The Curse of the Holy Pail : An Odelia Grey Mystery by Sue Ann Jaffarian
]Odelia Grey is an overweight paralegal who solves mysteries. Everyone needs a gimmick, I guess. This one mostly works, but I’m still left with a bit of a feeling that the author is trying to find some way to stand out in the overcrowded “gumshoe with a gimmick” market. Doubly so when we find out that her boyfriend is a paraplegic.
Anway, Odelia is told by her overbearing boss to stop at a client’s office on the way to work in the morning and notarize a couple of forms and bring a box of papers back to work on. While there, the client, Mr. Price, shows her his lunch pail collection, including his prized Chappy Wheeler Show lunchbox. Mr. Price dies shortly thereafter as befits a man who owns a lunch pail with a curse.
Well written and nicely paced, this is a good beach or airplane read. Some of the twists and turns are a bit telegraphed, but there are enough that aren’t to hold interest. There’s also a good little twist at the end.
