Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The Blackbird sisters-Nora, Libby and Emma-tackle their sixth arch mystery (after 2006's Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too) set among Philadelphia's contemporary blue-blooded (and red-handed) set. When former child star Sweet Penny Devine goes missing and is presumed dead, her brother, Porter "Potty" Devine, opts for a memorial party and polo match instead of a funeral, which Nora, a society reporter, covers for a Philadelphia paper. The festivities falter after Nora discovers a severed hand that could be Penny's. Nora, Libby and Emma aid detective Ben Bloom in an investigation whose suspects include Potty; Vivian, Penny's cat-crazy sister; the Devines' former housekeeper's daughter, Julie Huckabee; Julie's missing father, Kell Huckabee; and Crewe Dearborne, a food critic. Sleuthing provides a welcome distraction for Nora, still grieving over a miscarriage and a little nervous about her engagement to Michael Abruzzo, son of a notorious New Jersey mobster. Martin's wicked observations about the horsy set enhance another fine-feathered mystery. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Following her abruptly terminated pregnancy (Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too, 2006), the course of true love continues to run murderous for Philadelphia society reporter Nora Blackbird and her Mafia swain Michael Abruzzo. A year after aging child star Penny Devine disappeared, her brother and sister, Potty and Vivian, have opened Eagle Glen for a wake disguised as the Penny Devine Memorial Polo Match. Everyone who's anyone is there, from nonpareil restaurant reviewer Crewe Dearborne to world-class polo player Raphael Braga, who's torn himself from Nora's side to play patty-cake with her sister Emma. So is Penny, or at least what looks like a piece of her: a severed hand Nora steps on while she's strolling with Michael. Will the discovery mean that Potty and Vivian can have Penny declared dead so that the serious fighting over her estate can begin? Will it flush out the illegitimate child she bore 40 years ago? And--let's get to the heart of the matter--what effect will it have on Nora and Michael's upcoming nuptials? Dishing dirt on the cast with the brittle gusto of a woman who's less concerned with losing her baby than with finding the perfect little black dress, Nora keeps the proceedings appropriately arch until the final anticlimax. The concern about Nora's marrying into the Mob rings hollow, given that her crowd would be equally concerned if she wed anyone outside the Social Register. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
