Dead Ex

Starred review from June 4, 2007
Holy Hollywood! In actor-turned-author Kozak's witty third crime caper (after 2005's Dating Is Murder
), wild Wollie Shelley must solve the cold-blooded murder of terminally ill David Zetrakis, producer of the popular TV soap At the End of the Day
. Tall, unarmed and sometimes very dangerous if provoked, Wollie's an underemployed greeting card artist who starts moonlighting as the dating correspondent for the talk show SoapDirt
. Getting the dirt on David's killer, however, proves to be a major challenge. Wollie and her best friend, fellow Day
actress Joey Rafferty, had both dated David, and Joey becomes the LAPD's top suspect when it turns out David bequeathed her a valuable Gustav Klimt painting. Wollie's faith in her friend is further tested when Joey's husband dies in a suspicious surfing accident and Joey disappears. A Greek mythology twist and crackling insider insight into the fascinating soap opera world enhance this clever whodunit.