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Liked It “I love this book. I love Helen Hawthorne's character and her dry humor. I'll definitely read the whole series.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“This is another great cozy in the Helen Hawthorne series in Florida, that deals doubly with murder, intrigue, suspense, drama, romance, and Helen's ex into the mess. Even with good humor gives it a kick. I'll be reading Killer Cuts next year and Clubbed to Death tomorrow.
Kristen H wrote this review Tuesday, June 2 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
”“I love this book. I love Helen Hawthorne's character and her dry humor. I'll definitely read the whole series.”
Niki H wrote this review Wednesday, April 8 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I love having cozy mysteries on Mt Git'r'Read's shelves. They are perfect purse book size, they cheer me up, and they are fast reads. Towards the end of the month, I want to squeeze just one more book on my monthly book journal. This one fit the bill wonderfully.
IYamVixenBooks wrote this review Monday, March 30 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Helen Hawthorne is still on the run from her loser deadbeat ex-husband. He was the one who didn't work and philandered around while she worked her heinie off and stayed true. She caught him in the act with their neighbor (6 books ago) and she took it out on his SUV. The judge had the gall to award the sleaze ex with alimony. Helen hit the trail and has been living in Florida and working a succession of paid under the table jobs to keep a low profile and hide from her ex who is searching her out for what he thinks is rightfully his.
Now Helen is working at the Full Moon Hotel as a maid. She just wants to do her back breaking job and go home to her nice boyfriend.
Nope, the ex is hot on her trail and shows up at the hotel to look for her.
AND she finds a body of a fellow maid in the Dumpster and all hope of anonymity meanders away. There's also a hunt on for $150,000 that was never found after a bank robber stowed away in the hotel six months ago. Bodies, missing money, swindlers.....a good mix for a good cozy mystery.
Elaine Viets raises awareness as well as writes a fab book. Reading this one gave me wicked flashbacks when I used to clean rooms when I was in high school and college at a motel in my hometown.....people can be SLOBS! I have huge respect for the profession and make sure I leave tips, pick up my own towels, generally don't leave a mess for these hard working people who clean up after our stay. Do many clean their home each and every day? That's what these folks do many many times a day. A gazillion bathrooms to scrub, a multitude of beds to make, floors to vacuum and mop....you get the idea I feel a little passionate about the subject.
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“3 1/2 stars. Part of the fun of reading these mysteries is seeing the protagonist Helen do a different job every book, but this one was kind of bogged down with boring maid work minutia. Still the mystery element was very good and it will be interesting to see where the author takes the story arc with Helen's ex in the next book.”
danae wrote this review Friday, May 23 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“MURDER WITH RESERVATIONS by Elaine Viets ($21.95, NAL) Sixth in the Dead-end job series Rating A-
maggie m wrote this review Sunday, April 13 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
After the events in the last book, Helen Hawthorne has found a new job working as a hotel maid. The hotel is not a part of a chain, and her co-workers are nice. That comes in handy when she finds her ex-husband Rob has tracked her down to Ft. Lauderdale, and is on his way to find her. Luckily he doesn't know where she lives or works, but unluckily he has chosen to stay at the hotel where Helen is working.
Sadly, one of Helen's co-workers goes missing, after offering to treat Helen to dinner. Helen regrets not going out with her, as Helen is the one to find her body in a dumpster. It seems that while the owner of the hotel is considerate of her employees, she does cut corners where she can. One way of cutting corners is to cut back on trash pickups by using a trash perfume. Helen smelled something more than the usual trash, and found Rhonda's body.
The police are called, and Helen tries to keep a low profile. Sadly, the hotel had been the scene of a previous catastrophe. A bank robber had been hiding out in the hotel. He was shot by the police, and the money from the robbery has never been found. Lucky for Helen she wasn't employed at the hotel then, but she realizes that when she sees a co-worker looking in vents, they are probably looking for the loot.
Sadly, another body is found at the hotel, a businessman from the Midwest. He seems to have no connection with Rhonda or the missing loot, but the death brings the police back. Helen discovered that body as well.
The hotel staff work together to keep Helen away from Rob, and while she can't fully relax, she is able to keep her job. Her landlady, Margery, comes up with a solution that may be just the ticket. She introduces Rob to a wealthy widow she knows. Helen worries that Marcella may deserve the reputation she has as a black widow, who kills her husbands.
While Helen may view Rob as the worst scum, does she really want him dead??
Helen discovers Rhonda's murderer, and almost by accident discovers the murderer of the hotel guest. When she finds the lost loot, she would seem to be on a real roll. She does an amazing thing with the loot, and all may or may not be well. We'll just have to see what happens in the next book.
This was my favorite so far in the series. I've enjoyed watching Helen work in many jobs, and this one was one I have never considered or worked at myself. The descriptions of the rooms when guests check out is shocking, especially the honeymoon suites. I always felt bad if I missed the trash can, and forgot to go put the trash in the can, but now don't feel nearly as bad. One of the maids had a good idea - paint targets on the toilets. Perhaps this book can be put in motel rooms as a gentle hint it's not OK to trash another person's property. There was one room in the hotel that seemed to attract the worst abuse, and I wonder if every hotel has one like it.
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“I really like this series and the way she takes care of her ex was genius!”
Magickdawn wrote this review Monday, October 29 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Loved it! The best in the series!”
LLBartlett wrote this review Saturday, May 12 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
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