lloyd Bunker, whose car is found stalled at a traffic light. Clues lead to crimes of stealing scrapping from abandoned houses, multiple murders, and hackers who seem to be able to penetrate any security. VERDICT Hogsett's sophomore effort isn't as outrageously funny as the first book. The bittersweet mystery, with the open-ended threat of a villainous mastermind, is reminiscent of P.J. Tracy's early "Monkeewrench" novels.--Lesa Holstine, Evansville Vanderburgh P.L., IN

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